Your donation to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund will help expand our mission to honor, educate and heal. 39,996 on the Wall were just 22 or younger. The USO is a not-for-profit organization and not part of the Department of Defense (DoD). But after World War II a kind of educational apartheid had settled over the United States. Coast Guard casualties are included in the Navy totals. Subscribe to receive our weekly newsletter with top stories from master historians. Buis was in Vietnam by his own volition. And there would be nothing to denote service or rank. compiled by Military Records and Research Library, Department of Military Affairs; edited by Julia D. Rather and Jeffrey Michael Duff, Research Our Records. Vietnam War: in Country, Notice: Scanning of Vietnam-era Deck Logs, Vietnam War, 1961-1975. The 58,152 names of those who died in Vietnam are etched onto the two rising black marble slabs of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. The Marine Corps losses were skewed even more to the lower ranks, 91 percent were privates or corporals. Many others joined the reserves or National Guard, which were not mobilized in any appreciable numbers during the war. The popularity of the GI Bill after Vietnam emphasized this yearning. I went through the whole list of names eight times, because I was concerned about the correct formatting, remembered Doubek. True enough, but many of the surviving Vietnam casualty families would reply that the ultimate unfairness is death at an early age, in a land far from home, for reasons not clearly defined. Vietnam War Casualties, MIA and POWs. Scholars debate about when the war really began and in many ways it has never ended. Their sons, if not college material, made up a significant part of the volunteers and draftees. that each name was a real person. A.. B.. C.. D.. E.. F.. G.. H.. Though 13 were rescued at sea, the rest died, either upon impact or soon after. LeRoy was killed on Wednesday, Nov. 22, the fourth anniversary of President John F. Kennedys assassination. On that panel, above the names is this inscription: In honor of the men and women of the armed forces of the United States who served in the Vietnam War. . Alphabetical listing of the names on the Vietnam Memorial Wall . person reads for 20 minutes, (270 names) this will require 216 volunteer name Senate. The Vietnam War is no different. On July 12, 1973, a disastrous fire at the NPRC destroyed approximately 16-18 million Official Military Personnel Files. As Maya Ling Lin, the architect of the Wall, has said: It was as if the black-brown earth were polished and made into an interface between the sunny world and the quiet dark world beyond that we cannot enter. The very young were considered by many to be preferred combat material. For blacks, however, only 7 percent placed in categories I and II and 93 percent placed in categories III and IV. Folded American flags were presented to his parents and an Air Force helicopter flew over the ceremony. Its still fought in the bodies and minds of the men who waged it all those decades ago. Vandegeer was on a mission to rescue the crew of the SS Mayaguez, a merchant ship captured three days earlier off the coast of Cambodia by the Khmer Rouge. The USO relies on your support to help service members and their families. They came largely from California and Texas, with lesser numbers from Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Florida, New York and a few from many other states across the country. On Patrol caught up with Pete Peterson to find out how the U.S.-Vietnam relationship has progressed since the normalization of ties in 1995. At the time, approximately 1,300 names were designated as servicemen who were either missing or prisoners of war. If a service member were to return alive, a circlethe symbol of lifewould be inscribed around the plus sign. do this, be sure to have an alternate reader assigned to take over in case Beginning at the apex on panel 1E and going out to the end of the East wall, appearing to recede into the earth (numbered 70E May 25, 1968), then resuming at the end of the West wall, as the wall emerges from the earth (numbered 70W continuing May 25, 1968) and ending with a date in 1975. The west wall is on the left when standing facing the vertex, and the east wall is to the right. The DOD percentages reveal that nearly 75 percent of Army enlisted casualties were privates or corporals. The Wall of Faces allows family and friends to share memories, post pictures and connect with each other. Only 10 percent of enlisted men had even some college to their credit and only 1 percent were college graduates. It is forgotten now, but in the beginning Congress and most of the American people were behind our containment effort in Vietnam. Eight women were killed in Vietnam, five Army lieutenants, one Army captain, one Army lieutenant colonel and one Air Force captain. information is available on this web site: These files are lists of the names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, listed Bennett on March 25, 1968 and Dennis on August 02, 1970 Brothers Gabriel and Paul Trujillo were both killed in Vietnam. 