Personal Narrative 3D Object Film, Video Manuscript/Mixed Material Photo, Print, Drawing Software, E-Resource Larry Schwab Collection

Veterans History Project Service Summary:
- War or Conflict: Vietnam War, 1961-1975
- Branch of Service: Army
- Unit of Service: 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, 7th Surgical Hospital; 7th Battalion, 11th Field Artillery Battalion, 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, Medical Corps
- Location of Service: Xuan Loc, Vietnam; Tay Ninh, Vietnam
- Highest Rank: Captain
Larry Schwab was drafted during his medical internship to serve as a medical officer in Vietnam, a war he personally did not approve of. But he felt it his duty to serve his country and apply his medical skills to wounded soldiers. In May 1968, Schwab's resolve was tested during an assault on his base that caused many casualties. His long and detailed description of that horrible night is testimony to the vivid memories that war inflicts on its survivors; he suffered nightmares from the experience for years. Schwab returned to Vietnam in the 1990s to provide medical treatment and advice, and he became active in the international movement to ban land mines.
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PlayHis mixed feelings about being drafted to serve in a war he didn't approve of. 00:04:26.7 - 00:05:50.5
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PlayAmbivalent about serving in a war zone and apprehensive about being killed or wounded and maimed; first impressions of the country; encountering the thousand-yard stare; duties for his first seven months in country; treating all patients, including the enemy, with a priority order set up; work periods could be long and intense, followed by inactivity, but they were confined to base. 00:11:55.0 - 00:22:19.8
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PlayFrustrated at being denied leave to attend funeral back home for his grandmother; not going AWOL because of his sense of duty; knew of no medical person who shirked his duty in Vietnam. 00:27:16.2 - 00:32:55.0
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PlayIn his second posting, getting to know the soldiers personally; balancing that with his professional duties; writing to his wife every day and depending on his family for emotional support. 00:43:29.4 - 00:52:31.4
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PlayHis reaction to receiving medals; one was for performing his duty, the other for performing under fire on the night of May 8-9, 1968 in an intense attack on his base; "the worst four hours of his life," which are still giving him nightmares; he doesn't feel like a hero for being awarded medals; he was only doing his job. 00:53:59.5 - 00:58:32.4
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PlayThe attack of May 8-9, 1968; intense mortar rounds coming into the camp, suppressing everyone in bunkers; sappers came through the wire with cutters and disarmed the mines; NVA soldiers used Bangalore torpedoes to blow up the wire; chaos ensued, with many men burned and wounded, crying out for help; commander severely wounded and Schwab was asked to treat him; support aircraft bombing and firing on the enemy; enemy removed bodies of their dead; Schwab and colleagues treating the wounded the morning after, knowing that many burn victims would not survive; breakfast was served in the morning; senior officers arrived in pressed uniforms to award medals to some of the survivors. 00:05:50.0 - 00:37:39.2
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PlayWent back to Vietnam in the mid-90s; to Hanoi, which he could not visit when he was serving; helped him to reconcile by working with Vietnamese to do eye surgery; coming home from the war to U.S., no antiwar confrontations in Albuquerque, where he was living; went to Harvard, where he did see political reactions to the war; did go to anti-war rallies. 00:37:57.0 - 00:40:52.4
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PlayBothered by combat dreams, stemming from the attack as well as minor episodes; developed fear of guns; doesn't own any weapons; finally decided to go back in 1995 to work with the people on eye illnesses; this trip helped him reconcile a number of emotional issues. 00:44:33.9 - 00:49:42.3
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PlaySupporting legislation banning land mines; had seen the evidence of it when he went back in 1995 and took a side trip to Cambodia, where there are many mines still armed; got interested because so many people had been blinded by mines; U.S. has still not signed the treaty banning land mines. 01:01:18.8 - 01:06:59.2
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About this Item
Title
- Larry Schwab Collection
Names
- West Virginia University School of Journalism
- Nethken, Melissa
- Beeson, Joel
- Schwab, Larry
State of Birth
- WV
Home State
- WV
Headings
- - Schwab, Larry
- - Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- Personal Narratives
- - United States. Army.
Repository
- Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Gender
- Male
Status
- Veteran
Service History
-
Vietnam War, 1961-1975
- Branch of Service: Army
- Unit of Service: 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, 7th Surgical Hospital; 7th Battalion, 11th Field Artillery Battalion, 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, Medical Corps
- Location of Service: Xuan Loc, Vietnam; Tay Ninh, Vietnam
- Highest Rank: Captain
- Dates of Service: 1967-1969
- Entrance into Service: Drafted
- Military Status: Veteran
Materials
- Photograph: Digital print [30 items] -- Photograph (collected 1968)
- Manuscript: Correspondence [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 01/01/1988)
- Manuscript: Military papers (orders, personnel/201 files, etc) [1 item] -- (collected 07/02/1968)
- Manuscript: Creative works [2 items] -- (collected unknown)
- Video: DVCPRO [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 09/10/2003)
- Manuscript: Printed matter [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 1995)
- Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected unknown)
- Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Electronic file of photograph (collected unknown)
- Manuscript: Clippings [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 11/1995)
- Manuscript: Diaries and journals [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 1995)
- Video: DVCPRO [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 09/10/2003)
- Video: DVD [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 09/10/2003)
- Video: DVD [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 09/10/2003)
- Artifact: Artifact [1 item] -- (collected 1967 - 1968)
- Manuscript: Memoirs [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 09/12/2016)
Collection Number
- AFC/2001/001/23979
Cite as
- Larry Schwab Collection (AFC/2001/001/23979), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
Online Format
- image
- online text
- video
Additional Metadata Formats
IIIF Presentation Manifest
Part of
Wars & Conflicts
Service Branch
Location of Service
Service Unit
- 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment
- 11th Field Artillery Battalion
- 1st Brigade
- 25th Infantry Division
- 7th Battalion
- 7th Surgical Hospital
- Medical Corps
Gender
Highest Rank
Service Entrance
Discharge Status
Interviewee
Interviewer
Organization/Affiliation
Featured in
- Personal Snapshots: Picturing the Vietnam War | Creative Expressions of Service | Serving: Our Voices | Veterans History Project Collection | Digital Collections
- Personal Snapshots: Picturing the Vietnam War | Vietnam War (1962 to 1973) | Serving: Our Voices | Veterans History Project Collection | Digital Collections