The wall at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington is 493 feet and 6 inches long, built of thick, polished black Bangalore granite. 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. This page has been viewed 167,336 times (0 via redirect). the "save as" menu command to store each text file on your media. The Army suffered the most total casualties, 38,179 or 2.7 percent of its force. 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. It is forgotten now, but in the beginning Congress and most of the American people were behind our containment effort in Vietnam. The Air Force lost 2,580 or l percent. Subscribe to receive our weekly newsletter with top stories from master historians. In 1964 an Ohio woman took up the challenge that had led to Amelia Earharts disappearance. On the other end of that phone call was an former Air Force officer who had served in Vietnam. Records of individuals who left service more than 62 years ago are considered Archival Records and become records of the National Archives open to the general public. Therefore, a complete listing of the records that were lost is not available. The National Archives prepared these state level casualty lists by creating extracts from the Korean War Extract Data File and the Vietnam Conflict Extract Data File, both as of April 29, 2008, of the Defense Casualty Analysis System (DCAS) Files, part of Record Group 330: Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. No other American war has presented such a young profile in combat. http://www.freetoursbyfoot.com/vietna.. All were nurses, all were single and all but one were in their 20s. The Channeling Memo of July 1965, instructed all local draft boards to give status deferments to college undergraduate and post-graduate students. 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 directory can be purchased on the VVMF store. During the Vietnam War, the Navy and Air Force became substantially white enclaves enlisted and officer casualties were 96 percent white. The shining surface is intended to reflect the sun, the ground and those who stand before it. Of the 7,262 blacks who died, 6,955, or 96 percent, were Army and Marine enlisted men. Early in the war (1965 and 1966) when blacks made up about 11 percent of our Vietnam force, black casualties soared to more than 20 percent of the total. . This year, 14 names were etched into the wall. We were one giant Hollywood B-17 bomber crew, one perfect socioeconomic platoon storming Omaha Beach or Okinawa. Those designated by a plus sign were considered to be missing in action when the war ended. The draft continued from 1948, during both peacetime and war, to 1973, when President Richard M. Nixon signed legislation officially ending the draft. If the two branches are combined, then 80 percent of the Army and Marine enlisted casualties were privates or corporals, grades E-1 to E-4. Once additions are approved by DoD, VVMF receives the list of approved names, coordinates the inscribing and absorbs the costs. It is hard to believe it is 36 years since the last casualties. All would be represented equally, with generals listed alongside infantrymen. The Vietnam Wall at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park features the names of local fallen soldiers. 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. Ziomek's name was finally inscribed on the Washington memorial on Sept. 15, 2020; he was one of just three veterans added in 2020. In a massive sampling of the database, it was established that between 5 and 6 percent of Vietnam dead had identifiable Hispanic surnames. The burden of combat fell on the very available non-college-bound young. The casual visitor might not immediately recognize that Buis name is the first. site, for searching with a word processor. Most of the young American enlisted men who served in Vietnam were not college prospects at the time they entered the service. 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. Beginning Research in United States Military Records, National Vietnam War Veterans Day - Wikepedia, National Park Service Vietnam Veterans Memorial. the requirements were expanded (by. Bennett on March 25, 1968 and Dennis on August 02, 1970 Brothers Gabriel and Paul Trujillo were both killed in Vietnam. 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. The National Archives has an online searchable database, entitled "Records on Military Personnel Who Died, Were Missing in Action or Prisoners of War as a Result of the Vietnam War," documenting the period 6/8/1956 - 1/21/1998. 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. November 11, 1982. His name is listed on the Wall with that of his son, Marine Corps Lance Cpl. 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 takes about 72 hours. Only 3 returned home. Lins intention from the beginning was to have the names appear chronologically, beginning and ending at the apex. By and large, with the exception of the officer corps, most of the college bound and educated skipped the Vietnam War at the urging of, and with the approval of, their own government. This was a reflection of the role of warrant officers as helicopter pilots (of the 1,277 warrant officer casualties, 95 percent were Army helicopter pilots), and of the young lieutenants and captains as combat platoon leaders or company commanders. "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 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. Our combat arms were thought to be completely classless. Little about it is concrete. The names are arranged in the order in which they were taken from us by date and within each date the names are alphabetized. Marine Corps History Division2044 Broadway StreetQuantico, Virginia 22134Telephone: (703) 432-4877, Coast GuardU.S. The last 18 names listed on the bottom of Panel 1, West, also at the apex, are from May 15, 1975. Once download Army and Marine officer casualties were also quite young. 