1972, United States, National Archives, Military Records, 1885-2004, United States, National Archives, Korean War and Vietnam War Records, Start your Military Service Record Request, National Archives at St. Louis, Selective Service Records. They were struggling through or dropping out of high school, or if a high school graduate, had tested poorly for college entrance. The most casualty deaths for a single day was on January 31, 1968 245 deaths. Making these arrangements and printing the pages takes considerable The major service academies and other military colleges provided close to 900 of the Vietnam officer casualties: the U.S. Military Academy, 278; the U.S. Air Force Academy, 205; the U.S. These young men were trained quickly and shipped to Vietnam quickly. The vision of VVMF is to ensure a society in which all who have served and sacrificed in our nation's Armed Forces are properly honored and receive the recognition they justly deserve. For families who have worked to have their loved ones name added, the journey can be long and exhausting. It stands near Panel 1W, which holds the name of the last to die in combat. On average, 43 percent of white enlisted entrants placed in categories I and II (scoring 65 to 100) and 57 percent in categories III and IV (scoring 10 to 64). This index includes those who died or who were declared dead from 1950 to 1957 in Korea and from 1957 to 1975 in Southeast Asia. for all 58,228 names to be read aloud. Less than 1 percent (0.8) were Jewish, Hindu, Thai, Buddhist or Muslim combined, and 5.7 listed no religion. A doctor arrived and gave his shaken mother a sedative. The list of names begins at the vertex of the walls below the date of the first casualty, 1959, and continues to the end of the east wall. In civilian life, poor aptitude testing can have a tremendous negative impact, whether for college placement or for simple job advancement. As one stands before the Wall one feels that no other judgment is acceptable to their living memory. As many as 3 million people visit each year, according to some estimates, and they come for probably as many reasons. Tom was killed while assaulting the enemy on Dec. 7, Pearl HarborDay. Once additions are approved by DoD, VVMF receives the list of approved names, coordinates the inscribing and absorbs the costs. In terms of national origin/ancestries, an extensive sampling of the data-base reveals that Americans of French Canadian, Polish, Italian and other Southern and Eastern European surnames made up about 10 percent of the Vietnam casualties. The wall at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington is 493 feet and 6 inches long, built of thick, polished black Bangalore granite. VVMF receives numerous requests each year from individuals who wish to have particular names added to the Memorial. The trigger came when the recruiters pointed out that the volunteer could enlist as early as 17 (with parental consent); that he was allowed to select his branch of service; that he would receive specialized training if he qualified; that he could request a specific overseas assignment; and that his three year enlistment followed by three years in the inactive reserves satisfied his military obligation immediately. Nor did America recognize, on July 8, 1959the day he was killedthat another long and bloody war lay in wait. An Air Force member, with his back to the camera, holds the POW/MIA flag during a full honors funeral for Air Force Second Lieutenant Richard Vandegeer at Arlington National Cemetery on October 27, 2000. Hed volunteered to join a small U.S. military advisory team attached to the South Vietnamese army, and hed been in the village of Bien Hoa for only two days. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial stands as a symbol of America's honor and recognition of the men and women who served and sacrificed their lives in the Vietnam War. Honoring the men and women who served in the controversial Vietnam War, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial chronologically lists the names of 58,318 Americans who gave their lives in service to their country. Army Major Dale Buis' name is etched into the granite half an inch tall, no bigger or smaller than any of the others. Her name? United States. Our combat arms were thought to be completely classless. There are over 58,000 names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington DC. Together, we can make sure our heroes will get the reverence they deserve and the stories and sacrifices of our heroes will never be forgotten. All would be represented equally, with generals listed alongside infantrymen. There were no indexes created prior to the fire. The files are quite large in order that we could save in Rich Text Format Lins vision prevailed. The Marines of Morenciled some of thebest high school football and basketball teams that the little Arizona copper town of Morenci (pop. The vision of VVMF is to ensure a society in which all who have served and sacrificed in our nation's Armed Forces are properly honored and receive the recognition they justly deserve. