“Marine Corps Vietnam Tankers
Historical Foundation”
ANNEX G-1 Source Citing and Attribution Convention
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ANNEX G-1 Source Citing and Attribution Convention This series of “Marine Corps Tanks and Ontos in Vietnam” has been thoroughly researched and many sources of information – both primary and secondary – are quoted, paraphrased, or merely provide background and necessary context. Every attempt has been made to properly, quickly, and correctly identify the sources and should questions arise for more details about a cited source, the Foundation will promptly provide the information sought to the best of our ability. The natural interruption in the flow of reading, often caused by footnotes and references within the text, has been minimized to the degree possible, using the simplified convention developed and explained here. Note: The convention used for citing quotes and sources will be as follows: Quotes and information taken from the "U.S. Marines in Vietnam" Series, designated "GB" for "Green Books" by which the series is commonly referred, will be cited with the symbol "(GB-XX)" the "XX" being the year each book covers in the series. U.S. Marines in Vietnam: The Landing and the Buildup 1965 (GB-65) U.S. Marines in Vietnam: An Expanding War 1966 (GB-66) U.S. Marines in Vietnam: Fighting the North Vietnamese 1967 (GB-67) U.S. Marines in Vietnam: The Defining Year 1968 (GB-68) U.S. Marines in Vietnam: High Mobility and Standdown 1969 (GB-69) U.S. Marines in Vietnam: Vietnamization and Redeployment 1970-1971 (GB-70) The Marines in Vietnam: 1954-1973: Anthology and Annotated Bibliography (GB-AB) Quotes or citings taken from written stories and articles written by individuals are designated "(YY-ZZ)". The "YY" initials for the title of the story and the “ZZ” for the author's first and last name initials: “SL-RS” for "Operation STARLITE" by Ray Stewart and “(SG-LR)” for "Super Goof” authored by Lloyd "Pappy" Reynolds. Quotes or citings obtained through personal interviews conducted by the VTHF recorded in person or by phone are designated by the applicable year served in-country and interviewee's first and last name initials. “(65-RS)” and “(68-LR)”: 1965-Ray Stewart and 1968-Lloyd Reynolds, respectively. Cited published books and documents – all of which are in the Foundation Archives – are cited in similar fashion. Here too, the source identification is kept as simple, non-distracting to the reader as possible and still meet the requirements to properly cite and give credit to our sources. The publication abbreviation followed by the first and last name initials of the author. For example; Semper Fi, written by Edward F. Murphy is presented as “(SF-EM)”; Marine Corp Tank Battles in Vietnam, written by Oscar E. Gilbert is presented as “(TB-OG)”. The Foundation has acquired a number of “E” books now archived in the Foundation’s “E-Library”. The titles and authors are presented by the same convention as those hard copy books but located in a separate section of this ANNEX and display an “e” for example; On Strategy: A Critical Analysis of the Vietnam War by Harry G. Summers is designated by “(OSeHS)” or On Guerilla Warfare by Mao Tse-tung presents “(GWeMT)”. There are two magazine publications referenced that feature articles about the Vietnam War: “Vietnam” and “The Leatherneck”. “Vietnam”, as the name implies, is exclusively Vietnam War-focused with the occasional article about Marines and less often about Marine Tanks and Ontos. “The Leatherneck” is focused on presenting material by and about Marines. It has published articles about Marine Tanks and Ontos. We have used material from both for our publication and, therefore, developed a naming convention. “VN” and “LN” for “Vietnam” and “Leatherneck” respectively, followed by the year and month of publication. For example “(LN-05/10)” is an article written in the 2015, March “Leatherneck” - “Vietnam 1965: ‘The Dirtiest War Americans Had to Fight.’" p.54 by R.R. Keene. And, “(VN-13/6)” is an article written in the 2013, June “Vietnam” - "The Collapse of Generalship", p.30 by T.E. Ricks Quotes or citings taken from the numbered CD's are taken from recorded personal interviews obtained by Marine Corps History Division interviewers in Vietnam, often right on the battle field of returning combatants or of those Marines recently returned to CONUS from Vietnam. These archived interviews are designated, for example, "(CD-124)". The "124" identification number is ascribed to locate the interview in the Book’s Annex and enable retrieving a copy of this 11 minute interview of 1stLt Roger Davis from the Foundation Archives. The Foundation has written summaries and, in some cases, verbatim transcripts, of all these CD’s, which may also be obtained upon request. Quotes or citings taken from the unit Command Chronologies are designated "CC": Infantry units prefixed with the battalion/regiment and followed by the month/year. For example: “(CC-1/4, 2/68)” is the Command Chronology of the First Battalion, Fourth Marines, dated February, 1968. Tank and Antitank (Ontos) units are prefixed with the battalion and followed by the month/year. For example: “(CC-1TK, 4/67)” and “(CC-3AT, 6/66)” are Command Chronologies of the First Tank Battalion, dated April, 1967 and of the Third Antitank Battalion, date June 1966, respectively. This series of books relies heavily on these Battalion-level Command Chronologies, written 50 years ago in the field, within days of the activity which they report. Also, the Marine Corps’ “U.S. Marines in Vietnam”, the by-year official series spanning the entire Vietnam War based on first hand experiences of the Marines who fought the war who provide validation of much of the material the Foundation has collected over the years. The “GB’s” and the “CC’s”, deemed to be Primary sources, provide the framework and context into which the primary-source, personal experiences – stories and interviews - are placed. In addition, the Foundation’s 3 Book, 6 Volume Series, also often cites a few excellent books: "Marine Corps Tank Battles in Vietnam" by Oscar (Ed) Gilbert (TB-EG) and "Semper Fi" by Edward F. Murphy (SF-EM). There are many books and publications from which we call upon for support but these two books in particular follow a chronology of the entire span of the Vietnam War - as does this series. We hope this citing convention will both streamline the reading experience while providing ease of acquiring a deeper knowledge of events through pursuing the cited references. Ray Stewart |