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The Christy Collection

Military Stories and Articles

Distinguished Military Unit: 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) Vietnam By A3C Michael Bell

Distinguished Military Unit: 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) Vietnam By A3C Michael Bell

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"…Though some go curving down the trailTo seek a warmer scene.No Trooper ever gets to HellEre he's emptied his canteen.And so rides back to drink againWith friends at Fiddlers' Green." The 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) is respected for its lore and insignia, its mottos "[America's] First Team," "The Ground You Stand Upon," or "Live The Legend" and its traditions. The poem "Fiddler's Green" is noteworthy within the 1st Cavalry Division; it acknowledges cavalry history and sacrifices of its...

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Summary of The Vietnam War (1959-1975)

Summary of The Vietnam War (1959-1975)

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Vietnam was a country torn by war long before Americans became involved in the fighting. French domination was interrupted by the Japanese occupation in World War II, during which Communist leader Ho Chi Minh formed his Viet Minh organization and began guerrilla operations against both occupying powers. The Viet Minh came to power when Japan fell, and the French Indochina War began in 1946 as France attempted to regain control over its colony. The war ended in May 1954 when the Viet Minh...

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First WW II Aircraft Crew to Reach 25 Missions

First WW II Aircraft Crew to Reach 25 Missions

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1917, and 1918, the United States government issued Liberty Bonds to raise money for our involvement in World War I. By the summer of 1940 when it appeared the United States would be drawn into World War II, bonds again were being sold as a way to remove money from circulation as well as reduce inflation. After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, the bonds became known at War Bonds.

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Service Reflections of SSG Eastman Jerry, U.S. Army (1974-1986)

Service Reflections of SSG Eastman Jerry, U.S. Army (1974-1986)

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I had always wanted to be in the military ever since I was a child. I was sure I wanted to join the US Marines and studied them while growing up. However, that was not to be the case, as my cousin, who is nine years older than I and was one of my primary babysitters growing up, went into the Marine Corps, became a sniper, and was in Vietnam during the Tet Offensive in 1968. Upon his return, he basically threatened me that if I even got close to a marine recruiter or office, he would personally “kick my butt.”

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Service Reflections of Capt Frank Farr, U.S. Army Air Corps (1943-1945)

Service Reflections of Capt Frank Farr, U.S. Army Air Corps (1943-1945)

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I was born in a tiny apartment somewhere behind the screen of a movie theater in Picher, Oklahoma, on March 3, 1924. I am told that as my mother’s labor pains intensified and came more frequently, the theater owner/manager sent the patrons home and locked the doors so she could have some privacy in her travails. My father was working in the mines in and around Picher, which was booming in the 1920s, and the little apartment was the only residence they could find at the time.Despite them being similarly reserved and not the type of men to brag, I could hardly wait to visit them so I could beg them to tell me war stories. The experiences they shared with me made a lasting impression during my early childhood, which further aroused my desire to serve my country.

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US Navy C-130 Hercules Plane Lands & Takes Off From An Aircraft Carrier

US Navy C-130 Hercules Plane Lands & Takes Off From An Aircraft Carrier

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Aircraft carriers are enormously important. They serve as mobile bases for warplanes at sea. They have flight decks for planes to take off and land. They carry equipment for arming warplanes and recovering planes that have been damaged. An aircraft carrier is considered a capital ship, the most important ship. This is because the Navy can use it to extend its power anywhere in the world. Countries that want to exercise influence need to have aircraft carriers. History of the C-130 Hercules...

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Heroines Under Fire

Heroines Under Fire

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On July 29, 1918, field nurse Linnie Leckrone jumped on a truck headed for the front as part of Gas and Shock Team 134 in the battle of Chateau-Thierry northeast of Paris during the Great War. As German artillery rained down, she tended the wounded. For her “conspicuous gallantry in action,” Leckrone was awarded what was then called the Citation Star in a certificate signed by Gen. John (Black Jack) Pershing, commander of the American Expeditionary Force.

