The Wall › Panel 5W › Tennessee › Earl Nelson
EARL NELSON
Staff Sergeant · U.S. Army
September 21, 1944 – January 16, 1971
Service recordEarl Nelson, of Memphis, Tennessee, served as a Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Army. He died on January 16, 1971, in Binh Dinh Province, South Vietnam, at age 26. His name is inscribed on Panel 5W, Line 50 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 5W · Line 50
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
- Staff Sergeant (SSG)
- Service
- Regular
- Occupation
- Indirect Fire Infantryman (11C)
- Unit (as recorded)
- 173 AIRBORNE BDE
- Born
- September 21, 1944
- Home of record
- Memphis, Tennessee (Shelby County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- January 16, 1971
- Age
- 26
- Province
- Binh Dinh
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Non-hostile
- Category
- Accident
- Circumstance
- Other Accident
Context · from the records
What was happening
23 names on the Wall carry the date January 16, 1971; four of them were lost in Bình Định Province. In January 1971, 259 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The 173rd Airborne Brigade, his unit in the record, lost 17 of its members that month.
Read the history
On the Wall
Also on Panel 5W, Line 50
- TERRY FRANCIS MEZERAWarrant Officer 1 · January 16, 1971
- REINALDO REIN RODRIGUEZCorporal · January 16, 1971
- ROY RODRIGUEZ SALINASSergeant First Class · January 16, 1971
- BRUCE CHARLES SHOVERPrivate First Class · January 16, 1971
Same unit, same day
- MARTIN JIM JRPrivate First Class · Panel 5W, Line 49
- CARLTON JOSEPH MENDALLFirst Lieutenant · Panel 5W, Line 49
- BRUCE CHARLES SHOVERPrivate First Class · Panel 5W, Line 50
From Memphis
- JESSE ALEXANDER GRAYSergeant First Class · June 12, 1964
- ANDREW DAYTON PARKER JRMajor · June 18, 1965
- JOHN CARLOS HARRISSergeant · July 21, 1965
- WALTER LEWIS SMITHPrivate First Class · August 19, 1965
- CLAUDE TALBERT JRPrivate First Class · October 8, 1965
- WILLIAM CLYDE HARPERSergeant · October 10, 1965
- DANIEL DAVID HARDENSergeant · November 1, 1965
- RANDLE TOM WOODSLance Corporal · November 6, 1965
- KELLY EUGENE WHITAKERPrivate First Class · November 8, 1965
- MELVIN FRANK FORTSpecialist Four · November 17, 1965
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.