• THE VIETNAM CENTER AND ARCHIVE
  • Texas Tech University

 Finding Aid: William E. LeGro Collection Item Number: 13370000000

Individual Collection
Location: D104.3A; D103.1A; Map Collection; Newsletter Collection; Periodical Collection; Negative Collection; Photograph Collection; Slide Collection; Cold Storage Vault


Scope & Content:

  • Over four linear feet of books, maps, photographs, slides, videos, newsletters, periodicals, and documents detail William LeGro's service in Vietnam and his involvement in POW/MIA affairs. The collection includes documents from the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIAs and Task Force Russia; Notebooks kept by LeGro during his tours of duty in Vietnam, 1966-1967 and 1972-1975; Four volumes of congressional hearings from 1991-1992 and 1994 on POW/MIA affairs; Monthly Intelligence Summary and Threat Analyses (MISTAs) created while LeGro served at the Defense Attaché Office in Saigon; and Notes and Materials concerning LeGro's research on the 1st Infantry Division in Vietnam.

Biographical Note:

  • Colonel William E. LeGro fought in New Guinea and the Philippines as an infantryman from 1944 to 1945. Subsequent service included troop and staff duties in Germany and Korea. LeGro attended American University where he specialized in East and Southeast Asia. From 1964 to 1965 LeGro was assigned to the office of the Army's Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, specializing in Southeast Asia. LeGro then served in Vietnam from 1966 to 1967 as G-2, 1st Infantry Division. Returning to the United States he served as Director of Asian Studies at the Army War College from 1969-1971. Returning to Vietnam in 1972 he was a senior staff officer with the U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, and later with the U.S. Defense Attaché Office, Saigon, until the fall of Saigon on 29 April 1975. LeGro then wrote Vietnam from Cease-Fire to Capitulation while assigned to the U.S. Army Center of Military History. Following his military service LeGro has served as part of Task Force Russia and the U.S. Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA affairs as a researcher.

Access Level:

  • Unrestricted

Collection Inventory:

