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Contemporary photo of George Zimmer

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: Korean War, 1950-1953
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: 955th Field Artillery Battalion
  • Location of Service: Korea
  • Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/349

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"I did not dream that my field trips would expose me to considerable danger, yet in each of the following six months I was to earn a special service bonus from my frequency for coming under close enemy fire. It was a poor way to make a living; I wouldn't recommend it." (Audio Interview, 5:44)

Though he was drafted into the Army in January 1951, George Zimmer would not reach Korea for another two years, and by that time, he was a commissioned officer. Assigned to work with radio communications--a field for which he was not trained--Zimmer was to supervise 120 soldiers in the laying and maintaining of land lines for radio contact. Even after he received upgraded equipment in April 1953, Zimmer had problems with radios malfunctioning in the rough terrain and under fire. He notes that his unit took more casualties in the last six weeks of the conflict than any other time, as both sides jockeyed for positions they hoped to hold when a truce was signed.

George Zimmer Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript

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George Zimmer Collection
Interview / Recording

Transcript

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[ Korean Education ]
[ Kumsong North ]
[ Court Martial ]
[ Friendly Fire ]

Show more resources (1)

[ Typographical map of Kumwha, North Korea, and adjacent area ]

About this Item

Title

  • George Zimmer Collection

Names

  • Lugar, Richard
  • U.S. Senate/Richard Lugar
  • Kozlowski, Monica Bowles
  • Zimmer, George

Home State

  • Indiana

Headings

  • -  Zimmer, George
  • -  Korean War, 1950-1953 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

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

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • Korean War, 1950-1953

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 955th Field Artillery Battalion
    • Location of Service: Korea
    • Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
    • Dates of Service: 1951-1953
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Manuscript: Memoirs [4 items] -- (collected unknown)
  • Manuscript: Maps [1 item] -- (collected unknown)
  • Photograph: Original photographic print [2 items] -- (collected unknown)
  • Photograph: Copy photographic print [15 items] -- (collected unknown)
  • Audio: Audio Cassette [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected unknown)
  • Computer File: Floppy Disk [1 item] -- Electronic file of manuscript (collected 2005-12-30; 2006-01-03)
  • Manuscript: Transcript [1 item] -- Transcription of audio recording (collected 2005-12-30)
  • Audio: Audio Cassette [1 item] -- Reference copy (collected 2002-01-01; 2002-01-01)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/349

Cite as

  • George Zimmer Collection (AFC/2001/001/349), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • audio
  • image
  • online text

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Wars & Conflicts

Service Branch

Location of Service

Service Unit

Highest Rank

Discharge Status

Gender

Home State

Interviewee

Interviewer

Organization/Affiliation

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:

Lugar, Richard, U.S. Senate/Richard Lugar, Monica Bowles Kozlowski, and George Zimmer. George Zimmer Collection. 1951. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.00349/.

APA citation style:

Lugar, R., U.S. Senate/Richard Lugar, Kozlowski, M. B. & Zimmer, G. (1951) George Zimmer Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.00349/.

MLA citation style:

Lugar, Richard, et al. George Zimmer Collection. 1951. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.00349/>.