I can’t speak to the accuracy of these numbers, but close enough for me…..
Subject: Vietnam Stats: have not seen these before
Date: Tue, 24 May 2011 13:31:27 -0500
Some stats I had not seen before. Staggering.
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There are 58,267 names now listed on that polished black wall, including
those added in 2010.
The names are arranged in the order in which they were taken from us by date
and within each date the names are alphabetized. It is hard to believe it is
36 years since the last casualties.
Beginning at the apex on panel 1E and going out to the end of the East wall,
appearing to recede into the earth (numbered 70E – May 25, 1968), then
resuming at the end of the West wall, as the wall emerges from the earth
(numbered 70W – continuing May 25, 1968) and ending with a date in 1975. Thus
the war’s beginning and end meet. The war is complete, coming full circle,
yet broken by the earth that bounds the angle’s open side and contained
within the earth itself.
The first known casualty was Richard B. Fitzgibbon, of North Weymouth, Mass.
listed by the U.S. Department of Defense as having been killed on June 8,
1956.
His name is listed on the Wall with that of his son, Marine Corps Lance Cpl.
Richard B. Fitzgibbon III, who was killed on Sept. 7, 1965.
There are three sets of fathers and sons on the Wall.
39,996 on the Wall were just 22 or younger.
The largest age group, 8,283 were just 19 years old
3,103 were 18 years old.
12 soldiers on the Wall were 17 years old.
5 soldiers on the Wall were 16 years old.
One soldier, PFC Dan Bullock was 15 years old.
997 soldiers were killed on their first day in Vietnam.
1,448 soldiers were killed on their last day in Vietnan.
31 sets of brothers are on the Wall.
Thirty one sets of parents lost two of their sons.
54 soldiers on the Wall attended Thomas Edison High School in Philadelphia.
I wonder why so many from one school.
8 Women are on the Wall. Nursing the wounded.
244 soldiers were awarded the Medal of Honor during the Vietnam War; 153 of
them are on the Wall.
Beallsville, Ohio with a population of 475 lost 6 of her sons.
West Virginia had the highest casualty rate per capita in the nation. There
are 711 West Virginians on the Wall.
The Marines of Morenci – They led some of the scrappiest high school football
and basketball teams that the little Arizona copper town of Morenci (pop.
5,058) had ever known and cheered. They enjoyed roaring beer busts. In
quieter moments, they rode horses along the Coronado Trail, stalked deer in
the Apache National Forest. And in the patriotic camaraderie typical of
Morenci’s mining families, the nine graduates of Morenci High enlisted as a
group in the Marine Corps. Their service began on Independence Day, 1966.
Only 3 returned home.
The Buddies of Midvale – LeRoy Tafoya, Jimmy Martinez, Tom Gonzales were all
boyhood friends and lived on three consecutive streets in Midvale, Utah on
Fifth, Sixth and Seventh avenues. They lived only a few yards apart. They
played ball at the adjacent sandlot ball field. And they all went to
Vietnam..
In a span of 16 dark days in late 1967, all three would be killed. LeRoy was
killed on Wednesday, Nov. 22, the fourth anniversary of John F. Kennedy’s
assassination. Jimmy died less than 24 hours later on Thanksgiving Day. Tom
was shot dead assaulting the enemy on Dec. 7, Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.
The most casualty deaths for a single day was on January 31, 1968 ~ 245
deaths.
The most casualty deaths for a single month was May 1968 – 2,415 casualties
were incurred.
That’s 2,415 dead in a single month.
Thanks Brewer. Good of you to keep the real nature of the sacrifices in front of us. It anchors the term, “Memorial.” I remember you from the Uof A in the 70’s. Didn”t you tend bar at the Poco Loco? We spent an afternoon one day at the old Green Dolphin. I knew then you would always be on our side.
Thanks for posting this important article Mike. These great warriors paid the ultimate sacrifice for the freedom we enjoy. All of our fallen soldiers should be remembered on this day and every day.
The lessons learned from Vietnam are a beacon for all generations of warriors. Hopefully those lessons are heard.