Compiled By Ronald L. Woodward
2011
From one Vet to another - THANKS FOR ALL YOU HAVE DONE.
1960 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January 19 PFC Charles E. Curless serving with a Marine detachment aboard the USS Midway.
January 25 PFC Lawrence Hall stationed at Ft. Ord.
January 30 A3C Vada J. Rogers stationed at Sheppard AFB. Jerry Joe Hunt began USMC basic training
at San Diego.
February 12 PFC Wayne L. Richards aboard the USS Mann bound for duty in Hawaii. SA Gene A.
Hopkins graduated from Radarman School in Norfolk.
February 13 PFC Stephen Anderson hospitalized for back injury in Korea. He is in the 121st Evacuation
Hospital. John W. White enlisted USAF in basic Lackland AFB.
February 25 Lonnie R. Jacobs enlisted USAF in basic Lackland AFB.
February 27 Marland J. Myers completed training Ft. Knox and received a citation for the highest
grade in marksmanship and named platoon SGT. He will be stationed Kirchgoens,
Germany.
March 3 Robert L. Eltzroth, HQ. Co. 1st Cav. Div., promoted to SP4.
March 9 Randall E. Cook joined USMC in basic at San Diego, Virginia C. Bays completed WAC
basic at Ft. McClellan now at Ft. Gordon.
March 10 PVT Rex Clevenger, rifleman Troop A, 3rd Armored Div. 12th Cav., took part in Exercise
Winter Shield in Budingen, Germany. SP4 Everett E. Wrightman, clerk Co. B 4th Div 126th
Ord. Batt also participated in the Exercise. Belvey G. Warford, mail clerk 15th Evacuation
Hospital, Muchweiler, Germany, promoted to SP4. LTJG Kelson E. Slayman serving
aboard the USS Union and SA Charles A. Rohr aboard the USS Excel. Both took part in
Operation Swan Dive off the coast of California.
March 20 CPL Leo P. Haneline took part in Operation Blue Star off the coast of Formosa.
April N. Vietnam imposes universal military conscription. Eighteen prominent S. Vietnamese
petition Diem to reform his government.
April 2 PVT Marlin C. Miller stationed with Co A, 122 Ord. Bn in Germany.
April 6 PFC John W. King, gunner 4th Armored Div., Illesheim, Germany, participated in field
training exercises. PFC Charles Curless and SN George Jenks returned to Alameda after a
seven month tour aboard the USS Midway in the Western Pacific.
April 9 PVT Albert D. Dollarhide took part in a 150 mile Desert to Sea March with the 1st Marine
DIV. PVT Sherman R. Ogan in Platoon 129, Co. B, MCRD, San Diego.
April 14 38 Wabash County men classified 1-A. They were Jerry L. Capes, George B. Connell,
Russell H. Cook, Billy G. Cooksey, Jr., Dean Cox, Bariel T. Cruz, Dennis E. Cunningham, Robert E. Day,
Thomas A. Drook, Kenneth J. Earhard, Leonard F. Good, Joseph T. Hacker, Herschel E. Hampton, Jr.,
Larry J. Hardesty, Ronald L. Harris, William F. Harter, James E. Hashbarger, Jack D. Hathaway, William
J. Kaiser, Kenneth L. Kline, J. Barclay Lavengood, Asher L. Lewis, Edward D. Lewis, Lowen Lindzy,
Clarence D. Mason, Norman E. Metzger, James B. Moore, Thomas E. Phillips, James M. Ridenour,
Timothy G. Sandberg, Richard Satterthwaite, David K. Snyder, Kenneth V. Stucker, Thomas W. Tate,
Colin J. Weesner, Herman D. Wells, Ralph Wheeler, Jr., and Stanley K. Williams. Other classifications
were 1C IND (inducted into armed forces) Harry T. Bechtold. 1C ENL Thomas A. Drook, Kenneth J.
Earhard, Leonard F. Good, Joseph T. Hacker, Herschel E. Hampton, Jr., Larry J. Hardesty, Ronald L.
Harris, William F. Harter, James E. Hashbarger, Jack D. Hathaway, William J. Kaiser, Kenneth L. Kline, J.
Barclay Lavengood, Asher L. Lewis, Edward D. Lewis, Lowen Lindzy, Clarence D. Mason, Norman E.
Metzger, James B. Moore, Thomas E. Phillips, James M. Ridenour, Timothy G. Sandberg, Richard
Satterthwaite, David K. Snyder, Kenneth V. Stucker, Thomas W. Tate, Colin J. Weesner, Herman D.
Wells, Ralph Wheeler Jr. and Stanley K. Williams. Other classifications were (enlisting in armed forces)-
Marlin E. Weaver, David L. Estrich, Lyle W. Cook, Max Carter, Wikky G. Schannep, Richard J.
Richardson, Sherman R. Ogan, Raymond L. Hall, Sammie C.B. Norwood, Lonnie R. Jacobs. 1W
(conscientious objector available for civilian work)-Donald R. Long. 1D (member of a reserve
component)- Darrel D. Graffis, Charles L. Miller, Joseph D. Armstrong.
April 23 PVT Richard Bland, driver Co. D, 3rd Armored Div. 46th Inf. In Kirch Gons, Germany. PVT
Winston B. Smith in advanced training at the Artillery and Missle Center Ft. Sill.
April 25 PVT Marland J. Myers, tank crewman, stationed with the 3rd Armored Div., Co. D, 13th Cav.
in Kirch Gons, Ger.
April 27 AB Richard J. Richardson in Flight 287 basic training at Lackland AFB.
May 2 SP Everett E. Wrightsman assigned as finance clerk at Fitzsimmons General Hospital
Denver.
May 4 SGT David J. Sarten, Ft. Eustis, reenlisted. He enter the army in 1942.
May 7 AB Samuel C. Norwood assigned to Sheppard AFB for technical training.
May 12 PFC T.L. Eubank, Ft. Sill, to marry Marjorie J. King.
May 13 PVT Steven L. Cullers finished Information School at Ft. Slocum.
May 14 LCPL Wayne L. Richards serving with the 1st Marine Brigade MCAS Kaneohe Bay.
May 20 26 men classified as being available for military service in Wabash County. They were Ted
W. Baker, Neal K. Bashore, Leon L. Bazzoni, Paul Bedics, Grover L. Bemis, Stephen H. Carpenter,
Richard A. Correll, Robert D. Derck, Larry E. Finnegan, Steven R. Geirke, Dennis A. Gillen, William R.
Gray, James D. Gribben, Herbert J. Hall, Allen A. Marshall, Max E. Metzger, W. Richard Neher Jr., Roger
H. Panning, Gene L. Ruse, Dwayne Sanders, Stephen W. Shambaugh, Carlos E. Smith, David R. Ulrey,
Frank J. Unger and James E. Waller. Other classifications 1C ENL-Herbert A. Clegg. 1O Wilmer R.
Metzger. 4A completing service Robert D. Stair, Jerry L. Purdy, Leslie Thompson. A1C John Rhoades,
radar operator, selected as Airman of the Month of the 747th Aircraft Control and Warning Sqd, Ellington
AFB.
May 23 PFC Wayne L. LaVoncher, medical aidman, HQ Troop 1st Div. 9th Cav., attended a retreat
near Seoul.
May 24 PVT Randal Cook completed Marine basic at San Diego.
May 26 AN Richard J. Richardson and Max E. Carter completed basic at Lackland AFB.
Richardson will receive technical training at Chanute AFB and Carter at Kessler AFB.
June 3 Thomas L. McGraw, Ladd AFB, promoted to SP4.
June 6 PFC John W. Rish, draftman, Signal Co. Ft. Richardson, participated in the Army's Alaskan
entertainment contest.
June 10 PVT Jerry Hunt finishes USMC basic at Camp Pendleton.
June 11 PVT Winston B. Smith, mechanic, assigned to the 1st Inf. Div., Ft Riley. SP4 James Clark
assigned to staff of the 8th Evacuation Hospital in Landstuhl, Germany.
June 14 Selective Service places 24 men in 1-A status. They were Truman Bitzel, Harold G.
Bowman, Lawrence A. Boyer Jr., Norvel Bradley, Arthur B. Clouser, John C. Culbertson, Donald E.
Curless, John R. Daniels, Rex L. Daugherty, Jr., John A. Deal, Theodore M. Dill, Robert J. Harris, Gary A.
Houser, Fred A. Kendall, Michael P. Landis, Joe A. Long, Verlis L. Neal, Rexford J. Niccum, Charles F.
Reichard Jr., David L. Renbarger, Lorin G. Sloan, Thurman C. Smith Jr., James R. Starbuck and Todd L.
Walters. Other classifications were 1C David L. Barnett, Richard C. Clark. 2A (occupational deferment)-
Dean M. Cox. 4A Albert L. Cleaver, Dean F. Gurtner, Richard E. Bechtold, Robert Wrightsman, Daniel L.
Terrell, David A. Sloane and James J. Holcomb.
June 15 PFC Larry D. Starbuck, 7th Army, Hanau, Germany, chosen Soldier of the Month by his
battalion
June 16 PFC Steven K. Raver, Co D, 8th Div. 16th Inf, participated in Operation Bayonet Blue in
Germany.
June 24 ET3 Charles A. Rohr, USS Excel, took part in the 52nd annual Portland Rose Festival.
July 11 AA Daniel L. McBride with the Early Warning Sqd. at Naval Base Argentia,
Newfoundland.
July 15 A3C Vada J. Rodgers graduated from Accounting and Finance Specialist Course, Sheppard
AFB. 2nd LT Thomas A. Johnson received his wings as USAF jet pilot at Laredo AFB sent
to Randolph AFB as an instructor in T-33 jet trainers.
July 18 PVT Von L. Working finished basic at Ft. Knox now studying medical specialist courses,
Ft. Sam Houston.
July 21 18 men classified 1-A by local draft board. They were David C. Archer, John E. Ballard,
Henry L. Bell, Philip L. Burton, Joseph W. Carter, Gene Coofare, Jack D. Cussen, Joseph E. Deafenbaugh,
Emil R. Harris, William G. Kerr, D.L. Leland, Arthur B. Lumm, Jan P. Melvin, Robert J. Nickel, James
Owen, James M. Paschall, Jerry J. Poole, Richard D. Robinett, Ross E. Saulmon, Mark E. Schannep,
Edward L. Shear, Raymond V. Sorrell, Fred H. Squires, Bernard L. Summers, Robert L. Ulshafer, Lewis J.
Urschel, Worth M. Walrod, Jr., Richard L. Wolpert. Others classified 2A Michael T. Long, Richard A.
Bracken, Frances E. Bundy. 2S Don H. Rapp. 1W (released from work project) Don H. Rapp. 1O David
L. Delauter. 1C Enl James E. Reynolds, Charles E. Kramer, Richard L. Jivery. 1D reserve component
Thornton H. Shearer Jr. 4A Bernard Basse, Carl R. Cloud, Ronald R. Rice, Earl Coon, Lowell D. Gilley,
Larry J. Brubaker, David F. Ridenour, Charles E. Curless, James A. Eubank, Ernest Cripe.
July 25 PVT Jack Poole, who took basic at Ft. Leonard Wood, graduated Information School at Ft.
Slocum.
July 26 CAPT Paul H. Marks intelligence advisor, Boston Subsector Command XIII US Army
Corps, awarded a certificate of achievement from HQ XIII US Army Corps.
August Captain Kong Le stages coup d'etat in Laos. Hands power back to Souvanna Phouma.
General Phoumi Nosavan, with CIA help, forms opposition faction in southern Laos.
August 3 A2C Vada J. Rogers works in the payroll department, McGuire AFB.
August 18 18 men classified 1-A by local draft board. They were Robert J. Alexander, Jerry D.
Bechtold, Dickie R. Clark, Glen E. Donaldson, Hershel L. Hall, Jackson D. Hamilton, Staton Heeter, Jr.,
Charles P. Howard, Larry E. Moore, Robert L. Osborne, John E. Paul, Max L. Piper, Roger L. Price,
Richard E. Reed, Michael L. Rehak, Gerald B. Rinearson, Russell M. Pontius, Richard W. Skelton. 1C
enlisted Richard D. Kessler, James E. Schaaf, Carrlus E. Adkins, Phillip B. Wert, Jerry L. Ferguson and
Bill R. Conley. 1D reserve Joseph W. Carter, Robert L. Bishop, Mark E. Schannep. 2A occupational
deferment Jack D. Cussen, Richard L. Wolpert, Philip E. Weck, Jack L. Baker, Lewis J. Urschel. 2S
student deferment Arthur B. Lumm. 4A service completed Robert L. Mattern, Kenneth L. Burkholder,
Lyle R. Etling, William J. Janiszyn, Frank E. Tyner.
August 20 PVT Sherman R. Ogan completed basic at San Diego now attending aviation school, NAS
Memphis.
Sept. 1 PFC Richard D. Bland, driver Co D 3rd Armored Div. 46th Inf. And PFC Marland J, Myers,
clerk Co D 3rd Armored Div. 13th Cav are both stationed at Kirch Gons, Ger.
Sept. 5 Congress opens in Hano Lao Dong stresses need to combat Diem regime.
Sept. 9 A3C Gloria Malloch graduated from basic Lackland AFB and assigned to Offutt AFB.
Sept. 12 James R. Gause and William E. Mabee enlisted in the Army.
Sept. 19 Laos rivals report Red invasion.
Sept. 23 Larry A. Martin and Fredrick G. Stone in USMC basic training at San Diego.
Sept. 27 PFC Rex M. Clevenger, rifleman 12th Cav., and SP4 David L. Barnett, fire team leader in
Troop B, 12th Cav. participated in German exercises with the 3rd Armored Div.
Sept. 29 William E. Mabee stationed in Co. C 2nd TRB, Ft. Leonard Wood.
Sept. 30 Harold L. Eldridge enlisted in the USN as an airman recruit and will take recruit training at
Great Lakes.
Oct 3 Phillip Rinearson began basic Lackland AFB.
Oct. 31 A3C Charles L. Hall finished basic Lackland AFB, assigned to Kincheloe AFB. Larry J.
Owen graduated USN basic at San Diego. SP4 Ted M. Gerard, radio-teletype opeator, part-
icipated in Exercise South Wind with the 69th Signal Batt., Ft. McPherson. The 69th is a
support element of STRAC, Ft. George Meade.
Nov. 9 Wabash County selective service classified 68 county men with 28 1-A. They were Carl E.
Anderson, Robert W. Benbow, Harliss L. Birt, James E. Bitzel, Gordon L. Bolinger, Roy F. Cleaveland,
Larry J. Cochran, John P. Coyer, David L. Daugherty, William E. Eltzroth, Charles E. Fields, Chester C.
Flora, Elmer H. Johnson, Lawrence J. Kessler, Richard L. King, Leslie C. Lake, Galen D. Long, William L.
Maurer,Linwood L. Parr, John L. Sands, Gerald B. Shearer, Gary K. Smith, Jon W. Spears, Stephen F.
Stephens, John E. Trent, Dale A. Weiss, Timothy P. White, Richard E. Wolf. 1C inducted Wayne H.
Miller, Grover Bemis. 1C enlisted Samuel J. Fry, Philip E. Weck, Harold L. Eldridge, James D. Vickery,
Stephen J. Slonicker, Johnny L. Patton. 1D reserve Patrick R. Snyder, William P. Lines, Jerry A.
Sommers. 4A service completd David L. Barnett, George R. Lorenz, Pawnee D. Haynes, Barton L. Tyner,
Josiah C. Daugherty, Lawrence J. Bizjack, William C. Houston, Thomas J. Baker, Leroy Davis.
Nov. 11 S. Vietnamese army paratrooper units led by an American trained colonel staged a revolt
against Ngo Dinh Diem, first president of the Republic of Vietnam, in a predawn coup led
by LTC Voung Van Dong and Col. Nguyen Chanh Thi. PVT Terry Wood completed light
vehicle driver course at Ft. Leonard Wood. SP4 William Brewster stationed in Germany
with HQ Btry, 3rd Msl BN, 71st Art.
Nov. 12 Ngo family caught off guard but Paratroop rebels routed in Saigon. Diem berated U.S. for
perceived lack of support during attempted coup even implicated George Carver and Russ
Miller for involvement in the plot. A rift begins between American diplomatic and military
representatives in S. Vietnam.
Nov. 23 PVT William Mabee completed basic Ft. Leonard Wood and transferred to 40th Co. 4 STU
BN TSB, Ft. Benning.
Dec. 8 AN Billy M. Castle assigned Beale AFB for training as an air policeman.
Dec. 9 PFC Sherman Ogan stationed at MCAAS Yuma.
Dec. 12 PVT Richard L. King at Ft. Knox for basic. SGT Hoover C. King assigned to 101st
Airborne Div., Ft. Campbell.
Dec. 14 SP4 Carl L. Frazee, dispursing specialist, assigned to the US Army Combat Development
Experimentation Center, 2nd Logistical Command, Ft. Ord. Wabash County draft board classifies 57 men.
Those classified 1A were John E. Airgood, Morris B. Allen, Wayne L. Atkinson, Phillip L. Barnett, Danny
L. Boone, Johannes E.A. Brakkee, Larry C. Friedersdorf, Charles R. Gidley, Kent B. Harding, James B.
Hensley, Bryan E. Hidy, Ronald L. Ihnen, Patric P. McLaughlin, David E. Mann, Dean L. Metzger, Dennis
E. Miller, Don M. Nixon, Tommy L. Sullivan, Robert J. Ulrey, John Wilcox, James E. Whitcraft.
Inducted Larry D. Mullett, Richard N. Powell, Russel J. Renicker, Richard L. King. 1C enlisted Joseph E.
Deafenbaugh. 1O Galen D. Long. Reserve William L. Barnes, Robert D. Derck, Larry L. Davidson,
William J. King. 2S Philip M. Goebel. 4A Larry L. Tracy, Robert L. Eltzroth, Donald L. Keppel, Ned E.
Schaaf.
Dec. 16 Johnnie Lynn Patton completed boot camp and now with I division USS Rochester. AMS2
Thomas H. Laird discharged from the Navy. Harold L. Eldridge completed basic, home on
leave, will report to NAS Anacosta.
Dec. 20 Hanoi leaders form National Liberation Front for South Vietnam, which Saigon regime dubs
the "Victcong" meaning Communist Vietnamese. PVT Billy Conley completed individual
combat training at Camp Pendleton.
Dec. 21 Communist N. Vietnamese troops reported to have entered into Laos. Crisis erupts as Gen.
Phouma attacks Vietnamese. Soviet aircraft fly supplies to Souvanna Phouma's neutralist
faction.
Dec. 26 David L. Price honorably discharged from the USAF entered service 11-27-1956.
Dec. 28 AA Douglas W. Eckhart stationed at NATTC Memphis.
Dec. 31 PVT Patrick R. Snyder completed field communications crewman course, Ft. Leonard
Wood.
1961 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January Eisenhower leaves office, warns Kennedy that Laos is the major crisis in Southeast Asia.
January 3 Report Northern Laos outpost Xieng Khousang captured by pro western troops.
January 4 Airlift of war supplies to leftist rebels condemned by SEATO
January 19 PFC Sherman Ogan serving at MCAAA Yuma. Wabash County draft board classified 51
men. Those classified 1A were Garrit R.L. Brakkee, William L. Barnes, Robert C. Hagee, James Herschel
Schlatter, Tommy L. Torpy, Phillip Rank Baldus, Thomas L. Frank, Richard C. Stoner, Robert C. Slusser,
Allen R. Bitzell, Michael D. Domer, Doner R. Monroe, Terry L. Shalley, John E. Sutton, Michael R.
Knotts, Paul D. Niccum, Max J. Smedley, Ernest L. Kissinger, Richard D. Robins, Gene C. Dyson, Ralph
E. Clover, John L. West.
1C Ind Corwin W. Keaffaber, Dickie D. Marshall. 1C Enl Ted L. Spann. 1O Chester C. Flora, Kenneth
Graybill Jr., Morris E. Blocher. 1D Dale Wm Milam, Bill J. Tuza, Donald F. Cole, Jr., Richard L. Guthrie.
2A Billy G. Ohmart. 4A Dale L. Holle, Albert E. Hamilton, Thomas H. Laird, Ermal E. Williams. 4D
Ware W. Wimberly II.
January 21 Earl R. Hoffman promoted to PFC after basic at Parris Island.
February 1 MSGT Gilbert Smith stationed Fort Sill. PVT Lewis L. Wallace is in Co. C, 317 Engineer
Battalion in Hochst, Ger.
February 5 PVT Harold L. Eltzroth, cook Battery B, 37th Artillery, Ft. Richardson, participated in
Exercise Willow Freeze.
February 6 PFC Thomas White, Co. D 547th Eng. Batt, Graftenwohr-Hohenfels, Ger., participated in
Winter Shield II.
February 15 AN Ronald A. Fearnow completed basic at Lackland AFB.
February 17 Phillip R. Baldus and Frederick M. Rice joined the Navy. Baldus to receive basic at San
Diego and Rice at Great Lakes. SP4 James W. Hearn, 1st Guided Missile Brigade, Ft. Bliss,
awarded Good Conduct Award. MSGT Richard M. Stineman one of 11 Army Pistol Team
shooters who won individual honors at the 3rd Inter-Service Pistol Championship.
March 1 PVT Fred G. Stone completed individual combat training at Camp Pendleton. PVT Will-
iam E. Mabee completed Auto Mechanic training; assigned to 47 OD GP MNT SUP HHD
Zufenhas, Ger.
March 4 U.S. reportedly considering Laos strategy before things get out of hand.
March 6 PVT Larry Martin completed individual combat training at Camp Pendleton.
March 9 PVT Russel J. Renicker attending Armor School, Ft. Knox.
March 15 Wabash County draft board classifies 62 men. 1A Stephen M. , Marlin J. Faust, Robert
C. Ferrie Jr., Ulysses Francis, Larry O. Guenin, Richard L. Guthrie, Stepehn C. Henderson, Jerry J. Herron,
William Kirkpatrick, David P. Lumm, Robert C. McKinley, Terry J. O'Brien, Roger A. Pattee, Hugh L.
Pratt, William L. Ridenour, Danny G. Roth, James R. Schuler, William K. Sioncroft, Terrel E. Smith,
Stephen R. Straley, Donald G. Ulshafer, Donald H. Vogel. 1C enl Gordon W. Porter, Jr.,. 1D Michael
Terrence Long, John M. Beam, Max E. Neher, Todd L. Walters. 1O Dale E. Rush. 1W William S.
Crumley. 4A James W. Hearn, Donald J. Kling, James E. Gottschalk, Kenneth J. Schilling, John L. Clark,
James B. Sagarsee.
March 16 Parker Kuldau, U.S. pentagon, promoted to LTC. He also received his commander pilot
wings for 3,000 hours of flying time.
March 20 PVT Corwin W. Keaffaber completed advanced individual armor training Ft. Knox.
March 22 President orders military aid for Laos.
March 23 PVT Fredrick G. Stone graduated from Aviation Fundamentals School NATTC Memphis.
Kennedy warns of grave danger of Soviet backed rebel conquest of Laos.
March 24 Kennedy grimly warns Soviets on Laos rebellion. PVT Billie R. King graduated from
Quartermasters Supply Course, Ft. Lee. PVT Wayne Miller completed cooking
course at Quartermaster School, Ft. Lee.
March 25 PVT Larry D. Mullett, stevadore, assigned to the 285th Transportation Co., 11th Trans-
portation Batt.
March 27 JFK and Gromyko meet in crisis hope for cease fire in Laos. Kennedy asserts American
support for the sovereignty of Laos, while Britain and the Soviet Union propose inter-
national conference to resolve crisis.
March 29 U.S. and SEATO prepared to meet Communist threat. Resolutions passed to cover
Red offensive in South Vietnam. PVT Phillip Thrush is taking an advanced course
at the USN School of Music.
March 30 Russia expected to dictate terms of Laos cease fire.
March 31 Souvanna asks the U.S. and Russia to halt arms.
April 3 U.S. civilian pilots fly supplies to Laos.
April 4 Soviets drop paratroopers near Laos government base. CPL Wayne Richards, 1st Marine
Brigade, MCAS Kaneohe Bay and MM3 Charles E. Jacoby aboard the USS Helena took
part in Exercise Green Light. Robert B. Derck enlisted in the Army in basic at Ft. Dix.
SSGT Everett G. Miller, Co. E, 2nd B.G., 12th Cav. stationed in Korea.
April 6 Leaders see possible settlement in Laos. Britain and U.S. officials talk over prospects.
April 7 U.S. pledges support to President Diem.
April 10 President Diem elected by pro western Vietnamese.
April 18 William J. King assigned to Ft. Dix for basic training. AE2 Jack Covalt, Fighter Sqd 103,
aboard the USS Forrestal in the Meditteranean.
April 19 Draft Board classifies 58 men. According to Mrs. George Hiatt, clerk, no draft calls
received for April. Those classified 1-A were Morris W. Baker, Allen L. Downey, Sonny D. Easterday,
Richard D. Erb, Tommy L. Evans, Lowell M. Figert, James P. Flinn, John Friedersdorf, Robert S. Kaiser,
Steven D. Lawrence, George Leonard, Jerry Long, George E. Nichols, Jerry Norwood, David Ply, William
L. Stellar, Roy L. Teague, Rolland Watson, Edwin W. Weimer. 1AO Morris L. Sites. 1C Ind Thomas E.
Willcox, Emil R. Harris. 1C enl James E. Haines, Jerry E. Brown, Larry E. Yentes, Morris B. Allen,
Phillip R. Baldus. 1O Worth M. Walrod Jr. 4A Leland L. Weaver, Terry E. Cooper, Larry R. Brooks,
Howard S. Hoover, Everett E. Wrightsman, Leo P. Haneline Jr.
April 20 U.S. Military Advisors conduct Laos training.
April 24 Soviets and British reach agreement on Laos. Pact calls for a cease fire. Larry R. Case and
Calvin C. Spears in basic Ft. Dix.
April 28 Laos crisis grows more critical as Reds increase offensive. Larry L. Davidson and Paul D.
Baker in basic Ft. Dix.
May 2 Sherman R. Ogan promoted to LCPL at MCAAS Yuma.
May 3 Pro-communist rebels of Laos say they have ceased military actions.
May 4 Both sides halt actions in Laos.
May 5 AN James E. Driscoll completed basic at Lackland AFB and will attend tech training at
Amarillo AFB. Construction Apprentice William L. Hancock serving at NAAS Mayport.
May 6 Truce of Pathet Lao rebels broken.
May 8 YN3 Richard L. Rohr and brother AE2 Charles A. Rohr are both serving on the USS Excel.
Rebel Leaders leave before peace commission arrives at Vientaine.
May 10 Draft board classifies 46 young men. Those classified 1A were Dennis C. Airgood, Carl
Aukschun, Randall Bolen, Larry Brown, John H. Drook, Steven Flack, Arden E. Gilmer, Leonard C.
Grumpp, Robert Hipskind, Kenneth S. Hoover, Stephen Keffaber, Richard L. King, Larry Landis, Dennis
J. McCombs, Jack D. Miller, Thomas F. Oldenkamp, Theodore R. Oldfather, Jerry Orr, Donald P.
Stevens, John W. Sutton, James U. Todd, Douglas W. Vought, William R. Wassman.
1C Enl James L. Whitaker. 1D James G. Davis. 1A James K. Smith. 4A Keith E. Donaldson, Keith D.
Cook, Lawrence R. Hall, Harold L. Eltzroth, James W. Easterday, Jackie Spears.
May 11 VP Lyndon B. Johnson receives warm welcome in Saigon PVT Bobby L. Adkins, muni-
itions handler, 92nd Artillery Service Battery, in Darmstadt, Ger., took part in the V Corps
field Exercise Spring Tonic.
May 12 Laos government yields to communist rebel demands. Johnson pledges military and econ-
omic aid to S. Vietnam. South Side EUB Church showed "Jungle Beachhead" film on
Vietnam.
May 15 YN3 Phillip B. Wert received a letter of Commendation for Outstanding Performance of
his duties as captain's yeoman aboard the USS Shadwell.
May 16 Geneva conference on Laos opens, later creates neutral coalition headed by Souvanna
Phouma. Royal Laotians ordered not to attend conference.
May 19 CPL Patrick McBride, 3rd Marine Air Wing, El Toro, participated in exercise Green
Light.
May 23 Richard D. Kessler, refrigerator mechanic, Kaiserslaughter, Ger., promoted to PFC.
June 5 PVT Ralph E. James in basic Ft. Knox.
June 6 France proposes ICC aid in Laos.
June 7 Laos rebels capture stronghold of Padong. Conference on Laos cancelled. Royal
Laotian troops forced to retreat.
June 14 Human wave of rebels crumble Laotian troops.
June 20 U.S. proposes new agreement for Laos. Will withdraw advisors if all others do same.
June 21 Laos Princes appear near coalition.
June 22 Padong airlift begins; remove non-combatants.
June 27 PFC William E. Mabee serving in the 33rd Ord. Co. in Ger. Rex Daugherty in basic
Lackland AFB.
June 28 Maurice D. Frieden, 314th Army Band in Germany, promoted to SP4. Three Wabash
County youths to leave for physicals and three for induction. They will go to Indianapolis by charter bus.
1A Frank D. Albert, Jr., James F. Bahler, Thomas D. Beaver, Jerry R. Biggs, Larry L. Burch, Jeff J.
Butterbaugh, Bobby L. Carr, Max E. Fisher, Paul E. Foster, Edward L. Francis, Ronald E. Freiden, David
R. Hoffman, Edward A. Kline, Jay A. Linkenholt, Newt Music, Brent L. Norris, Donald E. Null, Theodore
R. Oldfather, Jack E. Sellers, John B. Tate, Floyd L. Townsend, Richard L. White, Gary W. Wilcox,
James L. Wirsing, Robert J. Woodward.
1C enl Paul D. Koerner. 1D Erhardt Ballschmidt, John C. Culbertson, Richard D. Robinett, Robert L.
Ulshafer. 2A Ronald R. Dickerhoff. 4A Thomas L. McGraw, Lary E. Harris, Billie G. Mowery.
July 3 Richard M. Kizer, Tactical Air Command, Ft. Monroe, promoted to rank of LTC. He has
25 years of military service and accumulated 250 hours of jet flying time. AMSAN Larry J.
Owen serving with Anti Submarine Sqd 5, NAS Quonset Point.
July 18 AB Donald C. Steltz Jr. in basic Lackland AFB.
July 22 PVT William L. Lines completed field communication crewman course, Ft. Leonard
Wood. A2C Steven Sloniker left Sunday for St.Lawrence Island, Alaska where he will
serve for one year.
July 25 Seaman Cecil L. Brauneller, USS Forrest Sherman, took part in annual summer training for
Midshipmen. PVT Gordon Porter completed light vehicle driver course Ft. Leonard Wood.
August 1 RCT Norman H. Knee in basic Ft. Leonard Wood.
August 4 PFC Rex Clevenger, scout observer12th Cav. Troop A, Budingen, Ger., participated in field
exercises with the 3rd Armored Div.
August 10 First aerial spraying of herbicides was conducted as a test run north of Dak To.
August 11 RCT Carlos E. Smith in basic Ft. Leonard Wood. CDR Kenneth "Bill" Gray starts on
ground after 31 years Navy Hitch. PVT Jack R. Haney, missile crewman, assigned to the
43rd Artillery Fairchild AFB.
August 21 Six inductees from Wabash county in August draft and sent to Ft. Knox. The six are
Donald J. Owen, David P. Lumm, David R. Martin, Norman Rogers Jr., Clyde D. Holmes
and Foster Gatchel. AN Terry G. Pell serving aboard the USS Hancock.
September 1 AMSAN Larry J. Owen serving with Helicopter Anti Submarine Sqd. aboard the USS
Champlain.
September 2 SN John W. Steele serving aboard the USS Walker.
September 7 SN Larry E. Smeltzley attended pre-commissioning school at Norfolk upon completion he
will serve aboard the USS Enterprise. AN Lonnie D. Snowberger completed basic Lack-
land AFB assigned Chanute AFB for technical training.
September 15 AM Douglas W. Eckhart stationed with Patrol Sqd 49 at a Naval Station in Bermuda.
September 18 LT Donald Wolpert marries Elfriede Rathgeber. Wabash County draft quota is 14 largest
since the Korean War.
September 22 PVT David Archer completed advanced training at Ft. Knox.
September 23 PFC Donald P. Stevens, clerk-typist, stationed with HW Battery 5th Guided Missile
Batt., Ft. Bliss. SP4 Richard G. Bland, driver, Co. D 3rd Armored Div., 46th Inf.,
Grafenwohn, Ger., participated in exercises for four weeks.
September 25 PVT David R. Martin in basic Ft. Knox.
October 2 PVT Norman Rogers, Jr., PVT David L. Lumm and PVT Donald J. Owen in basic Ft.
Knox.
October 4 SN Claude D. Rogers aboard the USS Buck. PVT Carolyn I. Coble completed WAC
basic training Ft. McClellan.
October 6 PFC Bobby L. Adkins, ammunition specialist 92nd Artillery, participated in NATO
Exercise Checkmate.
October 9 Laos Princes delay seeking King's ok on Phouma as premier. SP5 John H. Hiner,
helicopter mechanic ,7th Army Aviation Group 110th Transportation Co. participated
in mountain training in the Alps.
October 10 Gerald J. Tyner, Richard L. Harvey, Ronald S. Miller and Erwin C. Butcher completed
basic Great Lakes.
October 12 A1C Robert G. Newman is a fire fighter in the 3565th Civil Engineering Grp, James
Connally AFB.
October 17 Fredrick Stone, NAS Glenview, promoted to LCPL.
October 26 PVT Norman H. Knee in headquarters and supply at Ft. Holabird.
October 27 William E. Mabee promoted to SP4 in Germany.
October 28 Cambodian military forces enter S. Vietnam in the area of Angiaod Province in the
Southern Delta. Buildup of communist forces taking place.
October Maxwell Taylor and Walt Rostow visit Vietnam recommend American combat troop
intervention disguised as flood relief. Kennedy spurns idea but decides to give Diem
more equipment and advisers.
November 2 PVT Jack D. Miller completed basic Parris Island.
November 4 MR2 James R. Lutz stationed at the Naval Missile Facility Point Arguelo. Gen. Taylor
wants Vietnam to make more use of their troops in fight against communism. PVT
Donald Drudge with Troop M, 3rd Recon Sqd, 3rd Armored Cav. Rgt.
November 6 Forty selectives to report for physical exams in Wabash County.
November 7 Thurman L. Eubank honorably discharged from the Army at Ft.Benning. John F.
Houlihan and Max Waggoner enlised in the Army. Both are to go to basic Ft. Leonard
Wood and then to Army Finance School Ft. Benjamin Harrison.
November 9 Four Wabash County men in basic training Ft. Knox. They are William M. Baker,
Ralph Bakehorn Jr., Stanley E. Owen and Jon A. Ogan.
November 10 Lawrence D. Philpot, assistant chief of the Personnel Management Br. Adjutant General
Section 3rd Army Hq. Ft.McPherson, promoted to Captain.
November 11 U.S. Bombers and Air Force instructors to go to Vietnam. MM3 Charles E. Jacoby, USS
Helena, and Signalman 1 Max E. Simons, USS Blue, took part in Exercise Covered
Wagon.
November 15 Max L. Clingaman completed basic Lackland AFB assigned technical training at Shep-
perd AFB.
November 16 Norvel Bradley, Richard M. Pence, Ernest L. Kissinger and Bryan E. Hidy in USMC
recruit training San Diego.
November 20 PVT Kenneth D. Easterday in basic Ft. Knox. PVT Donald L. Easterday in basic Ft.
Leonard Wood.
November 30 James F. Chapman, Charles A.Brane and Larry J. Eltzroth enlist in the Army, all sent to
Ft. Leonard Wood. PFC Rex M. Clevenger, Troop A, 3rdArmored Div., 12th Cav., took
part in Exercise Brandywine in Ger. Lt. Robin K. Miller completed rotary wing aviator
course, Army Primary Helicopter School, Camp Wolters. He is scheduled for advanced
training Ft. Rucker.
December 2 Airman John W. Meyer completed basic Lackland AFB assigned to the USAF technical
training course for aircraft maintenance specialists, Chanute AFB.
December 14 PVT Jack D. Miller completed intensive combat training at the infantry training
regiment Camp Lejeune.
December 18 Roger Cramer recently enlisted in the USAF stationed at Lackland AFB.
December 19 PVT Wayne E. Stanley completed a six-week general supply course, Armor Tra-
ining Center, Ft. Knox. He entered the army last August.
December 20 38 Wabash County youth classified for military service in 1-A status and there were
34 enlistments. They were 1A Frederick D. Baker, Leland Beery, Ronnie Brauneller, Gary D. Bryant,
Larry Case, Joseph Catterton, Hosea Clupper, Ronald J. Cooper, John Courtney, Larry Dailey, Donald
Dill, Robert Earhart,Robert Evenson, Scott O. Fairchild, Jr., Ronald France, Michael Gribben, Roger
Hairrell, Willard Hale, Gary L. Hapner, John Henry, Forrest Howard, Richard J. Kerr, Chester King, Jerry
Lundeen, Mike Meyer, Wendell Meyer, James L. Moore, Joseph R. Petro, Michael L. Rogers, Mikel J.
Raver, Robert D. Roser, Calvin Spears, Jay D. Sullivan, William Van Roe, John W. Voss, Peter A. Walter,
Terry West, Larry Wilkerson, .
1C Charles D. Rees, John F. Brane, Robert Barker, Paul R. House, Dale Milam, Jerry Badskey, John M.
Beam, John F. Houlihan, Claude A. Brane, Richard E. Roberts, Larry J. Eltroth, Roger Cramer, Larry D.
Renbarger, James F. Chapman, David Jefferson, Lut- her Allen, Max K. Waggoner, Max Torpy, James E.
Wing, Stephen Heckman, Norvel Bradley, Richard Reed, Richard Harper, Richard M. Pence, Daniel Knee,
Donald Easter- day, Bryan Hidy, Ernest L. Kissinger, John W. Meyer, Richard Hawley, Wendell Edwards.
1C Ind Tom Engelman, James R. Dyson, Leo Frieden, Bernard Netro. 1O Brian Book. 2S David Bagwell,
George P. Smith, John W. Holl, Stephen Holthouse, John F. Unger, Charles Steidle, Ronald Arrick, Dennis
Haupert, M.F. Bostic, Steven Butterbaugh, Robert Rigney. 4A Thurman Eubank, William Alford, Russell
Daniels. PFC Lewis Wallace, mechanic, 317th Eng Bat, Co. C, Hochst, participated in Exercise Main
Barge a V Corps field training exercise in central Germany. He entered the Army in August 1960.
December 27 Laos peace treaty fails – fear war.
December 28 SP4 Richard M. Rapp, squad leader, Co. B, 1st Battle Group, 3rd Inf, Ft. Myer, graduated
with distinction from NCO Academy, Ft. George G. Meade. He was presented with the
Distinguished Graduate Award. He entered the service in January of 1960.
December 30 Laos talks fail as Phouma returns.
1962 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January The first SEAL teams were commissioned out of the UDT's for unconventional
warfare, counterquerilla warfare and clandestine operations. Operation Ranch Hand
began spraying deadly dioxin-based herbicide to strip the dense jungle that gave enemy
cover, destroy crops and to clear ground for U.S. fire bases.
January 5 Draft Quota to be cut to 8,000 men in February and to 6,000 in March.
January 20 PVT Danny G. Roth completed recruit training San Diego assigned to Camp Pendleton
for further infantry training.
January 23 YN3 Phillip Wert, serving aboard the dock landing ship USS Shadwell, which left Norfolk
for two months of operational training in the Caribbean. Marland J. Myers was honorably discharged from
the Army at Ft. Hamilton. Wabash County Selective Service board classified 31 youth as 1-A and
available for military service. 1A are Wayne Badskey, Tommy L. Behny, Steve C. Bennett, George E.
Bitzer, Larry Brooks, Jerry L. Carter, Thomas W. Christman, Douglas K. Chopson, Charles A. Cormany,
Arthur D. Daub, Robert Denney, Marlin L. Drumheller Jr., William E. Eldridge, Daniel L. Emrick, James
E. Haggaerty, Frederick Hamilton, John P. Hipskind, Tony Holmes,Eddie J. Kessler, Michael T. Koehler,
John R. Knapp, Ken D. McKillip, Gary Montel, Clyde K. Palmer, Victor A. Parrett, Rodger E. Rapp, John
L. Renz, Jack A. Schuler, James S. Spaulding, Gene D. Spear, James S. Stitt and Stephen Ulrey. 1C Ind.
Everett Crumrine, Donald B. Everest, Steven Vrooman, Robert L. Hapner, Gary L. Hapner. 1C Enl Robert
A. Magner, Charles L. Kelly, Benjamin Conley Jr., Clarence Bitzel, jr., Philip W. Norris, James C. Ball.
1AO Leland H. Beery. 1D Jerry J. Herron. 4A Robert L. Middleton, Lindley C. Wert.
January 26 Richard G. Bland honorably discharged from the Army at Ft. Hamilton.
February 1 Reds Shell Nam Tha, Laos airstrip. AB William F. David assigned to USAF technical
training course for aircraft maintenance, Amarillo AFB.
February 2 PVT Winston J. Stewart completed advanced training in computer programming, Ft. Mon-
mouth army electronics school and Sylvania Institute, Boston transferred to a permanent
station at Ft. Richie. He enlisted June 1961. Daniel I. Knee graduated at Great Lakes and
will receive 26 weeks further training.
February 6 American Military Assistance Command formed in S. Vietnam.
February 12 PVT Lawrence Leroy Hansen enlisted in the airborne division of the Army in basic at Ft.
Leonard Wood.
February 27 Two S. Vietnamese pilots bomb presidential palace in S. Vietnam. Diem and family safe
but 3 killed and 20 others hurt. Five county men in basic, Steven L. Dyer, Paul Bedics,
John Culbertson, Robert Ulshafer and Gene D. Spear, assigned to Co. C, 397th Rgt., Ft.
Chaffee.
March 1 Orlan Wade completed basic at Lackland AFB and transferred for Missile Maintenance
School, Sheppard AFB.
March 5 AB Ralph E. Glover completed basic at Lackland AFB assigned to technical training
course for refrigeration specialists, Ft. Belvoir.
March 16 PVT Danny G. Roth completed a week of test and screening at NATTC.
March 20 TSGT Frederick C. Moore assigned Dyess AFB following graduation from USAF
technical training course for missile guidance systems mechanics.
March 23 PFC Richard M. Pence completed four weeks of ICT with the 2nd Inf. Training Regt.,
Camp Pendleton.
March 24 FN Philip Kuffel, US Naval Receiving Station, transferred to the USS Tutuila ARG-4.
He joined the Navy in 1958.
March 28 PVT Douglas King in Co. D 11th Batt 4th, TrBrg (BCT), Ft. Knox.
April 11 PVT James L. Whitaker, mechanic, assigned to the 14th Armored Cav. Regt. 2nd Recon
Sqd in Bad Kissinger, Germany. He entered the Army in March 1961. CPL Patrick I.
McBride, helicopter mechanic with Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 161 a unit of
Marine Aircraft Group 13, MCAS Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. He entered the service in May
1956.
April 24 Vietnamese authorities say Cambodians killed 52 at Vinlilac.
May Communists form battalion size units in central Vietnam.
May 2 Communists free 2 U.S. sergeants captured during ambush near An Dinh. Two other
Americans were in killed in the ambush. Mikel J. Raver and Arthur G. Campbell, Jr.,
began recruit training at Great Lakes.
May 7 Royal Army troops retreating the worst defeat since Laotian War started. PVT Lawrence
J. Kessler and PVT Larry E. Tucker completed recruit training at San Diego assigned to
Camp Pendleton.
May 11 Robert McNamara encouraged by Vietnam progress doubts if U.S. will increase present
troops. Stephen P. Finnell began recruit training at Great Lakes. Dean E. Stevens, yeoman,
aboard USS Carman, out of San Diego. He entered the service in September 1960.
May 12 Two capitals in Laos threatened by rebels; northern defenses fall; troops flee to Thailand.
May 14 1,000 U.S. soldiers moving near Laotian boarder to Udon. President Kennedy sent 7th
fleet to South Asian waters with 1,000 Marines.
May 15 U.S. orders troops into Thailand; plans call for 4,000 additional U.S. men.
May 17 U.S. Marines land in Thailand in full gear. Rebels refuse to give up Nam Tha.
May 21 PFC Richard M. Pence completed testing NATTC Memphis. He entered in Nov. 1961.
May 23 Gen. Clay's son wounded in S. Vietnam action.
May 25 TSGT Jack E. Rish graduated from SAC Senior NCO Academy and returned to Biggs
AFB. PFC Danny G. Roth graduated from Aviation Mech Fun School, Memphis.
May 31 U.S. Soldiers survive three days in Laotian Jungle.
June American advisors increased from 700 to 12,000.
June 5 James S. Merritt, Bobby Joe Taylor, Frederick M. Behny and Eddie Joe Kessler enlisted in
in the Marines in training San Diego.
June 9 William J. Bizjak, HQ 12th Art. Group, Pasadena, promoted to Lt. Col. He entered the
Army in 1942 as a private and now Executive Officer 1st Missile Batt. 56th Art.
June 11 Agree on coalition government in Laos. Prince Souvanna will be premier.
June 16 Two US officers slain in Vietnam when military convey ambushed by Reds outside Saigon
at Ben Cat.
June 16 Douglas F. King undergoing advanced training in Radio School Ft. Knox. He entered the
Army last March.
June 18 S. Vietnamese military kills 63. 97 others captured in morning battle in the Mekong Delta.
June 19 William S. Chambers and Robert D. Chambers enlisted in the Navy. William to go to San
Diego and Robert to Great Lakes for recruit training.
July 5 TSGT Jack E. Rish NCOIC Base Management School received 15th Air Force NCO Aca-
demy Commandants Award. He is stationed at El Paso and has been in service for 15
years.
July 6 PVT Ronald R. Bennett USMC completed individual combat training with the 2nd Inf.
Training Regt, Camp Pendleton.
July 18 Four US Crewmen found alive with their C123 transport in Vietnam.
July 20 PFC Danny G. Roth serving with the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, El Toro MCAS. Santa
Ana. William G. Kerr, radio mechanic HQ BATT 6th Art., Ft. Riley, promoted to SP4.
He entered the service in January 1961.
July 23 Geneva accords on Laos signed.
August 8 PVT Jon L. Helfin completed AIT with the 100th Div., Ft. Chaffee. S. Vietnam fears
Laos Peace means Communist drive from the north.
August 9 Air Force steps up recruiting, needs 20 from Wabash. PFC Richard Pence serving with
the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, El Toro MCAS. AB Charles D. Millican reassigned to
USAF technical course, Amarillo AFB.
August 10 PN3 Jerry W. Wright assigned to Helicopter Training Sqd Eight at Ellyson Field,
Pensacola.
August 11 CPL Patrick I. McBride serving with Marine Medium Helicopter Sqd. 161, MCAS
Kaneohe Bay.
August 13 SSGT F.L. Barnes was transferred from Gunter AFB, Montgomery to Brindifi, Italy.
August 15 Seaman 1st Class Ronald S. Miller stationed at Holly Lock, Scotland.
August 16 ASM3 Larry Owen, USS Champlain, returned from six week cruise. He is stationed
NAS Quonset Point with Helicopter Anti Submarine Sqd 5. A3C David M. Davis com-
pleted basic Lackland AFB will attend school Amarillo AFB. TSGT Robert Van Camp
computer tech. for NORAD, joined the Air Force in December 1951. SSGT Charles
Genter received SAC Certificate of Educational Achievement, Homestead AFB. He
entered the service in 1950.
August 17 Donald E. Garrison aboard the Minesweeper USS Sagacity after graduating from
Radar School.
August 21 PVT Charles Kelly completed six weeks Transportation Movement Control course,
Ft. Eustis.
August 22 PVT Gary L. Hapner with the 97th Eng. Batt. Construction Div. in France. Wabash
Selective Service classified 32 available for the Army. 1A Douglas E. Adams, Stepehn Amiss, Lynn
Amones, Ronald D. Anderson, Ronald L. Arrick, Roger Baldus, Max Bidwell, Robert M. Carroll, Paul V.
Conley, Richard D. Coppock, Jerry J. Elliott,Robert E. Figert, Howard Z. Gray, Ronald G. Greene,
Kenneth E. Hardman,Leslie Harner, Larry J. Haney, James P. Houlihan, Richard L. Hunt, Dennis R.
Jackson, William Kastner, Duane Keaffaber, Steve M. Lake, Richard M. Mughmaw, William J. Mullinix,
Ronnie Niccum, James C. Osborn, Jackie L. Price, David W. Roser, Richard L. Sager, Donald L. Vigar,
Danny K. Wittmar. 1AO Philip D. Kiser. 1O Jerald M. Brightbill and Dale E. Flora. 1C enl James R.
Oswald, Dick L. Baxter, David D. Bennett, Brian Book, Charles E. Brew, Richard E. Overholser, Jay D.
McIntosh, James R. Ross, Donald W. Hoover. 1C Ind William K. Strickler, Stephen L. Dyer. 1W Mark O.
Hillsamer. 2A Arthur Lumm. 2S Dewayne A. Beery. 4A James A. Sellers, James R. Mattern, Ronald
Burgess, Michael D. Weimer, Marlin C. Miller, Herman D. Williams.
August 23 Patricia Ellen Gribben enrolled in the Women's Marines in training at Parris Island. PVT
Virgil L. Culbertson completed basic Ft. Knox undergoing advanced training Armor Cen-
ter Ft. Knox. PVT Dennis A. Lloyd completed advanced training Ft. Gordon.
August 25 Donald N. Garner finished basic training at Great Lakes.
August 27 PVT Terry Mendenhall, 6th Ordnance Co. D S70, 1st How. BN, 36th Art, in Germany.
August 29 PVT Virgil L. Culbertson transferred from Ft. Knox to Amberg, Germany with the 2nd
Armored Cav. Regt. Trp L 2nd Recon-Sqdn. Midshipman 3C Richard W. Krom completed
amphibious warfare training at Norfolk. AB Donald W. Hoover finished basic Lackland
AFB assigned Sheppard AFB for further training.
August 30 CPL Wayne Richards and Carol Aukschun married. Roger D. Baldus enlisted in the Navy and sent
to boot camp at Great Lakes. Roger D. Baldus sent to Key West for A School in electricity and
electronics followed by a Weapons class. After completion assigned to USS Dixie where he
worked at servicing torpedoes.
September 1 A1C Stephen J. Sloniker recently returned from Alaska and sent to the Philippines.
September 4 PVT Douglas King received basic training at Fort Knox and completed ten weeks Radio
Operators Course. Annabelle King commissioned 2nd Lt in the WAF after graduating
OTS, assigned Shepperd AFB.
September 6 James Merritt and Eddie J. Kessler completed recruit training at San Diego sent to Camp
Pendleton.
September 8 YN2 Richard Rohn, USS Phoebe, off the southeast coast of Korea.
September 12 Jean Littlefield enlisted in the WAVES in basic training at Bainbridge.
September 14 A3C Thomas R. Brinson completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Aerial Photography
School, Ft. Monmouth.
September 18 AB Dick Fishback at Lackland AFB. PVT Bobby Taylor completed recruit training at San
Diego. 24 Wabash youths classified for duty. Classified 1A Robert L. Bailey, James A. Baubauer, James
D. Camp, Arthur G. Campbell, David N. Dyson, Charles R. Gant, Glen L. Graham, Tommy W. Greer,
Oren S. Guenin, William F. Haupert, Ronald Hull, Gary L. Hunt, Michael D. Lindzy, Theodore F.
McCune, John D. Morris, Michael R. Mitten, Robert C. Nix, Sherman J. Poole, James K. Rhoades, Jerry
L. Snapp, Dennis K. Strain, Thomas M. Tracy, William H. Winebrenner, Ronald A. Wing. 1C Enl James F.
Horner, Max E. Neher, Dennis E. Miller, Donald H. Vogel, Brent L. Leifer, Larry C. Wilkerson, Roger H.
Baldus, Donald L. Vigar. 1O James A. Shively, 1D John F. Brane, Paul R. House, Dale W. Milam,
Clarence Bitzel Jr., Jerry Badskey, John M. Bean, Luther G. Allen, William L. Mcneeley, Wayne L.
Dawes, Calvin C. Spears. 2A Michael E. Bent, Gary C. Cooper. 2S Ronald L. Arrick. 4A Lawrence R.
Murphy, Bill R. Conley, Jack R. Hall, Raymond G. Smyth.
September 19 A2C Terry McLaughlin sent to S. Vietnam as an instructor of Vietnamese Weather Con-
trol Observers.
September 25 PVT Eddie Kessler completed four weeks individual combat training Camp Pendleton.
David D. Bennett was honorably discharged from the Navy at San Diego.
September 28 Donald L. Kistler was honorably discharged from the Army at Ft. Hamilton.
October 1 Ray Spencer serving with Batt. Landing Team 2/6 of the Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean.
AB Steven E. Gordon reassigned Chanute AFB for technical training.
October 3 PVT James S. Merritt completed four weeks ICT at Camp Pendleton.
October 11 John C. Birkett undergoing recruit training Great Lakes. American advisors leave Laos.
October 18 Danny G. Roth, Marine Attack Sqd 311, El Toro, promoted to LCPL. CABM Robert I.
Anderson was in 119-man advance party opening the ice phase of Operation Deepfreeze
at McMurdo Sound, Antarctica.
October 25 PFC Larry E. Tucker serving with the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, El Toro.
November 1 Floyd L. Thompson, Jr. undergoing recruit training at Great Lakes.
November 3 A3C William M. Fleshood completed basic and attending Weather Forecaster School,
Chanute AFB. PFC Bobby J. Taylor completed four weeks of ICT Camp Pendleton.
November 5 SA Mikel J. Raver was among 600 at the commissioning of the Missile Cruiser USS
Albany.
November 9 Richard L. Minnicus aboard the USS Walker DD517, a destroyer in the Pacific.
November 14 William R. Hoover, 310th Combat Support Group, Schilling AFB, promoted to AlC.
November 16 Steven L. Dyer was honorably discharged from the Army at Ft. Dix. Wabash Selective
Service classified 48 local men as available for induction. Classified 1A Kenneth D. Alexander, John H.
Ashby, Larry D. Bedics, Daniel L. Bildodeau, Vernon Bourff, Richard L. Brooks, Samuel L. Colbert,
Donald Courtney, Thomas J. Cross, Roger D. Douglas, Dean Enyeart, Larry Enyeart, Thomas H. Evans,
Prentice Fields, Larry L. Fordyce, Harvey E. Frantz, Philip A. Frantz, Thomas L. Farris, Herbert Gaerte
Jr., David W. Hartman, Ronald L. Hedrick, Larry Heeter, James D. Hipskind, Max E. Hull, Gerald J.
Jefferson, William M. Jennings Jr., Larry Keffaber, Gene L. King, Ronald Maish, Dick L. Miller,Robert S,
Mills, Thomas W. Miller, David G. Nagel, Rondal R. Napier, William B. Plough Jr., Charles Pollard Jr.,
Steven K. Reiff, David Shea, Ronald J. Shepherd, Thomas R. Sinclair, Morris Smedley, Robert L.
Spangle, Leonard E. Stout, Kenneth L. Taylor, Larry Walsh, Stanley Weller, Jerry Wynn 1C Enl Donald
E. Rogers, Robert W. Benbow, Floyd L. Townsend, James C. Reed, John P. Hipskind, Larry L. Brooks,
James S. Stitt, George R. Fishback. 1C Ind James P. Houlihand, William E. Gidley. 1O David B. Bagwell,
Philip W. Rieman, Timothy D. Rieman, Ken- neth L. Albright. 1Y Robert L. Christie, Robert L. Miller,
Jerry W. Renbarger, James W. Vice Jr., Max L. Robinett, Terry Potter, Larry Amick, David Gross, George
F. Barnett, Gillen D. Johnson Jr., Lester Sirk, Rust F. Gray Jr., Richard S. Hearn, Lawrence G. How- ard,
John M. Stout, Zelbert J. Williams, David D. Bennett, Douglas E. Adams,. 2A Wendell Dilling, William
H. Windebrenner. 4A Wilbur Haggerty, Wayne Miller, Jerry L. Miller, David L. Chambetrs, Johnny
Pollard, Kenneth G. Miller, Larry W. Smith, Donald Kistler, Larry Parker, Grover L. Bemis.
November 17 AB Donald E. Rogers assigned to Lackland AFB to attend training course for commu-
nications equipment specialist.
November 20 Richard L. Bird was honorably discharged from the Army at Ft. Riley.
November 21 John C. Birkett completed recruit training Great Lakes.
November 27 FN William E. Eltzroth graduated from Machinists Mate "A" School USNTC Great
Lakes, assigned to the USS Neches AO47 home ported at Long Beach.
November 30 Donald E. Fawley reenlisted in the National Guard.
December 1 AB George R. Fishback reassigned to Sheppard AFB for technical training.
December 4 SSGT Roger G. Carpenter, bomb navigational systems technician assigned to the 81st
Tactical Fighter Wing, presented the USAF Outstanstanding Unit Award at Seymour
Johnson AFB.
December 11 Jean Littlefield graduated basic training Bainbridge assigned to San Diego.
December 20 James C. Reed completed naval recruit training San Diego.
December 21 Larry C. Wilkerson completed recruit training Great Lakes.
December 24 2nd LT Max Reed, awarded USAF pilot wings, assigned Travis AFB for further training
in C-133 Globemaster 11 aircraft. PVT Herman E. Enyeart stationed at Ft. Riley. Amer-
ican and Saigon governments promote strategic hamlet program.
1963 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January 2 VC units defeat S. Vietnamese at the battle of Ap Bac. Mrs. George Hiatt Draft Board
Clerk quits after 13 years of service. The local draft board contains a total of 5,000
registerants. A3C Robert W. Benbow reassigned to Homestead AFB. A2C Edward A.
Conyers reassigned to MacDill AFB
January 3 South Vietnam fighting kills 3 more Americans bringing total to 30 dead.
January 7 WAC SP5 Geneva C. Chapman assigned to the WAC Detachment Ft. Leavenworth.
January 8 Communists in S. Vietnam are building up arms supply.
January 11 AB Donald M. Scott assigned to Sheppard AFB for technical training. CAPT. Harry J.
Walther assigned to the Military Assistance Advisory Group, Saigon, Vietnam. ASM3
Larry Owen serving with HS-5 aboard the USS Lake Champlain during the quarantine in
the Caribbean.
January 12 Helicopters in Vietnam War are bogging down.
January 14 EM3 Larry Ferguson received promotion aboard the USS Amphion. LCPL Jerry J. Hunt,
5th Maine Expeditionary Brigade taking part in the late quarantine. Equipment Operator
1st Class Ray Spencer serving with Amphibious Construction Batt 2.
January 22 Lt.Col. William J. Bizjak attending the associate course at the Command and General Staff
College, Ft. Leavenworth.
January 24 AB Gerald J. Jefferson attending basic training Lackland AFB.
January 30 Mrs. Louman (Zora) Sutton new clerk of the local draft board. Wabash County to send five
five youths to Indianapolis for induction and two for physicals. Terry McLaughlin honor-
ably dischared from USAF at Travis AFB.
February 4 SSGT Everett Miller with Co. B 2nd Bn 46th Inf 1st Armored Div. He entered the army in
1949 and has served in Korea.
February 8 A3C Bradley R. Hoyt completed USAF basic Lackland AFB, now attending Finance and
Accounting School, Sheppard AFB. SA David N. Garner graduated from Supply School
Naval Station Newport.
February 15 AB Max E. Hull reassigned for technical training at Amarillo AFB. PVT Charles A. Rob-
inson, laboratory specialist, 308th QM Batt. Co. A, Giessen, Ger., qualified as an expert in
firing the M14 rifle.
February 19 A3C Donald W. Hoover completed technical training course for electrical power product-
ion specialist, Sheppard AFB. AB Charles Pollard completed basic training Lackland AFB
assigned Amarillo AFB for jet mechanic training.
March 6 SP4 Jerry A. Benson, Co. E 7th Cav. 1st Battle Group took part in Exercise WINTERSNAP
II in Korea. PVT William E. Gidley completed AIT Ft. Polk.
March 12 ETSN Jerry Ferguson aboard the USS Independence.
March 19 2nd LT Lowell R. Hoover commissioned at Lackland AFB assigned to Grand Forks
AFB as an air police officer.
March 20 A3C Thomas R. Brinson finished basic Lackland AFB assigned Vandenburg AFB
March 22 1st LT Gary H. Bowman stationed at Volhel, Holland. PFC Larry E. Tucker, 3rd Marine
Air Wing, took part in exercises off the coast of California. PVT Robert F. White stationed
in L Co., 2nd BN, 1 LTR, MCB, Camp Pendleton.
March 25 Larry Lee Hull and brother Max E. Hull completed basic training Lackland AFB, in tech.
training Amarillo AFB.
March 27 PVT Kenneth J. Eltzroth, Battalion Landing Team 3/6 2nd Marine Div, Camp Lejune, took
part in Amphibious Warfare Training.
March 30 AMS Daniel L. McBride with Attack Sqd. 85 aboard the USS Forrestal.
April First USO club opened in Saigon-tried to bring a little America to Vietnam. Eventually 23
23 centers were in Vietnam and Thailand.
April 3 CPL Fredrick G. Stone stationed at MCAS Cherry Point. PFC Richard W. Proctor and
LCPL Jerry J. Hunt participated in Marine exercises off the coast of southern California.
April 4 Ralph M. Krichbaum underwent recruit training at San Diego.
April 5 Michael A. Tewell enlisted in the Navy and sent to Great Lakes. SP4 James A. Rose,
medical specialist, assigned to HQ Co., Ft. Greeley. PVT Robert F. White is stationed at Camp Pendleton.
42 Youths classified for military service. Classified 1A were Danny Allen, William M. Allen, Ronald
Baker, Darell Benson, Clifford Betten, James Cochran, Duane Davis, Thomas L. Dillon, Billy Gray, James
Hamilton, Billy Hasbarger, Byron Johnson, Larry Kerr, Thomas Klare, David Meyer, Richard A. Mirante,
Paul D. Moore, William Nangle, Jon Nearhouse, Timothy Neher, Michael O'Brien, Wayne Panning,
Thomas Reed, Peter Renz, Robert Schmalzried, David Sendelbach, Sam Shellhamer, Lonnie Shepherd,
Richard Simpson, Larry Smith, Terance Smith, David Sommers, Zelbert Sparks, James Stefanatos,
Richard Tracy, Charles Tucker, Donald Vandermark, David Wall, Larry Watson, William Welch, James
Williams. 1O Gary Jacoby. 1C Enl James C. Rose, Philip Clingenpeel, Jerry Biggs, Hosea Clupper, J.L.
Amones, Don Schafer. 1C Ind David Halderman, David Harrison, James K. Gray, John W. Banister. 4A
Hugh Mort, Thomas E. Willcox. 4D David Bagwell. 2S Rene Calderon, Donald R. Lefforge, Russell
Jemen, George Scheerer. 1S Leland Beery. 1Y Kenneth Mullins, James A. Erb, Howard Gray, Joseph
Cavins. 2A John F. Unger. 1D Larry D. Donaldson, Howard L. White, William Eldridge, Robert Rains.
1W Rel William Crumley.
April 11 ENS Morris H. Duffey commissioned after attending OCS at Newport.
April 15 PVT Larry C. Friedersdorf completed recruit training at San Diego.
April 17 The Army to draft 4,000 men in June 6,000 less than in May.
April 22 Procommunist cease fire pact broken quickly. U.S. May give Laos more help. Charles de
Gaulle says "unknown years of struggle" are in prospect in S.Vietnam where the US has
12,000 fighting men.
April 24 300 N. Vietnam troops to be withdrawn from Plain of Jars. AB J.L. Amones reassigned
for technical training Chanute AFB.
April 25 A3C Jerry R. Biggs assigned Chanute AFB.
April 30 A3C Bradley R. Hoyt assigned Bunker Hill AFB for technical training. PVT Everett E.
Robinson, rifleman Co. C, 1st Div., 3d Battle Group, 26 Inf., sent to Germany.
May 1 N. Vietnamese shift toward China.
May 3 PFC James R. Zimpelman attached to the 58th Transport Co. in Germany.
May 4 Richard Hawley transferred from San Diego to ICFAE Div. Bremerton Group
PACREOFLT.
May 8 S. Vietnamese troops and police shoot at Buddhist demonstrators in Hue.
May 14 SA James A. Kirchbaum, USS Canberra, took part in Naval exercises in the Mediterranean
May 25 A3C Donald M. Scott reassigned to Columbus AFB. PFC Tom Engleman assigned to the
1st Armored Div. Ft. Hood Co. C 2nd Batt. 81st Armor.
June Crisis intensifies as Buddhist monk commits suicide by self-immolation.
June 7 A3C Donald M. Scott, refrigeration specialist course, selected Outstanding Airman of the
month, 3775th School Sqd, Sheppard AFB. 2nd LT Howard E. Kem assigned to the US
Army Chemical Depot in Korea as personnel officer.
June 14 A3C Charles A. Pollard, Amarillo AFB, reassigned to England.
June 17 PVT Harold W. Hill completed Hawk Missile Course at Air Defense Center, Ft. Bliss.
June 20 PVT Robert F. Raines stationed in Germany with the 2nd How. BN 5th Artillery.
July 1 Wendell J. Wilson, supply specialist, 785th Radar Sqd, Findley Air Force Station, promoted
to A2C
July 4 S. Vietnam General Tran Van Don informs CIA that officers are plotting against Diem.
July 6 Terry D. Robison, statistical data specialist, Andersen AFB, promoted to AlC.
July 8 Nguyen Tuong Tam takes overdose of poison. Was on trail for complicity in abortive 1960
coup against President Diem. A3C Larry Hull assigned to Truax Field.
July 9 Selective Service is classifying married men with children as 3-A. Married men with
children are being reclassified by the local Selective Service Board into the 3-A category, according to a
report Tuesday from Memorial Hall. The board also gave the 1-A classification-available for military
service- to 28 youths, mostly those turning 18.
