David, Minnesota, 1969. No. 001: Fort Benning School for Boys

I enlisted in the US Army Reserve in 1968, being one of the thousands of graduate students whose deferments were cancelled by LBJ in the spring of 1968.  At that time, before the lottery, the draft was applied on the basis of oldest first.  All of us who had...

Kent, Texas, 1969. No. 234: Never Heard From Again

In November of 1965 while attending Washburn University (as a junior) I was kicked out for violating their rules regarding the use of alcohol.  Within four days of that event I was notified by my local draft board in Wilson County, Kansas to report for a...

David, Kansas, 1969. No. 163: Defense Work

I was caught up in it like everyone else at that time. The night they held the lottery, I was busy with other things, and did not know the results until the next day. When I saw that my number was 163, I knew it probably was not high enough to escape the call-up. I...

John Ben, 1969, New York. No. 013: The Licorice Strategy

I knew the moment I found out my number, even though it was very low, that I would not have to serve in Vietnam.  13 has always been my lucky number as it is my birth date.  Indeed, I graduated from the University of Kansas at mid-year and knew no...

Mark, Kansas, 1969. Three Outcomes

I was a senior living in a scholarship hall at KU when the lottery numbers were drawn.  I had already been accepted into medical school, so I was deferred.  After my residency, the military had no interest in me anymore.  My two senior roommates...

David, 1969. No. 016: No Vietnam

In 1969 my lottery number was 16. I was attending college part time when I was drafted in December 1970, with orders for Ft. Polk (basic) and then Vietnam. So I ran around looking for other options. I enlisted a few days later in the Army Reserve and went to...