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Description
Oral History interview of Kenneth Lee. Interview conducted by Roark, Phil at The University of Central Florida in Orlando, FL.
Log
1:00 Early life and family; 4:15 Time at Purdue University; 5:51 ROTC experience; 7:09 Early experiences in the Navy; 7:51 Naval Education; 10:04 Transition to Navy life; 10:50 Duties on first submarine; 11:43 Early travel experiences; 12:30 Choosing duty assignment; 13:01 Treatment of ROTC cadets; 13:35 Favorite ports; 14:37 Liberty and leave; 16:11 Keeping contact with family; 16:59 Computer programming at Purdue; 17:19 Teaching at submarine school; 18:39 John Walker and security measures; 20:45 Deployment experiences; 22:30 UNITAS; 23:19 Time spent in Rio de Janeiro; 24:42 Keeping in contact with old shipmates; 25:29 Most memorable experiences in the Navy; 30:17 Leaving the Navy; 31:36 Most memorable submarines; 32:42 Captaining a submarine; 33:06 Jumping the equator; 36:42 Opinions on the past and present roll of submarines; 38:47 Submarine symposiums; 41:00 Career after Navy; 44:40 Visiting Russia; 45:25 Boris Niemtsov; 46:34 Missile test launches; 51:21 Attending a Russian submariners' reunion; 54:26 Public attitudes towards military; 56:31 Volunteering with the Navy League; 57:47 Opinions on recent military operations; 0:59:16 Physical demands of life on submarines; 1:02:06 Opinions on the integration of women on submarines; 1:04:43 End of the Cold War; 1:09:25 Working around nuclear weapons; 1:11:28 Environmental impact of submarines.
Date of Birth
1942-11-14
Place of Birth
Fort Wayne (Ind.)
Gender
Male
Race
White - Non Hispanic
Home State
Indiana
War or Conflict
Cold War Era
Status
Veteran
Begin/End date of Service - 1st
1965-06-06
Type
Video; MovingImage
1988-10-01
Entrance into Service
Commissioned
Branch of Service
U.S. Navy
Unit of Service
USS Gato (SSN 615); USS Thomas Jefferson (SSBN 618)G; USS Simon Bolivar (SSBN 651)B; USS Sargo (SSN 583); US Naval Submarine School, New London, CT; Sub-Group Five, San Diego, CA; the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Washington DC
Location of Service
West Lafayette (Ind.); Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)
Highest Rank
Captain; CAPT
Prisoner of War
Unspecified
Service Related Injury
Unspecified
Battles
Unspecified
Medals
Legion of Merit; Meritorious Service Medal; Navy Commendation Medal; Navy Achievement Medal; Navy Expeditionary Medal
Achievements
Served on 4 nuclear submarines; commanding officer of nuclear submarine USS Gato (SSN 615); naval submarine school instructor; deployment to Mediterranean, 1981; deployment to South America, 1982; fired 7 test missiles (ICBM's) from USS Simon Bolivar (SSBN 641); usher at memorial service for Admiral Hyman G. Rickover.
Note
Served 23 years 3 months in US navy submarine service. Retired from navy Oct. 1988 and worked for Lockheed Martin underwater technologies division in Riviera Beach, Florida for 12 years and retired from there in 2000. Active member of Navy League volunteer organization supporting navy, coast guard, marines and merchant marines, including 3 years as NL Palm Beach council president. Was commissioned through navy ROTC program at Purdue University in 1965 and was inducted into Purdue University ROTC Hall of Fame in 2004. Deployed sub ops. Captain of US Navy O-6. Awarded meritorious service medal four times
City of Birth
Fort Wayne
Country of Birth
United States
Interviewer
Roark, Phil
Interview Date
3-5-2015
Location of Interview
The University of Central Florida in Orlando, FL.
Subjects
Lee, Kenneth A.; Cold War -- Personal Narratives; United States. Navy
Collection Description
Contains logs, audio and video recordings of interviews with Central Florida's veterans as part of a history class project for the students at the University of Central Florida (UCF). The UCF Community Veterans History Project(CVHP) started in fall 2010. It collects, preserves, and makes accessible to the public the experiences of Central Florida's veterans so that future generations will better understand the realities of conflict. It is a collaborative endeavor supported by multiple departments and offices at UCF. The veterans' histories are archived and made digitally available through the UCF library and selected materials are contributed to the Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress.
Contributor Affiliation / Organization
RICHES; University of Central Florida
Contributors
Roark, Phil
Length of Interview
76 Minutes
Publisher
Department of History, University of Central Florida
Type
video
Rights
All rights are held by the respective holding institution. This material is posted publicly for non-profit educational uses, excluding printed publication. For permission to reproduce and/or for copyright information contact Special Collections and University Archives, University of Central Florida Libraries, (407) 823-2576. http://library.ucf.edu/about/departments/special-collections-university-archives/
Repository
University of Central Florida Libraries, Special Collections and University Archives
Contributing Project
UCF Community Veterans History Project
Document Type
Interview
Recommended Citation
Central Florida, RICHES of, "Lee, Kenneth A. interview" (2015). Veterans Oral Histories. 367.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/veteransoralhistories/367