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Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress

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Veterans History Project at the Library of Congress

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VHP helps preserve the memories of the veterans in your life and community at the Library of Congress

The Veterans History Project collects, preserves, and makes accessible the personal accounts of US veterans so that future generations may hear directly from them and better understand the realities of their selfless service. Built through the voluntary participation of individuals and organizations, around the country, interviewing veterans and gathering their first-person recollections, the archive holds over 120,000 stories and grows daily. If you are looking for more information about the Library of Congress, please visit http://www.loc.gov/

To view our comment and posting policy, visit https://www.loc.gov/legal/comment-and-posting-policy/

10/22/2026

Have you ever had a gut feeling you couldn’t ignore? Ramon Viera did - and it may have saved three lives, including his own.

While serving with the Borinqueneers during the Korean War, Viera followed his instincts and left a bunker just before an artillery strike. He then helped save a badly injured mother and son.

Years later, he shared that extraordinary moment in his VHP oral history. Hear him tell it: https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.74655/

10/21/2026

You’ve heard of the Heimlich maneuver, but did you know there’s a World War II story behind it?

Before his name became synonymous with saving lives, Dr. Henry Heimlich served in China, where an encounter with a wounded soldier helped inspire one of his earliest medical innovations.

His wartime experiences would influence a career that changed emergency medicine.

Discover the man behind the maneuver through his VHP collection: https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.90618/

10/20/2026

In 1965, Elizabeth Allen was a nurse on a mission. Inspired by her brothers' service in the Vietnam War, having earned a Masters degree in Psychiatric Nursing and graduated from Officer Candidate School, she enlisted in the Air Force, insisting that she be assigned to Vietnam. Once in country, she further requested that she not work in a white uniform--i.e., taking care of officers--but close to the action, with wounded servicemen and civilians. She made a point of giving every patient the same care, including enemy soldiers taken captive. Allen has strong opinions on the way the Veterans Administration treats its women patients--opinions reinforced by her interview location, a VA facility in Michigan.

https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.55266/

10/19/2026

What do short snorters, naval traditions and the Library of Congress have in common? They all came together for Family Day! Discover how the Veterans History Project brought military folklore to life with hands-on activities, historic traditions and a little fun crossing the line.

Read Megan Harris's blog to learn at more

On Saturday, September 19, the Library’s Great Hall filled with kids (and kids at heart) coloring, crafting, learning, sharing, and guest DJ-ing. There were mermaids, paw-paws, something called a Sonicycle, and some people even crossed the line! Read on to find out about how Veterans History Proje...

10/18/2026

October was the most eventful month of 19-year-old Albert John Carpenter’s life according to his small pocket diary that he kept while serving in the trenches of France during the Great War. We are grateful that his family chose to donate his original diary to the Veterans History Project for safekeeping. You can view a digitized copy of his collection at https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.00225

10/17/2026

“Basic training was really almost like a program aligning you with the vision of the Air Force, but more than anything, what they wanted to see us do, is become a team.”

After enduring the intense heat and discipline from basic training at Lackland AFB in Texas, Vanessa White understood the concept of teamwork in the Air Force for the days ahead. Assigned as a personnel specialist, Vanessa processed decorations and orders, informed burial benefits to loved ones, and set up orderly rooms at various bases during the Persian Gulf War and War on Terrorism. She served with the 10th Mission Support Squadron providing support for all personnel-related needs.

Hear more about Vanessa’s story here: https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.108897/.

10/16/2026

On , VHP celebrates veterans who traded one uniform for another! Pictured here: POWs playing basketball at Stalag Luft 1, Germany, from the John Baber Collection.

Explore VHP’s Serving: Our Voices online themed presentation, “First, Serve: Athletes in Uniform,” featuring highlighted veteran interviews connected to sports, before, during, and after military service (includes the Baber Collection) here: https://www.loc.gov/collections/veterans-history-project-collection/serving-our-voices/diverse-experiences-in-service/athletes-in-uniform/?st=gallery

10/15/2026

John Hogan went from high school straight into the U.S. Air Force and eventually found himself in the heart of the Middle East. Pictured here: Hogan in the Persian Gulf after 9/11. Throughout his career, he served in several Air Force Security Forces Squadrons, deployed in support of Operation Southern Watch and Operation Enduring Freedom-Horn of Africa. One assignment took Hogan to Kuwait City International Airport, where he provided security for military equipment and personnel moving in and out of the region. He deployed to the Middle East twice, first to Kuwait, then to Oman, which he recalls as “pretty intense times!”

Listen to his story here: https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.129070/

10/14/2026

“We learned many things that the recruiting brochures did not mention. We learned to work together, live together, and share.”
Ida Weinstein captured her WWII experiences in her memoir, “It Happened During WWII,” sharing what she experienced in the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC). Weinstein said she joined because she wanted to be part of something big, to be needed, and to help. As the second woman from her hometown to enlist, she was sworn in at the New York recruiting center. In her memoir, Weinstein recounts everything from cleaning the barracks in Des Moines and learning drill formations to receiving vaccinations and marching. She went on to achieve the rank of technical sergeant and proudly served her country.

Hear more about Ida Weinstein’s story here: https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.06542/

10/13/2026

Happy birthday to the U.S. Navy! In honor of the Navy’s 251st Birthday, check out our online exhibit, Forged by the Sea: the U.S. Navy. This installment of Serving: Our Voices is a celebration of nearly four million Navy veterans in our country. Of the 26,000 Navy veteran stories VHP has collected, we’ve chosen twenty to showcase the diverse experiences of Navy service.

Meet these brave sailors by visiting Serving Our Voices- Forged by the Sea at: https://www.loc.gov/collections/veterans-history-project-collection/serving-our-voices/service-branches/forged-by-the-sea-the-us-navy/

Address

101 Independence Avenue , SE
Washington D.C., DC
20540

Opening Hours

Monday	10am - 3pm
Tuesday	10am - 3pm
Wednesday	10am - 3pm
Thursday	10am - 3pm
Friday	10am - 3pm

Website

http://www.loc.gov/vets

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