No duplicate copies of the records that were destroyed in the fire were maintained, nor was a microfilm copy ever produced. The Selective Service System it said, has the responsibility to deliver manpower to the armed forces in such a manner as to reduce to a minimum any adverse effect upon the national health, safety, interest and progress. In the military it can be somewhat more deadly. In a massive sampling of the database, it was established that between 5 and 6 percent of Vietnam dead had identifiable Hispanic surnames. This amounted to 4.1 percent of all enlisted casualties in Vietnam. Inscribed dots in the margins of every other panel mark every 10 lines to aid in counting. At some The Moving Wall sites, the sponsor makes arrangements As we search for proper bookends to encapsulate the story of a generation at war, perhaps the best we can do is look at what is written in stone. If the veteran is still alive, ask his or her help finding records. Thats a tragic 2,415 more names on the Vietnam Wall in a single month. Congress and the Johnson administration, therefore, sought to protect our college-bound and educated young men. If a service member were to return alive, a circlethe symbol of lifewould be inscribed around the plus sign. On July 12, 1973, a disastrous fire at the NPRC destroyed approximately 16-18 million Official Military Personnel Files. He did it allsing, dance, create music and crack wise. "Home of record" does not necessarily refer to the place of birth, residence of next of kin, place of longest residence, nor other common uses of the term "hometown." This can be in the form of a book, The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Directory of Names, or one of the various databases. The young enlisted volunteer or draftee had not had much time to form any complicated theories about our Vietnam commitment. 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. Few areas of the world have been as hotly contested as the India-Pakistan border. Bennett on March 25, 1968 and Dennis on August 02, 1970 Brothers Gabriel and Paul Trujillo were both killed in Vietnam. Look for discharge papers, pictures, medals,etc. The virtual Wall of Faces features a page dedicated to honoring and remembering every person whose name is inscribed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. In an effort to further preserve the legacy of those who sacrificed all in Vietnam, VVMF is committed to finding a photo to go with each of the more than 58,000 names on The . The event begins on November 7, 2022 at 3 p.m. EST and ends at midnight on November 10, 2022. As a result, it was mainly the families of Navy and Air Force pilots and crewmen who suffered the great agony of the POW (prisoner of war) and MIA (missing in action) experience that came out of the Vietnam War. The wall at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington is 493 feet and 6 inches long, built of thick, polished black Bangalore granite. A.. B.. C.. D.. E.. F.. G.. H.. 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) Your donation to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund will help expand our mission to honor, educate and heal. There are three sets of fathers and sons on the Vietnam Wall. The last 18 names listed on the bottom of Panel 1, West, also at the apex, are from May 15, 1975. The very young were considered by many to be preferred combat material. It would also enable veterans to find groups of friends who died during the same incident. And they are so respectful when they do the engraving. In 1940, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Selective Training and Service Act, creating the countrys first peacetime draft and officially establishing the Selective Service System. 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. and have two columns per page, rather than only one column. How many names are on the wall? The training for American officers is thought by most foreign military authorities to be the best in the world. Chiseled on the wall are the names of the 58,196 men and women who either died or are still listed as missing in Southeast Asia between 1959 and 1975. . This is close to, but not exactly in the same order In addition to WWII Draft Records, the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis, MO maintains Post-WWII through Vietnam Era Selective Service Records, for all men born before 1960. The Air Force lost the highest percentage of officers. EIN: 52-1149668, Copyright 2023 The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Javascript must be enabled for the correct page display. Coast Guard casualties are included in the Navy totals. It is more notable, perhaps, only because his was the first name engraved into The Wall. 26 Similar Questions History is a guide to navigation in perilous times. The chronological order allows veterans who were in a battle to see their friends forever united on the Wall, he explained. It ripped men from their loved ones, family, friends, and it left a wave of death in its path. The Vietnam Wall at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park features the names of local fallen soldiers. On the west wall, the symbol precedes the name; on the east wall, the symbol follows the name. 