Rutgers Oral History Archives of World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the Cold War
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ORIGINS AND AIMS OF THE PROJECT

The fiftieth anniversary of the end of the Second World War has sparked a growing realization among both scholars and the public alike that a generation is in danger of disappearing from historical memory. Americans who came of age during the Great Depression and then went on to confront the twin threats of German fascism and Japanese militarism are now in their seventies and eighties. If we do not act immediately and record their oral memoirs and stories, we will forever prevent their experiences from becoming part of the historical record of this vital era.

On July 1, 1994, the Department of History at Rutgers-The State University of New Jersey established the Rutgers Oral History Archives of World War II with an initial gift of $100,000 from the Rutgers College Class of 1942. This archive records the personal experiences of the men and women who served on the homefront and overseas. The goals of the project are multifaceted and include:

  • Conducting in-depth interviews of individuals who lived through the Second World War II beginning with an initial target group of Rutgers College alumni and Douglass College alumnae (formally, New Jersey College for Women).
  • Preserving the original interview tapes and edited transcripts in Rutgers Special Collection and University Archives at Alexander Library in New Brunswick. Alexander Library is the central research library for the Rutgers system.
  • Encouraging individuals from the World War II era to make their personal papers and memorabilia available to scholars and the public by donating them to the Oral History Archives or to another appropriate institution.
  • Disseminating the oral memoirs and other materials collected by the project to both the academic community and the general public through books, radio and television documentaries, and museum and library exhibits.
  • Actively involving undergraduate students in the interviewing process, and the use of the material as well as fostering intergenerational bonds between them and the World War II generation.
  • Offering other academic institutions a model project that demonstrates how alumni can be encouraged to take a greater part in the life of a university on all levels.
  • Collaborating with other institutions to record the oral histories of other groups of men and women who came of age during the 1930s and 1940s.