LocationBoxFolderContents
D104.3A1Military Intelligence Summary and Threat Analysis 
1
April 1973
2
May 1973
3
June 1973
4
August 1973
5
September 1973
6
October 1973
7
November 1973
8
December 1973
9
January 1974
10
February 1974
11
March 1974
12
April 1974
13
May 1974
14
June 1974
15
July 1974
16
August 1974
17
September 1974
18
October 1974
19
November 1974
20
February 1975
21
March 1975
22
Summary
Intelligence Weekly wrap-ups 
23
Weekly wrap-up March 1-7, 1975
24
Weekly wrap-up March 8-14, 1975
25
Weekly wrap-up March 15-21, 1975
26
Weekly wrap-up March 22-28, 1975
27
Weekly wrap-up March 29 -4 April 1975
28
Weekly wrap-up April 5-11, 1975
Materials gathered by William LeGro during his service in Vietnam 
29
Organizational charts of the U.S. and South Vietnamese government (1974)
30
Transfer of Special Security Office authority and responsibility
31
Communique: Communist Offensive in South VIetnam (March 1975)
32
Communique: General Wyand request for funding for Vietnam (31 March 1975)
33
Monthly Intelligence Estimate Update (July 1973)
34
North Vietnam Army Ground Forces (March 1975)
35
LeGro notebook: Daily Records (March 1973 - January 1974)
36
LeGro notebook: Daily Records (February 1974 - January 1975)
37
LeGro notebook: J-2 Meetings (March 1973 - January 1974)
38
LeGro notebook: Fact Sheets Defense Attache Office (Intelligence Branch) prepared by Lt. General John Deane
39
Defense Attache Office, Military Personnel Roster (December 1972)
40
Appraisal of Hanoi's military intentions in South Vietnam during the first quarter 1974
41
RVNAF Capability to deter Enemy Offensives
42
Assessment of Probable Outcome of Major Hostilities in Vietnam (November 1973)
43
Prospects for a communist offensive during the Dry Season (October 1973-May 1974)
44
RVNAF Operations (November 1973)
45
Defense Office memos
46
Equipment and Troop Levels: Changes, RVN and DRV since the ceasefire
47
Department of Defense POW/MIA newsletter
48
Intelligence Communiques (May 1975)
Manuscripts 
49
Chronologies of Vietnamese History
50
The Path to the Ben Hai, Vietnamization, Force Structuring and the Formation of the 3rd ARVn Infantry Division
51
Intelligence in Vietnam after the cease-fire
52
U.S. organization for the cease-fire
53
Vietnam from cease-fire to capitulation
First Infantry Division Manuscript Material 
54
Fall / Winter 1965-1966
55
Minh Tinh Road Combat After Action Report
56
Minh Tinh Road Operation correspondence
57
Minh Tinh Road Operation talk
58
After Action Reports (February-March 1966)
59
Operation Birmingham
60
Michelin Plantation
61
Battle of Bau Bang
62
Pham Quac Thuan interview
63
Phuoc Tuy
64
Draft chapter 1-5
D104.3B2Task Force Russia 
1
Establishment of Task Force Russia
2
Update for the Army Chief of Staff (20 August 1992)
3
Report by the Chair of the Russian side of the Joint Russian-American Commission (21 Sept. 1992)
4
Plenary Session (August-September 1993)
5
Plenary Session (December 1993
6
Tri-weekly reports
7
Report to the U.S. delegation of the U.S. - Russian Joint Commission on POW/MIAs (31 July 1992)
8
Report to the U.S. delegation of the U.S. - Russian Joint Commission on POW/MIAs (18 December 1992)
9
Report to the U.S. delegation of the U.S. - Russian Joint Commission on POW/MIAs (29 January 1993)
10
Report to the U.S. delegation of the U.S. - Russian Joint Commission on POW/MIAs (7 May 1993)
11
Summary of meetings 6-7 December 1993
12
Joint Research Project Proposal
13
Photocopy and translation of "Information from the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the USSR on the Situation in the DRV"
14
Soviet Memo "735"
15
Soviet Memo "1205"
16
Analysis of Soviet Memo "1205"
17
Analysis of Soviet Memo "1205"
18
Talking points
19
U.S. POWs from the Korean War possibly taken to the USSR
20
Video about the transfer of POWs from Korea to the USSR
21
Brett Kimberlin and David Sushansky
22
Major General Bernard Loeffke, U.S. Army
23
Colonel Vyacheslav Masurov
24
Colonel Gregory Pavlovich Derskiy
25
Boris Alexsandrovich Voronov
26
Fact sheets of downed U.S. aircraft
27
Soviet Cold War Shootdown victims
28
William LeGro's list of survivors and casualties
29
Advertisement placed in Soviet publications requesting information on U.S. servicemen in the former Soviet Union
30
Listing of Soviet documents concerning transport of passengers from Hanoi to Paris
31
Cables
32
Memorandums for the Record
33
Internal Correspondence
34
Reorganization of Task Force Russia and Defense Department Office of POW/MIA Affairs
D104.3C3U.S. Senate Select Hearings on POW/MIA Affairs (November - December 1992) 
1
Briefing Memo
2
Background Material
3
Witness List
4
Witness Alan Ptak
5
Witness Charles Kartman
6
Witness Captain John P. Gay
7
Witness Dr. Paul Cole
8
Witness Lt Colonel Philip Corso
9
Witness Surban Oprica
10
Witness Delk Simpson
11
Witness Steve Kiba
12
Witness James Sanders
13
Witness John M.G. Brown
14
Witness Thomas Ashworth
15
Witness Richard Boylan
16
Witness Dimitri Volkogonov
17
Witness General Loeffke
18
Witness Al Graham
19
Witness Delores Alfond
20
Witness Bruce Sanderson
21
Witness Greg Skavinski
22
Witness Jane Howard
23
Witness Ernest La Bounty
24
Press Release Committee to Release Findings (13 January 1993)
25
Analysis of findings by the American Legion
26
Memos pertaining to edits of drafts and deadlines
27
Memos concerning information leaks
Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs 
28
Report: Policy-related events/decisions and comments from 1973 forward concerning unaccounted for POW/MIAs in Southeast Asia
29
Report: Chronology of Policy and Intelligence Matters Concerning unaccounted for U.S. Military Personnel at the end of the Korean Conflict and During the Cold War