The classifications for the month are: 1A Alan Bahler, Nelson Bahler, John Barnes, Michael Behny,
Marion Blocher, Robert W. Beauchamp, Joe Custer, Todd L. Eads, James R. Flack, Terry Foust, Larry
Frieden, Ronald G. Garrison, Dallas Graffis, Roger Hammonds, Eddie Koch, Gary Lhamon, John Meyer,
Howard R. Middleton, Terry Robinson, Michael Ruckman, William E. Saul, James R. Shroyer, William
Sloan, Roger D. Smith, Jesse L. Trickle, Eilliam W. Unger, Jack Votra, David Walker. 1C Enl Lindley
Wert, David Price, Bascom Hunt, James N. Vawter, Theodore McCune, Marion Orr, William E. Welch,
Darrell Benson, James L. Harvey. 1O Jeffrey R. Wood, Merlin Fin- gerle. 1D Philip Goebel, Paul H.
Hapner, Wallace Bahler, Merlin J. Ridgeway, John R. Peebles, Lloyd Hendry. 2A Millis Bostic, William
H. Winebrenner, Edward S. Gribben, William R. Neher, Albert G. Nordman. 2S Edward E. Thompson,
David Koenig, David Vrooman. 1Y Michael J. Walters, John H. Wilson, Rolland Easterday. 3A Peter A.
Schaaf, Richard A. Bracken, Basil Adkins, William O. Harvey, Karl Hardman, Charles D. Bone, David
Ervin, Chester Hobbs, John L. Draper, Robert E. Smith, Dorwin Dragstrem, Terry Enyeart, Chester Mid-
dleton, Marvin Metzger, Charles Neal, Larry Davis, Lary Martin, John A. Adams, Terry Schlemmer, David
Denney, Walter L. Brown, Duane Keffaber, Wayne Singer, William E. Schoby, Robert E. Strickler, Toby
Pell, Joseph Blocher, Thomas O'Banion, David Grandstaff, James R. Cobbs, John N. Unger, Charles Ste-
idle, Raymond Meyers, Larry R. Myers, Kenneth L. Elliott, James Snavely, Larry K. Miller, Timothy King,
Gary Poole, Jeral Honeycutt, Robert Kulb, Floyd Sims, Don Mylin, John T. Wade, Thomas J. O'Hara,
Joseph Patton, Gary Keaffaber, James Walters, Charles R. Martin, Dallas Jackson, Phillip Draper, Carl
Good, Robert Daven- port, Max Pitts, Teddy McClure, Stephen Gilbert, Donald Brane, Jerry Ferguson,
Jeffrey Ross, Bill Weesner, Abraham Shepherd, Michael Burton, Jerry Nordman, Arlen Kendall, Thomas
Krom, Philip Laycock, Vernon Pratt, James Haggerty, Roger Douglas, Juackie Baker. 4A James Schipper,
James G. Davis, Rex Clevenger, Richard Jivery, Terry Lloyd, Ross Anderson
July 10 Todd L. Eads in training at US Military Academy, West Point.
July 12 Guerilla warfare in Laos has changed gradually to mobile action.
July 19 SP4 Max K. Waggoner completed punched card processing military pay Ft. Benjamin
Harrison. PFC Lawrence J. Kessler with the Marine Weather Fighter Sqd 531, MCAS
Cherry Point.
July 23 AN Carl R. Trent reassigned to Lowry AFB for technical training.
July 24 Vietnamese troops run through riot drills.
July 26 PFC Herman Enyeart on tour of duty in Germany. Carl Trent, William Welsh and LeRoy
Bakehorn enlisted in the USAF.
August 5 1st LT Todd E. Rabe graduated at Maxwell AFB assigned to Amarillo AFB.
August 8 SA James A. Kirchbaum, USS Canberra, recently visited France. The local selective
service is reclassifying fathers from 1-A to 3-A status. Four registrants to be inducted and 21 to report for
physicals. Classified 1A were Terry Baker, Paul J. Beam, James D. Biehl, Steven Bowman, John A.
Brane, Steven Burton, Voyle Chevalier, Arthur Deyo, William P. Driscoll, Steven Eagleston, Prentice
Fields, James Goodpasture, Stephen Holthouse, Kenneth Kendall, Jerry Lawson, Dewayne A. Lynn, John
S. Marks, Larry Music, James A. Shanahan, David Stettler, Curtis J. Vigar, Anthony W. Watson, Paul
Wright. 1C Enl Philip M. Goebel, Leroy Bakehorn, Thomas G. Kaiser, Todd L. Eads, William Hartbarger.
1C End Danny Hammond, Elvin Leffel, Larry Shear. 1Y Robert W. Russell, James R. Craft, Gene E.
Floyd, Gregory Myers, Jackie Wagner, Jack D. Krom, Herbert J. Hall, William R. Ream. 1D Sammie
Norwood. 1W Dale E. Flora. 4D Richard C. Stoner. 2A Dewayne A. Beery, Leland Beery, Michael
Koons. 2S Ronald Charles, David M. Gray, Max Taylor, Raymond W. Rizzo, Robert L. Risser. 3A John
M. Rogers, Gene Rose, James F. Renz, Donald Huffman, Herbert Bradley, Todd Baer, Richard Eckerly,
Elbert Lewis, James Fields, Xen Hiatt, Larry Rice, Leslie Bricker, Robert Dillon, Wayne Waggoner, Karl
Bidwell, Ronnie Harris, Craig Black, Thomas Burnsworth, Harvey Linzy, George F. Reahard, Roscoe
Bitzel, Larry Patnoe, Alan Burnsworth, Larry Leonard, Junior Tyson, Robert Huston, Don Brewer, David
Drag- strem, John R. Henry, Stephen Fulwider, Paul D. Brace, John E. Powell, Gene Hapner, Larry D.
Meyer, Douglas Jackson, Clifford Marsh, David Crull, Brian Wall, Michael Mullett, James Getz, Ken
Beachler, Ned Cline, Jon Mattern, Ronald Hopskins, Michael Hileman, Chad Dilling, Philip Weimer, John
Lavengood, James B. Moore, Thomas Drook, Russell H. Cook, Allen Marshall, Larry Finnegan, Thurman
Smith, Truman Bitzel, John R. Daniels, John E. Ballard, Alonzo French, Daniel Gill, William Snep,
Charles R. Smedley, Lowell Ringel, Franklin Gressley, Clarence Eltzroth, Kenneth Graybill, Tommy
Sullivan, James Whitracft, Danny Boone, Gene Dyson, Cletus Webb, Larry Stout, Robert McKinley, Arden
Gilmer, Brent Norris, Jay Linkenhelt, Larry Surbey, Roger Grossnickle, Larry Koch, Tommy Steele,
Danny Wrisk, Larry Case, Charles A. Cormany. 4A Jack Summers, Allen Persley, James F. Horner, Paul
House, George Jenks, Carlos Smith, Richard Kessler, Craig Turner.
August 10 SA James M. Black completed basic training Great Lakes. AN William E. Welch asssi-
gned Keesler AFB for technical training.
August 15 Donald J. Owen honorably discharged from the Army at Ft. Benjamin Harrison.
August 20 SSGT Roger G. Carpenter, air armament mechanic, sent to Moran AB in Spain for five
months.
August 21 Ngo Dinh Nhu's forces attack Buddhist temples. Diem declared martial law in Vietnam as
religious and political crisis explodes in Pagoda Outbreak. 100 Buddhists arrested.
August 22 Ambassador Henry Cabot Lodge arrives in Saigon replacing Frederick Nolting. Army
clamps tight grip on Vietnam. Ambassador to U.S. quits.
August 23 Brother of Diem takes over power. S. Vietnam switch peaceful. Larry A. Terrell, Lawrence
Roffelsen, Fredrick C. Gierke and Larry J. Eckerley join the USAF all were sent to
Lackland AFB for basic.
August 24 Washington recommends that Nhu be removed; also recommend support for officers
plotting against Diem. Lodge agrees. Students in Saigon protest crackdown on Buddhists.
April 26 U.S. Threatens to cut Vietnam aid. Demand Diem's harsh policies be discontinued.
August 28 2nd Lt James R. Oswald awarded silver wings at Laredo AFB, assigned to Carswell AFB
to fly B-52 aircraft.
August 31 Thousands of Vietnamese rally to support Diem. Not Reds but Buddhists threaten Diem
regime.
September 2 Kennedy criticizes Diem in a television interview.
September 3 Tension mounts between U.S. and Diem.
September 4 SN Robert L. Shaver aboard the USS Long Beach.
September 5 PFC William E. Gidley, parachutist, 82nd Airborne, Ft. Bragg, participated in summer
maneuvers called Swift Strike III.
September 10 Hal Harting sent to Ft. Knox. Eighteen classified 1-A by local draft board. Classified were
1A Philip L. Anderson, David Atterton, James R. Bartoo, Larry Boring, Donald Coomer, Stephen C. Crow,
Robert W. Erb, Daniel R. Fulwider, Dennis Gable, Dean Hudson, Dennis Lambert, Jerry Morris, John L.
Murray, Burley Napier, Tom Sagarsee, Donald E. Smith, Arvel Staggs, Frank R. Warren. 1C Enl Fredrick
C. Gierke, Lawrence A. Roffelsen, John P. Barnes, Michael Reardon, Johnson Nordman, William L. McFa-
rland, Robert G. Pressler, Larry Stackhouse, Donald P. Stevens. 2A John R. Brane, James A. Shanahan,
Horace Wilkinson. 2S Carl Taylor, Wilbur L. Wolf, Richard E. Miller, James L. Lane. 1D Dennis L. Hau-
pert, Douglas D. Duker, Dannie Wible, Lee E. Bricker, Rex J. Temple. 1Y Theodore Cottrill, Donald
Shilts, Terry L. Foust, Michael J. Young, Prentice Fields. 3A Boyd Hiner, Larry Alle- gree, Peter Miniear,
Jerry Bowman, Donald Yocum, Tommy Carroll, Stephen Purdy, Charles R. Futrell, Henry Decker, Robert
Haneline, Jerry Egolf, James E. Reahard, James L. Garman, Terrance Bollan, David Schuster, Roger Price,
Billy Boggs, Timothy Sand- berg, James Paschall, John E. Airgood, Edward A. Kline. 4A Clyde Holmes,
James Ball, Charles G. Keppel, Sammie Norwood, John Meyer.
September 11 Students protest in Vietnam. Newspaper in Vietnam warns of possible coup.
September 12 Diem troops block demonstrations. Tension mounts between U.S. and S. Vietnam. PVT
Roger Faust completed cooking course Quartermaster Center, Ft Lee.
September 13 S. Vietnam prepared for rumored coup. U.S. reviewing aid to Vietnam. Senator Bayh
opposes aid to S. Vietnam.
September 17 PVT Nick W. Graves transferred to 5th Army Hq, Chicago. A3C Billy M. Castle, air
police Holloman AFB, donated blood to needy boy.
September 21 PVT Marion R. Orr assigned to Batt A, 2nd Missle Batt., 52nd Artillery Homestead AFB.
PVT Bascom Hunt completed advanced armor training at the Armor Center, Ft. Knox.
September 23 U.S. Airmen in helicopters rescue two kidnapped English school teachers in Vietnam.
PVT Larry Shear finished basic at Ft. Knox and assigned to West Point for training in the
medical corps.
September 24 Mme. Nhu invites ten top officials to Vietnam to see for themselves whats going on.
September 30 McNamara and General Taylor postponed departure from Vietnam to confer with Ngo
Dinh Diem. 1st LT Robin K. Miller received the Air Medal in ceremonies in Vietnam. He
participated in over 25 air missions over hostile territory. PVT Stephen Walter completes
course in Topographical Survey at Ft. Belvoir.
October 1 CWO Wentworth M. Lewis on duty with USAF advisory unit at Don Muang AB, Thailand
October 2 MM3 William E. Eltzroth, USS Neches, on way to Japan.
October 3 U.S. hopes to withdraw troops from Vietnam in two years.
October 4 TSGT James Hantelman, aircraft mechanic technician, temporarily assigned to NATO air
base in Turkey, Incirlik AAB. PVT Larry L. Young completed military police training, Ft.
Gordon.
October 9 SN Robert L. Shaver, USS Long Beach, recently visited Italy. PFC Richard W. Procter
with the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing at MCAS Iwakuni, Japan.
October 10 Kennedy denies CIA acted independently in Vietnam.
October 11 CPL Patrick I. McBride, Marine Aircraft Group 13, 4th Marine Rgt., 1st Marine Div.,
participated in Operation Dull Knife.
October 12 U.S. faces similar issues in Latin America and S. Vietnam.
October 18 SP4 Everett W. Crumrine returned from Ger. and assigned to 596th Signal Co., Ft. Chaffee.
October 19 A new Vietnam policy is set by Mr. Lodge.
October 21 AN Larry A. Terrell reassigned to Kessler AFB for technical training. AN John P. Hips-
kind, missile facilities electrician, 727th Aircraft Control and Warning Sqd Myrtle Beach
AFB, promoted to A2C.
October 24 USAF plane on flare dropping mission shot down. Four Americans and four Vietnamese
killed. Mrs. Nhu "Dragon Lady" is having a chance to be heard. Bob Hope chooses Viet-
nam for his Christmas programs.
October 25 Donald Wolpert, flight inspector, Dover AFB, promoted to rank of Captain USAF.
October 28 Three Wabash men AN Larry J. Eckerley, AN Lawrence A. Roffelsen and AN Fredrick C.
Gierke, finish basic Lackland AFB sent to technical training courses.
October 31 PVT John W. Banister Co. B, 1st BATT, 2nd Armored Div., Ft. Hood participated in Oper-
ation Big Lift.
November 1 Duong Van Minh and other generals stage coup against Diem and Nhu.
November 2 Military takes over in Vietnam report Diem, brother Nhu are both dead. Madam Nhu
blames U.S. for uprising. New government is pro U.S.
November 4 New Vietnam program given freedom of press and religion both included. Madam Nhu to
remain in U.S. SA James Michael Black finished basic at Great Lakes.
November 5 Mme. Nhu plans to fly to Rome to meet children. 1St Lt Max Reed participates in Exercise
Big Lift in Europe. SMSGT Don C. Reynolds transferred from Bergstron AFB to Scott
Field AFB.
November 8 EO1 Ray Spencer at Naval Base Rota, Spain. AB Howard D. Rucker in training Lack-
land AFB. PVT Charles K. Porter is in 2nd How. BT 13th Arty, Ft. Sill.
November 9 SSGT Harold E. Shaw finished technical training and stationed Schilling AFB.
November 11 AN John W. Harper completed basic Lackland AFB.
November 12 AN James R. Starbuck finished basic training sent to Lowry AFB for technical training.
AN Bobbie L. Engledow finished basic sent to Amarillo AFB for technical training.
November 13 General Harkins surprised by coup in S. Vietnam.
November 14 U.S. pleased with events in S. Vietnam.
November 15 Elections promised soon in Vietnam.
November 16 SGT David Eshelman, platoon sgt in the 2nd Batt Hq Co. of 503rd Inf, Okinawa, took part
in Exercise Sky Soldier IV in Formosa. PVT Hal B. Harting in advanced training at Ft.
Polk.
November 19 AN Bobbie G. Leedy assigned to Lowry AFB for technical training.
November 20 Cambodia orders U.S. advisors to leave.
November 29 AN David H. Wilson assigned to Chanute AFB for technical training. AN Michael R.
Dohse assigned to Kessler AFB for technical training.
December 2 Ambush kills U.S. soldier in Vietnam.
December 3 Donald E. Garrison, USS Sairty, promoted to PO3.
December 7 AN Terry L. King attending technical training for air police at Lackland AFB.
December 9 CPL Larry A. Martin and bride to live in Virginia.
December 11 Selective Service unit announce new ratings.
December 13 New military regime must win support of the people of S.Vietnam.
December 16 SSGT Joseph P. Campbell, fuel superviser, assigned to Castle AFB. Jerry G. Robins,
Kessler AFB, promoted to A3C.
December 19 2nd Lt Thomas W. Hodson completed course at Army Ordnance Center, Aberdeen Pro-
ving Ground.
December 24 Michael R. Dohse promoted to A3C at Kessler AFB. CAPT. Thomas A. Johnson selected
outstanding instructor of the month in the 3640th Pilot Training Wing, Larado AFB.
December By year end, 15,000 American military advisers are in S. Vietnam. Vietnam received $500
million in aid during the year. Communist Leadership in Hanoi decides to step up the
struggle in the south.
1964 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January TM Roger D. Baldus assigned to the USS Robert B. Anderson.
January 2 Frederich M. Behny overseas with the 3rd Marine Rgt. 3rd Div.
January 4 Rex M. Powell, medical records tech, Patrick AFB, promoted to MSGT.
January 6 A3C Fredrick C. Geirke, accounting specialist, assigned to Wright-Patterson AFB.
January 9 PFC Corwin W. Keaffaber completed harbor craft deck training Ft.Eustis. A3C Gerald
J. Jefferson selected outstanding airman for the 22nd Field Maintenance Sqd., 22nd Bomb-
ardment Wing. AN Larry E.Gahl and AN Howard D. Ruckman assigned Sheppard AFB
for technical training.
January 11 A3C John W. Harper graduated technical training Greenville AFB assigned Gunter AFB.
No quick end is seen to S. Vietnam-War editorial by Ray Cromley.
January 13 A3C Leroy Bakehorn Jr. assigned to Orlando AFB.
January 15 PVT Paul H. Hapner completed supply course at Ft. Knox.
January 17 Four U.S. soldiers killed in S. Vietnam. Men were aboard a helicopter which was shot
down.
January 27 McNamara grimly reported anti-Red cause failing in S. Vietnam.
January 30 General Nguyen Khanh seizes power in Saigon. Arrests four ruling generals but allows
Minh to remain as figurehead chief of state. PVT Michael F. Young completed advanced
training Ft. Gordon. AN William J. Sloan assigned Chanute AFB for tech. Training.
February McNamara ordered U.S. destroyers to patrol and monitor the Gulf of Tonkin.
February 3 Vietnam guerrillas stage raid on U.S. Army compound in Kontum.
February 5 Six county youth to serve in the Navy; James A. Risser, John L. Butler, Mickey E.
Hudson, Tommy R. Miller, Ronald E. Swygart and Jerry D. Flinn. All will take basic at
San Diego.
February 7 114 government troops killed in Vietnam when two hamlets attacked. CWO Wentworth
M. Lewis assigned to SAC unit Castle AFB.
February 14 PVT Wallace A. Bahler completed advanced training as tank crewman Ft. Knox.
February 17 U.S. demands protection for Americans in Saigon. Military police put on school buses;
close USO following bombing of armed forces movie theatre which killed three. PFC
Gerd W. Mueller and Karen M. Zook married; to reside at Schweinfurt, Ger.
February 18 A3C Bobbie L. Engledow reassigned Perrin AFB.
February 22 A3C Carl R. Trent reassigned Wurtsmith AFB. PVT Steven Carpenter stationed Ft. Knox
March 2 Billy M. Castle awarded USAF Good Conduct Medal at Holloman AFB
March 3 U.S. Army officer shot by communist guerrillas. 13 Vietnamese paratroopers killed in
firing along Cambodian border.
March 6 Rebel activity increased in January in Vietnam. The heaviest for a single month in its
history – 2,240 attacks.
March 7 Richard C. Coppock enlisted in the Marines now at San Diego.
March 12 Fire Control Technician SA Donald A. Vogel, USS Oriwkany, completed a tour of duty
with the 7th Fleet in the Far East. FA Thomas G. Kaiser aboard the USS Deliver.
March 13 Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara visits Vietnam and vows support for Khanh.
McNamara says Vietnam War can be won "if proper effort is made."
March 14 PFC Carl Black took basic Ft. Knox, now at Ft. Sill. A1C Lowell M. Shelton, air police-
man, on duty at Tinan Air Station.
March 16 Red guerrillas shoot down two U.S. planes killing six Americans and one Vietnamese.
March 21 SN James A. Kirchbaum aboard the USS Canberra. McNamara may recommend that
war be confined to S. Vietnam.
March 23 AN Richard M. Mughmaw and AN Robert W. Russell finished basic Lackland AFB sent
to technical training. Sharon K. Lee and Herman E. Enyeart, Ft. Riley, married.
March 26 PVT Stephen L. Holthouse assigned to the Army Picatinny Arsenal. PVT Richard Kerr
finished Marine basic training San Diego.
April 6 PVT Terry L. Shalley completed personnel administration course Ft. Knox.
April 7 PVT Dale A. Weiss completed basic at Fort Knox, now with HQ BATT 1st Missile Batt.
43rd Art. Fairchild AFB. PFC Lonnie E. Shepherd, HQ Co. 7th Inf Div 2nd Bri., Korea,
took part in Exercise Spring Thaw. PFC Gerald E. Marsh took part in operation Winter
Night at Twenty Nine Palms, Ca.
April 10 American killed in renewed Vietnam guerilla warfare.
April 14 1st Lt Herbert M. Busby, AF C-133 pilot, took part in Exercise Delawar joint U.S. and
Iranian exercise. ET3 Jerry L. Ferguson aboard the USS Shangri-La.
April 15 France disagrees with SEATO on Vietnam War.
April 18 David L. Hollenbach and Michael D. Lindzy completed basic Great Lakes.
April 20 A3C Donald W. Hoover, electrical power production specialist, serving with the 731st
Radar Sqd. Sundance AFS.
April 21 CAPT. Denton J. Riggs completed USAF Squadron Officer School reassigned to Lock-
borne AFB.
April 24 Ronald E. Swygart, James A. Risser and Tommy R. Miller completed basic San Diego.
April 27 PVT Gary D. Meyer finished specialist course at Ft. Gordon. SSGT Billy M. Palmer,
Minot AFB, decorated with the USAF Commendation Medal.
May 1 Four Marines wounded in Vietnam. PVT Harold D. Harmon completed basic Ft. Knox
May 2 Reds sink ship; wound four Americans in grenade attack on aircraft ferry down in harbor
at Saigon. CDR Walter V. Garrison aboard the USS Kearsarge.
May 5 Ten Americans killed in crash in Tan Hiep, S. Vietnam. Plane explodes and burns on hit-
ting the ground.
May 8 AN Michael S. Harner in basic training Lackland AFB.
May 9 Ngo Dinh Can dies before firing squad.
May 11 Three arrested for plot on McNamara in Saigon. AN Roger L. Grandstaff finished basic
at Lackland AFB sent to Greenville AFB. A2C Thomas Brinson, 1369th Photo Sqd.,
named Airman of the Month Vandenburg AFB.
May 12 LT Kelson E. Slayman aboard the USS Thomas A. Edison.
May 13 A3C Larry E. Gahl completed technical training Shepperd AFB sent to MATS McGuire
AFB.
May 14 McNamara predicts long hard war in Vietnam. Willing to brief Congress on situation.
Richard S. and James D. Hipskind enlisted in the Navy. Sam sent to San Diego and Dan
to Great Lakes for training.
May 15 Guerrilla ambush near Saigon kills 54 men. U.S. Army officer wounded day after
McNamara leaves.
May 18 Johnson asks for more funds – $125 million – for S. Vietnam War. A3C Merlin J. Ridge-
way graduated tech training course Amarillo AFB.
May 19 A1C James C. Christman graduated from AF NCO School Bunker Hill AFB.
May 20 PVT Timothy P.G. White completed basic Ft. Knox.
May 21 CPL Patrick L. McBride, helicopter mechanic, NAS Glenview, enlisted for six more years
May 25 S. Vietnam Khanh cracks down on critics. PVT Richard J. Kerr completed individual
combat training Camp Pendleton.
June 1 Coalition government in Laos ends.
June 2 Dean Rusk, McNamara, and others confer in Honolulu on increased aid to S. Vietnam.
Pentagon strategists refine plans for bombing N. Vietnam.
June 4 Johnson ready to step up efforts in Southeast Asia. SSGT Everett G. Miller, HQ Co 2nd
BN, 48th Inf 1st Armored Div. at Ft. Hood, participated in Exercise Desert Strike. PVT
Max E. Metzger assigned to 1st Inf Div, Co. B, 2nd Batt, 23rd Art., Ft. Riley.
June12 PVT Richard D. Coppock finished basic training at San Diego assigned to Camp Pendle-
ton for combat infantry training. AA Mickey E. Hudson assigned to the "X" Division at NAS Corpus
Christi. Michael Harner promoted to A3C at Kessler AFB. SA Robert Hipskind, USCG completed basic
at Cape May. Draft Board Classifies 89 men in 12 groups during recent meeting. Class 1A Ronald Arrick,
Ralph Bean, Leland Beery, Michael Bent, Bryan Brooks, Millis F. Bostic, Philip Brown ,Francis Bundy,
Steven Butterbaugh, Gary Cooper, Robert Courtney, Douglas Crooks, Jack Cussen Harry Draper, , Arnold
Grossnickle, Bill Hill, Nicholas Hipskind, Edward Jones, Lloyd Johnson, Daniel Kendall, Lynn Landis,
Hillary Larrowe, Bill Lewis, Frederick McClure, William Manley, John Marshall, Harold Norman, William
Powell, Michael Pretorious, Timothy Richard,, Ronald Rife, Ronald Rutz, James Smith, Philip Stout,
Michael Wilcox, William Winebrenner, Nelson Zinsmeister. 1C Jon Harris, Joseph Petro, Tommy Greer,
James Hipskind, and Richard S. Hipskind. 1O Donald Surbey, Paul Sites and Carl Zimmerman. 1S Tom
Trisler. 1Y John Coyer, Michael Domer, John Idle, Terry Niccum, Dean Abbott, David Sommers, Danny
Allen, Peter Renz, Billie Trapp, Edward Watson, Steven Judy and Burly Napier. 11A George Smith. 11S
Charles Mills, Walter Connell, James Fites and David Walker. 111A Dean Cox, Terry Kabot, William
Cooley and Frederick Johnson. 1VA Larry Gentry and Edward Lewis.
June 15 Gail J. Hidy, Scott AFB, promoted to SSGT.
June 16 A3C Charles A. Pollard, jet mechanic, 66th Tactical Recon Wing, Laon, France, particip-
ated in Exercise Royal Flush IX. Carolyn I. Coble married A3C Rodger Grandstaff.
June 17 PVT Homer E. Easterday completed basic Ft. Sill sent to Europe. CAPT Harold T.
Cleaver discharged from the service.
June 18 Robert Kennedy's offer to serve in S. Vietnam rejected by Johnson. AN Robert G. Press-
ler serving with VT-28 NAS Corpus Christi. Signalman SN John Niemershien aboard the
USS Lake Champlain.
June 22 54 VC Guerillas in Sunday fighting. PVT Steven H. Carpenter and PVT Roger H. Panning
completed advanced training Ft. Polk.
June 23 Ambassador Lodge resigns post in S. Vietnam LBJ names Gen. Taylor to replace him.
June 24 PVT Roger L. Price assigned Ft. Riley for advanced training as a rifleman.
June 29 4 American airmen killed in helicopter crash. Lodge gives Johnson encouraging report on
S. Vietnam. Larry R. Amann and Steven P.Alexander enlist in the Marines both in basic
training at San Diego.
June 30 PVT Stephen Porter finished Radio Relay Operations Course at Ft. Gordon. David F.
Monroe discharged from the USMC. Winston J. Stewart and William G. Kerr discharged
from the Army.
July 1 Lodge confident of success in S.Vietnam. William Rettig in basic Lackland AFB.
July 6 HAS Tommy R. Miller serving at NAS Point Mugu. PVT Robert Sriver in basic Ft. Knox.
James M. Teague undergoing two weeks active duty training at Great Lakes.
July 7 PVT Timothy Brooks completed basic training San Diego now stationed at Camp Pendle-
General Taylor arrived in Saigon.
July 9 Draft Board reclassifies 26 into 1-A status. 1A Steven Armie, Kenneth Briner, Larry
Brown, David Butcher, Leonard DeLong, Sammy Faust, Danny French, Charles Gidley, Franklin Gressley,
James Henry, Paul Jenkins, Donald Lefforge, Larry Miller, Ronald Monce, Joe Moore, Joe Necessary,
William Neher, Rodger Rapp, George Scheerer, Danny Schlemmer, Robert Slusser, John Sutton, David
Vrooman, Chester Weaver, John Wilson, Jerry Wynn. 1C James Schaaf, John Deal, Robert Sriver, Daniel
Fulwider, Don Coomer, William Rettig, Richard Brown, Harley Rettig and John Holmes. 1S Larry Har-
graves, Sammie Jackson, Larry Stevens and Larry Richards. 1W Mark O. Hillsamer. 1Y William J. Cox,
Gary L. Hunt, Vernon Bourff, Larry Klutz, Donald Radabaugh, James Stefanatos and Ronald Clupper. 2R
Jack Cussen, Dewayne Beery, Philip Stout, William Manley, Nelson Zinsmeister, Leland Beery, John Holl,
Nicholas Hipsind and Millis Bostic. 2S Ronald Greene. 3A Philip Brown, Francis Bundy, Ronald Burton,
Robert Kreamer, Michael Walters, Larry Cox, Raymond Martin and Tommy McClure. 4A Harold Cleaver,
Curtis Shoemaker, Antoni Tokarz, Winston Stewart, William Kerr, Ronald Fearnow and Ronnie Richards.
4F Michael Bradley.
July 10 Clarence R. McNeeley discharged from the Army.
July 11 A3C Rodger L. Grandstaff graduated technical training at Greenville AFB. A3C Dannie
Wilde graduated from technical training Shepperd AFB assigned to Baer Field.
July 12 Communists speed up rate of infiltration into Vietnam.
July 13 Vietnam toll climbs 250 government troops killed by VC. An American advisor wounded.
SGT Darl Stevens, medical aidman assigned to HQ Co., Camp A.P. Hill. He entered the
army in 1945 and was last stationed in Vietnam. PVT Garland V. Webb assigned to 2nd
Armored Div. in Ger.
July 15 PVT Kenneth J. Earhart now stationed in Germany.
July 17 American medic killed in Vietnam ambush also five Seabees wounded southwest of
Saigon.
July 18 CPO Ronald E. Swigart, 116th Naval District, selected Sailor of the Month.
July 20 S. Vietnam urges extending war north. PVT Ronnie Butcher completed course at Aber-
deen Proving Ground.
July 21 S. Vietnam forces crushed in Red ambush and an American advisor injured.
July 22 Commandoes dropped in Red N.Vietnam reveal U.S. officers flying combat planes.
PVT Homer E. Easterday completed advanced training at Fort Sill. A3C Richard M.
Mughmaw completed technical training Sheppard AFB assigned TAC command,
England AFB. John E. Holmes and Michael L. Campbell began training Great Lakes.
July 25 LT Robin K. Miller assigned to the 11th Air Assault Div., Ft. Benning. Samuel L.
Leckrone attending an 8 week cooking course Ft. Knox.
July 27 U.S. promises more troops for S. Vietnam. Khan to have all the weapons he needs.
July 30 American Army officer killed by guerillas north of Saigon. Brian I. Featheringill in basic
training Lackland AFB. PO2 John C. Carrouthers completed training deviseman school
NATTC Memphis.
July 31 USS Maddox on intelligence collection mission in Gulf of Tonkin 8 miles from land.
August 1 Richard D. Coppock completed basic at Camp Pendleton selected for special training on
amphibious trucks.
August 2 Three North Vietnamese P-4 torpedo boats attack the USS Maddox in the Gulf of Tonkin.
One P-4 sunk and 1 heavily damaged. After action the USS Maddox joined by the USS
C. Turner Joy. Johnson issued shot to kill orders at Reds to Navy after the attack.
August 4 175th American military man killed in Vietnam. MSGT Jean R. Ramey named USAF top
supervisor by LCOL Charles H. O'Dell. The USS C. Turner Joy reported fired upon.
August 5 USN planes bomb four Red bases. Two planes lost. Retaliation ordered by Johnson. S.
Vietnam reports U.S. Jets arriving there. USS Robert B. Anderson headed to Vietnam
from San Diego. Arrived at Subic Bay on August 28th.
August 6 Southeast Asia bolstered by rush of U.S. military, air, land and sea forces gathering for
showdown. Congress backs president on Vietnam action. Legion oks US action in
Vietnam.
August 7 Khanh proclaims emerging crisis in S. Vietnam; becomes absolute ruler of country,
leaves for front. Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, giving the president the
power "to take all necessary measurers to repel any armed attack against the forces of the
United States and to prevent further aggession."
August 8 Miss Ann Kiss, Lt. George Moon repeat vows. A3C Richard M. Mughmaw assigned to a
TAC unit at England AFB.
August 12 181st American killed in Vietnam action. Pilot shot in helicopter mass attack.
August 13 White House denies orders to use nuclear bomb in Vietnam.
August 17 Vietnamese troops lured into ambush. Brian Featheringill, technical training, Kessler
AFB, promoted to A3C.
August 19 A2C Larry J. Eckerley completed technical training at Lowry AFB.
August 21 Rebels ambush Vietnam troops over 100 dead including four Americans.
August 22 Miss Judith Forrest, LT. John D. Cooke exchange vows. TSGT Gerald Spehn, administ-
rative supervisor, assigned to USAFE at Rhein Main AFB. SK3 Robert L. Shaver,USS
Long Beach, participated in Operation Sea Orbit.
August 24 Vietnam mobs stone hotel of 500 troops.
August 25 Khanh resigns but student riots continue.
August 26 Vietnam mob beats four hospital patients to death. Institution operated by Americans.
PVT Max E. Metzger, cannoner Batt B, 3rd BAT 1st Div. 33 Art., Ft. Riley, participated in
joint Army-Air Force Exercise Indian River III.
August 27 Saigon scene of bloody Buddhist-Catholic war behead several victims.
August 28 Provisional committee to rule Vietnam two months.
August 29 Nguyen Xuan Oanth picked acting premier for S. Vietnam.
August 31 Air Force Captain killed, other wounded in Vietnam. Plane fired on by Red guerillas.
September USS Anderson on Yankee Station in Tonkin Guld in support of carriers in Task Force (TF) 77. Involved
in first combat in both South China Sea and Tonkin Gulf. Provided gunfire, supplied river boats,
patrolled and monitored Russian supply lanes for more than 300 days at sea.
September 1 Khanh to be back in the saddle soon. AN Harley L. Reffig selected for technical tra-
ining as an air policeman Lackland AFB. A2C Robert W. Benbow stationed at
Homestead AFB.
September 4 Robert L. Sriver completed basic Ft. Knox assigned to advanced training at Aberdeen, Md
September 8 S. Vietnam's ruling tree elects Minh chief.
September 9 Khiem is balance wheel between Khanh and Minh.
September 10 No quick military victory in Vietnam seen.
September 11 Khanh ousts three leaders in S. Vietnam shakeup; two powerful military men, police
head out.
September 14 Royal troops demanding high price of Khanh. U.S. standing behind Khanh.
September 15 Khanh starts purge of high military command prompted by demands of generals. A2C
Jerry G. Robins completed USAF communications technicians course Goodfellow AFB
PVT Jon A. Gidley enlisted in the USMC sent to San Diego.
September 16 Key rebel commander Col. Van Ton surrendered to Khanh.
September 17 Captain John L. Neff assumes command of the USS Maury operating out of Pearl Harbor.
September 18 AN William L. Rettig completed basic Lackland AFB assigned to a SAC unit at Wurt-
smith AFB.
September 21 Soviets warn U.S. against interfering in N. Vietnam. PVT Jon P. Harris completed Nike-
Hercules missile crewman training Ft. Bliss.
September 22 Goldwater criticizes S. Vietnam policy.
September 23 Communists shoot down two American Skyraiders. U.S. pilot feared captured or killed
by Reds.
September 25 US Army officer killed in Vietnam.
September 26 SP5 Charles F. Forrester, fire direction computer, Batt A, 10th Art., 6th Batt participated
in Exercise FALLEX 64 in Germany. SSGT Jack L. Marburger, supply sgt, 565th
Medical Co. near Baumholder also participated. A3C Roger L. Grandstaff graduated from
Tech. training for surgical assistants Gunter AFB assigned to a TAC unit at MacDill AFB.
October 2 PVT Terry Brewer completed basic Ft. Knox assigned Ft. Gordon for airborne training.
October 3 AlC James D. Vickery, flight operations specialist, 329th Fighter Interceptor Sqd at
George AFB.
October 5 PVT Steven P. Alexander and PVT Larry R. Amann completed basic at San Diego going
to Camp Pendleton for AIT. Capt. James S. Petry completed the academic phase of SAC
B-52 combat crew training at Castle AFB and sent to Travis AFB for duty. SK3 Robert
Shaver, USS Long Beach, returned to Norfolk after completion of Operation Sea Orbit.
October 6 Vietnamese troops fire at mobs of armed rioters. Goldwater, if elected would ask Ike to
go to Vietnam.
October 10 PVT Paul D. Koerner, 15th Recon Tech Sqd, March AFB promoted to AlC.
October 12 Report 300 casualties in savage Vietnam fighting.
October 13 Leroy Bakehorn, Jr. promoted to A2C at Orlando AFB.
October 16 PVT Daniel R. Fulwider completed ICTLowry AFB sent to an ADC unit Dover AFB.
October 20 Herschel L. Hall finished basic training and now in A Co. 5th Eng., BN, CHT, Ft. Leo-
nard Wood.
October 21 Khanh and party quit again.
October 24 Dennis E. Templin, Ninot AFB, promoted to A2C.
October 28 AB June K. Johnson completed basic Lackland AFB in technical training at Shepperd
AFB.
October 30 VC attack Bien Hoa air base. Johnson rejects proposal for retaliatory raids against N.
Vietnam. PVT Anthony W. Watson,33rd Armor, stationed in Germany.
November 2 Find Red mortars within mile of secret air base at Bein Hoa. U.S. replacing Jets
destroyed. James A. Monce promoted to 1st LT. at Connally AFB.
November 5 VC patrol nears U.S. Embassy in Saigon. Troops flee when movement seen. SGT Wil-
liam S. Leeka, gunner in Battery B, 9th Art, 8th Batt.,graduated from 7th Army NCO
academy Bad Tolz, Ger. J.L. Amones promoted to A2C at Bentwaters RAF station.
November 6 A2C Lawrence A. Roffelsen graduated from tactical missile school Orlando AFB assig-
ned USAFE in Germany.
November 1 PVT Terry L. Brown and PVT Gary D. Enyeart completed recruit training San Diego.
AA Mickey Hudson graduated from Aviation Mech. Fun. School NATTC Memphis.
A2C Herman R. Beaujean, Dover AFB took part in Exercise Gold Fire I as did PVT Earl
Webb, bridge specialist, Co E 1st Eng. Div. 1st Div., Ft. Riley.
November 16 2nd LT Michael P. Landis entered USAF navigator training Connally AFB. SMSGT
Richard E. Stubbs retired from the USAF at Hamilton AFB after 22 years of service.
November 17 PVT Jay Sullivan completed single engine single rotor helicopter repair course, Ft.
Eustis. AN Richard L. White aboard the USS Saratoga, Mayport, Fl. Teddy Harman
began basic Great Lakes.
November 18 Vietnamese Restaurant Bomb injures Americans. Devise concealed in café favoring U.S.
Servicemen. USAF Sabre jet downed in Laos. MSGT Walter P. Reason assigned to Co.
C Army Armor Center's Special Troops, Ft. Knox. A2C Michael S. Harner graduated
From communications analysis specialist course Keesler AFB.
November 20 Guerrillas shoot down 3 military planes in 24 hours.
November Saigon convulsed by rioters protesting Khanh's rule. Ambassador Taylor urges Khan to
leave the country.
December 1 Guerillas shoot down two planes. President Johnson hears critical review of Vietnam
policies from Gen. Taylor. Linwood L. Parr, Larry Stewart and Jeffrey Fahrnow enlisted
in USAF sent to Lackland AFB.
December 3 Brezhnev makes stinging attack on U.S. blasts actions in Vietnam, Cuba and Congo.
D ecember 5 Jack D. Gregory, Bakalar AFB, promoted to TSGT.
December 7 SR Danny L. Schlemmer undergoing active duty training aboard the USS Harve.
December 9 Vietnamese troops capture rebel held government garrison at An Lao.
December 10 Government troops mop up after Viet Cong attacks. Seventh American missing in four
days of fighting. 232 Americans killed in Vietnam since January 1961. PFC Ronnie D.
Butcher, Co. D 275th Maintenance Batt., 25th Inf. Div., participated in Long Sabre III.
December 14 Vietnam Reds make way to U.S. headquarters. Four officers wounded on own doorstep.
Operation Barrel Roll began against HoChiMinh Trail. FN Ralph Kirchbaum aboard the
USS Coral Sea.
December 16 AMMAN Ralph Barton Airborne Early Warning Sqd One, Guam, awarded Armed
Forces Expeditionary Medal for participation in the Gulf of Tonkin incident.
December 21 PVT Richard Hoover completed lineman course at Army Southeastern Signal School, Ft.
Gordon.
December 24 VC terrorists bomb American military billet in Saigon. 38 Americans wounded in bom-
bing. U.S. officers club blasted. Johnson rejects proposal for raids against N. Vietnam.
AN Mickey E. Hudson completed Aviation Machinists Mate Jet Engine course NATTC
Memphis.
December 28 Vietnamese rangers rout rebels in two day battle. Government troops make weapon haul
at Soc Trang. AN Jeffrey W. Fahrnow selected for technical training as air policeman at
Lackland AFB.
December 29 Three Copters shot down, GI's wounded.
December 30 Six more Americans killed or captured in Vietnam.
December 31 December is bloodiest month for U.S. in Vietnam. 171 Americans killed or missing.
1965 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January 5 Vietnamese government suffers record casualties. 19 Americans among wounded missing
or killed Binh Gia.
January 15 VC military bases raided by S. Vietnamese. ET2 Daniel I. Knee, USS Lind, completed a
USAFI course.
January 21 Vietnam Buddhists declare war on anti-Communist army, denounce generals as "power
hungry".
January 22 Buddhists stage riots at U.S. Embassy in Saigon. USIS building also attacked. LCPL
Robert F. White is stationed with HS Co., 1st BATT, 3rd Marines in Okinawa.
January 23 PFC Kenneth J. Earhart, grenadier, Co. C, 1st BATT, 87th Div, Germany, participated in
Exercise Golden Arrow.
January 25 Martial Law imposed on Hue due to protests.
January 26 Buddhist 17 year old girl burns self to death in protest of government at Nha Trang. AN
David A. Black completed basic Lackland AFB, sent to Shepperd AFB for technical trai-
ning. ETSM John P. Barnes deployed aboard the USS Chevalier.
January 27 S. Vietnam government flips again; Houng ousted, Buddhists celbrate removal. Latest up-
heavel problem for U.S.
January 29 Buddhists deny anti-American statement.
February 2 Fighting erupts in Laos; rebel troops driven back. Attempted coup interrupted by loyal
forces. Three U.S. fliers wounded in Vietnam.
February 4 McGeorge Bundy, national security advisor arrives in Saigon. Jon Haupt begins basic
training Great Lakes.
February 7 VC stage attacks against American installations.
February 8 VC military bases blasted for second day. Raid follows retaliation strike by U.S. against
Vihn Linh. SP6 Harry B. Pitts, medical specialist, 64th Field Hospital, Ft. Richardson
participated in Exercise Polar Strike.
February 9 3 U.S. Helicopters shot down in Vietnam American crewman killed.
February 10 VC destroy U.S. Army billet fear 31 Americans killed at Qui Nohon.
February 11 Air attacks from ground and Navy strike at Reds. 150 planes bomb N. Vietnam military
bases.
February 12 Red China hints at sending volunteers to N. Vietnam.
February 15 Saigon government charges Communists infiltrating country. Claims enemy carries arms
by Soviets. A2C William F. David awarded USAF Good Conduct Medal Luke AFB.
ET2 Daniel Knee aboard the USS Wallace L. Lind, participated in Operation Spring-
board. FNAA Michael E. Nearhouse, USS Hammerberg, participated in NATO Exercise
Match Maker
February 16 Soviet Premier demands U.S. get out of Vietnam. Buddhist Premier Quat picks twenty
men for cabinet.
February 18 Dr. Phan Huy Quat forms government in Saigon. Catholic officer seize Saigon, topples
Buddhists. Khanh orders loyal troops in counter-coup. Boilerman 3 Thomas J. Elsten
received Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal for his participation in Vietnam while
aboard the USS Bausell.
February 20 Khanh back in S.Vietnam drivers seat.
February 22 Khanh agrees to get out of S. Vietnam. Resignation phoned to Saigon. William F.
David, aircraft mechanic Luke AFB, promoted to A1C.
February 23 Khanh to be exiled as a roving ambassador. Larry E. Stewart and Linwood L. Parr com-
missioned 2nd LT in the USAF upon graduation from OTS, Lackland AFB. Both assig-
ned to Lowry AFB. U.S. defeat in S.Vietnam would mean massacre-Senator Dodd.
February 24 Operation Rolling Thunder, sustained bombing of N. Vietnam begins. Door cracked in
soundings of negotiation in Vietnam.
February 25 100 Vietcong killed in one B57 bomber strike. House members oppose seeking political
settlement in Vietnam.
February 26 Vietnamese students demand end of war in Vietnam. Red China plans to supply tanks,
artillery to the N.Vietnam Reds. Kosygin demands troops get out of Vietnam and Korea.
U.S. to meet force with force until Reds leave S. Vietnam.
February 27 U.S. had definite proof of outside Red aid in Vietnam. Calls infiltration aggression real as
army. U.S. Plans more aid in S. Vietnam.
March 1 Red infiltration must halt first declares Phan Huy Quat.
March 2 U.S. Vietnamese planes bomb two North targets. Twin attacks larger than 3 prvious.
March 3 Enemy planes driven off by Vietnamese.
March 4 Communists drop bomb on Saigon. MM3 David R. Johnstone, USS Preble, and FC Tech
SA Donald Vogel, USS Oriskany, participated in Operation Silver Lance. SK3 Robert L.
Shaver, USS Long Beach, participated in Operation Springboard. PVT Timothy J.
McVicker is a mechanic in HQ Co. 1st Batt 67th Armor, Ft. Hood.
March 5 S. Vietnamese bombers strife Cong positions.
March 6 Marine reinforcement of S. Vietnam position postponed 1,200 to 2,000 Leathernecks
would protect American Air installations. Gregory L. Atkinson enlisted in the USMC
sent to San Diego. A3C Dale L. Silvers finished basic Lackland AFB sent to radar and
radio electronics school Keesler AFB.
March 8 Two Marine battalions land to defend DaNang airfield. The first combat troops in
Vietnam land with usual good nature.
March 9 Vietnamese report 100 guerrillas killed.
March 10 Cong grip broken on Binh Dinh Province severance of S. Vietnam prevented.
March 12 PVT Tommy F. Berry completed basic Ft. Knox sent to Ft. Polk.
March 13 Communists try to blow up U.S. employees building, janitor foils plot defuses time bomb.
March 15 A2C Robert W. Benbow, Homestead AFB, awarded the USAF Small Arms Expert Mark-
smanship Ribbon. MSGT Jean Ramey received USAF Commendation Medal. PVT
Stephen R. Rogers and PVT William L. Maurer completed advanced training as a
cannoner at Army Artillery and Missile Center, Ft. Sill.
March 18 S. Vietnamese bombing accidentally kills 30 children. Cordier believes UN may have role
in settling Vietnam Crisis.
March 20 Operation Rolling Thunder began against HoChiMihn Trail
March 22 Vietnamese use form of tear gas on Communists.
March 29 Red radar bases bombed by U.S. Navy.
March 30 Death toll climbs to 17 in Saigon bombing retaliation expected against Hanoi. Other
major bombings against U.S. buildings.
March 31 3 U.S. helicopters shot down by Communists two Marines killed 16 injured. Gen. Tay-
lor's rumored resignation denied at White House and State Department.
April 1 Pilots count 200 guerrillas dead at DaNang.
April 2 Daryl G. Abell finished basic Lackland AFB, promoted to A3C sent to radar and radio
electronics school.
April 3 Communists claim 12 U.S. planes downed in fight MIGs involved in defense of bridge
near Hanoi. General Taylor heads to Saigon with promise of more troops. SGT William
S. Leeka, 9th Art., took part in three week training exercise in Grafenwohn, Ger.
April 7 Johnson at Johns Hopkins University offers Ho Chi Minh participation in a Southeastern
Asian development plan in exchange for peace. Navy rains fire on VC.
April 8 N. Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Van Dong rejects Johnson's offer, says settlement
must be based on VC Program. FN Ralph M. Kirchbaum USS Coral Sea, in the Gulf of
Tonkin and participated in recent air strikes in N. Vietnam. PVT Arthur B. Clouser com-
pleted single rotor observation helicopter maintenance course, Ft. Rucker.
April 9 Navy bombers battle MIGs near Red China. Armada of 220 planes raid N. Vietnam.
YN1 Jerry L. Titus, San Diego, promoted to ENS.
April 10 U.S. Planes have clear sweep in N. Vietnam. Encounter no MIGs; more Marines arrive.
April 1 SSGT Harold E. Shaw, Schilling AFB, decorated with USAF Commendation Medal.
LTJG Morris H. Duffey attending Preflight School NAS Pensacola.
April 13 North Vietnamese execute American aid official. PVT Richard H. Greene completed
basic Ft. Knox assigned to Ft. Gordon. FCTSN Donald H. Vogel, USS Oriskany, is
with the 7th Fleet in the Far East.
April 16 U.S. puts six N. Vietnamese bridges out of commission. U.S. learns Soviets building anti
aircraft base at Hanoi.
April 19 Four Americans killed in battle near Qui Nhon. Two helicopters shot down in jungle raid.
April 20 Red China threatens campaign in Vietnam.
April 21 McNamara reveals more Red infiltrating south. War effort to be increased as counter-
action. A3C Rodger D. Smith completed basic Lackland AFB sent to radar and radio
school, Kessler AFB. Rusk sees no end to Vietnam fight.
April 22 Marine patrol ambushed by guerrillas. U.S. beefing up military aid toVietnam.
April 23 Douglas A. Bowman and Herbert L. Mullen enlisted in USMC will be sent in June to
basic at San Diego.
April 24 Bombing raids shatter bridge and river docks in North Vietnam.
April 26 VC spies increase in vast numbers in South. Most weapons are of Red Chinese make.
Reveal full VC unit in S. Vietnam.
April 30 Vietnamese take 1,000 brand new rifles in raids on guerrillas. John Haupt completed
basic at Great Lakes assigned to NAS Norfolk. A2C Carl R. Trent, Wurtsmith AFB,
cited for helping his unit win selection as the best munitions maintenance sqd in SAC.
May 1 Capture large arms cache in Vietnam of Chinese make.
May 3 Paratroop Brigade of the 173rd Airborne from Okinawa headed for Vietnam. SEATO
supports U.S. action in Vietnam. Miss Janice K. Pressler, A1C Richard P. Flinn wed.
May 4 LBJ asks $700 million more for military action; seeking funds for Vietnam and Domin-
ican Wars. Three marines wounded near Da Nang. Americans in Vietnam reject idea of
its becoming Dien Bien Phu.
May 5 1,200 U.S. Paratroopers land near Saigon.
May 6 S. Vietnam army votes for civil leaders. PVT James M. Miller, medical corpsman, 1st
Batt., 2nd Armored Div., 78thArt., participated in Exercise Silver Hand at Ft. Hood.
May 8 200 air force planes blast three Red military targets tons of bombs and missiles fall on
bases.
May 10 Round the clock raids staged on N. Vietnam. U.S. advisor killed; two wounded.
May 11 AB Terry L. Eltzroth in basic Lackland AFB.
May 12 45,000 U.S. Forces now in South Vietnam.
May 13 Red guerrillas use Vietnamese uniforms in raid.
May 14 S. Vietnam Rangers score biggest victory. LTJG Morris H. Duffey graduated Naval pre-
flight school NAS Pensacola.
May 15 U.S. suspends bombing in Vietnam. Survey damage of previous raids during lull. SA
Jerry McKee finished basic Great Lakes assigned to USS Comstock. PVT Phillip B.
Woodward in USMC basic San Diego.
May 16 27 men killed and 100 wounded during accidential explosion of a bombon a parked B57
triggered a series of blasts at Bien Hoa Air Base. Aircraft and ammo stored too close.
May 17 Tide may be turning in Vietnam.
May 18 S. Vietnamese launch pincer action against Communist base at Binh Thuan.
May 19 Forty planes in second attack on N. Vietnam- severe damage inflicted on military targets.
May 20 USAF planes attack Hanoi area with leaflets.
May 21 VC fail in attempt to oust government.
May 22 U.S. bombers getting closer to city of Hanoi blast targets within 55 miles of Red Carpet.
May 24 Four Americans killed in VC ambush nearly 100 Vietnamese reported dead.
May 25 U.S. jets accidently blast S. Vietnamese base. Planes stray off course, 5 men injured.
ETSN J.C. Birkett, USS Manley, participated in Operation Fairgame III in the central
Mediterranean.
May 27 American warships enter Vietnam War first time destroyers bombed three provinces.
May 28 Helicopter collision kills 9 GI's at Bien Hoa base. Chief J.H. Grossnickle to serve aboard
the USS Oriskany LPH3. AN William L. McDaniel graduated AMS school NATTC
Memphis.
June1 South Vietnamese marines launch counter attack at Quang Ngai. PFC Robert Sriver,
serving at Aberdeen Proving Grounds was home visiting family.
June 2 Red anti aircraft guns blast two U.S. Navy planes; five crewmen killed in worst single air
loss. 403 killed in Vietnam since 1961. PVT Terry L. Brewer, U.S. Advisors Team 32,
stationed at Gia Nyhia. FCTSA Donald H. Vogel,USS Oriskany ,in the western Pacific.
June 5 Coal yard at Vinh among targets hit by U.S. Jet planes.
June 8 SN Michael Campbell is stationed at Naval Communications Station in Morocco.
June 9 White House denies change in Vietnam combat orders. Use of ground forces previously
given approval. Eldon Heslet enlisted in the USAF in basic Lackland AFB.
June 10 American losses heavy in raid by VC. Site of battle, Dong Xoal recaptured by govern-
ment army.
June 11 Air Vice Marshal Nguyen Cao Ky takes over as prime minister of military regime in
Saigon. See no great increase of troops in Vietnam; Taylor briefs foreign policy leaders
in capital. Government forces gain in Vietnam.
June 12 VC renew attack on village at Dong Xoal. Battle follows political shakeup in S. Vietnam.
Taylor returns to Vietnam. Donald E. Spence, jet engine mechanic, Webb AFB, promoted
to SSGT. FN Ralph Krichbaum, USS Coral Sea, arrived at Yokosuka, Japan. SKSN
William F. Haupert, USS Altair, returned to the U.S. after two years in the Med.
June 14 U.S. troops in offensive position in Vietnam. American bombs take heavy toll of VC.
June 16 Terrorist bombs wound 36 GIs. Military advisor believed kidnapped from Battalion.
June 17 U.S. Jets down 2 MIG fighters. Missiles used to drop enemy planes. Back Johnson in
Vietnam Ike says.
June 18 27 B52s rain bombs on Communist units near Saigon.
June 19 PFC Ronald E. Schlemmer completed basic electronics school now attending electronics
training school at San Diego.
June 21 New Vietnamese leader pledges war until victory. AN Terry L. Eltzroth completed basic
Lackland AFB in munitions specialist training Lowry AFB.
June 22 U.S. strikes within 100 miles of Communist China. Two N. Vietnam military targets
bombed. Barracks at Son La hit. Cong terrorist executed for U.S. Barracks blast.
June 23 Fighting flares full length of S. Vietnam.
June 24 S. Vietnam breaks relations with France. Senate renews debate on Vietnam policy.
June 25 Eight Americans killed in Saigon blast. PVT Larry D. Brown completed 12 week radio
relay and carrier operation course Ft. Gordon.
June 26 American command in Saigon reports that Vietcong have put five South Vietnamese com-
bat regiments and nine battalions out of action in recent months. Reds attack two Viet-
namese posts. Casualties high in fighting terrorist bombing.
July 28 Michael Songer enlisted in the Indiana Air National Guard. Boyd J. Hiner discharged
from the Army.
June 29 Four thousand troops stage Vietnamese operations from U.S., Australia and Vietnam.
June 30 Government scores major victory over VC. TSGT Phillip Kelley, McGuire AFB, sent to
Thailand for one year.
July 1 S. Vietnam asks U.S. for Berlin-type airlift; admits inability to reach through to six
cities. Flags from every state line streets of Vinh Long. Premier Ky to war of political
corruption.
July 2 USAF strikes historic Dien Bien Phuh getting closer to communist city of Hanoi.
July 6 Troops of three nations sweep Vietnam jungle Co. A, 326th Combat Eng. Deployed to S.
Vietnam as part of the 101st Airborne, Div., 1st Bri. Most of its efforts were directed
toward construction in the A Shau Valley and support of Vietnamese incursion into Laos.
John H. Johnson completed basic at Ft. Knox. AN Richard L. White and AA Michael
E.Reardon, USS Saratoga, 6th Fleet, in Barcelona.
July 7 Rep. Ford says bomb Vietnam missile bases site near Hanoi expected to be fortified soon.
8,000 Marines land at Da Nang and Qui Nhon ready for immediate battle.
July 8 Johnson reappoints Lodge ambassador to S.Vietnam to replace Taylor. Eighteen Amer-
ican combat battalions now in the country. VC dealt heavy losses by paratroopers U.S.
casualty figures believed much lighter Air Force ready to bomb missile sites.
July 9 Marines trap 300 in battalion of VC. UThant urges end to war in Vietnam.
July 10 U.S. Bombers strike deep into N. Vietnam. Predict American offensive in Vietnam in
in October.
July 13 Serious days ahead in Vietnam LBJ says U.S. to maintain adequate forces and equipment.
Snipers fire on Marine Beachhead. Viet talks slated between LBJ and Lodge. Red
tactics in Vietnam resemble those in China. Woman is Red officer in Vietnam.
July 14 To consider hike in draft, callup of Reserves, and Guard. Task force searches Viet jungle.
Secretary of State George Ball sees hard times in Vietnam.
July 16 U.S., Russia can't end Viet crisis; Harriman says settlement of problems up to Vietna-
mese. Ky asks McNamara for troops to defeat VC.
July 17 Britain assures LBJ of backing in Vietnam.
July 19 VC begin heavy attack on U.S.
July 20 VC lay siege to American camp at Bu Dop. PFC Lawrence J. Kessler, Marine Fighter
Attack Sqd 531, returned to U.S. after one year in Vietnam.
July 21 Air Force hits Zone D with 500 tons of bombs.
July 22 Randell Webb, finished Electronics Technicians School asssigned to communications
space station in Ethiopia.
July 24 Air Force strikes at explosives plant. Warships sink VC junks. PVT Gregory Atkinson
completed individual combat training at Camp Pendleton. Draft Board places 79 in 1A Class and induct
seven. 1A Paul R. Abernathy, Steve E. Armie, Donald M. Badger, Thomas E. Barrus, DeWayne A. Beery,
Timothy E. Bogue, Ronnie E. Bonewitz, Jerry D. Bowman, Ted D. Brown, John W. Burnsworth, Gregory
Allen Colvin, Galen S. Clark, David E. Coburn, Edward E. Cochran, Terry E. Copeland, Jack D. Cussen,
Roy D. Davis,Danny J. Eller, Danny E. Elliott, John B. Eltzroth, Glen T. Fadley, Sammy Faust, David R.
Finnegan, Robert L. Franks, Larry R. Freels, Dennis L. Frieden, Carl R. Gidley, Jerry L. Gilbert, Stanley D.
Gilbert, Raymond B. Goodlander, Michael M. Gray, James M. Green, Gary G. Grossnickle, Curtis Hart-
barger, Marion A. Hattabaugh, Martin T. Herrell, Nicholas Hipskind, Paul L. Johnson, Robert C. Jones,
Edward E. Kester, William J. Knotts, David Koenig, John W. Liebo, Phillip W. Lloyd, Larry McCallum,
Joseph W. McSpadden, Robert L. Macon, James D. Miller, Paul E. Miller, Mickey R. Miller, Gary E.
Montel, Paul D. Moore, Jon D. Morris, Lawrence T. Pace, Roger I. Partridge, Jerry L. Price, Larry W.
Richards, Douglas G. Ross, Jerry W. Schlemmer, Gunther J. Schneider, Merril P. Schoby, Jim R. Shaw,
Larry G. Snep, Lester E. Spangle, Melvin B. Stanley, David E. Stephan, Erick D. Stone, David A. Story,
William P. Stouffer, Michael J. Sumpter, Arthur M. Swango, Byron L. Taylor, Harold E. Thompson,
Jerald S. Ulrey, Edwin A. Vossler, Walter E. Warren, James N. Westafer, Steven K. Williams, Richard L.
Winebrenner. 1C Sherman R. Ogan, Larry C. Lester, Robert W. Erb, William R. Ragan, Larry L. Har-
grave, Steven E. Whittlesey, Eldon K. Heslet, Herbert L. Mullen, John P. Grogg, Fred N. Wright, James L.
Guthrie, Robert E. Earhart, james S. Spaulding, Tommy L. Behny, Rodger E. Rapp, Fredrick L. Hamilton.
1D Joseph W. Carter, Luther G. Allen, Wayne A. Badsky, William J. Mullinix and David F. Cole. 1O Har-
old A. Stambaugh and David P. Deardorff. 1S Terry W. Bland, William H. Dials, Rodney K. Kinch, James
E. Swanson, Donald H. Griffith, James L. Smith, Rupert A. Miller and Marlin E. Pattee. 1Y Harry T. Bec-
htold, Lester E. Sirk, Richard S. Hearn, John M. Stout, Richard A. Boehme, William L. Rettig, Thomas P.
Oppy, Ralph A. Conley and Randy L. Russell. 1W Dale J. Stambaugh. 2A Millis F. Bostic, Stephen C.
Henderson, Ronald L. Baker,Lynn R. Blickenstaff and John R. Wolf. 2S James E. Large, Douglas A. Frie-
dersdorf, Johnny B. Crumley. 3Aalan W. Frantz, Gene E. Floyd, Gordon R. Miller, Stephen K. Priser,
Thomas L. Eads, Marlin J. Faust, Dennis J. McCombs, Michael L. Rogers, Charles D. Daniels, Charles E.
Rau, Jerry W. Walker, Gregory M. Kusiak. 4A Paul M. Eckelbarger, David P. Lumm, Edwin R. Bever,
Patrick R. Snyder, Dale L. Kroft, James J. Benedict, James L. Payne, Charles D. Mullenix, DeVon C. Lee,
Larry L. Robbins, Charles O. David, John R. Mullinix, Hugh L. Pratt, David L. Bickel, Dennis H. Gray,
Terry L. King, Theodore F. McCune, Robert C. Ross, William E. Eltzroth, Robert L. Shaver, Philip C.
March, Leslie C. Lake, Michael L. Fisher, Charles C. Purdy, James D. Ridenour, Thornton H. Shearer,
Richard P. Knotts, Elvin K. Leffel, Donald H. Day, Ted A. Eubank, Larry L. Young, Charles K. Porter,
Carl D. Black, Max E. Neher, Wayne L. Dawes, Gerald J. Tyner, Robert J. Harris and Douglas L. Long.
4D Charles L. Deeb.
July 27 Bomb missile sites 40 miles from Hanoi. President meets with cabinet on Viet crisis.
Down 3 U.S. bombers.
July 28 Johnson approves Westmoreland's request for forty-four additional combat battalions.
Johnson orders draft inductions doubled; to ask UN to intervene in Viet war. 7 American
planes lost during raids.
July 29 101st Airborne Division lands in Vietnam. Bombers pound guerrilla forces.
July 30 VC launches heavy ground attack. U.S. Jets bomb generating plant.
July 31 VC strike four miles from Saigon. Strategy session set in Hawaii.
August 2 Air Force bomb near north border. U.S. Jet downed, pilot captured. Army to expand
training centers. Operations in Vietnam could cost $14 billion.
August 3 Mrs. Sutton local draft board reports single youths near 21 can expect Selective Service
call. Seven men were called in July.
August 4 Johnson asks for $1.7 billion for Vietnam.
August 5 Report Hanoi may be willing to talk peace.
August 6 U.S. bomber crashes in Nha Trang fire touches off planes bomb load. American deaths in
Vietnam are 546.
August 7 Air Force strikes North Vietnam barracks. Four Vietnamese Generals booted. No move
toward Viet peace conference. A2C Steven E. Gordon, fuel systems mechanic, arrived for
duty at Tainan Air Station.
August 9 Pilot captured after U.S. Jet is downed. American forces now in Vietnam total 82,000.
August 10 McNamara, Rusk discuss Vietnam peace moves. Attempt to end siege of American camp
at Duc Co. PFC Leroy Rinehart, A Batry, 2nd MSLBN. 71st Art., in South Korea.
August 11 Airlift troops to help besieged camp. Officers predict major battle at Duc Co.
August 12 PFC Steven P. Alexander promoted to LCPL and awarded Expert Rifleman medal and a
certification of completion of Construction Blueprint Read I, 13-5. He is stationed in
Okinawa taking courses in Vietnamese language.
August 17 VC suffer heavy losses near Da Nang. Draft Board to vacate Memorial Hall.
August 18 PVT Phillip B. Woodward graduated recruit training Parris Island assigned to Camp
Lejeune.
August 19 Marines mop up after major victory in Vietnam near Chu Lai.
August 20 VC loss set at 563.
August 21 Air strikes riddle retreating VC. A2C John W. Harper, pharmacy specialist, assigned to
Lakenheaken RAF station. SGT William S. Leeka, gunner BTY 9th Art. passed training
tests in Germany.
August 25 FCTSA Donald H. Vogel, USS Oriskany, spent two weeks in Japan. 1st LT Max Reed
graduated USAF Squadron Officers School, Maxwell AFB; reassigned Travis AFB.
August 26 Bombers strike again against Viet guerrillas.
August 27 VC attack near Saigon.
August 28 South Vietnamese troops in heavy battle on Mekong Delta.
August 31 B52s hit VC strongholds. Cong grenade injures few in U.S. military compound. Child-
less married men face early '66 draft.
September Chinese Defense Minister Lin Biao indicates China will not intervene directly in Vietnam.
September 1 Draft of 400,000 men seen in coming year. A3C Jeffrey L. Flenner completed basic sent
to Kessler AFB for tech training as USAF communications electronics specialist.
September 2 B52s rain bombs over Viet jungle. Saigon forces sweep into Ho Be Woods.
September 3 1,400 additional Marines land in South Vietnam at Chu Lai. Confident Ho Chi Minh
claims U.S. "bogged down" in Vietnam conflict.
September 7 Mass offensive stayed in Vietnam south of Chu Lai.
September 8 PVT Robert E. Earhart, Hq Co AAIC, 531st, stationed at Ft. Davis, Canal Zone. Larry C,
Lester commissioned 2nd LT USAF upon graduation from OTS, Lackland AFB.
September 11 VC take village; fire on Xuan Loc.
