The Wall › Panel 5W › Michigan › Michael Bruce First
MICHAEL BRUCE FIRST
Private First Class · U.S. Army
November 7, 1950 – February 8, 1971
Service recordMichael Bruce First, of Dowagiac, Michigan, served as a Private First Class in the U.S. Army. He died on February 8, 1971, in Quang Tri Province, South Vietnam, at age 20. His name is inscribed on Panel 5W, Line 87 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 5W · Line 87
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
- Private First Class (PFC)
- Service
- Drafted (Selective Service)
- Occupation
- Infantryman (11B)
- Unit (as recorded)
- 5 INF DIV MECH
- Born
- November 7, 1950
- Home of record
- Dowagiac, Michigan (Cass County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- February 8, 1971
- Age
- 20
- Province
- Quang Tri
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Small Arms Fire
Context · from the records
What was happening
21 names on the Wall carry the date February 8, 1971; seven of them were lost in Quảng Trị Province. In February 1971, 387 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The unit recorded as “5 INF DIV MECH”, his unit in the record, lost 26 of its members that month.
Also on Panel 5W, Line 87
- LONALD RAY COLEMANSergeant · February 8, 1971
- THOMAS PATRICK DOODYWarrant Officer 1 · February 8, 1971
- DAVID NELSON FOXCaptain · February 8, 1971
- ROBERT BARRY GENTRYWarrant Officer 1 · February 8, 1971
Same unit, same day
- RAFAEL RIVERA BENITEZPlatoon Sergeant · Panel 5W, Line 86
- LONALD RAY COLEMANSergeant · Panel 5W, Line 87
- GERALD JOHN TWOREKStaff Sergeant · Panel 5W, Line 90
From Dowagiac
- ROBERT LEE WENGERCorporal · July 23, 1966
- JOHN WALLACE EDGERLYPrivate First Class · August 12, 1966
- JOHN RANDOLPH HUSCHERSpecialist Four · February 19, 1968
- JEFFERY H HALLSpecialist Four · June 19, 1968
- JOHN VINCENT GRESSELFirst Lieutenant · July 29, 1968
- WILLIAM R STOLLEY JRLance Corporal · March 14, 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.