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Library of Congress (LOC) Teaching with Primary Sources (TPS) Veterans Oral Histories Project

Veterans Oral Histories Project (VOHP) @ California University of Pennsylvania (Cal U)

A collage of old and new photos of United States Soldiers with the words Veterans Oral Histories Project written on top.

The U.S. Congress created the Veterans History Project in 2000 as part of the American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress. The Veterans Oral Histories Project at California University of Pennsylvania became an official partner with the Library of Congress in 2005.

The mission of the Veterans Oral Histories Project at California University of PA is to provide training and support for conducting and collecting oral histories from local veterans, who have served in any of the U.S. involved conflicts.  The project also involves the preservation of those oral histories both at the university’s Manderino Library and at the Library of Congress, where they will become part of the national database that includes other veterans, who have participated in the national Veterans History Project.   Besides wartime veterans, any of those U.S. citizen civilians who were actively involved in supporting war efforts (such as war industry workers, USO workers, flight instructors, medical volunteers, etc.) are invited to share their valuable stories by giving oral accounts of their experiences.

There are 19 million veterans living in the United States today, men and women who have lived extraordinary lives.  Each of these men and women has a unique story to tell. With the loss of approximately 1,700 World War II Veterans each day, we are losing important aspects of our nation’s history.

Participating in the Veterans Oral Histories Project is a great way for volunteers to learn history directly from these veterans.  Volunteer participation plays a major role in preserving the memories of the men and women of our area, who have devoted at least a portion of their lives to the liberties and freedoms of our country and of the world.

Teachers and students who participate in the project will have opportunities to develop many of the skills outlined in the Pennsylvania Academic Standards for Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening. Participants will have digitized copies of their creations stored at the Library of Congress and at Manderino Library.  Those who participate will assume major roles in preserving the memories of the men and women of our area, who have devoted at least a portion of their lives to the liberties and freedoms of our country and of the world.

Comments from Students:

"Getting firsthand access gives a whole new dimension to studying history.  It was a really good experience."

-Jessica Pest, Washington High School

"I really enjoyed this assignment. At first, I was dreading it, constantly looking for a way to delay it as long as I could, but when I sat down and thought about it, I realized how much it actually affected me.  It all came down to my veteran, he was awesome. He just had so much information that was far from boring. This project is the most influential aspect on my life in my whole high school career."

-Rocky Maffio, Washington High School

Interviews

NOTE: In order to see the interviews below, users will need to have a RealPlayer plugin installed for their browser. There are free versions available. Firefox users should click here to download the RealPlayer plugin. Internet Explorer users should click here.

Iraqi Freedom

Afghanistan / Enduring Freedom

Yugoslavia / Allied Forces

Desert Storm / Gulf

Cold War (general)

Grenada

Vietnam

Korea

World War II

To participate in the Veterans Oral Histories Project (VOHP) at Cal U
and the Veterans History Project (VHP) at the LoC,
please email roberts_n@calu.edu or call 724-938-6022

 

California University of Pennsylvania   |   250 University Ave., California, PA 15419   |   Phone: 724.938.4000
This Page Last Updated: 11/20/2009 by roberts_n
webteam@cup.edu

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