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial was dedicated on November 10, 1982, with 57,939 names. In high school, he joined ROTC and kept his fathers medals pinned next to his own awards on a piece of crimson cloth. As they came through the door, Viet Cong guerrillas opened fire with machine guns. No other moniker for Sammy Davis Jr. was more accurate. This was long before the advent of integrated computer databases. Marlin on March 19, 1967 and Norman on August 18, 1968 Brothers Bennett and Dennis Herrick were both killed in Vietnam. With the end of the Cold War, many now believe that at its outset the Vietnam War was a quite honorable extension of our ultimately successful policy of Communist containment; that our effort in Vietnam became flawed because of political and strategic failures having nothing to do with those who died there; and that these young Americans were asked by three presidents and six Congresses to give up their lives so that freedom would have a better chance in the world. They did not, in most cases, carry the burdens of wife or children. The names would become the memorial. Your donation to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund will help expand our mission to honor, educate and heal. Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund | 3033 Wilson Blvd, Suite 300 | Arlington VA 22201 | 202.393.0090 . The draft continued from 1948, during both peacetime and war, to 1973, when President Richard M. Nixon signed legislation officially ending the draft. The 1970 census which is being used as our Vietnam era population base did not list an Hispanic count but gave an estimate of 4.5 percent of the American population. . Each entry includes a panel number and letter; "W" is for "west" or the left half of the memorial, "E" is for east, or the right half of the memorial. Colleen Pontes, whose father Kevin Joyce was added in 2003, remembered the rush of emotions she felt as she and her brother watched their dads name being inscribed in the granite. The young enlisted volunteer or draftee had not had much time to form any complicated theories about our Vietnam commitment. Officer casualties in Vietnam, including warrant officers, numbered 7,874, or 13.5 percent of all casualties. Though blessed with talent, his life wasnt without struggles. This number of deaths per 100,000 compared strikingly with the 23.5 in the Northeast region, 29.9 in the West and 28.4 in the North Central (Midwest) region. Learn more about featured topics of the Vietnam War and Vietnam Era. https://www.historynet.com/names-on-the-wall-a-closer-look-at-those-who-died-in-vietnam/, Jerrie Mock: Record-Breaking American Female Pilot, When 21 Sikh Soldiers Fought the Odds Against 10,000 Pashtun Warriors, Few Red Tails Remain: Tuskegee Airman Dies at 96. The names of the 2,504 Americans missing in action from the Vietnam War are on the Tablets of the Missing at the ABMC Honolulu Memorial. A Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) study released in 1992, found that our Vietnam casualties were only marginally greater from the economically lowest 50 percent of our communities (31 deaths per 100,000 of population), when compared with the economically highest 50 percent (26 deaths per 100,000 population). Lower end category IVs consisting of those who scored below 20 on the AFQT were usually rejected for service. You may print these files and have the pages available for visitors to Items are gathered by park staff. All of this was one of the great and abiding agonies of the Vietnam War, causing repercussions within families and on the national political scene to this day. The first two names listed on Panel 1, East Wall, at the apex are from July 8, 1959. More than 200 names have been added to the Wall VVMF does not have the authority to overrule those who adjudicate these matters. The Order of Precedence For Military Ribbon Wear, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pubH-5CulqI, Military Funeral Guide for Families & Funeral Homes, The Ultimate Military Gift Guide for Unique Military Gifts, Black Military History and Black Medal of Honor Recipients. The DOD database listed precise religious preferences for the 58,152 Vietnam casualties. This can be in the form of a book, The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Directory of Names, or one of the various databases. Perhaps more important, many of them probably did not yet fully understand their own mortality and were therefore less likely to be hesitant in combat. This year, 14 names were etched into the wall. And, as in every