The Veterans Oral History project
The Maine Folklife Center has joined
with the American Folklife Center at the Smithsonian Institution as
a partner in collecting the stories of veterans in our state.
Presently, we are concentrating on collecting reminiscences from
women veterans in Maine. Pauleena MacDougall and Davida Kellogg have
joined forces in acquiring funding from the Women in Curriculum
Program at the University of Maine to conduct oral history
interviews with women veterans.
In our society,
military service is generally taken on as an obligation or
prerogative of men. But, as Miriam Cooke observed, "some women, like
some men, are opposed to war and the military, some avoid both
whenever possible, and some embrace both." We propose to examine the
motivations, experiences, and reflections of local women who made
the unorthodox choice of military service in our country's wars from
WWII to our current involvement in Iraq, through the medium of oral
history. For the interviewees, the taping and accessioning of their
oral histories serves the purpose of validating and preserving the
truth of their experience, not as reporters perceived it and
civilian academics presented it, but as they remember living it.
This has been a matter of concern for many of the Vietnam veterans
already interviewed by Kellogg. One man complained bitterly of the
popular perception that marines in his area of operation had been
met by "dancing girls," when in fact his unit had come ashore under
fire; another, himself a military historian, mentioned the unreality
of television reportage of an action he had just been in. For the
historian, oral history has the virtue of capturing experiential
details about what it was like to serve on a daily basis in a
particular capacity with a particular unit in a particular theater
of operations at a particular juncture in a particular war, which
fly beneath the radar, so to speak, of more traditional
historiography. For women veterans, misperceptions and neglect of
their personal experience of war is even more pervasive. This
proposal is for an independent series of about 15 tape-recorded
interviews with women veterans of WWII, the Korean and Vietnam
conflicts, the Gulf War, and Bosnia. However, the questions to be
asked will be compatible with those prescribed for a larger oral
history for the Library of Congress, to which we will be
contributing; with questions already asked of female veterans by
students in last fall's Women and War seminar; and with those asked
in Kellogg’s on-going independent survey of predominantly male
Vietnam vets, so that cross-gender, -cultural, -occupational, and
-generational comparisons may be made.
"Most history has
been characterized as the history of men going to war," according to
Gila Safran Naveh, Professor of Judaic Studies and comparative
literature at the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Safran asserts, "if
we learn about women, we learn from the men. So women's voice is
distorted or silenced." But from the American Revolution (in which
"Molly Pitcher" first served water to Continental troops on the
battlefield and then stayed to serve her husband's cannon after he
was wounded), to the Civil War (in which Clara Barton tended her
patients at the Battle of Antietam stopping only to wring their
blood from the hem of her skirt), to WWII (in which women put on the
uniforms of their country's armed services in order to free men from
secretarial and other rear echelon jobs for combat duty), to the
Gulf War (in which women pilots flew Army helicopters), women have
always actively shared in the authorship of American military
history. If we are unfamiliar with the chapters of that history that
they wrote, it can only be because we do not think to ask them.
We are conducting
an independent series of tape recorded oral histories of women
veterans of WWII, the Korean and Vietnam Conflicts, the Gulf War,
and Bosnia in parallel with interviews already planned for the
Veterans Oral History Project sponsored by the Library of Congress.
There are some 8,000 women veterans living in Maine according to
Donna Loring, former Director of the state’s Commission of Women
Veterans. A large number of these women served in WWII and Korea,
and are reaching their elderly years. This makes reaching them a
timely project.
As an instrument
for shedding light on women's roles in American military history,
oral history has the special advantage of being able to encompass
both the technical historical questions of strategy, tactics, and
operations that are presented in more traditional histories, and the
deeply personal question of what wartime service was really like
that standard histories either elide or fail to do justice.
Questions we wish
to address include:
- Who are these women, who (since
we have never drafted women) self-selected themselves for military
service?
- Where do they come from?
- What are the familial and
societal influences affecting their non-traditional choice?
