Quick Facts about the Vietnam War
Major Participating Countries
- North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam)
- Supported by Soviet Union and China
- South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam)
- Supported by United States
Abbreviated List of Important Dates
May 7, 1954: Viet Minh troops defeat French troops, leading to the end of French colonial rule in Indochina.
July 21, 1954: The Geneva Accords divides Vietnam at the 17th parallel, with North Vietnam ruled as a communist entity and South Vietnam ruled as a non-communist entity.
1964: The Gulf of Tonkin resolution is passed, authorizing the president to “take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the United States.”
1973: The Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Viet-Nam indicates that U.S. military will leave Vietnam and the 17th parallel will remain the border for the time being. In March, the last of the U.S. military leaves Vietnam.
1975: On April 29, Operation Frequent Wind is put into effect, where Americans and South Vietnamese are evacuated from Saigon. On April 30, the South Vietnamese government surrenders as North Vietnamese troops march into Saigon.
Source for Quick Facts: Britannica's Vietnam War Timeline
Image Source: NYPL Digital Collections; Vietnamese artillerymen fire from a mountain position during field training Image ID: 5031206
Catalog Tips
When searching the Online Research Catalog, in the Advanced Search, checkmark "Cartographic" under Format and type the following into the Keyword Field or Subject Field for most results:
- Vietnam War
- Vietnam (utilizing date function, limit to years from approximately 1954-1975)
- Indochina (utilizing date function, limit to years from approximately 1954-1975)
For more specific results, combine the above search terms with any of the terms listed in the "Terms to Search in the Online Research Catalog" portion of this guide's Using Our Catalogs page.
For holdings of other items that are not in the Online Research Catalog, please search in the printed Dictionary Catalog of the Map Division (available online via HathiTrust), by:
- [Town/Village/City Name] + associated year
- Vietnam + associated year (Vietnam-related material starts in Volume 10, starting page 414)
- Asia, Southeast + associated year (Asia, Southeast- related material starts in Volume 1, starting page 442)
- Indochina, French + associated year (Indochina, French related material starts in Volume 5, starting page 271)
- Please note that materials under Indochina, French reflect Vietnam prior to the Vietnam War when the region was controlled by the French colonial government. However, these items would be reflective of the many causes that led to the start of the conflict.
A Selection of Vietnam War-related Maps and Atlases at the Map Division
- Map no. IV, Laos airfields / Programs Evaluation Office, Vientiane - Laos ; R. H. Brown, Chief. [1959]
- Catalog Note: Shows city or province boundaries, drainage, existing and proposed improvements to airports in Laos and Vietnam...Manuscript addition for the "1959 study of information and attitudes in Laos, Raymond Fink Ph.D.," shows towns and villages threatened by "bandits" as well as radial distances centered on Vientiane, Laos airfield, 20 minutes apart.
- Creator: United States Operations Mission to Laos. Programs Evaluation Office, creator, publisher.
![Map no. IV, Laos airfields / Programs Evaluation Office, Vientiane - Laos ; R. H. Brown, Chief. [1959] Map Div. 18-5051](https://libapps.s3.amazonaws.com/accounts/313473/images/58132684.jpg)
Viet Nam 1:250,000. 1964
- Dictionary Catalog: Volume 10, page 415, Column 2, Row 7
- Creator: United States Army Map Service
- Background new map, South Viet Nam, from the Associated Press. 1965
- Dictionary Catalog: Volume 10, page 415, Column 1, Row 7
- Terminals, Assembly Area and Parade Route. Assembly Area in Central Park. [1967]
- Map Div. 18-1033
- Created by the Spring Mobilization Committee to end the War in Vietnam
- Catalog note: Shows streets, protest march route from Central Park to the United Nations building, location of selected buildings on one side, and a detailed map of the "Assembly area in Central Park" between 67th Street and 72nd Street on Central Park West on the verso..."Accompanied by a letter from the Spring Mobilization Committee about Workshops and Conferences after the march."
- The Vietnam map book : a self-help guide to herbicide exposure. [1981]
- Map Div. 83-159
- Vietnam Conflict. [1991?]
- Map Div. 03-3671
- Catalog Note: Shows conflicts between U.S. forces and Viet Cong...Includes inset of "Saigon & vicinity," list of U.S. forces in Vietnam in 1968, list of selected U.S. ground operations, indexes, and chronology 1954-1975.
- Where we were in Vietnam: a comprehensive guide to the firebases, military installations, and naval vessels of the Vietnam War. 2002
- Map Div. 07-3782
- Gazetteer
- Table of Contents available online
Image: Map no. IV, Laos airfields / Programs Evaluation Office, Vientiane - Laos ; R. H. Brown, Chief. [1959] Map Div. 18-5051
Digital Map Collections
- NYPL's Digital Collections: Fink Collection
- Comprising of maps of Asia, the digitized portion of this collection consists of maps pertaining to Vietnam and Laos from 1952-1959
- Pritzker Military Museum & Library: Vietnam War
- Their resources page concerning the Vietnam War includes historical information about the conflict, as well as landing pages for their museum's holdings, such as artifacts, oral history recordings, and library reference texts. Of particular note is their Interactive Map, which maps key events of the conflict alongside other relevant materials in their collection.
- Texas Tech University: The Vietnam Center & Sam Johnson Vietnam Archive
- The United States Military Academy West Point: The Vietnam War
- Includes a number of digitized maps that show various campaigns during the conflict.
