Collection is open for research.
Hung Viet Tran was born in Thuyba, Vietnam, in 1947. In 1950, his family moved to Hanoi. After the partition of Vietnam in 1954, his family relocated to what was called the State of Vietnam in the south, and eventually settled in Saigon after the country became South Vietnam. In 1970, he earned a degree in pharmacology, then served in the South Vietnamese Army as a pharmacist at a hospital in Saigon. He married in 1971, and later had three children. In 1979, the family attempted to escape Vietnam but were soon captured; Tran spent the next three years in prison. After his release in 1981, he worked as a scientific researcher at the Vietnam Institute of Science in Saigon. The family escaped Vietnam in 1987, and eventually settled in Portland, Oregon. Tran worked as a pharmacist for Fred Meyer in Portland, and later opened Tran Pharmacy in Northeast Portland. In 2016, he was convicted of Medicaid and Medicare fraud and relinquished his pharmacist license.
An incomplete transcript (39 pages) is available for in-person use at the Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
Oral history interview with Hung V. Tran, by Allyson Harper, SR 3597, Oregon Historical Society Research Library.
This oral history interview with Hung V. Tran was conducted by Allyson Harper at Tran's office in the Hawthorne Fred Meyer Pharmacy in Portland, Oregon, from August 6-28, 1998, as part of the Oregon Historical Society Research Library's oral history program. The interview was conducted in four sessions. An index of topics discussed in the interview is available.
In this interview, Tran discusses his family background and early life in Hanoi, Vietnam, describes how his life changed after the partition of Vietnam in 1954, and talks about his life in Saigon, South Vietnam. He talks about the economic, colonial, and political history of Vietnam in the early 20th century leading to the Vietnam War, and talks about his experiences as a pharmacist at a hospital in Saigon during the war. He discusses his life in Vietnam under the Communist government after the fall of Saigon in 1975, then describes attempting to escape with his family by boat in 1979 and about their capture. He speaks at length about his experiences in prison from 1979 to 1981, and closes the interview by describing the family's plans to escape Vietnam in 1987.
Joint copyright for this interview is held by Allyson Harper and Hung V. Tran. Use is allowed according to the following statement: In Copyright -
Tape 1, Side 1, through Tape 2, Side 1. In the first interview session, conducted on August 6, 1998, Tran discusses his family background and early life in Hanoi, Vietnam, including his experiences at École Puginer, a Catholic French school. He describes how his life changed after the partition of Vietnam in 1954. He talks about his life in Saigon, South Vietnam, and shares his experiences at a boarding school in Thủ Đức, and at Taberd Saigon High School. He discusses the practice of Catholicism and Confucianism in Vietnam, and talks about the privileges and responsibilities that came with being the oldest son. He shares his reasons for studying pharmacology in college.
Tape 2, Side 2, though Tape 3, Side 1. In the second interview session, conducted on August 13, 1998, Tran further discusses his life in Saigon and his experiences at Taberd Saigon High School. He talks about the economic, colonial, and political history of Vietnam in the early 20th century leading to the Vietnam War, and discusses the views held by the people of South Vietnam towards the United States government. He shares his experiences studying pharmacology in college and talks about his experiences as a pharmacist at a hospital in Saigon during the Vietnam War.
Tape 3, Side 2, through Tape 4, Side 2. In the third interview session, conducted on August 24, 1998, Tran continues to discuss his experiences as a pharmacist at a hospital in Saigon during the Vietnam War. He describes the devastation wrought upon the Vietnamese people and landscape by U.S. involvement in the war, shares his thoughts about the U.S. military strategy, and discusses the U.S. withdrawal from South Vietnam in 1973. He also talks about his marriage and about raising a family.
In the fourth and final interview session, conducted on August 28, 1998, Tran discusses his life in Vietnam under the Communist government after the fall of Saigon in 1975, and also describes how many members of his family escaped the country with U.S. help. He talks about being forced to take re-education classes and about food rationing. He describes attempting to escape with his family by boat in 1979 and about their capture. He speaks at length about his experiences in prison as an "enemy of the people" from 1979 to 1981. He talks about the reasons for his release in 1981, about his work as a researcher at the Vietnam Institute of Science in Saigon, and about the experiences of his family during his imprisonment. He closes the interview by describing the family's plans to escape Vietnam in 1987.