997 soldiers were killed on their first day in Vietnam. In the event a service members remains are returned or accounted for, then a diamond symbol is engraved over the plus sign. Your donation to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund will help expand our mission to honor, educate and heal. 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. To put a circle around the symbol beside their names would not provide the correct historical context related to their situation. 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. Indeed, officer casualties of all branches were overwhelmingly white. The files are quite large in order that we could save in Rich Text Format 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. Army Center of Military History103 3rd AvenueFort Lesley J. McNair, DC 20319-5058Telephone: (202) 685-4042, NavyU.S. 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. 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). There are the tourists who make the circuit of all the various monuments and landmarks in our nations capital. 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. but will allow you to download it after you specify a file name. As one walks the Wall slowly, examining the ineffably American names, one is struck by the same recurring surnames. Every one of the names on the Wall has a story worth telling, as do all who served in our nation's Armed Forces during that time. In order to have your name on the Wall, you had to have died within the war zone, explained Doubek. Along with its wave of death, it scarred many people, especially those closest to the men that died fighting the . This page was last edited on 12 December 2022, at 18:28. Lins vision prevailed. The most casualty deaths for a single day was on January 31, 1968 245 deaths. In honor of the men and women of the Armed Forces of the United States who served in the Vietnam War. The names are listed in chronological order, according to the date of casualty. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, for all who wish to visit. Vietnam War: in Country, Notice: Scanning of Vietnam-era Deck Logs, Vietnam War, 1961-1975. The beginnings and endings are often hazy and the facts of the story lie at the mercy of the teller. Officers of all services, by tradition largely Protestant, remained so during the Vietnam war, sustaining casualties in comparison with Catholics by a 5 to 2 ratio. As they came through the door, Viet Cong guerrillas opened fire with machine guns. This is close to, but not exactly in the same order as the names on the Wall. For a photograph of an inscription of a close friend or relative, write: This website requires a paid subscription for full access. A new Department of Defense (DOD) database computer tape released through the National Archives allows researchers to take a much closer look at our 58,152 Vietnam casualties. Instead its nearly in the center. They went for a ride and she gently told them that their father would not be coming home. In some instances, names needed to be shuffled in order to fit on a line. The Selective Service registration requirement was later suspended in April 1975. They enjoyed roaring beer busts. In 2004, the total is 58,241 names. 1970 - ca. Your donation to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund will help expand our mission to honor, educate and heal. 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. compiled by Military Records and Research Library, Department of Military Affairs; edited by Julia D. Rather and Jeffrey Michael Duff, Research Our Records. 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. Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010: see the "National Cemeteries and Beneficiaries" section below. 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. Some common names appear on the Memorial more than once. The individual Draft Registration Card (SSS Form 1) may contain information such as: name, Selective Service registration number, age, date and place of birth, ethnicity, place of residence at time of registration and basic physical description. 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 Wall. 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 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. Non-Archival records are those of service members who separated from the military less than 62 years ago. Frequently relatives or buddies of casualties The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. 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. As we have pointed out earlier, more than 80 percent of our casualties were Army and Marine enlisted men with an average age of 19- to 20-years. 8 Women are on the Wall. They seem honored to be putting the names on the Wall.. Buis can be found at the top middle of a slab designated Panel 1E. In addition, millions of documents had been lent to the Department of Veterans Affairs before the fire occurred. 31 sets of brothers are on the Wall. More names are added to the wall every year. They refer to older or younger siblings who are either in or on their way to college. Count down from the top of the panel. Why are names added to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall? 