Archives On The Air 226: Adolescents Of The Vietnam War — Richard Tregaskis Papers

By Wyoming Public Media

Published October 29, 2020 at 4:11 PM MDT

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Richard Tregaskis in Ca Mau, 1963. Box 82, Richard Tregaskis papers, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.

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Richard Tregaskis captioned this photo of a young American soldier: "PFC Robert Eiler of Conneaut Lake, Pennsylvania, and gunner on H-21 (flying banana) out of Soc Trang Vietnam. VC bullet hit his plane (bullet hole to left of door)."

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Richard Tregaskis speaks with captured Viet Cong soldiers after the downing of an U.S. military helicopter, ca. 1963. Box 79, Richard Tregaskis papers, American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming.

Richard Tregaskis served as a war correspondent during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.

He arrived in Vietnam in the early 1960s and photographed extensively for more than ten years.

He created many wartime portraits. Early photos show career military soldiers aged mainly from the mid-twenties and up.

As the war dragged on, the effects of the draft are evident. Younger GIs made up most of the new recruits.

By 1969, the average age was 19.

This trend was not limited to the U.S. The average age of Viet Cong soldiers also decreased. Some were as young as 13.

Learn more in the Richard Tregaskis papers at UW’s American Heritage Center.