William M. Orr III Papers

1969, undated
Manuscript Collection #156
Portions of this collection are digitized (1 item)
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Creator(s)
Orr, William M. (William Mails), 1891-1964
Physical description
0.143 Cubic Feet, 20 items , consisting of correspondence (1969, undated).
Preferred Citation
William M. Orr III Papers (#156), East Carolina Manuscript Collection, J. Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA.
Repository
ECU Manuscript Collection
Access
No restrictions

Papers (1969, undated) consisting of correspondence, letter, selling of cigarettes, red tape.

Biographical/historical information

William M. Orr III was a lieutenant serving with the U.S. Army near Can Tho in South Vietnam.

Scope and arrangement

Included in this collection are twenty letters from Lt. Orr to his family and friends in Kinston, North Carolina. Though the year is given on only one letter, it can be assumed that all of the letters were written during 1969.

Though much of the information contained in the correspondence is of a personal nature, there are several items of interest. In one letter (January 18) Orr comments on the "black market" in South Vietnam. He states that cigarettes sell for at least five dollars per carton on this illicit market. In a second letter (March 23), Orr comments that most of the fighting is occurring near the major population centers. In a letter dated May 19, he describes an operation in which he participated near a mountain named Nui Gaia. Orr gives his impression of a B-52 strike that he witnessed during this operation. Lieutenant Orr also comments on desertion (November 10) as he states that there were 70 desertions within a twenty-day time period out of 460 men in his camp. Finally, Orr expresses his approval (November 12) of the war marches and moratoriums in the United States. He relates that the United States should withdraw from Vietnam, and that the South Vietnamese people are incapable of supporting themselves. Throughout the correspondence, Orr expresses his dissatisfaction with the Army by complaining about the inefficiency and the endless "red tape" involved in obtaining his discharge papers.

Administrative information
Custodial History

March 10, 1971, 20 items; Correspondence (1969, undated). Gift of Mr. William M. Orr, III, Kinston, North Carolina.

Source of acquisition

Gift of Mr. William M. Orr, III

Processing information

Processed by R. Weaver, April 1971

Encoded by Apex Data Services

Copyright notice

Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.

Metadata Rights Declaration
Key terms
Personal Names
Orr, William M.
Corporate Names
United States. Army--Military life
Topical
Americans--Vietnam--Correspondence
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Aerial operations
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Desertions
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Personal narratives, American
Vietnam War, 1961-1975--Public opinion