Government Documents

50th Anniversary of the End of the Vietnam War

On April 30, 1975 the city of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, was taken by the army of North Vietnam, ending the conflict that had grown out of the Vietnamese war for independence from France and a proxy war for the conflict between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.  While the United States鈥� large scale military presence in Vietnam had ended in 1973 when a peace agreement was signed between communist North Vietnam and the American-backed South Vietnam, there were still many Americans in South Vietnam.  

As the North Vietnamese army began closing in on the city in early March, the Americans and many South Vietnamese who were associated with them or the government began to flee the city on commercial airline flights.  The signal given to the Americans that it was time to go was the song 鈥淲hite Christmas,鈥� which the American radio station began to play on April 29.  Hundreds of Americans and South Vietnamese were stranded at the American embassy.  Helicopters managed to evacuate about 2000 people despite frequent thunderstorms the night of April 29-30.  For more information about the war, check-out our LibGuide on the subject.

Gov Docs: Vietnam War, 1961-1975

Happy Star Wars Day & May the 4th Be With You! 

To celebrate, we鈥檙e taking a look at our very own space cadets.  Did you know the term 鈥渁stronaut鈥� derives from the Greek words meaning 鈥渟tar sailor鈥� and refers to all who have been launched as crew members aboard NASA spacecraft bound for orbit and beyond? The term has been maintained as the title for all those selected to join the NASA corps of astronauts who make 鈥渟tar sailing鈥� their career profession.

Since inception, NASA has selected 360 astronaut candidates: 299 men and 61 women - 212 military and 138 civilians - 191 pilots and 159 non-pilots [Data comes directly from NASA]. In 2025, there are 47 active astronauts who are eligible for flight assignments.

We invite you now to browse some of our department鈥檚 informative display to better learn about America鈥檚 expanding endeavors into space. The display can be found at Marx Library on 2nd Floor South with a 5-page bibliography for more information.

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