September 13 5,000 men of the 1st Cav. Div. at Qui Nhon advance of 20,000 men. PVT Larry Richards
in USMC recruit training at San Diego. Donald L.Bennett enlisted in 120 day delay
program of the USMC.
September 14 Michael P. Landis awarded silver wings after graduating USAF Navigator school,
Connally AFB assigned Mather AFB.
September 18 Fierce fighting in Viet jungles in the Con River Valley northeast of An Khe.
September 20 Yank paratroopers whip VC in ground battles in the central highlands.
September 21 PFC Daniel R. Fulwider, Marine Wing Hq group 2, at MCAS Cherry Point. PVT Philip B.
Woodward completed basic ICTCamp Pendleton.
September 22 VC hospital, Ammo dump captured. AN Roy L. Jackson completed basic Lackland AFB
assigned Amarillo AFB for training as an administrative specialist.
September 23 PVT Donald L. Long completed basic ICT Camp Pendleton. LT. Kelson Slayman
aboard the USS Thomas Edison operating out of Holy Loch Scotland. PVT Eugene J.
Dewey is a rifleman in the 82nd Airborne Div.
September 30 A1C Richard J. Richardson, equipment repairman, selected Outstanding Airman of the
Month for his unit at Nellis AFB.
October 1 VC routed in attack in the Mekong Delta.
October 2 Terrorist bombs explode in Saigon 13 killed 2 Yanks wounded.
October 4 VC lead heavy attack. AN Walter R. Rose completed basic Lackland AFB sent to
communications specialist school Keesler AFB.
October 5 VC kill or wound all in U.S. patrol.
October 6 Viet Reds down 3 U.S. jets. Chinese claim they destroyed another airplane.
October 7 1st Infantry "Big Red One" lands 15,000 men in Vietnam new troops bring total to 140,000.
October 9 Twenty truck U.S. Infantry convoy attached south of Phuoc Vinh.
October 11 U.S. 1st Cav. Div. tightens trap on VC. Believe five battalions encircled in Soui La Tinh
Valley.
October 12 Fear VC escaped from trap 5 battalions of enemy disappear.
October 13 SGT 1st Class Harvey Dyer, 426th Medical Co., serving with the 196th Light Inf. Bri., Ft.
Devens. PFC Larry R. Amann in the Chu Lai sector in Vietnam with Co. I, 3rd Batt., 11th
Marines. FCTSA Donald H. Vogel, USS Oriskany, in the South China Sea.
October 14 Government casualties high in Viet. December draft call is 45,000. Larry D. Brown,
459th Signal Corps, Ft. Hauchuca promoted to PFC.
October 15 Launch demonstrations against Vietnam War. 2nd LT Phyliss A. Brinson completed orient-
ation course for nurses at Gunter AFB assigned to Maxwell AFB. PVT Edward L. Hornung
message center clerk, assigned to HQ Batt, 43rd Art, 1st Missile Batt, Fairchild AFB.
October 16 VC walk into ambush casualties high near U Minh Forest.
October 19 VC troops defecting. Enlistments up in all armed services.
October 20 VC launch major offensive in central highlands at Plei Me. 2 U.S. planes downed in battle.
Fifteen men from Wabash inducted. SP4 Roger Panning took part in a rescue and pick up
at sea by the 35th Engineering Group's aviation section. He was a crew member on the
UH1D Huey that rescued Capt. Paul E. Orf. SDS Student group pledges continued oppo-
sition to war in Vietnam.
October 21 Jerry McKee, USS Comstock, received letter of commendation for outstanding performance
of duty as ship's lookout, which kept a collision of his ship from happening. In August he
received another commendation when he was in a landing party of Marines at Chu Lai.
October 22 William L. Stewart enlisted in the Army sent to Ft. Knox.
October 26 Air strike turns suicide charge. Besieged camp holds out again at Plei Me. Michael J.
Cooper and Sheldon E. Sutton in Naval recruit training at San Diego. Capt. Denton J.
Riggs completed USAF survival training at Stead AFB assigned to Lackbourne AF.
October 27 Married men face induction. Reds attack Marine air base at DaNang. PFC Daniel Ful-
wider stationed MCAS Cherry Point with H & HS2.
October 28 VC does $10 million in aircraft damage at DaNang.
October 29 Yank paratroopers die by own artillery. Bombers pound several Viet strongholds. A2C
Larry A. Terrel, radio relay repairman, named Maintenance Man of the month Nakhon
Phanom AB.
October 30 Marines turn back Cong suicide charge. Outnumbered 4 to l at Da Nang. PVT Douglas
A. Bowman graduated from USMC recruit training at San Diego assigned Camp Pendle-
ton. PVT James L. Kreider completed basic Ft. Knox assigned to 2nd Armored Cav.
Rgt., Ger. FN Ralph M. Kirchbaum, USS Coral Sea, in the Western Pacific.
November 1 U.S. planes hit missile site.
November 2 VC suffer in close combat at Plei Me. Bombers hit jungles again.
November 5 More Red troops reported in Vietnam. Remove grenade from back of Viet farmer.
November 8 U.S. bombers smash N. Vietnam SAM missile sites north of Thanh Hoa. Marines blast
civilian village by mistake near Chu Lai. 12th Tactical Fighter Wing assigned Cam Rahn
Bay. Plain Dealer wants list of servicemen in Vietnam. TSGT Robert F. Van Camp,
computer maint. tech., selected Outstanding NCO of the Month Traux Field. A3C Terry
L. Eltzroth graduated USAF weapons mech. training Lowry AFB.
November 11 Combined offensive in Vietnam reopened Highway 1.
November 15 U.S. troops batter Cong near Cambodian Border at Chu Pung Mountain, 1,000 enemy
dead.
November 16 N. Viet regiment annihilated at Chu Pung Mountain.
November 17 N. Viet losses may shift war to new phase. Thomas L. Wagoner enlisted in the Army
sent to Ft. Knox for basic.
November 18 Heavy casualties in Mountain battle; bombers rake Chu Pung area. Reds used suicide
waves at Chu Pung.
November 20 Heavy fighting breaks out again in the LaDrang valley. Westmoreland hails victory. Peru
youth killed in Vietnam. Ronald D. Reynolds selected Honorman at Great Lakes. Article
on Vietnam "And then there were three" by Tom Tiede. Ben Hoa, Viet Nam (NEA)-
There were 18 ggood men to start with. Then 17, then 16, then 15.
One by one they died.
They were a squad and a half out of B. Company (1st Battalion, the 173rd) left as security while the main
force searched the hills for the enemy.
Fifteen good men. Then 14, then 13, then 12…
"I think they are friendlies," said Spec. 4 Jerry Langston of Paducah, Ky., when the group first heard the
noise in the thicket.
"Hey out there," he hollered, "who the hell's side you on?"
The reply was bitter and blunt-a bullet. Jerry Langston smashed to the ground.
It blew a two-inch hole in his helment, but somehow, drew no blood. "Lord," he said to himself, "I'm
still alive!" And then there was no more time for congratulations. From behind every tree out of every
bush, pajama-clad Viet Cong began to scour the area with shot.
A dozen good men now. The 11, then 10, then nine.
This was the Cong's kind of fight. A smaller band of Americans cut off from its parend group, out in
the jungle cleaing with only elephan grass and mounds of animal waste for protection.
The enemy blew scores of eerie bugles, which echoed ass frightfully as hundreds. They advanced
slowly, fired wildly and punctured every inch of soil or skin unfortunate enough to be exposed.
"We ain't got a chance," Langston thought, "we're all dead."
Nine good men now. Then eight, then seven.
"My rifle," somebody shrieked, "It's jammed."
"Throw that man a weapon a sergeant shouted.
"Please somebody, anybody-get me a rifle!"
The air was thick with gunsmoke and the area littered with dead from both sides. A VC had moved too
close and was demolished from waist up by a grenade launcher. A GI was whimpering on the ground,
smoke streaming from a neck wound where a white-hot tracer bullet had lodged.
"I can't see anything," a trooper screamed. "My eyes."
"Somebody help that man."
But there was no help, no medic, no comfort, no hope.
Seven good men now. Then six, then five.
Three noncoms had taken over the phone in 15 minutes time each after the former had died. One got it
in the arm and again in the stomach. The second in the foot, hip and chest. The third in a dozen places.
And still the VC advanced. Herding the dwindling Americans into a small, tight knot of chattering
weapons and open flesh.
Langston took over the radio when the last sergeant died. He heard its rushing whisper but could not
find the headset. Then he did, grotesquely clamped in the lifeless hand of his companion.
Five good men now. Then four, then three.
And finally, Jerry Langston felt a blast of heat and passed out.
He was the last to stop fighting. He had fired more than 300 rounds of ammunition at a fanatical,
suicidal enemy. He had watched his best friend die, and then his next best and his next best after that.
He himself lived along with two others, wounded, unconscious and left for dead. There were 18 good
men to start with. Now there were only three. The others, Langston feels, will, at least, go to heaven.
They have already been to hell.
COUNTY SERVICEMENT IN VIETNAM PVT G.L. ATKINSON, PVT TERRY L. BREWER, PFC TIM
BROOKS, SP4 JOHN W. CARTER, LCPL RICHARD D. COPPOCK, PFC KEITH D. DIXON, SP4
WILLIAM R. EVANS, PFC JON A. GIDLEY, SP5 RONALD W. HANCOCK, PFC KENNETH S.
HOOVER, SP4 MAX E. METZGER, SP4 ROGER H, PANNING, SP5 LEO G. REAM, SGT BOB
RICHARDS, SP5 JAMES C. ROSE, PFC GEORGE C. SCHEERER, PFC KEITH SWANSON, PRC
DAVID R. ULREY, PFC ROBERT E. VIGAR, IREL G. WILCOX, PVT PHILLIP B. WOODWARD,
A1C LARRY YENTES.
Legion has orders for flag pins. Indianapolis (UPI) American Legion national headquarters here announced
Thursday it had received more than 11 million requests for American flag pins it is distributing in
"Operation Shouw Your Colors."
The Legion said the demand for the lapl pins in a program to display suppot of the nation's policy in
Viet Nam has exceeded all expectations. Early estimates placed the number of requests at from 5 to 10
million.
November 23 U.S. forces blast troop concentration. Planes bomb major airport near Hanoi. James M.
Miller, medical specialist, 2nd Inf. Div. 12th Art., Korea, promoted to SP4.
November 24 240 Americans die in Vietnam in week. Death toll is the largest of the war. William J.
Knotts begins Navy basic training. PVT Tommy L. Behny completed chemical entry
course Ft. McClellan. GM3 George D. Jenks, USS Prairie, returned to San Diego.
November 26 McNamara will fly to Vietnam to visit area for the 7th time.
November 27 Missile support base bombed near Hanoi. Cong launch major attack on plantation.
November 29 McNamara says war tide has changed U.S. will match any Red effort. Christmas mail
floods Vietnam.
November 30 VC bolsters army in south says McNamara. Defense chief sees "long road" ahead in
Vietnam. Red attack on Special Forces camp repulsed.
December 1 Gromyko cold toward cease fire says U.S. must withdraw troops from Vietnam.
December 2 USS Enterprise pilots fly 140 raids against Reds. Nuclear powered carrier sees first war-
fare. Loas put on war status. Latest Vietnam death list is lower.
December 3 N. Vietnam admits air raids hurt war effort. TMM2 Roger H. Baldus, USS Richard B.
Anderson, took part in training exercise Range Bush.
December 4 Reds bomb Navy dispensary in Saigon building.
December 6 Mcnamara plans to close 149 bases. PFC William Frank on furlough from Ft. Dix to be
sent to Germany. FN James M. Black aboard the USS Brinkley Bass in Seventh Fleet.
December 8 SN Steve L. Wolf graduated basic Great Lakes assigned to the USS Point Defiance.
December 9 Reds inflict heavy losses on Vietnamese. David L. Leland, Leslie R. Whitesel, Edwin A.
Vossler, Harry O. Pence and Terry A. Peas enlisted in USAF in basic Lackland AFB.
December 10 Marine reinforcement trap VC regiment.
December 11 Leathernecks take VC stronghold near Qui Son. AN David L. Leland finished basic
assigned to Shepperd AFB for training as an accounting and finance specialist. AN
Thomas I. Trisler finished basic assigned Shepperd AFB for training as a communi-
cations specialist. PVT Larry W. Richards in basic Camp Pendleton. A2C LeRoy
Bakehorn at Orlando AFB. AB James Bakehorn at Lackland AFB. FN Ralph M.
Kirchbaum, USS Coral Sea, returned to Alameda after 11month deployment.
December 13 Marines find Cong's base camp. PVT James Draper completed basic Ft. Knox sta-
tioned at Ft. Eustis.
December 15 PVT Lynn Hammands enlisted in the Army now at Ft. Knox.
December 16 Rusk tells NATO U.S. willing to talk peace in Vietnam.
December 17 Reds bomb truck full of troops.
December 18 William W. Stumpf promoted to Captain in Marine Reserve in Portland, Oregon.
December 21 FCT3 Donald H. Vogel, USS Oriskany, returned to San Diego.
December 22 U.S. to step up Viet ground war. Local draft quota is 16 for January.
December 23 U.S. troops approach truce with caution. 30 hour lull is ordered. CPL Wayne L. Ric-
hards, USS Guam, deployed to the Caribbean.
December 25 Johnson suspends bombing of N. Vietnam in an attempt to induce the Communists to
negotiate.
December 28 VC propose new ceasefire for four days.
December 29 Additional troops of the 3rd Brigade, 25th Inf. Div. arrived in Vietnam. American troop
strength in Vietnam reaches 200,000. Larry C. Keffaber, clerk typist, completed basic
Ft. Knox now at Ft. Bragg. PVT Dale L. Eppley, Ft. Gordon, finished communications
center specialist course.
1966 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January PFC Douglas Bowman stationed on Guam. While stationed there he was one of four
Marines picked for duty at the U.S. Naval Brig on Guam out of two battalions of Marines.
January 6 VC press attacks on Saigon.
January 7 SP4 Lawrence Brane separated from active duty at Ft. Sheridan, transferred to the Army
Reserve. He was awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received in Vietnam. Brane was
released from active duty after a little less than two years service. He was attached to
headquarters and HQ Co., 2nd BN of the 16th Inf. Div. as an armor crewman. He was also
awarded the Marksman Medal for M-1 Rifle and sharpshooter with the M-14.
January 8 PFC Lawrence K. Kessler with Marine fighter Attack Sqd 531 NAS Roosevelt Roads.
PVT Paul L. Johnson completed ICT with the 2nd Inf. Training Regt. Camp Pendleton.
January 10 U.S. troops on secret sweep of Viet jungles.
January 11 Darrell D. Benson, in Germany, promoted to SP5.
January 12 Find Saigon's Communist headquarters in tunnels. Richard L. Thompson enlisted in the US Navy.
January 15 Donald Bennett enlisted USMC sent to San Diego for training.
January 17 U.S. observe new Viet cease fire. Halt in fighting will come at Chinese New Year.
January 18 U.S. boosts number of troops in Vietnam. Marine, Army units increased to 190,000.
January 20 SP4 William E. Evans guard for Gen. R.R. Ploger in Saigon.
January 21 VC attack shatters still of cease fire. AA William Knotts, graduated from AMS Hydraulic
School, NATTC Memphis. SGT William S. Leeka participated in field exercises near
Grafenwohr, Ger. PFC Gregory L. Atkinson in the Hue-Phu Bai sector, Vietnam.
January 22 Hope for early peace in Vietnam at new low. Speculate on resumption of air attacks.
January 24 2nd LT Jackie Barnhouse completed field artillery basic officers course Ft. Sill.
January 25 Transport crash in Viet jungle kills 47 Americans. AN David A. McHarry chosen for
USAF weather specialist training, Chanute AFB. AN Edwin A. Vossler selected for
USAF aircraft maintenance specialist training Sheppard AFB. James L. Smith received
paratroopers wings at Ft. Rucker.
January 27 PFC James Spaulding in Vietnam.
January 29 SSGT Everett G. Miller died in action in Vietnam. The mother was notified by the
decedent's wife, who had been living in Oahu, Hawaii, but has returned to the States after receiving word
of her husband's death.
No other details were learned except that the body is being returned to Kansas City, Kansas, and burial
will be in Fort Leavenworth National Cemetery. Mrs. Miller returned to the home of her parents in Kansas
City, where she awaits further word.
SSGT Miller was born in Roann, Feb. 2, 1932, to Isaac Solomon and Zella May (Reed) Miller. His
marriage to Katherine Setzer occurred August 20, 1955 in Kansas City.
Mr. Miller came to Wabash in December of 1944 and attended city schools until his graduation from
Wabash High School in 1952.
Considered a star basketball player, Mr. Miller played on teans that won 37 straight games. He also
held a pass interception record in football.
He was a member of two Wabash sectional tournament championship teams in 1950 and 1951. His
junior year, 1951, he was named to the Central Indiana Conference all-conference team.
His junior year, his last season of eligibility, the Apaches won 16 and lost nine. They finished second in
the CIC. Other team members included bob Mattern, Jim Vrooman, Jerry Renbarger and Bud Deeter.
Suvivors include the widow, a son, Chris; one daughter, Tracy; the mother, seven brothers and sisters,
Charles Miller, Mrs. Donald Coolman, James Miller, all of Fort Wayne; Mrs. Guy Smith, Peru; Robert
Miller, Mrs. Gene Williams, both of Wabash, and Meredith Miller, address unknown; five half-0brothers
and sisters, Mrs. William Teel, Mrs. Byron Tyson, Lemoine Miller, all of Wabash; Lewis Miller and
Donald Miller, both of Fort Wayne.
SSGT Miller enlisted in the Army in 1952, and saw service in Germany, Korea and Hawaii.
January 31 Johnson resumes bombing after 38 day lull. PVT Kenneth D. Alexander completed com-
munications center specialist course at Ft. Gordon.
February 2 Offensive in Vietnam increase.
February 3 Cavalry smashes VC units. SP4 Dale A. Weiss married in Spokane, Wa., to Elsa Louise
Faler. Herschel L. Hall, Korea, promoted to SP4.
February 4 Bombers pound roads, bridges in N. Vietnam. Senate committee begins debate of Viet-
nam policy.
February 5 Big offensive on in Vietnam; full division may be involved in huge sweep. Kenneth
Collins, Hickman AFB, promoted to Major. Burton Myers enlisted in the Army began
basic Ft. Knox.
February 7 Fear Cong forces elude trap, net misses 1,500 enemy soldiers west of the An Lo Valley.
February 8 Johnson and S. Vietnamese leaders issue a communiqué in Honolulu emphasizing the
need for pacification in S. Vietnam. Plan Vietnam economic reform talks link growth
with war victory. Close fighting rages in Vietnam.
February 9 Viet casualties increase; enemy suffer extensive losses in major battle in Ia Drang Valley.
A3C Roy L. Jackson graduated administrative specialist course Amarillo AFB.
February 10 A1C John E. Kelly graduated from aircraft propeller repairman training course Sheppard
AFB. AN Kenny L. Metzger sent to aircraft equipment school, Chanute AFB.
February 11 U.S. begins new Viet offensive near Phu Xuan.
February 12 PVT Roger L. Haupert completed combat engineer course at Ft. Leonard Wood.
February 18 Rusk backs Viet fighting calls commitment vital to American image in world. John T.
Cruz in basic at Great Lakes. James D. Bowman, Shepperd AFB, promoted A2C. AA
John R. Guthrie and AA Scott L. Cooper serving with VT3 Whiting Field NAAS.
TMM3 Roger H. Baldus,USS Richard B. Anderson, in the South China Sea.
February 19 Savage Vietnam battles continue. Cavalry hits Cong in Bong Son area. Anti-Viet pickets
follow Humphrey. AN Max E. Cox in technical training Chanute AFB. Leroy Bakehorn
personnel specialist Orland AFB, promoted to A1C. PVT Paul D. Moore finished radio
technician course, assigned to heavy Material Supply Co., Ft. Monmouth. Billy G. Heath,
Terry W. Sutton and Danny L. Howell enlisted USMC 120 day delay program.
February 21 AN Harry Pence graduated basic Lackland AFB will attend communications-electronics
course, Kessler AFB.
February 22 U.S. troops ambushed major encounter at close range. FN Jackie LeeVotra assigned to
the USS Okanogan. Garland Webb promoted to SP5 in Germany. AN Robert L. Fordyce
and AN Bryan B. Brooks finished basic Lakeland AFB selected for advanced training.
February 23 VC stand and fight heavy ground fire hits helicopters near Bong Son. PFC Philip B.
Woodward received multiple wounds in Vietnam. A telegram from LT.GEN. R.C.
Mangrum, USMC, stated he sustained multiple wounds in the face, right arm and lower
extremities while engaged in action against hostile forces. He received treatment aboard
the USS Repose. His condition serious. He entered the service in May 1965 and had
been in Vietnam a month.
February 25 March draft call slashed enlistments cut need by 10,500. Selective Service inducted 12
men in February and seven in March; Ronald D. Barlow, Randall L Beeks, Joseph A.
Catterton, James D. Downey, Larry L. Enyeart, David T. Helms, Paul E. Hull, Bobby D.
Owens, Lester E. Spangle, and Bobby R. Stevens into the Army and David D. Lorenz in
the Marines.
March 1 Is there great division over our Vietnam policy? PVT Roy L. Adkins completed individ-
ual combat training at Camp Pendleton.
March 2 350,000 troops for Vietnam. Increase would come gradually.
March 3 VC hit heart of Saigon. McNamara says U.S. can win in Vietnam. New GI Bill signed by
president. SP4 Joseph R. Petro takes part in exercise Winter Arrow with 8th Inf. In Ger.
March 4 U.S. wrecks Viet railroad. PVT Walter E. Warren in training for service and supply Camp
Pendleton. PVT Raymond Meeks, Jr. completed 3 week airborne course Ft. Benning.
March 5 Kent L. Fites, Billy G. Heath and Charles T. Wilson enlisted in the USMC. HC Tommy
R. Miller, from Laketon, killed in action in Vietnam, due to a gunshot wound received
near Quangngai Province. He had been in Vietnam for ll month assigned to the 2nd BATT,
4th Marines.
TOMMY R. MILLER WABASH COUNTY HERO
During the Vietnam War Wabash County lost sixteen men. The second young man to give his life for
his country was Tommy R. Miller. Miller was born May 7, 1943, the son of Arden and Genevee Miller
and spent most of his life in the sleepy little community of Laketon, Indiana. He went to school in Laketon
and graduated from Laketon High School in 1961. There were 29 other people in his graduating class. He
attended the United Brethren Church in Laketon.
Like many a youth in the 1960s he had a decision to make, serve his country or find a way out of it. In
January of 1964 he made his decision by enlisting in the United States Navy. The recruiting office was
located in Memorial Hall, one floor below the museum. There he met with recruiting representatives of
each branch of the service, impressive in their neat clean uniforms. Willingly they talked up their branch of
the service and the benefits they had to offer. Miller enlisted with five other Wabash County youth James
A. Risser, John L. Butler, Mickey E. Hudson, Ronald E. Swygart and Jerry D. Flinn, all of whom were sent
to San Diego for basic training. Three of these men were in the same graduating class as Miller, Butler,
Hudson and Swygart. In basic training Miller learned about the history of the Navy, its customs, drills,
basic seamanship such as tying knots. He endured physical training, fighting fires and marching drills. He
marched everywhere from the barracks to the chow hall to class and back to the barracks. In April he
completed basic training and was selected to become a hospital corpsman (HC).
Miller packed up his duffel bag and headed to school at Great Lakes. After graduating from Hospital
Corpsman School he was stationed at NAS Point Mugu. In April of 1965 Miller volunteered to go to
Vietnam serving as a hospital corpsman assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines (2/4). The motto of this
outfit was "Second to None." In May of 1965 the Marines landed at Chu Lai, in Quang Ngai Province.
One Marine once said of this province "if there was one place you didn't want to be as an American
serviceman it was Quang Ngai." Before long they were involved in Operation Starlite their first major
engagement.
Operation Starlight was followed by "Operation Double Eagle" on January 28, 1966. It was during this
operation that Miller met and struck up a friendship with another Hospital Corpsman Carl Dunaway. "He
(Miller) was a very likable guy and he and I, along with other corpsmen, had this fraternity, almost, that we
belonged to and we took it very personal when we lost one of them...we knew each other by name on sight.
In 'Operation Double Eagle" we were against the PAVN 18th Regiment, 325th Division. That operation
scared everyone because the PAVN used Chinese tactics, bugles that were not done since the Korean War
and they over ran us."
Miller and Dunaway continued their friendship after Operation Double Eagle. "Our conversations were
always more along the line of our job. How to do this and how to do that. I don't ever recall us talking
about our life growing up or even our folks. A lot of our conversations were interrupted by gunfire and
interruptions from various sergeants telling us to get up and move." As a hospital corpsman Miller had to
treat so many other "things than they would ever have to think of in the states. There were guys who had
their toes bit off by rats while sleeping. We had some who were mauled by black panthers while on
ambushes. The humidity was one of the worst factors against us. We had guys with mold and fungus
which grew under their airs and crotch. I and Tommy, didn't get to sleep in a bed for probably six months.
We slept on the ground. We wore the same clothes for most of that time also because we just couldn't pack
several changes of clothes with us."
On March 5th the 2/4 and other outfits were sent on another operation "Operation Utah". In this
operation it would be the first time the Marines would engage the soldiers of the PVA (People's Vietnam
Army) particularly the 36th Infantry regiment PVA. It was the job of the 2/4 to establish blocking positions
to close enemy escape routes. Miller was carried into this engagement on a UH-34 helicopter capable of
carrying 1,600 pounds. Upon reaching the LZ (landing zone) the UH-34's came under heavy small arms
fire. As Tommy Miller was running from the helicopter he was shot in the head.
On his last mission was HC Carl Dunaway. Dunaway says of that mission: "We were all lifted in with
these UH-34's (ugly looking helicopters)…. He was on another chopper but on the same third wave.
"I remember waiting for the choppers to come back for us and it seemed like forever. When they did
most of them all had many, many bullet holes in them. The chopper I boarded had a hole in its side bigger
than a watermelon. I could stick my head through it if I wanted to. When we landed a firefight was
already going on. We were I thought surrounded. We basically got ambushed as my diary described it. I
think I was kneeling, trying to figure out which way to go when I heard someone behind me get hit. I heard
my name called out which surprised me. Before I knew it and could turn around he (Tommy) was thrown
down on me. I thought it was just another Marine. I knew he had a head wound and probably dead or
damn close to it. I also knew there wasn't anything I could do for him. I cradled his body, you know not
even knowing it was him because his face was so swollen and blue
"The noise around me I remember was so ungodly loud. Hundreds of weapons going off at the same
time along with mortars, the choppers and screaming. I pulled the man around and got him laying across
my lap and searched for his dog tags. His face looked so bad. I had his blood down the back of neck, all
over my left side, and covering my lap. I looked at his dog tags and at that moment, it was like the whole
world went quiet. I kept looking at his face wondering who this man was. I knew it couldn't have been the
same Tommy Miller I knew. But it was. I think it was a few minutes later a couple of Marines pulled me
away from there. Then I saw another corpsman by the name of Lockhart get hit when he ran across a dike.
The same two Marines that pulled me away from Tommy went for Lockhart and were killed. This all
started about 9:00 in the morning and was still going on at 11:00 at night when we had an emergency
ammo drop." Dunaway went on to say that "Tommy never-and I mean this with my whole being-never felt
a thing. He did not die like so many hundreds that I saw where they laid in pain and agony."
"We had so many Marines that were wounded that day that after we were able to get them to the LZ
they bled to death because we couldn't get choppers in to pick them up. If Tommy would have only been
wounded, he may still have died because thee was no way of getting him out until the next day."
On March 8, 1966 his parents received a telegram informing them that he had been killed in action. His
body was returned to the Bender Funeral Home in North Manchester and he was buried in Pleasant Hill
Cemetery just west of North Manchester.
March 7 Selective Service reports six Wabash county men were inducted in the March 3rd draft
call. All went into the Army. They were Lynn E. Lake, Bruce L. Biehl, Sammy D.
Brown, Carl D. Rose, William D. Jacobs and James H. McCoy.
March 8 James L. Kreider, Germany, promoted to PFC with VII Corps.
March 9 Cong surround U.S. Camp rescue attempt by air is failure. Richard L.Thompson in basic
San Diego. A3C David L. Leland graduated basic Sheppard AFB sent to Maxwell AFB.
PVT Alan D. Stackhouse completed advanced artillery and missile school, Fort Sill.
FCT3 Donald H. Vogel received Navy Unit Commendation for his service aboard the
USS Oriskany.
March 10 Buddhist demonstrators against Saigon regime in Hue and DaNang. Enemy takes U.S.
camp only 4 Yanks survive the battle. Three Hamilton brothers in service. Jim Hamilton,
clerk typist, Edgewood Arsenal; Fred Hamilton MP, Homestead AFB; and Thomas E.
Hamilton HC-1 NAAS Ream Field. PVT Michael D. Metzger completed basic Army
administration course Ft. Ord. LTJG Morris H. Duffey qualifies for carrier landings at
NAS Pensacola.
March 11 Choppers save 59 in camp. Survivors tell of Communist attack at A Shau. FA Clifford A.
Marsh reported for duty at Naval Amphibious School, Little Creek.
March 12 Students seize Vietnam radio stations. Reinstatement of ousted general Thi is demanded.
Roger Panning, 35th Engineer group, speaks to Exchange Club on Vietnam experiences.
March 15 Viet soldiers protest firing of Corps Commander Thi. CPL Wayne L. Richards deployed
to the Caribbean in Exercise Gaucho. COL. G.M. Anderson assumed command of the
3428th Technical Training Sqd, Offutt AFB. AN Richard White and Michael E. Reardon
serving aboard the USS Saratoga in the Med.
March 18 Reds move men and supplies on new trail in Vietnam called the Ho Chi Minh Trail.
March 19 Marine losses moderate. VC hit near Da Nang. Donald Bennett graduated recruit training
San Diego. SA John Kilander, USS America, participated in Fairgame IV. Glenus N.
Martin stationed with the USS Okangun at Long Beach. AN Phillip D. Allen in training
as statistical data specialist Sheppard AFB. Ernest E. Saunders, Phillip A. Smith, Richard
L. Albert and David L. Idle enlisted in the USMC.
March 21 USMC kill 280 Cong; five American airplanes lost. AN Steven E. Armie selected for
train-
ing as a medical specialist, Gunter AFB. AN Stephen M. Conner completed basic Lack-
land AFB. AN Arnold E. Grossnickel selected for training as munitions specialist Lowry
AFB. FN Harold Sandelbach crewmember aboard the USS Severn. SP5 Bascom Hunt
awarded Air Medal for service with the 68th Aviation Co.
March 23 SGT Donald L. Vance, 895th Military Police, died of spinal meningitis on Okinawa.
Mr. And Mrs. Glen Vance, North Manchester, R.R. 3, received word Monday evening that their son,
SGT Donald Leon Vance, had died of spinal meningitis on Okinawa. He was stationed with the 895th
Military Police. His death must have occurred suddenly as his wife had received a letter from him
Thursday and he was well, it was reported.
Vance was born May 16, 1936 to Glen and Maxine (Hoppes) Vance at North Manchester. He was
graduated from Chester High School in 1954 and has been with the Army Military Police for 10 years. He
was stationed in Germany for 3 ½ years and in Okinawa since November.
He is survived by his parents, his wife, the former Frances Miller, Palmyria, Pa., and three children,
Debra Diane, Rebecca Sue and Robert Glenn. A sister, Mrs. Ralph Bolinger, lives at North Manchester
R.R. 2.
The body is being returned to this country and will be brought to the Bender Funeral Home. Time of
arrival is not known as yet and no definite arrangements for the funeral can be made.
3-26-1966 The body of Donald Leon Vance has arrived thisafternoon and funeral services will be held
Sunday at 2 p.m. in the Bender Funeral Home with the Rev. Benjamin Thomas and the Rev.
John Bunch officiating. They body is at the Bender Funeral Home where friends may call
after 7 p.m. Saturday.
Masonic Lodge Service will be held at 7:15 Saturday with all master masons meeting at the Funeral
Home at 7 p.m.
Following the service Sunday the body will be taken to the Rothermel Funeral Home, Palmyria, Pa., for
further service.
March 26 Marines protect shipping, land at mouth of Saigon River. Hartke says LBJ has bad advice
on Vietnam War. MSGT Venix Berlin in Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Hickam Field.
March 30 VC trap U.S. troops. Air Cavalry unit pinned down on Chu Pung Mountain. AN Jackie L.
Hoover selected for training Chanute AFB. PVT William K. Powell completed course Ft.
Gordon. PVT Michael A. Kerr completed combat engineer course Ft. Leonard Wood.
A1C Wendell J. Wilson, supply inventory specialist, now in Vietnam. SA Hillary E. Lar-
rowe sent to DaNang for the next 18 months.
March 31 A3C Leslie R. Whitesel graduated Amarillo AFB. QM2 Dale H. Williams aboard the USS
Clarion River. PVT Clyde B. Rife assigned Batt D, 68th Art., 3rd BT. Roger Panning, rece-
ntly returned from military duty in Vietnam presented a slide program to the Wabash Brea-
kfast Exchange Club
April 2 Army 1st Air Cavalry traps VC in valley near Chu Pung.
April 5 Ky's troubles mount; rioting continues in major cities. FA John O. Brown, USS Lexington
home ported NAS Pensacola. PVT Danny K. Coldren completed machine engine operat-
ion and maintenance course Ft. Eustis. Jack L. Hoover and Richard S. Lower enlisted in
the USAF.
April 6 Ky moves to end crisis. Evacuate Yanks from one Viet city.
April 7 Viet riots turn anti-American; mobs attack soldiers in Saigon. LCDR David G. Smith
aboard the USS Jack. PFC Paul R. Webb in motor transport in Vietnam. Draft call for
June drops to only 15,000. William L. Baldwin, chief of military personnel Wiesbaden,
Ger., promoted to LtCol.
April 9 Buddhists war on Ky. Americans flee from Danang. Daniel Grosswiler, 91st Maint. Co.,
Ger., promoted to SP4.
April 11 Shortage of U.S. bombers. Ky moves army troops to Saigon. PVT Dallas G. Graffis at Ft.
Knox. A3C Robert W. Erb at Anderson AFB, Guam.
April 12 B52s strike N.Vietnam for the first time. PVT Larry E. Powell completed Radio teletype
operation course, Ft. Gordon. Donald Bennett completed ICT Camp Pendleton. David
Richards in basic Ft. Jackson.
April 14 Russia hikes aid to Vietnam-planes, missiles sent to war zone. W.E. Benson Jr. enlisted in
the Navy. PVT Todd Bowen finished basic Ft. Knox assigned Ft. Ord.
April 15 Buddhists endorse Ky. Junta promises new government. U.S. toll in Vietnam is higher.
April 16 Close combat in Vietnam. Enemy launches mortar attacks. PO3 Ronald Swygart, dental
technician, 1st Marine Air Wing in DaNang promoted.
April 21 AB Dennie J. Lambert in basic Lackland AFB. Robert L. Bailey finished basic Ft. Knox
sent to Ft. Benning. PVT Peter I. Renz transferred from Ft. Knox to Ft.Hood.
April 22 Reds take heavy losses. Marines receive artillery support near Quang Ngai City. SA
Edward W. Howard, USS Salisbury Sound, in Cam Rahn harbor. LCPL Lawrence V.
Kindel completed 12 day training and processing cycle at Camp Pendleton. MMFN Gary
D. Enyeart, USS Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr., with the 6th Fleet in the Med.
April 23 Capt. Gary H. Bowman on furlough. He was in Holland with the USAF for three years.
April 25 Repel attacking Reds. U.S. Destroyer shells troops. MMFN James M. Black, USS
Brinkley Bass, returned to the U.S. after six months in the China Sea. PVT L.W. Richards
after training at San Diego and Camp Pendleton sent to DaNang.
April 26 Russian MIG 21 shot down over Vietnam. PVT Alan D. Stackhouse stationed at Pho Loy
Base north of Saigon. He entered the Army October 1965, completed basic Ft. Knox and
advanced Artillery and Missile School Ft. Sill.
April 27 FCT3 Donald M. Vogel, USS Oriskany, took part in Exercise Gray Ghost. PFC Ed Hor-
nung, Fairchild AFB, sent to Germany. PVT James M. Nicely completed commuications
center specialist course, Ft. Gordon.
April 28 Capture enemy supplies. Yanks destroy largest cache in S. Vietnam in War Zone C.
April 29 Sink enemy supply junks. Planes continue raids on shipping.
May 3 U.S. fires into Cambodia; artillery barrage in self defense. Administration holds to policy
of limited war in Vietnam. QMSN Jerry McKee finished quartermaster school and sent
back to the USS Long Beach.
May 5 Roger L. Haupert, 1st BN, 2 Inf, 1 Div. promoted to PFC in Vietnam. PVT Jack L. Lines
is a mortar gunner in Korea. Karen Pinkerton married SSGT Lawrence E. Tatro.
May 6 SP4 Tommy Berry has 30 days leave from Korea. SR Danny L. Schlemmer completed
basic Great Lakes. PO3 Michael L. Campbell received letter of commendation from CO
USN Communications Station Sidi Yahia, Morocco.
May 7 Allies Score Viet victory-Red regiment trapped on coast.
May 10 PVT Robert L. Robinson assigned combat engineer Co. C, 20th Eng. BT, Vietnam. SP4
Loren D. Rhamy completed track vehicle mechanic course Ft. Knox. AN Dennis J.
Lambert selected for munitions specialist training Lowry AFB.
May 11 War power eased; LBJ president says America use caution in Vietnam. No reserves
call up in war plans.
May 12 Capt. Robin Miller, 24 month tour in Vietnam with the 101st Aviation Batt., earned the
Distinguished Flying Cross (twice), Army Commendation Medal, 3 Purple Hearts,
Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry (3 times) and 48 Awards of the Air Medal, and the Silver
Star. McNamara says Reds have intensified efforts in Vietnam. Troops in Vietnam using
large quantities of tear gas.
May 13 Air war in Vietnam intensifies; Reds claim U.S. downed MIG over Communist China.
Robert E. Kirby, 622nd Heavy Material Supply Co., Ger., promoted to PFC. PO3 John
M. Niemershein finished Aviation Anti Submarine tech course NATTC Memphis.
May 14 PVT Stephen C. Crow stationed Ft. Polk.
May 16 U.S. asked to dump Ky. Buddhists vow unending fight. ABEAN John P. Grogg stationed
NAS Lakehurst.
May 19 Reds cross neutral zone battalion hits Vietnamese Camps. HCAN Michael E. O'Brien
assigned to Naval Hospital Corps School, Great Lakes.
May 20 Civil War looms in Vietnam. Rebels threaten American air bases. Rex Clevenger woun-
ded in Vietnam by sniper fire. Gunshot wound in spine and chest. SA Hillary R. Larrowe
reported for duty at Naval Support Activity in DaNang. A3C Greg Smith in technical
training Lowery AFB. Lanny A. Terrell promoted to A2C.
May 21 Buddhists riot in Saigon; clash with police. Helicopters hunt for VC.
May 23 Government troops take over Da Nang. Troops crush Viet rebels. Revolt believed under
control. Major Harry J. Walther completed Army Command and General Staff College at
Ft. Leavenworth. PVT Walter E. Warren completed training and processing cycle Camp
Pendleton.
May 24 Inducted in the May Draft call were Steven C. Emrick, John D. Walters, Jerry A. Ride-
nour, Tim A. Moyer, Darrell A. Jolly, Walter N. Long, David R. McCombs, Howard S.
Powell, Michael G. Spacy and Ronnie E. Coots.
May 25 Wreck Commie offensive; major Yank victory.
May 26 Mob burns U.S. library; Lodge denounces attack by students. A3C Bryan B. Brooks
graduated dental specialist Gunter AFB. PVT Elmer E. Cloe stationed Cherry Point.
May 28 ROTC cadets Doug Durnbaugh and Marvin Hamilton commissioned 2nd LT at Indiana
University.
May 31 Walter E. Warren promoted to PFC while serving in Vietnam. SP Rex Clevenger evacu-
ated to U.S. now at Walter Reed Hospital.
June 1 AN Jerry Lundeen selected for technical training Chanute AFB. PVT David R. Finne-
gan completes combat engineer course Ft. Leonard Wood. Virginia Bumgardner married
PVT Robert D. Gunter. He is stationed at El Toro. PVT Carl B. Abbott completed a postal
course Ft. Benjamin Harrison sent to Munich, Germany.
June 3 S. Vietnam plunged into crisis again. PVT A. Guenin and PFC S.L. Faust at Camp Pendle-
ton. PVT Ronald J. Charles and PVT James McCoy at Ft. Ord and SP4 Joe R. Petro with
Co. C, 68th Armour.
June 4 Three Buddhists commit suicide by fire in Vietnam. A3C James Bakehorn completed
postal school Ft. Benjamin Harrison and has been sent to Turkey. LCPL Ronald Schle-
mmer graduated from transportable shelter communications van school, Camp Lejuene.
PVTBobby R. Stephens at Ft. Polk. PVT Thomas L. Wagoner, launcher helper, assigned
to the 55th Arty, 5th Batt, Ft. Leavenworth.
June 7 AN David T. Daine selected for technical training at Lowry AFB. PVT Kent L. Fites grad-
uated recruit training San Diego.
June 8 AM3 Ronald D. Bowman, USS Ticonderoga, returned to San Diego from Vietnamese
waters.
June 9 Captain orders bombs onto own position to rout Reds in Kantum Province. PVT Max
Todd completed bulk handlers course, Camp Pendleton, will be stationed at Cherry Point.
June 11 Captain Carpenter's unit safe. American guns cut loose on siege in Kontum Province.
June 13 Paratroopers, 'copters assaulting Cong regiments jungle stronghold. PVT Larry L. Enyeart
finished basic Ft. Knox, in helicopter mechanic training Ft. Eustis.
June 14 Buddhist riots flare in Saigon. Snub by Ky may heighten violence. USAF Captain Max
Reed, C-123 Provider pilot, awarded Air Medal in Vietnam. AN Anthony P. Neff selected
for munitions specialist training, Lowry AFB. PVT David D. Lorenz completed ICT Camp
Pendleton.
June 15 Navy flattens Red radar site. Raid eight miles from Haiphong; bomber downed. Vietnam
veteran says "Goof Balls" available to troops. PVT Glenn A. Guenin graduated recruit
training San Diego. PFC Jerry E. Smith completed basic Ft. Knox, assigned to the 724th
Maintenance in Ger. AN Michael L. Fearnow assigned to Vandenberg AFB. Paul N.
Wright completed advanced infantry training, Ft. Polk.
June 16 Government troops take over Hue.
June 17 Nun's immolation attempt fails; new violence explodes in Saigon. A3C Robert S. Kaiser,
operating room specialist, stationed at Grand Fords AFB.
June 18 Hue police sack Buddhist Dieu De Pagada. Order surrender of youths who killed company-
ion. PVT Ted O. Brower finished training Ft. Jackson, sent to Ft. Ord for AIT.
June 20 Buddhist leader Thich Tri Quang arrested. RMSN John E. Holmes, USS Merrick, returned
from Vietnamese waters. AN Robert M. Roney assigned Bunker Hill AFB. PFC Greg-
ory Atkinson, Co. G, 1st Marines, 3rd Marine Div., in the Hue-Phy Bai area Vietnam.
James R. Hopson, machinist, Holloman AFB, promoted to A1C.
June 21 Paratroopers in major battle near Tuy Hoa. PFC Jerry J. Elliott, Co. A 724 maintenance,
stationed in Augsburg, Ger.
June 23 PFC Larry E. Powell, A Batry, 6-27 Art., stationed in Vietnam.
June 24 PVT Charles T. Wilson and PVT Bill G. Heath finished basic Camp Pendleton.
June 29 American aircraft bomb oil depots, radar sites, near Hanoi and Haiphong. Fighting fierce in
the South. Cong force riddled at Cambodian border.
July 2 North Vietnam torpedo boats destroyed in Tonkin Gulf. MMAN Mickey E. Hudson, USS
Constellation, with Attack Sqd 155.
July 5 Seven inducted in June draft call – James E. Large, Virgil Bradford, Ronald D. Pore, Robert
W. Brown, Larry L. Wright, Dan R. Lucas and Carl C. Crandall. SR Michael E. O'Brien
and Michael O. Kellar finished basic Great Lakes.
July 6 George W. Ball says Hanoi morale weakening. Cautions against over optimism. AN John
D. Lehner assigned Hutchinson AFB.
July 7 Navy bombers demolish oil depot; three American pilots missing. Draft calls to increase.
David Adamson in recruit training San Diego.
July 9 PVT Danny L. Howell graduates from recruit training at San Diego.
July 11 Report captive pilots will face Hanoi court. PVT Paul E. Hull finished advanced training
Ft. Leonard Wood.
July 12 MIGs, U.S. Jets in Viet battle. PVT Philip A. Smith in basic training San Diego. AN
Ronald D. Reynolds and PVT Donald L. Bennett at NATTC Memphis.
July 18 7,000 Marines push near North-South Vietnam DMZ – Operation Deck House II. PVT
Ernest E. Saunders in basic training San Diego. James B. Clark, medical dispensary
Savanna Army Depot, promoted to E6. He recently returned from Korea. 2nd LT J.M.
Ridenour, assigned Chief of Welfare and Recreation Branch, Valley Forge General Hospital
July 23 Yank pilot escapes from Cong: DMZ Crossing claimed. PVT Charles T. Wilson completed
ICT Camp Pendleton.
July 25 Cong execute six Marine captives. Leatherneck unit engaged in Operation Hastings, hit
near DMZ.
July 26 Guerrillas attack U.S. 25th Inf. Div. base camp at Cu Chi.
July 30 Air raids hit DMZ area first time. Sheldon E. Sutton aboard the USS King.
August l TM2 Roger H. Baldus, USS Richard B. Anderson, returned from six month deployment
with the 7th Fleet. Force of 5,000 Cong believed near Saigon. LTjg Morris H. Duffey
received his wings of gold.
August 3 1st Air Cavalry in Ia Drang Valley. PVT David T. Helms completed ammo record course
at Redstone Arsenal.
August 4 G.I. chant is "Bong the Cong right away." British sentiment moving against U.S. in Viet
war.
August 5 SA David D. Surfus, USS Constellation, in the South China Sea.
August 6 More U.S. troops arrive in Vietnam. Dennis Grossnickle left for Great Lakes boot camp.
August 9 SGT Virgil E. Alevine, 43rd Bombardment Wing, Little Rock AFB, named Maintenance
Man of the Month.
August 10 A3C John D. Lehner assigned to Hutchinson AFS. Village of Troung Thamb bombed by
mistake 15 dead, 182 hurt. U.S. forces increasing 3 times faster than Reds.
August 16 Westmoreland says more troops need in Vietnam.
August 17 Terroists hit U.S. bases at Hue, Saigon, 20 dead as grenade explodes in fair crowd.
August 22 PVT Danny L. Howell completed ICT at Camp Pendleton. SR Gary D. Lhamon finished
basic Great Lakes. PVT Thomas C. Ehret graduated basic San Diego.
August 23 The Beatles dislike Vietnam War.
August 25 Richard L. Thompson graduates from Hospital Corps School at US Naval Hospital, San Diego, Ca.
August 27 PVT Robert R. Benner is in D Co., BN 3TNG, DBE, 3rd Platoon, Ft. Jackson. PVT
Ernest J. Krehin is in Co. A 9th BN, 3 TNG, BRI, Ft. Knox. PVT Kent Fites now on leave
will report to NATTC Memphis.
August 30 Assassination campaign launched by Viet Cong terrorists.
August 31 Max Brubaker died from wounds received while serving in Vietnam. He was a member of
Co. B, 1st BATT, 2nd Inf., and had been in Vietnam for five months, due to return in April. He was the third
Wabash County connected person to died in the Vietnam War.
Laketon-Mr. And Mrs. Albert E. Brubaker, Ijamsville, have received word that their son, PFC Max L.
Brubaker died Thursday, at 3 pm of a wound received while serving in Viet Nam.
PFC Brubaker was a member of Company B, First Battalion, Second Infantry. He had been in Viet
Nam for five months and would have returned to the States in April.
His parents first learned of his death when an army officer called at their home Monday night. A
telegram followed Tuesday afternoon.
Brubaker was graduated from Manchester High School in 1964, and entered the service in October,
1965.
Survivors include his parents, three sisters, Mrs. Kyle Sizemore, Chicago, Mrs. Gail Heeter, South
Bend, and Mrs. James F. Lyons, North Manchester, RR3, and a brother Wayne Brubaker, Wabash.
The body will be returned to the Bender Funeral Home, north Manchester. Arrangements are pending.
Funeral services will be in the Ijamsville Methodist Church.
PFC Brubaker's engagement to Miss Anita Hoover, daughter of Mr. And Mrs. Russell Hoover, New
Paris, had been announced recently. The couple planned a spring wedding.
PFC Brubaker is the third Wabash County-connected person to die in the Viet Nam war. He was
reported the 12th Hoosier killed in Viet Nam action this month.
September 1 U.S. death toll in Vietnam near 5,000.
September 2 N.Vietnam predicts defeat for U.S. Forces. PVT Marvin B. Hamilton, Jr. graduated
recruit training San Diego.
September 3 North Manchester-The body of Max Brubaker is at the Bender Funeral Home where
friends may call after 7 pm Sunday. It will be taken to the church one hour before service time.
Funeral services will be held Tuesday at 2 pm in the Ijamsville Methodist Church with the Rev. Clayton
Kendall officiating. Burial will be in the Laketon Cemetery. Military service will be at the grave.
PFC Brubaker, son of Mr. And Mrs. Albert E. Brubaker, Ijamsville, was killed in action in Viet Nam
August 25.
September 7 AN Ronald D. Reynolds completed Aviation Mechanical Fundamentals School, NATTC
Memphis. PFC David Lorenz, 2nd BN, 5th Marines, hospitalized with injuries when his
truck hit a mine throwing him 20 feet into the air. Injuries included a broken right ankle,
broken leg, shrapnel wounds about the face and second degree burns on the back and
arms. Lorenz had been in Vietnam since August 1.
September 8 Vietnam troop counts exceeds 305,000.
September 9 Communist China hints at N. Vietnamese invasion. U.S. Embassy in Vietnam under
guard. Refugees says Castro has troops in Vietnam. Barrage balloons: the new Vietnam
air war tactics. John H. Johnson arrived home from Germany where he was stationed near
Hanau. He will return there Sept. 30th.
September 10 PFC Charles T. Wilson, 41st BN, 4th Marine has left for Vietnam. PVTs Ernest E. Saund-
ers, Philip A. Smith and David L. Adamson graduated from basic San Diego.
September 12 Ky hails success of Vietnam elections. SR Robert D. Brown undergoing basic San Diego.
September 13 PVT Steven D. Owens in recruit training San Diego. Indianapolis Navy Center picketed.
Bombers continue to pound N. Vietnam. SP4 Robert Kirby tells about trip to Finland.
U.S. troops closing on suspected Cong division.
September 15 Michael W. Ruckman, enlisted Oct. 18, 1965, stationed at Ft. Knox, Ft. Leonard Wood and
then Vietnam, wrote the following about Max Brubaker to his parents: "Mom, do you know how it is to
find out that your best buddy is going to get the medal of Honor and you won't get to see him anymore?
We had things planned ahead, what we were going to do after we get out of this rotten hole.
It felt just like somebody hit me as hard as they could. Mom, don't ever doubt that Max was a Christian.
He was a good Christian boy.
I was out there that night. I was about a mile and a half from where Max was. He and two other boys
held off two battalions of Viet Cong while the rest of the company could retreat to get reinforcements.
Don't worry about me. I am a combat engineer. Max was in the infantry.
Tell Mr. and Mrs. Brubaker I don't know how they feel, but I have an idea, because Max was my best
buddy and it hurts me and I know their hearts ache.
We saw each other quite often."
September 16 SR Jay W. Clevenger undergoing basic training San Diego. SR William L. O'Dell grad-
uated from basic.
September 17 U.S. Destroyer USS Stormes kills 375 Cong in heavy fighting. PVT John Bechtol in basic San
Diego. PVT Larry Wright completed basic Ft. Knox. He was awarded the high marks-
man trophy for his company. PVT Jim Large graduated from basic.
September 19 SP4 James L. Guthrie, communications, stationed at Ketzengen, Germany, with 3rd Inf.
Div. John R. Guthrie at jet aviation machinist mate school NATTC Memphis. He spent
3 months in a Naval Hospital at Pensacola. PFC Thomas L. MacDonald, 1st Batt, 171st
Inf., Ft. Wainwright, finished 2 weeks of training Ft. Greeley. PFC James D. Downey is
chaplain's assistant Ft. Knox.
September 20 Hanoi-Peking said at odds over Vietnam Peace talks.
September 22 President makes proposal to withdraw Viet troops. PVT Richard L. Albert graduated
basic San Diego. Defoliation of Viet DMZ leaves earth barren. PVT David I. Idle
graduated from recruit training San Diego. SR James M. Chambers graduated basic
Great Lakes.
September 26 Wabash Jaycees selling "We back our Boys in Vietnam" stickers. Money to be used to
purchase vehicle for Dr. Turpin of Project Concern.
September 27 Six inducted in September draft call; Jerry L. Bowman, Jerry L. Capes, Nolan E. Frieden,
Richard D. Hull, James A. Brewer and John D. Kelly. PFC Marvin B. Hamilton, Jr. com-
pleted ICT at Camp Pendleton.
September 28 Marines bomb Viet village by mistake, 35 dead.
September 29 A3C Dennie J. Lambert took basic Lackland AFB and advanced school Lowry AFB
now munitions specialist in Morbache, Ger. AA Dennie K. Lambert took basic Great
Lakes now in AK storekeeper school NATTC Memphis.
September 30 U.S. 2,500 infantry men support hit Vietnam beachhead. PFC Larry L. Enyeart finished
basic Ft. Knox sent to Ft. Eustis for helicopter maintenance school now serving near
Qui Nhon as crewchief.
September DeGaulle visits Cambodia; calls for U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam.
October 1 See major battle in Vietnam along DMZ. CPL Ronald E. Schlemmer now in Vietnam.
PFC Paul L. Johnson with H&MS 17 SubUnit No. l Ship and RecVietnam. PVT Clar-
ence Hale completed military police training Ft. Gordon. PVT Ronald R. Monce in basic
Ft. Bliss.
October 3 House Republicans rap Vietnam peace efforts. LeMay denounces Vietnam policy. PFC
Thomas L. Wagoner took basic Ft. Knox, advanced training Ft. Bliss then assigned to
a Nike-Hercules Missile unit Ft.Leavenworth; now assigned to a two year tour in Ger-
many. PVT Robert W. Brown completed basic Ft. Knox; assigned Ft. Leonard Wood
for furuther training. Robert E. Kirby, engineer equipment inspector, 622d Heavy Maint.
Supply Co., stationed Hanau, Ger, promoted to SP4.
October 4 Russia-Hanoi pact gives new aid to N. Vietnam. Cong reported penned in Viet highlands
area.
October 5 Marines, 1st Cav. Div. report major Vietnam victories near DMZ. Montagnards: A
minority problem in Vietnam. France, U.S. at odds on Vietnam policy.
October 7 U.S., allies claim major victory over VC. Beaten enemy reported surrendering in droves.
SN Sheldon Sutton, USS King, participated in the rescue of 5 downed Navy fliers and
attacked by N. Vietnamese PT boats. CM3 Joseph A. Harner with the USN Mobile
Construction BN 7 at Hau Phu Bal. Jack L. Lines, Co A, 2nd BN, 31st Inf. Korea,
promoted to SGT
October l0 McNamara in Saigon for high level talks. SGT David A. Randolph last stationed at Ft.
Lewis, now a scout with the 1st Recon Sqd, 10thCAV., Vietnam.
October 11 VC butcher 12 captives in death camp. S. Vietnam leaders ask for more U.S. troops.
Ben Hai River next Vietnam battlefield?
October 12 November draft call reduced.
October 13 PVT Robert R. Benner completed advanced training at Ft. Jackson.
October 14 U.S. in record air assault on N. Vietnam targets.
October 15 Record bombing run on N. Vietnam. U.S. air loses pass 400 total. Reds call Viet block to
accord; 70,000 addition troops slated for duty in Vietnam. Sources says Reserves will be
called by Jan. l.
October 17 Johnson enroute to Manila. Hawaii first stop on historic 17 day trip.
October 18 PVT David L. Adamson completed ICT at Camp Pendleton.
October 19 S. Viet political crisis averted; Minister to stay. Chinese denouce Manila talks.
October 20 B52s rake Cong jungle base; Allies begin Delta operation. PFC David Lorenz due to
return to Norfolk from Chu Lai aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Chincoteague. American
losses in Viet War decline; total 5,566.
October 21 PVT Eugene Dyson graduated from recruit training, San Diego.
October 24 Manila talks open; students, police clash. Asian leaders, Johnson seek Viet Peace solution
. Cong strike across DMZ at Marine unit. SA Edward W. Howard aboard the USS Salis-
bury Sound.
October 25 Johnson, Asian leaders offer Viet Peace plan. Proposal hinges on VC pullout from South.
S. Vietnamese troops launch Delta offensive. New Army draft plan announced. AN Rob-
ert T. Medley completed basic Lackland AFB sent to technical Lowry AFB. PVT Tom
Barrus completed basic Ft. Knox now at Ft. Lee. Selective Srvice reported 18 men were
inducted in the October draft call, all were sent to Ft. Leonard Wood. They included Tony
N. Baer, Delbert A. Berry, Terry W. Bland, Gordon R. Bradley, Robert J. Haecker, Wil-
liam A. Greer, Jesse R. Gressley, Ronald W. Kendall, Jim W. Kirby, Lyle L. Lawson, Ern-
est T. McKinley, Dennis M. Manning, Daniel H. Miller, Daryl H. Miller, Larry R. Pormen
Gregory K. Roberts, Paul E. Roth, and Hurbert B. Scott. The November call is for 28.
October 26 Johnson visits Viet battlefront, tells Cam Ranh unit "We shall never let you down." Expl-
osion, fire kills 43 aboard the USS Oriskany. FN Larry L. West assigned to the USS
Dupont. SR Dennis E. Grossnickel completed basic sent to Bainbridge for radio school.
October 27 President in Thailand for more Viet talks. Ky threatens to resign. Reds snub manila peace
talks. LCPL Richard D. Coppock after one year in Vietnam has been assigned to MCSC
Weapons Section, Albany.
October 28 Blast, fire destroy ammo dump in Vietnam.
October 30 SR Danny E. Elliott completed basic at Great Lakes. QM2 Dale H. Williams aboard the
USS Clarion River with the 7th Fleet.
November 1 LBJ visits U.S. troops in Korea. Cong terrorists hit Saigon; 13 killed. U.S. draft dodgers
in Canada; they can't go home again. John W. Voss commissioned 2nd LT at completion
of OCS, Ft. Eustis. 2nd LT Larry C. Lester, Moody AFB, awarded USAF silver wings.
CPL Dennis C. Starbuck took part in Exercise Tanker 1-67 at Camp Pickett. SR Donald
H. Griffith in basic Great Lakes. AN Gary A. Whitener completed ASM hydraulics scho-
ol NATTC Memphis. PVTLeroy D. Miller completed field communications crewman
course Ft. Leonard Wood. Richard J. Richardson, aircraft equipment repairman, Saigon,
promoted to SSGT.
November 2 Marine chief says Cong offensive plans blunted.
November 3 PFC Charles Wilson, 4th Headquarters BATT, 3rd Marines, now stationed near Phu Bai.
November 4 More Viet troops if need-LBJ. Allies repel Cong assaults. Huge rice supply captured.
November 5 Two more U.S. jets downed. Yanks, VC in Jungle clash in War Zone C.
November 7 Bruce L. Biehl, Ft. Hood, promoted to PFC. William D. Switzer enlisted in the USAF
now at Lackland AFB.
November 8 500,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam by end of 1967. Cong guerrillas kidnap entire Vietnamese
village. SR Terrence Smith finished basic at Great Lakes. PFC Ronald D. Barlow com-
pleted basic Ft. Knox now at Ft. Clayton, Canal Zone. AN Richard L. White and Michael
E. Reardon, USS Saratoga, have returned from a deployment to the Med. PVT Eugene
Dyson completed ICT Camp Pendleton.
November 10 LCPL David D. Lorenz wounded in action near Ky Long Quang Tin, in hospital at Yoko
Suka, Japan. PVT Charles E. Hileman completed lineman course, Ft. Gordon. William E.
Benson, Jr. aboard the USS Saratoga. January draft lower.
November 11 U.S. throws new brigade, 1st Inf. Div., 5,000 men into War Zone C; suspected Cong unit
sought.
November 12 Heavy U.S. air loses. Hershey thinks draft should be widened. AWOL Marine William
Groscost picked up by Wabash Police. AMSAN Ronald Reynolds completed ASM
school, NATTC Memphis, now attached to HC-4 NAS Lakehurst. FA Lynn Landis
attending basic engineering propultion school Great Lakes. PVT Donald E. Rumpf
stationed Ft. Bliss. AN Jon R. Weitzel completed basic Lackland AFB.
November 14 Marine general unhurt in terrorist bomb attack. O/C Ronald J. Charles in officers training
at Ft. Belvoir. PVT Gary W. Heath at Camp Pendleton. PVT Dan R. Lucas and Robert
W. Brown in advanced combat engineer training, Ft. Leonard Wood. SP4 Carl D. Ross,
personnel specialist, left for Vietnam. Sally J. Kreider married Steven Wolf, USN,
Great Lakes.
November 15 U.S. 1st Inf. in fresh assault on Cong, 9th Div., positions.
November 16 Heavy fighting erupts in Viet War Zone C. David L. Leland, finance specialist Maxwell
AFB, promoted to A2C. PFC Danny Howell, 1stEN, 26th Marines now in Vietnam.
SSGT Homer C. King with the 86th Transportation Lit. Truck Co. SP4 Robert S.Raines,
144th Sig. BN in Germany. A3C Michael D.Young with the 75th combat support group
Bergstrom AFB. A2C James D. Bowman, vehicle operator, stationed at Bentwaters, RAF
station. 2nd LT Lester L. Spencer awarded USAF silver wings upon graduation Laughlin
AFB assigned for flying duty George AFB.
November 17 Combat police destroy Saigon black market. 2nd LT David R. Hoffman has been in Viet-
nam since August.
November 18 U.S. Destroyers, Jets from the USS Ticonderoga, hammer Cong barges; 41 enemy craft
sunk or damaged. Ky names six new cabinet members.
November 19 Two major battles flare in Vietnam. Destroyers attack radar sites and Red transport ships.
SA Paul D. Shoemaker stationed NAS Barbers Point. SP4 William B. Evans, Ft. Huach-
uca, completed tour of duty in Vietnam. PFC James L. Fleshood, gunner, assigned to
11th Armored Cav., Vietnam. PFC Terry W. Sutton, 2nd BN, 26th Marines, 3rd Div., sta-
tioned in Phu Bai. PVT John B. Bechtol finished USMC recruit training. PFC Billy J.
Winger, 10th Aviation BATT, helped local Vietnamese farmers harvest their rice. MSGT
Rex M. Powell, Cigili AB, Turkey, decorated with the USAF Commendation Medal. PVT
Steven D. Owens and Gary W. Heath completed recruit training, San Diego. SP4 C. Ray-
mond Meeks, Jr. and A2C James Starbuck are both in Thailand.
November 21 Cavalry unit of U.S. 1st Air Cav. Div. wiped out in Viet battle. Westmoreland says we
need more troops.
November 22 New fighting flares in Viet highlands jungle clash near the Cambodian border. 26 induc-
ted in November draft call from Wabash county.
November 23 U.S. planes blast Cong missile, supple sites.
November 25 Cong guerrillas flee from advancing American units in War Zone C.
November 30 Allies propose eight day Viet truce period. S. Vietnam overrun Cong Horror Camp in
Mekong Delta.
December 2 U.S. Jets swarm over N. Vietnam, Hanoi area hit. This weeks American dead, wounded
in Vietnam action total 852.
December 5 U.S. jets, MIG 17s battle near Hanoi. PVT Fred Long in recon training Ft. Knox. SP4
Robert E. Kirby with the 622nd H.M.S. Co. in Hanau, Germany.
December 6 Vietnam air war widens; three more U.S. jets lost. PVT James A. Simpson completed
basic Ft. Leonard Wood, now at Ft. Gordon. LT Kelson Slayman on deans list at the
Naval Post Graduate School. FA Michael J. Cooper aboard the USS Enterprise. PFC
Mick R. Miller stationed with the 2nd BN 3rd Marines, Dong Hai. FA Lynn Landis in
Engineman school at Great Lakes. PFC Marvin B. Hamilton completed ICT at Camp
Pendleton. PFC Robert Williams, 1st BN Airborne, 12th Cav, Air Cav. Div., has sun
poisoning in Vietnam.
December 9 AEAN Nolan D. Tyner underwent flight training at VT-27, NAS Corpus Christi. SA
Edward W. Howard aboard the USS Salisbury Sound.
December 10 MMFN Gary D. Enyeart, USS Kennedy, took part in LANTFLEX-66. FA Robert
Copeland, USS Telefair, in the Med. A2C Leslie R. Whitesel stationed in Shemya,
Alaska. A2C W.R. Rose, Jr. in the 785th Radar Sqd, Finley AFS.
December 12 U.S. Bombers blast Ho Chi Minh trail. SSGT Lilburn E. Saulman died in Germany
from injuries received in a car accident. He had served for 24 years. Viet Nam is
henceforth Vietnam. SSGT Herald L. Griffith, mess steward, with the 1st Air Cav. Div.
in Vietnam near Bong Son.
December 13 B52s hit Viet terrorist camp. PVT David I. Idle completed training Camp Pendleton now
with 1st Marines, MCAS Kenehoe. PFC David L. Adamson at Camp LeJeune. AB Sta-
nley Ogan at Lackland AFB. PVT David B. Mughmaw graduated recruit training San
Diego. PFC Jesse L. Case, Jr. with the 4th BN, 23rd Inf. Div. PFC Thomas L. Wagoner
in Frankfort, Germany.
December 14 Mansfield calls for Vietnam cease fire. Less draft dodgers going to Canada than reported
December 15 Rusk in Europe seeking Allied aid in Vietnam War. S. Viet assembly votes to establish
civilian rule. U.S. says three jets lost in bomb raid; foes claim 10. LCPL Timothy L.
