Preserving The Oral HistorIES of Combat Veterans

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Ross McKimmey

Vietnam | 1st Aviation Battalion, 1st Infantry Division

Passing time in Vietnam was crucial to staying sane while on the base or in the big cities. Coming back from war, Ross McKimmey didn't feel the scorn from the anti-war protests that some of his fellow soldiers did. Mr. McKimmey also discusses the differences between his three tours in Vietnam. (4:52)
After his tours in Vietnam, Ross McKimmey accepted a position as the Assistant Chief of Staff Communications & Electronics in Berlin, Germany. Living near the entrance to East Berlin, he and his company spent a lot of time there. (5:27)
After his time in Staff Communications & Electronics, Ross McKimmey moved into work for NATO as the Southern Region Signal Support Regiment in Naples, Italy. (2:32)
The Vietnam War was a complicated time for a lifetime military guy like Ross McKimmey. With so many conflicting interests at hand, it was hard for them to develop a clear strategy to defeat the Vietnamese. Mr. McKimmey also discusses the accuracy of the Domino Theory. (3:34)
Roswell Evans

WWII | 755th Tank Battalion

To get away from the drudgery of the dairy farm, Roswell Evans joined the Army. It was 1939 and he found himself first at Ft. Benning for basic training, and then at Ft. Knox in an armored unit. (5:08)
Roswell Evans says that if he’d kept his big mouth shut while at Ft. Knox, he could have just stayed there. He didn’t, and it was off to North Africa where he was outgunned by Tiger Tanks and overwhelmed by French cooking. (3:21)
Starting in Algiers and then across North Africa, Roswell Evans made many friends among the British and Free French troops fighting alongside him. He was not a friend, however, of the designer of the inadequate gun in his tank. (6:14)
Roswell Evans recalls a great advantage the Germans had in Italy, surveyor plats of the entire country, which allowed them to accurately target their artillery without marker rounds. A disadvantage was their non-splintering shell casings. (3:52)
Roswell Evans' unit had to leave their tanks and hoof it on the narrow mountain trails of Northern Italy during the winter. Pack trains carried all the ammo and supplies. He was glad when he finally returned to his tank. (7:51)
The war was nearly over but Roswell Evans' armored unit fell in the friendly sights of an Allied bombing mission over Italy. They barely moved in time before their camp was flattened. (4:00)