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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: Vietnam War, 1961-1975; Korean War, 1950-1953
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: Saigon Area Drug Rehabilitation Service; 7th Infantry Division
  • Location of Service: Vietnam; United States; Korea; Germany; Vietnam
  • Highest Rank: First Sergeant

View full service history

"People look at me and thought, This guy can do it." (Audio interview, 30:17)

For James Allen, joining the Army was a means of escape from life in racially segregated Florida in the 1950s. He served in various administrative capacities in Korea and Vietnam during the wars fought there, always ready to take on a new challenge, even if he wasn't specifically trained for the job assignment. After retiring from the Army, he wound up back in Florida, where he has immersed himself in community and veterans programs in booming Flagler County, ready as ever to make the most of his talents.

James W. Allen Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript: XML

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About this Item

Title

  • James W. Allen Collection

Names

  • Allen, James W.
  • Kent, Judith
  • Flagler County Public Library

State of Birth

  • FL

Home State

  • FL

Headings

  • -  Allen, James W.
  • -  Korean War, 1950-1953 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.
  • -  Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • Black or African American

Status

  • Veteran

Service History

  • Korean War, 1950-1953

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 7th Infantry Division
    • Location of Service: United States; Korea; Germany; Vietnam
    • Highest Rank: First Sergeant
    • Dates of Service: 1952-1981
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: Veteran

  • Vietnam War, 1961-1975

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: Saigon Area Drug Rehabilitation Service
    • Location of Service: Vietnam
    • Highest Rank: First Sergeant
    • Dates of Service: 1952-1981
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: Veteran

Materials

  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 2002)
  • Audio: Audio Cassette [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 12/20/2002)
  • Photograph: Mixed (Multiple types of photographs) [10 items] -- Photograph (collected 1974 - 2001)
  • Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Multiple types of electronic files (collected 12/20/2002)
  • Audio: CD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 12/20/2002)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/3391

Cite as

  • James W. Allen Collection (AFC/2001/001/3391), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • audio
  • image
  • online text

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, James W, Judith Kent, and Flagler County Public Library. James W. Allen Collection. 1952. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.03391/.

APA citation style:

Allen, J. W., Kent, J. & Flagler County Public Library. (1952) James W. Allen Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.03391/.

MLA citation style:

Allen, James W, Judith Kent, and Flagler County Public Library. James W. Allen Collection. 1952. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.03391/>.