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Stories: Phout Chamleunsouk
Within the Connecticut Veterans History Project, Vietnam Veterans are the most numerous oral histories present. The men and women served in all branches from marching through the jungles in the army to flying jets and bombers over North Vietnam to aiding and comforting the wounded in the rear hospitals. Americans of all creeds participated, over the course of the Vietnam War, approximately 2,700,000 Americans served in South East Asia; Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. Most of the veterans in the archives were born and raised in America. While America sent millions of soldiers, there were also those native to South East Asia who fought alongside the Americans or with American support.…
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Stories: Germany During the Cold War
When the Second World War ended in 1945 with the defeat of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan, the world did not experience long-lasting peace as the Western Allies and the Soviet Union prepared for yet another war, this time against each other. The end of the war resulted in Europe being divided into two, the West and the East. Both countries formed alliances to bolster their armies, as a result, the largest militaries ever formed posed to fight each other. There were two major alliances during the Cold War. In 1949, the Western nations in Europe signed a cooperative, defense treaty called NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization). In response to…
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The Veterans History Project on the Connecticut Digital Archive
In addition to oral history interviews, the Veterans History Project also collects military documents, diaries, memorabilia, newspapers, and photographs that our interviewed veterans have shared with us. We scan or photograph these historic artifacts, return the originals to the veteran, and preserve the scans both at the Library of Congress and on our own website. When you search our collections, you can find links to these photographs and documents alongside the biographical information about the veteran and the link to their interview: Like the interviews themselves, these photographs and documents serve as a rich treasure trove of historical information that offer a detailed view of life as an American soldier.…
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Stories: Lawrence Davino
Millions of men and women served in the United States military throughout the 20th century. Connecticut is home to veterans from the First and Second World Wars, the Korean War, Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan. But from the end of the Second World War in 1945 to the fall of the Societ Union in 1991, millions of men and women served during what is known as the Cold War. The Cold war was fought through the proxy wars such as Korea and Vietnam but no official declaration of war was declared between the Soviet Union and America. While the men and women who joined the American military during the Cold War…
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How to Search the Collections
Connecticut’s Veterans History Project boasts hundreds of interviews, publications, and personal papers of Connecticut veterans from the First Great War from 1914-1918 to the current Middle Eastern conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. With such a large and growing collection, searching and exploring the Veterans History project can seem daunting. This post will provide a tutorial on how to search and maneuver the collection. The Veterans Database uses 9 selections to narrow down the search; Last Name, First Name, Gender, Battles, Unit/Ship, Served in, Branch, War, and Commodation. The first three selections mentioned above; Last Name, First Name, and Gender pertain to the veteran(s). The legal first and last name, and…
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Stories: Leslie Hardin
CONTENT WARNING: THIS POST CONTAINS REFERENCES TO SEXUAL ASSAULT AND VIOLENCE. Leslie Hardin is one of many veterans from a military family. Her father served in WWII, and after high school Leslie followed his footsteps into the Army Reserve in 1980. Leslie’s experience in boot camp was everything she’d hoped for. Camaraderie, challenges, and exciting work. She describes the joy of teamwork, being pushed to achieve her best. The experience was so positive that after basic training Leslie enlisted in active service, ready to make a career in the Army. But among Leslie’s many positive experiences, there was also a terrible crime. One night off-base, two men in uniform raped…
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Stories: Barbara Dannaher
Barbara Dannaher was one of tens of thousands of women who served as WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) during the Second World War. In hundreds of naval stations across the USA, WAVES occupied roles that allowed more men to serve at sea and in combat zones. Among this work, signals intelligence would prove some of the most crucial in the war. Before the war, Barbara worked for United Aircraft in Connecticut. Her first date with her future husband, Tom, was on December 7th, 1941. By the summer of 1942, Tom was in the Marines and Barbara heard the first recruitment drive for the WAVES. Because her employer was…
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Stories: George Brown
On August 13th, 1952, George Brown found himself standing on top of Hill 117, somewhere northeast of Seoul, Korea. Part of an offensive that began at 6AM that morning, George and the rest of Company K, 15th Regiment of the 3rd Division had achieved their objective. A peaceful quiet fell over the scene. A Chinese counterattack hit. Mortar and machine gun fire erupted around them, and George’s Sergeant screamed: his leg had been blown away. George grabbed the man from one side, while another soldier supported the Sergeant’s opposite side. The three were running for cover when another machine gun opened up. Three bullets hit the Sergeant. Three more hit…
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Stories: Melvin Horwitz
Melvin Horwitz was in an unusual position at the start of the Korean War. Just 24, Melvin had already graduated from Harvard Medical School and had nearly completed surgical training at Yale. However, a wartime draft had been declared. Horwitze could either volunteer his medical services as an Army surgeon, or run the risk of being drafted as a rifleman, an outcome he hardly relished. Interviewer:Would you have rather stayed in America? Melvin Horwitz:Oh, sure. I’m a devout coward. They were using real bullets in Korea. But in 1952, Melvin volunteered. His basic training in San Antonio was relatively relaxed. Doctors weren’t expected to achieve a high level of martial…
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Stories: Krystyna Stachowitz Farley
Krystyna Stachowitz Farley is one of many veterans in the archive of the Veterans History Project who served during WWII. Her story stands apart because Krystyna served in the “Anders Army” a unit composed entirely of Polish men and women formerly imprisoned by the Soviet Union. From her childhood in Poland, through captivity in Russia, and finally into military service in the Mediterranean theater, Krystyna offers a rare perspective into the Polish experience of WWII. In September, 1939, the European war began when first German, then Russian troops invaded Poland. In August, addendums to the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact had already partitioned Poland between the two conquering nations, and became moot only…