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 shining surface is intended to reflect the sun, the ground and those who stand before it. The names of Army Master Sergeant Chester Ovnand and Major Dale Buis are inscribed on Panel 1E of the Vietnam War Memorial Wall. Order it can be difficult but there are a few ways to find a name at either end of the memorial are stands with books inside these list the names in alphabetical. The same profile holds true for the Marine Corps, where 87 percent of all officer casualties (821 of 938) were warrant officers, lieutenants or captains. Only 10 percent of enlisted men had even some college to their credit and only 1 percent were college graduates. An aunt came and loaded the three boys into the car. 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. In a span of 16 dark days in late 1967, all three would be killed. The directories are organized alphabetically by last name. 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. It is hard to believe it has been 36 years since the last casualties. 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. All would be represented equally, with generals listed alongside infantrymen. 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. EIN: 52-1149668, Copyright 2023 The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Javascript must be enabled for the correct page display. They enjoyed roaring beer busts. Thus, there were 211,455 killed and wounded, or one in every 10 Americans who served in Vietnam. The index gives birth and death dates, country of death, cause of death (air, ground, or sea), town and state of residence at time of enlistment, race, religious affiliation, marital status, service number, rank, and branch of service. Senate. The draftee, if found physically and mentally fit, would be inducted for a period of two years, to be followed by another two year period in the active reserves and a subsequent two years in the inactive reserves. Vietnam Veterans Memorial Learn about the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in this brief introductory video. Naval History & Heritage CommandWashington Navy Yard, Bldg 57 (3rd Floor)Washington, DC 20374Telephone: (202) 433-3224, Marine CorpsU.S. More than 200 names have been added to the Wall Search the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund’s database of names on the wall. Many of the 17- and 18-year olds were simply late in maturing. 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. 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. 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. 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. Almost 50 percent were majors, lieutenant-colonels, colonels and three were generals. Indeed, officer casualties of all branches were overwhelmingly white. 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. VVMF receives numerous requests each year from individuals who wish to have particular names added to the Memorial. We searched the National Archives Catalog and located a series titled Muster Rolls and Personnel Diaries, 1941-1980 in the Records of the U.S. Marine Corps (Record Group 127). the requirements were expanded (by. Library of Congress, National Archives Reference Information Page 90 A Finding Aid to Records Relating to American Prisoners of War and Missing in Action from the Vietnam War Era, 1960-1994, Records on Military Personnel Who Died, Were Missing in Action or Prisoners of War as a Result of the Vietnam War, Missing Vietnam Military Resulting from Hostile Forces, Missing Vietnam Military NOT Resulting from Hostile Forces, Vietnam War, Awards and Decorations of Honor, 1965-1972, Medal of Honor Awards Case Files, 1965 - ca. The panels come together to form a point, linking the first and last together in enduring tribute. They went for a ride and she gently told them that their father would not be coming home. The Vietnam War is no different. But after World War II a kind of educational apartheid had settled over the United States. These directories help locate names on the wall. It is hard to believe it is 36 years since the last casualties. Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund | 3033 Wilson Blvd, Suite 300 | Arlington VA 22201 | 202.393.0090 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. These files are lists of the names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, listed in chronological order of the casualty date and then alphabetical by last name within a given date. 997 soldiers were killed on their first day in Vietnam. The casual visitor might not immediately recognize that Buis name is the first. Lower end category IVs consisting of those who scored below 20 on the AFQT were usually rejected for service. If each John Kennedy, discussing military assignments, said that, life is unfair. The appearance of DoD visual information does not imply or constitute DoD endorsement. in chronological order of the casualty date and then alphabetical by last Twenty-five years later, in an interview with People magazine, he described playing with his two younger brothers as the news reached their home in Imperial Beach, California. Patricia Krause. The Navy had a similar profile: 55 percent of its 622 officer casualties were 30 years of age or older, and 45 percent were ranked at lieutenant commander or above when they died. You must refer to a database, which gives the names in alphabetical order and includes the position of each on the Memorial. Committee on Veterans' Affairs, Kansas, Sheridan County, Viet Nam records, 1955-1975, Vermont, National Guard, Vietnam war, 1950-1953, University of Utah - American West Center - Saving the Legacy/ Vietnam Veterans, https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/index.php?title=United_States_Vietnam_War_1964_to_1972&oldid=5123794, Personnel discharged November 1, 1912 to January 1, 1960, Personnel discharged, September 25, 1947 to January 1, 1964, The Military Index is available at the FamilySearch Library and at most FamilySearch centers. 