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Description
Oral History interview of James Wilkes. Interview conducted by Carlos Mercado at Colbourn Hall, University of Central Florida.
Log
0:01 Introduction; 0:41 Early life and birth date; 2:24 Mention of father working with Eisenhower; 4:00 Growing up; 6:03 Reason for enlisting in the military; 7:02 First Army detachment; 8:28 Reenlistment for optical school Training; 9:00 First deployment to Vietnam; 9:52 Basic Training; 14:28 First Vietnam memory; 19:15 Description of job in Vietnam; 21:34 Daily life in Vietnam; 23:32 Description of the Sniper; 25:23 Incident with a friend; 27:14 Reason for deployment to Germany; 29:08 Deployment to Germany; 30:50 Reason for Bad times in Frankfurt; 32:15 Second Tour of Vietnam; 34:30 Best memories from both Tours of Vietnam; 38:14 Leaving the military and beginning of civilian life; 46:15 Injury suffered; 48:18 End of interview.
Date of Birth
1947-07-31
Place of Birth
Bremerhaven (Germany)
Gender
Male
Race
White - Non Hispanic
Home State
NA
War or Conflict
Vietnam Era
Status
Veteran
Begin/End date of Service - 1st
1967-11-20
Type
Video; MovingImage
1971-04-20
Entrance into Service
Enlisted
Branch of Service
U.S. Army
Unit of Service
25th Medical BTN, 25th Infantry Division
Location of Service
Củ Chi (Vietnam); Frankfurt (Germany); Denver (Colo.)
Highest Rank
Specialist
Prisoner of War
No
Service Related Injury
Yes
Battles
Unspecified
Medals
Unspecified
Achievements
Served as Air Crew Gunner.
Note
"The veteran was adopted." -- The interviewer.
City of Birth
Bremerhaven
Country of Birth
Germany
Interviewer
Mercado, Carlos
Interview Date
Fall 10-19-2017
Location of Interview
Colbourn Hall, University of Central Florida
Subjects
Wilkes, James; Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- Personal Narratives; United States. Army
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
Mercado, Carlos
Length of Interview
49 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 & University Archives
Contributing Project
UCF Community Veterans History Project
Document Type
Interview
Recommended Citation
Central Florida, RICHES of, "Wilkes, James interview" (2017). Veterans Oral Histories. 556.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/veteransoralhistories/556