The Wall › Panel 14W › Pennsylvania › William James Erkes JR
WILLIAM JAMES ERKES JR
Second Lieutenant · U.S. Army
November 24, 1949 – January 7, 1970
Service recordWilliam James Erkes JR, of Upper Black Eddy, Pennsylvania, served as a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He died on January 7, 1970, in Quang Tin Province, South Vietnam, at age 20. His name is inscribed on Panel 14W, Line 7 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
On the Wall
Panel 14W · Line 7
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
- Second Lieutenant (2LT)
- Service
- Reserve / National Guard
- Occupation
- Infantry Unit Commander (1542)
- Unit (as recorded)
- 196 LIGHT INF BDE
- Born
- November 24, 1949
- Home of record
- Upper Black Eddy, Pennsylvania (Bucks County)
Casualty
- Date of death
- January 7, 1970
- Age
- 20
- Province
- Quang Tin
- Country
- South Vietnam
- Casualty type
- Hostile
- Category
- Killed in Action
- Circumstance
- Small Arms Fire
Context · from the records
What was happening
19 names on the Wall carry the date January 7, 1970; six of them were lost in Quảng Tín Province. In January 1970, 529 Americans whose names are on the Wall died in the war.
The 196th Light Infantry Brigade, his unit in the record, lost 21 of its members that month.
Also on Panel 14W, Line 7
- DEAN ALLYN WILDERSPINLance Corporal · January 6, 1970
- LARRY ALAN BRADLEYCorporal · January 7, 1970
- RICHARD LEE DICUSSpecialist Four · January 7, 1970
- ROBERT EDWARD DORSE JRCorporal · January 7, 1970
Same unit, same day
- LARRY ALAN BRADLEYCorporal · Panel 14W, Line 7
- JOHN DEAN RETSECK JRPrivate First Class · Panel 14W, Line 9
- GENE GORDON WELLSStaff Sergeant · Panel 14W, Line 10
- FRANK ZYDZIK JRSpecialist Four · Panel 14W, Line 10
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.