William Craig Koprince Jr., age 24, from Lenoir City, Tennessee, Loudon county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: I Co, 3D Bn, 2D Mar, (Rct-5, I Mef Fwd), 2D Mar Div, Camp Lejeune, Nc
Date of death: Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Death details: Hostile; Habbaniyah, Iraq
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
John William Wilson, age 22, from Loudon, Tennessee, Loudon county.
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Friday, April 3, 1970
Source: National Archives
James William Grady, age 29, from Loudon County New Providence, Tennessee .
Spouse: Cynthia Grady
Service era: Vietnam
Military history: 1st Air Calvary
Date of death: Wednesday, March 30, 1966
Death details: Killed in Vietnam when the helicopter evacuating him and his squad from a ground partrol was shot down by mortar shells and automatic equipment.
Source: National Archives, Stuart News (1966)
Robert Russell Heaton, age 24, from Loudon County Tennessee.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Friday, August 11, 1950
Death details: On August 11, 1950, twenty members of Company B, 3rd Combat Engineer Battalion, 24th Infantry Division, performed a reconnaissance patrol across the Naktong River to investigate North Korean forces near Chang-dong, South Korea. The patrol crossed to the west bank of the Naktong River, performed their reconnaissance, and were engaged by an enemy force of unknown strength. The patrol was still taking on heavy fire as they crossed the Naktong again to return from the mission, and only five members of the patrol ultimately made it back to friendly positions. Sergeant Robert Russell Heaton joined the U.S. Army from Tennessee and was a member of Headquarters and Service Company, 3rd Engineer Combat Battalion, 24th Infantry Division. He was a member of this patrol near Chang-dong on August 11, 1950. SGT Heaton was last seen operating a radio while at an observation post at Hill 332, when he was hit by enemy rifle fire and then fell into the Naktong River. His body could not be recovered at the time because the river’s current quickly pulled it out of view. He remains unaccounted-for. Today, Sergeant Heaton is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. His name is also inscribed on the Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, DC, which was updated in 2022 to include the names of the fallen.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Associated Press (1954)
Joe A. Vinyard from Tennessee, Loudon county.
Service era: World War II
Military history: 774 Tank Battalion
Date of death: Thursday, April 18, 1946
Death details: Finding of death
Cemetery: Unaccounted For
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
William Hanze Limburg, age 21, from Lenoir City, Tennessee, Loudon county.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Sunday, November 21, 1943
Death details: From November 20 through 23, 1943, the U.S. Marine Corps and U.S. Navy conducted a large-scale amphibious assault on the Japanese-held atoll of Tarawa as part of Operation Galvanic, the Allied capture of the Gilbert Islands. Located 2,500 miles southwest of Hawaii, Tarawa was a crucial stepping stone in the planned U.S. offensive across the central Pacific toward Japan. The Japanese garrison on Tarawa’s main island of Betio was well-entrenched with hundreds of bunkers and gun positions behind formidable beach obstacles. The first wave of Marines approaching the shore encountered lower-than-expected tides, forcing them to leave their landing craft on the reef and wade the hundreds of yards to the beach under intense enemy fire. The heaviest number of U.S. casualties were suffered during this phase of the landing. Eventually, rising tides allowed U.S. warships to maneuver closer to shore and support the troops with effective naval gunfire. More Marines landed on the second day, launching attacks inland from the beaches and seizing the Japanese airfield on the island. However, the enemy launched vicious counterattacks and two more days of intense fighting were needed to secure Betio. The last enemy strongpoints were taken on the morning of November 23. The fighting on Betio cost the Marines nearly 3,000 casualties but enabled U.S. forces to press further across the Pacific and yielded valuable tactical lessons that reduced U.S. losses in future amphibious landings. Private First Class William Hanze Limburg entered the U.S. Marine Corps from Tennessee and served in Company A, 1st Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. He was killed in action on November 21, 1943, during the Battle of Tarawa. Private First Class Hanze was buried in Cemetery #33, Main Marine Cemetery, on Betio, but his remains could not be located among those disinterred from the island after the war. Today, Private First Class Limburg is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
William W. Cooper, age 22, from Knoxville, Tennessee, Loudon county.
Service era: World War II
Military history: 35th Infantry Regiment
Date of death: Wednesday, January 13, 1943
Death details: Killed in action in Guadalcanal
Cemetery: Knoxville National
Source: National Archives, 35th Infantry Regiment Association
Kenneth H. Jaynes from Loudon County Tennessee.
Service era: World War II
Date of death: Sunday, December 7, 1941
Death details: Killed aboard the USS Oklhaoma. Accounted for December 19, 2015
Source: Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Knoxville Journal (1946)
Charles Galyon, age 21, from Lenoir City, Tennessee, Loudon county.
Service era: World War I
Date of death: Tuesday, October 8, 1918
Death details: Killed in action
Source: Soldiers of the Great War, findagrave.com