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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: 386th Infantry Regiment, 97th Infantry Division
  • Location of Service: Fort Dix, New Jersey; Camp Swift, Texas; Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri; Fort Bragg, North Carolina; San Luis Obispo, California; Camp Cooke, California; European Theater; Central Europe; Rhineland, Germany; Pacific Theater; Japan (occupation)
  • Highest Rank: Technician Four

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"Here we were in the middle of Germany, with the war over—our job done." (Memoir, page 16)

Though he was sworn into the Army in February 1943, it was almost two years before Paul Allen shipped out to the war zone. He had expected to go to the Pacific Theater after training in amphibious tactics in California, but the need for men in Europe after the Battle of the Bulge got him a bunk on a ship crossing the Atlantic in January 1945. He saw some action in the war's final days and was in Czechoslovakia on VE Day. Then he was shipped back home to prepare for the invasion of Japan, only to hear of the surrender while he was still in North Carolina. Nevertheless, he did spend five months with the occupying force in Japan.

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[ Photo Album ]

More Resources

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[ Letter of commendation to all members of the 97th Infantry Division, APO 445 [May 21, 1945] ]
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[ Separation Qualification Record ]
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[ Honorable Discharge certificate ]
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[ Enlisted record and report of separation ]
View 17 images in sequence.
[ History of the 386th Infantry Regiment ]
View 26 images in sequence.
[ Memoir: Paul R. Allen "The War Years" ]

Show more resources (2)

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[ Paul R. Allen: Thoughts on my military service ]
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[ Chronology of the military service of Paul R. Allen ]

About this Item

Title

  • Paul R. Allen Collection

Names

  • Allen, Paul R.
  • Allen, Paul

State of Birth

  • NJ

Home State

  • AZ

Headings

  • -  Allen, Paul R.
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • White

Status

  • Veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 386th Infantry Regiment, 97th Infantry Division
    • Location of Service: Fort Dix, New Jersey; Camp Swift, Texas; Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri; Fort Bragg, North Carolina; San Luis Obispo, California; Camp Cooke, California; European Theater; Central Europe; Rhineland, Germany; Pacific Theater; Japan (occupation)
    • Highest Rank: Technician Four
    • Dates of Service: 1943-1946
    • Entrance into Service: Drafted
    • Military Status: Veteran

Materials

  • Manuscript: Unit histories [1 item] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected unknown)
  • Manuscript: Military papers (orders, personnel/201 files, etc) [3 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1945 - 1946)
  • Photograph: Digital print [6 items] -- Photograph (collected 1944 - 1945)
  • Manuscript: Periodicals [6 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1943 - 1945)
  • Manuscript: Other Manuscript Material [1 item] -- (collected 09/20/1945)
  • Manuscript: Memoirs [2 items] -- (collected unknown)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/11301

Cite as

  • Paul R. Allen Collection (AFC/2001/001/11301), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image

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:

Allen, Paul R, and Paul Allen. Paul R. Allen Collection. 1943. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.11301/.

APA citation style:

Allen, P. R. & Allen, P. (1943) Paul R. Allen Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.11301/.

MLA citation style:

Allen, Paul R, and Paul Allen. Paul R. Allen Collection. 1943. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.11301/>.