Tom, North Carolina, 1969. No. 366 meets No. 1

I attended a Tar Heel basketball game the night of the first lottery . When I returned to my fraternity house I learned that my birthdate was the last pulled out of the basket ( June 8th ) Went out drinking with friends to celebrate and sat next to a guy at the bar...

Jay, North Carolina, 1969. No. 171: Coast Guard

I graduated from The University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill in 1971 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration.  I think my Lottery Number was 171.  After graduation I worked for six months for Julius Garfinckel’s in...

Bob, North Carolina, 1969, 1-Y: Out and off to France

I was at UNC, not motivated in the general classes, and met a number of veterans who’d come back from Vietnam who were "highly" motivated. They didn’t know what they wanted to do, mind you, but they were intensely glad to be in school. Before...

Gary, North Carolina, 1969. No. 366! Last is best.

I was a sophomore at UNC in the Spring of 1969. I had been at some campus function the night that the first lottery was held. I got back to my dorm room and started listening to the radio, having missed hearing the first 30 or so birthdates. I listened intently for...

Jimmy, North Carolina, 1969. No. 197: Not called

I remember watching the lottery number assignments on televison, and my roomate and I were very nervous until our birthdates were drawn.  As my 1969 number was 197, I anxiously followed the draft each of the next several months.  My...

Tom, Florida, 1969. No. 218: Not called, not sorry

I clearly remember gathering around the TV with my UNC college friends the night the draft lottery took place. One of my friends was in Navy ROTC and drew #11. We all laughed, he was going. He wound up in CIC (combat information section) on board a carrier in the Med...