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. Written requests should be mailed to: National Personnel Records Center, 9700 Page Ave., St. Louis, MO 63132-5100. But in 1966, President Johnson and Secretary of Defense McNamara decided to institute Project 100,000 that would allow category IV men to enter the military. The popularity of the GI Bill after Vietnam emphasized this yearning. No single persons service or sacrifice would be any greater than anyone elses. The names are listed chronologically by date of death, the first to last. You may print these files and have the pages available for visitors to It called for the registration of all 18 to 26-year old males, with induction to take place at 18 1/2 if so ordered by the local draft board. This memorial was built with private contributions from the American people. From 1964 to 1973, 2,100,000 men and women served in Vietnam, but this was only 8 percent of the 26,000,000 Americans who were eligible for military service. Every day at 3:00 p.m. EST, VVMF will play a daily reading of all the individuals who died upon that day in alphabetical order. Congress and the Johnson administration, therefore, sought to protect our college-bound and educated young men. Coast Guard casualties are included in the Navy totals. If a name was particularly long, it would be swapped with a shorter name. Locate the line on which the name is inscribed. The Army lost the greatest number of officers 4,635 or 59 percent of all officer casualties. Getting to Washington, D.C. No duplicate copies of the records that were destroyed in the fire were maintained, nor was a microfilm copy ever produced. This can be in the form of a book, The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Directory of Names, or one of the various databases. The Wall USA is a non-profit endeavor maintained by veterans . Please say a prayer for our fallen heroes, their family members, and our hero Vietnam War Veterans during your visit. 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. COL LEWIS HERBERT ABRAMS SSG SAMUEL ABRAMS Jr PFC TIMOTHY C ABRAMS Jr WO ANDREW JOHN ABRAMSON CPL MIGUEL A ABREU-BATISTA Jr SP4 ANTHONY JOSEPH ABRUZESE PFC ROBERT ALEXANDER ABRUZESE PFC MICHAEL JOHN ABRUZZESA Jr SGT WILLIAM WALLACE ABSHEAR SGT RICHARD FRANKLIN ABSHIRE PFC JAMES ESTUS ABSTON Jr SSG ROBERT JOSEPH ACALOTTO SP5 PEPITO RIVERA ACERET How many names are on the wall? The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. The feeling is that the poor, the undereducated and the minorities made up the vast majority of the combat arms during that war. Thus, there were 211,455 killed and wounded, or one in every 10 Americans who served in Vietnam. 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. The panel numbers are inscribed at the bottom of each panel. It is hard to believe it has been 36 years since the last casualties. Less than 1 percent (0.8) were Jewish, Hindu, Thai, Buddhist or Muslim combined, and 5.7 listed no religion. Beside each name is a symbol that denotes a service members status: either missing or confirmed dead. The National Park Service offers these steps for locating a name: National Park Service rangers and volunteers are available to assist in locating names at the Memorial. The makeup of U.S. combat forces in Vietnam has long been the subject of controversy among social scientists. All other individual draftee files from that period were destroyed by the Selective Service System in 1978, in accordance with approved records retention schedules. 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. The DOD database provides no civilian or military educational levels for the Vietnam casualties specifically, but it does give us general levels for all enlisted men across all the services during the Vietnam era. AGE 17 TO 21 PREFERRED ARMY AND MARINE COMBAT MATERIAL. A more precise equation would be that the college bound stayed home while the non-college bound served and died. 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.. 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. EIN: 52-1149668, Copyright 2023 The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, Javascript must be enabled for the correct page display. In the military it can be somewhat more deadly. Almost 50 percent were majors, lieutenant-colonels, colonels and three were generals. Postscript: Since 1982, there have been 89 names added to The Wall. The names are arranged in the order in which they were taken from us by date and within each date the names are alphabetized. Gather facts from sources at home,and talk to relatives. Army Major Dale Buis name is etched into the granite half an inch tall, no bigger or smaller than any of the others. 5,058) had ever known and cheered. These names are followed by the inscription: Our nation honors the courage, sacrifice and devotion to duty and country of its Vietnam veterans. What the MIT study almost certainly showed was that members of the so-called working class consisting of carpenters, electricians, plumbers, firemen, policemen, technicians, skilled factory operatives, farmers, etc., were living in middle class communities and were, therefore, part of our burgeoning middle class. 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. Photo credit DOD photo. 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. 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. For information regarding official military unit histories, contact: Air ForceU.S. It should be emphasized that 55 percent of all Navy and Air Force officer casualties came as a result of reconnaissance and bombing sorties into North Vietnam, Laos, Thailand and Cambodia. The names of those who gave their lives and of those who remain missing are inscribed in the order they were taken from us. 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. Concerning, How do I find a name on the Vietnam War Memorial wall? 26 Similar Questions Many others joined the reserves or National Guard, which were not mobilized in any appreciable numbers during the war. Fill out the tour request form. 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. since it was dedicated because additional casualty records were found and As the Vietnam War dragged on, Kurt tried twice to enlist. 