Locating Historical Information About US Navy Ships:

USS Ajax AR-6

I was just being nosy and checked out a ship an old acquaintance of mine had been stationed on during Operation Eagle Pull and Operation Frequent Wind. Sometimes this old friend likes to make it sound like he was a Vietnam war hero but to tell you the truth, I have my doubts as to if he'd even left the ship since he was in engineering and they don't go cold iron (turn the ship "off") when there's a chance it might need to make a quick get away--at least that's the way it was with the old steam powered ships like this one. This means no liberty. This ship made a stop off the coast of Vietnam to help in the evacuations. Anyway, the ship's history is pretty well documented in Wikipedia. My old ship, the USS Ajax, is also listed in wikipedia so if you are interested in any other navy ships you may check there for any information.

We need to honor our vets and it is a shame that some vets exaggerate their experiences. No offense intended, after all, I'm a vet.

More information about US Navy ships can be found at:

• NavSource Naval History
• Naval History and Heritage Command (Navy Department Library)

More information on the evacuation in Vietnam:

• Operation Eagle Pull
• Operation Frequent Wind

Many ships have online webpages and shipmates organizations that you can visit for more information.

The Traveling Wall Visits Ft. Knox

This last weekend, the Traveling Wall was at Ft. Knox, KY.  My younger son and I visited it to pay our respects.  Here are a few pictures of our visit.  I was teary-eyed when I saw all the names.  I don't know how I escaped knowing anyone who died in Vietnam.


This traveling tribute is a true depiction of the great sacrifices made throughout the history of our country. It consists of: 

• Displays representing statistics from every war/conflict that the USA has been involved in.
• A series of World War II panels portraying the entire timeline of events.
• A Korean War tribute representing the timeline of the entire conflict with corresponding battle maps and photos.
• The Traveling Vietnam Wall – 80% replica (largest replica) of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington DC. The "wall" stretches over 380 ft long from end to end and contains all 58,253 names. The "wall" is current through 2009 and is constantly being updated to accurately pay tribute to those who died during the Vietnam war.
• A timeline, series of facts and figures, and a display of art from Vietnam veteran artists depicting patriotic and veteran themes.
• A display of USA founding and significant historical documents including the Constitution, Declaration of Independence and other historical documents.

• Panels for honoring Law Enforcement and Firefighters with pictorial display.
• A panel memorializing the casualties at the Ft Hood 2009 shooting.
• Pictures of each of our commanders in chief throughout history.
• A 9/11 tribute with the names of all 2984 casualties organized by where they were located at the time of death.
• The AVTT "Gold Dog Tag" display.  This one of a kind tribute honors those who have fallen and to which there is not currently a memorial for their honor and remembrance. Each dog tag permanently records the casualty information (full name, branch of service, rank, date and location of casualty) for that American Hero. This tribute is updated constantly and would be accurate to the day it would arrive at your location. Currently the AVTT Gold Dog Tag display is the tribute to those who have fallen 1) In hostile military actions between the end of Vietnam and the 9/11 attack and 2) As a member of the armed forces who have given their life in the Global War on Terror. 

For more info on this exhibit, visit this page.

Search Amazon.com for vietnam war

The Draft in Vietnam July 1965

28 July 1965: US orders 50,000 troops to Vietnam

President Johnson committed a further 50,000 US troops to the conflict in Vietnam.

Monthly draft calls were scheduled to increase from 17,000 to 35,000 - the highest level since the Korean War, when between 50,000 and 80,000 men were called up each month.

"I do not find it easy to send the flower of our youth...into battle." President Johnson

Go here to read more about the draft in the Vietnam War. To read more about the history of the Vietnam War go to this website.

Books on Vietnam War

Movies on Vietnam War

Entry for April 07, 2008

Entry for April 07, 2008

Take a journey into the past and listen to music popular during the Vietnam Era. Go here . (Originally posted on my Yahoo 360 blog)

Entry for December 12th and 11th, 2007

Entry for December 12, 2007

Christmas WWI--The meeting of enemies as friends in no-man's land was experienced by hundreds, if not thousands, of men on the Western Front during Christmas 1914. A Christmas truce was called and the unbelieveable happened. To read about this truce, go to firstworldwar page and read about it.

Entry for December 11, 2007
Continuing on with the same theme as yesterday, today let's look at Christmas for our troops during the Vietnam war. Go to http://www.landscaper.net/christmas.htm#Christmas%201968%20letter and get a glimpse of the 15th Field Artillery Regiment celebrating Christmas. If you go to this page you can get an idea of how one journalist got caught up in this war on Christmas.

(Above entries were originally posted on my Yahoo 360 blog.)

Entry for November 17, 2006

This day in history 1970-- My Lai trial begins. 1st Lt. William Calley was accused of leading his men in a massacre of Vietnamese civilians at the hamlet of My Lai 4 on March 16, 1968. Lt. Calley was the only person convicted for this massacre. He has displayed no remorse for his part. Captain Medina, Lt. Calley's commanding officer, was charged in connection with the crimes, but was ultimately found not guilty of all charges relating to the massacre. A memorial at the site of the massacre lists the names of 504 victims, with ages ranging from one to eighty-two years. If you go to google images and type in My Lai Memorial you will be able to view numerous images of the memorial.
CNN stories
Memories of My Lai
Crime Library

(Originally posted in my Yahoo 360 blog)

Entry for November 10, 2006

On this day in history 1982--The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall opened. This memorial honors the servicemembers who so unselfishly gave their lives during the Vietnam War. See the following sites for more information:

The Virtual Wall
The Wall-usa
Vietnam Wall
National Parks

(Originally posted on my Yahoo 360 blog)