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. A correspondingly greater tradition of military service in the other regions had its effect on U.S. regional casualties. It is hard to believe it has been 36 years since the last casualties. 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. Tom was killed while assaulting the enemy on Dec. 7, Pearl HarborDay. While VVMF finances the name additions to the Wall, it is the Department of Defense that makes these difficult and often technical decisions. Of 2,590 total Air Force casualties, 1,674 or 65 percent were officers. compiled by Military Records and Research Library, Department of Military Affairs; edited by Julia D. Rather and Jeffrey Michael Duff, Research Our Records. 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. I can envision a small cottage someplace, with a lot of writing paper, and a dog, and a fireplace, and maybe enough money to give myself some Irish coffee now and then and entertain my two friends , I dont think it will be too terribly long until we are together again.. For those and a handful of other unique circumstances, Doubek made his own list of men who had died due to the injuries in the combat zonesnames that may have been listed by an individual service branch, but not by DoD. The USO relies on your support to help service members and their families. U.S. Army Personnel and Dependent Casualties, 1961-1981 85% of the records in this database are related to the Vietnam Conflict. See Access to Non-Archival Records for more information. The numbers on the wall ascend from the center out toward the left and right extremes. Every day, Americas service members selflessly put their lives on the line to keep us safe and free. This uneven impact was caused by a number of factors: (1) While the South was home to some 53 percent of all blacks in the 1970 census, almost 60 percent of black casualties came from the South; (2) Although we cannot be as precise, we do know that a considerable majority of Hispanic-American casualties came from the West, (California, New Mexico, Arizona, Colorado) and the South (Texas); (3) Better employment opportunities in the Northeast reduced the number of volunteers; (4) Greater college matriculation in the Northeast increased the number of status deferments for the regions 17- to 24- year olds; (5) More anti-war sentiment in the media and on college campuses in the Northeast. Learn more about featured topics of the Vietnam War and Vietnam Era. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. 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. Concerning, How do I find a name on the Vietnam War Memorial wall? Vietnam War, Awards and Decorations of Honor, 1965-1972. Charles Holley; chief editor, Robert J. Martin, 4th Infantry Division. 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. The Vietnam Wall. 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. Army and Marine officer casualties were also quite young. The memorial consists of three separate parts: The Three Soldiers statue, the Vietnam Women's Memorial and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, also known as The Wall That Heals, which is the most popular feature. It specified the geographic areas of Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and surrounding coastal areas as combat zones. Look for clues about where he or she lived and served. In high school, he joined ROTC and kept his fathers medals pinned next to his own awards on a piece of crimson cloth. About 58 thousand of the 7 million American service men and women who served in Vietnam died. The DOD database listed precise religious preferences for the 58,152 Vietnam casualties. Thirty one sets of parents lost two of their sons. If officers are added, then almost 70 percent of those who died were volunteers. By providing your mobile phone number, you opt in to receive calls and texts from USO. The first Americans to die did not perish in a foxhole or beneath stars obscured by a jungle canopy. United States. Though the memorial continues to grow and evolve, the last name on the wall still belongs to Air Force Second Lieutenant Richard Vandegeer, a pilot who died after his helicopter crashed on May 15, 1975, during the wars final combat action. Some common names appear on the Memorial more than once. 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. The Wall of Faces allows family and friends to share memories, post pictures and connect with each other. However, if officer casualties are added to the total, then this overrepresentation is reduced to 12.5 percent of all casualties. It is more notable, perhaps, only because his was the first name engraved into The Wall. The Vietnam War was no different. Once additions are approved by DoD, VVMF receives the list of approved names, coordinates the inscribing and absorbs the costs. