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Collection Veterans History Project Collection

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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: Americal Division
  • Location of Service: Camp Cooke, California; New Caledonia; Guadalcanal (Solomon Islands); Philippines; Bougainville Island (Solomon Islands); Yokahama, Japan; Pacific Theater
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant

View full service history

"That’s when I first realized how important an education is because I'm sitting there shivering, muddy, miserable in this foxhole and I'm looking over across to the officer's quarters and they’re in much better condition. I said to myself, 'How come I'm here and they're over there?'"(Audio interview, 16:19)

Though discussion of the Battle of Guadalcanal often focuses on the efforts of the sailors and Marines who took part in it, soldiers--particularly those from the 23rd Infantry Division, also known as the Americal Division--also endured the harsh conditions and intense combat of Guadalcanal. In his oral history interview, Americal Sergeant William Deward Caldwell proudly recalls the achievements of his unit, which relieved the battle-weary 1st Marine Division in late 1942, and also recounts the constant mud, the lack of fresh food, and the many close calls.

William Deward Caldwell Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript: XML

About this Item

Title

  • William Deward Caldwell Collection

Names

  • Daughters of the American Revolution, Bend, Oregon Chapter
  • Kifer, Donna
  • Caldwell, William Deward

State of Birth

  • CA

Home State

  • OR

Headings

  • -  Caldwell, William Deward
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • Veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: Americal Division
    • Location of Service: Camp Cooke, California; New Caledonia; Guadalcanal (Solomon Islands); Philippines; Bougainville Island (Solomon Islands); Yokahama, Japan; Pacific Theater
    • Highest Rank: Sergeant
    • Dates of Service: 1942-1945
    • Entrance into Service: Drafted
    • Military Status: Veteran

Materials

  • Audio: Audio Cassette [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 04/19/2005)
  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Transcription of audio recording (collected 04/19/2005)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/34546

Cite as

  • William Deward Caldwell Collection (AFC/2001/001/34546), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • audio
  • online text

Additional Metadata Formats

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:

Daughters Of The American Revolution, Bend, Oregon Chapter, Donna Kifer, and William Deward Caldwell. William Deward Caldwell Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.34546/.

APA citation style:

Daughters Of The American Revolution, B., Kifer, D. & Caldwell, W. D. (1942) William Deward Caldwell Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.34546/.

MLA citation style:

Daughters Of The American Revolution, Bend, Oregon Chapter, Donna Kifer, and William Deward Caldwell. William Deward Caldwell Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.34546/>.