It is forgotten now, but in the beginning Congress and most of the American people were behind our containment effort in Vietnam. Ninety-one percent of these Army officers were warrant officers, second lieutenants, first lieutenants or captains. The names of Army Master Sergeant Chester Ovnand and Major Dale Buis are inscribed on Panel 1E of the Vietnam War Memorial Wall. The wall at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington is 493 feet and 6 inches long, built of thick, polished black Bangalore granite. Despite their inexperience, they were thought to accept discipline readily. The VC had commandeered Air America Hueys, and they were flying them around, which simply made for a very interesting chess game. 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. ARMY AND MARINE OFFICER CASUALTIES BY RANK AND AGE. This can be in the form of a book, The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Directory of Names, or one of the various databases. His name does not appear at either far end. Who were they? 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. It specified the geographic areas of Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and surrounding coastal areas as combat zones. Richard Sandza received the message on the morning of May 15, 1975, the day his friend became the last American to die in combat during the Vietnam War. The resulting aptitude scores were used to classify entrants into four categories and this would, for the most part, determine their subsequent assignments. The Marine Corps lost 14,836, or 5 percent of its own men. The memorial is free and open to the public 24 hours a day, with rangers on duty to answer questions from 9:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. This, they felt, would offer these men the opportunity to get remedial training in the service and then be able to compete successfully when they returned to civilian life. There were no indexes created prior to the fire. In many of these families it was considered unpatriotic and indeed reprehensible to avoid active duty by requesting a status deferment or seeking out a draft counselor for advice on how to avoid the draft. The Reading of the Names is an in-person event where every single name on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial is read in order of which it appears on The Wall. Learn more about featured topics of the Vietnam War and Vietnam Era. Vietnam War, Awards and Decorations of Honor, 1965-1972. It is not surprising, for instance, that West Virginia, Montana, and Oklahoma had a casualty rate almost twice that of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. I.. J.. K.. L.. M. N.. O.. P.. Q.. R.. S.. T.. U.. V.. W.. X.. Y.. Z Black leaders, including Martin Luther King Jr., protested, and President Johnson ordered black participation in combat units cut back. but will allow you to download it after you specify a file name. 1972 NAID 305367, Silver Star Medal and Legion of Merit Award Case Files, 19711971 NAID 5721359. Charles Holley; chief editor, Robert J. Martin, 4th Infantry Division. However, if officer casualties are added to the total, then this overrepresentation is reduced to 12.5 percent of all casualties. As they came through the door, Viet Cong guerrillas opened fire with machine guns. However, there have been no such cases. At the time, approximately 1,300 names were designated as servicemen who were either missing or prisoners of war. There are 711 West Virginians on the Wall. For more great articles be sure to subscribe to Vietnam Magazine today! Its been more than 20 years since Forrest Gump debuted on the silver screen and nearly a generation later, its characters still resonate with todays service members. The article was originally published in the June 1993 issue of Vietnam Magazine and updated in November 2004. Records of U.S. Military Casualties, Missing in Action, and Prisoners of War from the Era of the Vietnam War are available through the National Archives. The black granite walls are engraved with the names of more than 58,000 men and women who laid down their lives or remained missing. There is some truth to this, but it is instructive to look at what the DOD database reveals in terms of race, ethnicity, national origin, religious preference and casualties by U.S. geographic areas. I looked at the record to determine whether mortal wounds were sustained, Doubek said of the men whose names were listed by the Army, but not by DoD. More than 200 names have been added to the Wall 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) The Vietnam Veterans Memorial was dedicated on November 10, 1982, with 57,939 names. What will be the evolving historical judgment for those names on the Wall? This is close to, but not exactly in the same order as the names on the Wall. They often reveal a typically warm American family atmosphere. They also died quickly, many within a few weeks or months of arriving in Vietnam. Concerning, How do I find a name on the Vietnam War Memorial wall? He tried to make the best call he could when adding names to the list. In 2004, the total is 58,241 names. It was fitting that Vandegeer finally returned home to American soil, because he spent his last weeks at war evacuating Americans as Saigon fell. This video can help you find the name of someone you'd like to honor. This is the most accurate database online. Individual Award Case Files, 1969 - 1970. There was no need to embellish. 