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, for all who wish to visit. Honor Vietnam Veterans you know with a gift from our VVA store, or a custom military embroidered shirt, jacket, or polo so they can proudly demonstrate their service to their grateful nation. The names are inscribed in the chronological order of their dates of casualty, showing the war as a series of individual human sacrifices and giving each name a special place in history. Vietnam War U.S. Military Fatal Casualty Statistics, Korean War and Vietnam War casualties listed at the National Archives, Hospital Admission Card Files, ca. As many as 3 million people visit each year, according to some estimates, and they come for probably as many reasons. 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. W denotes the west wall, and E denotes the east wall. The ceremony is held on Mothers Day and the additions might be as simple as rectifying a clerical error or as heartbreaking as a veteran dying, all these years later, from a wound suffered during the war. The idea that American enlisted dead were made up largely of societys poverty stricken misfits is a terrible slander to their memory and to the solid working-class and middle-class families of this country who provided the vast majority of our casualties. Only the Navy, with 50 percent of its enlisted casualties over 21, and the Air Force, with 75 percent over 21, showed an older, more experienced age demographic. I mean, it was bad.. 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. Its unlikely that anyone who visits the memorial on a given day would have the time, the heart or the stomach to read and consider each one. And there would be nothing to denote service or rank. "Walking through this park-like area, the memorial appears as a rift in the earth, a long, polished, black stone wall, emerging from and receding into the earth. One soldier, PFC Dan Bullock was 15 years old. The lists are based on the "home of record - state" data provided by the serviceman or woman upon last entrance into military service. 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. Once a master list was compiled, the names were checked manually for errors. History is who we are and why we are the way we are.. HistoryNet.com is brought to you by HistoryNet LLC, the worlds largest publisher of history magazines. 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. columns per page. And mores the pity, because many of them were trying to escape this background and didnt make it. These casualties came largely from the Northeast and North Central regions of the United States, many from the traditionally patriotic, Catholic working class neighborhoods. name within a given date. There are officially 58,228 names on the Wall, but the database these files were derived . Kurt Buis was 8 years old the day his father died. THE NAMES ON THE WALL: AN HISTORICAL JUDGMENT. Additionally, many of the names on the wall were other teenagers from the suburban white collar communities with siblings who were in, or would go on to college, but who, as individuals themselves, were slow to mature, struggled through high school and were therefore very available for the Vietnam War. This is close to, but not exactly in the same order as the names on the Wall. 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. 5,058) had ever known and cheered. You could also keep these files on a computer at your Brothers Marlin and Norman Eversgerd were both killed in Vietnam. This approach would allow veterans, friends and family members to find a loved one by his or her date of casualty. Fallen comrades could be together on the Wall, as theyd been in death. You may print these files and have the pages available for visitors to For weeks and weeks, a team worked through the list, verifying spellings and ensuring that the computer printout that was to be used for the stenciling was correct. This takes about 72 hours. The National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis maintains Vietnam War Official Military Personnel Files (OMPF). He accepted the tradition of military service passed on to him by the popular culture and by President John F. Kennedys ringing words, Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival and success of liberty. NAID 5709942, U.S. Air Force Historical Research Agency, National Archives Command Chronologies:Vietnam War, National Archives Command Chronologies: Vietnam War: Index to Reports, National Archves. 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. offer to read the block of names that includes their special names. A more precise equation would be that the college bound stayed home while the non-college bound served and died. On the stencil printouts, each line contained five names per row. His name does not appear at either far end. But you had stories of guys in the Air Force who would die in their aircraft over Thailand after having been shot over Vietnam. Technically, they were ineligible for inclusion on the Wall. Where previously a high school diploma had been an acceptable goal, now it was college and all the benefits it would bring. Those who could have qualified for college probably did not have the funds or motivation. More Info At www.themovingwall.org Visit site Since then, 379 names have been added, for a total of 58,318 (as of Memorial Day 2017). There are the tourists who make the circuit of all the various monuments and landmarks in our nations capital.

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