The Wall › Panel 9W › Georgia › Burder Smith Athey III
BURDER SMITH ATHEY III
Specialist Four · U.S. Army
October 9, 1949 – June 21, 1970
Service recordBurder Smith Athey III, of Savannah, Georgia, served as a Specialist Four in the U.S. Army. He died on June 21, 1970, in Cambodia, at age 20. His name is inscribed on Panel 9W, Line 75 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 9W · Line 75
Names are inscribed in the order of loss, starting at Panel 1E at the apex and ending at Panel 1W. At the Memorial, find the panel number at the base and count down from the top line.
Remember
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Service
- Branch
- U.S. Army
- Rank
- Specialist Four (SP4)
- Service
- Drafted (Selective Service)
- Occupation
- Infantryman (11B)
- Unit (as recorded)
- 11 ARMORED CAV
- Born
- October 9, 1949
- Home of record
- Savannah, Georgia (Chatham County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- June 21, 1970
- Age
- 20
- Country
- Cambodia
- Casualty type
- Non-hostile
- Category
- Accident
- Circumstance
- Other Accident
Context · from the records
What was happening
Eight names on the Wall carry the date June 21, 1970. In June 1970, 560 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The unit recorded as “11 ARMORED CAV”, his unit in the record, lost 21 of its members that month.
He died in Cambodia while the Cambodian incursion was under way. From 29 April to 30 June 1970, U.S. and South Vietnamese forces crossed into Cambodia to attack North Vietnamese base areas and supply caches; the announcement set off campus protests, including at Kent State.
Also on Panel 9W, Line 75
- DONALD JOSEPH MURPHYPrivate First Class · June 20, 1970
- BILLY RAY SARGENTSpecialist Four · June 20, 1970
- ALEX C SPENCE JRWarrant Officer 1 · June 20, 1970
- DENNIS M STOPPLEWORTHPrivate · June 20, 1970
Same unit, same day
- BUFORD RONALD SPENCERSpecialist Five · Panel 9W, Line 77
From Savannah
- WILLIAM FREW TRAIN IIIFirst Lieutenant · June 16, 1962
- HENRY STERLING MCWHORTERLieutenant · August 29, 1965
- JERRY JIVENSStaff Sergeant · November 15, 1965
- JAMES MAYNARD SPENCESpecialist Four · February 27, 1966
- BARNETTE GARTRELL JENKINSPrivate First Class · March 2, 1966
- HARLOW GARY CLARK JRLieutenant Colonel · March 7, 1966
- JOHN EDWARD CAIL JRSpecialist Four · May 9, 1966
- WILLMATT BROWNPrivate First Class · May 17, 1966
- WILLIAM JONES JRSergeant · June 18, 1966
- ERNEST MAXWELL SHUMAN JRSpecialist Five · August 1, 1966
Source. U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Casualty Analysis System, Vietnam Conflict Extract Data File (as of April 29, 2008), Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, Record Group 330, National Archives (NAID 2240992). Panel and line as recorded in that file. This page presents the official record and its historical context; no biography has been written for him yet. See something wrong? Report a correction.