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Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: Vietnam War, 1961-1975
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: A Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, 196th Light Infantry Brigade
  • Location of Service: Fort Benning, Georgia; California; Vietnam
  • Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/106

View full service history

"Killing may be acceptable when you're defending your house or your family, but it's certainly not acceptable for some politician's reasons." (Audio interview, 15:38)

Enlisting in the Army fresh out of high school, First Lieutenant Barry Romo felt a strong sense of purpose when he headed to Vietnam to serve with the 196th Light Infantry Brigade. His experiences in combat quickly eroded this idealism. After a few weeks in the field, his focus had narrowed to getting his men home safely, rather than a commitment to any particular political agenda. Bearing witness to the atrocities of war led him to become a strident pacifist; upon returning from Vietnam, he participated in demonstrations against the war.

Barry L. Romo Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript

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Barry L. Romo Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript

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About this Item

Title

  • Barry L. Romo Collection

Names

  • McCarthy, Erin A.
  • Columbia College Chicago
  • Romo, Barry L.
  • Ruvalcaba, Cesar

Home State

  • Illinois

Headings

  • -  Romo, Barry L.
  • -  Vietnam War, 1961-1975 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • Vietnam War, 1961-1975

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: A Company, 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Regiment, 196th Light Infantry Brigade
    • Location of Service: Fort Benning, Georgia; California; Vietnam
    • Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
    • Dates of Service: 1966-1969
    • Entrance into Service: Commissioned
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected 2010)
  • Audio: Audio Cassette [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2001-04-07)
  • Audio: CD [2 items] -- Reference copy (collected 2006-11-06; 2006-11-06; 2009-08-20)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/106

Cite as

  • Barry L. Romo Collection (AFC/2001/001/106), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • audio
  • online text

Additional Metadata Formats

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:

Mccarthy, Erin A, Columbia College Chicago, Barry L Romo, and Cesar Ruvalcaba. Barry L. Romo Collection. 1966. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.00106/.

APA citation style:

McCarthy, E. A., Columbia College Chicago, Romo, B. L. & Ruvalcaba, C. (1966) Barry L. Romo Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.00106/.

MLA citation style:

Mccarthy, Erin A, et al. Barry L. Romo Collection. 1966. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.00106/>.