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. 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. Ninety-one percent of these Army officers were warrant officers, second lieutenants, first lieutenants or captains. Nursing the wounded. Folded American flags were presented to his parents and an Air Force helicopter flew over the ceremony. And there would be nothing to denote service or rank. The most comprehensive and authoritative history site on the Internet. The names would become the memorial. Vandegeers message also depicted a man who believed the worst was behind him. Nor did America recognize, on July 8, 1959the day he was killedthat another long and bloody war lay in wait. 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. Of all enlisted men who died in Vietnam, blacks made up 14.1 percent of the total. Learn more about featured topics of the Vietnam War and Vietnam Era. The names of Army Master Sergeant Chester Ovnand and Major Dale Buis are inscribed on Panel 1E of the Vietnam War Memorial Wall. 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. It is more notable, perhaps, only because his was the first name engraved into The Wall. This is the most accurate database online. They also died quickly, many within a few weeks or months of arriving in Vietnam. Vietnam War U.S. Military Fatal Casualty Statistics, Korean War and Vietnam War casualties listed at the National Archives, Hospital Admission Card Files, ca. Congress. 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. There are over 58,000 names on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington DC. But given the draft policies, the hard-sell recruitment, the severe escalation from month to month and the refusal by President Lyndon Johnson to call up the older reserves and National Guard, it could not have been otherwise. 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. On July 12, 1973, a disastrous fire at the NPRC destroyed approximately 16-18 million Official Military Personnel Files. The central idea of the poem is that the Vietnamese War took hundreds of lives away from the United States of America. Please take a moment to let our troops know how much we appreciate their service and sacrifice. 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 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. Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund | 3033 Wilson Blvd, Suite 300 | Arlington VA 22201 | 202.393.0090 Learn more about featured topics of the Vietnam War and Vietnam Era. Unfortunately, he mistakenly added a small number of names of men who were still alive. The unit diary portion of the muster roll should indicate when members of the Lima Company, 3rd platoon. . If officers are added, then almost 70 percent of those who died were volunteers. And there are the Vietnam veterans, who come to recognize the sacrifice of their fellow warriors, wondering why their own names are not there, too. And, as in every American war, it is the very young who are the most willing to volunteer. 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 . Though blessed with talent, his life wasnt without struggles. Be the first to learn about news, service member stories and fundraising updates from USO. Naval Academy, 130; Texas A & M, 112; The Citadel, 66; Virginia Military Institute, 43; Virginia Polytechnic Institute, 26; Norwich University, 19. These were Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban and other Latino-Americans with ancestries based in Central and South America. 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. There are three sets of fathers and sons on the Vietnam Wall. During and after the Vietnam War, the Department of Defense (DoD) compiled a list of combat zone casualties according to criteria in a 1965 Presidential Executive Order. For men who registered for the draft prior to 1976, the only Selective Service System information available is that of the individual Draft Registration Card (SSS Form 1) and Classification History (SSS Form 102) records. An estimated 11,000 women served in Vietnam. The most casualty deaths for a single month was May 1968 2,415 casualties were incurred. Look for discharge papers, pictures, medals,etc. The DOD database listed precise religious preferences for the 58,152 Vietnam casualties. And there is an end. 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. This amounted to 4.1 percent of all enlisted casualties in Vietnam. John Kennedy, discussing military assignments, said that, life is unfair. W denotes the west wall, and E denotes the east wall. Today, more than 58,000 names are engraved in the wall, and more were added in May. Though 13 were rescued at sea, the rest died, either upon impact or soon after. There are 58,267 names now listed on Vietnam Wall, including those added in 2010. 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. The job of cross-referencing the information of individual branches with the DoD fell to Doubek. Sad to say, many of these recruitment promises were fudged in one way or another, and many of these young men found themselves shipped directly to Vietnam after basic training. Military Reunions, Screensavers, Rubbings, Personal Guestbook for all Names. 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. Locate the corresponding panel at the Memorial. the person they know. Nevertheless, 336,111 men were phased into the service under this plan (mostly the Army) and 2,072 were killed. Authority Record - NARA, Records of the U.S. The Air Force lost the highest percentage of officers. Doubek contacted the National Personnel Records Center, Archives and Records Service, in St. Louis, Mo.

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