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Collection Veterans History Project Collection

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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • Service History Note: The veteran served as a squad leader.
  • War or Conflict: Vietnam War, 1961-1975
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: Company C, 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment (Airborne), 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile); California Army National Guard
  • Location of Service: Fort Ord, California; Vietnam
  • Highest Rank: Specialist Four

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"You asked how it looked up here, well, I have a camera now, and the last few days I’ve been taking pictures…" (Letter to Raymond, undated)

A machine gunner who served with the 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile), Specialist Four Richard Segovia arrived in Vietnam in late 1971, just in time for Thanksgiving. The 210 photographs in his collection, sent home to his family with explanatory captions, offer views of Vietnam from the ground and also from the air. His oral history interview fills in what his snapshots leave out, such as the challenges of basic training, the hazing he experienced when he first arrived in country, the loss of good friends in combat, and his leadership approach. Remembering his early days in Vietnam, he treated those under him with kindness, and never gave his men jobs that he wouldn’t do himself.

More Resources

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[ Photo Album ]
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[ Certificate of Extension of Enlistment in the California National Guard [12/2/1980] ]
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[ Certificate of Meritorious Service in the California National Guard [11/10/1981] ]
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[ Certificate of Training certifying that Segovia completed Screaming Eagle Combat Leaders Course [n.d.] ]
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[ Safe-conduct pass ]
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[ Letter to Raymond from Richard Segovia [2/10/1971] ]

Show more resources (8)

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[ Letter to Raymond from Richard Segovia [3/27/1971] ]
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[ Letter to Raymond from Richard Segovia [4/2/1971] ]
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[ Letter to Raymond from Richard Segovia [4/21/1971] ]
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[ Postcard to Mary Jane Segovia from Richard Segovia [5/25/1971] ]
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[ Letter to Raymond from Richard Segovia [5/25/1971] ]
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[ Letter to Raymond from Richard Segovia [6/13/1971] ]
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[ Letter to Raymond from Richard Segovia [n.d.] ]
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[ Pamphletts in Vietnamese ]

About this Item

Title

  • Richard Segovia Collection

Names

  • Segovia, Richard
  • Farrar, Mike
  • American Red Cross, Greater Long Beach Chapter

State of Birth

  • CA

Home State

  • CA

Headings

  • -  Segovia, Richard
  • -  Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • Other

Status

  • Veteran

Service History

  • Vietnam War, 1961-1975

    • Service History Note: The veteran served as a squad leader.
    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: Company C, 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment (Airborne), 101st Airborne Division (Airmobile); California Army National Guard
    • Location of Service: Fort Ord, California; Vietnam
    • Highest Rank: Specialist Four
    • Dates of Service: 1969-1971
    • Entrance into Service: Drafted
    • Military Status: Veteran

Materials

  • Manuscript: Correspondence [8 items] -- Handwritten document (collected 1971)
  • Manuscript: Clippings [6 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1969 - 1971)
  • Photograph: Original photographic print [2 items] -- Photograph (collected 1969 - 1971)
  • Photograph: Digital print [2 items] -- Photograph (collected 1969 - 1971)
  • Manuscript: Civilian papers (certificates, forms, wills, etc) [7 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1968 - 1969)
  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 09/17/2013)
  • Manuscript: Military papers (orders, personnel/201 files, etc) [3 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1980 - 1981)
  • Manuscript: Printed matter [6 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1969 - 1971)
  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 09/17/2013)
  • Photograph: Original photographic print [206 items] -- Photograph (collected 1969 - 1971)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/91938

Cite as

  • Richard Segovia Collection (AFC/2001/001/91938), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/xxxx), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Segovia, Richard, Mike Farrar, and Greater Long Beach Chapter American Red Cross. Richard Segovia Collection. 1969. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.91938/.

APA citation style:

Segovia, R., Farrar, M. & American Red Cross, G. L. B. C. (1969) Richard Segovia Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.91938/.

MLA citation style:

Segovia, Richard, Mike Farrar, and Greater Long Beach Chapter American Red Cross. Richard Segovia Collection. 1969. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.91938/>.