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. A.. B.. C.. D.. E.. F.. G.. H.. It is more notable, perhaps, only because his was the first name engraved into The Wall. Nevertheless, 336,111 men were phased into the service under this plan (mostly the Army) and 2,072 were killed. In the military it can be somewhat more deadly. All heroes are listed alphabetically by their last name. Buis was in Vietnam by his own volition. The Air Force lost 2,580 or l percent. As of 2017, there are 58,318 names inscribed on The Wall. Their service began on Independence Day, 1966. Ziomek's name was finally inscribed on the Washington memorial on Sept. 15, 2020; he was one of just three veterans added in 2020. to open, search, edit, or print the name files. Coast Guard Historians OfficeCommandant (CG-09224)U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters 2100 Second Street SW Washington, D.C. 20593. For blacks, however, only 7 percent placed in categories I and II and 93 percent placed in categories III and IV. These young men were trained quickly and shipped to Vietnam quickly. Once additions are approved by DoD, VVMF receives the list of approved names, coordinates the inscribing and absorbs the costs. Beginning Research in United States Military Records, National Vietnam War Veterans Day - Wikepedia, National Park Service Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Lins vision prevailed. If a person died or went missing in those areas, DoD considered that individual to be a combat zone casualty and eligible for inclusion on the Wall. There is no question that all segments of American society were represented. 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. The numbers on the wall ascend from the center out toward the left and right extremes. The Army suffered the most total casualties, 38,179 or 2.7 percent of its force. We were one giant Hollywood B-17 bomber crew, one perfect socioeconomic platoon storming Omaha Beach or Okinawa. Text STOP to opt out, HELP for help. It is located north of the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. along Constitution Avenue NW between 21st and 23rd streets. 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. The very young were considered by many to be preferred combat material. Fill out the tour request form. 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 requirements were expanded (by. Marine Corps History Division2044 Broadway StreetQuantico, Virginia 22134Telephone: (703) 432-4877, Coast GuardU.S. AGE 17 TO 21 PREFERRED ARMY AND MARINE COMBAT MATERIAL. They were at their peak physically. With the glitch discovered, Doubek and his team located and hand-corrected each error. The last 18 names listed on the bottom of Panel 1, West, also at the apex, are from May 15, 1975. Some recent studies tend to refute what had been the perceived wisdom of social scientists and other commentators that our Vietnam dead came overwhelmingly from the poor communities. "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. 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. Early on President Johnson, his advisers and especially the Congress, realized that if the draft was to be truly equitable and had included combat assignments in Vietnam for the sons of the educationally advantaged and influential Americans from the professional and managerial classes, then the resulting uproar would have shut down the war. Doubek contacted the National Personnel Records Center, Archives and Records Service, in St. Louis, Mo. As one walks the Wall slowly, examining the ineffably American names, one is struck by the same recurring surnames. Jimmy died less than 24 hours later on Thanksgiving Day. Although valuable, this study was almost certainly misinterpreted by its authors when they said that their data showed that most privileged and influential segments of American society were not insulated from the perils of Vietnam conflict. . The Army refused him, for medical reasons, both times. And, as in every American war, it is the very young who are the most willing to volunteer. They refer to older or younger siblings who are either in or on their way to college. The panels are numbered beginning from the center out toward the ends of each wall. Certainly, some who died did come from poor and broken homes in the urban ghettos and barrios, or were from dirt-poor farm homes in the South and Midwest. If officers are added, then almost 70 percent of those who died were volunteers. In civilian life, poor aptitude testing can have a tremendous negative impact, whether for college placement or for simple job advancement. This page was last edited on 12 December 2022, at 18:28.
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