Burcroff, 2nd BN, 8th Marines, in the Caribbean. AOAN William J. Knotts aboard the
USS Forrestal. PVT Martin L. Schaaf graduated recruit training at San Diego. PFC
Walter E. Warren met PFC Charles T. Wilson in Vietnam. Warren stationed at Dong
Ha and Wilson at Phu Bai.
December 17 Air support blisters guerrillas. Berets repel Cong attack. China and Romania claim
Hanoi embassies bombed. Lodge sees no Vietnam Peace talks on horizon. AB Dan J.
Purdy stationed Lackland AFB. AN William D. Switzer assigned to Carswell AFB.
December 20 PVT James M. Green III and PVT Michael R. Ross graduated from recruit training San
Diego. SP4 Clifford G. Betten, mechanic BATT C, 5th BN, 4th Inf. Div., 16th Art, awar-
ded Combat Infantryman's Badge in Vietnam. FN Jackie L. Votra aboard the USS Oka-
nogan in Vietnamese waters. PFC Danny Howell, Co. D, 1st BATT. 26 Marines wounded
in Vietnam; sent to Clark AFB then to Great Lakes Naval Hospital. SGT Wayne Rich-
ards,Helicopter Sqd 361. SR David E. Coburn finished basic Great Lakes. U.S. spends
$332,000 in war for each Viet enemy killed. David R. McCombs, Darrell L. Jolly and
Walter N. Long, Ft. Riley, have been shipped to Vietnam. PFC Howard S. Powell, Co. A,
2nd PIT, 97 QM BA, at Hanau, Ger. William K. Powell promoted to LTjg at New London.
RDSN John E. Holmes aboard USS Menick.
December 23 North bombed at Yule Truce Eve. Big Cong drive is suspected. American Vietnam toll
stands at 6,407. SSGT Harry Thatcher home on leave. He will be going to Vietnam.
CAPT Thomas A. Johnson graduated from Air University Sqd Officers School, Maxwell
AFB.
December 24 SR Terry Tonovitz graduated from basic at Great Lakes. PFC Michael Spacy, 9th Inf.
Div., 3rd Brigade, in Vietnam.
December 27 Cavalry unit survives assault by North Viets. Church leaders call on LBJ to end Viet war.
U.S. concedes bomb raids have hit civilian areas.
December 28 Mekong Delta assault begins. Cong say they didn't violate truce, U.S. did.
December 29 U.S. Air Cav. gains revenge in An Lao Valley. A1C Howard Ruckman stationed in
Thailand. PVT Gale L. Rife finished basic at Ft. Knox now home on leave.
December 31 Truce begins, fighting rages. U.S. reports Cong highlands attack against 101st Airborne.
PFC Sam Faust, 1st Air Support, Sqd 2 in Vietnam. PVT Michael L. Woodhouse comp-
leted advanced training at Ft. Gordon. FN Jackie L. Votra, USS Okanogan at Subic Bay
USNB. American troop strength in Vietnam reaches nearly 4000,000 by year-end.
1967 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January 18 U.S. boats of the riverine forces ambushed with 5 men killed and 77 wounded.
January 6 Viet diplomat hints peace talks possible. A1C David H. Wilson named Outstanding
Airman at Dover AFB. ETSN Thomas Hamilton attending basic electonics technical
school at Great Lakes. Thu Ni's flight from VC ends in Texas.
January 7 March draft is 11,900. Helen M. Harrell married PO Paul Holmes, stationed at USN
Weapons Station, Seal Beach.
January 9 Marines storm beachhead at Tan Phong, Secret Zone in the Mekong Delta. PVT Steven
D. Owens and John Bechtol at Great Lakes Marine Corps Base. PFC Danny Howell,
wounded in Vietnam, now at USNHospital at Great Lakes. He had surgery on his legs
and expected to be confined for six month's recuperation. PFC Richard L. Albert with
the1st Military Police BN. Peter J. Lutz promoted to PFC and received Leatherneck
Magazine Award for Outstanding Recruit at San Diego. Crisis of confidence in U.S.
Selective Service System. LTCOL Jack Butler, Tulane University, presented Bronze Star
Medal with 2nd Oak Leaf Cluster for distinguishing himself in operations in Vietnam from
Nov. 1965 to Oct. 1966. AN James E. Neal assigned to Lowry AFB. Larry Stineman
aboard the USS Enterprise.
January 13 SN Elbie Bucher, statistics yeoman, stationed at NAS Corpus Christi. James L. Russell in
OCS training, Ft. Knox. Thomas E. Hamilton assigned to the USS Saratoga. Draft dod-
ging now fashionable; many seek loopholes.
January 16 Thai based bombers pound N. Viet units in DMZ . William C. Siders stationed at Ft. Leo-
nard Wood. PVT John D. Kelly at Ft. Lee.
January 17 PVT Harold G. Miller completed ICT, Camp Pendleton. CDR Daniel N. Shockey appo-
inted commander of Naval Mobile Construction BN 9 DaNang.. PFC David R. McCo-
mbs, rifleman, assigned to Co. C, 2nd BN, 60th Inf., Vietnam.
January 18 U.S. Planes bomb Hanoi rail yards. PVT Hoyte J. Summerland completed ICT, Camp
Pendleton.
January 19 B52s rain firebombs over Vietnam jungle. AN Stanley Ogan selected for statistical data
specialist training at Shepperd AFB.
January 20 U.S. casualty record set for Vietnam War 144 killed, 1,044 wounded and 6 missing last
week. FN C. Allen Marsh assigned to San Juan, Puerto Rico. SA Dennis Grossnickle
assigned to USNTC Bainbridge. Larry Terrell promoted to SGT at Ft. Knox. Richard
Coppock promoted to CPL at Marine Corps Supply Center, Albany. PVT Thomas E.
Barrus at Pemiasens, Germany. SGT Wayne L. Richards stationed with HMM 361,
MCAF Futema, Okinawa.
January 21 Cong master plan for destruction of Tan Son Nhia airport found. PVT Terry Rennaker
injured in action in Vietnam. Bonus for Viet Vets proposed at Indianapolis.
January 23 Smash Cong near Saigon.
January 24 VC attack Navy ship near Saigon; 'copter downed, six killed. PVT Tonie M. Baer
finished basic at Ft. Leonard Wood assigned to Ft. Monmouth. PVT Carl Crandall
stationed in Korea. David E. Wilson, 180th Aviation Co., Vietnam, promoted to CAPT.
2nd LT John D. Durnbaugh completed Ordnance Officer course, Aberdeen Proving
Ground. PFC Dan R. Lucas assigned to 11th Armored Cav. Rgt. In Vieitnam. 1st LT
Lee E. Bricker entered USAF Air University's Squadron Officers School, Maxwell AFB.
January 25 LBJ asks for $21.9 Billion for Vietnam War.
January 26 U.S. combat forces open Delta push. Viet forces to level off at 470,000. PVT John V.
Worthington graduated recruit training at San Diego. A3C David T. Daine, munitions
specialist, stationed at Davis-Monthan AFB. MMFN James M. Black aboard the USS
Brinkley Bass.
January 27 U.S. casualties total 49,024 in Vietnam War.
January 28 N. Vietnamese Foreign Minister Nguyen Duy Trinh says U.S. must stop bombing N.
Vietnam before talks can begin.
January 30 B52s firebomb War Zone C. SR Michael J. Noonan in basic at San Diego.
February 1 ROK troops in Viet action; new terror campaign opens. President Johnaon asks for new
Vietnam G.I. Bill. Court upholds student deferment in war protest. SP4 David R. Finne-
gan, bridge specialist, 554 Engineer Co., stationed near Pleika.
February 2 U.S. C-123 shot down near Laotian border, crew lost. PVT James A. Brewer completed
basic at Ft. Hood. SKAN Dannie K. Lambert stationed at NAS Norfolk. SA David D.
Surfus aboard the USS Constellation. PVT John W. Liebo finished basic at Ft. Knox
overseas with the 4th Sqd., 7th Cav., 2nd Inf. Todd A. Brewer, Vietnam, promoted to SP4.
William J. Mullenix in training at Ft. Campbell.
February 4 B52 raids hint new Vietnam offensive.
February 7 AN James R. Yates completed basic, assigned to Little Rock AFB. AN Daniel J. Purdy
completed basic at Lackland AFB, in technical training Amirillo AFB. Steve Armie,
Charleston AFB, promoted to A2C. A2C Harley Rettig at Baudette AFB. PVT Steven
D. Owens at NATTC Memphis. PVT Eldon L. Richison completed advanced combat
engineer training, Ft. Leonard Wood. AOAN William J. Knotts aboard the USS Forre-
stal. LT Gary R. Miller and Iliance K. Guas married in Washington, D.C.
February 8 Goldberg going to Vietnam. U.S. jets hit near Cambodia. Kosygin warns U.S. on Viet
policy. A3C Stanley Ogan at Shepperd AFB. PFC Marion A. Hattabaugh, rifleman, Co.
B 2nd BATT, 502 Inf., participated in proficiency parachute jump near Kontum, Vietnam.
SN James M. Teague aboard the USS T. E. Chandler in Vietnam waters.
February 9 CPL Jon Gidley back from Vietnam, a bug on freedom.
February 10 PFC Dan R. Lucas in Vietnam with the 919 Eng. Co., 11th Armored Cav. Rgt.
February 11 Jerry L. Kessler at NARF El Centro. Jack L. Hoover promoted to A2C at McGuire AFB.
PVT Steven C. Emrick, 9th Inf., now in Vietnam.
February 14 51 killed or wounded in Cong Saigon attack. Supreme Court rules on draft card burning.
Army court rule extended to Vietnam. Michael L. Poor in basic at Lackland AFB.
February 15 Bombing errors kill eight GIs. Wilson offers veiled hint on Vietnam peace prospect. SP4
Thomas L. MacDonald took part in Exercise Frontier Assault in Alaska.
February 16 ROK troops kill 246 Cong in Viet battle. Hanoi claims U.S. hits capital area. PFC Larry
Joe Smith, SVC battery, 2nd BATT, 76th Art., stationed in Germany. PVT Richard Hull,
completed field communications crewman course, Ft. Leonard Wood. PVT James A.
Pell finished advanced training at Ft. Ord.
February 17 Cong down 13 helicopters.
February 18 Allies open major Vietnam offensive.
February 20 ARVN troops pummel fleeing VC. Robert L. Denney completed OCS at Newport recei-
ved commission as Ensign. He will be assigned to Naval Submarine School, New Lon-
don. PFC Tim A. Mowrer stationed with the 7th Inv, Con, Cen (SMD), Karlsrube, Ger.
February 21 A3C Lynn L. Mattern stationed with the 91st Supply Sqd. Glasgow AFB. David F. Cole
wounded; gunshots to the shoulder near Duc Pho, treated aboard USS Iwo Jima. PVT
Hubert Scott with Co. A, 2-46 Inf., 1st A.D., Ft. Hood. PVT James V. Worthington com-
pleted ICT at Camp Pendleton. Sam Faust promoted to LCPL in Vietnam.
February 22 PVT Richard Mirante received basic at Ft. Ord stationed at Ft. Leonard Wood. Michael
W. Ruckman promoted to SP4 in Vietnam. James McCoy promoted to SP4 in Mann-
heim, Germany.
February 23 Viet battle near Cambodia fierce. PVT Steven J. Swygart finished basic at Ft. Knox, in
in MP training at Ft. Bragg. SR Rolland E. Fearnow finished basic at Great Lakes.
February 24 U.S. launches largest offensive of Vietnam War in War Zone C.
February 25 PVT Harold Bowman at Ft. Gordon. James M. Bigger promoted to A2C at Beale AFB.
February 28 VC mortars, rockets hit U.S. air base at Da Nang.
March 1 PFC Richard L. Albert now stationed near Da Nang.
March 2 VC use tear gas on beleaguered U.S. Infantry.
March 3 ADJAN Sherman K. Poole completed basic at Great Lakes, advanced training NATTC
Memphis, stationed at Andrews AFB. SN Hillary R. Larrowe stationed with Recon
Attack Wing L, NAS Stanford.
March 4 Speaker tells of Vietnam at Red Cross annual meeting. Larry L. Enyeart, 1st Cav. Div.
Airborne, promoted to SP4 in Vietnam. PVT James M. Baldwin completed automotive
repair course, Aberdeen Proving Ground. PFC Carl C. Sirk participated in Operation
Byrd near Phan Thiet with the 1st Air Cav. Div. Kennedy calls for Viet bombing halt.
March 5 Artillery hits Vietnamese Village; 32 civilians dead. AN Dennis C. Dice in technical
training Amarillo AFB.
March 6 Johnson announces major draft revisions. Casualty secrecy lifted; VC slay 12 captives.
March 8 Marines repel Cong assaults on Berthas. PVT John M. Brainard finished basic at Ft.
Knox now in training at Amarillo AFB. John M. Friend, 229th Supply and Service Co.,
Vung Tau, promoted to SP4.
March 9 Marines bolster Viet DMZ defense posts.
March 11 Hanoi steel plants struck by U.S. jets.
March 13 SGT Frank Finnegan, Jr., 37th Signal BATT, Da Nang, has a brush with death.
Mach 14 Night of Long Knives cap Vietnam weekend. PFC John W. Poole, basic at Ft. Knox,
advanced training at Ft. Leonard Wood, now with 14th Engineers in Vietnam.
March 15 Guidance, control vital to local draft board system. Beth E. Miller sworn in as ensign
in the Navy Nurse Corps will report to Newport for training.
March 16 2nd LT Jerry L. Lauer, Warmer Robins AFB, will be going to Amarillo AFB for advanced
training. A2C Richard Lauer completed basic at Lackland AFB, sent to Lowry AFB and
now at Luke AFB for advanced training in electronics.
March 17 A1C James R. Hopson, machinist, on duty at a forward USAF combat base in Southeast
Asia. SP5 Steven R. Bishop, 523rd Eng. Co, in Vietnam. William M. Jennings, Jr., pro-
moted to PVT upon completion of basic at Ft. Knox.
March 20 TV too real for Viet village.
March 21 Ky asks more in Guam talks. Cong offensive linked to Guam confererence kickoff. He-
rshey says way clear to install lottery selection system in draft. LCPL Terry L. Renaker
received fragment wounds to the right side of his head and right arm in Quang Tri Pro-
Province. SP4 Michael Kerr, 35th Eng. BATT, stationed near Qui Nhon.
March 21 Johnson ends two-day meeting on Guam, with Thieu and Ky. N. Viet reveal exchange
of letters between Johnson and Ho Chi Minh. LBJ: Lets talk Ho: Not unless Ky: I tried
too. 4th Division scores year's biggest Viet War victory. PFC Ernest E. Saunders hospi-
talized with spirial meningitis near Chu Lai. AN Michael Poor selected for tech training
at Chanute AFB. PVT Jesse L. Williams at Ft. Campbell.
March 23 U.S. artillery kills 900 Cong in record shot. Peace bid still open as LBJ holds Guam
briefing. PFC Michael P. Eviston completed basic at Camp Pendleton, attending
engineering school, Camp LeJeune.
March 24 TSGT Terry L. Tyner, air traffic controller, now stationed at Wright-Patterson AFB.
March 25 Former BSU execs killed in Viet crash.
March 27 New mortar barrage paces N. Viet troop attacks. Three convoys hit by Red ambushes.
AN Gary Shaffer completed basic Lackland AFB selected for technical training at Chan-
ute AFB. PVT Eldon Richison, combat eng., with 4th Inf. Div. at Pleiku. PVT John V.
Worthington in testing at NATTC Memphis. ENFA Lynn Landis assigned to NSA
DaNang.
March 28 Senate report critical of Viet air war policy. Eight American helicopters downed; Reds
lose MIG. Mr. and Mrs. Albert E. Brubaker accepted Silver Star awarded posthumously
to their son at Honeywell Center. SR Larry C. Robinson finished basic at Great Lakes.
PVT Stephen L.Carter and PVT Richard Mirante completed carpentry courses at Ft.
Leonard Wood. SSGT Harvey A. Dyer, mess sgt,196th Light Inf. Bri.,Vietnam, reenli-
sted for three years.. PFC John B. Bechtol assigned McNew River Air Facility, Sqd 26.
SP4 Herbert Purvis, radio relay and carrier attendent, assigned to 549th Signal BATT.,
Vietnam.
March 29 UThant unveils Viet peace plan. Haiphong area struck by U.S. Jets.
March 30 Report Saigon has proposed peace talks with N. Viet. Cong highlands attack repelled.
March 31 Vietnam combat record 274 American casualties and 2,774 Communists for last week.
A3C Donald W. Lee assigned to DaNang.
April 1 Hanoi area steel plant destroyed. China scorns UThant plan. SP4 Lynn E. Wampler, MP
1st Inf. Div., on leave after year in Pho Loi and Di An Vietnam, will be stationed at Ft.
Bliss. PFC Gary Heath, 9th Sep. Bulk Fuel Co., 1st Pit, 5th Marine Div., stationed at
Camp Pendleton. William J. Mullenix completed basic at Ft. Campbell. David Baker
completed basic at Great Lakes.
April 4 U.S. claims major war victory. Napalm shower for trapped Cong force. PFC Steve
Owens at NATTC Memphis. FN Jackie Votra and Fn Gene Martin with 7th Fleet on the
USS Okanogan. PFC Gerald Miller, 1st Marine, landed at Chu Lai. PFC Bernard Netro,
4th Inf. Div., in Pleiku. SP4 Herbert D. Purvis, radio replay carrier, assigned to the 459th
Signal BATT, Nha Trang.
April 5 Bombers swarm over north. Years high of 147 missions. Hanoi brainwashing American
POWs feared.
April 7 Yanks, N. Viet troops battle at Freedom Bridge at Quang Tri. PVT Harold G. Bowman
completed MP training at Ft. Gordon. SA David A. Story in "A" school at Great Lakes.
SP4 Randall L. Beeks, 2nd Sqd 4th CAV, stationed in Germany.
April 10 May 23rd ceasefire in Viet War sought.
April 11 June draft call is for 19,800. PFC Ernest E. Saunders improving, present diagnosis is
encephalitis. PVT Michael Saunders at Ft. Dix. PVT Loren L. Morford in AIT at Ft.
Polk. FA Michael Cooper aboard USS Enterprise off Vietnam.
April 13 Jackie Tullis and ENS W.L. Hubbard are married. PVT Martin T. Herrell, 53rd Signal BN
in Vietnam. AN Joseph D. Willcox selected for technical training at Lowry AFB. Ronald
Schlemmer promoted to SGT while serving in Operation DeSoto. Bruce Biehl, Darnell
Army Hospital, Ft. Hood, promoted to SP4.
April 14 Reds launch big attack near DMZ; bridge blown.
April 15 PFC James M. Green III, in Vietnam with the 1st BN, 5th Marine Div. In the Chu Lai area
April 17 Ky wants wall of death to divide Viet. AN Dean Brubaker selected for technical training
Amarillo AFB. SR Michael J. Noonan completed basic at San Diego. PFC William D.
Jacobs assigned to Pleiku.
April 19 PFC Michael Spacy, 1st BN, 9th Div. lost left eye following injuries reeived when VC gre-
nade threw metal fragments into his face, left hand and right shoulder.
April 21 Haiphong pwer plants bombed; war escalates. PVT Donald Kendall completed AIT-
MOS 13D-29 training at Ft. Hood. PVT Michael Campbell completed ordnance supply
course at Ft. Lee. LCPL Herbert L. Mullen with Marine Fighter Attack Sqd 323 at Chu
Lai. SP4 Michael Ruckman at Ft. Leonard Wood after 1 year at Phonc Vick. PFC James
A. Simpson, 173rd Airborne Bri., in Vietnam. SSGT Everett M. Barlow, Tam Son Nhut
AB, decorated with Bronze Star Medal.
April 24 A.J. Childers, USS Ozark, promoted to PO3. Martin Harrell promoted to PFC in Viet-
nam. Steven E. Steele in basic Great Lakes. EM3 William Chaplin, USS Francis Marion.
A1C Lanny A. Terrell, radio repairman, Bergstron AFB and CPL Tim Burcroff all took
part in Exercise Clove Hitch III.
April 25 N. Viet MIG bases bombed. AB Wesley R. Davison and Stephen W. Slonaker assigned
to Lackland AFB for basic. AMSAN Ronald D. Reynolds with HC-4 aboard the USS
Austin. LCPL Larry W. Richards inVietnam. Arthur D. Daub, personnel officer Scott
AFB, promoted to LT. Martin L. King calls for summer campaign to end war.
April 26 CAPT Lee Bricker graduated from Air University's Sqd. Officers School, Maxwell AFB
and reassigned as construction engineer at USAF Academy.
April 27 Westmoreland confers with Johnson in Washington. Viet air war intensifies, Hanoi-
Haiphong area again pounded. PFC James W. Kirby completed basic at Ft. Leonard
Wood, AIT at Ft. Polk and stationed in Vietnam.
April 29 Westmoreland addresses Congress calls for war support. Marine losses high in battle
Hill 881. PFC Gerald D. Miller and Harold G. Miller in Vietnam with the 1st Marine
Div. AN Kathryn S. Friedersdorf assigned Scott AFB after basic Lackland AFB. David
L. Leland, finance specialist 3800th Air Base Wing, awarded Outstanding Unit Award at
Maxwell AFB.
April U.S. Naval Air Facility Cam Rahn Bay ewstablished, P-2 Neptune and P-3 Orion patrol
craft based there.
May 1 Ellsworth Bunker arrives in Saigon to replace Lodge as ambassador. Hanoi rail fac-
ility bombed by AF jets. PVT Morris Baker completed Army Aviation school at Ft.
Rucker. 1st LT James N. Vawter, Co. B, 1st BN, 1st Inf. Div. 26th Inf., participated in
Operation Junction City inVietnam. PVT William Wilke in basic Ft. Knox.
May 2 Patricia A. Morrett attended the 12th Annual Angel Flight Conclave in Miami. AN
Edward W. Howard at NAS Lakehurst to learn to be a weather observer. ENS Kent L.
Fites stationed MCAS El Toro. PVT James G. Brown completed AIT Ft Ord.
May 3 Marines take key Hill 881 in bitter fight. New fair draft plan's sales pitch challenged.
William C. Siders stationed with the 29th Eng. BN, Co. C. SA David D. Surfus and MMAN Mickey E.
Hudson, USS Constitution, participated in Exercise Blue Coral. PVT William Jacobs, 815 Eng. BN, Co. D,
in Vietnam. LCPL Gary Ladd (Laddie) Biehl killed in action against hostile forces near Huong Hoa, Viet-
nam. He was a lance corporal and member of the Third Marine Division. Before going overseas he was at
Parris Island, S.C., and Camp LeJeune, N.C.
Biehl attended Andrews and largo schools prior to going to Northfield where he was a member of the
Math and Science Club. He attended the Dora Christian Church.
He had lived at Andrews, Lagro RR1, and Bradenton, Fl., prior to entering service in April 1966.
Biehl was born at Indianapolis July 17, 1946.
Survivors include his mother and stepfather, Mr. And Mrs. Fred Hull, Lagro RR1, three sisters, Miss
Glynna Biehl, at home Lagro RR1, Miss Cheryl Biehl and Miss Mary Biehl, at home, two brothers, James
Biehl, Fort Wayne, and John Biehl, at home; two half-sisters, Mrs. Paul Fait, Poscassett, Ma, and Mrs.
Gene Roemhild, Whittier, Ca; two half-brothers, Lawrence Saunders, Danville, Il, and William Saunders,
Riverside, Ca, and the maternal grandmother, Mrs. Catherine Schwartz, Huntington.
The body will be brought to the Deal Funeral Home, Andrews. Funeral arrangements are incomplete.
He was buried at Riverside Cemetery in Andrews.
May 5 Draft extension approved. Green Beret Camp raided by Guerrillas. Hanoi silent on pace
talks-Rusk. PFC John D. Kelly at Cam Ranh Bay. 1st LT David Wilson awarded Air
Medal for Heroism. On 11-4-1966 he was serving as a pilot of a CH47 on a mission
evacuating critically wounded personnel while under fire. Owen County draft board calls
for end to draft until things are more fair.
May 6 31,000 delinquent reservists face callup. Laurence H. Howell accepted by Coast Guard
Academy.
May 8 U.S. Marines on Hill 881 shelled by enemy force. Warn of new Soviet war aid to Hanoi.
SGT Patrick McBride completes refresher training at Camp Pendleton.
May 9 Marine outpost attacked heavy casualties reported. Jury indicts Cassius Clay for refusal
to be inducted.
May 10 B52s batter Viet Cong.
May 11 Haiphong air base, plant stuck by U.S. SR George N. McVicker III completed basic at
Great Lakes. CPL Gerald E. Marsh, Maintenance Co. Maintenance BN, 1st Force Service
Rgt, Force Logistics Command, in Vietnam. SN James Bartoo aboard the USS Niagara
Falls. PVT Lee Geyer has expert rating on weapons qual test at Ft. Campbell. PFC
Tommy Ehret, 3rd BN, 9th Marine, 3rd Marine Div., now in Vietnam.
May 13 Cong raiders strike two U.S. bases with rockets.
May 15 Robert M. Roney, carpenter Bunker Hill AFB, promoted to A2C. Nolan Tyner pro-
moted to AEM3 at Corpus Christi Traron Sqd 27.
May 16 Marines, tanks hit Cong.
May 17 Marine drive for Con Thieu repelled. PVT James Richardson completed basic at San
Diego. Pat L. Palmer, vehicle dispatcher Bunker Hill AFB, promoted to SSGT. PFC
John D. Kelly, supply specialist, assigned to 35th Eng. Group near Cam Ranh Bay.
RMSN Dennis Grossnickle completed course in radio and electronics and assigned to
the USS Springfield. Joseph F. Sheibley promoted to A2C.
May 18 PVT Randall Pell completed basic at San Diego. PFC Larry J. Smith now in Vietnam
with the 585th Trance Co.
May 19 Infantry unit feared lost; overrun in highlands battle. Draft law extension gets approval.
CPL Terrry L. Brown, 3rd Marine Div., hospitalized in fair condition in Da Nang from
wounds received in action.
May 20 WHS stages orderly march backing war. Allies begin push into DMZ
State Dept. says move is defensive. Russia reportedly sending rockets to N. Vietnam.
May 22 U.S. jets damage many of N. Vietnam's MIGS. AN Wesley Davison completed basic
Lackland AFB assigned Shepperd AFB for technical training. LCPL Steven Owens
home on leave, assigned El Toro MCAS. PVT John V. Worthington completed Mech
Fun School NATTC Memphis. SP4 James A. Hamilton, chief records section, 1st Adm
Co., 1st Inf. Div., Vietnam. Rolland E. Fearnow assigned to NAVSTA Key West. PFC
Ernie Saunders on leave from Great Lakes Hospital. PVT Harold G. Miller, 1st BN,
1st Marine Rgt., took part in amphibious landing near Da Nang.
May 25 SGT Frederick M. Behny assigned as Marine recruiter at Charleston, WVA. Delbert Nu-
nley promoted to SSGT at Craig AFB. A1C James Chladex with the 4258th Strategic
Wing in the Western Pacific. LCPL David Idle now at DaNang. A3C Daniel J. Purdy at
Norton AFB
May 26 337 Yanks die for Viet record.
May 27 Marines capture enemy hill; Cong force routed.
May 29 Marines locked in battle near Da Nang. PVT Lee Geyer completed NCO academy Ft.
Polk. SA Danny Elliott attended ET School, Great Lakes. EM3 Glen Martin and FN
Jackie Votra aboard the USS Okanagon in Okinawa. PVT William Kastner at Ft.
Campbell.
May 31 Reds launch attack at Hue. LCPL Bill Lisby completed six months cruise in the Med
now assigned to Vietnam. ETSA Gary Lahmon at NATTC Great Lakes. AN Stephen
Slonaker completed basic Lackland AFB selected for tech. training Shepperd AFB.
June 1 Bomb Haiphong oil depots.
June 2 War casualties soar. U.S. record 313 Americans killed in week.
June 3 147,000 more GIs may be asked for Viet War. Leathernecks renew drive for enemy hill.
Stephen W. Slonaker, Shepperd AFB, promoted to A1C.
June 5 Marines claim 450 Cong dead in night assault.
June 6 Allies rack up Cong in Valley fighting. ACAA Robert D. Brown stationed at NAS
Guantanamo Bay.Richard D. White and Jesse Parrett drafted and sent to Ft. Campbell.
White said of Ft. Campbell "Up at five, ran five miles, PT, six to six thirty breakfast, ten
minutes to eat."
June 7 Susan Johnson and Capt. Lowell Hoover married.
June 8 PFC Darrell Jolly, 9th Inf., received bullet wound in left arm while on patrol in Mekong
Delta, taken to a hospital at Dog Tay. He received the Purple Heart. PFC Williams H.
Dials, SP 44th Art., stationed in Vietnam. A3C Stanley Ogan, 36th Combat Support
Group, Germany.
June 9 PFC Tom Ehret, 9th Marine, wounded near Quang Tri. He sustained fragmentation
wound to left wrist from mortar round. In good condition at the 3rd Reg. Med. BN
Hospital.
June 10 Cong strike U.S. post at Hue, damage, casualties light.
June 12 29,000 face August draft. Power plant in Hanoi struck by U.S. bombs. LCPL Steve
Owens assigned to 11th Armored Cav. Reg. in Vietnam. Patricia C. Bennett sworn into
WACs as CPL. PFC Harold G. Miller, 1st BN, 1st Marines, in operations south of Da
Nang.
June 15 2nd LT Ronald C. Garrison, sworn in by cousin CDR Walter V. Garrison.
June 16 ARVN troops chop up Cong in delta.
June 17 Marines, Cong locked in battle south of Da Nang. PVT Dennis Wilson to spend eight
weeks as instructor of heavy armor. SN Sheldon Sutton visits rose festival at Portland.
SR Steven Steele completed basic at Great Lakes. Ky calls for 140,000 more American
GIs.
June 19 Landing zone in Vietnam attacked.
June 20 Yanks turn back Cong onslaught.
June 21 Carl Streng enlisted in the USMC and now at Parris Island.
June 22 William V. Brindle aboard the USS Forrestal. The Forrestal left Norfolk for Brazil
then on to the Philippines and finally to Yankee Station in the Gulf of Tonkin.
June 23 U.S. Infantry unit trapped, wiped out. Cong mauled in three other Viet battles.
June 24 PVT Jesse Parrett III at Ft. Campbell. CPL Gerald E. Marsh at Camp Books near
Da Nang.
June 26 Cong, Yanks in blood Viet highlands battle. John E. Holmes, USS Merrick, promoted
to PO3. FCTSN John A. Fleck, USS Mahan, returned from Vietnam waters.
June 27 Jill Bennett, Bryan Brooks, dental tech., Chanute AFB, exchange vows.
June 28 SN Michael D. Lindzy aboard the USS Sperry.
June 29 Mick Miller promoted to LCPL in Vietnam. PVT Greg Guenin fired expert on M-14 at
Ft. Campbell. PFC Michael G. Spacy received Purple Heart at the 106th Gen. Hospital,
Yokohama.
June 30 Cavalry overruns VC. TSGT Billy Palmer awarded SAC Educational Achievement
Award at Minot AFB. AN John Bakehorn selected for technical training Lowry AFB.
June Naval Support Activity Saigon detachment at Cam Rahn Bay designated Naval Support
Facility Cam Rahn Bay.
July 1 Douglas A. Bowman was promoted to SGT with MOS 0311-Grunt. He was sent to
Marine Barricks Camp Pendleton, Edson Rifle Range. Ky, rival join forces. Premier
drops bid for presidency. LBJ signs draft law, 19 year olds first. Haiphong, MIG bases
bombed by U.S.
July 3 PFC James L. Fleshood has been awarded the Purple Heart for wounds received in con-
nection with military operations in Vietnam.
July 5 Marines in heavy combat near DMZ.
July 6 PVT Randall Pell and James R. Richardson completed ICT Camp Pendleton.
July 8 Cong begin heavy assault on Marine DMZ outposts. Westy tells Mac we're winning
war…slowly. FN Jackie Votra, USS Okanogan, returns to Long Beach from Da Nang.
SR Ronald L. Greiner completed basic at Great Lakes.
July 10 Marines count 500 dead enemy after big battle.
July 11 GOP senators offer program to deescalate Vietnam War. More U.S. troops in Viet?
McNamara silent.
July 13 Craig P. Miller enlisted in the Army, to take basic at Ft. Campbell. AMS3 Robert Magner
USS Randolph, on shakedown cruise. SP5 Michael A. Kerr, heavy truck driver, 35th Eng.
BN, working on Vietnam's major North-South route Highway 1. LCDR Kelson Slayman
received Master of Science in Oceanography at the Naval Post Graduate School.
July 14 LBJ, Westmoreland confer on troop needs; wants 100,000 men.
July 15 Reds attack DaNang; SAM hits downtown. AN David Coburn graduated AE School at
NATTC Memphis. AA Larry Robinson graduated AFUN School NATTC Memphis.
AMSAN Gary A.Whitener graduated from a course on maintenance of aircraft structures
and hydraulics systems, NAS Sanford. Jim Hamilton, Vietnam, promoted to SP5.
July 17 Rockets kill 13 Americans at Da Nang airbase. LT. James Ridenour arrived at Pleiku.
July 18 PVT William J. Matteson at U.S. Army Signal School Ft. Monmouth.
July 19 Rita J. Baker bride of CAPT James A. Monce, instructor Mather AFB.
July 24 Ground fighting flares in Vietnam. PFC Harold G. Miller, 1st BN, 1st Rgt., in DaNang.
Cadet Laurance H. Howell at Coast Guard Academy.
July 25 PVT James Simpson completed course at Army Transportation School, Ft. Eustis.
AEAA Richard U. Gifford graduated NATTC Memphis.
July 29 About 10:50 am in the Gulf of Tonkin 134 die and 161 injured in fire onboard the USS
Forrestal. Blaze hits as ship prepares to launch bombers. AA William V. Brindle died
aboard the USS Forrestal. Fires and explosions ravaged the giant aircraft carrier caused
by an electrical anomaly discharged a Zuni rocket on the flight deck. The resulting fire
apparently ignited by a punctured fuel tank on an A-4 Skyhawk plane. This was the
Navy's worst combat disaster at sea since World War II. Also aboard the Forrestal was
William J. Knotts, Jerry Cunningham and PO2 Willliam McDaniel. The fire apparently
ignited by a punctured fuel tank on A-4 Skyhawk. Marines invade DMZ in hunt for
Artillery. Batteries drive Yanks to bunkers.
WABASH FAMILIES AWAIT WORD ON SONS ABOARD FORRESTAL
WILLIAM BRINDLE DIES ON FORRESTAL, NAVY REPORTS.
Mr. And Mrs. Arthur Brindle, 225 North Thorne St., were notified Tuesday at 12:30 p.m. that their son
William Victor was dead, a victim of the fire and explosion aboard the USS Forrestal. The youth had been
listed as missing in action since Sunday.
By Jeff Smithburn-Plain Dealer City Editor.
Two Wabash families continued an anxious wait Tuesday for word of their sons who were aboard the
USS Forrestal when it was ravaged by a disastrous fire Sunday.
U.S. Navy officials have listed William V. Brindle, 18, the son of Mr. And Mrs. Arthur Brindle, 225
North Thorne St., as missing in action. His family had received no further word at noon on Tuesday.
Also aboard the stricken carrier was William J. Knotts, 20, son of Mr. And Mrs. Gene Knotts, 32 Stitt
St., and Jerry Cunningham, 29, son of Mrs. Gladys Cunningham, Amboy RR.
No official word had been received Tuesday noon on Knotts, but Cunningham's family received a
telegram at 5:30 Monday that he was safe.
"He is all right," Mrs. Cunningham said. "A telegram came to his wife about 5:30 last night saying
Jerry was safe and a letter would follow." Cunningham is married to the former Darlene VanCamp,
Wabash.
Mrs. Knotts said she and her husband have received no word of their son's condtion. "We just know he
was aboard the ship. His sister just got a letter he had written Saturday, the day before the fire. He told her
he had changed jobs. That's all we know."
The Navy Tuesday reported 129 men were dead, three missing and 64 injured in the tragedy. The
Forrestal was docked at the Philippine Islands for temporary repairs that will enable her to return to the
United States for a major refitting.
The fire, the worst combat disaster at sea since World War II, was apparently ignited by a punctured fuel
tank on an A4 Skyhawk plane. Ammunition, bombs, rockets and other planes aboard the giant carrier
exploded, trapping many victims in living compartments below deck.
The Brindle family was notified Sunday night their son was missing. Brindle is a 1966 Wabash High
School graduate. He worked for radio station WKUZ and WARU, Peru, after graduation and before
entering the Navy. Brindle had been aboard the Forrestal for two months before the ship was ordered to
war duty in Vietnam waters.
His father works at Celotex Corp., Lagro.
Knotts graduated from Wabash High School in 1965 and joined the Navy in October that year. He took
basic training in San Diego, Ca., and later at Memphis, Tn., and Jacksonville, Fl., before being assigned to
the Forrestal. His parents reported Knotts was recently switched from a bomb-loading duty to work on the
ship's flight deck.
His father is a line foreman for Public Service Indiana.
11 YEAR VETERAN
Cunningham, an 11 year veteran of the Navy, has been aboard the Forrestal since the fall of 1966. He
attended Converse High School. His mother said the ship was to have been in Vietnam waters 10 months
and return next February or March.
Pacific Fleet Headquarters at Pearl Harbor said Tuesday a board of inquiry would immediately begin an
investigation of the disaster. The Forrestal is docked at Subic Bay, Philippines. It brought 64 of the injured
sailors and 52 of the dead. A Navy hospital ship met the Forrestal off the Vietnam coast after the fire and
took aboard 77 other bodies and 33 wounded men before going to American hospitals at DaNang, South
Vietnam.
The Navy said 57 planes were destroyed or damaged and damage would run past $135 million.
July 31 U.S. air field near Saigon hit by shells. USS Forrestal moored at Leyte Pier at NAS Subic
Point in the Philippines for temporary repairs.
August 2 SGT Dennis Starbuck was stationed Hill 34 DaNang Air Strip.
August 4 Authorize new troop increase to 40 or 50,000 for Vietnam.
August 7 Allied mop up in Mekong biggest of War. 1st LT Phyllis A. Brinson, USAF Nurse Corp,
to be assigned to a hospital in Vietnam. A3C Michael Poor graduated technical training
at Chanute AFB and assigned to Eglin AFB.
August 8 RFK says South Vietnamese must carry burden of war. AEAA Gregory Stoffer and
Susan Minnear repeat vows at Petersine Chapel.
August 9 AN James Mourer selected for technical training at Lowry AFB. RMSA David A. Story
completed Radarman course at Great Lakes.
August 10 SP4 Jim Fleshood wounded second time in Vietnam. Wounded in the central highlands,
suffered a concusion, fractured ankle and two crushed vertebrae when a land mine exploded. He is at
Drake Army Hospital, Tokyo. Senator Stennis calls for increased bombing. Larry Enyeart, Co. B, 229 1st
Cav, An Hkhe, Qui Nhon, Bong Son, promoted to SP5. BRINDLE FUNERAL SATURDAY.
The United States Navy will conduct military graveside services in Falls Cemetery Saturday afternoon
for William Victor Brindle, airman apprentice, USN, who died July 29 aboard the Aircraft Carrier
Forrestal.
The Rev. William Peterson will officiate at Funeral services at 2 pm Saturday in the Chapel of the
Eddingfield Mortuary.
Friends may call at the Eddingfield Mortuary after 7 pm Thursday.
Fires and explosions which ravaged the giant aircraft carrier claimed 131 lives. More than 60 other men
were injured in the United States' worst combat disaster at sea since World War II.
The ship after temporary repairs at Subic Bay, Philippines, steamed to the U.S. for a major refitting.
Two other Wabash area boys were aboard the ship but escaped injury.
He was born at Wabash Sept. 18, 1948 to Arthur E. and Betty M. (Brock) Brindle, 225 N. Thorne St.
Surviving with the parents, is a half-brother, Jerry L. Light.
He was a member of the North Side EUB Church and the Rock City Chapter, DeMolay.
August 11 PVT Ed John McCarty at Ft. Campbell. Viet casualties near 90,000.
August 12 Bombers blast Hanoi bridge.
August 15 PVT Douglas Nixon attending Army Administration Course atFt. Leonard Wood. SP4
Dale Skaggs, Ft. Irwin assigned to the 36th Engineers BN, Vietnam.
August 17 Larry J. Smith promoted to SP4 in Vietnam.
August 18 PFC Jerry Orr, driver, participated in Operation Emporia. A2C Robert Fordyce assigned
Takhi Royal Thai AFB.
August 21 U.S. Planes bomb supply routes. ENFA David Baker completed school
at Great Lakes will report to Coronado, Ca.
August 22 AN Jerry Shoemaker completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Lowry AFB.
August 23 U.S. air escalation saves 800,000 troops.
August 24 PVT Michael Howard completed basic Ft. Campbell assigned Ft. Jackson.
August 25 U.S. loses six jets over Hanoi. SN John Kilander on the USS America in the Med.
1st LT Larry Stewart, aerospace munitions officer, 232n Yellow Jackets, Phan Rang AB
received the AF Flying Safety Award.
August 26 Thieu declares S. Viet Military purge alleges 50 inefficient, corrupt. PO3 Jon C. Haupt
married Barbara Haywood in Seattle.
August 28 PVT Jerry Holmes completed ICT at Camp Pendleton. PVT Michael R. Faust com-
pleted basic San Diego. HC2 William Fleck assigned to the USS Oriskany. A1C
Charles Cable, 638th Security Police, assigned Clark AFB. PFC Jesse Williams comp-
leted basic Ft. Campbell stationed in Vietnam. HN Richard Eslava serving aboard the
USS Repose. PFC John Worthington at MCAS El Toro. PFC Tom Worthington at
MCRD San Diego. SP4 John D. Kelly with the 610th Maint. BN. LCPL Paul Johnson,
1st Marine Aircraft Wing, at Da Nng AB. PFC Lawrence Merriweather, rifleman, assi-
gned to the 25th Inf Div, Vietnam. PFC Robert Isaacs, Jr. completed postal clerk training
Ft. Benjamin Harrison now in Wurtsburg, Ger.
August 29 Cong terrorists strike U.S. bases; 11 Yanks die. Phyllis Brinson on hospital duty at Cam
Rahn Bay. Sherry Ann Tait, LCLP Martin Schaaf are married.
August 30 U.S. reveals record loss in air war.
August 31 GOP's Ford blasts Viet War policy. McNamara, testifying before a Senate subcommittee
asserts American bombing of N. Vietnam is ineffective.
September 1 U.S. war deaths at 12,730. PVT Larry B. Stine completed helicopter Course, Ft. Eustis.
STSN Rolland E. Fearnow completed Sonar Tech School A-1 phase, NS Key West. CPL
Richard D. Coppock has reenlisted. PFC David Kirchner, 29th Signal Corps at Khorat
duty station,Thailand.
September 2 LBJ denies rift over Viet bombing. PFC Jesse Williams, mortarman, 25th Inf. Div., 1st B,
participated in Operation Barking Sands in Vietnam. 1st LT Richard Helm, asst. comm..
officer, assigned toVietnam.
September 3 Thieu elected president, Ky vice-president.
September 6 Loren L. Morford, Manchester Grad., killed in Vietnam. North Manchester-Lorel L.
Morford, 22, was fatally wounded at 4:50 pm Wednesday in Vietnam by small arms fire. He became the
fifth Wabash County serviceman to die in Vietnam.
An officer from Marion informed his parents, Mr. And Mrs Harold Morford, North Manchester RR3, of
his death Thursday morning. More details were expected that afternoon.
Also surviving are his widow,the former Ruth Ann Landrum, daughter of Mr. And Mrs. Gilbert
Landrum, Wabash RR. A sister living at Lafayette survives also.
Morford was drafted into the army Nov. 15, 1966. he completed nine weeks of advanced infantry
training April 7 at Ft. Polk, La.
His last week of training at Ft. Polk was spent in guerrilla warfare exercises. During his guerrilla
training he lived under simulated Vietnam conditions for five days, fighting off night attacks and
conducting raids on "enemy" villages. He was taught methods of removing booby traps, setting ambushes
and avoiding enemy ambushes.
He had been in Vietnam four months. He left the Unitd States for duty in the war zone April 29.
He was a 1962 graduate of Manchester High School
September 9 DaNang air base attacked; Marines escape ambush. RM David A. Story graduated from
Great Lakes aboard the USS Thomas. PVT Walter J. Shepherd completed cooking
course, Ft. Knox.
September 11 Ships and bombers blast buildup in DMZ. Da Nang base hit again by rockets.
September 12 LCPL Hoyte J. Summerland, 1st Marines Div., stationed near DaNang. USS Forrestal
arrived at Mayport and unloaded aircraft and crews of squadrons based in Florida.
September 13 PFC Jerry Orr, machine gunner, after basic at Ft. Knox, sent to Long Bien where he was
wounded. AMS3 Robert A. Magner married Nancy Oliver in Norfolk, Va. SSGT James
Chlandek, admin specialist, received the Air Force Commendation Medal at a forward
base in the Western Pacific. SR Rolland D. Drudge completed basic Great Lakes.
September 14 A1C Roger A. Pattee on duty at Korat Royal Thai AFB. November draft call for 22,000.
U.S. war deaths pass 13,000.
September 18 Marines scatter Reds from delta. Haiphong port facility congested by U.S. bombing.
PFC James A. Brewer assigned as gunner on a PC in Vietnam.
September 20 PFC David W. Keaffaber assigned to duty in Chu Lai. SR Walter Connell completed
basic Great Lakes.
September 22 SR John T. Trosper in recruit training at Great Lakes.
September 23 Vietnam War may fester-Russia. CPL Charles T. Wilson, 3rd Marine Div., received the
Purple Heart. David R. McCombs promoted to SP4 in Vietnam. CPL Harold G. Miller
with the 1st BN, 1st Regt. Walter N. Long promoted to SP4 in Vietnam. David Idle
promoted to CPL in Vietnam.
September 27 Communists begin major actions. Westmoreland starts to fortify Kesanh. Reds pour
heaviest fire of war on U.S. Marines. Concentrate artillery on base near Con Thien.
Mr.and Mrs. Gerhard W. Judjahn wed in North Manchester.
September 29 Johnson says U.S. will stop bombing in exchange for "productive discussions."
September 30 LBJ to air Viet progress report on national TV at 9:30; policy changes expected. AO3
William Knotts relives Forrestal ordeal, home on leave. Presidential elections in Viet-
nam contested.
October 2 Rigging charged in Viet election. Red attacks on U.S. outposts continue. Vietnam can
prevent World War: LBJ.
October 3 Assembly upholds Viet elections. B52s obliterate Red artillery.
October 4 Buddhists protest Viet election. VC gunners rack civilian targets in Hue.
October 5 Marines win major battle at Con Thien. TSGT Roger G. Carptenter, Bein Hoa AFB,
received Commendation Medal. SA Thomas DuBois, USS Johnston, assigned to
Quartermaster Division.
October 7 SR Craig J. Thompson completed basic at Great Lakes. James W. Kirby, 25th Inf. Div.,
promoted to SP4 at Chu Chi. SP4 Tom Barrus with C Btry, 2MSL, BN, 58th Art. PFC
Jerry Orr progressing satisfactorily at Medical Hospital Detachment 106. PFC James
Hegel, truck driver, assigned to 4th Inf. Div., Vietnam. SN Johnny T. Cruz, USS Coral
Sea, in the Gulf of Tonkin. SN John Kilander, USS America, returned to Norfolk. SGT
John Gidley's camp at DaNang destroyed. He was not hurt.
October 9 Yanks set up base of Green Berets near Red airfield.
October 10 Paratroopers fight way out of Communist trap.
October 11 PVT Tom Kempf completed basic at Camp Pendleton. PVT John McCarty completed
basic at Ft. Campbell, reported Ft. Polk for AIT.
October 12 Rusk to counterattack Johnson Vietnam critics. CAPT. Thomas Clark awarded the Air
Medal for meritorious action in Vietnam.
October 13 A2C David Daine, 453rd Munitions Maint. Sqd., David-Monthan AFB, assigned to
DaNang AB. PVT Ricke Cooper in basic at Ft. Campbell. Harold Miller promoted to
LCPL, 1st BN, 1st Marines. Gerald D. Miller promoted CPL, 3rd Am Trac BN. PVT
Douglas Nixon completed Admin course at Ft. Leonard Wood. 1st LT Lester Spencer,
systems operator pilot, stationed at DaNang AB. PVT Tom Worthington completed
basic San Diego. LtCOL Kenneth A. Plant entered Air War College.
October 14 LT J. Doug Durnbaugh assigned to Korea for duty. December draft quota over 400
in Indiana.
October 16 Marine DMZ base under new attack. W/O James W. Browne, supply officer, 1st Div.
at Di An.
October 17 U.S. bombers hit Marine outpost at Con Thien. John E. Friend, Long Binh, promoted to
SP5 at Long Binh.
October 18 AN Dale Broadfoot completed basic Lackland AFB assigned technical training at She-
pperd AFB. PVT Richard D. White and PVT Jesse Parrett completed AIT, Ft. McClel-
land. After leave White will report to Ft. Benning for NCO training. AMS2 Stephen
Straley, Attack Sqd. 45, NAS Cecil Field, given citation for meritorious service. PVT
James D. Keefer completed recruit training at San Diego. Craig Miller, completed arm-
our training Ft. Knox, assigned to Ft. Meade. David Adamson, Camp LeJune, promoted
to LCPL. PFC Larry Gilley, 2nd BN, 94th Art. in Vietnam. PFC Lawrence T. Pace, com-
mand truck driver, with 1st Air Cav., Bong Son. 1st LT Arthur D. Daub stationed at a
British air base in Germany.
October 19 VC ambush kills 61, wounds 131; completely upset Infantry Division. Violence in anti
draft demonstrations subsides at Oakland, Ca. CPL Alan Stackhouse, gunner, BATT A,
1st BN, 2nd Armored Div., fired expert with M-14 at Ft. Hood.
October 20 Vietnam protests spread to Chicago and University of Wisconsin. Continue Viet
bombing says Legion head.
October 21 One injured in Manchester peace in Vietnam protest. No arrests made in hour, 20 block
march.
October 23 VC units suffer high loss.
October 24 Weekend protesters at Pentagon proclaim "Our enemy is LBJ." James A. Pell, Ft. Sill,
commissioned 2nd LT.
October 25 Hartke demands immediate Viet peace plan.
October 26 Encore at Phuc Yen; bomb base second time.
October 27 Plan yule boxes for servicemen. Bombing protesters should be put along the DMZ says
GI.
October 28 Pro Vietnam response small in Manchester. Tom Ehret, Con Thien, promoted to CPL
for meritorious action in combat.
October 30 Air defense of Hanoi stiffens. LCPL Jim Green, Co. C, 1st BN, 5th Regt, 1st Marines
wounded and in hospital at DaNang.
October 31 VP closely protected, pins purple hearts on 10 in Mekong Delta. PFC Larry Haney
wounded second time in Vietnam. SGT James Goodpasture discharged after 13 months
in Korea. Richard Pogue home on leave after finishing Class A Yeoman's School,
Bainbridge. SSGT Charles C. Genter part of newly formed Cobra Flight at Phu Cat AB.
PVT Michael Faust completed ICT at Camp Pendleton. Dennis B. Dice promoted to
A1C in Turkey.
November 1 Humphrey, Viet unhurt in Cong mortar attack. PVT Lowell Rosen in general vehicle
repairman course, Ft. Knox. PFC Dennis Manning with the 198th Inf. BN in Vietnam.
Mick Miller promoted to CPL in Vietnam for meritorious duty at Con Thien. Daniel H.
Kaiser received silver wings of Army aviator at Ft. Rucker. PFC Tony Holmes with the
1st Inf. Div. PVT William Kastner with the 709th M.P. BN. PFC DeWayne L. Brooks,
Ft. McClellan, with the 25th Inf. Div. near Cu Chi. PFC Daryl L. Slusser assigned to Ft.
Lee as a mathematics statistical analyst assistant.
November 2 John Oswalt completd basic at Ft. Campbell. J. Douglas Durnbaugh, 55th Ordnance, pro-
moted to 1st LT.
November 3 U.S. Viet troops kill 525 Reds. James Bowman, 81st Tactical Fighter Wing, Bentwaters,
promoted to A1C. IU president Stahr rejects Vietnam protestors demands.
November 4 Cong storm Loc Ninh using civilians as shields.
November 6 PFC James L. Smith, 1st Cav. Div. in Vietnam. SGT Larry Terrel, fire team leader in
Co. B, 2nd BN, 14th Inf., 25th Inf. Div. near CuChi, in Operation Barking Sands. CMSN,
Sheldon Sutton, USS King, in waters off Vietnam. CPL Stephen Carter with Seabees
near Danang.
November 7 U.S. Planes strike near heart of Hanoi. 2 MIGs downed over Viet capital. SP4 Robert J.
Haecker fired expert with M-14 at Ft. Hood. Roland Drudge in CA FW school, Ft.
Huememe.
November 8 Leonard Gardenour organizes Viet support march.
November 9 U.S. troops kill 353 VC in heavy ground-air battle. CAPT John D. Cooke, SAC pilot,
TAD at U-Tapoo Royal Thai AFB. AN Larry R. Dennison completed basic Lackland
AFB assigned to technical training, Chanute AFB.
November 10 Casualties reported light as troops foil VC booby trap. PFC John F. Walter, Ft. Lewis,
transferred to Korea. PFC Randall Pell assigned to USMC Marine Observation Sqd 5,
Camp Pendleton after graduating from NATTC Memphis.
November 11 LBJ appeals for unity on Vietnam in jet tour. John W. Voss promoted to 1st LT in Man-
nheim, Germany.
November 13 VC releases two U.S. Soldiers. Paratroopers hold against Red attack. Gen. Westmore-
land to return for talks.
November 15 Helicopter explosion kills Marine General in DaNang. Four from USS Intrepid have
taken political asylum in Japan.
November 16 Westmoreland exudes optimism sees real progress. Mortar attack wrecks U.S. base at
Dak To; planes, ammo dump explode. SR John Trosper graduated basic at Great Lakes.
November 17 Navy bombers knock out VC mortar base.
November 18 SP4 Richard A. Scheiber, Huntington killed in fire fight at Dak To. His mother was the
former Eileen Driscoll. Thurman Maurer gave CPL Herbert Mullen a flag to fly at his
camp at Chu Lai. SP4 Hubert Scott and PFC Daniel H. Miller sent to Vietnam with the
198th Light Inf. Bri., at Chu Lai. Stephen Slonaker, Scott AFB, promoted to A1C.
November 20 U.S. troops repel Viet suicide charge. VC offer 13 day truce over holiday. PFC James
A. Simpson wounded in fire fight and treated at 71st Evac. Hospital.
November 21 Vietnam phase down possible in two years.
November 22 Copters evade Napalm to evacute wounded. PVT Jim Keefer completed ICT, Camp
Pendleton. PFC James Brewer, gunner, participated in Operation Santa Fe in Vietnam.
November 24 Grenade hurling GIs storm Cong fortress. Lost paratroop battalion freed.
November 25 Cong ambush hits 500 GIs.
November 27 HoChiMinh reported seriously ill in Hanoi. Dak To highlands battle costly to N. Viet.
Rex Bradley aboard the USS Chicago. Danny Elliott aboard the USS Holland. Law-
rence Pace, Bong Son, promoted to SP4.
November 28 B52s hit deep inside N. Vietnam. Ronald Reynolds serving aboard the USCCG
Southwind.
November 29 Jets strike N. Vietnam air bases. Mac to quit defense post. SP4 John W. Brunn at the
121st Evac Hospital. Donald E. Sparling completed basic at Ft. Campbell now at Ft.
Gordon. SR James Burton completed basic at Great Lakes.
November 30 Hartke says war drains leadership, moral values. Ike, Bradley suggest speed up in
Vietnam. MAJOR James R. Turpin, Armed Forces Staff College, awarded AF Com-
mendation Medal 1st Oak leaf cluster for meritorious service in Germany.
December 1 U.S. Combat deaths pass 15,000 mark. U.S. troops repel Cong rocket attack near Bo
Doc. McNamara's departure won't effect war: LBJ.
SN Ron Griffith, USS Grand Canyon, on Med Cruise. CDR Daniel Shockey, in Viet-
nam, promoted to CAPTAIN.
December 2 40% rural Vietnamese dominated by VC. 3rd Communist attack repelled by allied
troops at Bo Doc. Mary Sue Helstern, Vietnam Nurse to address Brethren Church.
December 4 Terrorists attack near U.S. Viet bases. SGT D. C. Starbuck is with H an S Co., 1st
TK BN Maint.
December 6 Reds starving Yank POWs, defector says.
December 7 VC massacre villagers. Police repel antidraft pickets at Rusk's NY hotel. WABASH
COUNTY GI'S IN VIETNAM. ENFN DAVID BAKER, CPL NEIL O. BEASLEY, PFC J.B. BECHTOL,
ETN3 WM E. BENSON, SP4 JERRY L. BOWMAN, PFC GORDON R. BRADLEY, PFC JAMES A.
BREWER, PFC DEWAYNE L. BROOKS, A1C DEAN E. BRUBAKER, ELBIE BUCHER, CPL MAX T.
BUSH, PFC MICHAEL J. CAMPBELL, SGT JERRY L. CAPES, CPL STEPHEN L. CARTER, SGT
DOUGLAS K. CHOPSON, SSGT JACKIE D. COOTS, SGT RICHARD D. COPPOCK, A1C DAVID T.
DAINE, SP4 STEVEN C. EMRICK, CPL SAM FAUST, A1C MICHAEL FULWINDER, WO JAMES R.
GARTLEY, MSG GERALD T. GAYLOURD, SSGT CHARLES C. GENTER, SGT JON A. GIDLEY,
SGT JOHNNY M. GILLUM, SP4 WM GREER, PFC LEE GUYER, SP4 CLARANCE HALE, SGT
LYNN HAMMONDS, SP4 ROGER L. HAMMONDS, PFC LARRY HANEY, PFC DAVID HARTMAN,
CPL GARY HEATH, PFC JAMES E. HEGEL, PFC TONY L. HOMLES, A1C JAMES R. HOPSON, PFC
MITCHEL D. HOWARD JR., PFC RICHARD D. HULL, CPL DAVID L. IDLE, SP4 WM D. JACOBS,
MMFA DAVID R. JOHNSON,CPL PAUL L. JOHNSON, WO DANIEL H. KAISER, SP4 CORWIN W.
KEAFFABER, MM3 MICHAEL O. KELLAR, SP4 JOHN D. KELLY, PFC JOHN D. KERR, A1C
BRUCE A. KILTY, SGT JAMES W. KIRBY, ENFN LYNN L. LANDIS, A1C DONALD W. LEE, LT.
LARRY C. LESTER, CPL DAVID D. LORENZ, LT CHRIS LUTZ, AZ2 BILL MCDANIEL, QM3
JERRY E. MCKEE, SP4 RICHARD MIRNTE, SP4 GARY MONROE, PFC JERRY L. ORR, SP4
LAWRENCE T. PACE, PFC THOMAS PIETY, CPL LEONARD PRATER, SSGT GRATTIN G. PRICE,
HM1 JA- MES C. REED, 1ST LT JAMES M. RIDENOUR, LCPL E.E. SAUNDERS, DANNY SCHLEM-
MER, SP4 HUBERT B. SCOTT, PFC JAMES A. SIMPSON, SP5 DALE B. SKAGGS, WALTER K.
SHRIDER, SP4 MELVIN STANLEY, SGT D.C. STARBUCK, MSGT RICHARD M. STINEMAN,
LCPL HOYTE J. SUMMERLAND, SN SHELDON E. SUTTON, SGT LARRY TERRELL, LTC JACK
H. THOMPSON, SP4 DANNY L. TUCKER, SSGT ROBERT L. TURLEY, JAMES L. WALLACE, PFC
JOHN D. WALTERS, SP4 PAUL R. WEBB, ETN2 RANDELL WEBB,and PFC JESSE L. WILLIAMS.
December 8 GI's kill 146 Reds in Viet stronghold near Bon Son. Steve Conner, 306th Security Po-
lice, McCoy AFB, promoted to SGT. SN David Story aboard the USS Thomas. SP4
Ronnie E. Coots at Ft. Meade. SR R.T. Kreider in basic at Great Lakes. BK5 Peter
Kaiser at USNS Gulfport.
December 9 GIs trap Cong regiment 252 enemy troops killed near Bong Son. PFC David Hartman,
25th Inf. Div., near Dau Tieng. SGT Sherman Ogan, Vietnam, reassigned to Homestead
AFB. Steven Steele, Seabees, assigned to Vietnam.
December 11 S. Vietnamese claim delta victory. All kinds of heroes at battle of Bong Son. Dennis
Manning, 1-52 Inf., in Vietnam. LCPL Ernest Saunders with 3rd Marines, Vietnam. FA
Michael J. Cooper and ST2 Russell Kirshman, USS Enterprise, participated in Blue
Lotus. DC1 Philip D. Kuffel stationed at Washington, D.C.
December 12 GIs break trap, rescue S. Vietnamese troops at Bong Son. CAPT. John Neff assigned
command of USS Sanctuary.
December 13 Senator Percy flees VC attack. Koreans killed 272 Viet red. SP4 Frank Hitlaw on 2nd
tour of duty in Vietnam. CPL Gerald Miller and LCPL Harold Miller in Vietnam.
LCPL Gary W. Heath at Chu Lai.
December 14 GIs repulse human wave of Viet Reds. Darrell Jolly told Lions about his tour of duty
in Vietnam.
December 16 Vietnam fighting spills into Laos. SGT Steven Burke in Vietnam.
December 18 American platoon trapped in Bong Son plain battle.
December 19 U.S. Jets strike massive bombing attacks at Hanoi.
December 21 LBJ endorses Saigon-Cong talks. John Bakehorn graduated Weapons & Munitions
School Lowry AFB, stationed in England, promoted to A1C. James Bakehorn, Elgin
AFB, returned from Turkey. PVT Richard Raines at Vung Tau. Ronald Pore with the
10th Eng BN, Germany. SP4 Daniel H. Miller with the 198th Inf Bde. Nelson Bahler
commissioned 2nd LT, Lackland AFB assigned to Mather AFB.
December 22 Johnson gets Viet policy endorsement from allies. Thai infantry wins
first major battle. SGT Hosea Clupper home on leave. PVT Craig Miller, 6th Cav.,
stationed at Ft. Meade.
December 23 Johnson in Thailand; Viet talks expected. Hershey, Moss continue running battle over
U.S. draft law policy.
December 26 Jet strafe Red convoys; attacks launched as ceasefire ends. Ho rejected peace bid by
Johnson.
December 28 203 Reds killed in battle. SSGT Claude Chamberlain, aircraft technician, and A1C
Daniel J. Purdy, aircraft mechanic, 63rd Military Air Wing, Norton AFB, took part in
Operation Eagle Thrust. SR Edward A. Wenger completed basic training.
December 29 Foreign Minister Trinh says that N. Vietnam "will" talk once the U.S. halts its bombing.
Domestic protests against the war rise. Marines assault Cong fortress in Da Nang 800
GIs engaged in bitter fighting. Bob Hope troupe makes swift take off as Reds attack.
166 GIs killed in Vietnam, 1,397 wounded last week.
December 30 GIs shot in head, stripped by Cong near DaNang. LT James Russell completed OCS
at Ft. Benning. American troop strength in Vietnam approaches 500,000 by year-end.
1968 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January 2 Sihanouk tells Johnson's emissary, Chester Bowles, that he will not stop American
forces from pursuing the VC over the Cambodian border. Bunker-Thieu secret talks
may mean new peace effort.
January 3 GIs repel attack with steel darts along Cambodian border. 13 drafted from Wabash
County and 12 others ordered for physicals. Melvin White passed out Gideon bibles to
them. During 1967 142 men inducted and 300 enlisted.
January 4 Troops free to enter Cambodia. PVT Rickey L. Cooper fired expert with M-14 at Ft.
Campbell.
January 5 Hanoi hints at peace talks if U.S. halts bombing raids. GI deaths pass 16,000. 26
Americans died each day of 1967 in war. QM3 Jerry McGee on the USS Comstock.
January 6 Bayh to tell of Viet trip in talk here.
January 8 Reds rocket GIs near Viet coast. Tonkin Gulf study raises issue of LBJ's credibility.
SP4 Lawrence T. Pace, 1st Air Cav, participated in Operation Pershing. Copter crash kills Wabash GI.
Marine SGT Daniel R. Fulwider, 22, sonof Mr. And Mrs. James Wilson Fulwider, 258 Washington St., was
killed in a helicopter crash Jan. 8 on a hillside at Dang Ha, Vietnam.
Major JosephPurcilly, Fort Wayne, informed the family of his death Monday.
Forty-one persons died in the crash. An FBI team was sent to Vietnam to aid in the identification of the
victims.
Fulwider was aa radio and radar opeator and repairman. He had volunteered for the flight at the last
minute, it was reported.
It is not known at this time whether the body will be returned to Wabash for burial or will be sent to
Arlington National Cemetery.
Fulwider, a 1964 graduate of Wabash High School, entered the service in June of that year. He had
training at Camp Pendleton, Ca., and Cherry Point, N.C., and then returned to California for advanced
guerrilla training before going to Vietnam Feb. 8, 1967.
He was born May 18, 1945 in Wabash to James Wilson and Alloise (Crowder) Fulwider.
Surviving with the parents are one brother, Stephen L., Wabash, and a sister, Mrs. G.E. (R. Sharon)
Kenworthy, Lafayette.
January 9 Cong terror reign razes Viet village.
January 10 SGT Dennis C. Starbuck is with the 1st Tank BTN, 1st Marine Div., near DaNang. 1st LT
Larry C. Lester received the Air Medal at Phu Cat AB. Michael Chester completed am-
munition renovation at Redstone Arsenal. PVT Dallas Howard completed wheeled
vehicle mechanic course at Ft. Leonard Wood.
January 11 GIs repulse Cong attack. AA Edward A. Wenger at NATTC Mephis. TSGT Thomas
Schultz, HC 130 Hercules loadmaster, received service ribbon for service with 3rd Aero-
space Rescue and Recovery in Southeast Asia. He is permanently assigned to Tachikawa
AB, Japan. AN Niel K. Cline completed basic at Lackland AFB and assigned to Shep-
perd AFB. CAN Roland D. Drudge attending steelworkers school at Ft. Hueneme.
January 12 U.S. troops break out of Cong ambush in Mekong Delta. PFC John McCarty, 1st VA, in
Ankhe, Vietnam.