30
Congressional Hearing Summary
31
Report: Incidents of USSR Holding U.S. Citizens
32
Preliminary Report: POW/MIAs from World War II, Korea, Vietnam and the Cold War
33
Report: 324 U.S. Personnel from Vietnam Era Unaccounted
34
Senator Bob Smith correspondence and press releases
35
Senator Bob Smith and Dino Carluccio correspondence
36
Index to Congressional Hearings on POW/MIA Affairs
37
Dmitri Volkogonov
38
Deposition of "The Mortician" (excerpts)
39
Congressional Delegation trip to Vietnam (late 1992)
40
Newsclippings (22 April 1992)
41
Newsclippings (23 April 1992)
42
Newsclippings (24 April 1992)
Unresolved POW/MIA cases investigated by William LeGro 
43
MSGT Ralph Lilliard near Kujens, North Korea (27 November 1950)
44
PFC Robert Quillman near Chosin Reservoir, North Korea (29 November 1950)
45
SGT Lewis Sowles near Kaech'on, North Korea (30 November 1950)
46
PFC Milton Lawson near Hagaru-ri, North Korea (December 1950)
47
Loss of B-26 Invader near Pyongyang, North Korea (5 April 1951)
48
Loss of RF-80 near Ckongju to Sinanju, North Korea (2 October 1951)
49
Loss of P2V Neptune near Vladivostok, Russia (6 November 1951)
50
LTCOL Gerald Montgomery in a F-84 near Sinuiju, North Korea (3 March 1952)
51
Loss of RB-29 over the Sea of Japan (13 June 1952)
52
SGT Philip Mandra in North Korea (7 August 1952)
53
Loss of RB-29 over Korea (10 January 1953)
54
Loss of B-29 over Korea (29 January 1953)
55
Loss of RB-50 near St Petersburg (29 July 1953)
56
Loss of RB-47 near the Aleutians Islands (17 April 1955)
57
Loss of P-4M near the coast of China (22 August 1956)
58
COL John F. O'Grady near Quang Binh Province (10 April 1967)
59
Loss of A-6 north of Nui Doi Thoi Mountain (19 May 1967)
D104.4A4Research Material 
1
Repatriation of American Prisoners of War from Soviet Union after World War II
2
Transfer of U.S. Korean War POWs to the Soviet Union by the Joint Commission Support Branch (November 1993)
3
American Prisoners of War during the Korean Conflict
4
Prisoners of War / Undertermined Status of Soldiers in Vietnam
5
Change in Number of American Prisoners of War held by the North Vietnamese in 1970
6
Treatment of American Prisoners of War in North Vietnam
7
Passing of American Prisoners of War through Moscow and Peking following release by the North Vietnamese
8
Operation Homecoming
9
The Fall of South Vietnam: Statements by Vietnamese Military and Civilian Leaders
10
Synopsis of GRU Seven Volume Study on Tactics, Approaches and Air Battles of Vietnam
11
HR-291 Missing Service Personnel Act
12
Statements Against lifting Vietnamese Trade Embargo
13
Ross Perot
14
International Institute for Prisoners of War
15
Korean/Cold War Family Association of the Missing
16
National Alliance of Families for the Return of America's Missing Servicemen
17
National League of Families of American POW/MIAs in Southeast Asia
18
National Vietnam Veterans Coalition
19
Vietnam Veterans of America
20
Accuracy in Media
21
Center for Security Policy - Decision Briefs
Correspondence 
22
American Legion
23
Flicker Films
24
Andy Gembara
25
Theo Grevers
26
Robert Kiplinger
27
Deena Linquist
28
Alton Malbar, Jr.
29
Mary Dunham Nichols
30
Mark A. Sauter
31
Bob Smith
32
Assorted
Newsclippings 
33
Newsclippings
34
Newsclippings
35
Newsclippings
36
Newsclippings
37
Newsclippings
38
Newsclippings
D103.1A5 (Oversize)1
U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam organizational charts
2
Newspaper clippings
3
Computer generated printout of passport and photographs
4
The Infantry News: Volume 1 Number 17 (5 March 1943) The Infantry News: Volume 1 Number 18 (12 March 1943) The Infantry News: Volume 1 Number 20 (26 March 1943)
The American Traveler (1st Infantry Division): Volume 28 Number 15 (22 April 1967)
5
Yank Down Under Magazine: Volume 2 Number 7 (15 September 1944) Yank Down Under Magazine: Volume 2 Number 10 (6 October 1944) Yank Down Under Magazine: Volume 2 Number 11 (13 October 1944) Yank Far East Magazine: Volume 2 Number 22 (29 December 1944)
6
Correspondence by William LeGro and Colonel Harry Summer in "American Spectator" (March and June 1988) Organization chart: United States Support Activities Group, Thailand (1 January 1974)
Empty notebook: "Daily Records: March 1973-January 1974, Colonel William E. LeGro Chief, Intelligence Branch
Empty notebook: "J-2 Meetings: March 1973-January 1974, Colonel William E. LeGro Chief, Intelligence Branch
Empty notebook: Fact Sheets: Defense Attache Office Intelligence Branch, LTG John R. Deane, Jr.
D104.4B61
Letter from Lt. General R.D. Eichelberger to patients in Army hospitals Special Orders No. 246, Hq 41st Infantry Division (original in restricted access file) Seperation Qualification Record, 2 December 1945 (original in restricted access file) United States Army Honorable Discharge, Enlisted Record, and Report of Separation (original in restricted access file) General Orders Number 9, Headquarters 186th Infantry award of the Combat Infantryman Badge, 4 September 1944
United States Army Certificate of Reenlistment, 4 April 1949 Appointment in the Officers' Reserve Corps, 4 April 1949 Headquarters of the United States Army Infantry letter of academic achievement, 30 August 1949 Department of the Army letter of appointment in the Regular Army, 26 June 1952
Pamphlet issued to every officer of the Army entitled "Chief of Staff's Guidance to Officers of the Army" 12 October 1971 Department of State official memo from Ambassador Graham Martin to Dr. Henry A. Kissinger, 7 June 1974 (2 copies) Copy of facsimile transmission concerning Significant Intelligence, Vietnam (SIV) Photocopy of picture taken by the Buffalo Hunter dron of DAO compound Tan Son Nhut airbase, 15 April 1975 (3 copies) Poem entitled "Southern Rivers" written by William LeGro, June 1975
