Vietnam War: Marine Corps Third Division Command Chronologies 1965-1969

Vietnam War: Marine Corps Third Division Command Chronologies 1965-1969

13,734 pages of Marine Corps Third Division command chronologies also known as command diaries.

The files date from May 1965 to December 1969. The collection is missing reports from September 1966.   A text transcript of all computer recognizable text has been embedded into the graphic image of each page of each document, creating a searchable finding aid. Text searches can be done across all files in the collection.

Most of these chronologies include four common sections of information: organizational data, narrative summaries of events, accomplishments and losses, sequential listings of significant events within the unit, and supporting documentation. More extensive chronologies include lists of commanders, lists of staff officers, lists of location(s) where units were stationed, lists of awards and training received, lists of operations participated in, situation reports, and records relating to community relations activities.

Administrative records, include records of activations, deactivations and redesignations, readiness reports relating to deployment, as well as financial reports and records of subjects such as recruiting efforts and civilian demonstrations. The chronologies sometimes include other documentation as attachments, such as supplementary reports, memorandums, maps, charts, photographs, newspaper clippings and bulletins.

The U.S. Marine Corps provided ground, air, supply, and logistic support in the Vietnam War for over two decades as part of III Marine Amphibious Force. The 3rd Marine Division is a division of the United States Marine Corps currently based at Camp Courtney, Marine Corps Base Camp Smedley D. Butler in Okinawa, Japan. The division was first formed during World War II and saw four years of continuous combat in the Vietnam War. During the Vietnam War, the 3rd Marine Division suffered 6,869 men killed in action.

The 3rd Battalion, 9th Marines, 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade, were the first Marines to be sent to Vietnam in March 1965 to protect the Da Nang Air Base. On 6 May 1965, the 3rd Marine Division opened the Marine Compound at the Da Nang Air Base, Vietnam. By the end of 1965 the division had all its regiments (3rd Marines, 4th Marines and 9th Marines) on the ground. 

Its first major operation was Operation Hastings in July of 1966. Next was Operation Prairie in October 1966. In 1967, the Army leadership in Saigon advocated that the Marines concentrate their efforts on large unit search and destroy operations. The Marines’ mission was split, with fighting against the North Vietnamese Army along the demilitarized zone (DMZ) toward the north, and a counterinsurgency operation waged against the Viet Cong in the villages in the south.

In 1967 and early 1968 the Division was involved in Operation Prairie III, Operation Prairie IV, Operation Hickory I, Operation Cimarron, Operation Buffalo, Operation Kingfisher and Operation Kentucky. On November 14, 1967, the 3rd Marine Division commander Major General Bruno Hochmuth was killed northwest of Huế in a helicopter crash.  

During the 1968 Tet Offensive, the Division conducted operations along the DMZ and fought in the Battle of Huế.

In November 1969 the Division left South Vietnam, and moved to Camp Courtney, Okinawa, Japan. 

Source: United States Marine Corps History Division