The Wall › Panel 59E › Washington › John Elden Laipple
JOHN ELDEN LAIPPLE
Sergeant · U.S. Army
April 8, 1949 – May 12, 1968
Service recordJohn Elden Laipple, of Spokane, Washington, served as a Sergeant in the U.S. Army. He died on May 12, 1968, in Thua Thien Province, South Vietnam, at age 19. His name is inscribed on Panel 59E, Line 6 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 59E · Line 6
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
- Sergeant (SGT)
- Service
- Regular
- Occupation
- Infantryman (11B)
- Unit (as recorded)
- 101 AIRBORNE DIV
- Born
- April 8, 1949
- Home of record
- Spokane, Washington (Spokane County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- May 12, 1968
- Age
- 19
- Province
- Thua Thien
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Small Arms Fire
Context · from the records
What was happening
97 names on the Wall carry the date May 12, 1968; 18 of them were lost in Thừa Thiên Province. In May 1968, 2,418 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The 101st Airborne Division, his unit in the record, lost 151 of its members that month.
Also on Panel 59E, Line 6
- WILLIAM JACK EISENHOWERSergeant · May 12, 1968
- JERRY FLETCHERPrivate First Class · May 12, 1968
- OMAR DAVID JONESFirst Lieutenant · May 12, 1968
- JACK HARLAN KAMRATHPrivate First Class · May 12, 1968
- JAMES LEE LAKESergeant · May 12, 1968
Same unit, same day
- DONALD KEITH BAKKIEPrivate First Class · Panel 58E, Line 29
- ROBERT MELVIN FLETCHERSergeant · Panel 59E, Line 1
- CHARLES DUDLEY DORMANCorporal · Panel 59E, Line 2
- CHARLES WALTER HARBERTPrivate First Class · Panel 59E, Line 4
- JONATHAN HENDERSONSergeant · Panel 59E, Line 4
- RICHARD LEE LOHSEPrivate First Class · Panel 59E, Line 7
- WILLIAM PATECorporal · Panel 59E, Line 10
- ALLEN W MCNEILSergeant · Panel 59E, Line 11
- RICHARD WILLIAM VANBLARCOMSpecialist Four · Panel 59E, Line 14
From Spokane
- TIMOTHY MICHAEL LANGFirst Lieutenant · August 30, 1963
- DELOSS WILLIAM ANDERSON JRPetty Officer First Class · September 8, 1964
- DUANE CHARLES SCHELLStaff Sergeant · September 18, 1965
- WALTER PIPER JRPrivate First Class · February 6, 1966
- CHARLES EUGENE ANDERSONSergeant · March 5, 1966
- MARK JEFFREY GARDELLAPrivate First Class · March 20, 1966
- WILLIAM RICHARD WESTSergeant · March 28, 1966
- WILL PAGE BARTON IIPrivate First Class · June 9, 1966
- JOSEPH RAYMOND ELLMANPrivate First Class · June 9, 1966
- RICHARD PAUL HOLIENSergeant · June 30, 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.