2
Pages from a notebook carried by William LeGro while in the 1st Infantry Division from March 1966 to March 1967
3
Japanese notebook found by William LeGro and converted into a diary during the Biak operation during World War 2
4
Essay entitled "Vietnam Pourquoi?" by Mai Hao Than written in French and English (signed by Nguyen Khai Chinh)
5
Various newspaper and magazine clippings regarding POW/MIA issues
6
USS Midway (CVA 41) Information Kit
7
Various newspaper clippings and journal articles regarding the Vietnam War
8
Summary of "Military Intelligence Summary and Threat Analysis" transmitted by Intelligence Branch DAO Saigon, 27 April 1973
9
Foreign Broadcast Information Service Daily Report Supplement for Senior General Van Tien Dung's article "Great Spring Victory" Volume 1, 7 June 1976
Foreign Broadcast Information Service Daily Report Supplement for Senior General Van Tien Dung's article "Great Spring Victory" Volume 2, 7 July 1976
10
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars conference report entitled "Some Lessons and Non-Lessons of Vietnam: Ten Years after the Paris Peace Accords"
11
Report for Armor Magazine entitled Role of the Army of the Republic of Viet Nam(ARVN) III Armor Brigade/III Corps Assault Task Force(ATF) by Brigadier General Tran Quang Khoi
12
Various Congressional documents relating to POW/MIA issues
13
Journal articles relating to the Vietnam War
14
The Department of State Bulletin
8 January 1973, 12 February 1973, 26 March 1973
15
The American Legion analysis of the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA affairs, 22 February 1993 (4 copies)
16
Report of the United States Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs, 13 January 1993
17
Congressional Record of the 103rd Congress, First Session, 1 July 1993 (see pages: s8383, s8423, s8445, s8563)
18
Department of the Army Center of Military History manuscript: "The Fall of Vietnam" by Cecil E. Spurlock
19
Foreign Broadcast Information Service Southeast Asia Report, 2 February 1983
20
Defense Technical Information Center Technical Report: "Lessons Learned," 1 May- 31 May 1966
21
Defense Technical Information Center Technical Report: "Combat Afteraction Report," 2 June - 3 September 1966
104.4C7United States Army Center of Military History Indochina Monographs 
1
The Royal Lao Army and United States Army Advice and Support by Major General Oudone Sananikone
2
RLG Military Operations and Activities in the Laotian Panhandle by Brigadier General Soutchay Vongsavanh
3
The U.S. Adviser by General Vien, Lieutenant General Troung, Lieutenant General Khuyen, Major General Hinh, Brigadier General Tho, Colonel Lung, and Lieutenant Colonel Vien
4
Pacification by Brigadier General Tran Dinh Tho
5
RVNAF and U.S. Operational Cooperation and Coordination by Lieutenant General Ngo Quang Truong
6
Lam Son 719 by Major General Nguyen Duy Hinh
7
Strategy and Tactics by Colonel Hoang Ngoc Lung
8
Reflections on the Vietnam War by General Cao Van Vien and Lieutenant General Dong Van Khuyen
9
The South Vietnamese Society by Major General Nguyen Duy Hinh and Brigadier General Tran Dinh Tho
10
The Cambodian Incursion by Brigadier General Tran Dinh Tho
11
The Khmer Republic at War and the Final Collapse by Lieutenant General Sak Sutsakhan
12
Memorandum from Senator John Kerry to William E. LeGro
Testimony of Ambassador Graham A. Martin on Vietnam evacuation before the Special Subcommittee on Investigations of the Committee on International Relations, House of Representatives, 27 January 1976 (handwritten note from Graham A. Martin to William LeGro on front cover)
Photocopy of a letter from Senator John Kerry regarding William LeGro's service in the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA affairs, 21 December 1992
Statement of William LeGro before the Subcommittee on East Asia and Pacific Affairs, Foreign Affairs Committee, United States Congress, 10 February 1994
Testimony of Al Santoli titled "The Ongoing U.S. Government POW/MIA Cover-Up" before the Asia and Pacific Subcommittee of the House Foreign Relations Committee, 10 February 1994
Statement by The Honorable Benjamin A. Gilman before the Asia and Pacific Subcommittee of the House Foreign Relations Committee, 10 February 1994
Index of photographs taken during the visit to Indochina by members and staff of The Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs, November 1992 (these photos were donated to the Vietnam Archive by William LeGro in April 2006, but were lost in transit)
13
Hearings before the Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs on POW/MIA Policy and Process Part 2 of 2, 5-7 and 15 November 1991
14
Hearings before the Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs on Cold War, Korea, World War 2 POWS, 10-11 November 1992
15
Hearings before the Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs on Americans Missing or Prisoner in Southeast Asia, The Department of Defense Accounting Process, 24-25 June 1992
16
Hearings before the Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs on the U.S. Government's Post-War POW/MIA Efforts, 11-12 August 1992
D104.5A81
Report of the U.S. Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs, 25 January 1993
2
Report of the U.S. Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs Appendices
3
Congressional hearings on POW/MIA affairs (1991-1992)
4
Congressional hearings on POW/MIA affairs (1992, 1994)