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Maj Richard M. Cole, U.S. Air Force (1970-1992)

Maj Richard M. Cole, U.S. Air Force (1970-1992)

Did Any of Your Parents or Grandparents Serve? What Facts or Stories Do You Remember About Their Service?:

Military service has become a tradition in my family. One of the things that has kept me busy in retirement is genealogy research. Through my research, I discovered that my fourth great-grandfather, William McLee “Mack” Cole, served with Company B of the South Carolina Volunteer Infantry, which drew the majority of its men from Laurens County. Pvt. Cole died of pneumonia following the Battle of Fredericksburg, Va. He died in Chimborazo Hospital Number 5 and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Richmond, Va. Men were dying in large numbers at the hospital and were buried in Oakwood with as many as six men to a grave. A small stone cube marked the graves with numbers on them that correlated to a grave registry book listing the names of the men in each grave. When I discovered that my grandfather did not have a headstone, I attempted to obtain one for him through the VA, only to have my request denied. They stated the stone cube and grave registry were sufficient markings for his grave. So, I purchased him a headstone and, with the assistance of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, had it installed over his burial site at Oakwood.

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ET1 Thomas Herendeen, U.S. Coast Guard (1970-1974)

ET1 Thomas Herendeen, U.S. Coast Guard (1970-1974)

Did Any of Your Parents or Grandparents Serve? What Facts or Stories Do You Remember About Their Service?:

My dad was a Navy veteran in World War II. He started out as an Aviation Cadet and transferred to the Amphibs because his math skills weren’t up to par. He was a crew member on the USS LCI (L) 537, which saw service on D-Day at Omaha Beach. After D-Day, he was part of the commissioning crew on the USS Troilus (AKA-46), which was slated for service as part of the invasion of Japan. After the surrender, Dad spent New Year’s Day 1946 in Tokyo and helped with Operation Magic Carpet. He always said that after D-Day, he was living on borrowed time.

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Service Reflections of SGT James Casey, U.S. Army (1971-1979)

Service Reflections of SGT James Casey, U.S. Army (1971-1979)

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I was honored to serve when my country called on me. I really didn’t think they would draft me. I was hoping to get some college behind me to have more options. I did not have good grades in school; my dad had me working at “The Big Cone” fast food restaurant, which we owned when I was fourteen to sixteen years old, so I didn’t have time to study; it was after school every day till 10 pm and every weekend. At seventeen, on September 8, 1968, I was in a single-car crash that claimed four friends: Max Pearson, Mickey Rushing, Nancy Ingram, and Kathy Lewis. I was not driving, and Mickey was driving. I was the only survivor. I made no plans to avoid the draft; in fact, I thought I would not be accepted, even if I tried to enlist, because of my injuries, both physical and mental, from the accident. What a miscalculation on my part! I believe I went through BCT and AIT with a compression fracture at the eighth thoracic vertebra from the car crash less than three years earlier. The crash and injuries are clearly documented on my entrance physical exam. I guess it was true that “All you need is a trigger finger.” Project 100,000, also known as McNamara’s Misfits or McNamara’s Morons, was a DOD program in the 1960s to recruit soldiers who would previously have been below military physical and mental standards. The number mobilized was 320,000-354,000, and they died at three times the rate of others serving in Vietnam. The program ended in December 1971.

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The Ship That Wouldn’t Die

The Ship That Wouldn’t Die

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The USS Laffey (DD-724) was laid down 28 June 1943 by Bath Iron Works Corp., Bath, Maine. She was launched 21 November; sponsored by Miss Beatrice F. Laffey, daughter of Medal of Honor recipient S1c Bartlett Laffey. Commissioned 8 February 1944, Cdr. F. Julian. Becton as her first "Captain". The USS Laffey's Heroic Beginning After shakedown, the Laffey traveled the world in the war effort. She was off the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. Off Cherbourg, France where an unexploded shell bounced off...

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