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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • Service History Note: The veteran served as a medic with an all Black infantry regiment. In 07/1944, the regiment was attached to the 92nd Infantry Division, and engaged in combat for the first time.
  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: 366th Infantry Regiment
  • Location of Service: Italy; European Theater

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"Our regiment was a political football. We were trained for infantry, we were not supposed to be ready for combat, and they really did not know what to do with us." (Audio Interview, 1:11)

A conscientious objector, Rothacker Smith served in the 366th Infantry Regiment as a medic. The 366th shipped out to Italy but was assigned to guard duties, making Smith’s life as a medic a fairly easy job. When they were attached to the 92nd Division in December 1944, he was called upon to use his training in combat. On December 26, he was wounded by friendly artillery fire that he later found out was called in by Medal of Honor recipient John Fox on his own position in Sommocolonia to stop an enemy advance. Smith was subsequently captured by the Germans and held until the end of the war. He attended the White House ceremony when Fox’s widow received his medal from President Clinton.

Rothacker Childs Smith Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript: XML

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About this Item

Title

  • Rothacker Childs Smith Collection

Names

  • Dixon, Minneola
  • Smith, Rothacker Childs
  • Morna Battle

State of Birth

  • NY

Home State

  • AL

Headings

  • -  Smith, Rothacker Childs
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.
  • -  Prisoner of War -- United States

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • Black or African American

Status

  • Veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Service History Note: The veteran served as a medic with an all Black infantry regiment. In 07/1944, the regiment was attached to the 92nd Infantry Division, and engaged in combat for the first time.
    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 366th Infantry Regiment
    • Location of Service: Italy; European Theater
    • Dates of Service: 1943-1945
    • Prisoner of War: Yes
    • Entrance into Service: Drafted
    • Military Status: Veteran

Materials

  • Audio: CD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 03/24/2006)
  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Transcription of audio recording (collected 03/24/2006)
  • Photograph: Copy photographic print [2 items] -- Portrait (collected 1945 - 1948)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/44158

Cite as

  • Rothacker Childs Smith Collection (AFC/2001/001/44158), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • audio
  • image
  • online text

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Wars & Conflicts

Service Branch

Location of Service

Service Unit

Prisoner of War

Gender

Race

Highest Rank

Service Entrance

Discharge Status

Interviewee

Interviewer

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:

Dixon, Minneola, Rothacker Childs Smith, and Morna Battle. Rothacker Childs Smith Collection. 1943. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.44158/.

APA citation style:

Dixon, M., Smith, R. C. & Morna Battle. (1943) Rothacker Childs Smith Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.44158/.

MLA citation style:

Dixon, Minneola, Rothacker Childs Smith, and Morna Battle. Rothacker Childs Smith Collection. 1943. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.44158/>.