The Wall › Panel 12W › Minnesota › Ralph Scott Purdum
RALPH SCOTT PURDUM
Petty Officer Third Class · U.S. Navy
August 21, 1948 – March 16, 1970
Service recordRalph Scott Purdum, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, served as a Petty Officer Third Class in the U.S. Navy. He died on March 16, 1970, in Quang Nam Province, South Vietnam, at age 21. His name is inscribed on Panel 12W, Line 9 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 12W · Line 9
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
- Petty Officer Third Class (PO3)
- Service
- Reserve / National Guard
- Occupation
- Aviation Electronics Technician (AT)
- Born
- August 21, 1948
- Home of record
- Minneapolis, Minnesota (Hennepin County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- March 16, 1970
- Age
- 21
- Province
- Quang Nam
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Non-hostile
- Category
- Accident
- Circumstance
- Aircraft Crash — crew
Context · from the records
What was happening
47 names on the Wall carry the date March 16, 1970; 28 of them were lost in Quảng Nam Province. In March 1970, 625 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
Also on Panel 12W, Line 9
- RICHARD HUGH PROPSTPrivate First Class · March 16, 1970
- ROBERT RODRIGUEZSergeant · March 16, 1970
- JOSEPH STEPHEN SAUKAITISPetty Officer Second Class · March 16, 1970
- STUART JACKSON SCRUGGS JRPetty Officer Second Class · March 16, 1970
From Minneapolis
- WILLIAM EDWARD SWANSONLieutenant · April 11, 1965
- MICHAEL JOHN ULICSNIPetty Officer First Class · September 8, 1964
- DENNIS LEROY PIERSONPrivate First Class · June 26, 1965
- DON GLENN KNOWLTONWarrant Officer 1 · October 20, 1965
- ROGER MICHAEL MANNIESergeant · October 28, 1965
- TRENT RICHARD POWERSCaptain · October 31, 1965
- DAVID LEONARD UGLANDSecond Lieutenant · November 8, 1965
- WILLIAM MARTIN SAVORENLance Corporal · November 25, 1965
- LAWRENCE FREDRICK RAMAKERSpecialist Four · December 10, 1965
- THOMAS NEWTON SLOANTechnical Sergeant · December 17, 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. This page presents the official record and its historical context; no biography has been written for him yet. See something wrong? Report a correction.