“I’m 73 years old, and every day I’m proud of the fact that I spent my time doing what I could for my country.” (Video interview, 38:03)

Tecumseh Nathaniel Underwood

Tecumseh Underwood at time of interview War: Cold War Branch: Army Unit: 592nd Signal Company; 42nd Engineer Company; Berlin Brigade Service Location: West Berlin, Germany Rank: Private First Class

A Seminole Indian, Private First Class Tecumseh Nathaniel Underwood faced limited employment prospects in his home state of Oklahoma. A strong sense of patriotism drove him to follow in his father and grandfather’s footsteps and enlist in the Army. Stationed in West Berlin from 1962 to 1965, he comments in his oral history interview, “I was in the middle of the destruction of a city.”