January 13 Cong terrorists blow up city hall at Quang Ngai. U.S. Combat toll shows 87% jump.
3,129 U.S. helicopters and planes lost.
January 15 Allies move against Cong near Saigon. GM3 Tim Richard in Mekong Delta with a river
assault group. CPL Gerald D. Miller with the 3rd Am. Trac BN and LCPL Harold G.
Miller with the 1st Marine Regt.
January 16 N. Viet planes hit Laos; major escalation feared. SP4 Charles W. Smith on 30 day leave
before reporting to Vietnam. Took basic at Ft. Hood and quartermaster training Ft. Lee.
AN Ronald W. Patton completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Kessler AFB. LCPL
Michael Ross with the 3rd BN, 7th Marine Rgt, 1st Marine Div., Vietnam.
January 17 5,000 Viet Reds killed in 2 weeks along Laos/Cambodia border.
January 19 WO Daniel H. Kaiser, special forces camp, Khe Sanh, shot through the wrist while on a
mission near Khe Sahn. The impact also broke his arm. He is to be returned to the U. S.
for treatment. He received basic at Ft. Polk, primary training at Ft. Walter and sent to Ft
Rucker. He was first stationed at Qui Nhon. He has three brothers in the service –Tom
with the Navy in Guam, Pete in Mississippi with the Navy and Bob in the Air Force.
SSGT Larry Terrel hit in right side of chest but a ball point pen kept bullet from entering
lung. PVT Michael J. Forbes in training at Ft. Campbell.
January 20 Marines kill 162 Reds in 6 hour fight. SN Johnny Cruz, USS Coral Sea, participated in
rescue of 37 Hong Kong Chinese sailors. Cong raid U.S. hospital near Pleiku. Clark
Clifford picked to replace McNamara. Begins study of troop request; soon favors rejec-
ion of buildup. TSGT Thomas J. Schultz participated in dramatic rescue of 2 U.S. pilots
off coast of Japan. Ronald W. Kendall, rocket launcher crewman, promoted to SP4 at Ft.
Hood. PVT Gary Follin finished recruit training at San Diego.
January 23 Reds mass for attack; Viet villages evacuated 1,000 airlifted from DMZ area.
January 25 While on duty at the 101st Aviation Battalion's heliport, SP4 Frank M. Hitlaw, watched
two Air Force F-5A jet fighters take off from Bien Hoa Air Base. "I watched them take off and the first
one looked O.S., but the second one did'nt look right," he said. The second aircraft seemed to have trouble
gaining altitude. At 400 feet it started settling in toward the ground.
Specialist Hitlaw said, "It started to nose over and then it dropped out of sight. Then I saw the cloud of
smoke."
As the fireball from the crash rose into the sky Hitlaw jumped into his ¾ ton Crash-Rescue truck and
proceeded toward the fire. Hitlaw, a member of Co B, 101st Aviation BN, Crash-Resuce Team, saw that
the jet had crashed into a Vietnamese village and had set fire to several of the buildings. Donning his fire
suit, and using the only equipment on his truck, he made his way through the fire to the aircraft wreckage.
"I discovered that the pilot had apparently been killed, so I checked the surrounding buildings to see if
there were any persons in them," he said.
After completing his search, an Air Force H-43 "Husky" helicopter arrived with a portable foam
generator, and delivered the equipment to Specialist Hitlaw.
As he used the equipment the Long Binh Fire Department arrived and sprayed him with water as he
checked the burning buildings again. After the fire was under control it was discovered that some of the
aircraft's ammunition was lost so a search began for two 750 pound bombs. A search plane came in and
found the bombs and the EOD teams disarmed the bombs.
January 26 Reserve units called up 14,600 put on active duty. Reds, Allies clash along truce line.
N. Viet armored vehicles on move. Air base at Khe Sahn shelled. GI deaths total 218
last week.
January 27 Record air raids pound Red troops.
January 29 Whistling Cong mortars notify Marines its truce time again. Viet progress "slow but
steady" says Rostov.
January 30 PFC Robert Collins is with the 56th Art. in Vietnam.
January 31 Tet offensive begins as N. Vietnamese and VC attack S. Viet cities and towns.
February 1 Saigon turned into battleground. Martial law put in effect; parts of city bombed. Cap-
ured documents link Cong raids, Red offensive. U.S. seek confirmation of Pueblo
sailor's death.
February 2 No Wabash County draft call until March but five left for induction.
February 3 Marine attacks on Cong citadel in Hue repulsed. U.S., Korea may open talks on Pueblo
return. SP4 Jesse Williams stationed in Vietnam. FTG3 John A. Fleck is on leave from
the USS Fletcher home ported at Pearl Harbor.
February 5 Cong slaughter U.S. missionaries. Saigon and Hue still under Cong siege.
February 6 Hue-Communists are everywhere-the place is a mess
February 7 Marines raise flag at Hue. SP4 David A. Marks, Peru, killed in Vietnam. SA Royce T.
Kreider completed basic at Great Lakes. LCPL Martin L. Schaaf is with the 1st Marines
Aircraft Wing in Vietnam. PFC James H. Richardson completed Mech. Fun. at NATTC
Memphis. PVT Jimmie L. Fisher completed AIT at Ft. McClellan..
February 8 Green Berets go underground to battle tank assault. Fight for survival staged at Lang
Vei.
February 9 Viets must help more: Bayh.
February 10 Viet Red tank column smashed by jet attacks. Viet compromise called for by RFK.
AMH3 Richard Kercher selected Man of the Month while stationed in Thailand. He also
received Veitnam ServiceMedal. He is now stationed at Moffett Field with VP47.
February 12 Russian built jet bombers poised on N. Vietnam airfields could hit U.S. posts. Loren L.
Morford awarded Bronze Star posthumously. PFC Michael R. Faust, Camp Pendleton,
sent to Vietnam.
February 13 Marines charge citadel in attack across Hue's Perfume River. Assault launched under
heavy fire. Soviets call for Vietnam peace talks.
February 14 133 Reds die in heavy fighting around Saigon. U.S. jet bombers hit areas near city.
SR Doug Martin in Navy basic San Diego.
February 15 Troop buildup to speed reserve callup decision. Indiana division likely proposed. West-
moreland out? Bunker Hill officially became Grissom AFB. Dive bombers hit citadel.
CPL Max T. Bush in Vietnam. SAEdwin Weimer, USS St. Paul, stationed San Diego.
SP4 Steven C. Emrick, after tour of duty in Vietnam, to be stationed Ft. Sill. SGT David
L. Leland assigned to Vietnam.
February 16 Reds reenforce Hue troops. James Hipskind dies of crash injuries. MR3 James Daniel
Hipskind, 23, 36 Sherman St., died at the Naval Hospital in Charleston, SC, at 8 pm Wednesday of injuries
suffered in an automobile accident Feb. 16.
The car Mr. Hipskind was rading in apparently went out of control on a curve in Charleston and rolled
over. Death was a result of spinal cord injury and internal bleeding.
Mr. Hipskind had been in the Navy for almost four years and was scheduled for discharge in two
months.
He was born Sept. 9, 1944, in Wabash to Karl E. and Marian Hipskind. He was a lifetime resident of
Wabash.
Surviving are the parents; three brothers, Tom and Michael, Wabash, and Samuel, in the U.S. Navy;
three sisters, Mrs. Thomas (Mary) Richards, Wabash, and Elizabeth and Margaret, at home; and a
grandmother, Mrs. Esta Hipskind, east St. Louis, Il.
Friends may call at Eddingfield Mortuary after 7 pm Saturday.
Funeral services will be at the St. Bernards Catholic Church at 10 am Monday with the Rev. Robert
Zahn officiating.
Burial will be at Memorial lawns Cemetery at Wabash.
Gravside military services will be conducted by the Naval Reserve Unit of Fort Wayne.
February 17 Red suicide force uses tanks to repeal Marines. VC pinned to Citadel wall. Hanoi
releases 3 U.S. pilots; one from Indiana. CAPT Robin Miller leads rescue of eight Nuns
and 200 pupils at Vinh Long.
February 19 Draft rules tightened on deferments. Rockets, snipers stall Marine drive in Citadel.
Timothy Jewell, USN, marries Barbara Crops in Dearborn, Mi.
February 20 Viet bound GIs cheer LBJ. Rockets batter Saigon airport. Guerrillas shell "Pentagon
East." Larry Wright, Vicenza, Italy, recently promoted to SGT.
February 22 Marines break Hue stalemate. Attack catches Cong off guard. CAPT Max Reed
distinguished himself by meritorious service as duty officer 834th Air Div.,DaNang
AB, receiving Bronze Star Medal at Seinbach AFB.
February 24 50,000 troop call up proposed "across the board". Mobilization urged by chiefs of staff.
Pentagon up draft quotas, April draft call call for 48,000. Marines halt drive in Hue.
AN Dennis E. Green completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Shepperd AFB.
February 25 American and S. Vietnamese troops recapture Hue after twenty six days of fighting
February 26 25 day battle for Hue won; 482 allies killed. Imperial Palace falls to S. Viet troops.
Crash kills SSGT Thomas A. Grimes, Peru, Marine.William Chandler and James
Hoefer enlisted in the Marines transferred to San Diego. SP5 Bascom Hunt assigned as
crew chief, 25th Inf. Div. Near Cu Chi. AN Bradford J. White completed basic Lackland
AFB assigned Amarillo AFB.
February 27 U.S. step up bombing raids. Heavier assaults reply to Invasion. Tran Van Dinh ex Viet
Envoy to speak at Manchester College convo.
February 28 GIs smash Saigon tank drive. Jets strike Red forces in Laos.
February 29 Reds entrenched within 100 yards of Khe Sanh. LBJ gets troop report substantial build-
up asked. Gen. Earle Wheeler, chairman joint chiefs of staff bring request from West-
moreland for 206,000 additional troops. Draft reform bill offered. LTCOL William L.
Baldwin decorated for meritorious service while assigned to the AFEastern Test Range,
1stOak Leaf Cluster to the Air Force Commendation Medal. PVT Paul Young finished
recruit training San Diego.
March 1 Jet bombs Hanoi nerve center. At Manchester College enormity of Viet task staggering
Ex Ambassador Tran Vein Dinh says U.S. policy
cannot succeed. Harold Bowman, head security clerk, 164th MP Co, promoted to SP4
in Miesau, Germany. He was selected as Soldier of the Month in February.
March 2 Navy sinks N. Viet gun-runners.
March 5 Reds launch coordinated Viet attacks.
March 6 Cong raid safest S. Vietnam bases. Allies beat back surprise attack. Nixon vows end of
war if elected. PFC Lee Geyer wounded in the arm by sniper on convalescent leave.
March 7 47 GIs killed as Reds down transport plane. Khe Sanh supply carrier explodes. New N.
Viet offensive may be shifted to Hue. SA Dennis E. Hall graduated basic at Great Lakes
GMG3 D.L. Hollenback aboard the USS Pictor.
March 8 GI toll for week near record high 542 Americans killed.
March 9 70,000 Reds massed for border offensive. Allies conflict two defeats. Brace for major
attack. U.S. playing God in Vietnam RFK charges. RA Asberry Simpson at Ft. Camp-
bell. AC Jerry Lundeen on duty at Clark AFB.
March 11 Reds step up Khe Sanh assault.
March 12 War critics in Senate open fire on Pusk. Mortar fire silences Cong loudspeakers. 49%
now view U.S. involvement in Vietnam as mistake. SP4 Lowell M. Figert, Jr. with
the 193rd MP in Germany.
March 13 B52s pound N. Viet. units at Khe Sanh. Randy Childers completed basic at Great
Lakes; sent to AB "A" School NAS Lakehurst. SGT Robert Raines stationed at Bien
Hoa and brother SP4 Richard at Nha Trang. SR Stephen W. Estep in boot camp at San
Diego. SSGT William S. Leeka completed Green Berets training at Ft. Bragg on way to
Vietnam.
March 14 16 men from Wabash County inducted into the army and all sent to Ft. Campbell. Reds
sense Viet victory; war may be near climax.
March 15 10 N. Viet targets struck in 94 raids. 900 Federal employees call for change in Viet
policies.
March 16 U.S. intensifies Saigon campaign. Viet combat death rate climbing. SGT David Leland,
finance specialist, on duty at Tan Son Nhut AF. PVT Norman Forbes at Ft. Ord. Herbert L. Carter desc-
ribes atrocities committed at My Lai. We were picked up by helicopters at LZ Dottie early in the morning,
and we were flown to My Lai. We landed outside the village in a dry rice paddy. There was no resistance
from the village. There was no resistance from the village. There was no armed enemy in the village. We
formed a line outside the village.
The first killing was an old man in a field outside the village who said some greeting in Vietnamese and
waved his arms at us. Someone-either Medina or Calley-said to kill him and a big heavyset white fellow
killed the man. I do not know the name of the man who shot this Vietnamese. This was the first murder.
Just after the man killed the Vietnamese, a woman came out of the village and someone knocked her
down and Medina shot her with his M16 rifle. I was fifty or sixty feet from him and saw this. There was
no reason to shoot this girl. Mitchell, Conti, Meadlo, Stanley, and the rest of the squad and the command
group must have seen this. It was pure out-and-out murder.
Then our squad entered the village. We were mnaking sure no one escaped from the village. Seventy-
five or a hundred yards inside th village we came to where the soldiers had collected fifteen or more Viet-
namese men, women, and children in a group. Medina said, "Kill everybody. Leave no one standing."
Wood was there with an M60 machine gun and, at Medina's orders, he fired into the people. Sgt. Mitchell
was there at this time and fired into the people with his M16 rifle, also. Widmer was there and fired into
the group, and after they were down on the ground, Widmer passed among them and finished them off with
his M16 rifle. Medina himself did not fire into this group.
Just after this shooting, Medina stopped a seventeen-or eighteen-year-old man with a water buffalo.
Medina said for the boy to make a run for it-he tried to get him to run-but the boy wouldn't run, so Medina
shot him with his M16 rifle and killed him. The command group was there. I was seventy-five or eighty
feet away at the time and saw it plainly. There were som demolition men there, too, and they would be
able to testify about this. I don't know any other witnesses to this murder. Medina killed the buffalo, too....
We went on through the village. Meadlo shot a Vietnamese and asked me to help him throw the man in
the well. I refused and Meadlo had Carney help him throw the man in the well. I saw this murder with my
own eyes and know that there was no reason to soot the man. I also know from the wounds that the man
was dead.
Also in the village the soldiers had rounded up a group of people. Meadlo was guarding them. There
were some other soldiers with Meadlo. Calley came up and said that he wanted them all killed. I was right
there with a few feet when he said this. There were about twenty-five people in this group. Calley said,
"When I walk away, I want them all killed." Meadlo and Widmer fired into this group with his M16 on
automatic fire. Cowan was there and fired into the people too, but I don't think he wanted to do it. there
were others firing into this group, but I don't remember who. Calley had two Vietnamese with him at this
time and he killed them, too, by shooting them with his M16 rifle on automatic fire. I didn't want to get
involved and I walked away. there was no reason for this killing. these were mainly women and children
and a few old men. They weren't trying to escape or attack or anything. It was murder.
A woman came out of a hut with a baby in her arms and she was crying. She was crying because her lit-
tle boy had been in front of her hut and between the well and the hut someone had killed the child by sho-
oting it. She came out of the hut with her baby and Midmer shot her with an M16 and she fell. When she
fell, she dropped the baby and then Widmer opened up on the baby with his M16 and killed the baby, too.
I also saw another woman come out of a hut and Calley grabbed her by the hair and shot her with a cal-
iber .45 pistol. He held her by the hair for a minute and then let go and she fell to the ground. Some enli-
sted man standing there said, "Well, she'll be in the big rice paddy in the sky."
March 18 Allied forces kill 484 Reds near Quang Ngai. PVT Leslie Gahl graduated Marine basic
at San Diego. LTjg Richard W. Krom is undergoing submarine quals aboard the USS
Kamehameha.
March 19 Khe Sanh attack smashed. Dien Bien Phu tactics fail to break through. PVT Michael
Forbes completed basic at Ft. Campbell. AMS3 Robert Magner serving with Antisub-
marine Sqd 29 NAS Norfolk. PFC Michael Faust with M Co., 3rd PLT, 1st Marine Div.
March 20 B52s bomb Red troops ringing Khe Sanh base. Defectors claim Hanoi tipped off on air
raids. PFC James Keefer, in Vietnam since January 5, wounded when he caught a bullet
in the chest and lodging in the ribs, was hospitalized but expected to go back to the field
in three days.
March 21 Jet pound N. Viet tank base. May draft quota 44,000.
March 22 20,000 GI deaths. Saigon hikes draft. TSGT Billy M. Palmer awarded Silver Star for
gallantry in defense of Ton Son Nhut AFB during Tet Offensive. SSGT Pat L.Palmer
with the USAF in Thailand. Charlotte A. Stoops enlisted in the Women's Marine Corps
will be sent to Parris Island for boot camp.
March 23 John D. Kelly promoted to SP5 while serving near Phu Lei with the 610th Maint. BN.
March 25 "Wise men" meet in Washington; advise Johnson against further escalation. Westmore-
land appointed army chief of staff, replaced in Vietnam by General Creighton Abrams.
March 26 GI column ambushed by N. Viet tanks. 1967 report showed Viet pacification ineffective.
SP4 Lawrence T. Pace with HHC52 1-50 M Inf. HC3 Richard Eslava aboard the USS
Repose.
March 27 1,000 Reds hurled back by 300 GIs.
March 28 Last gasp attack by Reds predicted. Allies kill 421 Communists in four widespread
battles. Push drive to cripple expected Red offensive. PFC Richard Hull shows Viet
slides to Mothers group at North Manchester. PVT Paul Young in recruit training at
Camp Pendleton. PVT Dallas Howard completed infantry mechanic course Ft. Benning.
SA Richard Erb completed basic at Great Lakes.
March 29 N. Viet troops circling Khe Sanh to attack Hue. Seabee Roland Drudge graduated
steelworks school at Port Huenenea, Ca., and sent to Davisville, RI.
March 31 Johnson announces partial bombing halt; offers talks, and says he will not run for re-
election.
April 1 Ernest E. Saunders wounded in left leg by enemy gunfire near Quang Tri. Sent to hos-
pital in Japan.
April 2 Viet peace talks: its up to Hanoi. 50,000 reserves may be activiated.
April 3 Johnson bid for peace talks dashed by Hanoi. U.S. jets strike targets within 45 miles of
Hanoi.
April 4 Hanoi envoys ready for talks with U.S. LBJ very interested in offer. Allies launch
offensive to end Khe Sanh siege. 1st LT J. Douglas Durnbaugh appointed post commander Camp Howard,
Korea. He retains his position as company commander of the 55th Ordnance Co, which is the largest
ammunition depot in South Korea. CPL Marvin B. Hamilton, 1st BT, 5th Maine Regt., 1st Marine Div., in
Vietnam. AN JosephM. Whinery completed basic at Lackland AFB and assigned to Shepperd AFB. PVT
John A. Roser at Ft. Campbell. PFC Michael R. Faust, 3rd BT, 7th Marine Regt, 1st Marine Div, in Vietnam.
SP4 Larry J. Smith sent the following poem.
LIVING AND DYING
Take a man, then put him alone.
Put him 12,000 miles from home.
Empty his heart of all but blood.
Make him live in sweat and mud.
This is the life I have to live.
And why my soul to the Devil I give.
You "Peace boys" rant from your easy chair.
But you don't know what it's like over here.
You have a ball without near trying.
While over here your boys are dying.
You burn your draft cards, march at dawn
Plant your signs on the White House lawn.
You all want to ban the bomb.
"There's no real war in Vietnam."
Use your drugs and have your fun.
And then refuse to use a gun.
There's nothing else for you to do.
And I'm supposed to die for you?
I'll hate you to the day I die.
You made me hear mty buddy cry.
I saw his arm a bloody shred.
Then I heard them say, "This one is dead."
It's a large price he had to pay.
Not to live another day.
He had the guts to fight and die.
He paid the price-but what did he buy?
He bought your life by giving his.
But who gives a darn what a soldier gives?
His wife and parents do.
But they're about the only ones!
April 5 LBJ plans Honolulu talks on peace moves. Massive Allied offensive pushed to free
Khe Sanh. Draft plans stir controversy in colleges.
April 8 Relief troops reach Yanks at Khe Sanh. Westmoreland, LBJ huddle on war policy.
SSGT Roger A. Pattee, munitions specialist 388 Tactical Fighter Wing, Korat Royal
Thai AFB given service ribbon.
April 9 Seige of Khe Sanh ended, GIs attack. U.S. N. Vietnam move to establish contact. SN
Dennis E. Hall stationed on USS William H. Standley, NS Mayport.
April 10 Peace move causes rift among reds.
April 11 100,000 troops begin massive allied sweep Operation Complete Victory. Thieu asks for
general mobilization. New Vietnam moves near.
April 12 1,000 astate reservists among 24,5000 activiated. GIs retake Lang Vei Green Beret
Camp; Red troops flee. SP Charles W. Smith stationed in Vietnam.
April 13 129 Reds die in attack on GI post near Saigon. Overrun outpost retaken. 75% reject
Vietnam policy in Indiana's 9th District.
April 15 Bombers raid VC hideout. U.S. optimistic agreement near on peace talks site. David L.
Wells completed basic at Ft. Campbell now at Ft. Belvoir studying electrical engine-
ring.
April 16 Bombers fly 143 missions. Pope willing to mediate Viet peace.
April 17 U.S. Jet losses heavy in N. Vietnam bomb raids. Communist casualties total 3, 071 in
month. Tide of war seen favorable to U.S. Rockefeller to air Viet policy view.
April 18 Khe Sanh GI patrol suffers heavy losses. Karen Kay Fitzgerald completed basic at
Bainbridge, will report for general duty at the Naval Hospital, Camp Pendleton.
Terrance Smith, USS Constellation, promoted to PO2
April 19 Weeks war death toll 393 highest in month. County GI who rescued Nuns, wounded in
in action. Silver Star winner Capt. Robin K. Miller wounded on left side and lost part of
left hand while flying his helicopter. He is to be returned to the U.S.
April 20 Hanoi says U.S. talk site proposal unfair. Cong rocket base destroyed by GIs.
April 23 Saigon braces for new Cong offensive; suburbs attacked. City alerted for major drive,
123 Reds killed. Clifford sees leveling off of U.S. troops in Vietnam.
April 24 500 Reds fought off by 44 GIs. Draft hike of 100,000 recommended. Wabash Magnetics
Vietnam project earns VFW recognition. TSGT Roger G. Carpenter received 2nd USAF
Commendation Award at Bein Hoa AB.
April 25 RFK hits Viet policy in talk here. John F. Dingledy chosen for Coast Guard Academy.
SP4 Jessie R. Gressley stationed Ft. Hood.
April 26 Allies launch drive to halt infiltrators.
April 27 Saigon battles infiltrators. Rolland E. Fearnow, NF Cape Hatteras, promoted to
ST3. SSGT Jerry H. Rhodes completed training in nuclear ordnance at Sandia Base
N.M.
April 30 GIs push jungle assault.
May SGT Douglas Bowman sent to 3rd Marive Div. 1st BN 9th Marines Co D 2nd Plt, in
Vietnam.
May 2 AN Timothy G. Wagner completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Lowry AFB. Allen
W. Watts, Ft. Hood, promoted to SSGT. SA Daniel L. Paul graduated basic Great
Lakes. SGT Larry A. Martin graduated WO Candidate Course. SSGT Henry L.
Schloegel, admin specialist Kelly AFB. SSGT Rolland D. Munson, weather observer,
stationed Hohenfels Army Airfield, Germany.
May 3 Allies win battle of A Shau Valley. U.S. awaits Hanoi word on Indonesian talk site.
May 4 U.S.-Hanoi agree on Paris talks envoys to meet late next week. Saigon TV station
bombed.
May 6 Biggist Communist assault of war turned back by GIs 856 Reds die in heavy fighting at
Dong Ha. AN Charles Oldfather completed basic at Lackland AFB assigned to Chanute
AFB. LT. James Ridenour, Pleiku, promoted to CAPT. Robert Hettmansperger in tec-
technical training Shepperd AFB. AMM2 John R. Guthrie stationed at Attack Sqd 174
NAS Cecil Fld. CAPT Robin K. Miller at home in Columbus, Ga.
May 7 Communist spring offensive falters. Four reporters executed by Cong officer. Preston
J. Ponder appointed to USAF Academy in Colorado.
May 8 Cong battalion wiped out by GIs in Saigon fighting. Viet veteran,Victor McDowell,
killed in county accident. PFC Lester Lawson completed basic at Ft. Campbell as-
signed Ft. Polk then to Vietnam. SP4 L.L. Lawson, cook, stationed at Vicenzo, Italy.
May 9 DaNang battered by rocket attack.
May 10 N. Vietnamese diplomats arrive in Paris for talks with American delegation headed by
Averell Harriman. Reds demand bombing halt. Large areas of Saigon aflame as battle
rages. Thousands of refugees watch as homes burn.
May 11 U.S. Hanoi agree to open talks Monday. Bombs stall Red drive on Saigon.
May 13 Yanks pour fire on Saigon Cong. ADJAA Edward Wenger, Point Mugu, stationed with
VX-4.
May 14 Talks open on bitter note. Victory over U.S. claimed by Hanoi. State Guard unit Co D
151st Inf, seeking duty in Vietnam. Saigon offensive crushed.
May 15 SP4 Thomas D. Beaver, 84th Construction BN, in Vietnam. PVT James K. Hoefer
finished basic at San Diego. Dick Beamer in OTS at San Antonio. PVT Michael J.
Forbes in AIT Ft. Polk.
May 16 Harriman submits 5 points for Viet peace agreement. Hanoi envoy distorting history,
U.S. charges. State draft quota slashed. WO David H. Kaiser, wounded near Binh Son,
awarded Distinguished Flying Cross Medal at Great Lakes Naval Hospital. EO3 Terry
Faust at Gulfport, Ms.
May 17 PVT George A. Howard completed AIT Ft. McClellan.
May 18 Marines kill 400 Reds in jungle battle at Song Thu Don Valley. Hanoi says peace pact
hinges on bomb halt. U.S. plan for DMZ rejected. TSGT Roger G.
Carpenter, weather equipment tech, stationed at Bien Hoa AB.
May 20 Marine battles Ho's elite Palace Guard. Vietnam cabinet resigns. Stephen W. Estep
finished basic at Camp Nimitz and assigned to Long Beach.
May 21 DMZ attack costs Reds 600 troops. PVT Asberry D. Simpson at Ft. McClelland.
May 22 $4 billion more asked for war.
May 23 Reds threaten collapse of Vietnam peace talks.
May 24 A Shau Valley reoccupied by Reds after GIs leave. Dennis M. Fairchild promoted to
SGT after completion of NCO course at Ft. Benning. SGT Walter Rose, radar repair-
man, assigned to Sioux City AB.
May 25 Reds refuse to scale down war. 1,000 man N. Viet forces caught by GIs 203 slain in the
DMZ. SP4 Dennis Manning's right hand injured in fighting near DaNang. Hospital-
ized in Tokyo. PVT Russell D. Speicher completed AIT, Ft. McClellan.
May 27 Reds down 4 U.S. planes. AN Thomas E. Bucher completed basic at Lackland AFB and
assigned to Lowry AFB.
May 28 GIs kill 150 in two battles near Dak To.
May 29 U.S. drive on 10,000 Reds opens at Dak To. MRFN Donald H. Griffith aboard the USS
Grand Canyon.
May SGT Richard D. White arrives Tan Son Nhut AB assigned 9th Inf. Div B Co., 3rd BN, 39th Inf Rgt, Bearcat base camp.
May 30 City Memorial Day Parade Set for 10 a.m. Thursday. Thursday's Memorial Day parade will begin at 10 a.m.
at South Wabash and Fulton streets and will proceed up Wabash Street to the courthouse. All units
participating in the parade are asked to be at the assembly area at 9:30 a.m. for organization.
Leonard Gardenour, organizer of the parade, said Tuesday afternoon that he is expecting approximately
13 units in the parade, organized to "honor and pay tribute to men who have died in service of the country
and show our support for our country and our fighting men in Vietnam."
Those participating in the parade will be the VFW and American legion Auxiliaries, American Legion
Junior Auxiliary, VFW and American Legion color guards, VFW rifle squad, the Vettetes march unit, a
city fire truck and the Gold Star Mothers.
Gardenour said that out-of-town color guard units are also expected.
Mayor W.D. Bryant, Police Chief Alvin R. Amann and Fire Chief Edward E. Keefer also have been
asked to participate in the parade. The Ceremony at the courthouse will begin with a welcome by George Dingledy.
The invocation will be given by the Rev. Kenneth Smith of the First Methodist Church followed by a
flag raising ceremony while the National Anthem is played.
The names of the Wabash County Vietnam war dead will be read by Gardenour.
Wreaths will be placed by representatives of the VFW and American Legion Auxiliaries, Gold Star
Mothers and Mayor Bryant.
Father Zahn, Saint Bernard's will give the benediction followed with a firing salute by the VFW rifle
squad and taps.
"I urge all people who can, to come and show their patriotism by participating in this parade,"
Gardenour said.
"I think the boys in Vietnam who are risking their lives should be supported and the boys who have died
should be honored.
"I think that if we show our patriotism and support of our country, our enemies will be quick to end the
war and all other acts against our country. This demonstration of our support will be carried out in the
organized and dignified manner that it should be."
Gardenour, a Wabash High School junior, is organizing the parade because "we can't support our
country by sitting at home. We must come out and take a stand" he said.
Gardenour later described the day as follow: "It was a beautiful event, about 300 people attended the
ceremony, the mayor/police chief/fire chief laid a wreath along with Gold Star Mothers. I remember I read
the names of those killed in Viet Nam, with the Gold Star Mothers seated in front of me. I started with the
name of Everett Miller, whose mother was in attendance. I was her paper boy, so I knew her well. She
burst into tears when I read her son's name, and it was difficult for me to continue. My congressman at that
time, Richard Roudebush, sent me a flag which was flown over the U.S. Capitol Building which was given
to me at the ceremony (which was a great surprise and honor I still have it in a case at home)."
June 1 Hanoi rejects LBJs appeal. South Viet troops kill 200 Reds in Saigon fighting. PFC
Ronald E. Roller wounded in hostile action, receiving multiple fragment wounds of the
entire body, face and cuts on left hand from a booby trap.
June 3 SGT James A. Brewer returned to U.S. after receiving wounds to left arm, left leg and
back when a rocket hit a truck killing one and hospitalizing the rest. He underwent
stomach surgery the following day in Vietnam, transferred to Tokyo and then to FT.
Knox. He entered the service in August of 1966, trained at Ft. Hood and went to
Vietnam in August. Marty Harrell, in Vietnam from April 1, 1967 to May 6, 1968
stationed at Vinhlong, says there is no easy answer in Vietnam. VC move against
Saigon. SP5 John D. Kelly serving in Munich, Ger.
June 4 Accident kills 7 S. Vietnamese leaders. SGT Russel Udell West, in Vietnam since Jan-
uary 1968, killed in Vietnam. Born in Wabash, enlisted in 1966. Major Dennis M.
Cunningham, Washington, D.C. received the Bronze Star Medal.
June 5 Johnson asks Soviet Union to aid in new peace effort. 250 VC die trying to join battle
of Saigon.
June 6 Cong driven from Saigon stronghold.
June 8 Bloodiest rocket barrage of war kills 25 in Saigon.
June 11 Cong rockets rake Saigon.
June 12 Rockets claim 135 casualties in Saigon. LCPL Eugune Dyson, Vietnam, with Marine
Attack Sqd 223. PVT Charlotte A. Stoops completed basic at Parris Island.
June 13 VC rockets kill airman and 4 children. U.S. warns Hanoi "Patience Wearing". SP4
Larry A. Smith with Co E, 701 Maint BN, 1st Inf Div.
June 14 VC threaten 100 rockets a night. 380 Americans died in Vietnam in 7 day period. SGT
Dennis C. Starbuck. 1st Tank BN, 1st Marine Div, in Vietnam. Five join USMC on 120
delay program – Ronald Shaffer, John H. Heitz, Carl Benson, Richard Brewer and
Robert Schaaf.
June 15 Saigon sandbags homes against rocket assault. Three embassies urge evacuation of
nationals.
June 17 B52s bombard Saigon outskirts.
June 18 Seven Communist 'copters shot down by jets. War talks to remain deadlocked.
June 19 121 man N. Viet unit surrenders. Lugar says Viet policies of Demos are "bankrupt."
CAPT Ronald G. Wolfert is a C-141 Starfighter pilot. SP4 James A. Simpson, 2nd tour
of Vietnam, stationed at An Khe. PFC Charles E. Cordill stationed near Laj Khe.
June 20 Viet fighting shifts to DMZ battleground. Lincolnville Rebekah Lodge sends SGT Jim
Brewer a sunshine box.
June 21 U.S. deaths in Viet War top 25,000.
June 22 Saigon hit by new rain of rockets. Signs of progress seen by Rusk in Paris talks. John
R. Schultz enlisted in the Navy, sent to San Diego.
SR Timothy A. Foster in basic at San Diego.
June 24 U.S. B52s drop massive load on Cong positions. A1C Steve Armie, Elmendorf AFB,
promoted to SGT. CPL Gary W. Heath at Dong Ha. CG Cadet Lawrence H. Howell
participated in summer training program at New London.
June 25 Allies put on Red alert for new Cong offensive.
June 26 5 U.S. helicopters lost in 24 hours.
June 27 CMDR David G. Smith is commander of the USS Jack. AN Terry A. Jivery graduated
tech school Shepperd AFB. EM2 Glen N. Martin completed 9 months tour of duty off
coast of Vietnam.
June 28 417 VC rockets captured; Marines leave Khe Sanh. PVT Frank Bradley in AIT at Ft.
Polk.
June 29 GIs trap 500 Reds near DMZ. COL. John Anderson assigned to Panama Canal Zone
after completing Inter American Defense College Ft. McNair.
July 1 Top Hanoi envoy to leave Paris. VC kill 88 civilians in terror attck on U.S. model vill-
age. 50 homes destroyed by fire.
July 2 VC suicide assault on Saigon repulsed. 1st Bri., 5th Inf Div (Mech) arrived at Quang Tri.
SGT Richard D. White wounded in an ambush sent to Saigon then hospitalized at 53rd
Evac Hospital, Cam Ranh Bay. AN John F. Dyer stationed at Grand Forks AFB. SR
Jay R. Fearnow enlisted in the Navy in basic at San Diego. Robert J. Gatchel, Jr. in
basic at Great Lakes. Phil Durham appointed to Air Force Academy.
July 3 169 die in Khe Sanh's last battle.
July 4 Vietnam fighting takes savage upturn at DMZ. DaNang GI patrol wiped out.
July 6 Bomber Barrage covers Khe Sanh pullout.
July 8 SA Mark E. Mirante graduates from Great Lakes and assigned to Bainbridge.
July 9 GIs launch major drive at DMZ. Marines fight division of Communist troops. KY says
S. Viet troops might invade N. Vietnam. PVT Larry T. Jamerson in basic at Ft. Leonard
Wood.
TV LETTERS TO AREA GI'S TO BE TAPED.
Service men and women from the Wabash area may soon see films and hear the taped voices of their
friends and relatives, thanks to a project cosponsored by J.W. Breelove Appliances and WTAF Channel 31,
Marion.
Breedlove said the project is strictly new and is being brought here on a trial basis.
The television station will bring a mobile unit here with a specially designed camera booth Saturday,
July 13. It will be set up in front of his store, from 9 a.m. to 12 noon and from 1 to 4 p.m.
Persons making the films need not be relatives, they could be boy or girl friends or other acquaintances
of someone in the armed forces, Breedlove said. The filming and conversation will be private. In the event
someone would rather be interviewed on film, personnel will be available for this. More than one person
may be in the film at the same time. Entire families could talk together, he said.
Breedlove said the film will be developed and sent back to his store, without editing, and they will see
that the person sresponsible receives it. They, in turn, may forward it on to their serviceman or woman.
There is no cost to the person and the films are not to be returned. Most armed forces areas have 16mm
projectors on which the films may be shown.
Wabash County has close to 600 persons in the service and Breedlove said he hopes that many people
will turn out for the project, which was set up to help keep morale up for the boys and girls in Vietnam and
the armed forces.
July 10 Hill 689 Marines kill 300 attackers. SP4 Tonie M. Baer received letter of commenda-
tion as Student of the Month at Ft. Monmouth. PVT John W. McCollister completed
wheeled vehicle mechanics course, Ft. Leonard Wood. LCPL Michael Harrold in Dan
Ha.
July 11 VC infiltration mounts; Saigon attack predicted.
July 12 Eight hour battle halts VC invaders. SP4 John L. Roberts killed in combat.
July 15 CPL John L. Idle with the 3rd BN in Vietnam. SGT Steve Conner stationed at Nakhon
Phanom AFB Thailand. PVT Joseph L. Reed completed an administrative course at
Ft. Leonard Wood.
July 16 Saigon on alert, B52s bomb VC supply lines. All out drive by Reds expected at any
time. Eugenia Nixon joined a 13 month program with the American Red Cross for
service in Vietnam.
July 17 Counter offensive blocks VC strikes. LCPL Randall Pell with VMO-2 MAG 16, 1st
AW.
July 18 Marines hit last VC force at DMZ.
July 19 B52s raids pound rocket bases in N. Vietnam. SP4 James E. Simpson, ammunition han-
dler, BTY C, 1st BN 2nd Inf Div, near Schweinfurt, Germany. PVT James Griffith in
basic at Ft. Campbell.
July 20 LBJ, Thieu say allies will not escalate war. No mention of bombing halt made. Blast
rips Saigon temple; wave of terrorism feared. LT COL Jack Thompson on way back to
the states from Vietnam. Ronnie Combs in basic at Lackland AFB. Donald G. and
David E. Wampler stationed at Lackland AFB.CAPT Howard E. Kem assigned to the
4th Inf Div near Kontum. YN3 Johnny T. Cruz aboard the USS Coral Sea. PFC Roger
Moore stationed in Vietnam with the 1st BN, 8th Art, 25th Inf Div. FA Stephen Estep
aboard the USS Decatur. LCPL John B. Bechtol, 3rd Marine Div, near Khe Sanh.
July 24 Major Gen. Worley killed as plane downed. Mortar barrage slams Da Nang. SN James
M. Teague aboard the USS Chandler. CAPT Terrance Mayer, Hickam AFB, received
the USAF Commendation Medal. A1C Joseph D. Willcox on duty at Bien Hoa AB.
Randal Willcox enlisted USMC in basic at San Diego.
July 26 2,472 S. Vietnamese slain by VC terrorists.
July 29 McGovern, HHH split on Vietnam War issue. Guerrillas hit Yank air base in Thailand.
FN Michael J. Noonan aboard the USS Annapolis. SP4 Donald E. Sparling, filing
clerk, stationed at Long Binh.
July 31 Bombing halt tied to Hanoi pledge: Rusk. 100,000 troops massed by Reds. LCPL
Larry Richards stationed at Camp Books, Vietnam. SP4 Larry D. Miller, field wire-
man, with the 1st Air Cav Div in Vietnam. Clinton W. Carpenter, England AFB, pro-
moted to SGT. A1C Bobby R. Harper assigned to Binh Ty AB Vietnam. SGT Richard
B. Hoover wire section chief 4th Inf Div, assigned to Pleiku.
August 1 Humphrey: free elctions, including NLF, in Vietnam. VP veers from LBJ policy for
first time. Harriman accuses Hanoi of breaking Geneva Pact. VC flushed "like Quails"
in GI drive in Mekong Delta.
August 2 U.S. troops in Vietnam reach record 541,000. Allies step up attacks to stall Red offen-
sive. CAPT Lowell Wilson attending Air University Maxwell AFB. Ronnie Coburn in
basic at Lackland AFB. TSGT Billy M. Palmer, Tan Son Nhut AB, received 2nd USAF
Commendation Medal. PVT Darrell Hileman completed basic at Ft. Campbell sent to
Ft. Bragg. John E. Holmes honorably discharged from Navy at Long Beach.
August 5 N. Vietman uses tear gas on GIs.
August 7 River barge guns blast VC buildup move.
August 8 Green Berets rescue "slaves." U.S. releasing 14 POWs to bolster peace talks. Stan-
ley L. Bahler commissioned 2nd LT at Lackland AFB.
August 9 6,000 man allied force invades A Shau Valleuy. CPL Steve Owens stationed at Iwa-
kuni, Japan. RM3 David A. Story, USS Herbert J. Thomas, returned to U.S. after a
deployment to Vietnam. PVT Earl Jay Ward in basic at Ft. Leonard Wood.
August 10 Calvalrymen raid N. Viet units at Hue. PVT Duane Wagner completed Hawk Launcher
Crewman Course at Ft. Bliss.
August 13 Hanoi takes acid view of Nixon's Vietnam policy. SP4 John R. Cook assigned to HQ
Co, 75th Support BN, 5th Inf., Vietnam. BM3 James E. Lynch, River Assault Flotila
One, in the Mekong Delta. SGT Stephen Conner assigned to Makhon Phanon Royal
Thai AB.
August 14 Allies fight Viet Cong in three locations.
August 16 Marines cut down N. Viet units in three battles at DMZ.
August 17 U.S. tanks reach N. Viet border.
August 19 Allies hurl back N. Viet attacks.
August 20 2nd LT James A. Pell wounded in combat south of Saigon during a mortar attack; hit
a piece of mortar fragment in the left hip and side. The fragment lodged in his spleen.
Surgery was performed in Vietnam. Pell was flown to an Army hospital in Japan for
convalescence. Pell, forward observer with a heavy artillery unit, "never got a scratch"
while on frontline duty. He was wounded in an enemy attack on his bunker enplace-
ment at his base camp. Pell attended OCS at Ft. Sill, received further training at Ft.
Erwin before going to Vietnam in March of 1968. White's student PFC Michael E.
Randall killed in action in Vietnam. Largest Communist Summer offensive crushed by
Allies. 500 Reds slain; others driven back to border. McCarthy, Humphrey fight opens
on Demo Viet plank.
August 21 VA attack wipes out Marine post. SP4 Frank M. Hitlaw, 101st Airborne to be dischargd
from Ireland Army Hospital, Ft. Knox, wounded four times. Awarded Army Commen-
dation V Medal, 4 purple hearts, 5 oak leaf clusters for combat duty, combat infantry-
man's badge, aircrewmans badge, air medal and the soldiers medal.
August 22 GIs repel VC human wave raids. EFSA Timothy Foster assigned NATTC San Diego
for basic electricity and electronics school. Cadet 4C John F. Dingledy started training
at Coast Guard Academy.
August 23 Shelling of Saigon resumed by Cong.
August 24 Reds attack U.S. airbase at Da Nang.
August 26 U.S., S. Vietnamese forces repel Cong at Da Nang. MMFN JackieVotra, USS Okano-
gan, off the coast of Vietnam. AN David Coble finished tech school at Lowry AFB as-
signed to Scott AFB. BNFN Philip W. Lloyd, USS Steinaker, off the coast of Vietnam.
August 27 U.S. South Vietnam lift siege of Green Beret Camp at Duc Lap.
August 30 ST2 Russell L. Kirshman aboard the USS Picking.
August 31 GI prisoners in Vietnam riot, burn buildings. SGT Lawrence Pace, intelligence clerk,
received Army Commendation Medal. Seabee Constructionman Rolland Drudge
stationed in Vietnam. Merle E. Glazier finished basic at Ft. Campbell assigned to Ft.
Polk.
September 3 21 killed, 36 injured in Communist raids along length of S. Vietnam. AN Donald
Wampler completed basic at Lackland AFB assigned to Shepperd AFB.
September 5 AN William D. Pelphry completed basic at Lackland AFB assigned to Shepperd AFB.
PFC John S. Bartle, armored intelligence specialist, 11th Inf Brigade, American Div,
stationed near Duc Pho. PVT John W. McCollister completed general vehicle school
at Ft. Knox. CT3 Michael Campbell was in a fire at Subic Bay and now back on duty.
September 6 3rd costliest war. Casualties pass 200,000 in Vietnam.
September 7 Terrorist bomb rips whide area of Saigon. Vietnam #1 issue in polls, HHH, Agnew
spar on who can end war.
September 9 VC terrorists continue bomb attackes on Saigon. John W. Forrester completed power
generation course with the U.S. Corps of Engineers. SA Robert J. Gatchel, Jr.,
completed basic at Great Lakes.
September 10 Richard D. Beamer stationed at Mather AFB for training as a navigator. Alan E.
Bahler commissioned 2nd LT at Lackland AFB assigned to Tinker AFB. PVT Roger
D. Staley completed AIT at Ft. Polk.
September 11 VC terrorists attack school; teacher slain. SGT Jesse E. Parrett awarded combat
infantryman badge. Mechanic constructionman Paul
D. Shoemaker received a Letter of Commendation for helping rescue 200 people from
the ruins of a five story building in Manila.
September 13 Allied troops rout Reds in fighting at Tay Ninh control of area regained. Pueblo spy
mission admitted Reds say. HA Robert J. Gatchel at San Diego taking medical sorps-
man schooling. AN Danny R. Lyons completed basic at Lackland AFB assigned to
Westover AFB. SN John Kilander, USS America, in the Gulf of Tonkin. SP4 Wil-
liam A. Greer discharged from the Army.
September 14 Outnumbered GIs repel VC attack on Outpost Fire Base attackers driven off. PFC
Delbert Sparks, Vietnam, contracted Malaria and sent to Great Lakes Naval Hospital.
September 16 Allies kill 158 N. Viet as Naval guns blast away. SN Richard Erb, USS Intrepid, in the
Gulf of Tonkin.
September 17 Viet Reds dealt crippling defeats. Pueblo crewman adequately fed. PFC Asberry D.
Simpson with the 25th Inf Div in Vietnam at Cu Chi.
September 18 25 GIs killed in two surprise raids by Reds near the DMZ.
September 19 Paratroopers rout human wave attack. SP5 Lynn W. Hammonds received Army Com-
mendation Medal for meritorious service while serving as a flight medic from January
to August 1968. SGT Richard B. Hoover, Co B, 124th Signal BN, 4th Inf stationed in
Vietnam. Danny L. Paschall participated in Project Transition at Ft. Carson.
September 20 B52s pound Cong invasion routes. Ruckelshaus says U.S. must pursue Viet negoti-
ation Viet protesters picket major candidate rallies.
September 21 Marines airlifted to N. Viet border. PFC Paul H. Young at Camp Books in Vietnam.
September 23 N. Viet invasion force evades Marine dragnet. Leathernecks capture huge munitions
cashe. AN Donald M. Coburn completed basic at Lackland AFB assigned to Chanute
AFB. Sam M. Cleaver enlisted in the Navy and in basic at Great Lakes. FA Stephen
W. Estep aboard the USS Decatur. PVT Brady N. Winer completed AIT at Ft. Lewis.
September 24 Communists down 6 U.S. helicopters in, near the DMZ.
September 25 VC rockets rip depot in Saigon. Wabash Navyman plays key role in Mekong Delta
Riverine Force. A navyman from Wabash, Ind., is playing a key role in the battle against the Viet Cong
while serving as a member of River Assault Flotilla One, the naval component of the joint Army-Navy
Mobile Riverine Force in Vietnam's Mekong Delta.
BM3 James E. Lynch, 20, son of Mr. and Mrs. John W. Lynch of Williams Road, is the Coxswain
aboard Assault Support Patrol Boat (ASPB) 112-7, the only type of craft in the force specifically designed
and built for riverine warefare.
PO3 Lynch's boat basically functions as a minesweeper-patrol boat for the unique mini-fleet which has
been operating in the delta since February 1967.
In a typoical operation Navy assault boats are used to lift infantrymen of the U.S. Army's 9th Div. into a
combat zone where the troops are beached to seek out the enemy ashore. The boats remain in the area to
provide close fire support and to prevent the enemy from escaping by water along the many rivers, streams
and canals which interlace the delta.
The 20-year old navyman has already seen plenty of action since joining the MRF two months ago. He
described a recent battle which occurred on August 31 as the "toughest I've been in."
Lynch's boat was in the lead element of a column of gunboats conducting a sweep operation in a narrow
canal near the Vietnamese city of Sa Doc. As they approached a "crossroads" in the canal where another
stream branched off, the riverbank suddenly erupted with enemy fire.
"We were receiving heavy automatic weapons sfire from the right bank. My first instinct was to hit the
throttles full-bore and get out of there, but I fought back the urge and backed down a little to give our
20mm cannon gunner a chance to get a good bead on the enemy positions on the riverbank. He opened up
and his 20mm was chopping down trees all along the bank."
As Lynch's fellow crewmen poured a stream of fire at the bank Lynch coolly guided the gunboat past
the enemy positions while enemy B-40 rockets streaked to within a few feet of his boat.
"We had taken about five small arms rounds when out of the corner of my eye I saw a sailor on the boat
next to ours get hit in the back with a small arms round. He pitched forward against the boat canopy and
bounced into the water.
"I figured he was dead but the next thing I knew he was swimming back to his boat, climbed in and ran
to the stern of the craft where he started cranking grenades at them with the automatic gsrenade launcher."
Lynch turned his boat around in med-stream and came back for another pass at the enemy. By this time
the enemy fire had been fairly well suppressed and the gunboats had them on the run. Petty officer Lynch
estimated the firefight had lasted no longer than 3 ½ minutes.
Although the battle described by PO3 Lynch was more severe than the average delta engagement, most
of the men of River Assault Flotilla One have been in a t least a dozen firefights. All of the boats and most
of the ships sof the flotilla are part of the Navy's Pacific Fleet Amphibious Force.
BM3 Lynch attended Southwood High School prior to entering the Navy on March 23, 1966. He previ-
ously served aboard the USS Springfield before joining the Mobile Riverine Force.
September 26 Green Beret unit betrayed. Traitors help VC attackers. Nixon advisor says Vietnam
troop level to be reduced. Hanoi rejects UN effort to end war. Viet bond unit to stay
home; equipment to go.
September 27 Saigon center bombed; security ring tightens. AN Horace P. Cripe Jr., completed basic
at Lackland AFB assigned to Beale AFB. SGTJames D. Bowman honorably discharged
from the USAF. SP 4 Larry L. Walsh Jr., honorably discharged from the Army. Mars-
hall Wilson completed USCG basic at Cape May.
September 28 Dart shells kill 282 VC. PVT Carl W. Milam completed helicopter repair course, Ft.
Eustis. EO3 Terry Faust assigned to MCB 11 Vietnam. SP5 Nolan E. Freiden honor-
ably discharged from the Army. AN John R. Schultz completed basic at San Diego now
at NATTC Jacksonville. PVT Michael J. Forbes in Vietnam.
October 1 U.S. puts the battleship New Jersey into action. Green Beret Camp Thong Duc holds
under siege.
October 2 7000 Reds ring Green Beret Camp. SGT Richard D. White wounded second time in
back by booby trap.
October 3 Reds shoot down 3 copters carrying wounded soldiers.
October 4 B52s pound Thuong Duc area but fail to end siege. SP4 John D. Kerr and CPL James
M. Green honorably discharged from the service.
October 5 Green Berets turn back 4 wave assault by Reds.
October 7 165 Reds captured in allied roundup.
October 8 3,000 Reds pull back allies end siege of Green Berets.
October 9 Arthur Doub, USAF, promoted to Captain while stationed in Germany FNSA Michael
J. Cooper aboard the USS Enterprise. A1C Larry R. Dennison, 23rd Fld Maint, Sqd.,
stationed at Takhi Royal Thai AFB. SSGT Ellis M. Smithers and SP5 Bryan H. Leeka
were honorably discharged.
October 10 Bomb halt could lad to peace Hanoi says. N. Viets try to overrun Marine unit near
Thuong Duc.
October 11 Thieu denies Saigon coup attempt. LeMay will make trip to Vietnam. Dallas Har-
man completed basic at Great Lakes. LCPL Hoyte J. Summerland, SP4 James M.
Nicely, SGT Daniel H. Miller honorably discharged.
October 14 Allies battle 2,000 N. Vietnamese "Eyeball to Eyeball" at Thuong Duc. AN Roger
L. Stephens completed basic at Lackland AFB assigned to Lowry AFB.
October 16 Battleship blasts N. Viet fortress into Tonkin Gulf.
October 17 LBJ refutes rumors of halt in bombing. Green Beret post at Thuong Duc under new
siege. SP4 Ernest T. McKinley honorably discharged from the Army. PFC Michael J.
Forbes assigned to the 4th Inf Div near Pleiku. SSGT Pat L. Palmer presented with
USAF Outstanding Unit Award service ribbon at U-Tapao Airfield Thailand. AMS3
Larry D. Herron in basic at Ft. Campbell.
October 18 Viet peace break seen near.
October 19 Hanoi balks on bomb accord. PFC Michael E. Randall, White's graduate, killed in
action in Vietnam. John R. Guthrie, Sqd ATKRON 174, chosen as Sailor of the Month
at Cecil Field. SGT Terry A. Peas aircraft equipment repairman, stationed at Nha Trang
AB. Steven Weimer completed basic at Ft. Campbell assigned to Ft. Belvoir. CWO
James E. Browne completed tour of Vietnam where he received the Bronze Star and
Army Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster. SA Edwin Weimer aboard the USS
St. Paul off Vietnam.
October 21 Thieu says bomb halt impossible. VC rockets blast Vung Tau. PVT Alan P. Smith in
USMC boot camp at San Diego. PFC Asberry D. Simpson, Cu Chi, received Combat
Infantryman Badge. MSGTRichard L. Weesner, Davis Monthon AFB, reenlisted in the
USAF. SP4 Gordon R. Bradley, Ft. Hood, received Good Conduct Medal.
October 23 VC blast children's hospital. U.S. peace offensive applauded.
October 24 Diplomats fail to reach accord on bombing halt. Air ground strikes kill 225 N. viets.
October 25 Casualties at 1 year low in Vietnam.
October 26 GIs smash N. Viet fortress. SA Marshall K. Wilson completed USCG basic at Cape
May. PVT Larry D. Herron in basic at Ft. Campbell. SGT Thomas L. Wagoner
honorably discharged from the Army.
October 28 Allies claim heavy Cong casualties along DMZ.
October 29 Reds ready new attack on Saigon. AN Michael A. Clarkson and AN Robert Meek
completed basic at Lackland AFB. Clarkson to be sent to Lowry AFB and Meek to
Amarillo AFB. PVT Victor L. Poor completed basic at San Diego. 1st LT Robert A.
Archer assigned to 15th Art. near Chu Cat. SA Steven J. Mattern graduated basic at
Great Lakes.
October 30 200 VC trapped attack repulsed by Green Beret at Thuogh Duc. MSGT Jerry Sellers
assigned to Vietnam.
October 31 242 VC supply boats sunk. Peace talks end abruptly. LCPL Michael Faust sustained
fragment wounds to the head, arms, legs and other injuries in Vietnam. He has been
hospitalized at the 106th Army General Hospital, Japan. Michael J. Noonan, USS
Annapolis, promoted to PO3. SP4 Harold G. Bowman, SP4 Gordon R. Bradley, SP4
Hurbert B. Scott and EN3 Glennus N. Martin honorably discharged.
November 1 Battleship pounds N. Viet. Coast. Hint preelection halt in bombing. CPL Frank L.
Johnson, SGT John W. Shirbraun and SP5 Ronald W. Kendall honorably discharged.
November 2 U.S. halts bombing of N. Vietnam pilots make last flights over N.Viet. Reds agree to
expand peace talks. BM3 Brad W. Plum is in the Mekong Delta with River Assault
Flotilla One. PVT Kernie L. Rowe is in Vietnam with the 588th Eng. BN.
November 4 Saigon-NFL feud jeopardizes talks. Vietnam action slackens, allies grab big enemy
arms cache near Saigon. SP5 Terry W. Bland honorably discharged from the Army.
November 5 Expanded peace talks suffer double setbacks. 230 VC die in clashes with allies. SGT
Steven P. Alexander honorably discharged.
November 6 Vietnam peace talks delayed indefinitely. Army troop copter shot down by VC. PVT
Merle E. Glazier completed AIT at Ft. Polk.
November 8 Nixon may send team to Vietnam peace talks; wants to insert own ideas. Dennis E.
Grossnickle, USS Springfield, promoted to PO3
November 9 New demands by Thieu paralyze Vietnam talks. Two Marine posts raked by rockets.
PFC Asberry D. Simpson is in the Valley Forge General Hospital.
SGT Larry R. Pormen, SP4 Thomas D. Beaver, SGT James A. Brewer and PFC Terry
W. Sutton honorably discharged.
November 11 19,000 troops shifted for defense of Saigon. Lynn A. Walters promoted to SP4 in
Vietnam. CAPT Larry E. Stewart, Lowry AFB,received the Bronze Star.
November 12 LBJ, Nixon plan Vietnam strategy.
November 13 Nixon endorses Viet policy. AN Ronnie L. Dempsey completed basic at Lackland
AFB and assigned to Shepperd AFB. A1C Dean F. Brubaker, airframe repairman,
DaNang AB, now at Grissom AFB. TSGT Robert L. Yentes previously at U-Tapac
Royal Thai AB now at Grissom AFB.
November 14 S. Viet spurns U.S. threat to go it alone in talks. Manchester College student John
Flory to turn in draft card.
November 15 Viet talks jeopardized by attacks along DMZ. 30,000 Reds mass. Allies hurl back
enemy attackers. FTM Jay D. McIntosh, SSGT Jim W. Kirby, 1st LT John W. Voss, SP5 Morris W. Baker
honorably discharged. MAJOR Robin Miller has added another award to the six medals and 88 oak leaf
clusters that have become his during his army career.
Major Miller, son of Mr. and Mrs. Frank H. Miller, North Manchester, was named Army Aviator of the
Year, during recent ceremonies in Washington, D.C. The presen- tation was made at the 10th annual honors
luncheon of the Army Association of America by Gen. Bruce B. Palmer, Jr., vice chief of staff of the Army
The award is presented an- nually to the Army Aviator who has made an outstanding individual contribu-
ution to the Army aviation mission in support of the Army.
Major Miller distinguished himself as a pilot and gunship platoon leader during three tours of duty in
Vietnam. During the three day, Vi Thanh Battle in December, 1967, Miller, then a captain, supported 129
medical evacuations, and in the process destroyed numerous enemy automatic positions. The following
January 12 he engaged an enemy sanpan wounding its crewmen and all allowing a captive American
soldier to escape from the sanpan. Major Miller then landed to receive the American soldier.
During this period Major Miller learned of enemy movement in the vicinity of convent 800 meters from
the airfield and he made more than 20 trips into and out of the convent courtyard to rescue 208 children and
nuns in spite of heavy ground fire.
Major Miller was wounded while attacking an enemy position on March 25 and subsequently evacuated
to the United States. He is attending an Infantry Officer Advanced Course at Fort Benning.
Major Miller has been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the Army's second highest decoration
for Valor, the Silver Star with Oak Leaf Clusters, the Distinguished Flying Cross with three Oak Leaf
Clusters, the Purple Heart medal with two Oak Leaf Clusters, the Army Commendation Medal and the Air
Medal with 82 Oak Leaf Clusters.
November 18 GIs chase N. Viet to fronteier. CMSGT Lowell A. Schupp Offutt AFB received second
USAF Commendation Medal. SGT Herbert L. Mullen with Marine Fighter Sgd 323 in
Vietnam.
November 19 Peace talk terms wont be scuttled, U.S. warns Saigon. Thieu may send Ky to Paris con-
ference. Reds crossing over DMZ. SP4 Robert J. Haecker and SP5 Jerry E. Smith
honorably discharged.
November 20 Saigon maintains boycott of talks. Hanoi envoy claims U.S. lying about talk terms.
November 21 N. Viets intensify shelling at DaNang.
November 22 Saigon boycott suspends secret U.S. Hanoi talks. Hanoi shifts war supplies toward
DMZ. AN James P. Hipskind completed basic Lackland AFB assigned to Keesler AFB.
November 23 N. Viets call for talks to open without Saigon. U.S. fires on N. Viet gunboats. Hanoi
price for total ceasefire U.S. pullout. SGT Bill M. Clark awarded Bronze Star Medal
with "V" device, Purple Heart and Combat Infantry Badge. SP4 Stephen K. Briner and
SP5 Donald E. Curless honorably discharged.
November 25 Allies report 210 violations of DMZ accord by Hanoi.
November 26 Reds shoot down 2 U.S. spy planes. Saigon reported ready to end boycott of peace
talks.
November 27 Reds charge bombing helt broken by U.S. Allies battle Reds on two DMZ fronts. John
Dyer, Grand Forks AFB, promoted to A1C. LCPL Martin L. Schaff with MAS Sqd 2,
Vietnam. David Coburn promoted to PO2. CTSN Royce T. Kreider stationed at USN
Communications Station San Miguel. AA Jay R. Fearnow graduated Aviation Mech.
Fund School NATTC Memphis. SP5 Terry M. Alexander honorably discharged from
the Army.
November 29 Ky to lead Paris delegation. Allied armada blocks VC Island fort. Johnson's son in law
returns to Viet Combat. SP4 Terry A. Callicoat and SGT Sergey Wasylenko honorably
discharged.
November 30 B52s pound VC corridors into Saigon. 500 tons of bombs dropped in ten raids. Reds
ignore S. Viets in Paris.
December 2 Joseph F. Sheibley, information specialist with Pacific Stars and Stripes, Tokyo, pro-
moted to SSGT. PFC Bill B. Gray, Jr. stationed in Asmara, Ethipia. Ronald D. Rey-
nolds, HC4 Det 87, aboard the USCGC Southwind. MSGT Jerry L. Sailors in Vietnam.
HCl James L. Wallace, U.S. Naval Mobile Construction BN, 121 in Vietnam.
December 3 GIs repel Red attack in face to face battle near Saigon. Russian troops "advising" N.
Viets. Saigon orders Ulye cease fire.
December 4 Saigon delegate arrives in Paris. SGT Richard D. White, Vietnam, received his second
Commendation Medal.
December 5 25 GIs die in ambush by 600 N. Viet troops. Heaviest U.S. Combat losses in two
months. PFC Merle Glazier stationed near Cu Chi. PVT Raymond L. Long completed
USMC basic at San Diego. David L. Hollenback, discharged from the Navy, received
National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, with two bronze stars and
Vietnam Campaign Medal with devise.
December 6 Nixon to send observer to Vietnam peace negotiations. GI casualty toll highest in
10 weeks. VC to observe holiday truce.
December 7 Reds stage Viet terror attacks.
December 9 U.S. artillery bombards N. Viet troops in DMZ. 200,000 Reds reported withdrawn
from S. Viet. SP4 Dwayne L. Brooks awarded Purple Heart and Army Commendation
Medal with 2 Bronze Star Medals for heroism in action in Vietnam. SK3 Hillary
Larrowe at Naval Communications Station in Iceland. A1C Stephen W. Slonaker at
Phu Cat. Ber nard F. Netro with the 6th Art.,1st Inf Div in Vietnam.
December 10 VC to establish "puppet" Saigon regime. Reds down 4th U.S. "spy" plane.
December 11 GI deaths pass 30,000 in war nearly half this year.
December 12 GIs crush Red attack on airbase. Reds ok troop removal talks.
December 13 PFC Phillip Harrold suffered shoulder, face and head wounds from an enemy grenade
at the Campaign Mead River, 10 miles south of DaNang, outside the city of Dien Dan.
He received the Purple Heart. SSGT Donald F. Lyon, maint. tech., stationed at Phu Cat
AB.
December 14 Hanoi to allow POWs to receive Yule gifts.
December 16 Fighting heavy in Cong infested border area. U.S. to move for release of Pueblo. EN3
David Baker aboard USS North Amption CC1. Larry R. Crist in basic at Great Lakes.
December 17 Reds freed in bid for POW exchange.
December 18 7,000 allied troops raid jungle fort near DaNang. U.S., Saigon rift widens in Paris.
Betty H. Moore enlisted in the WAFs; left for basic at San Antonio. PFC James M.
Griffith assigned to Co. F 50th Inf, Long Range Pistol Patrol 25th Inf Div, Vietnam. SP5
Stephen M. Dricoll, 4th Inf Div, Pleiku, received the Army Commendation Medal.
December 19 Premier says Reds massed for offensive. 31 held in fake draft deferments. Saigon says
U.S. wrongly hurrying Viet peace talks. LCOL Jack H. Thompson, Ft. Eustis, received
the Legion of Merit and also presented with his 2nd and 3rd Air Medals for meritorious
achievement in aerial flight. AN John D. Lawson assigned to Minot AFB after comp-
letion of basic at Lackland AFB. A1C Michael L. Poor stationed at Korat Royal Thai
AFB. SSGT George D. Jenks, Clark AFB, received USAF Commendation Medal.
David I. Leland promoted to SSGT at Tan Son Nhut AB. PFC Merle E. Glazier
assigned to the 25th Inf Div, Vietnam.
December 20 Cambodia to free 12 Americans. Viet Cong to free 3 prisoners. U.S. threatens new
bombing, Reds say. GIs kill 117 guerrillas in Saigon area. Eugenia Nixon sends
holiday greetings from South Vietnam. CSK P.W. Ply retired from the Navy at Great
Lakes. PVT John Heitz returned to Camp Pendleton. SP5 Lynn W. Hammons and
PFC James G. Brown honorably discharged.
December 21 POWs leave Cambodia start home. Jet bombs N. Vietnam bases. MSGT Gerald R.
Spehn retired from the USAF at Robins AFB.
December 24 Pueblo crew walks to freedom. Beaten, starved by Red captors. Reds shell Viet
troops, U.S. bases. VC reject Saigon offer to negotiate. Vietnam GIs to wade into
35,000 pounds of turkey. Roland E. Fearnow advanced to ST2 and transferred to
USNF Argentia. SGT James A. Pelfrey, Ft. Benning, awarded Bronze Star Medal and
Purple Heart. MSGT Richard M. Stineman, Ft. Benning, awarded Bronze Star with
first oak leaf cluster for bravery in Vietnam.
December 30 CAPT Howard E. Kem received 2nd Army Commendation Medal.
December 31 DaNang ambush broken by allies. U.S. sets POW talks with Cong. At year end
American troop strength in Vietnam is 540,000.
1969 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January 2 Cong leader says more POWs may be released. LCPL Thomas M. Kempf, DaNang,
awarded a purple heart for injuries received when his convoy truck was destroyed.
January 3 1968 Vietnam War toll nearly equal to seven years total. U.S., Seek settlement of rift.
Peace talks expanded to include Saigon government and VC representatives.
