The Wall › Panel 34W › New York › John Earl Warren JR
JOHN EARL WARREN JR
First Lieutenant · U.S. Army
November 16, 1946 – January 14, 1969
Medal of Honor StoryPortrait: United States Army, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
John Earl Warren JR, of New York, New York, served as a First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He died on January 14, 1969, in Tay Ninh Province, South Vietnam, at age 22. His name is inscribed on Panel 34W, Line 3 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
Medal of Honor · awarded posthumously
For conspicuous gallantry
John Earl Warren JR received the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest award for valor, for his actions on January 14, 1969. The official citation reads:
Warren's official Medal of Honor citation reads:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. 1st Lt. Warren, distinguished himself at the cost of his life while serving as a platoon leader with Company C. While moving through a rubber plantation to reinforce another friendly unit, Company C came under intense fire from a well-fortified enemy force. Disregarding his safety, 1st Lt. Warren with several of his men began maneuvering through the hail of enemy fire toward the hostile positions. When he had come to within 6 feet of one of the enemy bunkers and was preparing to toss a hand grenade into it, an enemy grenade was suddenly thrown into the middle of his small group. Thinking only of his men, 1st Lt. Warren fell in the direction of the grenade, thus shielding those around him from the blast. His action, performed at the cost of his life, saved 3 men from serious or mortal injury. First Lt. Warren's ultimate action of sacrifice to save the lives of his men was in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflects great credit on him, his unit, and the U.S. Army.
Citation text as reproduced in Wikipedia’s article on John Earl Warren JR; Medal of Honor citations are official U.S. government records. See also the Congressional Medal of Honor Society and all Medal of Honor recipients on the Wall.
On the Wall
Panel 34W · Line 3
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
- First Lieutenant (1LT)
- Service
- Reserve / National Guard
- Occupation
- Infantry Unit Commander (1542)
- Unit (as recorded)
- 25 INF DIV
- Born
- November 16, 1946
- Home of record
- New York, New York (Kings County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- January 14, 1969
- Age
- 22
- Province
- Tay Ninh
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Small Arms Fire
Context · from the records
What was happening
33 names on the Wall carry the date January 14, 1969; eight of them were lost in Tây Ninh Province. In January 1969, 985 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The 25th Infantry Division, his unit in the record, lost 84 of its members that month.
Read the history
Also on Panel 34W, Line 3
- TIMOTHY LEROY WILLIAMSPrivate First Class · January 14, 1969
- DAVID ALLEN WILSONPetty Officer First Class · January 14, 1969
- JOSEPH G WILSON IIIFirst Lieutenant · January 14, 1969
- RICHARD PHILIP YANCHUK JRWarrant Officer 1 · January 14, 1969
Same unit, same day
- DAVID VERNON ADAMSCorporal · Panel 35W, Line 86
- DWANE LONNIE ADAMSPrivate First Class · Panel 35W, Line 86
- RICHARD ADIUTORISpecialist Four · Panel 35W, Line 86
- CLUSTER LEE BEARFIELDPrivate First Class · Panel 35W, Line 87
- MARVIN L MCCULLOUGH JRCorporal · Panel 34W, Line 1
- LYLE THOMAS MOORESpecialist Four · Panel 34W, Line 1
- JOHN MICHAEL OFARRELLFirst Lieutenant · Panel 34W, Line 2
- GREGORY LLOYD RICESpecialist Four · Panel 34W, Line 2
- PAUL AARON STONESergeant · Panel 34W, Line 2
From New York
- WALTER R MCCARTHY JRCaptain · June 16, 1962
- JOHN HOWARD MCCLEANCaptain · August 16, 1963
- DONALD ALLAN MOLLICONEFirst Lieutenant · December 20, 1963
- VINCENT JOSEPH HICKMANCaptain · January 14, 1964
- MARTIN STOCKFEDERPrivate First Class · July 15, 1964
- ROBERT GEORGE ARMSTRONGFirst Lieutenant · October 24, 1964
- DOMINICK SANSONESergeant First Class · December 10, 1964
- DONALD GILBERT COOKColonel · December 31, 1964
- TERENCE MEREDITH MURPHYLieutenant (junior grade) · April 9, 1965
- ROBERT CARL WISTRANDColonel · May 9, 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. The Medal of Honor citation above is the official account of his actions. See something wrong? Report a correction.