- Do the same factors that
motivate their brothers-in-arms to join up motivate them? (From
Kellogg’s interviews with male Vietnam veterans, it appears that
their fathers' approval was among the most compelling, if not the
single most influential factor in these men's decision to enlist;
Miriam Cooke suggests that desire for full first-class citizenship
may be a driving force in women's choice of military careers).
- What were their experiences in
training? (In basic training camps, OCS, and, since 1980, in our
military academies [see, for instance, "In the Men's House" by a
member of the first class of women to graduate from West Point]).
- Which military occupational
specialties were open to them and which closed? (Only the Coast
Guard puts no restrictions on the jobs women can do and women in
combat remains a subject of intense debate [see recent articles in
Parameters, the journal of the US Army War College);
- What was their leadership like
and how did they lead?
- What was their experience of
combat? (Some nurses, for instance, found themselves in medical
facilities that were being overrun by the enemy).
- How do they react to ethical
issues presented by warfare? (One of Kellogg’s female interviewees
recounted being pressured to attend parties with higher ranking
male officers in order to obtain needed supplies for her surgical
facility).
- How did their attitudes towards
themselves, their comrades, and their nation change through
exposure to warfare? (see Mary Reynolds Powell's recent book and
her interview with Kellogg).
- How well do they integrate
themselves back into civilian society?
- Are women soldiers as vulnerable
to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder as men, and do they experience
PTSD in the same ways as men do? ("Home Before Morning," an Army
nurse's memoir of the Vietnam Conflict by Lynda Van Devanter, for
instance, reveals many striking similarities between male and
female vets in this regard).
- Are any differences related to
gender rather than occupation, rank, or other factors affecting
their experience of military service? (See LG Claudia Kennedy's
Generally Speaking).
This latter
question can be answered by comparing responses of male and female
interviewees to sample interview questions we plan to use in our
larger contribution to the Library of Congress Veteran's History
Project. In addition, Kellogg has asked similar questions of male
interviewees in her oral history of Vietnam vets, which has been on
going over the past 13 years. Her collection of taped interviews is
by now fairly extensive (on the order of thirty to forty ninety
minute or longer interviews), and a number of them are already
transcribed and accessioned by the Northeast Archives. Recent
conversations with Mazie Hough have confirmed that many of these
questions are the same as, or interchangeable with, those asked by
her and Carol Toner's students this past fall in their Women and
Warfare course at the University of Maine.
We already have
three completed interviews with women veterans, (two of the Vietnam
War, Beth Parks' among them, and one of the Gulf War) in Kellogg's
collection, and additional interviews done last term by students in
Toner and Hough's course. Hough and Kellogg have discussed having
all of us involved in this work stay in close communication to
prevent us from contacting prospective interviewees twice, and to
facilitate the sharing of experiences, information, and insights, as
well as to support each other in what can be very emotionally
draining work. MacDougall and Kellogg's intention is to interview an
additional three women per conflict (a total of approximately
fifteen additional interviews) for this study, and to analyze them
for commonalities both with each other and with men in our other
interview samples who served in the same theaters of operation, as
well as cultural, generational, gender, and occupational
differences.
Dr. MacDougall is
Associate Director of the Folklife Center and has extensive
experience in oral history; Dr. Kellogg teaches military history and
ethics for Army ROTC, has presented papers on the Vietnam experience
at conferences on the history of the Vietnam Conflict and the
Popular Culture Association. She has been doing oral histories of
Vietnam Veterans since 1989, during which time she has established a
wide network of contacts within the local and national veterans'
communities. As mentioned above, we already have access to a body of
interviews with women veterans and another with mostly men, and we
expect analysis of these to inform the proposed additional
interviews with women veterans.
Interviews recorded
for this project and transcripts will be accessioned by the
Northeast Archives and made available for scholarly research within
the limits of any restrictions individual interviewees may have
placed on dissemination of their tapes. These interviews will also
form part of the larger Library of Congress oral history to which
MacDougall and Kellogg will also be contributing other interviews.