January 4 GIs ambush VC ammo supplies. Hanoi rejects U.S. proposal for talks. Defiant Beret
Major James Rowe escapes VC "Green Hell" after 5 years.
January 6 Allies move to end threat to Saigon. Bucher, nine crewmen given purple hearts.
January 7 Trapped GI patrol rescued by helicopter. Lawmakers say N. Vietnam uses bomb halt for
buildup. HCl James L. Wallace on 2nd tour in Vietnam with Naval Mobile Construction
BN 121 near Gia Le. SDP4 Donald Sailors on leave after one year in Vietnam. Will
return to Vietnam.
January 8 Eight GIs die in ambush in jungle. New proposals weighed by U.S., Saigon enoys. AN
William J. Schloof completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Shepperd AFB. Privates
Danny L. Cole, Ronald Meeks, Gene L. King and William R. Lynn fired expert with
at Ft. Campbell. Aerographers Mate 3 Edward W. Howard, USS Independence, spent
Christmas and New Years in Athens, Greece.
January 9 Jet hits GI base, three killed. SP5 Tom List sends thanks to two children.
January 10 Weekly Viet death count drops to 101. Hoosier draft quota is 891, a drop of 100.
January 11 Communist losses run 523 a day. Robert J. Weitzel at Lackland AFB. Douglas Martin,
USS Samuel N. Moore, and Steve Estep, USS Decatur, met each other in Hong Kong.
PFC Merle E. Glazier, motorman, Co. B, 2nd BN, 27th Inf Div, Cu Chi, awarded Combat
Infantryman Badge.
January 13 Cong kill 7 Americans in Viet hut.
January 14 GI cutback inevitable says General Abrams. Cong blast 18 copters, kill 18 GIs in Me-
kong Airbase attack. AN William D. Pelphry graduated at Shepperd AFB assigned
to Homestead AFB. CPL Steve Owens, engineer, with Marine Air Wing at Chu Lai.
SGT Anthony Neff, munitions specialist, Luke AFB.
January 15 SGT Dennis Fairchild killed in Vietnam. From article in paper 4-22-1969) He was post-
humously awarded the Bronze Star Medal with First Oak Leaf Cluster for heroism, the Army Commenda-
tion Medal, Purple Heart and the Good Conduct Med-al. Prior to his death he had received the National
Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Ser- vice Medal, Veitnam Campgain Ribbon, Combat Infantryman Badge
Parachutist Badge, Expert Badge with automatic rifle bar and Marksman Badge with machine gun and
pistol bars.
The Bronze Star Medal with First Oak Leaf Cluster was presented for heroism in connectrion with
military operations against a hostile force in Vietnam. On January 15, 1969, SGT Fairchild was serving
with his unit as a squad leader and point man while conducting a company-minus reconnaissance in force
mission approximately 10 miles west of Lai Khe. At approximately 1500 hours while proceeding through
dense junge, SGT Fairchild observed a wire that crossed his path. Immediately realizing that the wire
could lead to an enemy bobby trap or claymore mine, he quickly directed his men to take cover. While
motioning and shouting instructions to his comrades, SGT Fairchild was mortally wounded.
His selfless courage and concern for his comrades significantly contributed to the saving of several
American lives and distinguished him as a soldier of the highest caliber. SGT Fairchild's outstanding
display of aggressiveness, devotion to duty and personal bravery is in keeping with the finest tradition of
the military service and reflects great credit upon himself, the First Infantry Division and the United States
Army. He enlisted in August 1967 and had been in Vietnam since last August.
February 18 SGT David W. Hartman received the Bronze Star Medal and citation for outstanding
meritorious service in connection with military operations against hostile forces in Vietnam.
According to the citation Hartman consistently manifested exemplary professionalism and initiative in
obtaining outstanding results during the year from November 1967 to November 1968.
The citation said his rapid assessment and solution of numerous problems inherent in a counterinsur-
gency environment greatly enhanced the allied effectiveness against a deter- mined and aggressive enemy.
Despite many adversities, he invariably performed his du- ties in a resolute and effieient manner. Energe-
tically applying his sound judgment and extensive knowledge he contributed materially to the successful
accomplishment of the United States mission in Vietnam. "His loyalty, diligence and devotion to duty
were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself and
the United States Army."
Hartman also earned the National Defense Ribbon, Vietnamese Service and Campaign Ribbons, Good
Conduct Ribbon, and Combat Infantry Badge. He was recommended for the Bronze Star for valor and the
Vietnamese Cross for Gallantry for action in Tay Nihn, Trang Bang.
January 16 Fire rocks USS Enterprise. SSGT William B. Hoover, aircraft gunner, completed 100th
combat mission at U-Tapas AF with 4158th Strategic Wing. SSGT Harry M. Thatcher,
maintenance scheduler, Hickam AFB. Richard L. Thompson promoted to HM2 during
deployment with Patrol Sqd 7 "Neptunes" in Sigonella, Sicily.
Janaury 17 Deadlock broken in Paris talks. Reds down 2 copters; 5 GIs die. TSGT Francis L.
Barnes is a radio instructor at Kessler AFB. SP5 John D. Kelly, 21st Inf., stationed in
Germany.
January 18 DMZ pounded by U.S. guns. Viet casualty count jumps.
January 20 Positive steps open Vietnamn peace talks. GIs storm VC jungle stronghold. PVT
Steven W. Weimer with the 3rd Armored in Hanau, Germany. AN Robert Meeks
graduated tech school Lowry AFB and assigned Thule AB.
January 21 GIs capture 136 Cong in tunnels.
Jaunary 22 U.S. bases hit by VC terrorists.
January 23 Saigon says Viet events key to talks. Three jets shot down in S. Viet. AN David A.
Sellers and Glen M. Adams completed basic at Lackland AFB; both assigned to Lowry
AFB. David L. Leland, Tan Son Nhut, AB, promoted to SSGT.
January 24 VC supplies seized. GI deaths rise. SGT Donald A. Walker, weather observer, stat-
ioned Custer AFB.
January 25 Reds down ambulance helicopter 7 GIs killed. Ky says Saigon sincere in hope for peace
talks. AN Ronald M. Coburn completed tech training, Chanute AFB assigned to Gris-
som AFB. PO3 Terry Faust on leave from Quang Tri; assigned to Port Hueneme.
January 27 Helicopter, fighter/bomber lost to Communist gunners. MSGT Richard J. Richardson
aircraft maintenance tech, assigned to 89th Military Air Wing Andrews AFB.
January 29 320 Reds killed in biggest Vietnam Battle of year at Duk To. Allies to renew DMZ
plea. Paul D. Shoemaker, construction mech. construction man with Unit 301 near
DMZ. Cadet Lawrence Howell USCG marched in the inauagural parade. Also in the
parade was A1C Terry L. Dyer who served as a paresidential escort.
January 31 U.S. proposes Viet troop ullout. U.S. attack destroys 219 VC supply sampans.
February 1 GIs capture huge VC underground complex. Pentagon told to take steps to end draft.
Allies expect Hanoi, VC to agree to secret talks.
February 3 Nixon may go to Paris for look at Viet talks. South Vietnam general hit by grenade.
CAPT. Lee E. Bricker honorably discharged at USAF Academy. AN Anny V. Smith
completed basic at Lackland AFB and assigned to Chanute AFB. Steven E. Armie
selected Airman of the Month, USAF Hospital Emendord.
February 4 VC trap S. Vietnam unit losses heavy.
February 5 B52s blast Red camp 200 killed. Reds await S. Vietnam concessions. AN Linda M.
Schul completed basic at Lackland AFB and assigned to Sheperd AFB. PVT Larry L.
Roser at Ft. Campbell.
February 8 24 day battle for Viet Batangan Peninsula won by GIs. 491 N. Viet soldiers captured
200 killed. 10 GIs desert in Stockholm. Red Cross seeks books for Viet troops.
February 9 Cong suicide squad captured in Saigon.
February 11 B52s pound Red hideouts in Vietnam. Manchester College speaker calls for U.S. to
cease-fire in Vietnam.
February 12 14 GIs wounded in rocket attack.
February 13 Hanoi pushes hard line; no concessions in talks. New demand issued for American
pullout. GIs foil terrorist bomb try. SSGT Steven E. Gordon, fuel systems mechanic,
with the 437th Military Airlift wing, Charleston AFB. SGT. Phillip D. Allen was at
Wurtsmith AFB now at DaNang AB. CAPT James N. Vawter assigned to the 199th
Light Inf. Bri., Long Binh.
February 15 B52s blast Reds on Tet holiday eve. Laos ruled out as Viet talk issue.
February 17 Reds break Tet truce murder S. Viet official. VC attack U.S. docks in Saigon. AN
Robert J. Weitzel completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Sheppered AFB. SP4 Gary
L. Brown, gunner 3rd Inf. Div., participated in Exercise Reforger I, Grafenwohr, Ger.
DCSN Richard D. Erb, USS Intrepid, returned to Norfolk after 8 months off coast of
Vietnam. PVT Richard S. Barton in basic at Ft. Knox.
February 18 Reds break Viet truce 170 times. North Manchester Kiwanis Club to discuss Viet War.
February 19 VC vow to continue fighting in Vietnam. Reds shift for attack on DaNang. SGT David
Hartman received Bronze Star and Vietnamese Cross for Gallantry in action in Tay
Nihn, Trang Bang. He also received the National Defense Medal, Good Conduct
Medal, Vietnamese Service Medal and Combat Infantry Badge. Stephen W.Estep, USS
Decatur, promoted to FN.
February 20 Marines inch through booby-trapped jungle.
February 21 Mountain seized in savage battle.
February 22 Reds ready new attack in Vietnam.
February 24 Hanoi pledges to capture Saigon from allies in spring offensive. 2nd LT Dennis M. Dick
graduated basic at Quantico, Va. PFC Leslie L.Gahl, MCAS Cherry Point, with Mar-
ine All Weather Attack Training Sqd. 202. Mitchel D. Drook enlisted in the Navy as a
hospital corpsman. PFC John A. Roser assigned 2nd Armored Div. Ft. Hood. PVT Mike
Keene and PVT Garrah T. Johnson in basic Ft. Knox.
February 25 Rural Wabash GI killed in Vietnam. PFC Victor L. Poor, 19, was killed in Vietnam
Tuesday.
Word of his death reached his parents, Mr. And Mrs. Carl Poor Jr., at their Wabash RR3 home Thursday
brought by a Marie Corps SGT from Marion and Deputy Sheriff John Brainard.
Friday morning a telegram confirmed the news. PFC Poor died in the vicinity of fire support base
Cunningham, near Laotian border, approximately 25 miles south southwest of Quang Tri, Quang Tri
province, Republic of Vietnam.
He sustained fragmentation wounds to the head and body from hostile grenade while on patrol, the wire
informed.
Services arrangements are pending. Word has been sent through the Red Cross to his brother, Michael,
who is in the Air Force in Thailand and th family anticipates his return here for services. The Marine Corps
representative was to meet with the family Friday afternoon.
PFC Poor was graduated from Southwood High School last May. He was an active student, probably
best known for his thespian activities.
In his sophomore year he received the best supporting role award for the part of Judge Omer Gafney in
"Harvey." And in his senior year thebest actor trophy for his work as the general in "Romanoff and Juliet."
He was nominated for the best crew awards in 1967 and 1968 and for the best actor award in 1967.
Speech Coach Thomas W. Oglesby said that when there was something to be done PFC Poor was
always on hand to do it…he would work long and hard. Oglesby said that he had played three roles in
"The Miracle Worker" and did a great deal of other stage work along with carrying these parts.
He served as vice president of the Thespian Society during his senior year and received first place
honors in humorous interpretation at a speech meet at Oak Hill High School.
He was a member of the speech and debate teams and the National Forensic League.
Mr. Oglesby spoke highly of him saying he was a "good student because he cared" and that he was
"well liked by the students and staff."
During his senior year he was a member of the football and wrestling teams. His other athletic activities
included basketball, cross country and track. He was a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
Robert Dawes, Southwood guidance counselor, said regarding his athletic activities that he did not star
in one but was always a contributing member of the team. "He was willing to sit on the bench if it took
that to make the team go," he said.
PFC Poor was a member of the College Corner Church and had been a Boy Scout. While in training at
Camp Pendleton, he received a sharpshooting medal.
After graduation and before joining the Marine Corps, he worked for a brief time at the General Tire and
Rubber Co. and the Robin Hood store.
PFC Poor enlisted in the Marines last July, had his training at Camp Pendleton, Ca. He was at home
over Christmas, leaving Dec. 26 to return to Camp Pendleton for 15 days additional training. He left for
Vietnam Jan. 19, flying there with stops in Okinawa and Hawaii.
His mother said they had only heard from him twice since he had been in Vietnam. A letter took seven
or eight days to reach Wabash. PFC Poor was a member of K Co., 3rd Marine Div., 3-9 BN.
Poor was born March 24, 1949, in Anderson to Carl K. and Elizabeth Ann (McCurry) Poor Jr. The
family moved to Wabash County nine years ago.
Surviving with his parents are a half-brother, William Alford, Anderson; a half-sister Mrs. Linda Lou
Peterson, Phoenix, Az.; the brother in the Air Force in Thailand; four other brothers, James Edward, Carl
Kenneth III, Steve Dewayne and David LeRoy and a sister Tina Ann. Also his grandparents, Mr. And Mrs.
Carl Poor Sr., Anderson and Mr. And Mrs. Leon Shirley, Herbst.
February 26 Marine losses heavy in human wave raids. N. Viets attack two U.S. camps.
February 27 Reds capture two Saigon suburbs. POW says "Final" offensive started.
February 28 U.S. warns of reprisal for viet Cong offensive. Main Communist thrust smashed. Reds
leave two villages in shambles.
March 3 Reds open terror spree in Vietnam. SP George A. Howard injured in Vietnam by frag-
ments from an exploding bomb. The wounds led to amputation of the arm. Richard D.
Lower finished basic at Lackland AFB sent to Chanute AFB and will be stationed at
Grissom AFB with the 305th Combat Support Group. CTN Royce T. Kreider stationed
at Subic Bay. Randy Childress at NAS Alameda.
March 4 VC rocket Saigon three hurt in hospital.
March 5 Planes turn back column of VC tanks. Melvin R. Laird visited Saigon.
March 7 Pullout of Paris talks threatened by S. Vietnam. 22 slain as VC rockets defy Nixon.
March 8 U.S. aircraft losses top 5,000 in Vietnam combat.
March 10 GIs repulse attack behind Nauseous gas. James Pratt promoted to SGT at Norton AFB.
MSGT Jerry L. Sellers in Vietnam between Bien Hop and Long Binh. PFC Michael
Shoemaker at 91st Evac hospital. PVT Adrian Hooks Co B, 16th BN, 4th Brigade at Ft.
Knox. YN Johnny T. Cruz aboard the USS Coral Sea. PVT Ival E. Gressley at Ft.
Knox. SP4 Asberry D. Simpson is at Valley Forge General Hospital Ward 3AB. PVT
Rolland H. Easterday at Ft. Benning.
March 11 VC attack staved off; 29 GIs die. U.S. seeks secret talks with Hanoi.
March 12 Rockets rake 40 S. Vietnam areas. Missionary tells of work in Vietnam in talk here.
PFC Robert A. Schaaf with 3rd BN 1st Marines, Vietnam. SGT David A. Black on duty
at Nha Trang AB. SSGT Richard J. Richardson, aircraft equipment tech, at 89th Milit-
ary Airlift Wing, Andrews AFB. SP4 Eldon G. Hall received Army Commendation
Medal for fighting petroleum fire at Camp Eagle, Vietnam.
March 13 VC shelling decline; 400 Reds trapped.
March 14 Communist offensive cuts into governments control.
March 15 Reds overwhelm S. Viet garrison in attack from DMZ.
March 17 65 VC rockets rake S. Vietnam. Clothing sent to Vietnam by Richvalley Ladies Aid.
March 18 Nixon begins secret bombing of Cambodia. VC human wave assaults on allied base
repulsed. Communists intensify Vietnam offensive.
March 19 Allies launch massive Vietnamese counterattack drive called largest operation of War.
Viet doves may foster VC attacks. SP4 James Griffith 75th Inf. in Vietnam.
March 20 Laird says Viet pullout unlikely until Reds quit. Congress gets gloomy report on war
outlook.
March 21 Attack on Saigon could end talks Lodge warns. SGT. Robert L. Fordyce, material
specialist, decorated with USAF Commendation Medal Scott AFB. Dr.Charles Reiman received the USAF
Commendation Medal Fairchild AFB. SGT Jackie L. Hoover, flight equipment specialist, assigned to Phon
Rang AB. Construction Mech 3C Paul Shoemaker, S. Vietnam, advanced in rank. AN Betty A. Moore
completed technical training Shepperd AFB. Rites set for county GI killed in action. North Manchester,
Services for PFC Max Arden Johnson, 21, are scheduled for 2 pm Monday in the Delaughter Mortuary.
PFC Johnson, who was serving with Co B, 1502 Inf, 101st Airborne Div., was killed in action in Vietnam,
March 21.
Eugene Lieter will be the officiating clergyman and he will be assisted by a military chaplain. Military
graveside services will be conducted by servicemen from Ft. Benjamin Harrison. Burial will be in the
South Whitley Cemetery.
Friends may call at the mortuary after noon Saturday.
PFC Johnson entered the service June 3, 1968, trained at Ft. Gordon, Georgia and had been in Vietnam
since November 1. He was a graduate of Manchester High School and had worked for the Peabody Seating
Co. and as a sheet metal opeator for Kaman Aircraft Corp. in Connecticut.
PFC Johnson was born January 28, 1948, to Frank and Juanite Pullin. The Johnsons moved from here
to Solon Springs, Wi, a year ago.
Surviving with the parents are four sisters, Mrs. Vincal Wilson, El Paso Tx, Mrs. Millard
Cosby, Mechanicsville, Md; Mrs. Wayne Woodworth, Oklahoma City, Ok; and Mrs. Robert Burch,
Indianapolis.
March 22 VC escalate offensive at Chu Lai. SSGT Richard J. Richardson received USAF Comm-
endation Medal at Andrews AFB.
March 24 Guerrillas hit 30 camps, Cong warn of more blows. Laird U.S. has another Vietnam
plan. He invents the term Vietnamization for this new plan. Vietnamization involved
the unilateral withdrawal of American troops from S. Vietnam and the ssumption of
greater military responsibility by the S. Vietnamese armed forces. CM3 Sheldon E.
Sutton, USS King, off the coast of Vietnam.
March 25 Allies open third major counteroffensive. Doves ready assault on war conduct.
March 26 Bayh asks explanation of Hoosier servicemens treatment. Propose bombing Cam-
bodia targets. AN Patricia Singleton completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Shep-
perd AFB.
March 27 VC mortars rake U.S. bases. Vietnam war dead listed in Congressional Record.
March 28 VC reject Thieu's offer for private talks. Viet proposal called maneuver by Nixon. S.
Vietnam might defy bomb halt. Whistling American POW stumps VC interrogator.
Mercy mission copters downed by VC gunners. 1,406 GIs die in first month of VC
offensive.
March 29 Cong trap nets heavy allied loss. President to seek plan to end draft. SGT Robert L.
Haupt, 2nd tour in Vietnam, wounded in action at DaNang. Stephen Winterrowd,
Germany, promoted to SP4. Robert G.Carpenter, Luke AFB, promoted to MSGT. PFC
Raymond L. Long graduated Ordnance School at Quantico. PVT Ralph C. Bean, Jr.
assigned U. S. Army Reception Station Ft. Campbell.
March 31 CAPT Lester L. Spencer, Tyndall AFB, decorated with second and third awards of the
Distinguished Flying Cross for action in Southeast Asia. On one mission he led an F-4
Phantom flight in an attack on a large N.Vietnamese Army force in heavy contact with
an allied unit. Although his aircraft was hit by enemy ground fire, he succeeded in infli-
cting heavy damage on a large concentration of enemy vehicles and other equipment.
He received the other DFC for helping destroy four trucks, damaging two others and
triggering 25 secondary explosions. Viet combat level high: Outpost hit in Central
Highlands.
April 1 U.S. sends secret patrols into Laos
April 2 GIs turn back VC attackers. Nixon reviews progress of war, flies to Kansas. Judge says
draft law is invalid.
April 3 U.S. offers Vietnam pullout. U.S. units patrol Cambodian area. PFC Randell Wilcox
stationed at Quang Tri.
April 4 Copter crash in Vietnam kills 24.
April 5 Americans repulse 600 guerrilla attack northwest of Saigon. CAPT James Ridenour rec-
eived Army Commendation Medal for meritorious service while at Fitzsimmons General
Hospital, Denver. ANRoger L. Stevens finished basic at Lackland AFB assigned to En-
gland with the 77th Tac. Fighter Sqd. PVT Richard Simpson in basic Ft.Knox. PFC
Darrell Hileman stationed Long Binh
April 7 Saigon offers VC amnesty; spot on ballot. VC want Vietnam coalition. Allies conquer
VC mountain fortress..
April 8 Marines seize VC complex.
April 9 U.S. may slice Vietnam troop level in 60 days. B52s rip VC hideouts.
April 10 Kissinger, with authority from the president, directed Laird to prepare a timetable for the
vietnamization of the war. U.S. calls on N. Viet for serious peace talks. Weekly Viet
toll lowest in 3 months. AN Philip L. Bryant completed basic Lackland AFB assigned
Keesler AFB.
April 11 Reds step up shelling in Vietnam.
April 12 30 Viet villages shelled.
April 14 GIs counterattack big Viet Cong camp.
April 15 VC carry out human wave raid. Secret VC, S. Vietnam talks set. CPL Billy G. Heath
honorably discharged from the USMC, awarded National Defense Medal, Vietnamese
Service Medal with 2 stars, Vietnamese Campaign Medal with devise, Presidential Unit
Citation, Good Conduct Medal and Sharpshooters badge M-16 rifle.
April 16 Reds shell 25 targets in Vietnam. Cambodia-U.S. ties renewed.
April 17 Artillery salvos smash VC attack on GI camp Patrol Base III. AN David Sellers fini-
shed tech school at Lowry AFB and assigned to Norton AFB. PVT Thomas C. Hansen
assigned 504th Military Police BN near Phu Bai. SP4 Steven E. France completed basic
Ft. Campbell, then assigned to Germany, now assigned to 1st Inf. Div. near Di Am. SGT
David A. Black, communications repairman,1964th Comm Grp at Nhi Trang AB.
April 18 Saigon says VC misuse religion.
April 19 Human bombs kill 11 GIs hurt 23 in Vietnam.
April 23 Six U.S. helicopters lsot in single day in Vietnam.
April 24 B52 Armada pound Reds. Allies offer major Paris concessions. SA Mitchel L. Camp-
bell completed basic at Great Lakes and assigned to Pensacola. PFC Randell Wilcox
with the 3rd Marine Div. in Vietnam. Cadet Lawrence Howell member of USCG Aca-
demy honors company at funeral of Eisenhower. LCPL James R. Richardson with 1st
Marine Aircraft Wing in Vietnam. PO2 Lynn L. Landis stationed aboard USS Howard
W. Gilmore. SP4 Steven K. Denney, 150th Ord. BN 18th Ord. Co., Wackerheim, Ger.,
named Soldier of the Month. MM3 Andrew J. Childress aboard the USS Ozark. SGT
Richard D.White discharged from Army, received five purple hearts. Fifth time hit
with shrapnel and medivaced to Valley Forge Hospital
April 26 Reds attack from Cambodia 213 die. AN Judy Sellers completed schooling at Lowry
AFB assigned to Norton AFB. PFC William R.Lyons assigned to Long Binh. 2nd LT
Dennis M. Dick, NAS Pensacola, completed flight prep school. CAPT James C.
Askins graduated USAF School of Aerospace Medicine assigned to Plattsburg AFB.
Michael J. Forbes, Vietnam, promoted to SP4.
April 28 Reds stage suicide attack. Congress told Pueblo Crew violated POW code.
April 29 Bombers rescue trapped convoy.
April 30 Shift in VC policy may break Paris deadlock. Reds may agree to Saigon talks.
May 1 Raids silence Red gun bases in DMZ. PVT Daniel Slusser, data processor, completed
basic at Ft. Knox now stationed at Ft. Monroe. Michael A. Clarkson, purchasing
specialist, Fairchild AFB promoted to A1C.
May 2 Allies claim Cong offensive stymied.
May 3 5 Copters lost in Vietnam; 18 GIs die along Cambodian border. New Army copters
have defective part. U.S. paying $1 million a year for Vietnamese war damage. GI
gripes provide grist for underground papers.
May 5 Viet to need $2.5 billion foreign aid. Eight flights of B52s pound VC routes into
Saigon. Reds may drop pullout demand. USS New Jersey returns to Vietnam. A1C
Jerry Shoemaker on leave before going oversears. PO3 Paul D. Shoemaker in Vietnam
with the SeaBees. PVT Francis D. Guerin in basic at Ft. Knox. AN Betty H. Moore
completed medical specialist course Sheppered AFB and assigned to Wilford Hall
USAF Hospital, Lackland AFB. James Bakehorn, Vietnam, promoted to SSGT. John
Bakehorn, England, promoted to SGT. SGT Dale E. Walter, com. tech, Korat Royal
Thai AFB earned the USAF Outstanding Unit Award for the 3rd time. John D. Lehner,
Ent AFB, promoted to SSGT. HCAA Robert Hyatt graduated Hospital Corps School,
San Diego.
May 6 Pueblo crew will not be court martialed. Reds storm allied base on border.
May 7 Copter crash kills 34 GIs. Ex GI says "Doves" on rise in service. SSGT Michael
Hayes AFB, named Outstanding NCO and PRIDE Man of the Quarter. PFC Darrell
Hileman assigned to the 1st Logistical Command, Vietnam.
May 8 U.S., Saigon holding talks on pullout. VC offer new peace plan. S. Vietnam, U.S. plan
24 hour truce May 30.
May 9 Nixon Viet policy hit by Javits. VC peace plan eyed by allies. When kids yell "Ameri-
can Dog" it really hurts – Mary Frantz Peace Corps volunteer. PFC Gregory L. Fleck died in Vietnam.
Fleck volunteered for the draft, entered the service Oct. 8, 1968, took basic at Ft. Campbell and arrived in
Vietnam March 25th.
COUNTY GI DIES IN VIET COMBAT.
Awabash County serviceman lost his life in Vietnam after just slightly more than six weeks in that
country.
PFC Gregory Lamar Fleck, 20, son of Mr. And Mrs. George L. Fleck, Andrews RR2, was killed in
Vietnam, May 9. His mother is the former Jean Ellen Gaston.
His family was informed of his death Saturday night by Capt. Ray McQuary, Fort Wayne. No further
details have been received.
The body will be returned to the Deal Funeral Home, Andrews, in one to three weeks.
Fleck volunteered for the draft and went into service October 8, 1968. He took his basic training at Ft.
Campbell, Ky., left the United States, March 21 and arrived in Vietnam, March 25.
After graduation from Northfield High School in 1967, he took training at Nashville Diesel School and
worked at Huntington Ready Mix.
Wayne Fansler, counselor at Northfield, said Fleck was particularly active in the work of the Future
Farmers of America. "He was a real fine young man," Fansler commented.
He took part in 4-H work and was active in the Youth Fellowship of Grace United Methodist Church,
Urbana, where he was a member. Fleck was born at Wabash, December 18, 1948.
Surviving with his parents are two sisters, patricia, Vincennes, and Cynthia, and three brothers, Donald,
Steven and James, all at home, and the grandparents, Mr. And Mrs. Elmer Fleck, North Manchester, and
Mr. And Mrs. Russell Gaston, Urbana, RR1.
May 10 129 Reds killed in four battles. U.S. drafting plans for Viet withdrawal. A1C Dale
Broadfoot, aircraft mech, assigned Ching Chuan Kay AB.
May 12 VC launch new offensive, Reds shell 159 villages, bases.
May 13 Changes in draft laws proposed by president. VC push Vietnam attack. Reds claim U.
S. stepping up war.
May 14 Red shellings take heavy toll of lives. Robers says U.S. will stand fast. Nixon's Viet
report to be at 10 tonight. Nixon proposes simultaneous withdrawal from S. Vietnam
and N. Vietnamese forces.
May 15 Nixon airs 8 point plan for Viet peace. Saigon endorses Nixon proposals 100%. VC nix
mutual pullout. GIs seize VC stronghold. Allies push spearhead into Cong supply base.
May 17 PFC Daniel L. Harvey injured in Quang Nam Province; he sustained a gunshot wound
to his left hand from hostile small arms fire while on a company size search and clear
mission. He was treated at the 1st Medical BN Hospital in Guam. Saigon controls 83%
of population. PVT James Czerwin completed basic Ft. Knox ; assigned Ft. Sill. AN
Edward S. Wallace graduated with honors Shepperd AFB assigned to Ellsworth AFB.
AN Glen M. Adams graduated admin training course Keesler AFB. Joseph M. Whin-
ery, Loring AFB, promoted to A1C. Nixon to give medals, view Naval exercises.
May 19 GI toll doubles as VC push summer offensive.
May 20 Nixon, Thieu to confer at Midway. Hamburger Hill seized by allies on 12th try.
May 21 Paratroopers wipe out Hamburger Hill snipers. PVT Fred Hall completed basic Ft.
Leonard Wood assigned Ft. Eustis.
May 22 GI casualty toll highest in 3 months, 430 deaths in week.
May 24 S. Viets kill 187 enemy troops in two battles. Group to read names of war dead at
Grissom AFB.
May 26 PFC R.A. Brewer, cook, sent to Vietnam. 1st LT Walter L. Windsor, Jr. disaster pre-
paredness officer, assigned Tan Son Nhut AB. U.S.begins Viet counteroffensive. LT
James Pell awarded Bronze Star with V devise for action August 12, 1968 at Thein Giao
where he received fragment wounds in chest and leg. He also received the Purple
Heart, Overseas Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal and
National Defense Service Medal. PO3 Edward W. Howard serving aboard the USS
Independence.
May 28 County to honor war dead. Thieu sees no lasting settlement. Larry Stineman trans-
ferred from Lemoore Naval Base to Cecil Field.
May 31 13 GIs killed 62 wounded. PFC Robert A. Schaaf wounded in action Quang Nam
Province. Admitted to the Da Nang Hospital with missile wounds to the left leg and an
open fractured distal femur of right side. He sustained the injuries from a "hostile
explosive device" while sitting a night defensive position. He underwent amputation of
his left leg below the knee. Antiwar protests mar Memorial Day services. Arlington
awaits unknown soldier from Viet war.
June 1 VC open bid for new Red support for war. VC renew shelling of Saigon. SGT Michael
Gouvan in Co. C, 1st BN, 12th Inf, 4th Inf Div. PVT Leroy Wimmer in basic Ft. Knox.
TSGT Harold D. Hughes, accounting & finance, Heford RAF, assigned Scott AFB.
SGT George D. Jenks, Clark AFB, named Outstanding Munitions Maintenance Man.
June 3 Australian carrier Melbourne slices USS Frank E. Owen in two off Viet coast. 74
feared lost. South Viets find bodies of 259 Red soldiers near Dak To.
June 4 VC plan new offensives. Viet toll heavy on both sides. Hunt for missing seamen called
off. Nixon, Thieu may announce troop cutback.
June 5 261 GIs killed in week. U.S. plane shot down in N. Vietnam. Richard Thompson mar-
ried to Phyllis Neal at Los Alamos, NM.
June 6 VC step up war to put pressure on Nixon, Thieu. Nixon calls in 10 youths to hear
views on draft. Fullbright sees no value in limited Viet pullout. Humphrey urges Viet
ceasefire.
June 7 Nixon, Thieu head for summit talks. Casualties mount in Viet shellings. U.S.Viet idea
gap apparent. SGT Arnold E. Grossnickle honorably discharged at McConnell AFB.
Alan P. Smith completed teletype & communications school and assigned to Twenty-
Nine Palms. SGT Jesse E. Parrett received the Army Commendation Medal for
meritorious service with the 4th Div. at Pleiku.
June 8 Nixon and Thieu on Midway announce withdrawal of 25,000 American troops from
Vietnam. Laird hails pullout as step closer to peace. War level drops off suddenly.
June 10 Nixon: peace move significant signal. VC form revolutionary government. Ground
fighting leaves 400 enemy troops dead in Vietnam. PFC Richard H. Carey stationed at
Quang Tri.
June 11 U.S. watching for signs of Hanoi peace actions. SP5 Leslie J. Burcroff honorably disc-
harged at Oakland, Ca. Awarded National Defense Medal, Vietnam Campaign, Good
Conduct, Vietnam Service, Army Commendation and Vietnam Unit Citation. SP5
Danny K.Wittwer, El Paso, honorably discharged with National Defense Service Medal
and sharpshooters (rifle) Award. AN Glen Adams graduated admin specialist course
Keesler AFB. PFC John Roser assigned HQ Co 1st BN, 6th Inf, 198thInf Bri. at Chu Lai.
June 13 U.S. reveals first troops to be taken from Vietnam. New Cong move has observers
guessing. David W. Mughmaw promoted to CPL at Marine Barracks, Bermuda. SP4
Hubert W. Lewis assigned to 4th Transportation Command, Vietnam.
June 16 Thai troops join GIs in beating back Cong. Donald H. Griffin, USS Grand Canyon,
promotd to PO2.
June 18 B52s mark 4th year in Vietnam. William L. O'Dell honorably discharged from the
Navy at Polarias Missile Facility Atlantic, Charleston. Awarded National Defense
Service Medal and Good Conduct Award. TSGT David W. Hartman honorably dis-
charged at Ft. Knox awarded Vietnam Service Medal, Vietnam Combat Medal,
infantryman badge and sharpshooters badge.
June 19 Reduce fighting by end of '70: Clifford. Pullout all combat troops he advises. 1st
Troops to leave Vietnam on July 8. A1C Jerry Shoemaker, material specialist, stationed
at Wheelus AFB Libya.
June 20 Nixon wants massive withdrawal by '70. 500 storm base near Tay Ninh. More kooks
in Army, more soldiers desert.
June 21 Fighting is heavy around Ben Het. Thieu considering joint commission with Cong.
CG Cadet Laurence Howell advanced to 2nd Class.
June 23 Army to trim troop level by 13,000 men. GIs bitter over plans for pullout.
June 24 U.S. convoy reaches trapped allied force at Ben Het. SBN3 Newt McVicker serving at
naval Supply Activity DaNang. PVT Oran F. Tucker assigned to Ft. Knox. LTCDR Donald M. Waymire
was awarded the Navy Commendation for Achieve-ment Medal with Combat "V" in ceremonies at Long
Beach. He is a specialist in Naval ordnance and gunnery and is a veteran of over 23 years of naval service.
The citation read in part "for sustained meritorious achievement while serving in the Guided Missile Cru-
iser USS Canberra CA-70 as Assistant Weapons Officer during combat operations against the enemy. His
actions contributed significantly to the consistently effective and accurate gunfire in support of U.S., Repu-
blic of Korea, and South Vietnamese ground forces in the I Corps Tactical Area and the Demilitarized
Zone. His professionalism, aggressiveness and devotion to duty reflected great credit upon himself and
were in keeping with the highest traditions of the Naval service."
June 25 ADJAN Edward A. Wenger attending helicopter school Imperial Beach. LT Morris H.
Duffey, NAS Moffett Field, awarded U.S. Air Medal for duty with Patrol Sqd 47 in
Southeast Asia.
June 26 Reds bombard Ben Het, vow to overrun camp. GI deaths decline 247 killed in week.
Sharp decline reported in N. Viet infiltrations.
June 27 Laird to seek tougher rules on GI deserters. VC claim Ben Het desperate. SGT Robert
F. VanCamp, computer maintenance tech, assigned to the 4642 Support Sqd at Malm-
strom AFB.
June 28 S. Viets bolster Ben Het. 4 in guard unit die in VC raid. PVT Malvern E. Winters com-
pleted basic at Ft. Knox assigned to Ft. Leonard Wood. SGT David L. Leland received
two AF Commendation Medals for meritorious service in Vietnam at Tam Son Nhut AB.
July 2 Administration to meet Vietnam critics headon. S. Vietnam politicians doubtful about
Thieu. PFC Frederick P. McClure assigned to the 25thInf. Div. in Vietnam.
July 3 PFC Randal Wilcox received fragmentation wounds to the left hip, left arm, right leg and
right foot from a hostile mine when engaged in action against the enemy 11 miles north
of Khe Sanh, Quang Tri province. He was treated at the 3rd Medical BN before being
evacuated to the USS Repose. He was awarded the Purple Heart. N. Vietnam to free 3
U.S. POWs. War toll lowest in 7 weeks. WO James K. Ameigh, 1-4 Air Cav. Div., D
Troop killed in Vietnam buried at Akron.
July 5 PVT Leroy Wimmer completed basic Ft. Knox assigned to clerical school Ft. Knox.
July 7 SP4 Joseph Reed was wounded while he was with HQ Data at Cam Tho. He received
wounds to both legs and his chest after a box of ammunition exploded. He was hospit-
alized in Japan. Test battle for S.Viets "Indecisive." 6 GIs die in first VC attack in week.
Congress links troop cuts to new weapons.
July 8 First units in Vietnam pullout head home. Daniel L. Harvey, 1st Marine Div., wounded in
Quang Nam province. Received purple heart at DaNang Hospital, transferred to Guam
then on to Waukegon.
July 9 Viet casualty toll lowest in 10 weeks. John Hall after training at Ft. Knox and Ft. Sam
Houston sent to Vietnam. SP4 Charles A. Nelson, repairman, assigned to the 4th Inf.
Div. in Vietnam.
July 10 More troop cuts urged in senate. Terry Faust assigned to P Hu Loc for 2nd tour of duty.
AN Jackie E. Eubank completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Shepperd AFB. Marine
contingent in Vietnam pullout flies to Okinawa.
July 11 Nixon says Thieu plan opens way for peace.
July 16 N. Viet gunners shell allied outposts from inside DMZ. Slowdown in Viet fighting
spreads. MM3 Andrew J. Childress, Jr. aboard the USS Ozark.
July 19 SGT Brian L. Featheringill, radar repairman, received USAF Commendation Medal at
Selfridge AFB. Carol L. Smith is bride of Randy J. Childers, USS New Orleans.
July 21 Clarence E. McDougle and Connie S. Archer wed. PVT Barry Maple after training at
at Ft. Knox and Ft. Polk sent to Vietnam. CPL Steven D. Pressler in NCO training at
Ft. Benning. SGT Jerry L. Beeler awarded Longhorn Pin at Long Binh. PO3 Terry D.
Faust is with the Naval Mobile Construction BN 11 in Vietnam.
July 23 GI deaths in Vietnam increase 23 % in week.
July 25 Nixon unveils "Nixon Doctrine" in Guam. Urges Asian self-help to avoid any more
Vietnams. MSGT Carl E. Hart on duty at Ubon Royal Thai AFB.
July 28 Rusk sees chance Viet War might fade away. Nixon to visit S. Vietnam.
July 29 SGT Douglas Bowman honorably discharged from Marines at MCAS El Toro. He rece-
ived National Defence Service medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal w/device, Vietnam
Service Medal w/1*, Combat Action Ribbon, Navy Achievement Medal with Combat V,
Rifle Marksman Badge and Good Conduct medal.
July 30 Nixon visits combat base in Vietnam. Pat visits wounded GIs, war orphans in Viet-
nam. Douglas Martin attending store keepers school at San Diego. SGT Hosea T.
Clupper, vehicle operator, on duty at Cam Rahn Bay AB.
July 31 VC criticize Nixon visit to S. Vietnam.
August 2 B52s pound enemy bases near Saigon. LtCol Van C. Doubleday received Air Medal at
Korat Royal Thai AFB.
August 3 Hanoi Radio says three American POWs have been freed.
August 6 Eight green beret officers charged with murder. SP4T Earl Owsley, Jr honorably disc-
. harged at Ft. Riley and awarded National Defense Medal and Marksman Award. SP4
Bernard F. Netro honorably discharged and awarded National Defense Medal, Vietnam
Campaign Medal Vietnam Service Medal and Army Commendation Medal. LT Walter
L. Windsor, Tom Son Nhut AB, received USAF Commendation Medal. Kenneth Dear-
dorff, 34th Eng. BN, promoted to Army Specialist near Qui Nhom. AN Randy L. Haag
transferred from Lackland AFB to Kessler AFB. Freed POWs watch moon landing
film. Hoosier toll in Viet War reaches 1,000.
August 7 VC stage surprise Cam Rahn Bay raid. U.S. death toll on battlefield up 25%.
August 9 AN Richard K. Barker completed basic Lackland AFB assigned to Lowry AFB. PFC
John Hall assigned to 45th Eng. GP, Vietnam. PVT Max T. Cruz assigned to 11th
Armored Cav. Reg. Vietnam.
August 11 U.S. bombers shifted to Laos "Hidden War." Casualties heavy as VC step up attacks.
August 12 Enemy breaks lull, but attacks repulsed at 128 towns and bases.
August 13 Viet level of fighting tapers off. ET3 Danny Elliott, USS Leahy, participated in
UNITAS-X. PVT Herbert E. Stellar at Ft. Knox.
August 14 Hard fighting rages in Vietnam. Lodge denounces VC for step up in war. Marines help
construct Vietnam Noodle factory.
August 16 Viet ground fighting tapers off, but rocket, mortar attacks continue.
August 19 See relief for battered U.S. forces. PFC David W. Drake completed basic at Ft. Leon-
ard Wood assigned to the Defense Language Inst. West Coast. PFC David Cummings
completed basic and clerical training, Ft. Knox now in Vietnam. A1C Kathryn S.
Friedersdorff nominated for CBPO Outstanding Specialist Award. SSGT Brian L.
Featheringill, Selfridge AFB, received USAF Commendation Medal. MSGT Carl E.
Hart, aircraft maintenance superintendent, assigned Ubon Royal Thai AFB.
August 21 Stanford A. Brown and Barry Maple wounded in mine incidences. LCPL Brown was
wounded twice. He returned to the field Aug. 1 after being wounded July 25th. August
2nd he received injuries to both legs, right arm and right hip and hospitalized in Danang
then sent to Japan. Brown enlisted May 3, 1968, basic at Camp Pendleton and then
assigned to the 26th Marines, 9th Amph. Div. he received two Purple Hearts. PFC
Maple received bruises and slight concussion. LT Richard Beamer married Susan E.
Bayless in Pasadena, CA. MCPO John E. Sarten appointed senior enlisted represen-
tative to the Commander of U.S. Naval Forces, Vietnam. SP4 Larry L. Bucher
assigned to 20th Transportation Co. near Cu Chi. SGT Lester L. Lawson, Ft. Knox,
received Purple Heart, Bronze Star and Air Medal for action in Vietnam. Michael
R. Keen and Gary Johnson taking NCO course at Ft. Benning.
August 22 Darrell Hileman promoted to SP4 at Long Binh. Merl L. Shank in basic at Lackland
AFB. S. Viet. Premier resigns from cabinet.
August 23 Officials urge use of air bases in Thailand. President Thieu asks for new government.
Infantrymen attack side of hill 102. Victoria K. Harless married SGT Donald W. Lee.
A/C James D. Adams at Ellsworth AFB. SMSGT Don C. Reynolds retired at Randolph
AFB. CTS Royce Kreider stationed at San Miguel. SP4 Victor Glover suffered wound
in the leg and foot in an attack on Hill 41 near Quang Grai. He was hospitalized in
Japan.
August 25 U.S. moves to thwart armored columns.
August 26 U.S. Thailand to open talks Sept. 1 on troop withdrawals.
August 28 All casualties decline in Vietnam War.
August 29 Marines earn major victory.
August 30 Soldiers want to go home after their year in Vietnam.
August Kissinger meets covertly in Paris with N. Vietnamese negotiator Xuan Thuy.
September 2 Copters land 400 GIs on battlefield commandos battered by N. Viet.
September 3 Ho Chi Minh dies in Hanoi age 79. Two descibe harsh Viet prison life. B52s strike N.
Viet. S. Vietnamese casualties high in jungle fighting.
September 4 Brief unity comes with Ho's death. N. Vietnam begins week of mourning. Copter
crashes across border in Cambodia. PFC Michael Hawkins stationed near Phan Rang.
SGT Joseph D. Willcox, munitions specialist, assigned to Luke AFB. SP4 Michael J.
Forbes Pleiku, received Air Medal. PVT Christopher Loy at Ft. Bragg. A1C Donald
G. Wampler reassigned to 848th Aircraft Control and Warning Sqd in the Philippines.
Steve Armie promoted to SSGT, Elmendorf AFB. Cadet Stephen H. Downs partici-
pated in USAFROTC field training at Gunter AFB.
September 5 Attacks heavy but truce expected.
September 6 Ho's death triggers new struggle for Red influence. VC attack for Ho. Bradford W.
Plum honorably discharged at Long Beach. Received National Defense Medal, Viet-
nam Service Medal with 2 bronze stars, Combat Action Ribbon, Purple Heart and
Vietnam Campaign Medal.
September 12 Peace move: end B52 raids.
September 15 KY: 40,000 more troops pulling out. U.S. Naval Command to be deactiviated. A1C
John F. Dyer assigned DaNang AFB. Stephen W. Slonaker, Ph Cat, promoted to SGT.
CPL Steven D. Owens with Marine Training Sqd 203 at Cherry Point. AE2 David E.
Coburn graduated electrical and instrument maintenance course NAS Key West.
September 16 Nixon plans to withdraw 35,000 more from Vietnam.
September 17 Laird to request draft reform measures. Also hints at cuts for months ahead. Vietnam
War accidents kill 9 GIs, 7 Vietnamese. Youth feeling mixed on draft curtailment.
September 18 Nixon tells nations: Work to end war "Hanoi responsible" for peace stalemate. 23
Marines set to come home killed. If U.S. stops BS52 raids, will N. Vietnam descalate
War? Army says Berets to be tried.
September 19 Nixon cancels November and December draft calls. PVT Karl Sorg assigned to 1st
Signal Brigade in Vietnam.
September 20 Reduction raises plea for reforms in draft. 64 are killed in Vietnam Airliner crash.
September 23 Beret led Viet civilians mauled. Ship and B52s pound Reds.
September 25 Allies war deaths drop to lowest level in weeks.
September 27 SP4 Charles R. Cooper assigned as a clerk with 4th Inf Div in Vietnam. TSGT Warren
D. Bailey selected NCO of the Quarter for 355th Tactical Fighter Wing. A1C Phillip L.
Bryant at Keesler AFB. Charles E. Wray joined the Navy.
September 29 AM3 Edward W. Howard, USS Independence, took part in NATO Exercise Peace
Keeper. SSGT Edward A. Conyers at DaNang AFB. SGT Robert S. Raines on 3rd tour
of duty in Vietnam. PFC Malvern E. Winters, 14th Eng. BN, in Vietnam. A1C David
L. Coble stationed at Nakhon Pamom Royal Thai AFB. SGT Donald Wagner stationed
at Korat Royal Thai AFB. 2nd LT Barry W. Curless graduated OCS Ft. Benning, sent
to Ft. Gordon.
September 30 Nearly 6,000 Marines leave S. Vietnam in first big pullout.
October 3 U.S. loses three more planes as paratroopers battle enemy.
October 6 Vietnam break through indicated by Senator Hugh Scott. U.S. to be out by '70 Thieu
says.
October 7 Military says no Vietnam break through. Viet war is criticized by soldiers.
October 9 PVT William R. Sopher enlisted in the UMC and in basic at San Diego. SKSA M.E.
Vogel assigned to USN Supply Depot, Subic Bay. FNAN Stephen W. Estep aboard
USS Decatur. AB Brad Flohr at Lackland AFB. Harry Koontz, Jr. enlisted in the
Navy. American battlefield deaths drop to new three year low.
October 11 Gen. Hershey to be relieved as Selective Service directory.
October 13 President says he will not abandon Vietnam policies "Government policy cannot be
made in the streets." 5,000 demonstrators swarm Ft. Dix, confront Army Police.
October 14 MORATORIUM ACTIVITIES IN COUNTY. Whiles doves across the nation prepare
for participation in a moratorium demonstration on the Vietnam War Wednesday, little reaction appears to
be brewing in Wabash county.
Response in Wabash schools and churches appears to be null. Wabash county Democrats do not plan to
participate in the moratoriums.
Involvement in Wabash county centers in North Manchester at the Manchester College campus where a
program of discussion has been planned.
Classes will be conducted on the Manchester campus as usual. Faculty members desiring to dismiss
classes for the day may follow the normal procedure of arranging for a makeup, according to a college
spokesman.
Students may skip a class in order to attend other programmed teachers of the day. Both are within the
policies followed by the college throughout the year.
An 8:30 a.m. student planned meditation at Petersime Chapel will feature Benjamin Britten's "War
Requiem" and the reading of Vietnamese poetry.
An 11:30 meeting with the theme "Citizens Look at Vietnam" will be conducted in Wampler Audit-
orium. Participaants will be Joe E. Lesh, Huntington County Republican, Steven Michael Huntington
County Democrat, and Joe Nixon, publisher of the Wabash Plain Dealer.
Prof. Richard Bittlinger of the Manchester College History faculty will talk about "American Responses
to National Insurgency Movements" at 12:30 p.m. in Wampler Auditorium.
Members of the collee community will be urged to participate in an address on Christian Uses of Confl-
ict to be given by Dr. E. Spencer Parson, chaplain, Rockefeller Chapel, University of Chicago, at 2:30 p.m.
A student planned rally is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in the college mall. Dr. Parsons and interested
students will be participating.
President plans to speak on War's course. 1,000 tons of bombs dropped on two Viet enemy regiments.
SMS Terry E. Larson, bombing, navigator systems superintendent on B52s, selected to represent 456th
Strategic Aerospace Wing, Beale AFB at the "World Series of Bombing" Fairchild AFB.
October 15 Massive antiwar demonstrations in Washington. Moratorium is slow in Indiana. WAr
protests in churches, in streets, on campus. Protests make no difference on battlefield-
Abrams. Moratorium talker gets pie in face.
October 16 Moratorium day ends with buring of cards at Manchester College. Viet panel ideas
show divergence.
October 17 GIs will remain after war. S. Vietnam role reflected in rising rate of war deaths.
October 18 Thieu unruffled by Soviet-S. Vietnam incident.
October 19 President Spiro Agnew reacts to Vietnam Moratorium. "Sometimes it appears that we
are reaching a period when our senses and our minds will no longer respond to moderate stimulation. We
seem to be approaching an age of the gross. Persuasion through speeches and books is too often discarded
for disruptive demonstrations aimed at bludgeoning the unconvinced into action.
The young-and by this I don't mean by an stretch of the imagination all the young, but I'm talking about
those who claim to speak for the young-at the senith of physical power and sensitivity, overwhelm them-
selves with drugs and aftificial stimulants. Subtlety is lost, and fine distinctions based on acute reasoning
are carelessly ignored in a headlong jump to a predetermined conclusion. Life is visceral rather than intel-
lectural, and the most visceral practitioners of life are those who characterize themselves as intellectuals.
Truth to them is "revealed" rather than logically proved, and the principal infatuations of today revolve
around the social sciences, those subjects which can accommodate any opinion and about which the most
reckless conjecture cannot be discredited.
Education is being redefined at the demand of the uneducated to suit the ideas of the uneducated. The
student now goes to college to proclaim rather than to learn. The lessons of the past are ignored and
obliterated in a contemporary antagonism known as the generation gap. A spirit of national masochism
prevails, encouraged by an effete corps of impudent snobs who characatierize themselves as intellectuals.
It is in this setting of dangerous oversimplification that the war in Vietnam achievs its greatest
distortion.
The recent Vietnam moratorium is a reflection of the confusion that exists in America today. Thous-
ands of well-motivated young oeiole, conditioned since childhood to respond to great emotional appeals,
saw fit to demonstrate for peace. Most did not stop to consider that the leaders of the moratorium had
billed it as a masssive public outpouring of sentiment against the foreign policy of the president of the
United States. Most did not care to be remined that the leaders of the moratorium refused to disassociate
themselves from the objective enunciated by the enemy in Hanoi.
If the mnoratorium had any use whatever, it served as an emotional purgative for those who felt the need
to cleanse themselves of their lack of ability to offer a constructive solution to the problem.
Unfortunately, we have not seen the end. The hard-core dissidents and the professi- onal anarchists
within the so-called "peace movement" will continue to exacerbate the situation....
Great patriots of past generations would find it difficult to believe that Americans would ever doubt the
validity of America's resolve to protect free men from totalitarian attack. Yet today we see those among us
who prefer to side with an enemy aggressor rather than stand by this free nation. We see others who are
shortsighted enough to believe that we need not protect ourselves from attack by governments that depend
upon force to control their peop-le, governments which came into being through force alone and continue
to exist by force alone.
I do not want to see this nation spend one dollar more on defense than is absolutely necessary, but I
would hate to see this nation spend one dollar less on defense than is absolutely necessary. Until the
principle of open represwentative government extists among all nations, the United States must not
abandon its moral obligations to protect by an means necessary the freedoms so hard won by past
generations-the freedoms so hard won by the 400,000 Americans who made the ultimate sacrifice in the
dedicated belief that some things are more precious than life itself."
October 20 SP5 Carl W. Milan,101st Airborne, arrived home from a tour of duty in S. Vietnam. He
received four Air Medals with V for Valor, Army Commendation Medal, Bronze Star
the Rescue Citation from the Boeing Company, and the Purple Heart for wounds rece-
ived in action. He was a crew chief of a Chinook 47 helicopter. After 30 days leave he
will be stationed at Ft. Eustis as a helicopter instructor. Unilateral ceasefire considered
by Nixon. Vietnam fighting takes sharp jump: still relatively low. Roger D. Flitcraft in
basic Lackland AFB.
October 22 S. Vietnam to take over U.S. outpost guarding Saigon.
October 24 U.S. pullout schedule set sources say. Viet black market next on agenda. Airlift losses
in Viet War put at $6 billion for Yanks.
October 30 House overhaul of entire draft system still pends.
October 31 N. Vietnam trasportation system completely rebuilt.
October Richard L. Thompson completes CounterInsurgency Training (SERE) at Naval Amphibious School, Little Creek, Va.
October (no date) HM2 Richard L. Thompson assigned Naval Support Activity Hospital, Danang, Vietnam, under III
MAF/I Corps control.
November 1 Helicopter crashes, burns near Saigon; 10 Americans aboard. War veterans planning
"Tell it to Hanoi Day." Nixon back in Vietnam but now as president.
November 3 Nixon delivers "silent majority" speech. SSGT Gary L. Coburn, aircraft maintenance
tech, at Cam Rahn Bay. RM3 Ronald Greiner aboard the USS Decatur. George W.
Black assigned 1st Signal Brigade, Vietnam. SP4 Larry L. Frieden, 101st Airborne dis-
charged after tour in Vietnam. He received Army Commendation Medal and Bronze Star
Charges of draft as weapon on protesters to be checked. N. Viets launch attack on South
Central highlands.
November 4 Vietnam withdrawal timetable unveiled.
November 6 U.S. officials expect more Red infiltration. Compromise could secure draft bill.
November 7 U.S. still seeking private talks with Viet Communists. Cong attack Saigon defenses,
other areas shelled. Four of S. Vietnam's army divisions acceptable. 4 Hoosier victums
added to toll of combat deaths.
November 8 Gen. Abrams praises S. Viet military. State guard unit in Vietnam will return to U.S.
November 11 S. Vietnam losses reported heavy in week of fighting.
November 12 CAPT James Vawter, Camp Frenzell Jones, Vietnam, received the Bronze Star Medal.
He was presented the award for meritious service in connection with military operations against hostile
forces in Vietnam. At the time of the presentation he was Air Operations Officer for HQ Co., 5th BN, 199th
Light Infantry Brigade, 12th Inf. He also holds the Vietnamese Gallantry Cross, a Army Commendation
Medal and a Bronze Star for heroism.
Sgts. Michael R. Keen. Garrah T. Johnson and PVT Dana Stevens in AIT at Ft. Polk. CAPT Richard M.
Rupley, Cam Rahn Bay, received Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service. AN Bruce M. Leffel comple-
ted basicLackland AFB assigned Shepperd AFB. SSGT Michael D. Young, 6937 Comm. Grp., in West
Pakistan. 2nd LT Barry Curless at Ft. Gordon.
November 13 N. Vietnam make "biggest" assault.
November 14 Services, vigils and rallies mark second Viet Moratorium. S. Viet planes bomb own
troops.
November 15 Another big antiwar demonstration in Washington.
November 16 Revelation of the My Lai massacre, which took place the year before.
November 17 Villages claim GIs murdered 460 at Song My. Bombers cross Cambodia line to blast
N. Viet artillery.
November 18 S. Viet forces claim victory supported by U.S. planes and guns. Americans came and
they shot us – Son My.
November 19 Viet pullout too slow, critics say. B52s bomb enemy at Cambodian line. Governor to
greet returning Vietnam guardsmen.
November 20 Lodge claims U.S. has war support. Weeks death toll for Yanks highest in months in
Vietnam. Red infiltration into the South is increasing.
November 24 Yanks in Vietnam at two year low. SR Charles E. Wray completed basic, assigned to the
USS Shenendoah. PFC Kenneth L. Resler with the 3rd BN, 1st Marine Rgt, 1st Marine
Div. in S. Vietnam. James Pell, CO Alpha 8, promoted to Captain. While in Vietnam
received Bronze Star and Purple Heart. PFC Tom R. Worthington, 1st Marine Air Wing,
assigned to Vietnam. LCPL Leslie Gahl assigned NAS Atlanta.
November 25 Viet veteran tells of killing citizens on orders from LT. Calley. N. Viets renew attack
on Yankees.
November 26 U.S. warns Hanoi Viet peace impossible on terms of Reds. N. Viets blast ammunition
store. Nixon signs new draft law.
November 28 American war deaths at 300,000 half since Paris peace talks began. James J. Sharp in
machinist mate training at Great Lakes. SP4 Danny Cole chosen soldier of the month
at Ft. Richie. SGT Donald L. Bennett Jr. at MCAS Cherry Point. MAJOR Donald G.
Wolpert, Phun Cat AAB, received the Air Medal.
November 29 S. Vietnam receives first of U.S. Naval Bases in Mekong Delta. Racial unrest of service-
men investigated. CAPT Walter L. Windsor Jr., Tan Son Nhut AB, received a regular
commission in the USAF.
November 30 SGT Robert S. Raines, on third tour of duty, killed in Vietnam, was posthumously pres-
ented the Military Merit Medal and the Gallantry Cross with Palm by the Republic of
Vietnam.
December 1 First giant draft lottery drawing set for tonight. About 60 people face possible draft in
Wabash County. It was point blank murder Sergeant says about My Lai.
December 2 Charles Winfield top draft choice from Wabash County but only No. 2 in U.S.
December 4 Rogers pessimistic about Viet Peace. Yankee death toll in Vietnam at low. Carl Benson
Aberdeen, promoted to CPL. John Burnsworth with 1st Recon B.N.C. Co F. SP4 Earl J.
Ward took basic Ft. Leonard Wood, sent to Ft. Lee now stationed at Ft. Wainwright.
SSGT David E. Wilson, 62nd Tactical Airlift, TAD at Mildenhall RAF station
December 9 Yule GI withdrawal planned by Nixon. Fair trial for Lt. Calley impossible, attorney
claims. PFC Ronald Pressler took basic at Camp Campbell, sent to Ft. Sill now with
16th Art. in Vietnam. SP4 Richard S. Burton, military police, at Ft. Carson. William
Stumpf, Camp Pendleton, promoted to major. PVT Gary R. Wright at Ft. Polk. PVT
Rick D. Eppley in Co B 1/7th Inf. SP4 Merle E. Glazier, S. Vietnam, received Army
commendation Medal. LCPL Richard A. Brewer, CampBooks near DaNang, with the
Force Logistic Command.
December 10 S. Viet forces reported stronger. Pentagon pulling 30 B52 Bombers of S. Viet infil-
tration missions. White House orders study of draft lottery loopholes.
December 11 Battlefield deaths are up. AO3 John R. Schultz serving with VC-1 at Barbers Point.
PFC Ronald E. Eichholtz, medical aidman, reenlisted at Aschaffenburg, Ger. ENS
Patrick N. Rounds completed basic jet training at NAS Pensacola. PFC Kenneth L.
Resler with the 3rd BN, 1st Marine Rgt, 1st Marine Div., S. Vietnam. Stephen Winter-
rowd, 3rd Army Div., Ger., promoted to SGT. 1st LT Dennis M. Dick graduated from
training with the Marine All Weather Attack Training Sqd 202 MCAS Cherry Point.
PVT James R. Spiece in basic at Ft. Knox.
December 15 S. Viet regime clains control is at 92.5%. Third round of Viet G pullouts expected
today.
December 16 50,000 GIs will return over a four month period.
December 17 Equipment Operator PO3 Terry D. Faust, USN Mobile Construction BN 11, returned
from Vietnam. The unit being decommissioned as a result of present Vietnamization
program underway in S. Vietnam. Desertions increase this fall among S. Vietnam armed
forces. S. Vietnam toll double Americans. Dallas Harmon, USS Vermillion, promoted
to PO3. SGT John Bakehorn, ammunition specialist, serving in England.
December 18 N. Viets not defeated visitor to Hanoi claims. Yankee toll in Vietnam near 40,000.
Tet fight leaves Vietnam city of Hue tense.
December 23 Viet battlefield action holds at low level despite B52s.
December 26 American Santa Claus turned back by N. Viet Regime. PO Rolland D. Drudge on 2nd
deployment to Vietnam. SP4 Thomas Brewer finished basic at Ft. Knox now in Viet-
nam. PFC Leroy W. Wimmer, finance clerk, with 1st Inf in Vietnam. PFC Robert J.
Harris with the 5th MEB at Camp Pendleton. PVT Gary Wright completed basic Ft.
Knox and sent to Ft. Polk. CPL Kenneth A. Plant received Bronze Star for service as
Commander, 7th Airborne Command Udorn Royal Thai AFB.
December 27 Probing of My Lai moves to Vietnam. U.S. GIs fight big battle inVietnam. SGT
Stephen W. Slonaker at Castle AFB. LCPL John A. Heitz in Vietnam. SSGT Edward
Conyers transferred to Vietnam.
December 30 VC violates its own new years holiday cease fire. AN Vaughn D. Vossler completed
basic Lackland AFB; sent Kessler AFB. Tom Snyder, medic, at Cu Chi hospital in
Vietnam.
1970 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January 2 U.S. patrol battles 50-70 infiltrations near Cambodia.
January 3 Draft officials eye allocation changes for local boards.
January 5 GI newsmen are ordered silent. Ruth E. Walters becomes Mrs. Captain James N.Vaw-
ter. Rhonda Little married SGT Switzer. Viet study says Yanks did kill at My Lai.
Cong announces Lunar ceasefire. Marines and S. Viets fight enemy. All volunteer
army seen unrealistic. Viet War enters new phase as Red attacks on increase.
January 8 Yankee death toll creeps beyond 40,000. Army charges GI newscaster who accused it
of censoring.
January 10 David C. Meyer commissioned 2nd LT at Ft. Benning. Michael Hawkins in Vietnam.
A1C Jerry C. Shoemaker stationed in North Africa. Paul D. Shoemaker released from
the Seabees. PFC Dan Slusser stationed near Nuremberg, Ger. SSGT Michael D.
Young returned from W. Pakistan now stationed at Carswell AFB. 40,000 boxes take
GIs home. N. Viets to continue war. Casualties soar for GIs in Vietnam.
January 12 Units chosen for Viet pullout.
January 15 Secret negotiations again U.S., S. Vietnam demand. Yankee death toll climbs once
more.
January 16 Midsummer GI withdrawal possible with cut in funds. Vietnam toll less since bombing
halt.
January 17 SGT Stephen W. Slonaker,537th Tactical Airlift Sqd, S. Vietnam, received USAF Com-
mendation Medal for meritorious service. LCPL James D. Saulman with the 1st Force
Recon Co., 1st Marine Div., S. Vietnam. FN Stephen W. Estep aboard the USS Decatur.
ENS Patrick N. Rounds at NAS Kingsville.
January 19 High court strips drfat board power. VC land mines explodes killing 18 S. Viets and
wounding 35.
January 20 More B52 raids along border area.
Janaury 22 Reds attack area of Mekong Delta.
January 23 Small skirmishes reported throught Vietnam.
January 24 Draftees from Wabash county in January went to the Army and Marines. Daniel J. Lin-
coln, volunteer, and David L. Christman went to the Army Ft. Knox. In the Marines are
Philip B. Key and William A. Timmons, both sent to San Diego. William L. Stewart
was on the list but had already enlisted in the Army. George French finished basic Ft.
Knox now in S. Vietnam. CPL Gary J. Follin with 1st Marine Aircraft Wing in Vietnam
Bradley B. Flohr transferred from Lackland AFB to the University of Syracuse. SSGT
Terry L. Shalley received recognition from Gen. Malley at Bob Hope Show. AN David
A. Floyd completed medical records specialist course,Shepperd AFB transferred to Bit-
bury AB. PO2 Thomas G. Kaiser at USN Support Activity, S. Vietnam.
January 26 American B52s on heaviest raids in last nine months.
January 27 Marine units redeployment schedule set. Latest Viet pullout ready.
January 30 Laird reflects doubts on all volunteer army.
January 31 PVT Phillip E. Wilcox graduated U.S. Army Missile and Munitions center and school.
Steven J. Davis is at Chi Lai. James R. Turpen, Pentagon, promoted to LtCol. SGT
Larry L. Roser stationed at Duc Pho
February 2 Fighting in Vietnam heaviest in months.
February 3 Viet action tapers off as stet draws near. Pullout time is termed unacceptable.
February 4 Bug-out limited for Saigon GIs. Viet War hearings open with blasts. Viet lands falling
into ruins.
February 5 Yankee jets attack missile site in N. Vietnam again.
February 9 Still raging dela battle only sustained Viet action. Calley lawyers try again.
February 10 My Lai lawyers for defense seeking link to Washington. All volunteer army report
nearly done.
February 12 SGT David A. Black, communications equipment repairman, stationed at Nha Trang AB.
Jets hit Red guns in Cambodia right of self dfense claimed. Laos troops beat back N.
