The Wall › Panel 34W › Ohio › Ernest Eugene Ritch
ERNEST EUGENE RITCH
Chief Petty Officer · U.S. Navy
July 28, 1926 – January 21, 1969
Service recordErnest Eugene Ritch, of Xenia, Ohio, served as a Chief Petty Officer in the U.S. Navy. He died on January 21, 1969, in Vinh Binh Province, South Vietnam, at age 42. His name is inscribed on Panel 34W, Line 53 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 34W · Line 53
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. Navy
- Rank
- Chief Petty Officer (CPO)
- Service
- Regular
- Occupation
- Engineman (EN)
- Unit (as recorded)
- MOBILE RIVERINE FORCE TF 117 SQ 13 ASLT DIV 13
- Born
- July 28, 1926
- Home of record
- Xenia, Ohio (Greene County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- January 21, 1969
- Age
- 42
- Province
- Vinh Binh
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Non-hostile
- Category
- Accident
- Circumstance
- Other Accident
Context · from the records
What was happening
44 names on the Wall carry the date January 21, 1969; he was the only one lost in Vinh Binh Province that day. In January 1969, 985 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
Also on Panel 34W, Line 53
- ANTONIO REYESSergeant · January 21, 1969
- THOMAS VERNON RHOADSPrivate First Class · January 21, 1969
- MARIANO RIBILLIA JRPrivate First Class · January 21, 1969
- RAY LAVERN SHARPPetty Officer Second Class · January 21, 1969
From Xenia
- DENNIS LEE KEYERPetty Officer Third Class · May 1, 1966
- JOSEPH C SAMPSON JRWarrant Officer 1 · July 27, 1966
- DAVID ALAN DYECorporal · May 12, 1967
- MICHAEL L MANGANPrivate First Class · June 26, 1967
- WILLIAM GRIGABY PHILLIPSSergeant · August 3, 1967
- TODD ARTHUR HANDYSpecialist Four · March 2, 1968
- JAMES RUSSELL SANFORD JRPrivate First Class · April 6, 1968
- EDWIN GRANT NEWELLSergeant · May 19, 1968
- WILLIAM DAVID GROOMSSpecialist Four · June 16, 1968
- DAVEY ALAN LIEURANCECorporal · September 15, 1969
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.