The Wall › Panel 10W › Florida › James Robert Olson
JAMES ROBERT OLSON
Specialist Four · U.S. Army
September 24, 1949 – May 11, 1970
Service recordJames Robert Olson, of Miami, Florida, served as a Specialist Four in the U.S. Army. He died on May 11, 1970, in Cambodia, at age 20. His name is inscribed on Panel 10W, Line 19 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 10W · Line 19
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)
- 4 INF DIV
- Born
- September 24, 1949
- Home of record
- Miami, Florida (Dade County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- May 11, 1970
- Age
- 20
- Country
- Cambodia
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Grenade
Context · from the records
What was happening
22 names on the Wall carry the date May 11, 1970. In May 1970, 917 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The 4th Infantry Division, his unit in the record, lost 42 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 10W, Line 19
- JOSEPH W CUNNINGHAM JRSpecialist Five · May 11, 1970
- ROBERT LEE OCONNORStaff Sergeant · May 11, 1970
- JERRY WILLIAM PYLELieutenant Colonel · May 11, 1970
- SCOTT EUGENE SUTHERLANDSpecialist Five · May 11, 1970
Same unit, same day
- JOHN ARTHUR VERNOSpecialist Four · Panel 10W, Line 20
From Miami
- LOUIS ANTHONY CARRICARTESecond Lieutenant · December 12, 1963
- RANDOLPH CHESTER HOLDERLance Corporal · May 28, 1965
- ALBERT FRED ROBERTSStaff Sergeant · June 18, 1965
- ROBERT WILLIAM REAGANChief Warrant Officer 2 · September 9, 1965
- SAM MICHAEL SAVAS JRMajor · October 12, 1965
- JEFFRY LETSON KOCKRITZSergeant · October 28, 1965
- RONALD HAROLD LUKEPrivate First Class · November 4, 1965
- OSVALDO AMODIASSergeant · November 17, 1965
- JERRY NELSON HUGHESPrivate First Class · January 10, 1966
- LEON BOYD SMITH IICaptain · January 12, 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.