Additional Recommended Books and Documents at NYPL
- Civilian casualty and refugee problems in South Vietnam; findings and recommendations. 1968
- JFE 73-1248
- Written in 1968 by the Subcommittee to Investigate Problems Connected with Refugees and Escapees, this report details much of the corruption and poor living standards of refugee camps in Vietnam.
- Diana Davies photographs 1969-1978
- MssCol 732
- Includes subcollection of Vietnam War Protests. These photos can be accessed digitally at NYPL Digital Collections. Click here to digitally access this subcollection.
- The Battle at Ngok Tavak : a bloody defeat in South Vietnam, 1968 / Bruce Davies.
- Courtesy of Harvard
- The life we were given : Operation Babylift, international adoption, and the children of war in Vietnam. 2010
- JFE 10-1007
- After Saigon's fall : refugees and US-Vietnamese relations, 1975-2000. 2021
- JFE 21-8933
When searching for books that will be of use to learning more about the Vietnam War at your local neighborhood library, we recommend trying these keyword searches on the home page of NYPL.
- Vietnam War
Please see below for a list of recommended books about the Vietnam War that can be found at your local branch:
Drawn Swords in a Distant Land by 
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ISBN: 9781641771726Publication Date: 2021-03-23Drawn Swords in a Distant Land showcases the fascinating, untold story of the rise and fall of the Republic of Vietnam. Putting aside outdated ideological debates, it offers the first in-depth review of the South Vietnamese successes and failures in building and defending their state. Drawn Swords highlights the career of President Nguyen Van Thieu, who in many ways embodied the hopes, dreams, and innumerable tragedies of the South Vietnamese people. It details the extent to which the Vietnamese Nationalists under his leadership built a viable state after the 1968 Tet Offensive; weaves together the policy decisions made in Washington, Hanoi, and Saigon that significantly determined the course of the war; and explains why South Vietnam was defeated in April 1975. Equally important, it provides stunning new details about how the coup against Ngo Dinh Diem was almost halted, describes the backroom maneuvering that chose Thieu for the presidency over Nguyen Cao Ky, and demonstrates that Richard Nixon was not the instigator of a conspiracy with Thieu known as the "Chennault Affair" to win the 1968 election. Even more explosive, Drawn Swords reveals the last, great secret of the Vietnam War: a plot by France during the last days, in conjunction with one of Hanoi's allies, to prevent North Vietnam from conquering Saigon. This previously unknown scheme, along with many other intriguing new insights, sheds fresh light on the tumultuous struggle called the Vietnam War. Drawn Swords is the definitive and much overdue account of Thieu and the Second Republic.
The Road to Dien Bien Phu by - This link opens in a new window
ISBN: 9780691180168Publication Date: 2022-03-29A multifaceted history of Ho Chi Minh's climactic victory over French colonial might that foreshadowed America's experience in Vietnam On May 7, 1954, when the bullets stopped and the air stilled in Dien Bien Phu, there was no doubt that Vietnam could fight a mighty colonial power and win. After nearly a decade of struggle, a nation forged in the crucible of war had achieved a victory undreamed of by any other national liberation movement. The Road to Dien Bien Phu tells the story of how Ho Chi Minh turned a ragtag guerrilla army into a modern fighting force capable of bringing down the formidable French army. Taking readers from the outbreak of fighting in 1945 to the epic battle at Dien Bien Phu, Christopher Goscha shows how Ho transformed Vietnam from a decentralized guerrilla state based in the countryside to a single-party communist state shaped by a specific form of "War Communism." Goscha discusses how the Vietnamese operated both states through economics, trade, policing, information gathering, and communications technology. He challenges the wisdom of counterinsurgency methods developed by the French and still used by the Americans today, and explains why the First Indochina War was arguably the most brutal war of decolonization in the twentieth century, killing a million Vietnamese, most of them civilians. Panoramic in scope, The Road to Dien Bien Phu transforms our understanding of this conflict and the one the United States would later enter, and sheds new light on communist warfare and statecraft in East Asia today.
The Vietnam War by - This link opens in a new window
ISBN: 9781465457691Publication Date: 2017-04-04The Vietnam War remains one of the most heroic and heartbreaking events in history. This definitive guide charts the unforgettable story of the world's first televised war. Created in association with the Smithsonian Institution, this authoritative guide chronicles America's fight against Communism in southeast Asia during the 1960s and 1970s, and comprehensively explores the people, politics, events, and lasting effects of the Vietnam War. Hundreds of insightful images and a compelling narrative combine to chronicle this catastrophic conflict. From 1955, the communist government of North Vietnam waged war against South Vietnam and its main ally, the USA. Over the course of two decades of hostility and warfare, the number of casualties reached an incomprehensible three million people. Detailed descriptions of every episode, including Operation Passage to Freedom and the evacuation of the American embassy in Saigon, tell the stories in iconic photographs and eyewitness accounts. Discover the real people behind the conflict, with gripping biographies of key figures, including Henry Kissinger, General Thieu, President Nixon, and Pol Pot. This incredible visual record is supported by locator maps, at-a-glance timelines, archive photography, and key quotations to ensure an all-encompassing experience. The Vietnam War is an essential historic reference to help humanity learn the lessons of suffering and sacrifice from one of the bloodiest conflicts of the 20th century.
