Promote & Preserve stories of U.S. fallen soldiers/sailors
Lance Murphy Clark, age 21, from Cookeville, Tennessee, Putnam county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: 1St Bn, 1St Mar Div, (Rct-6, Ii Mef Fwd), Camp Pendleton, Ca
Date of death: Friday, September 7, 2007
Death details: Saqlawiyah, Iraq
Cemetery: Bethlehem Methodist Church in Okalona, Tennessee
Source: Department of Defense, findagrave.com
Aalten Alexander Van, age 21, from Monterey, Tennessee, Putnam county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: Company D, 1st Battalion, 508Th Infantry, Fort Bragg, North Carolina
Date of death: Friday, April 20, 2007
Death details: Hostile; Sangin, Afghanistan
Source: Department of Defense, Military Times
Bobby Lee Palk, age 30, from Bloomington Springs, Tennessee, Putnam county.
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Friday, December 18, 1970
Calvin Andrew Norris, age 30, from Monterey, Tennessee, Putnam county.
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Tuesday, November 3, 1970
Death details: On November 2, 1970, the landing craft utility (LCU) 63 departed Da Nang carrying a crew of eleven on a cargo mission to Tan My, South Vietnam. On November 3, helicopter pilots saw the craft capsized, south of Tan My port. An initial search of the craft found no sign of any if its crew. On November 6, the remains of one of LCU 63’s crew members were found in a life jacket near Cu Lao Island. Further attempts to salvage LCU 63 and locate its crew failed to locate any survivors or remains. Eventually, the remains of another member of the LCU 63’s crew were located and identified; however, the other nine men are still unaccounted for. Staff Sergeant Calvin Andrew Norris, who joined the U.S. Army from Tennessee, was a member of 329th Transportation Company (Heavy Boat), 5th Transportation Command. He was a crew member aboard LCU 63 when it capsized, and was lost with during the incident. His remains were not recovered. Today, Staff Sergeant Norris is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. Based on all information available, DPAA assessed the individual’s case to be in the analytical category of Non-recoverable.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounty Agency
Carl Edward Gilbert, age 24, from Cookeville, Tennessee, Putnam county.
Spouse: Charlotte Gilbert
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Tuesday, January 6, 1970
Death details: Killed in action in South Vietnam
Source: National Archives, Associated Press (1970)
Edward Moore Lemon, age 27, from Cookeville, Tennessee, Putnam county.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Thursday, March 26, 1953
Death details: In late March 1953, elements of the 1st Marine Division manned a string of outposts along a 33-mile section of the main line of resistance on the Korean Peninsula, near the present-day Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). The 1st Marine Division’s 5th Marine Regiment was responsible for three of these outposts, named Carson, Reno, and Vegas, or collectively “the Nevada Cities Complex.” On March 26, Chinese Communist Forces attacked all three outposts. Although Carson managed to stave off the assault, Reno and Vegas, which were more lightly manned, eventually succumbed to the enemy. Over 1,000 Marines were killed, wounded, or went missing during the attack on the Nevada Cities Complex. Private First Class Edward Moore Lemon, who joined the U.S. Marine Corps from Tennessee, served with C Company, 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division. He was killed in action on March 26, 1953, during the attack on the Reno outpost, though specific details of his loss are not known. The area where he was lost never reverted to Allied control, precluding a search for his remains. Today, Private First Class Lemon is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency