Walter Earl Jr. Duncan, age 19, from Beaver, Ohio, Pike county.
Service era: Vietnam
Military history: 35th Infantry Regiment
Date of death: Saturday, May 20, 1967
Death details: Bronze Start citation: For heroism in connection with military operations against an armed hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam. On 19 May 1967 Private First Class Duncan distinguished himself while serving as a Rifleman in Company A, 1st Battalion, 35th Infantry, which was conducting a search and destroy operation near Duc Pho. His platoon had the mission of sweeping south through a suspected North Vietnamese Army battalion base camp in a village. As the platoon entered the village, it encountered the enemy, well dug-in and heavily fortified. The enemy waited until the platoon had advanced to within 25 meters of their positions, and then opened fire with small arms and automatic weapons. Private First Class Duncan was wounded in the initial burst of fire, but he remained forward, covering the rest of the platoon until they could shift to more tenable positions and evacuate the wounded. Then, despite his wounds and the intensity of the enemy fire, he made an assault on an enemy bunker dangerously close to the platoon’s position. Reaching the bunker, he hurled a hand grenade into it, destroying it and its occupants. Later he succumbed to his wounds, but his efforts had been instrumental to the success of the platoon’s assault. Private First Class Duncan’s unselfish bravery and personal courage in the face of the enemy are in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit on himself, his unit, and the United States Army.
Cemetery: Portation of state Route 32 in Pike County named in his honor
Source: National Archives, Pike County News (2019), 35th Infantry Regiment Association
