Collection Opening: George Denoncourt II Photograph Collection
By Laura Kintz, Digitization Archivist
The Kennedy Library is pleased to announce the opening of the George Denoncourt II Photograph Collection. This collection has been digitized in full, supported by a generous grant from the Broadside Philanthropic Foundation.
George Denoncourt II (b. 1948) is a United States Army veteran who served as a combat photographer in Vietnam in 1968 and 1969. A selection of Denoncourt’s photographs was displayed at the Kennedy Library from January 8, 1983, to February 28, 1983, in an exhibit titled, “One Man’s War: Vietnam through the Eyes of Combat Photographer George Denoncourt II.” This collection contains over 100 mounted photographs that appeared in the exhibit, as well as 75 associated loose photographic prints.
As a child in Haverhill, Massachusetts, George Denoncourt II became interested in photography after learning about it from his father. After graduating from high school in 1966, his aspirations to become a war photographer led him to volunteer for the United States Army. He reported for duty in September of 1967 and received his assignment as a U.S. Army Still Photo Specialist. Denoncourt received both photography and combat training at Fort Bragg (now Fort Liberty) in North Carolina. In the late spring of 1968, he began his tour of duty in Vietnam, which lasted for approximately one year.
Denoncourt’s photographs from Vietnam capture United States Army soldiers in the course of their military duties; views of various military equipment; Vietnamese civilians (mostly women and children); and the Southern Vietnamese landscape. Some photographs contain graphic depictions of violence, including images of injured and deceased servicemen and civilians.
To provide further context for the photographs in the original exhibit, Denoncourt contributed original captions that appeared in an exhibit guide; these captions are included in the photograph descriptions that now appear online. Along with five text panels that were displayed in the exhibit and that have also been digitized, the captions provide valuable insight into Denoncourt’s own thoughts and feelings about his experiences in Vietnam.
A sample of photographs from this collection can be viewed below. Additional images can be found by searching the collection’s finding aid.
GDPC-001-001-p0004. A United States Army soldier (facing away from the camera) stands in a field of tall grass in South Vietnam. Caption from original exhibit guide: “Even tall soldiers can get lost in the elephant grass.”GDPC-002-001-p0012. View from above of tents and other structures set up in a temporary United States Army camp on a hillside in South Vietnam, near the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). Caption from original exhibit guide: “A rear bivouac of mechanized infantry in the hill near the DMZ and N. Vietnam.”GDPC-003-001-p0009. A group of United States Army soldiers ride on the back of a tank through tall grass in South Vietnam. Caption from original exhibit guide: “5th Inf. Div. troops are transported on a tank through rough terrain.”GDPC-005-001-p0003. A United States Army soldier sits outside a tent in a camp in South Vietnam, writing a letter. Caption from original exhibit guide: “Writing home to someone special.”GDPC-009-001-p0039. A United States Army soldier reclines in the back of a military vehicle in South Vietnam; he leans on his combat helmet with his head in his hand and his eyes closed.GDPC-003-001-p0012. Silhouetted view of United States Army soldiers and an armored personnel carrier (APC) in a field in South Vietnam at sunset. Caption from original exhibit guide: “Another day comes to an end as an Armored Personnel Carrier stands down for the night.”GDPC-009-001-p0033. A United States Army soldier (center) lifts two young Vietnamese boys who hold onto his arms at a base in South Vietnam, as other Vietnamese children look on.GDPC-007-001-p0005. A young Vietnamese girl stands beside a thatched-roof home in a village in South Vietnam. Caption from original exhibit guide: “In a village in Tay Ninh Province, a shy girl.”GDPC-008-001-p0010. A Vietnamese woman (wearing a nón lá hat and holding a baby on her hip) receives medical attention from a United States Army medic (partially visible at left) in a village in South Vietnam; a U.S. Army soldier stands in the background at left. Caption from original exhibit guide: “A young Vietnamese mother has shrapnel removed from a buttock by a medic during a MEDCAP [Medical Civic Action Program] operation in a village recently victimized by terrorists.”GDPC-008-001-p0012. View of a “Battlefield Cross” memorial to a fallen United States Army soldier in South Vietnam; a rifle is stuck into the ground, with a combat helmet resting on top. Caption from original exhibit guide: “Grave.”
