Ron, NC, 1969. No. 344: Bitter Sweet

The draft lottery was a time of anxiety and a time of personal introspection.  With all the anti-war sentiment around us and my desire to complete my engineering degree (I was a sophomore), I kept asking the question, "What effect is this...

Jay, NC, 1969. No. 55: Weekend Warrior

I was a junior at NC State living with a couple of classmates in an apartment off campus on the night of the fateful first lottery.  Two of us got low numbers and the third guy lucked out with a number over 200.  The guy with the other low number was already...

Ted, NC, 1969. No. 342: Old Ladies And Cripples First

As an ROTC cadet, we were signing the paperwork for entering the Air Force as an officer upon graduation or enlisted if you dropped out of school. As we started to sign, someone said "let’s go around the room and say our lottery numbers." Most were...

Doug, NC, 1969. No. 366: Coming In Last

I was involved in the very first lottery in 1969.  I was a sophomore at North Carolina State University, single, and prime for the draft.  I was not an avid supporter of the Vietnam war, but was not a draft dodger either.  Had I been drafted I would...

D. Web, California, 1971. No. 212: From Cook To Clergy

I recall that the lottery was held when I was a camp counselor between my freshman and sophomore years at Univ. of Calif. at Santa Barbara.  All the males on the camp staff had logged their birth dates with the camp administrative staff.  When...