The Wall › Panel 1W › Connecticut › Richard Carl Tessman
RICHARD CARL TESSMAN
Seaman Apprentice · U.S. Navy
May 14, 1953 – October 1, 1972
Service recordRichard Carl Tessman, of New Britain, Connecticut, served as a Seaman Apprentice in the U.S. Navy. He died on October 1, 1972, in North Vietnam, at age 19. His name is inscribed on Panel 1W, Line 80 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 1W · Line 80
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
Did you know him? Family members and friends are invited to share a photograph or a memory. Nothing is posted until it has been reviewed.
Service
- Branch
- U.S. Navy
- Rank
- Seaman Apprentice (SA)
- Service
- Regular
- Occupation
- Seaman (SN)
- Born
- May 14, 1953
- Home of record
- New Britain, Connecticut (Hartford County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- October 1, 1972
- Age
- 19
- Country
- North Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Unknown
Context · from the records
What was happening
20 names on the Wall carry the date October 1, 1972. In October 1972, 65 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
He died in North Vietnam while the Easter Offensive was under way. On 30 March 1972, North Vietnam launched its largest offensive since 1968, attacking across the DMZ, toward An Lộc and into the Central Highlands. By then few U.S. ground troops remained; American advisers and air power fought alongside the South Vietnamese.
Read the history
On the Wall
Also on Panel 1W, Line 80
- WILLIAM JAMES TERRYPrivate First Class · October 1, 1972
- JOSEPH GRISAFISeaman · October 3, 1972
- ROBERT DALE ANDERSONColonel · October 6, 1972
- BRUCE EDWARD BOLTZEChief Warrant Officer 2 · October 6, 1972
From New Britain
- JOHN M GRASSO JRPrivate First Class · November 27, 1965
- RICHARD EARL CHABOTLance Corporal · December 10, 1965
- FLOYD MONROE HORTONSergeant · March 30, 1966
- RICHARD ARTHUR GILBREATHPetty Officer Third Class · July 22, 1966
- RICHARD W ROYSpecialist Four · August 8, 1966
- PEDRO O CANCELPrivate First Class · January 7, 1967
- LAWRENCE JOSEPH PELLETIERPrivate First Class · March 28, 1967
- MICHAEL DAVID SMITHLance Corporal · July 2, 1967
- JOSEPH EVERETT LAVIGNEPrivate First Class · July 31, 1967
- JOHN DENNIS WHORFFSpecialist Four · August 29, 1967
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.