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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945; Vietnam War, 1961-1975
  • Branch of Service: Army Air Forces/Corps; Air Force
  • Service Unit/Ship: 38th Reconnaissance Squadron; 19th Bomb Group; 4th Bomb Group; 88th Bomb Group; 2nd Air Force Headquarters; 314th Bomb Wing, XXI Bomber Command, 20th Air Force; 58th Bomb Wing; 7th Bomb Group; 8th Air Force; Strategic Air Command (SAC); 2nd Air Force; Headquarters US Air Force; 7th Air Division; 306th Bomb Wing; 801st Air Division
  • Location of Service: Andrews Army Air Field, Maryland; Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska; Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana; England; MacDill Air Force Base, Florida; Lockbourne Air Force Base, Columbus, Ohio; Washington, DC; Randolph Field, Texas; Kelly Field, Texas; March Field, California; Philippines; Java; Australia; Geiger Field, Spokane, Washington; Walla Walla, Washington; Colorado Springs, Colorado; North Field, Guam (Mariana Islands); Fort Worth Army Air Field, Texas; Pacific Theater
  • Highest Rank: Lieutenant General; Colonel
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/83276

View full service history

Interview / Recording

About this Item

Title

  • Hewitt Terrell Wheless Collection

Names

  • Wheless, Hewitt Terrell
  • Mackay, Raymonda Wheless

Home State

  • Arizona

Headings

  • -  Wheless, Hewitt Terrell
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army Air Forces/Corps.
  • -  Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Air Force.

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 Air Forces/Corps
    • Service Unit/Ship: 38th Reconnaissance Squadron; 19th Bomb Group; 4th Bomb Group; 88th Bomb Group; 2nd Air Force Headquarters; 314th Bomb Wing, XXI Bomber Command, 20th Air Force; 58th Bomb Wing; 7th Bomb Group
    • Location of Service: Randolph Field, Texas; Kelly Field, Texas; March Field, California; Philippines; Java; Australia; Geiger Field, Spokane, Washington; Walla Walla, Washington; Colorado Springs, Colorado; North Field, Guam (Mariana Islands); Fort Worth Army Air Field, Texas; Pacific Theater
    • Highest Rank: Colonel
    • Dates of Service: 1938-1968
    • Entrance into Service: Commissioned
    • Military Status: veteran
    • Service History Note: The veteran served as a B-17 bomber pilot. The veteran starred as himself in the short "Beyond the Line of Duty (1942)" that was narrated by Ronald Reagan. The short was based on the veteran's mission against Japanese ships in the Philippines on 12/14/1941. The veteran was also mentioned by name in Franklin Roosevelt's Fireside Chat on 04/28/1942.

  • Vietnam War, 1961-1975

    • Branch of Service: Air Force
    • Service Unit/Ship: 8th Air Force; Strategic Air Command (SAC); 2nd Air Force; Headquarters US Air Force; 7th Air Division; 306th Bomb Wing; 801st Air Division
    • Location of Service: Andrews Army Air Field, Maryland; Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska; Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana; England; MacDill Air Force Base, Florida; Lockbourne Air Force Base, Columbus, Ohio; Washington, DC
    • Highest Rank: Lieutenant General
    • Dates of Service: 1938-1968
    • Entrance into Service: Commissioned
    • Military Status: veteran
    • Service History Note: The veteran served as Strategic Air Command (SAC) chief of staff in 1962. The veteran also served as senior Air Force member, Military Staff Committee, United Nations. He retired as the Assistant Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force.

Materials

  • Photograph: Mixed (Multiple types of photographs) [396 items] -- Photographs (collected 1945-1967)
  • Photograph: Mixed (Multiple types of photographs) [24 items] -- Photographs (collected 1948-1986)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [42 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1925-1942)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [84 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1942)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [60 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1942)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [41 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1942)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [53 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1942)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [66 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1942)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [47 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1942-2006)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [13 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1944-1988)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [19 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1945-1970)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [4 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1945)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [69 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1947-1968)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [32 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1984-1986)
  • Manuscript: Correspondence [117 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1942)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [60 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1941-1996)
  • Manuscript: Mixed (Multiple types of manuscripts) [5 items] -- Mixed (handwritten and typewritten documents) (collected 1942-1980)
  • Video: 16mm Film [1 item] -- Motion picture film (collected 1942; 1980)
  • Video: 35mm Film [1 item] -- Motion picture film (collected 1942; 1942)
  • Video: 35mm Film [1 item] -- Motion picture film (collected 1942; 1942)
  • Audio: Audio Disc [1 item] -- Radio broadcast (collected 1943-04-29; 1943)
  • Audio: Audio Disc [1 item] -- Radio broadcast (collected 1942; 1942)
  • Audio: Audio Disc [1 item] -- Radio broadcast (collected 1942; 1942)
  • Audio: Audio Disc [1 item] -- Radio broadcast (collected 1943-04-29; 1943)
  • Audio: Audio Disc [1 item] -- Radio broadcast (collected 1942-04-30; 1942)
  • Audio: Audio Disc [1 item] -- Radio broadcast (collected 1942-04-30; 1942)
  • Audio: Audio Disc [1 item] -- Radio broadcast (collected 1942; 1942)
  • Photograph: Mixed (Multiple types of photographs) [350 items] -- Photographs (collected 1925-1945)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/83276

Online Format

  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

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/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), 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:

Wheless, Hewitt Terrell, and Raymonda Wheless Mackay. Hewitt Terrell Wheless Collection. 1938. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.83276/.

APA citation style:

Wheless, H. T. & Mackay, R. W. (1938) Hewitt Terrell Wheless Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.83276/.

MLA citation style:

Wheless, Hewitt Terrell, and Raymonda Wheless Mackay. Hewitt Terrell Wheless Collection. 1938. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.83276/>.