American war, it is the very young who are the most willing to volunteer. Another challenge was ensuring the accuracy of the names. Often that advice, especially for professional athletes, rock stars, sons of politicians and other celebrities, was to join the never-to-be-called-up reserves or National Guard. November 11, 1982. Dear Mr. Huddleston, Thank you for posting your request on History Hub! An aunt came and loaded the three boys into the car. Twenty years passed before Vandegeers remains were identified and another five passed before his funeral at Arlington National Cemetery. World War II had been, for the most part, a perfect war, clear of purpose, the forces of democracy and freedom lined up against the forces of fascism and tyranny. On the last day of his life, in the moments before our nations history changed forever, Dale Buis was sitting around a rec center watching a movie called The Tattered Dress, starring Jeff Chandler. Little about it is concrete. A(1780 names - 239023 bytes) B(5502 names - 737972 bytes) C(4363 names - 586584 bytes) D(2790 names - 374290 bytes) E(1082 names - 144866 bytes) F(1979 names - 265759 bytes) G(3036 names - 407075 bytes) H(4463 names - 598834 bytes) I(218 names - 29278 bytes) J(1845 names - 247563 bytes) K(2039 names - 273818 bytes) L(2594 names - 347007 bytes) There are 711 West Virginians on the Wall. The mission of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (VVMF) is to honor and preserve the legacy of service and educate all generations about the impact of the Vietnam War. In order to have your name on the Wall, you had to have died within the war zone, explained Doubek. It is hard to believe it is 36 years since the last casualties. He admitted no particular feelings about the righteousness of the war, and allowed himself to look ahead into a future free of war and obligation. Kurt Buis was 8 years old the day his father died. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial stands as a symbol of America's honor and recognition of the men and women who served and sacrificed their lives in the Vietnam War. Copies of WWII though Vietnam era (men born April 28, 1877 to March 28, 1957) Selective Service Records may be obtained from the National Personnel Records Center, in St. Louis, for a fee. Army Center of Military History103 3rd AvenueFort Lesley J. McNair, DC 20319-5058Telephone: (202) 685-4042, NavyU.S. Many of the 17- and 18-year olds were simply late in maturing. The panel number is a number/letter combination, such as 10W or 35E. A diamond symbol signifies that the service members death was confirmed. And they often show a heartbreakingly wry sense of humor with the same sensibilities as their college-bound peers. Interesting Veterans Statistics Of The Vietnam Memorial Wall There are 58,267 names now listed on that polished black wall, including those added in 2010. The Names - Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund The Names When the Wall was dedicated in 1982, there were 57,939 names inscribed. More names are added to the wall every year. columns per page. He would become instrumental in helping Doubek identify names and check spellings. The slabs meet at a vertex of 125 degrees, 10 feet above ground level to form the Wall. Once download To put a circle around the symbol beside their names would not provide the correct historical context related to their situation. Army Major Dale Buis name is etched into the granite half an inch tall, no bigger or smaller than any of the others. Coast Guard Historians OfficeCommandant (CG-09224)U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters 2100 Second Street SW Washington, D.C. 20593. You could also keep these files on a computer at your 1,448 soldiers were killed on their last day in Vietnam. A relatively small number refused to register for the draft at all. Search the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund’s database of names on the wall. Note the panel and line number for the name listed. Derek Turner is a freelance writer and a former senior editor of On Patrol. No single persons service or sacrifice would be any greater than anyone elses. The beginnings and endings are often hazy and the facts of the story lie at the mercy of the teller. Since the days of Alexander the Great and the Roman Legions, it has always been the young, inexperienced, low-ranking enlisted man who has taken the brunt of combat casualties. Thus it is safe to say that Hispanic-Americans were over-represented among Vietnam casualties an estimated 5.5 percent of the dead against 4.5 percent of the 1970 population. Vandegeers message also depicted a man who believed the worst was behind him. Names can also be located on The Wall of Faces on VVMFs web site, www.vvmf.org/wall-of-faces, Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund | 3033 Wilson Blvd, Suite 300 | Arlington VA 22201 | 202.393.0090 It is hard to believe it has been 36 years since the last casualties. The