Kellogg expects these interviews to result in several papers on
ethics and leadership, and to inform her lectures on military ethics
and military history for Army ROTC. MacDougall plans to develop
additional public programming from the materials generated by the
project and archived at the Maine Folklife Center. These materials
will therefore be available to faculty, students and other
researchers.
Interviews by Davida
Kellogg held by the Maine Folklife Center
2057
Kellogg, Davida. Spring 1989. Maine: Orono. 16 pp. Tape: 1/2 hr. w/
trans. Interview with Prof. John Battick about his childhood
recollections of life as the son of a career enlisted man in the
U.S. Navy, particularly his memories of December 7, 1941.
C579
2063
Kellogg, Davida. Spring 1989. Maine: Orono. 61 pp. Tape: 1 1/2 hrs.
w/trans. Interview with Michael Doherty in which he talks about his
experiences as a weapons crew chief during the Viet Nam War.
RESTRICTED. C583
2064
Kellogg, Davida. Spring 1989. Maine: Orono. 53 pp. Tapes: 1 1/2 hrs.
approx. w/ trans. Interview with Alex McLean, who taught English to
Vietnamese Air Force personnel as part of the Defense Department's
Language Institute. He discusses his experiences during the war
including daily life in Saigon, attitudes towards the Vietnamese,
war mythology, the black market.
RESTRICTED. C584.1, C584.2
2065
Kellogg, Davida. Spring 1989. Maine: Orono. 43 pp. Tape: 1 1/4 hrs.
approx. w/ trans. Interview with Professor Robert Whalen about his
experiences as a Lieutenant Colonel in the Airborne Rangers during
two tours of duty in Vietnam.
RESTRICTED. C585
2070
Kellogg, Davida. Spring 1989. Maine: Orono. 31 pp. Tape: 1 1/2 hr.
w/ trans. Interview with Dr. Greg White, Director of Land and Water
Resources at the University of Maine, Orono, talks about his
experiences in the Vietnam War. Also includes xerox of a map
entitled South Vietnam Administrative Divisions and Military
Districts and one hand drawn diagram showing vietcong trail
markings.
RESTRICTED. C593
2071
Kellogg, Davida. Summer 1989. Maine: Orono. 16 pp. Tape: 1 hr.
w/trans. Interview with Commander Thomas Dewey Meeter of the
University of Me. NROTC discusses his Vietnam experiences. Also
includes one xeroxed map of S. Vietnam entitled "Vietnam", one
handrawn diagram showing Navy "linebacker Strikes".
RESTRICTED. C594
2345
Kellogg, Davida. June 1992. New York: West Point. 23pp. Tape: 1
w/transcript. Interview with Colonel Kenneth E. Hamburger,
Department of History, US Military Academy, West Point. He talks
about his military training and his service in Vietnam in the 1960's
as a helicopter pilot with the 229th of the 1st Air Cavalry.
RESTRICTED: For scholarly use only. The director
must clear use. C1364
2346
Kellogg, Davida. December 1989.
Maine: Orono. 40pp. Tape: 1 w/ transcript. Interview with Col.
William R. Porter, Professor of Military Science at the University
of Maine talking about his experiences in the UN and teaching at the
University of Maine.
RESTRICTED: For scholarly use only, must be cleared
by the director. C1365
2347
Kellogg, Davida. June 1992. New York:
West Point. 36pp. Tape: 1 w/ transcript. Interview with James Ahrens
talking about his experiences in Saudi Arabia during the Gulf War
working in the Army’s Civil Affairs division.
RESTRICTED: For scholarly use only, use must be
cleared by the director. C1366
2348
Kellogg, Davida. September 1990. Maine: Orono. 38pp. Tape: 1 w/
transcript. Interview with Col. Jerome Palanunk, Commanding Officer
of the Air Force ROTC unit at the University of Maine talking about
his Air Force career and experiences as a B-52 crew member in the
UN.