Viets. Build up reserves Westmoreland says. CPL Kenneth D. Ebbinghouse TAD to
Airfield Ops, Camp Garcia Puerto Rico. CAPT. John L. Neff awarded Navy Distingu-
ished Service Order (2nd class) for his performance as captain of the USS Sanctuary,
now serving a 2nd tour as inspector general 14th Naval District. PVT William L. Stewart,
L.H. Christman and Roger M. Gorman in basic Ft. Knox. AN Randy Haag at Kessler
AFB. MSGT Harold E. Shaw, information tech, 12th Tactical Fighter Wing, Cam Rahn
Bay. Stephen R. Beard, Shu Lin Kou AS Taiwan, promoted to SGT. SKSN Douglas
Martin aboard the USS Braine. CAPT Lester L. Spencer attending Air University's Sqd
Officers School, Maxwell AFB. SP4 Ronald D. Pressler assigned 4th Inf. Div. Bat A, 5th
BN near Pleiku. David Futrell completed basic at Great Lakes, sent to Pensacola. 1st
LT Carroll W. Boatwright Jr., Ft. Hood, qualified on M16 rifle. SP4 Steven E. France,
1st Inf Div, Di An, received Army Commendation Medal. PFC Clarence E. McDougle
assigned to 1st Logistical Command. Thomas E. Brewer, Dau Tieng, promoted to SP4.
SGT Thomas Roth assigned as squad leader 4th Inf. Div. PO3 Dallas E. Harman aboard
the USS Vermillion.
February 13 Second massacre hinted in charges. Defense Secretary warns Hanoi against violations.
SGT Garrah Johnson and SGT Michael R. Keen in Vietnam. Johnson at Long Bind,
Keen, 1st Cav. at Song Be, assigned to Firebase Buttons also known as Rocket City.
MCPO Royce W. Kreider is the enlisted administration assistant to the Chief,
Operating Services Div. San Diego Naval Hospital.
February 16 American jets attack Reds in eastern section of Laos. Anti war alliance joined once
again.
February 17 B52s bomb Cambodia sector 1,000 tons of bombs fall. Senate probe eyes plan to
convert or kill Cong.
February 18 Hanoi's stand key to peace in S. Viet – President. Randell E. Henderson in basic at Ft.
Knox. CPL Timothy J. Ghromley with Marines at Oahu. PFC Earl R. Cooksey assig-
ned to 4th Inf. Div. At Plieku. PFC Richard Simpson in S. Korea. Navy is more for-
giving about sailors and drugs.
February 19 U.S. bombers back over Vietnam agter strikes in Loas.
February 20 Kissinger begins secret talks in Paris with Le Duc Tho. U.S. wants to forget My Lai.
N. Viet troops press Loas fight. Allies kill many soldiers but lose two helicopters.
February 21 N.Viet soldiers seize Plain of Jane. U.S. planes launch new Viet raids.
February 24 N. Viets still on drive in Loas.
February 26 Yankee death rate drops in Vietnam. Red strength going down in south. PFC Fred L.
Miller stationed at MCAS Beaufort with the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing Group 31.
Steven E. Steele stationed at Okinawa. PVT Larry W. Steele in basic at Ft. Knox.
PVT Herbert D. Horstman in basic at Ft. Knox. SSGT David L. Barnette on duty at
Cam Rahn Bay. N. Viet offensive in Laos raises questions.
February 28 Cong down three copters. 16 allied positions shelled. Laotianize war, Nixon is
directed.
March 1 Lodge, Ky to confer with Nixon. B52s pound Red buildup near Saigon.
March 3 Reds open terror spree in Vietnam. Next Red target for People's War may be Thailand.
SP George A. Howard injured when hit by fragments from an exploding mine which
resulted in surgical removal of his left arm below the elbow. Richard D. Lower assig-
ned 305th Combat Support Group, Grissom AFB. CTN Royce T. Kreider at Subic Bay.
PFC Victor Poor with 3rd BN 9th Marine Regt, 3rd Marine Div. in Vietnam. PVT Mich-
ael R. Keene assigned Co A 19th BN 5th BRI at Ft.Knox. ABHAN Randy Childress
assigned to NAS Alameda.
March 4 VC rocket Saigon three hurt in hospital.
March 5 Planes turn back column of VC tanks.
March 6 Police foil plot to kill Viet leader. Nixon warns Reds against new attacks on S. Viet.
March 7 Pullout of Paris talks threatened by S. Viets. 22 slain as VC rockets defy Nixon.
March 8 U.S. aircraft losses top 5,000 in Vietnam combat.
March 10 U.S. repulse attack behind nausceous gas. Direct talks with VC demanded. A1C
James L. Pratt, Norton AFB, promoted to SGT. MSGT Jerry L. Sellers, Ft. Bliss. to be
sent to Vietnam. PFC Michael Shoemaker at the 91st EVAC Hospital San Francisco.
PVT Adrian Hooks assigned to Co B, 16th BN 4th BRI, Ft. Knox. YN3 Johnny T. Cruz,
USS Coral Sea, in Gulf of Tonkin. PVT Ival E. Gressley at Ft. Knox. SP4 Asberry D.
Simpson at Valley Forge General Hospital. PVT Rolland H. Easterday at Ft. Benning.
March 11 VC attack staved off; 29 GIs die. U.S. seeks secret talks with Hanoi.
March 12 Rockets rake 40 S. Viet areas. Missionary tells of work in Vietnam in talk here. PFC
Robert A. Schaaf 3rd BN 1st Marines 1st Marine Div., Vietnam. SGT David A. Black at
Nha Trang AB. SSGT Richard J. Richardson, aircraft equipment tech, 89th Military Air
Wing, Andrews AFB. SP4 Eldon G. Hall, 101st Airborne, Camp Eagle, received Army
Commendation Medal.
March 13 VC shellings decline; 400 Red trapped.
March 15 Reds overwhelm S. Viet garrison. Reds urge talks with Cong. CDR Richard L.
Thompson to command the Sunfish.
March 17 65 VC rockets rake S. Viet. China bars Russ arms for Hanoi.
March 18 Sihanouk overthrown in Cambodia by Lon Nol and Sisowath Sirik Matak. VC human
wave assault on allied base repulsed.
March 19 Allies launch massive Viet counterattack drive called largest operation of the war. Viet
doves may foster VC attacks. SP4 James Griffith 75th Inf 25th Div in Vietnam.
March 20 Laird says Viet pullout unlikely until Reds quit. Congress gets gloomy report on War
outlooks.
March 21 Communists intensify Vietnam offensive. Attack on Saigon could end talks, Lodge
warns. SGT Robert L. Fordyce received USAF Commendation Medal at Scott AFB.
March 22 VC escalate offensive. SSGT Richard J. Richardson received USAF Commendation
Medal at Andrews AFB.
March 24 Nixon expected to draft student "Get Tough" policy. Guerrillas hit 30 camps Cong warn
of more blows. Laird U.S. has another Vietnam
plan. PO3 Sheldon E. Sutton, USS King, off coast of Vietnam.
March 25 Allies open third major counteroffensive. Doves ready assault on war conduct.
March 26 AN Patricia A. Singleton completed basic at Lackland AFB sent to Shepperd AFB.
March 27 VC mortars rake U.S. base in Mekong Delta. Vietnam War dead listed in Congres-
sional Record.
March 28 VC reject Thieu's offer for private talks. Viet proposal called maneuver by Nixon.
Whistling American POW stumps VC interrogator. Mercy mission copters downed by
VC gunners. S. Viet might defy bomb halt. 1,406 GIs die in first months of VC
offensive.
March 29 Cong trap nets heavy allied losses. President to seek plan to end draft. Stephen L. Wint-
errowd, Schweinfurt, Germany, promoted to SP4. Roger G. Carpenter, Luke AFB,
promoted to MSGT. PFC Raymond L. Long graduated Ordnance School. PVT Ralph
C. Bean assigned to Ft. Campbell.
April 1 Enemy in heavy joint attack. Highest allied casualties since August. Pro-Chinese lose
in Hanoi. Captain in My Lai massacre charged.
April 2 Fresh upsurge in fight reported in Vietnam. Viet Victory march is planned.
April 4 Reds lay siege to U.S. camp. N. Viet troops from Laos.
April 8 Camabodians, S. Viets collaborate. U.S. and S. Viet combat deaths soar. SP4 Gordan A.
Guenin stationed in S.Viet. PFC Joseph A. Roser, radio operator, received Army Commendation Medal.
PVT Michael A. Scholes in basic Ft. Knox. 2nd LT Thomas A. Yoder, executive officer, 25th Inf Div in S.
Vietnam. Stephen W. Estep, USS Decatur, promoted to MM3. SGT Randall Lee Pell, 23, who was on his
third tour of duty in South Vietnam, was killed during the night Tuesday while he slept in his quarters at
DaNang.
A Marine recruiter from Indianapolis, accompanied by the First United Methodis Church minister, the
Rev. Kenneth Smith, brought the word to his parents, Mr. And Mrs. Harold L. Pell, 143 Shady Lane, about
2 pm Wednesday.
He reportedly was hit by multiple fragments from a rocket.
Services are pending at Eddingfield-Gerber Mortuary.
Mr. And Mrs. Pell had received letters from their son Monday and Tuesday. He was with the
maintnance office, First Marine Air Wing, Marine Air Group 11.
He enlisted in the Maries on his 20th birthday, November 12, 1966. He left in February, 1967. His
training was at Camp Pendleton and at Memphis, Tn.
Pelled entered Wabash High School in January, 1964 and graduated from there the following year. He
was a W-club member and played varsity basketball, track and football. Before enter Wabash he went to
school in East Leyden, Franklin Park, Il. He attended Indiana State University, Terre Haute, and helped his
father in the milk business. He was a member of Woodlawn United Methodist Church.
His mother is the former Edna Louise Maple.
Surviving with his parents are a brother, Steven, at home; a sister, Mrs. Robert (Vicki Lynn) Brown,
Wabash, and his grandfather B.W. Maple.
April 10 Special forces camp hit with heavy casualties and damage.
April 13 Enemy Viet drive into its 13th day. All Viet units have pot problems. VC took villagers
away from Cambodian town. Protesters plan anti war tax move.
April 14 N. Viets wreck crossing spot on Viet Highway One.
April 15 S. Viets, Cambodians hit Reds.
April 16 American losses in Asia stay high.
April 17 Allies building up on Cambodian line. Cambodia gives U.S. a dilemma.
April 18 AK Roger L. Stephens with the 77th TacFtrWg. John R. Martin in National Guard
training at Ft. Campbell. 1st LT Nelson E. Bahler, electronics warefare officer, perm-
anently assigned to the 99th Bomb Wing Westover AFB. A1C Robert Meeks, 437th
Military Airlift Wing, Charleston AFB.
April 20 Troop withdrawal Nixon talk topic. American Viet strength down to three year low. Sa-
ndra L. Howard, Ft. McClellan, promoted to E2 after basic. PVT Robert D. Fairchild
assigned to 20th Eng Bri, S.Viet. SGT Larry J. Smith assigned 1st Logistical Com., Viet.
April 21 Nixon sets year's pullout goal. S. Viets make Cambodian thrust.
April 22 Cambodia requests U.S. arms again. Nixon hopes defuse war issue. 7 Yankee aircraft
lost in war zone.
April 23 Six more aircraft downed over Asia.
April 24 Marine withdrawal may be delayed in Vietnam. VC cut highway in Cambodia. Presid-
ents plan to abolish draft gets cold reception. A1C Ronald M. Coburn stationed at U-
Tapas AB. CPL Gary J. Follin, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, Vietnam, awarded Air Medal.
CAPT Gerhard W. Judjahn at Phu Cat AB. PVT Craig House at Ft. Bliss.
April 28 Cambodians claiming battle won. 5 more Yankee aircraft downed.
April 29 Vietnam reemerges as national issue. PVT Randell E. Henderson completed basic Ft.
Knox assigned to Ft. Sill. TSGT Terry L. Tyner with the 1882nd Comm. Sqd, Phan
Rang AB. Draft orders are under review. U.S. Viet drive in Cambodia.
April 30 Nixon announces that American and South Vietnamese forces have attacked Communist
sanctuaries in Cambodia. S. Viet task force pushes into Cambodia. U.S. in Cambodia
called aggression.
May 1 President says offensive needed to save U.S. lives. Kenneth L. Resler, 3rd BN 1st Marine
Rgt. S. Viet., promoted to LCPL. Charles D. Russell, Larry B. Proffitt and Ronald L.
Isbell assigned to basic Ft. Knox. SGT Lawrence E. Coon stationed Camp Kaiser,
Korea. Protest at IU against Cambodian War. Yank GIs setting up bases.
May 4 Large antiwar protests spread across the U.S. National guardsmen kill four students at
Kent State University in Ohio. War is not being escalated by air raids, Nixon claims.
May 5 Helicopters ferry GIs to new area.
May 6 Growing number of campuses support antiwar strike. President vows U.S. to be out of
Cambodia by July 1. WAC SP5 Joyce E. Smith assigned Ent AFB. AN Ronald L. Nic-
cum completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Lowry AFB. AN Don W. Lucas comple-
ted aircraft mech course Shepperd AFB assigned to Cannon AFB. CPL John V. Worth-
ington at MCAS Iwakuni, Japan. Larry A. Breneman, Yokosuka, Japan, promoted to
SGT. CAPT Lester L. Spencer graduated Air University's Sqd Officers School Maxwell
AFB.
May 7 S. Viets ready flotilla for Mekong River assault. Steve M. Highley, Camp Pendleton,
promoted PFC. AN Steven W. Lynch completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Lowry
AFB.
May 9 N. Viet purge expected.
May 11 S. Viet flotilla arrives in capital city of Cambodia.
May 14 U.S. combat deaths highest in more than eight months. PFC Vincent Peters Jr. finished
basic San Diego and sent to Camp Demar. John R. Martin Ft. Knox, transferred to Ft.
Polk. A1C Ronald M. Coburn with 307th Strategic Wing, U-Tapao.
May 15 B52s blast jungle trails of N. Viet. NSA Hospital, Danag, Vietnam, closes as part of President
Nixon's Vietnamization policy.
May 16 Americans, S. Viet halt action.
May 19 Laird admits GIs in Laos briefly. N. Viets step up fight across south. Roger D. Flitcraft
Goodfellow AFB, promoted to A1C. Christopher V. Loy with 2nd BN 7th Cav. 1st Air
Cav Div. SSGT Steven E. Whittlesby at U-Tapa AB. AN Evert H. Brubaker completed
basic Lackland AFB assigned Shepperd AFB. ADJ3 Edward A. Wenger aboard USS
Oriskany. SGT Gary L. Brown, 3rd Inf Div, Germany, received Good Conduct Medal.
May 20 Mrs. Idle placed white crosses in American Legion Post 15 auxiliary window display at
the Beitman and Wolfe store in downtown Wabash. The display lists the names of Wa-
bash County Vietnam War casualties and dates on which they lost their lives. 14 men
died between January 29, 1966 and April 7, 1970. S. Viet troops open new front.
May 21 Attorneys lobby against war in Southeast Asia. Number of American war deaths
increases again.
May 22 S. Viets in Cambodia for as long as necessary.
May 26 Enemy slashes American GIs. Cambodians hate for Viets shows.
May 27 U.S. jets attack Ack Ack installations in the North. Security troops probably will be in
Viet combat. Carbon L. Lackford aboard USS Independence. Melvin D. Miller, Da
Nang, promoted to SGT 1C. CWO2 Larry A. Martin at Marine Barracks, Brooklyn.
CAPT Larry C. Lester at Maxwell AFB. SP4 Adrian Hooks with 5th Inf Div in Viet-
nam. A1C Robin A. Garrison at Takhi Royal Thai AFB. CAPT Gergard W. Judjahn at
Phu Cat AB. PO2 Terence Smith, USS Constellation, returned to the U.S. PFC Fred
Wilson with 2nd Marine Div near Camp Lejeune. PO1 Robert C. Oswalt. Abilene, Tx,
reenlisted in Naval Reserve.
May 28 SSGT John P. Hipskind at Elmendorf AFB.
May 29 1,000 S. Viet soldiers on move.
June 1 American artillery blasts Communists in Cambodia. President plans war speech on TV.
Martial law in Cambodia. AN Robert Howard completed basic Lackland AFB sent to
security police school Minot AFB.
June 2 Siagon's troops hit hard. White House hints bombers could be used in Cambodia. S.
Viets are reinforced.
June 4 President vows to pull out of Cambodia by June 30. Military goals accomplished-
Nixon. War injured hurt again by red tape. SGT Richard L. Kirby, Vietnam, awarded
Combat Infantryman Badge. AN Ronald L. Smith graduated USAF Administrative
Specialist training, Keesler AFB assigned Grissom AFB. CG Cadet 1st C Lawrence
Howell completed 3rd year.
June 9 N. Viets strengthening supply network. House to send task force to Vietnam to review
war. Bert B. Rush, Frankfort, Germany, promoted to SP4. FN Dennis J. Thompson,
USS Richard E. Byrd, in the Med. Alan P. Smith, Okinawa, promoted to CPL. SP4
Ronald D. Pressler received Army Commendation Medal for meritorious service with 4th
Inf Div near An Khe. SGT Jerry W. Shoemaker, supply specialist, Forbes AFB. SP4
Joseph H. Yoder at ROTC summer camp Ft. Sill. PVT Larry W. Steele at Ft. Carson.
His brother Steven E. Steele on leave after returning from Okinawa.
June 11 70 civiliams killed in Cong slaughter. GIs cheat on college, Army is mad. SP4 James L.
Smith participated in Exotic Dancer III, a joint Army, Navy, USAF Marine exercise at
Cherry Point. SSGT Edward A. Conyers with the 366th Tac. Fighter Wing DaNang AB.
June 16 Allied troops find trap empty. Draft boards are taking the unfit. A1C Randy L. Haag at
Nellis AFB. Charles E. Wray, USS Shenandoah, in Med. Chester E. Goble promoted to
SGT near Qui Nhon. CPL William B. Farmer Jr. participated in Exercise Beagle House
at Camp Pendleton. FA James J. Sharp, USS Leonard F. Mason in Western Pacific. PO3
Dallas E. Harman, USS Vermillion, returned to Little Creek, VA.
June 18 Tom R. Worthington promoted to LCPL at Iwakuni, Japan. PFC William R. Armstrong
And brother PFC Gregory A. Armstrong in Germany. SSGT John E. Quinn in S. Viet.
June 19 Draft number pick system altered.
June 22 U.S.-S. Viet reports week of hardest fighting. N. Viets press near Mekong. U.S. extend
war deep inside Cambodia.
June 25 Tonkin measures repealed. Next draft lottery to get more capsules.
July 1 Hanoi charges U.S. prolonging war. 4,000 Viet refugees leave Cambodia. 2 Yankee
helicopters shot down. PVT Gary L. Greer in basic at Ft. Knox.
July 2 Draft chief tries for fairness. U.S., Viet offensive expected by allies.
July 5 SP Michael K. Wagmire, 21, killed in action in S. Vietnam, buried at Denver, In., post-
humously awarded Bronze Star, Army Commendation Medal, Purpal Heart, Good Con-
duct Medal and Combat Infantryman Badge at Ft. Benjamin Harrison.
July 6 Cambodian army battles way to victory in Saang. N. Viet offensive expected by allies.
PVT William L. Stewart, B troop 1st/10 CAV, 4th Inf Div, in Vietnam.
July 9 U.S. general missing over S. Vietnam. 463 GIs wounded and 61 are killed.
July 10 Canadian Brigadier General N.L. Magrueson congratulates WAC SP5 Joyce E. Smith as
she received the Army Commendation Medal at Ent AFB, for meritorious service durin
during her last assignment in S. Vietnam. She is now assigned to the North American
Air Defense Command Headquarters, Ent AFB. FNAA Allen R. Young aboard USS
Independence. Anti war conclave asks Viet schedule. N. Viet banner flying over DMZ.
Many contradictions fogging issues in the Vietnam War. Fritz McClure, North Manches-
ter, offers Viet view after year in Vietnam.
July 14 S. Viets accused by former prisoner. First Z-gram issued by CNO Admiral Elmo R.
Zumwalt, Jr.
July 15 MyLai dilberately covered, House unit says. Campus pacifiers are told: No success until
war ends. S. Viet launches new major sweep.
July 17 S. Viets given triple food help. PFC Randell E. Henderson, 101st Airborne, at Phu Bai.
Top envoys in Vietnam to confer with Nixon. Larry Ellars completed basic Ft. Knox
sent to Ft. Sill. Gary R. Wright promoted to Sp4 near Baumholder. Ronald M. Coburn
promoted to A1C in Thailand. Robert C. Geyer commissioned 2nd LT at Ft. Belvoir sent
to Ft. Benjamin Harrison.
July 20 Saigon under rocket attack for first time in months. Steven Wiles completed basic Ft.
Knox; sent to Ft. Sam Houston. SSGT James F. Chisdek received USAF Commendat-
ion Medal at Grissom AFB.
July 21 No imposed regime for S. Viet.-Nixon
July 22 U.S. jets attack positions in North. David A. Campbell in USMC basic San Diego. CDR
David G. Smith commander USS Jack which received battle efficiency award for 1970.
July 23 Yanks abandon Viet base.
July 24 PFC David L. Larrowe and Robert T. Gorman in basic at Ft. Knox.
July 27 B52s blast areas along Viet border.
July 29 SGT Byron C. Mendenhall with HHC 1st Bde, 25th Div, in Vietnam. AN James M.
Smith graduated USAF air traffic controller course Keesler AFB assigned Castle AFB.
July 30 SP4 David Drake sent to Horzozenaurach, W. Ger. SP4 Herbert D. Hartman graduated
UH-1 maintenance course Ft. Rucker. 77 Yanks in week's toll. Excongressman says
CIA in MyLai.
July 31 S. Viets, Yanks catch Reds in central highlands.
August 4 American plans are bombing areas in Cambodia on request.
August 5 U.S. and S. Viet forces try to block Red supplies. SP4 Dana R. Stevens, HHB Inf Div
Arty, in Germany.
August 6 Bruce at Viet peace talks but no sign things to ease. Heavy raids in Laos and Cambodia.
Mitchell L. Campbell, Key West, assigned to USS Wiliam M. Wood. Draft No. 195 to
be end says Tarr. Huey Newton vows support for VC.
August 7 Strategy changes in S. Viet. FN Dennis J. Thompson aboard USS Richard E. Byrd.
PVT Archie A. Alger Co C, 8th BN 4 BRI at Ft. Knox. LTjg Patrick N. Rounds, NAS
Corpus Christi, awarded Navy Wings of Gold and sent to Attack Sqd 122 NAS Lemoore.
SP4 Donald K. Doolittle, Vietnam, received Army Commendation Medal. William R.
Lyons, Ft. Knox, promoted to SGT. Clarence E. McDougle, Long Binh, promoted to
SP4.
August 11 HC2 Dennis T. Wallace received Bronze Star for heroic achievement in connection with
combat operations in Vietnam. A1C Allen R. Wilson graduated radar repairman course
at Keesler AFB. SSGT Pat L. Palmer stationed at Alcombury RAF Station England.
Robert C. Geyer commissioned 2nd LT at Ft. Belvoir.
August 12 S. Viet forces reporting heavy losses.
August 14 Vietnamization continues allies in Vietnam reshuffled. Herschel L. Hall honorably dis-
charged after six years duty. Served in Korea.
August 17 B52s hit area along Laos border against new Communist offensive.
August 18 South soldiers drive off Communist attack. U.S. Navy still virtually all white.
August 19 Thomas Weimer at Lackland AFB in training course for security police. David A.
Treckman in basic training at Lackland AFB. MyLai GI no longer charged.
August 21 SP4 Christopher V. Loy received the Army Commendation Medal with "V" Device
and the Purple Heart for heroism in connection with military operations in S. Vietnam.
Military admits drug problems among GIs.
August 24 American B52s blast area near Viet DMZ. Viets want U.S. out-McGovern.
August 26 Red's supply line dribbling. Air attacks hit rivers. Draft likely to continue. Minor S.
Viet action, more pressure on Phnon Penh. 4,280 veterans reported are residing in
Wabash County.
August 27 Viet pullout assured-Agnew. 32 Americans die in one of war's worst helicopter crashes
Hanoi delegate does not show at Paris Peace talks.
August 28 4,008 U.S. copters lost in Vietnam War. 15 year old soldier service in Viet. War. 40
Stop War votes a victory-McGovern. SN David J. Futrell stationed at U.S. Naval Com-
munications Station, San Miguel. Hanoi's MIG air force nearly tripled.
August 31 Peace is certain in Vietnam for U.S., President Nixon says. Pro government ticket leads
in election in S. Viet.
September 1 Enemy prisoners of war escape from S. Viet detail. POW film receives shouts and
praises. Vietnam War Red "trap" senators say. End War vote 55-39, Hawks.
September 2 Senators want Viet cease-fire.
September 3 American death toll in Vietnam up some. CAPT Larry Lester graduated Air Uni-
versity Sqd Officers School, Maxwell AFB, assigned to Columbus AFB. PVT Rod
Songer assigned Co. A, 13 BN, 4 BRI, USATC. FN Stephen W. Estep, USS Decatur,
returned from Western Pacific.
September 4 Red troops moving down the Ho Chi Minh trail. Anti war people stunned by news of
Ky speech.
September 8 GIs in Viet War highly decorated. N. Viet commandoes blast into South Ranger Camp.
September 9 About half GIs die by Viet booby traps. Communists step up S. Viet attacks.
September 11 U.S. planes attack intensifying enemy.
September 17 Race relations training to be part of recruits boot camp. Steven L. Thompson, weather
specialist Elgin AFB, promoted to SGT. A1C James P. Hipskind, electronics systems
repairman, stationed at Lakenheath RAF station. Cong present peace plan in Paris.
September 18 S. Viet's Ky reconsidering visit. War planes pound Communist troops.
September 21 S. Viets start offensive.
September 22 MyLai charges are not to be dropped.
September 23 AN Robert L. VanMeter completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Chanute AFB. Kenn-
eth L. Ballard in basic at Great Lakes. Stephen E. Stamate, Germany, promoted to SP5.
September 24 Vietnam death toll lowest in 4 ½ years.
September 26 VC uses rockets to hurt pacification program of south. PVT Tommy D. Stumbo at Ft.
Knox. MAJOR Donald G. Wolpert, Dover AFB, dedecorated with the Distinguished
Flying Cross for aerial achievement in Vietnam. SGT Denny V. Smith stationed with
the 307th Strategic Wing, U-Tapeo Airfield. MAJOR William W. Stumpf assumed com-
mand of the Maintenance BN, 5th Force Service REGT MCB, Camp Pendleton.
September 29 An Hoa U.S. base given to South. S. Viet armor blasts enemy troops. Officials report
Ky gets invite to U.S.
September 30 Air accident at Danang. Pacification has meaning in Hau Duc. South claim Red army
blotted. PVT Rodney Mendenhall and PVT John Ross Ft. Knox.
October 1 PVT Larry L. Glass, Co E, 1st BN, 172nd Inf Bri, 60th Inf, fired expert with M16 rifle at
Ft. Richardson. Yankee toll in Vietnam slightly 43,737 Americans die since 1961.
October 2 Thieu predicts war in Vietnam to fade. Age 26 boundary for draftees. Saigon-Phnom
Penh highway cut by Reds.
October 3 David J. Culbertson, personnel clerk, HQ Co, 35th Engineer Group near Cam Ranh Bay
promoted to SP4. Richard W. Krom USS Woodrow Wilson, promoted to LtCDR. Rod-
ney Mendenhall completed basic at Ft. Knox and brother SGT Bryan Mendenhall has
been in Vietnam 8 ½ months.
October 5 Pro Viet War rally coming. First GI faces My Lai trial.
October 7 Nixon proposes "standstill cease-fire".
October 8 Nixon repeats mutual-withdrawal formula. Viet Reds shrug plan. American toll in
Vietnam lower.
October 12 Vietnam withdrawal ahead of schedule. Draft call end seen.
October 14 VC booby trap kills nine. Government ready to take calculated risk in Vietnam.
October 15 Air Force scales down war raids.
October 16 Accidents kill more than combat in Vietnam. 25th Infantry ready to leave Vietnam War.
October 18 Frederick L. Nutter second tour of duty with the Navy in Vietnam, killed while on patrol
22 miles southeast of DaNang by enemy booby trap that exploded. He had previously been a naval sonar
opeator for eight years. Posthumously awarded the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Combat Action Medal, Nat-
ional Defense Medal, Vietnam Service Medal with one silver star, Vietnam Campaign Medal, Vietnamese
Gallantry Cross with bronze star; previously received three unit citations. Manchester Man War Victiim.
North Manchester-Frederick Leroy Nutter, 24, formerly of 205 S. Sycamore, has been killed in action in
Vietnam and services are pending at the Bender Funeral Home.
His mother, Mrs. Marvin Armey, Zanesville, Oh, received word of his death Sunday and she relayed
the information here. A sister, Mrs. Gerald Good anticipates the Navy will contact her with further
information inasmuch as the services will be here.
Nutter was in the United States Navy for eight years. He enlisted in the Navy when he was 17 years old,
trained at Great Lakes Naval Base and was with the ground forces in Vietnam. This was his second time in
Vietnam and date of his death or further details are not yet known here.
Nutter was born in Peru March 20, 1946 to Fred and Florence (Shotts) Nutter. Surviving with the
mother are a grandmother, Mrs. Grace Armey, North Manchester; two sisters, Mrs. Good and Mrs. William
Stevens, Zanesville, Ohio; a half-sister, Mrs Walt Malk, Elkhart, and a half-brother, Donald Aarmey,
Zanesville.
He attended Manchester High School before entering the service.
Wabash County had not had a casualty in Vietnam since last April when SGT Randall Lee Pell, Wabash
was killed during his third tour of duty in that country.
October 19 Enemy agents in S. Viet reime-CIA.
October 20 No secret testimony for My Lai trials. Ex soldiers testify for My Lai trials. Winning
Viet clash reported south of DaNang. PFC John Burnsworth aboard USS Sanctuary. 1st
LT Barry W. Curless, BN signal officer, 101st Airborne, in Vietnam. PVT Steven Wiles
completed AIT Ft. Sam Houston and stationed Madigan General Hospital, Tacoma.
Gary T. Fullin, Vietnam, promoted to SGT. David Treckman attending Weapons Cont-
trol Systems School, Lowry AFB.
October 21 Steven D. Pressler, An Khe, promoted to SP4. New drive in Da Nang area. Army
General gets Silver Star through manufactured citation.
October 22 Death toll of Americans in war "second lowest". PVT Herbert E. Stellar in Vietnam.
PVT David A. Campbell completed basic San Diego. SSGT Bruce A. Kilty graduated
USAF tech instructors course, Shepperd AFB assigned Dover AFB. AN William Hiatt
completed basic Lackland AFB. SN Lon A. Vandegrift completed basic Great Lakes.
October 24 Larry M. Slater, Belgium, promoted to SP5.
Octobert 26 Internal corruption in S. Viet saps the nation's life. S. Viets start offensive.
October 27 S. Viets will extend drive deeper into Cambodian territory. Edward A Wenger promoted
to PO2. 1st SGT Daniel L. Rose at Iwakuni, Japan. A1C Roger D. Flitcraft graduated
communications anaylis specialist school Goodfellow AFB, assigned Kadema AB.
October 28 B52s hit enemy's supply routes, 500 strikes in 2 ½ weeks.
October 30 N. Viet shatters lull in Indochina war. Drugs may have claimed 89 U.S. GIs in last 10
months. Orville L. Sentman, officer candidate, grauated Purdue University. PO Randy J.
Childress, USS New Orleans, participated in assaults on VC and also recovery of Apollo
14. PVT Robert L. Leach in AIT at Ft. Sill. SSGT Daryl G. Abell reassigned from Ham-
ilton AFB to McCord AFB enroute to Nha Trang AFB. SGT Rodney W. McPeron at
MCAS Jacksonville.
October 31 American combat deaths in Vietnam during the last week of the month numbered 24 the
lowest toll since October 1965.
November 2 S. Viet troopers in Cambodian sweep.
November 3 5 year low in viet deaths. American Air Unit 45th Tac Recon Sqd in Vietnam being dis-
banded, sent home.
November 6 Military panel criticizes Johnson"s war decisions. PVT Paul W. Hays completed AIT Ft.
Polk. Donald W. Beatty, mechanic, 562nd Art., Ft. Wainwright, promoted to SP4. AN
Randall J. Hoover completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Sheppard AFB. A1C Rich-
ard L. Weaver, Jr. graduated AVIONICS Systems Maintenance Specialist School Chan-
ute AFB assigned Costel AFB.
November 7 Irony in Canada is U.S. draft dodgers. SP5 Jimmie E. Smithee graduated 82nd Airborne
NCO Academy, Ft. Bragg. SSGT Donald D. R. Wagner, navigation equipment repair-
man, stationed McChord AFB.
November 9 Vietnam takes over offensive operations from U.S. in area. Allen K. Marshall, Ronald
Everroad and John A. Brace in basic at Ft. Knox. AN Jackie D. Eubank, vehicle oper-
ator, assigned Ellison AFB.
November 11 Vietnam War to be over by 1972-Nixon. Trial of Lt. Calley will begin Monday, Ft. Ben-
ning, Ga. for his part in the My Lai massacre. SGTBryan C. Mendenhall, near Dau
Tiang, received Combat Infantryman Badge.
November 12 Viet ground action drops to low. Enemy expanding fuel supply for Loas campgain, U.S.
says.
November 13 Bad day for Americans in Vietnam. Low air fares are sought for GIs. AN Terrell R.
Whitaker completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Shepperd AFB. SP4 Malvern E.
Winters, 14th Eng. BN Quang Tri, awarded Drivers Badge. PVT Fred C. Tarter in USMC
basic at San Diego.
November 17 Big N. Viet ammo stockpile uncovered. Calley's My Lai trial begins today in Georgia.
November 18 Calley witness claims he saw My Lai bodies. Booby trap kills 5 American GIs in Viet-
nam.SGT David L. Coble received USAF Commendation Medal for meritorious ser-
vice between Aug. 19, 1969 and August 1970. The citation stated he distinguished him-
self by meritorious service as an NCO in charge of the bulk storage warehouse for the
base Service Store, Material Facilities Branch, 56th Supply Sqd, Nakhon Panom, Royal
Thai AFB, Thailand.
November 19 15 marines die in crash-copeter hits fog mountain.
November 20 Terry J. Poole entered the USAF sent to recruit training at Lackland AFB ( sent to Thai-
land; honorable discharge 9-20-1974 Grand Forks AFB with National Defense Medal,
Vietnam Service Medal).
November 23 New bombing of North draws criticism. SSGT Neil K. Cline, air passenger specialist,
completed tour at Tan Son Nhu AB assigned McChord AFB. SSGT Darryl G. Abell,
radio repairman, stationed Nha Trang AB.
November 24 More U.S. Commando raids may be possible. PVT Larry G. Ellars completed AIT at
Ft. Sill now in Vietnam.
November 25 Lt. Calley trial is recessed. MMFN James J. Sharp aboard USS L.F. Mason.
November 27 Washington worries about GI Pow's, Hanoi shows no concern. Heavy ground fight but
little for GIs.
November 30 Gregory A. Tyner enlisted in the USN nuclear power program and assigned to Orlando.
PFC Charles E. Whitcraft, 196th Bri., assigned to Chu Lai. PVT Robert R. Barker in
basic at Ft. Knox. SP4 David W. Drake stationed in West Germany. PVT Larry Proffitt
is overseas.
December 2 Enemy shells S. Viet biggest attack in two months. Member of Lt. Calley's outfit says
Calley shot at civilians. U.S. taking tougher line with Hanoi.
December 3 Tarr ponders lower draft age 18. GIs in combat zones can call through phone company.
Searchers looking for downed planes-38 Americans lost over Vietnam. Most GIs in war
try pot. Vietnam veteran tells "war crimes" inquiry of atrocities by Americans. PVT
Kenneth E. Purdy stationed at Kirk Goen, Frankfort, Ger.
December 4 Key My Lai witness silent. S. Viet troops hack deeper into Red bastion. American
prisoner in Vietnam does not live, he vegetates.
December 8 Anti American rioting rages after Vietnam student shot. American Division hit by two
VC attacks, many casualties. AlC Steven W. Lynch with the Advisory Team 90 USAF.
SGT Adrian Hooks in Co. A, 7th Eng., 1st Inf BN, 5th Div. Michael L. Campbell now
overseas. PVT David Snyder in basic at Ft. Knox. Roger Cook, Wabash math teacher,
inducted into the Army in November now at Ft. Knox.
December 9 LT. Calley prosecution rests case. Militiamen win battle, Ky honors. Saigon rejects idea
of long cease fire. Armed forces reenlistments hit lowest point in 15 years. U.S. offers
to swap prisoners with Reds. Letters get through to POWs from Indiana.
December 11 Jets could hit N. Viet again-Nixon. Area near My Lai called trap for GIs by Calley
witnesses. North Manchester servicemen in the U.S. Archie Alger, David Ayers, James Bashore, Marvin
Beck, Jeffrey Blocher, William Bumgardner, Gary Bush, Dean Brubaker, David Carter, Kevin B. Carter,
Ray Cumberland, Lawrence Cooksey, Westley Davison, Kenneth Ebbinghouse, Ronnie Felabam, Larry
Fitzpatrick, Brad Flohr, Fred Fedewa, Rocky Foust, David Furnas, Jimmy Gillim, Gary Gushard, William
Haines, William Hiatt, Sandy Howard, Max Hammonds, Randy Hoover, Albert Isabella, Robert Jester,
Allen Kline, Charles Leeka, Michael Meade, Kenneth Meredith, Paul McIntosh, David Moorhouse, Jesse
Navarez, Ronald Niccum, Charles Oldfather, Daniel Purdy, Russin Pudis, Lee Ream, Steven Rittenhouse,
Gary Shaffer, Richard Stickney, D. James Vandemark, Edward Wallace, Richard Winebrenner, Mike
Williams, Gary Young.
December 12 James Tucker sustained inuries to the left knee and abdomen but was not seriously
wounded. While a gunner on a military vehicle on a military mission he came under
attack by hostile forces in Quian Tri. He was hospitalized in Vietnam. He also has a
brother in the military service stationed in Panama.
December 15 GI withdrawals may slow to trickle. Courier plane crashes off Viet coast six Americans
feared dead. Release of sick POW's urged by Sen. Griffin. My Lai given death sent-
ence-witnesses.
December 16 S. Viet paratroopers after Reds in Cambodia. Laird will explore faster GI pullout.
David A. Campbell promoted to PFC at Camp Pendleton. PVT Rodney Mendenhall
completed basic Ft. Knox assigned Ft. Carson. PFC Larry Ellars in B BATT, 1/32
Art, 23rd Inf Div. SP4 Ronald E. Eichholtz, medic, HHC 2-827 INS 101st in Vietnam.
December 17 Police patrols increase in Saigon. Calley defense is Medina.
December 21 PVT Douglas L. Wilcox graduated basic at San Diego.
December 22 Vietnam soldiers in morality play. Mitchell L. Campbell assigned to the USS Lawrence.
Dennis E. Hall restationed in Vietnam. LTjg Charles M. Boswell, USS Hammerhead,
returned to home port after surfacing at the North Pole. Jane A. Winterrowd completed
basic and promoted to E2. AN Richard Weaver stationed at Castle AFB.
December 23 N. Viets return to pullout deadline. Reds confront South, South calls in jets. Hanoi's
POW list old and incomplete. Five Hoosiers on list.
December 27 Reds hit S. Viets in Cambodia. Draft call may drop.
December At year-end American troop strength in Vietnam down to 280,000.
assigned to 1st Logistical Command. Thomas E. Brewer, Dau Tieng, promoted to SP4.
SGT Thomas Roth assigned as squad leader 4th Inf. Div. PO3 Dallas E. Harman aboard
the USS Vermillion.
1971 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January 4 Newest USS Wabash will be the 5th with name. U.S. B52s renew raids on Vietnam.
AN Derrell K. Lambert completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Chanute AFB. CDR
Richard L. Thompson, USS Sunfish, in North Atlantic. AN James L. Bashore comple-
ted basic Lackland AFB assigned Shepperd AFB.
January 5 N. Viets offensive power small. Helicopters: where Vietnam War is at. PVT Rocky L.
Foust completed basic at San Diego. SGT Garrah Johnson received separation papers.
He received the National Defense Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Vietnam Campaign
Medal and Bronze Star. SGT Michael R. Keen received separation papers from the U.S.
service. He served with the 1st Air Cav Combat Forces in Vietnam and Cambodia. He
received four Bronze Stars with Valor, a Bronze Star for meritorious service in ground
operations against hostile forces, the Air Force Medal, a Purple Heart, two Army Comm-
endation Medals with Valor, one National Defense Medal, Vietnam Service Medal and
Vietnam Campaign Medal. David A. Sellers, Norton AFB, promoted to SGT. Randall
E. Henderson, 101st Airborne, Vietnam, promoted to SP4. More GI pullouts will be told.
January 6 Plan unveiled to combat GI drug use. 1st Air Cav pullout slated. Army drops more My
Lai charges. OT Bruce Pretorious enlisted in USAF and stationed in San Antonio.
January 7 Fragging: GIs try to murder other GIs. More aid for Thailand-Laird. Explosions wreck
major allied ammunition dump. Final Operation Ranch Hand run flown. Ranch Hand
was a U.S. military operation from 1962 to 1971 part of overall herbicidal warfare pro-
gram called Operation Trail Dust. 20,000 sorties flown which sprayed an estimated 20
million U.S. gallons of mainly Agent Orange on Vietnam and Laos.
January 8 Vietnam's inflation slowing. Ex GIs say civilians slain at My Lai trial of SGT Hutto.
Defense secretary in Vietnam to discuss added withdrawals.
January 11 Plans for volunteer army reached by Pentagon.
January 12 Second jet raids North. Meadlo tells of death order, Lt. Calley "a Man doing his duty."
January 13 Indiana's draft call will be 449 men for February. Joint Viet-Cambodian force on of-
fensive.
January 14 My Lai trial goes secret for one day. Craig L. Pankop enlised in the Navy and at Great
Lakes. Steve M. Highley, 1st Marine Div, Vietnam, promoted to LCPL
January 15 S. Viets battle at pass in Cambodia. Second GI tried and acquitted in case stemming
from My Lai. Officers get pep talk My Lai witness says.
January 16 150 more bases to S. Vietnam. Ex GI claims VC atrocities are routine.
January 21 U.S. GIs receive more lenient treatment in foreign courts. Confidential papers get Mead-
lo immunity. S. Viet forces about to meet Cambodians at pass.
January 25 SP5 Steve Weimer, 54th Signal Corps, Can Me Thout, now home on leave will report to
Ft. Sam Houston. A2C Tom Weimer, Offutt AFB, on leave home. Will report to Ice-
land. SP4 Fred E. Hall stationed in Germany.
January 27 MAJOR James Low Ex POW gives grim picture of treatment of Americans.
January 28 PO John R. Schultz aboard the USS Enterprise. Combat troops out by 1972.
January 29 June Ann Zimpleman married SGT Joseph Towne, Grissom AFB.
February 1 Enemy attacks six positions. SGT Charles Oldfather, Norton AFB, sent to Eglin AFB
for training on recip aircraft. 2nd LT Ken A. Romine, missile launch officer, Whiteman
AFB. A1C Kriag Barker with 336 MMS, Dr. 44.
February 2 U.S. Jets hit border areas, 7 ground clashes reported. S. Viet troops, American air power
reported inside Laos.
February 3 S. Viet spokesman stays mum. Ending threat of draft to mean less volunteers. Barry L.
Shambaugh, navigational equipment repairman, 179th Aviation Co. 52 AV BN 17th Grp,
1st AV BRI, Vietnam, promoted to SP5.
February 4 More S. Viets in Cambodia, others poised for Laos drive.
February 5 North hit again by U.S. jets.
February 8 South Vietnamese forces begin incursions in Laos against the Ho Chi Minh trail. Called
Operation Lan Son 719. Attempt to cut the Ho Chi Minh trail thwarting a planned N.
Viet offensive. No American ground forces could go in but massive aerial support given.
February 10 May GI level expected to stay over 100,000. Roger G. Francis, 864th Eng BN, near Phan
Thiet, promoted to SP4. FN Robert D. Pritchard, USS Detroit, in Guantanamo Bay. PO2
Larry C. Robinson, Patrol Sqd 154, USS Ranger, received letter of commendation for
outstanding performance of duty.
February 11 Marines ready for Vietnam action. Laos drive till May, Ky says. Protests against Laos
drive preaceful in U.S. cities and on campus.Vietnam Vets bonuses backed by local
region.
February 12 U.S. command lists dozen aircraft lost; 14 Yanks killed 7 wounded.
February 13 Brethren official wants end to draft.
February 15 Missile site raids resumed; American jets attack North. Hillis wants free GI mail.
February 16 Five American aircraft lost; warning of more raids in North.
February 17 No increase in Communist supply movement seen. U.S. steps up recon flights over
North.
February 18 Three supply routes are cut. Presient warns of massive airpower retaliation anywhere in
Indochina to protect GIs.
February 19 Artillery base under attack. Michael T. Coburn completed basic Lackland AFB assigned
Shepperd AFB. PVT David Snyder completed basic Ft. Knox, assigned Ft. Gordon. Co-
ast Guard Cadet Lawrence H. Howell appointed regimental maintenance officer at Coast
Guard Academy. MSGT Harold E. Kemery at Clark AFB. AN Roger D. Lucas comple-
ted basic Lackland AFB assigned Chanute AFB.
February 22 S. Viets stalled for another day.
February 23 U.S. planes hit N. Vietnam hard. Demos urge Vietnam timetable. Senate told money
manipulated in Vietnam. 2nd LT Jay L. Davis assigned Randolph AFB. AN James T.
Bain completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Shepperd AFB. AN Paul W. Christman
completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Shepperd AFB.
February 25 Nixon charges Hanoi with expanding war. U.S. death toll hits high S. Viets still slatted.
Questions unanswered by Lt. Calley. Operation Lan Son 719 ends with nearly one half
of S. Viet soldiers sent in lost.
February 26 S. Viet paratrooper bases in Laos fall to enemy. Vietnam War could doom President
Nixon in 1972. ENS Orville S. Sentman received commission at Purdue University.
March 2 Copter crash in Laos kills former resident of the county, 1st LT Terry Usher. He was on
his 2nd tour in Vietnam when his helicopter collided with another. Official view of Laos
campaign is that Reds put on defensive.
March 3 New tangle in Calley's confused court martial. Enemy fires SAMs in South.
March 4 S. Viet soldiers advance by air in Laos.
March 5 S. Viet troops ready for large scale Laos attack. No U.S. supported invasion of North,
Nixon says. U.S. to remain in South till POWs released. 5th Special Forces Grp, first
American Unit deployed to S. Vietnam returned to Ft. Bragg.
March 6 Roger D. Garrett seriously injured in Vietnam when he detonated a mortar round used as
a booby trap. He lost both legs above the knees, his left index finger, and received mul-
tiple wounds to the face, neck, right hand and left shoulder. He also suffered a fractured
left wrist. He was serving his second tour of duty in Vietnam and scheduled to come
home on a 30 day leave later this month. He was an advisor with the South Vietnamese
Army.
March 8 S. Viet air force maturing, U.S. officials say. S. Viets seize three supply junctions in
Laos. Calley's platoon took some prisoners.
March 9 Medina will face trial on My Lai. U.S. command says Laos may buy Vietnamization a
year. Yost wants Viet pullout. Don A. Eiler, armament systems superintendent, Nellis
AFB promoted to MSGT.
March 11 Contridictions in two My Lai stories. Hanoi negotiator boycotts talks. B52s force in
Asia to be cut. U.S. B52s keep up heavy raids as ground war erupts in Laos. SP4 Max
D. Robertson, Zweibruecken, Germany, awarded Army Certificate of Achievement.
March 12 S. Viet troops move from positions close to Seprone. GIs must pay for air safety. Char-
ges stem from Viet deaths. 2nd LT Ken A. Romaine, Whiteman AFB, awarded USAF
Minutemen Missile Badge. Gary J. Tuttle, chaplain services specialist, K.I. Sawyer
AFB, promoted to SGT.
March 16 S. Viet draw back. George F. Wyncott, Jr. commissioned 2nd LT USAF Lackland AFB.
March 17 Draft Call for county to be nine. Four inducted in March were Glenn E. Barrus, Freder-
ick R. Blackman, Alex J. Devine and James E. Davis all sent to Ft. Knox. S. Viet being
driven toward border. Its thumbsdown for all volunteer army plan. Troop reduction by
late 1972 is forecast by Laird.
March 18 S. Viet driven back more. POW mail drops off. CAPT Larry C. Lester chosen Out-
standing Instructor Pilot Columbus AFB.
March 22 Viet nam oil discovery aired. S. Viet forces retreat under heavy attack. At Quang Tri
two platoons U.S. armored cavalrymen refused to move into Laotian battle zone.
March 23 Draft board offices merged. Mrs. Zoar Sutton local executive secretary says office to
move to Marion. Nixon: Laos activity worthwhile. AN Dennis M. Erdahl completed
basic Lackland AFB assigned to Kessler AFB.
March 24 S. Viet bid in Laos ends today.
March 25 3,800 S. Viet deaths in Laos campaign.
March 26 U.S. Planes attack Viet missile site.
March 27 Larry Drudge in basic at Ft. Knox. SP4 Donald R. Straka, Ft. Hood, assigned as supply
clerk 190th Maint. Co, 169th Maint. BN, 13th Support Bri. SP6 Charles A. Phillips
repairman, Batt D, 4th BN 59th Art., Ft. Story, reenlisted for three years. SA Craig L.
Pankop completed basic Great Lakes.
March 29 LT Calley convicted of premeditated murder of South Vietnamese civilians at Mylai.
U.S. artillery base south of DaNang falls, 33 Americans killed.
March 30 VC attack leaves 225 dead. Can My Lai show what war is? Wabash Man promoted to
Lt. Colonel. Major Lawrence Dennis Philpott, son of Mr. and Mrs. L. E. Philpott, 189 N. Wabash, has
been promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel and is presently assigned as Chief, Plands and Resources
Division, U.S. Army Personnel Infor- mation Systems Command. He is stationed in the Pentagon.
Col. Philpott was graduated from Indiana University where he also received his masters degree. His
overseas assignments have included the Berlin Command in Germany, Taiwan and Vietnam.
He is recipient of the Bronze Star, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Joint Service Commendation
Medal and the Army Commendation Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster.
Col. Philpott is a native of Wabash and was graduated from Wabash High School.
He is married and the father of three children. The family resides in Arlington, Va.
March 31 Draft quota for Wabash County set at nine. Commandos raid N. Viet base.
April 1 Review process begins for Calley. Wabash VFW opposes Calley decision.
April 2 Calley case prompts lowered flags, telegrams in Wabash. Vietnamese troops reocccupy
firebase.
April 5 N. Viet troops attack remote outpost. China sends troops to N. Laos. Vietnam pullout
near?
April 6 SP5 Victor N. Glover, medical specialist, Ft. Benning, received his fifth through eleventh
awards of the Air Medal. He earned the awards while taking part in aerial flight in sup-
port of ground operations in Vietnam. While there he served with the 68th Medical Heli-
copter Ambullance detachment. He has also received the Distinguished Flying Cross,
Purple Heart, Combat Medical Badge and Vietnamese Gallantry Cross. CDR David G.
Smith awarded Navy Commendation Medal. SGT Richard D. Lower, aircraft mechan-
ic, reenlisted USAF. AN James L. Bashore graduated helicopter mech training Shepperd
AFB.
April 8 President Nixon rejects offer to set withdrawal date. GIs have varied opinions. 88
Americans killed in combat. U.S. planes attack N. Viet. John Bakehorn, Keesler AFB,
promoted to SSGT. SR James L. Carrothers in boot camp at Great Lakes.
April 9 N. Viet offensive serious. VC maintain pressure. Forces split on withdrawl target date.
April 10 PFC Michael S. Hand awarded Army Commendation Medal for Heroism with Oak Leaf
Cluster for actions in Vietnam. PVT William C. Roberts, Willard F. Stapleton and David
J. Heeter completed basic at Ft. Knox.
April 12 Leonard W. McNear, repairman, BATT B 31 BN 79th Art, Germany, promoted to SP4.
April 13 Vietnamization plan reassessed by U.S. Roger Garrett hospitalized Walter Reed Army
Medical Center. He stepped on a mine losing both legs above the knees, sight in right
eye, index finger left hand and multiple facial wounds. Expanded GI bill outlined. Bruce
Pretorious commissioned 2nd LT upon graduation from OTC Lackland AFB assigned to
Laughlin AFB.
April 14 Vietnam veterans – no crowds cheer when Ex GIs return. Heavy fighting near fire base 6
April 15 N. Viets escalate attacks.
April 19 N. Viet positions hit.
April 20 Vietnam veterans shift protest aims.
April 22 U.S. Bombers attack near Laotian border.
April 23 Veterans to return medals. Draft extended two years. Bombers strike near Hanoi.
Cadet Lawrence H. Howell selected platoon commander at New London. SN Charles
F. Cotter aboard the USS Independence. FN Robert D. Pritchard aboard USS Detroit.
April 26 Planes attack on three fronts. Accurate death count asked. Viet drug traffic studied. AA
Robert J. Learned at NAS Cubi Point. A1C Bruce M. Leffel, Bitburg AB, named Out-
standing Airman of the Quarter. PVT John A. Struble graduated basic at San Diego.
A1C David A. Treckman graduated tech training Lowery AFB. SSGT Charles H. Old-
father, aircraft maint. tech, stationed at Nakhon Phanom Royal Thai AFB. PO3 Craig J.
Thompson, after basic sent to NATTC Memphis, then to USS Hornet for Vietnam depl-
oyment and was in Korea, released from active duty awarded National Defense Service
Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (Korea) and Merit-
orious Unit Commendation Air Medal.
May 3 New shelling attack by N. Viets. Anti war demonstrators clash with D.C. police.
May 4 Vietnamization makes progress. Draft quota drops to five in Wabash County. Those
inducted were Thomas C. Cadwallader, Ralph M. Trosper, Terry L. Miller, Gene A.
Miller and Steven F. Merrick.
May 6 N. Viets troops battered. Protestors turn toward Viet. Embassy.
May 7 68 deaths last week in Vietnam. SSGT Edward A. Conyers graduated TAC NCO Acad-
emy, Luke AFB. PFC Anthony C. Gates, gunner, assigned Co E, 5th BN, 172nd Inf Bre,
Fort Richardson.
May 10 No inquiry planned in Vietnam massacre allegations. New units named for withdrawal
cut of 6,300 men. Eight votes crucial on draft extension.
May 11 Major S. Viet drive halted. AN Timothy M. Prater completed basic Lackland AFB and
assigned Chanute AFB.
May 12 N. Viet guns destroyed.
May 13 N. Viets expand vital gasoline pipeline. Vietnam death toll drops to 34. Counterattacks
repulsed.
May 17 U.S. troops cut victory claims. Troop strength reduced by 4,600. Missiles fired at U.S.
plane. PVT Michael W. Baughman in AIT at Ft Polk.
May 19 General Samuel Kester demoted for My Lai. Elite corps of S. Viets comb area near
border.
May 20 Laotian army abandons last outpost on southern plateau. A1C William Worthington,
security policeman, at Phu Cat AB. Michael D. O'Connell, Larry E. Drudge, Timothy
G. Renshaw, Michael W. Baughman and Howard W. Austin completed basic at Ft.
Knox. AN Michael T. Coburn completed tech training at Shepperd AFB. Navy CDR
Delbert H. Story, USS Guam, participating in NATO exercise Dawn Patrol 71.
May 22 N. Viets unleash new rocket attack near DMZ.
May 24 PVT Earl D. Lyons, Gary L. Faust and Lee Hileman completed basic Ft. Knox. Cong
blamed for jet fuel loss at Cam Rahn Bay.
May 25 Black GIs given blame for rash of explosions. War, draft issues mesh. N. Viets attack
allied troops. Allied general down, but saved in Vietnam.
May 26 Warning on Vietnam laxity. General says GIs must be alert.
May 27 PVT Alex J. Devine at Ft. Polk for leader preparation school. PFC Robert G. Sloop with
HQ and Service BN 3rd Force Service, Okinawa. U.S. letters to Hanoi just dusty. Four
clashes in S. Viet. Nixon wins draft victory in senate.
May 28 Allied aircraft hit N. Viet forces. Ordinary GI not so ordinary in new Army. Robert J.
Hlavaty and Kenneth B. Salyers in basic at Great Lakes.
May 29 Is the trouble with the new army or the old sergeants? S. Viets deny anti drug drive
launched under pressure. Red forces hit eight areas.
June 1 B52s cover S. Vietnam retreat. Saigon regime nabs foe.
June 2 GEN John W. Donaldson charged with Viet murders. U.S. bombers, helicopters attack
enemy in Cambodia. POW issue brings outcry for withdrawal deadline.
June 3 Move toward debate limit on draft extension bill. S. Viet marines campgain against
buildup. PVT John E. Ferrier completed basic Ft. Knox. N. Viets might refuse to accept
disabled POWs.
June 4 Ship with disabled Red POWs turns back for S. Viet. S. Viet admit losses heavy in
Cambodia.
June 5 ADJ2 Edward A. Wenger, spent 7 months on the USS Oriskany in the Gulf of Tonkin,
assigned to the USS Okinawa, primary recovery team for the Apollo pickup.
June 10 S. Viet opens coast for oil wells. Yankee death toll lowest in five years. S. Viet woman
tells of terror. Troop cuts could be forced ahead a year. Kennedy Viet War charge that
war polically motivated disavowed. LT Ken Romine assigned 351st Stategic Missile
Wing, Whiteman AFB. Clinton Wasson Jr. enlisted Army Nurses Corps. MSGTHarold
E. Shaw, 14th Special Operations Wing, Phan Rang AB won Presidential Unit Citation.
June 11 American bombers attack new Communist supply road.
June 14 Viet airforce takes over. PVT Glenn Barrus completed basic at Ft. Knox. SP4 Larry
L. Glass fired expert with .45 cal pistol at Ft. Richardson. Herbert D. Horstman, 7th
Air Cav., Qui Nohon, promoted to SP5. FNAA Timothy J. McBride graduated Boiler-
man A School Great Lakes.
June 15 Red gunners hit allied posts below DMZ. SGT Ronald M. Coburn, aircraft systems
repairman, on duty at MacDill AFB.
June 16 U.S. combat advisors being phased out. S. Viet troops launch big Saigon security oper-
ation. Efforts to make Vietnam War livable.
June 17 S. Viets repulse Reds below DMZ.
June 18 U.S. Air Cav. clashes with enemy near Saigon. S. Viet General Minh claims govern-
ment "afraid of peace."
June 21 Enemy attacks S. Viet despite heavy bombing. More officers will testify for Medina.
Heavy Red mortar barrage hits S. Viet artillery. Col. Hackworth blasts Vietnamization.
Peter Lemon, Medal of Honor winner, says he was high on marijuana. ENS Laurence
H. Howell married Cathy Neil Clupper. PVT Randy Day completed basic at San Diego
PFC Douglas L. Wilcox graduated Avionics Tech A School NATTC Memphis. CAPT
Gary H. Bowman reassigned from Langley AFB to Office of Chief, Air Force Reserve,
Pentagon.
June 23 SP4 Robert L. Webb, 2nd Signal Group, near Long Binh. N. Viets drive away medic
copter with fire.
June 24 N. Viets drive away medic copter with fire.
June 26 S. Viet soldier sees defeat.
June 30 No July draft quota here. Cong destroy ammo depot. PVT Erick D. Stowe completed
basic Ft. Polk. PFC John W. Ross, 3rd Inf. Div., Ger., participated in month long field
exercises "Marne Rock I".
July 1 VC submit new seven point peace plan. Largest single troop cut of Americans in Viet.
July 2 Things moving in effort to end war, speaker says. White House is searching for motive
of VC plan. Stanley P. Wilson enlisted USN sent to Great Lakes. AN Lee P. Rose
completed basic Lackland AFB sent to Homestead AFB.
July 3 Muskie calls Cong plan best offer to end war. Thomas J. Leland, 1st Cav. Div., Ft
Hood, promoted to SGT. AN Phillip L. Troxel completed basic lackland AFB to remain
there for security police training. No obstacles to VC peace plan seen by S. Viet's Ky.
July 6 U.S. position is rapped by Hanoi. Pullout faster than projected. SP4 Leonard W. Mc-
Near, field wireman, BATT B, 3rd BN, 78th Field Arty, participated in 30 day training
test in Germany. Weather curtailssome bombing over Indochina.
July 7 Sen. Mansfield questions capability of 7th Army. U.S., S. Viets will probe Cong's peace
plan. Darrel K. Lambert, aircraft maint. specialist, Hickam AFB, promoted to A1C.
July 8 Allies want to explore VC plan. S. Viets in Cambodia.
July 9 Randall E. Henderson after one year with 101st in Vietnam now stationed in Germany.
ADJ2 David L. Larrowe, Ft. Carson, sent to Boebliger, West Ger. U.S. gives up last
base along DMZ. Calley feels "right in his heart."
July 12 VC peace plan anticipated 3 ½ years ago. Planes attack antiaircraft guns of Reds.
July 13 U.S. giving Cong peace plan cold shoulder. Daniel Huston, Ft. Lewis, married Cathy
A. Eckright.
July 14 VP Ky starts campaign to unseat Thieu. Amnesty for Navy addicts.
July 15 POW release is easy, VC says. Ballet questioned by Viet politician.
July 19 S. Viet regime proposes cease fire, new elections. Re-enlist bonuses wanted.
July 20 U.S. B52s bomb area along DMZ. TSGT Michael R. Hayes, weather forecaster, inside
Cheyenne Mountain, aids Apolla 15 team. AN Bennie E. Sizemore, helicopter mech.,
graduated tech training Shepperd AFB assigned Davis-Monthan AFB.
July 21 Medina case will not be rerun of Calley trial, Lawyer says. Vietnamese in Cambodia
with American air power. MSGT Roland D. Munson, weather observer, Ft. Benning,
received a gold PRIDE award
July 22 Yank-Viet children abandoned. U.S. Copter filled with Vietnamese crashes. Barry W.
Curless returned home after having been in Vietnam for two years. PO3 Dale W.
Brindel assigned to USS Independence.
July 23 SSGT Steven E. Whittlesey, Wright-Patterson AFB decorated with first Oak Leaf
Cluster to USAF Commendation Medal for service at U-Tapeo AB. Medina plans to
quit Army despite outcome of his trial. VC attack headquarters of new S. Viet drive.
July 24 Most polled support Nixon Viet pullout.
July 26 Reds forsaw bomb raids. New S. Viet campaign after no Cambodia result. A1C Dar-
rell L. Kessler graduated tech training at Chanute AFB assigned to MacDill AFB. PVT
Leonard L. Hileman completed AIT at Ft. Polk.
July 27 VC destroys helicopters. PVT Gene A. Miller completed basic Ft. Knox. PVT Patrick
A. Thompson completed basic San Diego. Rodney D. Mendenhall, supply clerk, Ft.
Carson, promoted to SP4. 1st LT Dennis M. Dick assigned to MCAS Iwakune.
July 28 S. Viet in Cambodian drive. Draft call rate will be cut by about 16%. PVT Fredrick R.
Blackburn stationed in Vietnam. SA Dennis L.Purdy completed basic Orlando. SA
Robert J. Hlavaty and HCA Kenneth B. Saylers completed basic Great Lakes. MSGT
Rex M. Powell, Ismir, Turkey, named Outstanding NCO of the Year. PVT Gary L.
Dawson at Ft. Knox.
July 29 Secret war in Laos becoming harder to hide. Road through Cambodian Village
super fortress. S. Viets run into Communists.
July 31 PFC Tommy D. Stumbo completed basic at Ft. Knox and combat engineering at Ft.
Leonard Wood, assigned Scofield Barracks.
August 1st Bri., 5th Inf Div., departed Quang Tri.
August 4 Ky Petition lack names. S. Viet soldiers in War Zone D. More CIA in Laos reports.
Randy K. Day, Camp Pendleton, promoted to PFC. PO3 Steven A. Eckert graduated
ET A School at Great Lakes. PO3 Gregory A. Tyner graduated basic MM School at
Great Lakes.
August 5 Trial of My Lai Col. Ready as plea not guilty. Both sides deny flight for POWs. Amer-
ican troops in Vietnam on defense now. PVT Larry E. Drudge, 183rd Maint. Co. Ft.
Carson, completed school in chemical engineer repair Ft. McClellan. Four Hoosiers
among POWs listed by Hanoi.
August 9 U.S. planes attack positions inside N. Viet borders. Military drug program for GIs on
leave. PVT David H. Glover completed basic at Ft. Knox. Cadet Ted R. Heckman
participated in USAF ROTC field training experience Grissom AFB.
August 10 GI desertion rate at high mark. Thieu asks death penalty for dealers in narcotics. PVT
Patrick A. Thompson at Camp Pendleton. Cadet Leonard O. Gardenour USAF ROTC in
field training experience Pease AFB.
August 11 Enemy ambushes S. Viet Rangers. Viet candidate jailed for protest.
August 12 John N. Strasser graduated basic Lackland AFB at tech school Lowery AFB. SP4 Jack
T. Sarll graduated Nike Hercules Electronics Maint. Course El Paso, after leave to go to
Europe. Lull in Viet fight broken. Some Black GIs in Asia frustrated by race woes.
August 13 Red shells bases in South. Viet drug begins in Laos. GI death lowest since May 1965.
Ex-POW of N. Vientam innocent in court martial. MSGT Harold E. Shaw after 18
months in Vietnam sent to Seymour Johnson AFB. SSGT Timothy G. Wagner, muni-
tions specialist, assigned Eglin AFB. He previously served Bien Ho, AB.
August 16 AN Philip Troxel completed basic at Lackland AFB and assigned Vandenberg AFB.
August 17 Reds sink American ship, shell positions on DMZ. Draftees may go home early. SP4
Rusing Pudis completed construction surveyors NCO course, Ft. Belvoir. PVT Tim-
othy G. Renshaw completed military journalist course Ft. Benjamin Harrison.
August 18 Navy enlistments do not outstrip other services. My Lai defendants facing punishment.
B52s raid after enemy attacks.
August 19 Red's DMZ offensive goes into week No. 2. Yanks in Vietnam see war's end.
August 20 S. Viets battle Communists along the DMZ. PO1 Kenneth Olinger, USS John R.
Craig, awarded navy Achievement Medal. SGT Michael Meade at HQ, 9th Marine
Corps District, Kansas City.
August 23 Ky refuses to run throwing S. Viet into crisis. My Lai aftermath will be probed in
court martial. Raids on draft offices broken up by FBI. B52s fly 20 more missions
near DMZ.
August 24 U.S. planes hit battery in the north. Crisis puts GIs on alert. ENS Thomas E. Reed
commissioned upon graduation from OCS at Newport.