Separated Materials:

Books:Moscow Bound: Policy, Politics and the POW/MIA Dilemma by John M.G. Brown.
Photographs:VA043708-VA043725, VA043998-VA044001: Photographs of Aircraft, Areas and Individuals associated with Colonel W. LeGro, VAN006021-VAN006033: Negatives.
 VA039222: AC-119 being shot down on 29 April 1975.
 VA039223: UTADAO air base on 29 April 1975.
 VA039224: AC-119 destroyed during attack on 28 April 1975.
 VA039225: LTC Gerald Montgomery.
 VA039226, VA039227: Lt. Pat Service whose RB-29 was shot down over the Sea of Japan on 13 June 1952, his body was not recovered.
 VA039228-VA039232: SSGT Eddie R. Berg whose RB-29 was shot down over the Sea of Japan on 13 June 1952, his body was not recovered.
 SGT Philip V. Mandra, USMC, who was captured by the Chinese on 7 August 1952 and not repatriated.
 VA039235, VA039236, VA039237, VAN006034: CPL Charles Russell whose RB-50 was shot down near St. Petersburg, Russia on 29 July 1953 his body was not recovered.
 4 photographs documenting Colonel William LeGro's service in Saigon.
Slides:VAS037746-VAS037789: 44 35mm slides from Colonel William LeGro's service with the U.S. Defense Attaché Office, Saigon.
Maps:Kaech'on, Korea (1:50,000) (seriesL752, sheet 2925II).
 Yongbyon, Korea (1:50,000) (seriesL752, sheet 2925I).
 Joint Operations Graphic (Air) Muang Xepon, Laos.
Thailand.
Vietnam (1:250,000) (Series 1501 Air, Sheet NE48-15, Edition 5).
 Muang Mai, Laos.
Cambodia.
Vietnam (1:250,000) (Series 1501 Air, Sheet ND48-8, Edition 3).
 Situation map kept by Colonel Hoang Ngoc Lung, giving the locations of ARVN and PAVN units in South Vietnam as of 29 April 1975 (Section 12 Drawer12).
Moving Images:1337VI2277: New Jersey Vietnam Veteran's Memorial: Remembering America's War in Vietnam Decades Later (21 October 2005).
Newsletters:American Foreign Policy Newsletter (October 1991).
 Bridgehead Sentinel (Published by the Society of the First Division) (Summer 1985).
Periodicals:Armor Magazine (July-August 1971).
 DAV Magazine (November 1991).
 U.S. Veteran News and Report (August 1991, January 1992, August 1992 [2 copies]).
 Life Magazine (22 March 1968) (November 1987).

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