RESTRICTED: For scholarly use only, use must be
cleared by the director. C1367
2349
Kellogg, Davida. December 1989. Maine: Belgrade. 33pp. Tape: 1 w/
transcript. Interview with Steve Bentley, head of Vets Incorporated,
an employment agency for Veterans in Portland, Maine talking about
his experiences in the UN and the physical, psychological and
emotional troubles Vietnam Vets have had after Vietnam.
RESTRICTED: For scholarly use only, use must be
cleared by the director. C1368
2350
Kellogg, Davida. July 1989. Maine: Orono. 47pp. Tape: 1 w/
transcript. Interview with Thomas "Tank" Meehan, chief of security
at the University of Maine talking about his experiences as a pilot
in Vietnam in the late 1960's.
RESTRICTED: For scholarly use only, use must be
cleared by the director. C1369
2361
Kellogg, Davida. July 1990. Maine: Orono. 31pp. Tape: 1 w/
transcript. Interview with Mary Beth Parks regarding her experiences
as a US Army Nurse in the Vietnam War in 1966-67. C1407
2995
Sandra L. Smith, interviewed by Davida Kellogg,
August 16, 2002. 34 page transcript. Smith discusses her career in
the Navy; boot camp; women in the military; Navy aircraft; Gulf War
in 1990; serving in Saudi Arabia; Vincennes incident; military
recognition systems and electronic instrumentation; being a social
worker and counselor for the Veteran’s Administration; Veteran’s
Centers in Maine; Persian Gulf syndrome; patriotism; sense of
connection with comrades; psychological stresses of military life;
and veteran’s reaction to the terrorist attacks of September 11,
2001. C 2035
2996
Major Brenda Childs Jordan,
interviewed by Davida Kellogg, August 15, 2002. 36 page transcript.
Jordan talks about her experiences as a cadet at West Point,
1984-1987; women at West Point; relationships between men and women
in the Army and at West Point; discrimination issues; family
reaction to her career choice; experience as an officer in a
“jumping unit” of the Signal Corps; paratrooper training; working
with ROTC in Maine; ROTC cadets; sexual harrassment; and women as
snipers. C 2036
2997
William V. Braniff, interviewed by Davida Kellogg, June 21, 2002. 50
page transcript. Braniff talks about his family history in the
Canadian Army; his service in the Canadian Army; deciding to join U.
S. Army to fight in Vietnam; basic training; experiences at Fort Dix
in New Jersey; being a game warden at Fort Dix; getting his
assignment for Vietnam; experience of the Tet offensive; infantry
life in Vietnam; combat experiences; body counts; tunnel rats;
returning to the U. S.; returning to Canada with Post-Traumatic
Stress Disorder; and infiltrating Communist organizations for the
Royal Canadian Mounted Police. C 2037 - C 2038
2998
Mary Cady, interviewed by Davida
Kellogg, June 25, 2002. 19 page transcript. Cady discusses her
career in the Army, 1970-1990, in the reserves after 1974; decision
to join; women in the military; relationships with male officers and
enlisted men; women in combat; and her experience with having
children while in the reserves. C 2039
2999
James E. Crinter, interviewed by Davida Kellogg, June 10, 2002. 17
page transcript. Criner talks about his childhood; joining the
Civilian Conservation Corps; joining the Army in 1935; enlisting in
the Navy in 1939; his career in the Navy; convoy duty during World
War Two; his duties as a radioman; on a water distilling ship in the
Pacific; on-shore assignments; radar; teaching at the Naval Academy;
year in Vietnam; and retiring. C 2040
3000
Carol Estabrooke Dowling, interviewed by Davida Kellogg, August 31,
1991. Dowling talks about her career in the Air Force; basic
training; going to Saudi Arabia during the Gulf War; childcare;
conditions at the airstrip in the desert; food supply; recreation;
other assignments; women in the military; loading bombs onto
airplanes; and combining family life with dual careers in the Air
Force. C 2041
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