August 25 Enemy forces step up attack in S. Vietnam.
August 26 Reds launch attacks on South. Candidate beaten by Viet police. More job training
ordered for GIs.
August 27 Enemy attacks two U.S. patrols; five Yanks die. ENS Laurence H. Howell on duty
aboard CG Cutter Mendota. PO3 Steven J. Mattern aboard USS Canistes in the Med.
August 31 Vietnam incumbents lose. Red attacks in Vietnam fall sharply. SSGT Harry O. Pense
at Ching Chuan Kang AB. AN Richard A. Burton graduated tech school at Chanute
AFB. Larry W. Ross, 97th Eng BN promoted to PFC at Ft. Riley. Paul D. Daniel and
Robert A. Burcroff completed basic at Ft. Campbell.
September 1 S. Viets vote as scheduled.
September 2 Thieu to quit if vote small. N. Viet battle worst flooding in years. 19 Americans died
in Vietnam during week. PVT Thomas J. Forbes finished basic Camp Pendleton now
on leave.
September 3 More Viet groups urge canceling vote. No major ground action in Vietnam. PVT Ted
E. McBride graduated basic at San Diego.
September 4 Daniel V. Sample enlisted in the Navy. PO3 Robert D. Pritchard, USS Detroit, in the
Med. PO2 John R. Schultz, USS Enterprise, took part in the first night operations em-
ploying refueling and resupply while underway. Terry L. Tyner, air traffic controller,
Grissom AFB, promoted to MSGT. David J. Snyder, Ft. Richardson, promoted to SP4.
September 7 Yanks go forward to help offensive. SGT Steven W. Weimer, mechanic 78th Eng Co.
San Antonio reenlisted. He has served one year in Germany and one year in Vietnam.
September 8 GIs conducting active defense. Yanks support Viet drive. PFC Steven F. Merrick co-
mpleted admin and personnel management course Ft. Polk.
September 9 SGTlC Roger D. Garrett cited as hero. Awarded Silver Star at Walter Reed Army
Medical Center for actions on March 2 in saving lives of 12 Vietnamese soldiers while
wounded. He will remain in the hospital another 1 ½ years. Thieu worries about cut in
aid from U.S. Fresh Viet troops join drive.
September 10 Yanks part of offensive drive near Laos and DMZ.
September 14 McGovern safe in Saigon. Nixon withdrawal plans mean total pullout now. U.S.
supports Laos Guerrillas. Vietnamese firebomb U.S. units.
September 15 S. Viet troops uncover major supply base. SA Dennis L. Purdy assigned as ceremonial
guard and barber at Washington, D.C. Government can dip into draft pool of 500,000.
September 21 Americans make 200 combat strikes.
September 22 Birch Bayh votes against draft bill. Deferred low number men to go first. Massive
strikes in Vietnam. LCPL Vincen Peters Jr. deployed to the Western Pacific. SP4
Mark D. Eger, rifleman Co D, 4th BN 3rd Inf, Chu Lai, received the Air Medal. SP4
Larry Proffitt returned to Germany after 30 day leave.
September 23 CAPT. Medina acquitted. Massive air strikes were aimed at fuel dumps. Preoccup-
ation with election causes losses in Vietnam.
September 26 Bombers hit N. Vietnam.
September 28 N. Viet troops launch many assaults. Vietnamese students clash with police.
September 29 Nixon pays surprise visit to POW wives. Counter attack is launched. Shoot to kill is
ordered in Saigon.
September 30 Draft call every three months favored. AMN Leo P. Rose met COL James A. McDivitt
commander pilot for Gemini IV. Kissinger says trip could speed war's end. Helicop-
ters lift reinforcements-2,000 S. Viet troops involved in effort. 29 Americans killed.
October 1 Tran Hung Dao siege lifted. CWO Harley G. Winterrowd, officer in charge of the im-
proved self propelled Hawk firing battery, White Sands Missile Range, will be assigned
to Korea. SN Charles F. Cotter and PO3 Dale W. Brindel, USS Independence, PO3
Daniel L. Paul, USS William V. Pratt participated in NATO Strike Fleet Exercise Roy-
al Knight. Lee M. Shellhamer and Robert C. Shellhamer completed basic at Ft. Knox.
PVT David H. Grover finished AIT. SP4 Leonard W. McNear, 79th Fld Arty, 3rd BN,
7th Army, Grafenwohr, Germany, undergoing 30 day field training exercises.
October 3 Thieu re-elected president of S. Vietnam.
October 5 Medina resigns from Army.
October 6 Ky charges rigging in Viet election. U.S. bombers launch raids against defenses.
October 7 Peace talks a "Force". Bombers launch heavy strikes in Vietnam.
October 8 VC sets free soldier held two years. U.S. air support turns tide of battle.
October 11 N. Viet officer set free.
October 12 PFC Patrick A. Thompson completed advanced combat training Camp Pendleton now
at Aviation Electronics Mate School, NAS Jacksonville.
October 13 Moratorium Day march planned. Two helicopters lost. PVT Gary L. Dawson comple-
ted basic at Ft. Knox. LTCOL Van C. Doubleday inspector general Lindsey AS.
LCPL Vincen Peters Jr. at Camp Hansen, Okinawa. Donald L. Niccum and Randall E.
Weimann enlisted in the Navy sent to San Diego. PFC Timothy G. Renshaw with 101st
Airborne in Vietnam. Cadet Frederick A. Fedewa at USAF Academy.
October 14 S. Viet again seek cease fire. COL. John Anderson received Legion of Merit at Gris-
som AFB. Recognized for his service as deputy asst chief of staff Intelligence Div. for
Supreme Headquarters of the Allied Powers in Europe.
October 16 Less army for Thieu. U.S. plane fires at North post. SP4 William C. Helm completed
basic at Ft. Lewis assigned to Signal Corps Ft. Richaardson.
October 18 N. Viets move tanks into area north of DMZ. Viet ground fight flares along S. Viet-
Cambodian border.
October 19 S. Viet mission adds feathers to Connally cap. U.S. planes accidentially bombs S. Viet
soldiers; 18 die. MSGT Claude Chamberlain Jr.,aircraft electrical repair tech, assigned
to Tam Son Nhut AB. PVT Ned L. Bowman completed basic at Ft. Polk.
October 22 Fire base pullout by American GIs. PVT Alva A. Waggoner completed AIT at Ft.
Polk. PO1 William L. Fleck aboard USS Dixon.
October 26 Vietnam duty may be cut Air Force tells personnel.
October 27 Navy nearly completes Viet pullout. 300 arrested in War march.
October 28 PO1 John R. Schultz, USS Enterprise, crossed the Equator and became a "shellback."
Roland D. Munson, Ft. Benning, promoted to TSGT. Vietnam GIs put on alert.
November 1 Presient Thieu hears miseries. 13 Army units phased out. Less than 200,000 GIs in
Vietnam.
November 4 American helicopters wipe out N. Viet truck depot. Viet GI deaths down to two. U.S.
letters from POWs cut. LT COL Van C. Doubleday received Meritorious Service
Medal at Lindsay AFB. MM3 Stephen W. Estep, USS Decatur, arrived at Yankee
Station for third tour of duty in Vietnam. Craig L. Pankop completed ASROC scho-
oling, Great Lakes, to serve aboard the USS Dixie.
November 8 Even less GIs in Vietnam – 191,000.
November 10 PVT Mark L. Guthrie completed AIT at Ft. Polk. CWO Gene A. Miller completed
chemical staff specialist course Ft. McClellan. SA Timothy M. Gorman completed
basic Great Lakes. PO1 Robert G. Oswalt awarded Navy Achievement Medal at
Marine Corps Training Center, Columbia.
November 11 SSGT Lawrence E. Coon awarded the Bronze Star for meritorious service in conne-
ction with military operations against hostile forces in Vietnam from December 1970 to
August 1971. He had previously received Good Conduct Medal, National Defense
Medal, Korea Occupation Medal, Vietnam Service Medal and Vietnam Campaign
Medal.
November 12 U.S. helicopters blast S. Viets. Soldier's antiwar petition is mailed to Secretary of the
Navy. Marine boot camp remains tough; Corps plans to stay with tradition. PO2 Rob-
ert A. Magner, Antarctic Development Sqd Six, at the South Pole as a member of the
17th Annual Operation Deep Freeze.
November 15 Allied helicopters fall-two collide, one crashes, one blown up. Thieu asks reforms for
Viet economy.
November 16 Get out of Vietnam, China says. GEN. Abrams told to plan for 60,000 to 95,000 GIs.
November 17 Drop in level of GI combat toll in war. S. Viet jets to start regular strikes on trail. PFC
Michael W. Baughman, rifleman, 101st Airborne, in Vietnam. PVT Benjamin C. Smith
completed wheel vehicle mechanic course at Ft. Ord. SSGT Darryl G. Abell on leave
after one year in Vietnam, will be sent to Bergstrom AFB.
November 18 American B52s make 77th Viet strike of the year.
November 19 CAPT Gary H. Bowman, Pentagon, decorated with Meritorious Service Medal.
November 22 AN Roger D. Forbes completed basic at Lackland AFB sent to Chanute AFB. PVT
Gary L. Dawson completed cooking course Ft. Knox. PVT Darrell L. Young com-
pleted basic Ft. Knox. PO3 Dale W. Brindel on USS Independence. FN Kenneth L.
Ballard, USS Harwood, on way to Turkey. LCPL Robert G. Sloop, 3rd Force Service
Rgt., named Marine of the Month on Okinawa.
November 23 Empty N. Viet base camp is destroyed.
November 24 Randell E. Henderson, Ger., promoted to E5; received Army Commendation Medal for
service in Vietnam. PVT Rodney D. Stouffer completed basic at Parris Island.
November 26 S. Viet troops on offensive Cambodian drive picks up steam. Most Viet War victims
buried in private plots. PVT Glenn R. Bollinger Jr. completed basic Ft. Campbell. SP4
Roger A. Cook, 3rd BN, Ft. Sill, appointed Soldier of the Month. HCA Kenneth B.
Salyers graduated Hospital Corpsman school San Diego. PFC Thomas J. Forbes com-
pleted specialized course Camp Pendleton. SGT Roger Blair and wife adopt Vietnam-
ese baby.
November 29 War copter with 33 aboard lost. AN John N. Strasser graduated weapons mech. course
Lowry AFB assigned to Holloman AFB.
November 30 New Viet Cambodia campaign.
December 1 N. Viets renew Cambodia attacks.
December 2 Planes can raid north.
December 4 U.S. jets attack air defense radar site in N. Viet. PVT Jonathan L. King completed
basic San Diego. PFC Tim Kersay stationed at Ft. Bragg. PVT Ronald E. Bonewitz
completed field artillery operations and intelligence assistant course Ft. Sill.
December 8 U.S. air war role in Vietnam falls as Yanks fly 10 per cent. U.S. jets dodge surface to
air missiles as Viet War flare along border area.
December 9 Ronda A. Davis, Ft. Benning, married Barry E. Shambaugh. PFC James E. Davis, 1st
Radio Research Co., completed helicopter repair course at Ft. Eustis, now in Vietnam
at Cam Rahn Bay. U.S. helicopters, Viets in Cambodia.
December 10 Helicopters take beating. Viets developing tourism. PVT Ned L. Bowman completed
AIT at Ft. Polk.
December 13 S. Viets strike deep in Cambodia. Major Donald G. Wolpert Canadian Forces College,
presented Meritorious Service Medal for service as Combat Tactics Officer, 436th
Military Airlift Wing, Dover AFB.
December 15 U.S. jets attack north.
December 17 Two S. Viet offensives trigger fighting in wqar. N. Viet troops supply efforts less
than 1971. LCPL John T. Aunkst stationed in Hawaii. SSGT Robert A. Kramer, jet
engine mech, at Bentwater RAF station.
December 20 Cease fire for Vietnam announced. As many as 226,000 kids orphaned by Vietnam
War. SA Randell E. Weimann and SA Donald L. Niccum graduated basic at San
Diego. COL. Wins acquittal of My Lai charges.
December 21 William Brainard at Lackland AFB in training for police security. Enemy recaptures
Laos Plain of Jars.
December 22 Hanoi jets harass Yanks. South to release POWs. POW letters are released. 18
added to Viet POW list. U.S. air attacks in Northdraw closer to capital city. Com-
edian Bob Hope believed to be trying for POW visit.
December 27 American fighters pount N. Viet. Viet veterans barricade themselves in drug center.
Viet air war escalates. Antiwar demonstration in Statue of Liberty.
December 28 SSGT Donald E. Spence, Webb AFB, named Outstanding Airman of the Quarter.
PVT Janet L. Hooks on leave from Ft. McClelland. Third day of jet raids. Both sides
cancel Paris Peace Talks.
December 29 Draft for National Guard considered by Pentagon. More than 80 arrested in Antiwar
demonstration. Heavy raids over North continue. No let up seen as 500 missions
flown.
December 30 U.S. air raids on North end. Yankee death toll just one. Airmen continue to fly same
way despite POWs.
December American troop strength in Vietnam down to 140,000 men.
1972 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January 3 Faster withdrawal hinted by Nixon. Enemy shells air base where U.S. jets roost. Jet,
copters shot down in Vietnam War. AN Anthony M. Weaver completed basic Lack-
land AFB. PFC Mark L. Guthrie completed basic Ft. Knox sent to 1st Inf Div in Ger.
PO3 Robert C. Pritchard, USS Detroit, returned from an operational support cruise in
the Med. James Adams home on leave after 18 month tour in Japan, afterwards will
report to Bolling AFB.
January 5 Peace in Vietnam likely to remain elusive during 1972. PFC Donald R. Rouch com-
pleted motor vehicle operators course, Camp Pendleton. SSGT Darryl G. Abell, radio
tech., at Bergstrom AFB. Air war escalation bringing some doubts. Hanoi-end Viet-
namization. U.S. jets make new raids over N. Viet. Removing guns from all Med-
Evac helicopters.
January 6 Only two Yanks die during week. Anti war priest and seven others to go on trial Mon-
Monday. U.S. jets hit North as B52s bomb southern DMZ.
January 8 SP5 James L. Smith completed helicopter repair course Ft. Bragg.
January 10 MAJOR Charles R. Wilhelm completed first component course held at U.S. Army Co-
mmand and General Staff College, Ft. Leavenworth.
January 12 PFC Daniel L. Wilcox, medic, completed basic and AIT Ft. Sam Houston. He will
have airborne training at Ft. Benning. PVT Darrell L. Young completed basic field
artillery cannoner course Ft. Sill. A1C Charles F. Bond left for Japan. Communist
forces attack another U.S. Air Base.
January 13 Reds hit more Viet outposts. Smart bombs accurate-pilots use weapon in Vietnam.
Enlistments fall below goal during second half of 1971.
January 14 Stage set for total U.S. withdrawal. N. Viet steps up air challenge.
January 17 U.S. jets, Red defenses fire upon one another.
January 18 CAPT Walter L. Windsor Jr. graduated Air University's Sqd Officer School, Maxwell
AFB, assigned chief of plans and training div., 3800th Air Base Wing. PO3 James J.
Sharp aboard USS Leonard F. Mason. PFC Thomas J. Forbes, Okinawa, on duty with
3rd Marine Div.
January 19 USS Enterprise back to Vietnam AO2 John R. Schultz onboard.
January 20 Chief U.S. delegate to Paris consults in U.S. in secret. S. Viets in new drive. Red jets
harass bombers.
January 21 Jet No. 13 and 14 lost over Vietnam. A1C Dennis M. Erdahl on duty in Taiwan.
SP5 Herbert D. Horstman completed 2nd Bri.Leadership Academy, Ft. Riley.
January 24 U.S. raids DMZ defenses two batteries knocked out, one damaged.
January 25 Nixon reveals that Kissinger had been negotiating secretly with the N. Vietnamese.
President unveils viet peace plan.
January 27 A1C Timothy M. Prater graduated autopilot repairman course, Chaunte AFB. Robert
L. Leininger, attending language course at Monterrey, promoted to A1C.
January 28 U.S., Red plans similar. 20th air strike of year in North-2 planes lost to mechanical
failure. LT Charles M. Boswell, USS Hammerhead, in Exercise Snowy Beach.
January 31 B52s pound N. Viet buildup's of troops, supplies.
January 326th Combat Eng. Part of 101st Airborne Div ordered to stand down and return to
CONUS.
February 1 U.S., Hanoi peace plans compared. How the secret talks broke off. Jets in heaviest
attack on North in 1972.
February 2 Second day of heavy Vietnam attacks.
February 4 Lon A. Vandegrift promoted to Optical Maintenance Man Third Class Great Lakes.
Ray Walk, Jr. and Lon E. Bradford enlisted in the Navy. Muskie renews Viet attack.
February 8 Reds ambush truck convoy then gunships drive off enemy. Rift is reported between
Thieu and Washington. PVT Dennis N.J. Bressler completed basic Ft. Polk. PVT
Michael J. Mendenhall and PVT William E. Williamson completed basic Ft. Camp-
bell. SP4 Michael W. Baughman, rifleman Co. A, 1st BN, 501st Inf, 101st Airborne,
awarded Combat Infantryman badge near Phu Bai.
February 9 U.S.S. Constellation recalled to Tonkin Gulf.
February 10 U.S. jets warn Hanoi. Debate on Viet plan ok but watch it-Nixon.
February 11 No more Viet concessions.
February 14 Cadet Frederick A. Fedewa named to commandant's list at USAF Academy.
February 16 PO2 Randy J. Childers received Good Conduct Medal at NAS Pensacola. Somehow
90,000 enemy disappear from S. Vietnam.
February 17 U.S. planes end two days of heavy raids in North. PVT Charles T. Sagun awarded
American Spirit Honor Medal at end of basic at Ft. Campbell.
February 18 U.S. command confirms loss of seven U.S. jets. SA Gerald L. Tucker graduated basic
Great Lakes.
February 21 Reds in several attacks.
February 22 U.S. pilots down second MIG fighter in five weeks.
February 24 All volunteer Army in trouble.
February 25 American GIs in biggest Vietnam battle in months. A1C Robert L. Leininger com-
pleted Defense Language Institute at the Presidio of Monterrey. PVT Michael D.
Houser and PVT Leslie A. Mittank completed basic Ft. Campbell. LCPL Roger E.
Guthrie promoted at Marine Corps Finance Center, Kansas City.
February 26 S. Viets drive in Cambodia again. Air Force may fly from ships if Laird gets away.
Air buildup is insurance. American Nobel prize winner sees, talks with U.S. POWs.
AN Gary L. Stagnolia completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Shepperd AFB.
February 29 S. Viets and bombers hit Communists in North. Barney Bashore in training Lackland
AFB.
March 2 Another Hanoi MIG is claimed. Pentagon goal to end draft. Nixon and Chou En-Lai
did talk aboutVietnam, POWs.
March 3 S. Viets in new drive counter to N. Viet buildup. COL. G.M. Anderson, special asst
305th Air Refueling Wing Commander, Grissom AFB, retired after 30 years military
service. He was decorated with the Air Force Commendation Medal, first Oak Leaf
Cluster and Certificate of Appreciation. A command pilot he had more than 4,000
hours conventional and jet flying time.
March 6 Planes hit guns in North. B52 raids in Laos stepped up. New three year enlistment
program announced today. LCPL Randy K. Day, MCAS New River, promoted to
present rank.
March 7 Air raids on North stepped up. SGT Richard D. Lower, crew chief KC 135 tanker,
Kadena AFB, refueled President Nixon's plane over Guam on return from China.
March 8 No county draft call has been announced.
March 9 8th day of raids in North. Air pressure kept on Reds.
March 10 New drive into Cambodia. PO John R. Schultz aboard USS Enterprise. SGT June
K. Johnson joined 122nd Tactical Fighter Group, Ft. Wayne.
March 13 S. Viets touch Reds in Cambodia. MSGT Walter P. Reason joined the personnel man-
agement inspection command.
March 14 More S. Viets into Cambodia.
March 16 Reds step up attack on coast. Cambodian ammo dump blows up.
March 17 Vietnam to be topic for Manchester College program. U.S. helicopter crashes and
sinks with all hands. Wabash County men with 1972 draft lottery numbers through 15
will be called up from mid April to May 31. Those with 1971 lottery numbers 1-15
will also be called up.
March 22 Few attend Viet seminar at Manchester College.
March 21 Van C. Doubleday, inspector general with HQ European Communications Area, Lind-
sey AFB promoted to COL. PVT Terry L. Murphy completed basic Ft. Jackson.
PFC Michael D. McKillip completed tracked vehicle mech. course, Ft. Knox. PFC
Dan Wilcox at Ft. Bragg.
March 23 Reds attack town in Delta.
March 24 Ray Walk completed basic Great Lakes sent to Newport. SN Joe L. Pense, USS Blue
Ridge, in western Pacific. PO3 Dale W. Brindel, USS Independence, returned to
Norfolk from the Med. SGT1C John L. Glass assigned Army Arctic Test Center, Ft.
Greeley.
March 27 U.S. troop strength is under 100,000 in Vietnam. Berrigan anti war trial comes near
completion. AN Gary L. Holley completed basic Lackland AFB assigned Kessler
AFB. SSGT Joe H. Towne finished recruit schooling Lackland AFB. CPO Thomas
L. Breitkopf, NAS Cecil Field, reenlisted..
March 30 N. Vietnamese launches coordinated assault across the demilitarized zone. PVT Ken-
neth A. Schieber completed basic at Ft. Campbell. LT Bruce L. Pretorius awarded
silver wings Laughlin AFB assigned to Luke AFB.
March 31 Heaviest fighting in years rages in Vietnam highlands. Donald M. Waymire, specialist
in Naval ordnance and gunnery, promoted to Commander. Thomas E. Tullis comple-
ted basic Great Lakes.
April Naval Air Facility and Naval Communications Station, Cam Rahn Bay turned over to
Vietnamese navy.
April 3 U.S. readies air armada – counter to N. Viet offensive. S. Viet army, test yet to come.
PVT Robert E. Davidson completed basic at Ft. Campbell.
April 4 VC asks return to Paris. Allies in Vietnam launch attack against inviaders. U.S. GIs
ruled out for now.
April 5 N. Viet broadens offensive into South. Nixon sends more B52s to Vietnam. William
Grant, physical conditioning specialist, Nellis AFB, promoted to A1C.
April 6 10 Americans die in Vietnam. Red offensive could last a month. U.S. planes attack
North-retaliation for Red offensive.
April 7 Attack by N. Viet troops open fourth front. U.S. jet sqd sent to Asia, more pondered.
VC say object of attack is new regime in Saigon.
April 10 U.S. seems set for Viet buildup. B52s hit N. Viet targets. PVT Billy L. Kreider com-
pleted basic at Ft. Campbell.
April 11 N. Viets battered and "on the run."
April 12 Reds halt S. Viet relief force. Experts see shift to Saigon Army. Soviet arms ship-
ments to Hanoi has decreased.
April 13 U.S. has sent more than 160 warplanes to Asia in 10 days. President makes proposal
to resume peace talks. POW raiding is threatened. N. Viet troops storming provin-
cial capital of AnLoc. SGT Donald E. Wright, USS Coraldia, off Vietnam.
April 14 CDR William S. Meyers, exec officer USS Ticonderoga, on team to recover Apollo
16. S. Viets retake most of An Loc. Highway 13 becomes Thunder Road. Enemy
expected popular uprising during invasion.
April 15 Nixon authorizes bombing of area near Hanoi and Haiphong.
April 17 2 MIGs downed in raid by U.S. planes near Hanoi. Viet police defenses set. Decline
in number of GI drug users. Democrat candidates line up against Viet bombing.
April 18 Nixon suspends attack on North. N. Viet on war footing. Muskie blasts president
over renewed bombing of the North. PO John Schultz, USS Enterprise, home on
leave for Christmas in April. Reds score in Birh Dinh.
April 20 President nearing major decision on Vietnam War. Bombing of N. Viet Triggers
campus protest. Heavy fighting erupts at An Loc. S. Viet casualties highes since Tet
drive.
April 21 U.S. destroyer says Red boat sunk, six jets lost. Commandos grab airmen from Reds.
April 24 Manchester College campus strike over escalation in Vietnam fizzles. N. Viet tanks
crush defenses in the highlands. More Viet territory will be lost.
April 26 Reds threaten to cut South in half. Viet War secrets blocked. Government clamps
down on Viet War news. MAJOR Richard M. Rupley recognized as Outstanding
Arnold Air Security Sqd Advisor at Stevens Institute of Technology.
April 27 End to Viet invasion is Paris topic. Nixon to pull out troops continue bombing the
North. Kissinger sees some Viet losses. AN Tommy G. Guthrie completed basic
Lackland AFB assigned Kessler AFB. Viet invasions architect seems certain of
victory. N. Viet. Renew attack in South. American jets fly more strikes inside
North.
April 28 Reds at Provice capital. Fall of Saigon may not hut Asia. Donald J. Green comple-
ted basic Ft. Knox.
April 29 Ex-Resident dies in Viet accident. COL. Robert L. Sowers, 49, a native of Wabash,
was killed Thursday with a South Vietnamese general when their helicopter crashed in the Mekong Delta.
COL. Sowers was Chief Air Force Advisor in the Mekong Delta.
The former resident and Brig. Gen. Nguyen Hyt Anh, commander of the 4th Air Division in the delta,
died when their South Vietnamese UH-1 helicopter crashed 80 miles south of Saigon. Spokesmen said no
enemy action was involved, that cable being used to lift a light observation plane snapped and the heli-
copter went out of control.
A fighter pilot in World War II and Korea, Sowers won the Distinguished Flying Cross with two Oak
Leaf Clusters, the Air Medal with 20 Oak Leaf Clusters and the Air Force Commendation medal. He flew
62 combat missions in Korea.
The Hoosier hero was a commander of U.S. Air Forces in Iceland prior to the assi- gnment in South
Vietnam.
Survivors include the widow and two children, who live in Tucson, Arizona.
May 1 N. Vietnamese capture Quangtri and cut national highway 1. PVT Michael R. Dunn
completed basic Ft. Riley.
May 2 Viet War now looks like old rerun. S. Viets flee Quang Tri capital. N. Viet troops
begin new attacks. PVT Ricky L. Williams, truck driver, Co B, 1st BN, 13th Armor, 1st
Cav Div., participated in Exercise Gallant Hand, Ft. Hood.
May 3 Green Berets now fighting for life. Reds moving in on Hue. Hue seen as enemy goal.
May 4 U.S., Viet demand snubbed. Senators talk of Viet cutoff. Major fighting tapers off as
as Red drive in week six.
May 5 Heavy Viet fighting for control of highway 14. Hanoi understands its enemy best.
U.S. with few Vietnam options. 200 antiwar protesters arrest across country.
May 8 Nixon announces mining of Haiphong harbor and intensification of American
bombing of North Vietnam. Eerie calm around Saigon. U.S. Bombs Hanoi again.
Senators to probe origin of war. 13 N. Viet POWs die in rebellion on island.
May 9 Mining of N. Viet harbors, bombing begins. President confronts Russians with plan
to choke off Hanoi.
May 10 Senate back to Viet funds. Anti war protests are springing up. Russian press using
care in Viet story, Hundreds of planes bomb Hanoi, Haiphong area. Sherry Cole
marries Navy flight surgeon Charles F. Williams.
May 11 Two U.S. fliers down three MIGs in one day, become aces. Protestors clash with
policemen. U.S. mines sophisticated. Mining of ports could trim supplies of North.
Hanoi paper calls mining criminal. S. Viets Thieu declares martial law. Great Viet
river of sorrow flowing. LCPL Rocky L. Foust, Parris Island, promoted to CPL. SGT
Ralph M. Trosper completed basic Ft. Knox, sent to Ft. Polk now assigned to 3rd
Armored Div., Ger.
May 12 Red troops smash into An Loc again. Growing Viet protest close UN. Much of Hanoi
evacuated, Canadian says. Communist allies could supply N. Viets by rail and air.
CPL Robert J. Harris at NAS Quonset Point. John F. Fearnow II enlisted in Support
Co., 1st BN, 293rd Ind. National Guard.
May 15 Cam Rahn AB turned over to S. Vietnam government when 483rd Tactical Airlift Wing
deactivated. PVT John Reed graduated basic Ft. Knox, sent Ft. Sam Houston.
May 17 End the War move hits senate snag. N. Viet shells kill seven Americans.
May 18 Relief column advances. N. Viet organizing 1973 plans? PFC Rodney D. Stouffer
graduated engineering equipment mech course at Camp Lejeune. SGT1C Lonnie
Bishop, drill instructor Ft. Knox, participated in First U.S. Army Commanders rifle and
pistol championship matches Ft. Geroge C. Meade. SSGT Jimmy E. Smithee, duty
NCO, assigned to 101st Airborne, Ft. Campbell. MSGT Robert F. Van Camp, electro-
nics computer system tech, reenlisted Malmsrom AFB.
May 22 400 killed in bombardment. Hanoi reassessing its position.
May 23 Hanoi's leadership divided?
May 24 S. Viet offensive launched. 600 tanks with love from Russia.
May 25 U.S. exit expected by Oct. l. Eight Americans killed in action.
May 27 Serviceman Honored. Eighteen residents or former residents of Wabash County have
died in Vietnam fighting in the past six years.
Fourth District Congressman Elwood Hillis will pay special tribute to these and other veterans killed in
Vietnam action at Memorial Day services in Gas City Sunday.
HillIis, as a member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, is supporting a proposal to establish a
Tomb of the Unknown Vietnam War Soldier to underscore the sacrifices the newest veterans have made.
In remarks prepared for his Sunday speech Hillis said the Vietnam soldier may deserve the title "Hero"
even more than soldiers who have fallen in other wars because he answered the call of his country when it
was unpopular to do so.
Wabash County men who have died in Vietnam are:
Everett Gene Miller, Jan. 29, 1966; Tom Roger Miller, March 5, 1966; Max L. Bru- baker, Aug. 25,
1966; Loren Lee Morford, April 6, 1967; William Y. Brindle, July 29, 1967; Daniel Fulwider, Jan. 8,
1968; Victor O. McDowell Jr., May 7, 1968; Gary Ladd Biehl, May 3, 1967; Russell Udell West, May 23,
1968; Dennis Fairchild, Jan. 15, 1969; Victor Lynn Poor, Feb. 25, 1969; Max A. Johnson, Mar. 20, 1969;
Robert S. Raines, Dec. 2, 1969; Gregory Fleck, May 9, 1969; Randall Lee Pell, April 17; 1970; Frederick
Leroy Nutter, Oct. 18, 1970; Terry Maxwell Usher, Feb. 23, 1971; and Robert L. Sowers, April 29, 1972.
May 30 American jets in raid on N. Viet rail yards.
May 31 U.S. jets try to isolate Vinh. S. Viet chief to front lines. War holds up Army appoint-
ment.
June 1 Soviet pacts in Viet blood, Kennedy says. S. Viets in new sweep northwest of Hue.
New bombs getting job done better. PVT Dennis J. Miller graduated basic San Diego.
Gary H. Bowman, management analysis officer, Pentagon, promoted to Major. CPO
Robert H. Tyner, USS John F. Kennedy, took part in NATO Exercise "Dawn Patrol."
Robert F. Van Camp, electronics computer systems repair tech, with 84th Air Div., Mal-
mstrong AFB. SP4 Leonard L. Hileman, 82nd Airborne, participated in Exercise Exotic
Dancer 5 at Camp Lejeunne. LCPL Thomas Forbes named Driver of the Quarter, 1st
Amp Tractor BN, 3rd Marine Div., Okinawa. AN Gary L. Holley graduated personnel
specialist course, Kessler AFB assigned Spangdahlem AB, W. Ger. David Drake dis-
charged at Ft. Dix. Had been serving in Germany.
June 2 Jets hit more targets in North. U.S. planes 8 to 1 over Reds. Cash bonus boosts
recruitment.
June 5 Enemy offensive moving ahead in Que Son Valley. N. Viet admits bombs bring
problems.
June 6 U.S. planes bomb 100 enemy boats.
June 8 Signs enemy slipping in Vietnam. Planes in heaviest raids on North in weeks. Patrick
A. Thompson completed AE school at Jacksonville. A1C William J. Brainard, air
policeman, O San AFB S. Korea.
June 9 U.S. jets dump everything on Reds. N. Viet tries clearing river mines.
June 12 Jets hit China rail link. Two more N. Viet MIGs shot down.
June 13 Twp more Red bridges hit. SGT Jackie D. Eubank, vehicle operator, stationed at Hol-
lman AFB.
June 14 U.S. planes fly record number of Viet missions. Russian president travels to Hanoi for
war talks.
June 15 Yank troop deaths fall to just six. Bombing impairs Hanoi offensive.
June 16 Viet air crash is being probed. U.S. jet raids set record over North. 400 to 500 enemy
tanks destroyed since Red push. Patrick I. Thompson at MCAS Cherry Point. CPL
Robert J. Harris received the Good Conduct Medal at NAS Quonset Point.
June 19 U.S. planes score hits on enemy air defenses.
June 20 Advisors still in combat. S. Viets destroy five tanks. COL. Jack R. Butler assigned by
U.S. State Department to the American Embassy in Tunisia. PVT Donnie R. Nelson
enlisted in 293rd Inf National Guard. AN Bruce A. Watson completed basic Lackland
AFB assigned Kessler AFB.
June 21 N. Viets try barge operations. S. Viets ask new Hanoi ideas. Last American combat
unit ready to go home.LCPL Arthur G. Sloop at Camp Pendleton.
June 22 Enemy breaks through near Hue. Drive stopped with U.S. air help. N. Viets launch
new attacks. Hanoi getting boxed-in feeling?
June 29 New U.S. commander in Vietnam. S. Viet troops open second front at Quang Tri.
SP4 Vernon G. Rose promoted at Ft. Devens.
June 30 Vietnam talks to resume, president says to newsmen. S. Viets press attack paratroopers
near Quang Tri City. Allen R. Young, USS Independence, promoted Boiler Tech PO2.
July 3 S. Viets chase Reds; friendly troops near Quang Tri City.
July 5 AN Thomas E. Deeb completed basic at Lackland AFB assigned to Kessler AFB. De-
pots near Hanoi hit by U.S. jets during heavy raids over North.
July 6 Vietnam War dead tomb planned. U.S. troop strength in Thailand growing. Jets try to
blast path for soldiers.
July 7 S. Viets retake most of Guant Tri City. CAPT William S. Myers new Pacific Missile
Range Admin and plans officer at Point Mugee.
July 10 Red offensive drives Viet War back among population. Red shell kills U.S. Officers.
Hanoi negotiator returns to Paris. LtCOL Lawrence D. Philpott completed regular cou-
rse at U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. MAJOR Richard M. Rupley
received his 2nd USAF Commendation Medal at Stevens Institute of Technology.
July 11 Copters land Vietnamese. POWs shown on Red film. Vatican trying to help POWs.
SP4 Timothy A. Kersey, 82nd Airborne, will aid in training ROTC cadets at Indian
Town Gap Military Reservation.
July 12 PO Jean Littlefield married PO William R. Keel. U.S. heads back to Paris. Fighting
at Quang Tri.
July 13 U.S. planes hit N. Viet with heavy raids. N. Viets heat-seeking missile causes concern.
July 17 Workers mobilized in N. Viet. N. Viet hit with U.S. air and sea power.
July 18 Explosions cause damage to destroyer off Vietnam. David E. Henthorn USAF ROTC
at Wright-Patterson AFB. Cadet Alan R. Hevner attended Army ROTC camp at Ft.
Riley.
July 19 N. Viets get trucks to China. S. Viets fight in heart of Quang Tri City. SN Thomas E.
Tullis completed basic at Great Lakes.
July 20 Outflanked S. Viets fight Reds. Cong negotiators assail U.S. stand. Kissinger encour-
aged by secret talks in Paris.
July 21 Saigon's troops in drive. Tighter control of Vietnam aid urged.
July 24 S. Viets advance on two fronts. Viet War foes ready attack. New pipeline brings
Chinese oil to Hanoi.
July 25 Saigon forces now in citadel. U.S. warns UN chief about Viet bomb reports.
July 26 S. Viet soldiers loot. Calley says Army lied as he asks new trial. Did U.S. bomb N.
Viet dikes? Pamela Coon finished basic Lackland AFB and assigned Shepperd AFB.
Mike Pretorius enlisted in the USAF, sent to Lackland AFB. SR Benjamin Wenger
graduated basic Great Lakes.
July 27 Vietnam cease fire asked.
July 28 Lont time advisor killed in Vietnam.
August 1 Kissinger meets again with Le Duc Tho in Paris senses progress.
August 2 Reds pound S. Viets in Quang Tri City. Kissinger back from secret talks in Paris.
August 3 House to house fighting slows Quang Tri assault. Senate votes second time to half
Viet operations.
August 4 S. Viets close to reopening Highway 13.
August 7 U.S. jets aid Cambodia; N. Viet tanks destroyed.
August 9 Militiamen mauled by Red attacks. SP4 Leonard L. Hileman, driver BN, HQ, at
Ft. Bragg.
August 10 Quang Tri City cleanup; S. Viets claim 14 Red tanks destroyed. David G. Smith
named asst Chief of Staff, to the Commander of Submarine Forces USN in the Pac-
ific. LCPL Roger W. Cavins at Camp Lejeune.
August 14 Shriver repeats that Nixon missed chance to end war.
August 15 A1C Terry D. Hiner and SGT Gregory A. Hoffman completed two weeks active duty
at Grissom AFB. LtCOL Lawrence D. Philpott commanding officer of the First Per-
sonnel and Admin BN, 13th Support BRI, Ft. Hood.
August 16 Speculation in Viet peace talks. Jets renew attack on Hanoi's rail links with China.
August 17 Air raids on N. Viet heaviest.
August 21 S. Viets launch new land drive. A1C Michael E. Applegate, fuels specialist, at Clark
AFB.
August 22 Anti war veterans protest at Miami. Jets attack Viet coast. Hanoi Jane Fonda while
touring North Vietnam made the following address: This is Jane Fonda. I have come to North Vietnam to
bear witness to the damage being done to the Vietnamese land and to Vietnamese lives.
Just like the Thieu regime in Saigon, which is sending its ARVN soldiers srecklessly into dangerous
positions for fear that it will be replaced by the U.S. government if it fails to score ssome strategic military
gains, so Nixon is continuing to risk your lives and lives of the American prisoners of war under the bomb
in a last desperate gamble to keep his office come November. How does it feel to be used as pawns? You
may be hot down, you may perphaps even be killed, but for what, and for whom?
Eighty percent of the American people, according to a arecent poll, have stopped believing in the war
and think we should get out, think we should bring all fo you home. The people back home are crying for
you. We are afraid of what, what must be happe- ning to you as human beings. For it isn't possible to
destroy, to received salary for pushing buttons and pulling levers that are dropping illegal bombs on
innocent people, without having that damage your own souls.
Tonight when you are alone, ask yourselves: What are you doing? Accept no ready answers fed to you
by rote from basic training on up, but as men, as human beings, can you justify what you are doing? Do
you know why you are flying these missions, colle- cting extra combat pay on Sunday?
The people beneath your plaanes have done us no harm. They want to live in peace. They want to
rebuild their country. They cannot understand what kind of people could fly over their heads and drop
bombs on them. Did you know that the antipersonnel bombs that are thrown from some of your planes
were outlawed by the Hague Conven- tion of 1907, of which the United States was a ssignatory? I think
that if you knew what these bombs were doing, you would get very angry at the men who invented them.
They cannot destroy bridges or factories. They cannot pierce steel or cement. Their only target is
uprotected human flesh. The pellet bombs now contain rough-edged plastic pellets, and your bosses,
whose minds think in terms of statistics, not human lives, are proud of this new perfection. The plastic
pellets don't show up on X-rays and cannot be removed. The hospitals here are filled with babies and
women and old people who will live for the rest of their lives in agony with these pellets embedded in
them.
Can We fight this kind of war and continue to call ourselves Americans? Are these people so different
from our own children, mothers, or grandmothers? I don't think so, except that perhaps they have a surer
sense of why they are living and for what they are willing to die.
I know that if you saw and if you knew the Vietnamese under peaceful conditions, you would hate the
men who are sending you on bombing missions. I believe that in this age of remote-controlled push-button
war, we must all try very, very hard to remain human beings.
August 23 2nd LT George Wyncott named Outstanding Junior Officer of the Quarter, Kessler AFB
Heavy fighting reported in valley as N. Viets shell Danang. SGT Joseph Whinery at
Templehof Central Airport. Ronald Baer and Tommy Rager enlisted in 293rd Indiana
National Guard. PFC Rodney D. Stouffer at Camp LeJeune. Donnie R.Nelson,
Indiana National Guard, will report for 5 months active duty Ft. Jackson. Larry Walk
completed basic Great Lakes sent to San Diego.
August 24 Small group of WHS students protest Vietnam War on steps of GOP headquarters.
Loss of valley hurts S. Viet. Supplies still flow into North, U.S. says.
August 25 Three planes lost.
August 26 Red military camps bombed. Chinese minesweeper in Haiphong. A1C Roger Dale
Forbes after spending leave with parents killed in car accident near Kentland on way
back to Chanute AFB.
August 28 Women start Navy training; possibility of sea duty.
August 29 Two Communist torpedo boats sunk. December end for draft being planned.
August 30 94 U.S. airmen lost since march 30. Pentagon sees 25,000 troop level in Vietnam.
August 31 Navy pilots destroy giant Red ammo dump. Five Americans killed. Vietnam first for
Nixon before talks with Japanese.
August Kissinger in Saigon senses Thieu's reluctance to accept cease-fire accord.
September 1 Enemy steps up attacks on eve of Hanoi holiday. Life crushed from Quang Tri City.
Richard D. Unger completed basic Ft. Knox; to report to Ft. Campbell.
September 7 New surge in offensive in Vietnam.
September 8 Thieu abolishes hamlet elections. Viets fight in Tien Phuoc south of Da Nang. CPL
Robert A. Fletcher served 13 ½ months in a refuel division in Vietnam and two years
in the Bermuda Islands as an honor guard. He received his honorable discharge Friday
and is expected home this weekend. SR Gary L. Muzzillo graduated basic San Diego.
John F. Fearnow to report for active duty training with the 293rd Ind. Inf. Ft. Leonard
Wood. Gary W. Schaaf enlisted in the Navy, basic Great Lakes. Robert R. Miller pro-
moted PFC at completion of AIT Ft. Riley. 1st LT Ken A. Romine, missile launch
officer, 351st Strategic Air Wing, Whiteman AFB.
September 11 U.S. jets in devastating raids against N. Viet. Three Yanks serving with VC. Michael
Dunn completed AIT Ft. Riley. Eddie D. Miller promoted to PFC after completion of
AIT Ft. Riley.
September 12 Quang Tri battle tough.
September 13 Plane score is 3-1 for U.S. in Vietnam.
September 14 Anti war militants to bring home fliers. Savage third day of heavy fighting in Quang
Tri City. CAPT Larry Lester named instructor in aerospace studies Colby College.
September 15 ARVN defeated N. Viets in Quang Tri. U.S. Army shelled more than 80,000 tons
of ordnance in support of ARVN.
September 18 Three American planes lost during raids over N. Viet. Viet veterans battle on two
fronts-drugs and after.
September 20 Reds hit recaptured city Quang Ngai. PO3 Joe L. Pense, USS Blue Ridge, returned
from deployment in the western Pacific. PVT Paul Rogers graduated clerical school
Ft. Knox.
September 21 Senator McGovern talks out against war in Vietnam. U.S. jets mine rivers and canals
in attempt to slow war supplies.
September 22 U.S. jets hit four new targets in N. Viet. PO3 Kenneth L. Ballard, USS Strong, retur-
ned from Med cruise. SGT Robert J. Harris NAS Quonset Point, promoted to present
rank.
September 26 Viet fighting tapers off; U.S. jets, ships blast North. Art and Vic Lehman in basic Ft.
Ft. Knox. PO3 Steven Mattern aboard USS Canistero. PVT Richard D. Unger com-
pleted basic Ft. Knox. Cadet Fredrick A. Fedewa enters junior year at USAF
Academy.
September 28 U.S. jets in big raid on North. PVT Dan Winger attending radio teletype school Ft.
Gordon. Darrell L. Young promoted to SP4 in Germany.
September 27 Planes hit Red air base.
September 29 Kissinger presents Viet report. Three POWs finally get back home.
October 3 F111s pulled from combat. They were a medium range interdictor and tactical strike
aircraft which also filled the role of strategic bomber, reconnaissance and electronic
warfare. First introduced in 1968. Used in final month of Operation Lineback and
later in Operation Linebacker II. AN Marvin G. Pretorius assigned to Lowry AFB.
AN Christine S. Burnham completed radiology specialist course Shepperd AFB assi-
gned USAF hospital Langley AFB. CAPT Larry Lester graduated Air University
academic instructor course Maxwell AFB now with AFROTC Colby College.
October 4 Thieu meeting with Alexander Haig opposes draft agreement. McGovern to reveal
plan to end war in Indochina. Saigon bombing ordered counter for expected Red
attacks. Ronald D. Baker and Tommy E. Rager, 293rd ING, on active duty training Ft.
Jackson.
October 5 Three GIs die in Vietnam.
October 6 Secret Viet peace talks in sensitive state-Nixon. Peter Arnett describes Red war effort
Heavy attacks in Saigon area. N. Viet building new fuel pipeline
October 8 Breakthrough at Paris meeting between Kissinger and Le Duc Tho.
October 9 N. Viets hold area near Saigon. LT Jerry L. Kreamer completed Medical Service
Corps Officer course at Brooke Army Medical Center. PVT Gary M. Mitting com-
pleted basic Ft. Knox. PFC Eddie D. Miller, 1st BN, 5th Art., Ft. Riley. Major Max
W. Hammonds at Fairchild AFB. CPO Robert E. Tyner, USS Kennedy, participated
in Exercise Strong Express. PO1 William L. Fleck and FNLarry Walk aboard USS
Dixon.
October 10 Enemy continues to hold hamlets north of Saigon. Nearly 200 men aboard USS
Kitty Hawk, frustrated by eight months duty and being ordered back to Vietnam
rioted. Blacks began beating whites at random. 47 treated for injuries received from
rioters. PVT John F. Reed completed medical corpsman course Ft. Sam Houston.
PFC Robert R. Miller at Ft. Riley.
October 11 "Save lives instead of face" McGovern says in War policy.
October 12 Reds position unchanged. U.S. attack jets given restrictions for Hanoi.
October 13 N. Viets overrun border camp in highlands.
October 18 Kissinger arrives in Saigon. Democracy not for Saigon. Another F111 fighter/
bomber lost during strike over North.
October 19 Kissinger and Thieu confer. Flareup of fighting in S. Viet.
October 20 Kissinger and Thieu confer in Saigon for nearly 4 hours. Finds Thieu implacably
opposed to agreement. Skirmishes near Viet capital. SP4 Herbert D. Horstman,
mechanic, completed NCO course, Ft. Riley.
October 23 3 N. Viet MIGs shot down by U.S. jets. Kissinger heading home. Big Viet GI vote
sought.
October 24 Nixon cuts bombing of North.
October 25 Viet headway made but peace not just around the corner. U.S. strikes against North
reduced again.
October 26 Hanoi says U.S. okays peace, then has trouble with Saigon.
October 30 Navy cuts back Viet operations. Vietnam peace pact firm VP says.
October 31 Communist forces make 100 attacks in Vietnam. Vietnam negotiations resume. PFC
Arthur Strange named honor graduate of his AIT class, 2nd Air Defense Training BN,
Ft. Bliss.
November 1 Thieu wants Vietnam Communists to talk with Saigon. 22 Yanks die in copter crash.
November 2 N. Viets overrun another camp near border. U.S. rushes military aid to S. Viet. Unce-
rtainty hangs over Viet peace.
November 3 U.S. plans advisors after pact. Sit in occurs aboard USS Constellation made up of
dissadent sailors. 122 men transferred. MAJOR Richard M. Rupley at Ent AFB. PVT
Robin L. King in basic at Parris Island.
November 4 SP4 Wayman E. Applegate, supply sgt, died in automobile accident near Newark, Oh.
He was stationed at Hancock Field.
November 6 Three American copters shot down near Da Nang. William P. Rodgers reports secret
Vietnam talks to resume.
November 7 American supplies pour into Saigon airport.
November 8 B52s in heavy raid over North. Old planes, copters combine to rescue pilots. Robert
D. E. Ullom enlisted in 183rd ING. Thomas E. Tullis, Great
Lakes, promoted to PO3.
SP4 Darrel L. Young completed three weeks of BN tests Vilseck, Ger.
November 9 Buildup to keep going in Vietnam.
November 10 Thieu says Red pullout a must. CAPT Larry C. Lester awarded USAF Commendation
Medal for work as Sqd Computer Officer, 3650th Pilot Training Sqd, Columbus AFB.
130 sailors move to duty on shore.
November 14 Robert L. Leach killed in hunting accident at Lakeland, Florida. Entered Army July
1970 and stationed at Ft. Bragg.
November 15 U.S. planes pound N. Viet. More than 600 planes given to S. Viet. SGT Stephen G.
Burk, chauffeur for deputy commanding general U.S. Army Strategic Communications
Command, received Meritorious Service Medal at Ft. Huachuca. PVT Calvin L.
Warren completed basic Ft. Knox.
November 16 New round of Viet peace negotiations is imminent. U.S. negotiator expected to leave
for Paris today. American air power continues strikes on Red transportation.
November 20 Kissinger resumes talks with Le Duc Tho presents him with 69 amendments demanded
by Thieu. B52s hit just below DMZ.
November 21 Another Viet peace session set for today. Two more jets lost in Vietnam. PVT Robin
L. King at Camp Lejeune.
November 24 American B52s blast supply targets again.
November 27 Heavy fighting below DMZ. SN Marvin K. Holland completed basic at Orlando.
A1C William J. Brainard, Osan AB, awarded Airman of the Month. AN Pamela S.
Coon graduated communications specialist course Shepperd AFB. PVT Arthur E.
Strange completed air defenses artillery weapons course Ft. Bliss.
November 28 Viet peace keeping to be tough job. Nixon to meet Thieu emissary. U.S. bomb fall on
on Viet citizens.
November 29 U.S. bombers continue raids along DMZ.
December 1 Communists shell Bein Hoa AB. Saigon envoy seeks fourth session. PFC Eddie D.
Miller and PFC Robert R. Miller, 1st BN, 5th Fld Art, Ft. Riley participated in dedication ceremonies for the
new Kansas City International Airport. Serviceman's names and addresses published SGT. MICHAEL E.
APPLEGATE, KENNETH L. BALLARD, PV2 JAMES L. BIDWELL, SSSGT DAVID A. BLACK, A1C
WILLIAM J. BRAINARD, SP4 HUBERT G. CANTRELL, WALTER R. CONNELL, PVT DAVID DRA-
BENSTOT, SGT DENNIS ERDAHL,LCPL THOMAS J. FORBES, CTRCYN SN DAVID J. FUTRELL,
SN T.M. GORMAN, SGT RANDY L. HAAG, SP5 DAVID J. HEETER, SP4 WILLIAM C. HELM, SGT
RANDALL E. HENDERSON, SGT WILLIAM E. HIATT, SP1 LEN HILEMAN, AMM GARY L. HOL-
LEY, SP5 TIM KERSEY, PFC P,L, KING, AZ1 WILLIAL L. MCDANIEL, PVT GARY M. MITING,
CRAIG L. PANKOP, CPL VINCEN PETERS, A1C MIKE PRETORIUS, DANIEL V. SAMPLE, PVT
D.D. SCHAAF, MSGT JERRY L. SELLERS, SGT, BARRY L. SHAMBAUGH, BEN SIZEMORE, SGT
JAMES M. SMITH, LCPL PATRICK A. THOMPSON, PO3 THOMAS E. TULLIS, MM3 G.A. TYNER,
SK3 MICHAEL E. VOGEL, FA RANDY E. WEIMANN, PVT JOE D. WERTENBERGER, SGT JOS-
EPH M. WHINERY, SP4 DANIEL L. WILCOX, CPL DOUGLAS L. WILLCOX, SGT RANDALL J.
YOUNG.
December 4 Viet peace talks ressume-unilateral cease fire hinted. U.S. bombers in heavy attack on
communications lines. PVT Billy J. Sluss completed basic at Ft. Knox. AN Marvin
G. Pretorius completed supply inventory specialist course, Lowry AFB. CAPT
Michael L. Cress, air weapons controller, assigned Calumet AFB. SSGT Horace P.
Cripe, 3rd Civil Engineering Sqd, KUNSAN, KOREA.
December 7 U.S. B52s blast truck park. North Manchester Mothers Unit mails gifts to the
following servicemen from Chester and Pleasant townships: HOWARD W. AUSTIN, SGT JAMES L.
BASHORE, SGT NEIL O. BEASLEY, PFC LONNIE BISHOP, SP4 RONALD E. BONEWITZ, SGT
EVERT H. BRUBAKER, C.O.SPS JOHN BURNETTE, SP4 RICHARD L. CALLOWAY, SGT PAUL W.
CHRISTMAN, PFC WILLIAM S. BUMGARDNER, RANDY K. DAY, CADET FREDERICK A.FED-
EWA ROCKY FOUST, PFC RODNEY GAHL, SP4 MARK L. GUTHRIE, ROGER GUTHRIE, AMN
TOMMY G. GUTHRIE, DR. MAX W. HAMMONDS, SS6 ROGER HAMMONDS, SP5 DAVID J.
HEETER SGT LEON C. HOOVER, SGT RANDALL J. HOOVER, WILLIAM R. HOOVER, MICHAEL
D. HOUSER, SP5 SANDY HOWARD, PVT JONATHAN L. KING, PVT ROBIN L. KING, PVT MON-
TY A. LAHR, A1C BRUCE M. LEFFEL, A1C ROBERT L. LEININGER, GEORGE W. LEFFEL, PAUL
E. MCINTOSH, SP4 JESUS NARVEAZ, FN D.L. NICCUM, SSGT HARRY O. PENCE, SP4 MICHAEL
PENROD, JOHN W. POWELL, PAUL I. PRICE, LCPL MICHAEL L. PULLIN, SN DENNIS L. PURDY,
SP4 TIMOTHY G. RENSHAW, CHARLES SAGUN, SSGT JERRY E. SMITH, CPL DELBERT O.F.
SPARKS, RICHARD N. STICKNEY, A1C JOHN K. STRASSER, SSGT DONALD R. WAGNER, DAN-
NY W. WEST, SGT ALLEN R. WILSON, SSGT RICHARD L. WINEBRENNER
December 11 Vietnam War means waiting. Fresh troops infiltrate lines.
December 12 Thieu offers peace package. Viet talks quicker.
December 13 Kissinger, Tho in last round? Reds being reinforced. Viet talks: lots of speculation,
little solid information.
December 14 LCPL Donald R. Rouch at Norfolk. Dennis Schaaf, Marine Barracks San Fransisco,
promoted to PFC. AN Pamela S. Coon at Maxwell AFB. PVT Dennis R. Nelson
completed basic at Ft. Jackson. LCPL Thomas J. Forbes at MCAS Cherry Point.
James Woodcock enlisted in the Navy. LtCOL Carl Hall, USAF Hospital Wiesbaden,
Ger., selected for promotion.
December 15 B52s fly record number of missions over North. Brothers William, Roger and Char-
les Pelphry, in armed services. William in Georgia, Roger, Ft. Knox, and Charles at
Ft. Sill.
December 18 Nixon orders Operation Linebacker II also called the "Christmas Bombings,"
of areas around Hanoi and Haiphong. Hit airfields at Kep, Phuc Yen, Hoa Lac,
warehouse complex Yen Vien and around Hanoi. Raids continue for eleven days.
December 19 Heavy Viet raids and heavy losses. LT Bruce L. Pretorius completed pilot training
Luke AFB.
December 20 Heavy bombing continues-target Hanoi-Haiphong area.
December 21 Congress will try to end Vietnam War. Nixon gives S. Viets ultimatum. U.S. sees
N. Viet as stalling. Three more B52s lost over North. Ex POW remembers yuletide
in Hanoi.
December 22 President gets response from Thieu. Air strikes batter North once again.
December 23 Hanoi area has heavy defenses.
December 26 Richard Rayburn, Ft. Devens, marries Denise A. Copeland.
December 29 Operation Linebacker II ends as U.S. air losses increase steadily. Communists agree
to resume diplomatic talks.
1973 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January 2 U.S. resumes attacks below 20thParallel.
January 3 Attacks increase in S. Viet.
January 4 Can Congress end the War? 2nd LT Stephan H. Magner completed OTS at Lackland
AFB began Navigation training Mather AFB. SR Ricky Martin completed basics at
Great Lakes to report to Hospital Corpsman "A" School Great Lakes. Benjamin J.
Wenger, jet mech, took basic at Great Lakes sent to NATTC Memphis, assigned to
Fighter Sqd 213, USS Kitty Hawk.
January 5 299 U.S. Casualties in 1972. 97 Viet attacks reported. POW letters answer prayers of
families.
January 8 Talks resume.
January 10 PVT Dave Drabenstot home on holiday leave. Terry J. Lower finished basic at Lack-
land AFB sent to tech school Lowery AFB. Robert E. Fields enlisted USAF to go to
basic at Lackland AFB. TSGT Loren Rife, corrosion control supervisor, assigned to
Korat Royal Thai AFB.
January 11 Pilot explains reason for refusing Viet mission. U.S. planes maintain heavy raids.
January 12 Saigon headquarters tightens security plan.
January 17 U.S. planes hit N. Viet positions. Anti war forces prepare bill to cut funds. Revised
peace pact draft studied.
January 18 Two Americans killed in action. U.S. planes make 400 air strikes. Total withdrawal
would force new outlook. Peace talks open again Tuesday.
January 19 Jerry L. Mendenhall enlisted in the USAF; basic at Lackland AFB.
January 22 Cease fire might bring terror, assassination. Documents reveal cease fire date.
January 23 Finally initial agreement. The cease fire took effect at 24:00 Greenwich Mean Time.
The agreement was signed at the International Conference Center in Paris.
January 24 12 page agreement Hanoi, U.S. announce peace package terms. Cease fire report
accepted quietly. 1,215 Hoosiers died in Viet War. Indiana Reaction to cease fire ranges from joy to
resentment. POWs to return "as soon as possible." Mrs. Zella Miller asks "What did my son die for?"
For the relatives of American prisoners of war, Monday night's announcement didn't come to soon.
For the relatives of missing in action, it will end an era of uncertainty. For the relatives of the Vietnam
War casualties, it is a time to wonder, "What did my son die for?"
The announcement Tuesday night by President Richard Nixon of the pending ceasefire in Vietnam was
a time for mor meditation, gried and tears for the parents of Wabash County war casualties.
Mrs. Zella Miller, 1067 Pike St., is the mother of the county's firs Vietnam War casualty, SSGT Everett
Gene Miller, who was killed during the war's escalation on January 29, 1966.
Monday will mark the seventh anniversary of her son's death. Still, the emptiness is there as she asks,
openly crying, "What did my son die for?"
"I hate to be so emotional," she said, adding that she really is happy for the families of American POWs.
"I hope it will work out for the best," she said, "but, I just don't know…." Her voice trails off as her
emotions take control.
"I just can't help from thinging-it will always be in my mind-what did my son die for?" she asks.
Mrs. Miller fell recently and said she wasn't able to watch the President make the historical announce-
ment Tuesday night but did listen on the radio.
She holds no bitterness.
To her, the emotion in the President's voice was evident. It was like "he had happiness and sorrow all in
one bundle," she said.
Mrs. Miller, like millions of other Americans today, will be glued to the television, listening for more
details and watching the ironic turn of events which finds televised funeral ceremonies for the President
who, in part, ordered America's greatest war buildup since World War II in Southeast Asia-Lyndon B.
Johnson.
Less than two months after SSGT Miller's death came the announcement of the county's second Viet-
nam fatality, Tommy R. Miller, a navy corpsman, and the son of Mr. and Mrs. Arden Miller of Laketon.
Max L. Brubaker, son of Mr. and Mrs. Albert E. Brubaker, Ijamsville, was home on leave from the
Army when Miller was buried and attended the funeral, his father recalled today.
Five months later, Army private Max L. Brubaker, became Wabash County's third war death.
The impact was no easier for the Brubakers than anyone else, even though, at the time, Brubaker
believed in the American involvement there.
Since then, his attitude has chaged.
"It seems to me they could have stopped it a long time ago," Brubaker said. As the years passed without
settlement, he began to think the motive was mor political and financial rather than a matter of principal or
containing Communism.
"I was awfully glad to hear it, though" he said, "just for the families of the POWs. There is more
anxiety there than in the people who already know what has happened."
Brubaker admitted he had doubts about the President's motives at times, especially since the inception
of the secret negotiations.
"I was beginning to think he (the president) wasn't even trying," he said, but "he probably was doing all
that he could."
Brubaker cautioned of the possibility the war may start again at a later date. There is always that
possibility, he said.
The county's next to last casualty was marine SGT Randall Lee Pell, who was killed April 7, 1970,
while serving his third tour of duty in Vietnam. SGT Pell was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Harold L. Pell, 143
Shady Lane Dr.
Mrs. Pell filled with emotion, found it almost impossible to talk this morning about the eventual war's
end.
"It's just awful hard to express your feeling…" she said, her voice giving way, finally, to her emotion.
Her only consolation rests with her 10 year-old son, who will not face military service in Vietnam.
The 16 servicemen who lost their lives in Vietnam are Everett Miller, Tommy Miller, Max Brubaker,
William Brindle, Daniel Fulwider, Gary Biehl, James Hipskind, Loren Morford, Marlan Kitts, Victor
McDowell Jr., Victor Poor, Max Johnson, Gregory Fleck, Robert S. Raines and Frederick Nutter and
Randall Pell.
January 25 End of War service scheduled. Pentagon halts GI shipments. U.S. prepares for cease
fire.
January 26 War's still on in S. Viet.
January 27 Cease-fire agreements formally signed in Paris called Paris Peace Accords. Promised
return of POWs and within 60 days the withdrawal of U.S. forces.. Secretary of Def-
ense Laird announces that the draft in the U.S. has ended.
January 29 Cease fire violations claimed. Marines trapped. Estimated 1,300 servicemen still mis-
sing. All volunteer army authorized by Laird. Laos prisoner data wiwthheld.
January 31 Kissinger will visit Hanoi for agreement. Cease fire violations decrease.
February 1 VC general joins commission. Laos list expected.
February 2 Peace keeping delegates meet for first time. Operation Homecoming for POWs-just
don't ask them what it was like.
February 5 POW releases expected soon.
February 6 POW transfer sites mentioned. POW benefits may exceed $10,000. Minesweepers to
clear Viet harbors.
Feburary 7 No fanfare but USO closed in Saigon. U.S. to release POWs.
February 9 prisoner exchange time set. Kissinger arrives in Laos. N. Viet to release 115.
February 12 POW wife at Grisson gets call. Prisoners released after delay. Three Indiana POWs
freed. Doctors check freed POWs.
February 13 House to consider bonus for Veterans. POWs swap stories. Viet POWs echanged.
Organization aids POW. Gifts offered to servicemen.
February 15 40 former POWs on second flight. N. Viet aid discussed.
February 16 Welcome prepared for freed POWs. Changes surprise returning exprisoners. Heli-
copter shot down; five Americans hurt. Indiana house approves Vietnam War bonus.
February 17 20 more exPOWs arrive today. Released prisoners in good condition. Peace keeping
groups investigate violations. Thieu predicts Saigon, Hanoi will open talks. Kissinger
opers Vietnam trade talks in Japan. ExPOW had dream girl in Prison.
February 20 American POWs frolic. N. Viet shift troops to Laotian area. VC general answers
questions. Fewere violations reported.
February 21 U.S. requests 140 more POWs. Laotian factions agree.
February 23 Cease fire group starts first check.
February 26 N. Viet pledges full investigation of 1300 MIAs. Hanoi delays POW exchange.
February 27 MSGT Terry L. Tyner graduated Air Force Communications Service NCO Academy
Richards-Gebaur AFB. He is stationed at Grissom AFB. Peace declaration prepared
at Paris. N. Viet suspended exchange of POWs.
February 28 U.S. suspended troop withdrawal. N. Viet demands security.
March 1 Prisoner exchange to resume. Hanoi bombing cost $25 million a day. N. Viet, U.S.
agree on 9 point pact.
March 2 VC threaten to withhold 30 POWs. PVT Ronald K. Ellet completed basic Ft. Knox,
stationed Nuremberg, Ger. Five Indiana men on POW list. Vietnam halted war films.
March 5 VC free 34 POWs in Hanoi.
March 6 VC request swifter exchange. Only 10,000 men left. 80 POWs return to Clark AFB.
Pamela S. Coon married Keith Beile at Whiteman AFB.
March 8 Few nations favor Vietnam aid. 56 POWs headed home. Saigon released 499 POWs.
March 9 U.S. pressures Communists to release 140 more POWs. AN Jerry I. Mendenhall com-
pleted basic and assigned to Kessler AFB.
March 12 Navy recruit has to beat the odds. List of 108 U.S. POWs delivered. SGT Victor C.
Miller marries Nancy J. Huff; to live in Okinawa.
March 16 No prisoners are hdden, says editor in Hanoi. VC ask for explanation. U.S. receives
32 POWs in exchange.
March 19 Two planes carry 26 American POWs. Agreement discussed on search for MIAs
Faith sustained POW group. Hanoi feels war is over.
March 26 N. Viet gets message about troops not withdrawn until 9 Americans captured in Laos
are returned.
March 27 Last 32 POWs freed. AN Connie S. Singleton completed basic; assigned Shepperd
AFB.
March 28 Hanoi frees 49 POWs. Vietnam Memorial started.
March 29 Last American troops leave Vietnam. Vietnamese loot Camp Alpha Tan Son Nhut
AB.
April 1 Last American prisoners of war released in Hanoi.
May 13 Leonard Gardenour commissioned 2nd Lt in Air Force upon graduation at IU. Sent to
Malmstrom AFB as OIC, law enforcement. After two years sent to Osan AB Korea(shift commander and
liaison officer with Korean National Police), then 3 ½ years Grissom AFB (ops officer/sqd commander).
In 1981 left the Air Force as a Captain .
June 24 Graham Martin sworn in as ambassador to South Vietnam replacing Ellsworth Bunker.
July 16 Senate Armed Services Committee begins hearings on the secret bombing of
Cambodia.
August 14 U.S. stops bombing Cambodia in accordance with congressional prohibition.
1974 WABASH COUNTY AND THE VIETNAM WAR
January Thieu declares that the war has begun again.