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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional) (Merrill's Marauders)
  • Location of Service: Fort MacArthur, California; San Pedro, California; Abilene, Texas; Camp Carson, Colorado; Karachi, India; Burma; China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater
  • Highest Rank: Private

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A 22-year-old “Zoot Suitor” with a passion for Glen Miller and Count Basie, Charles Rodriguez left his birthplace in Contra Costa County, California in 1942 to serve in the Army’s 5307th Composite Unit. Signing up for a secret deployment with no knowledge of location or mission, Rodriguez landed in Burma. He served with Merrill’s Marauders, going behind Japanese lines to prevent cutoff of critical supply lines into India and China.

Charles Rodriguez Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript: XML

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Charles Rodriguez Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript: XML

Charles Rodriguez Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript: XML
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About this Item

Title

  • Charles Rodriguez Collection

Names

  • Riggins, Charlene
  • Rodriguez, Charles

State of Birth

  • CA

Home State

  • CA

Headings

  • -  Rodriguez, Charles
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • Hispanic

Status

  • Veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional) (Merrill's Marauders)
    • Location of Service: Fort MacArthur, California; San Pedro, California; Abilene, Texas; Camp Carson, Colorado; Karachi, India; Burma; China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater
    • Highest Rank: Private
    • Dates of Service: 1942-1945
    • Entrance into Service: Drafted
    • Military Status: Veteran
    • Service History Note: The veteran was a member of Merrill's Marauders.

Materials

  • Audio: Audio Cassette [3 items] -- Oral history interview (collected 2002)
  • Manuscript: Biographical information [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 2005)
  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Transcription of audio recording (collected 2002)
  • Photograph: Digital print [4 items] -- Photograph (collected unknown)
  • Manuscript: Clippings [2 items] -- Typewritten document (collected unknown)
  • Audio: CD [5 items] -- Reference copy (collected 8/5/2011)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/43754

Cite as

  • Charles Rodriguez Collection (AFC/2001/001/43754), 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:

Riggins, Charlene, and Charles Rodriguez. Charles Rodriguez Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.43754/.

APA citation style:

Riggins, C. & Rodriguez, C. (1942) Charles Rodriguez Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.43754/.

MLA citation style:

Riggins, Charlene, and Charles Rodriguez. Charles Rodriguez Collection. 1942. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.43754/>.