Robert W. Parks papers, 1999.

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Robert W. Parks papers, 1999.

http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/60785407

General description of the collection: The Robert W. Parks papers contains a transcription of an oral history interview of Parks conducted on 16 February 1996 by his son, Bradley A. Parks for a class, Geography 31, at Dartmouth College. In his interview, Parks describes his apprehension and his personal preparations for his tour in Vietnam. He faults the media coverage of Vietnam for portraying the "worst possible scenario," and finds this practice continuing in many movies about Vietnam. Parks describes setting up and maintaining a Night Defense Perimeter (NDP), and gives details about the living conditions, his mood, and the usefulness of "Dusters" and flak jackets. He says that he did not see any problems due to race, nor any problems between enlisted men and officers. During his tour, his men respected him because he took care of them first. He describes the relations between his men and the villagers of Tan Binh, and the efforts of his medics to provide medical assistance, especially to children. Parks credits his tour in Vietnam for his appreciation of life and his management experience, but resents the indifference with which he and Vietnam Veterans have been treated. He describes the opening ceremony of the Vietnam War Memorial and its effect on him, and believes it has helped to heal the nation. A copy of Bradley A. Parks's paper, "My Father's Vietnam," written on 6 March 1996 and a news clipping on Robert W. Parks's trip to Vietnam published in "Bucknell World" in January 1998 are also included in the collection.

1 folder.

U.S. Army Heritage & Education Center

Information

SNAC Resource ID: 7787859

U.S. Army Heritage & Education Center

Related Entities

There are 4 Entities related to this resource.

Parks, Robert W. (Robert William)

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6qk168n (person)

1st Lieutenant (1LT) Robert W. Parks graduated from Bucknell University in Pennsylvania in 1966 and received his commission in the Army Reserves through the school's Reserve Officer Training Cadet (ROTC) program. In September 1966, he was activated and was assigned to Fort Bliss for training on the M-42 Duster, a medium-sized tank. On 27 October 1967, he arrived in Vietnam. Parks was assigned to A Battery, 5th Battalion, 2nd Artillery (Automatic Weapon, Self-Propelled), which was attached to the...

United States. Army

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6km312r (corporateBody)

The United States Army is the largest branch of the United States Armed Forces and performs land-based military operations. It is one of the seven uniformed services of the United States and is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution, Article 2, Section 2, Clause 1 and United States Code, Title 10, Subtitle B, Chapter 301, Section 3001. As the largest and senior branch of the U.S. military, the modern U.S. Army has its roots in the Continental Army, which wa...

United States. Army. Artillery, 2nd. Battalion, 5th. Battery A.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6pg86vk (corporateBody)

Parks, Bradley C.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6ng8ddx (person)