Top of page

James Maddix [2005]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: Iraq War, 2003-2011
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: 1st Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment; 146th Transportation Company, 7th Transportation Battalion, Army National Guard
  • Location of Service: Michigan; Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri; Fort Carson, Colorado; Logistics Support Area (LSA) Anaconda, Iraq
  • Highest Rank: Sergeant
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/27736

View full service history

"There was only three attacks throughout the entire deployment where I actually had to engage the enemy.... And all three times it made me realize I am no Rambo; I'm more like Beetle Bailey." (Video Interview, 16:51)

After serving on active duty with the Army and then several years with the National Guard stateside, Sergeant James J. Maddix, Jr., suddenly found himself on his way to Iraq. Married with two children, he was forced to close his business in Michigan and move his family before he left. Maddix deployed with the 146th Transportation Company which provided such materiel as food, ammunition and tires to the troops. On three separate occasions his convoy was attacked by insurgents. During the last attack, just outside Fallujah, he questioned whether he was ever going to make it home alive again to see his family. While Maddix speaks modestly of how spoiled he was, living in a two-man trailer equipped with a PlayStation, DVD player, microwave, and other modern conveniences, he voices his appreciation for those less fortunate who served before him.

Interview / Recording

About this Item

Title

  • James Joseph Maddix, Jr. Collection

Names

  • Randy Gladstone
  • Ferris, Dorothy I.
  • Maddix Jr., James Joseph
  • Mason Area Historical Museum

Home State

  • Michigan

Headings

  • -  Maddix Jr., James Joseph
  • -  Iraq War, 2003-2011 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Race

  • White

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • Iraq War, 2003-2011

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 1st Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment; 146th Transportation Company, 7th Transportation Battalion, Army National Guard
    • Location of Service: Michigan; Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri; Fort Carson, Colorado; Logistics Support Area (LSA) Anaconda, Iraq
    • Highest Rank: Sergeant
    • Dates of Service: 1993
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Video: Hi-8/Digital 8 [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2005-03-28)
  • Video: VHS [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 2005-03-28; 2007-02-06)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/27736

Cite as

  • James Joseph Maddix, Jr. Collection (AFC/2001/001/27736), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • image
  • video

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:

Randy Gladstone, Dorothy I Ferris, James Joseph Maddix Jr, and Mason Area Historical Museum. James Joseph Maddix, Jr. Collection. 1993. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.27736/.

APA citation style:

Randy Gladstone, Ferris, D. I., Maddix Jr, J. J. & Mason Area Historical Museum. (1993) James Joseph Maddix, Jr. Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.27736/.

MLA citation style:

Randy Gladstone, et al. James Joseph Maddix, Jr. Collection. 1993. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.27736/>.