civilian and military men who formed the policy did not see it necessarily as a disadvantage. They went for a ride and she gently told them that their father would not be coming home. "The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund's registry enables veterans across the world to be able to locate fellow Vietnam Veterans and of course, connect their stories with those who made the ultimate sacrifice. With few exceptions, almost all of the 6,600 commissioned officers who died in Vietnam were graduates of the service academies, college Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC), or the Officer Candidate School (OCS) programs. The Classification History (SSS Form 102) may contain: name; date of birth; classification and date of mailing notice; date of appeal to the board; date and results of armed forces physical examination; entry into active duty or civilian work in lieu of induction (may include date, branch of service entered and mode of entry, such as enlisted or ordered); date of separation from active duty or civilian work; and general remarks. Text STOP to opt out, HELP for help. Vietnam War, Awards and Decorations of Honor, 1965-1972. Family members are invited to witness the inscription and also to attend the annual Memorial Day ceremony when the new names are read at the Wall. The Army lost the greatest number of officers 4,635 or 59 percent of all officer casualties. The Air Force lost 2,580 or l percent. But there is a beginning. The Army as a branch had 134,982 killed or wounded (9.5 percent), but the Marines suffered 66,227 killed or wounded (22.5 percent) or almost one of every four Marines who served. Many of them, as experienced pilots, were older (two thirds were thirty or older) and many were high ranking. Chronological order by date of casualty allows friends and family members to pick out their loved one from all of the others with the same name. They also died quickly, many within a few weeks or months of arriving in Vietnam. They played ball at the adjacent sandlot ball field. These officer casualties came more from the South and West regions, 4.1 deaths per 100,000, in contrast to 3.5 from the Northeast and Midwest regions. See Access to Non-Archival Records for more information. The essence of the Wall is the names and the reaction of the visitor to seeing his or her reflection in this sea of remembrance. Look for discharge papers, pictures, medals,etc. Others think it is just another tourist stop until they feel the haunting power of this unique work of remembrance. 1972 NAID 305367, Silver Star Medal and Legion of Merit Award Case Files, 19711971 NAID 5721359. offer to read the block of names that includes their special names. In the event a service members remains are returned or accounted for, then a diamond symbol is engraved over the plus sign. Although the names are not listed alphabetically, it is not difficult for visitors to find a name on the Memorial. There were 667; How many Andersons?, 178; Garcias?, 102; Murphys?, 82; Jenkins?, 66; One wants to know more about these Americans. We were being fired upon by anti-aircraft guns. in chronological order of the casualty date and then alphabetical by last The result: no comprehensive master list of Vietnam War casualties existed. Some are drawn to the Wall like pilgrims to Mecca. All other individual draftee files from that period were destroyed by the Selective Service System in 1978, in accordance with approved records retention schedules. The 58,152 names of those who died in Vietnam are etched onto the two rising black marble slabs of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. The remaining 70 percent of our Vietnam enlisted casualties were of English/Scottish/Welsh, German, Irish and Scandinavian-American ancestries, more from the South and Midwest than the other regions, many from small towns with a family military tradition. Many high-ranking military men (including General William C. Westmoreland, the U.S. commander in Vietnam) opposed the program, feeling that the effectiveness of some units would be reduced and that fellow soldiers would sometimes be put in greater jeopardy by these less mentally capable personnel. The names of Army Master Sergeant Chester Ovnand and Major Dale Buis are inscribed on Panel 1E of the Vietnam War Memorial Wall. Proving a direct correlation to the injuries is a challenge, Pontes explained. There are 58,267 names now listed on Vietnam Wall, including those added in 2010. Fully 50 percent were in the 17- to 24-year age group, and astonishingly, there were 764 Army officer casualties who were 21 or younger. As a region, the South experienced the greatest numbers of dead, nearly 34 percent of the total, or 31.0 deaths per 100,000 of population. The Selective Service System remains in place today.
Arena Basketball Tournament Sioux City,
Tradition Port St Lucie News,
Is Columbia Bank The Same As Fulton Bank?,
Marvin Smith Preacher,
Articles A