Oral History of George G. McGuire
Veterans--Florida
Orlando (Fla.)
Vietnam War, 1961-1985
Air Force
Army
An oral history interview of George G. McGuire, who joined the U.S. Air Force in 1963 and served until 1983. He was born on Summit, New Jersey, on October 17, 1941. A veteran of the Vietnam War era, McGuire achieved the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.<br /><br />This interview was conducted by Judy Scherer on April 1, 2014. Interview topics include McGuire's background and family, his college education, join the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC), Whiteman Air Force Base, McCoy Air Force Base, duties as a procurement officer and a contract administrator, the Defense Contract Administration Services, serving in Bangkok during the Vietnam War, the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations (USAFOSI), the Rock Island Arsenal, military retirement, U.S.-Thailand relations, and his many travel experiences.
McGuire, George G.
Scherer, Judy
<a href="http://stars.library.ucf.edu/veteransoralhistories/269/" target="_blank">McGuire, George G.</a> Interviewed by Judy Scherer, April 1, 2014. Audio/video record available. <a href="http://digital.library.ucf.edu/cdm/landingpage/collection/VET" target="_blank">UCF Community Veterans History Project</a>, RICHES of Central Florida, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida.
<a href="http://riches.cah.ucf.edu/" target="_blank">RICHES of Central Florida</a>
video/mp4
application/pdf
eng
Moving Image
Summit, New Jersey
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Fawley, England
Durban, South Africa
Statue of Liberty, Liberty Island, New York City, New York
University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana
Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri
McCoy Air Force Base, Orlando, Florida
George Washington University, Washington, D.C.
Defense Contract Administration Services Management Office, Naval Air Station Sand Point, Seattle, Washington
Chokchai Building, Bangkok, Thailand
Armed Forces Staff College, Norfolk, Virginia
Washington, D.C.
Yokota Air Base, Fussa, Japan
Rock Island Arsenal, Rock Island-Moline, Illinois
Warsaw, Missouri
Osan Air Base, Pyeongtaek-si, South Korea
Seoul, South Korea
Oral History of Charles Lewis Hite
Air Force
Vietnam War, 1961-1975
Persian Gulf War, 1991
Veterans--Florida
Operation Desert Storm, 1991
Oral History of Charles Lewis Hite's military service during the Vietnam War (1961-1975) and the Persian Gulf War (1991). Hite was born on March 23, 1947 in Centralia, Illinois. In 1972, he enlisted in the United States Air Force and trained at Blyheville Air Force Base in Blyheville, Arkansas. He served in Thailand during the Vietnam War and then returned back to Blyheville to work as First 2nd LT Radar Navigator. After being promoted to Standardization/Evaluation Radar Navigator, Hite was stationed in various locations: Barksdale Air Force Base near Bossier City, Louisiana; Offutt Air Force Base near Bellevue, Nebraska; Ramstein Air Force Base near Ramstein-Miesenbach, Germany; and MacDill Air Force Base near Tampa, Florida. He also was assigned duties during Operation Desert Storm (1991). Throughout his service, Hite served in various units, including 97th Bomb Wine, 340th Bomb Squadron, 1st Combat Evaluation Group, HQ Strategic Air Command, 7th Air Division, and DET 1 8th Air Force (SAC) Central Command. He achieved the rank of Major and received both the Commendation Medal and the Meritorious Service Medal. Hite left the military on May 31, 1992 and began working at the University of Central Florida. This oral history interview was conducted by Edmund Kallina at the UCF Research Parkway in Orlando, Florida on October 12, 2012.
The Vietnam War was a Cold War Era "military conflict". The war was originally waged between Cambodia, Vietnam, and Laos. The United States became involved as a preventive measure to combat communism. The official date of the military conflict is November 1, 1955 and ending in April 1975. The date of the war has been disputed, but a study in 1998 by the Department of Defense definitively put the start of the Vietnam War as November 1, 1955. The first combat military troops 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade didn't arrive until 1965. With the arrival of the combat troops came the first traditional battles of combat fighting in the war. During the Vietnam War, not only did American military go into battle with and for South Vietnam, the military also trained members of South Vietnam to fight alongside during the war. Peace talks were attempted, with France moderating, beginning on May 10, 1968. These talks were unsuccessful and lasted over three years. The longest battle of the Vietnam War began on January 21, 1968 and didn't end until the U.S. reclaimed Route 9 on April 8, 1968, seventy-seven days later. While the military conflict ended in 1975, it was a long process towards reunification and redevelopment as a country. The conflict left Vietnam in both political and economical ruins.
While the U.S. military was fighting overseas, Many American citizens protested the war at home. Demonstrations took place across the country with the most famous one being at Kent State University in Ohio. While this is the most well known demonstration it was not the first. Americans questioned the U.S. involvement in the war throughout.
Kallina, Edmund
<a href="http://digitalcollections.net.ucf.edu/cdm/ref/collection/VET/id/11" target="_blank">Hite, Charles Lewis</a>. Interviewed by Edmund Kallina. UCF Community Veterans History Project, D0010465. October 12, 2010. Audio/video record available. UCF Community Veterans History Project, Special Collections and University Archives, University of Central Florida Libraries, Orlando, Florida.
<a href="http://library.ucf.edu/UniversityArchives/" target="_blank">Special Collections and University Archives</a>, University of Central Florida Libraries
<a href="http://riches.cah.ucf.edu/" target="_blank">RICHES of Central Florida</a>
video/mp4
eng
Moving Image
Centralia, Illinois
Blyheville, Arkansas
Thailand
Bossier City, Louisiana
Bellevue, Nebraska
Ramstein-Miesenbach, Germany
Tampa, Florida
Orlando, Florida