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Melvin Ratz at time of interview

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: Cold War
  • Branch of Service: Air Force
  • Location of Service: Europe; Middle East; Japan; Sweden; United States; Ankara, Turkey
  • Highest Rank: E-8
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/91078

View full service history

"I was there when the Wall went up, and I was there when the Wall came down." (Video interview, 1:23:20)

A series of chance encounters led to Melvin Ratz's enlistment in the Air Force, and later, to his service with the Military Liaison Mission in Germany at three different stages of the Cold War. Established shortly after the end of World War II and the division of Germany, via an agreement with the Soviet Union, the Military Liaison Missions were small units of military intelligence personnel that were allowed to move freely within the Allied and Soviet zones. Stationed in Potsdam and armed only with cameras, Ratz and his comrades spent their days digging up intel and dodging constant surveillance. As he relates, his three stints in Germany were the most exciting, scary and rewarding of his multiple decades in the military. He was awarded the Airman's Medal for his heroism and voluntary risk to his life while serving with "the mission."

Interview / Recording

About this Item

Title

  • Melvin Edward Ratz Collection

Names

  • U.S. House of Representatives/John Boehner
  • Shook, Robert J.
  • Ratz, Melvin Edward
  • Boehner, John

Home State

  • Ohio

Headings

  • -  Ratz, Melvin Edward
  • -  Cold War -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Air Force.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • White

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • Cold War

    • Branch of Service: Air Force
    • Location of Service: Europe; Middle East; Japan; Sweden; United States; Ankara, Turkey
    • Highest Rank: E-8
    • Dates of Service: 1954-1978
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: veteran
    • Service History Note: The veteran served as a observer and as a spy in East Germany. He spent 24 years in the Air Force and 9 years as a civilian serving as a spy. He also served as a U.S. Embassy military attaché in Ankara, Turkey, and in Stockholm, Sweden.

Materials

  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2013-04-05; 2013)
  • Video: DVD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2013-04-05; 2013)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/91078

Online Format

  • image
  • video

Additional Metadata Formats

Wars & Conflicts

Service Branch

Location of Service

Highest Rank

Service Entrance

Discharge Status

Gender

Race

Home State

Interviewee

Interviewer

Organization/Affiliation

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:

U.S. House Of Representatives/John Boehner, Robert J Shook, Melvin Edward Ratz, and John Boehner. Melvin Edward Ratz Collection. 1954. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.91078/.

APA citation style:

U.S. House Of Representatives/John Boehner, Shook, R. J., Ratz, M. E. & Boehner, J. (1954) Melvin Edward Ratz Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.91078/.

MLA citation style:

U.S. House Of Representatives/John Boehner, et al. Melvin Edward Ratz Collection. 1954. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.91078/>.