Jason Lee Deibler, age 20, from Coeburn, Virginia, Wise county.
Service era: Iraq
Military history: Company A 1St Battalion 6Th Infantry Regiment, Apo Ae
Date of death: Sunday, May 4, 2003
Death details: Accident, Camp Wolf, Kuwait
Cemetery: Hampton National
Source: Department of Defense, findagrave.com; Library of Virginia, Richmond
Rodney Harold Stone, age 26, from Big Stone Gap, Virginia, Wise county.
Parents: Henry G. Stone
Spouse: Jane Draper Stone
Children: Todd Andrew Stone
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Saturday, May 2, 1970
Death details: Killed in Vietnam in the crash of his airplane.
Cemetery: Powell Valley Memorial
Source: National Archives, Knoxville News Sentinel (1970)
James Wilfred Clement, age 25, from Coeburn, Virginia, Wise county.
Parents: H. W. Clement
Spouse: Dorothy
Children: Five children
Service era: Vietnam
Schools: University of Michigan, East Tennessee State University, graduated from Colorado State University.
Military history: 20th Tactical Air Support Squadron at Da Nang
Date of death: Wednesday, March 11, 1970
Death details: James was on an observation flight when his plane failed to return following bad weather. The wreckage was found on a mountain top near Da Nang a short time later.
Source: National Archives, Kingsport Times (1970)
Michael Wayne Hopkins, age 20, from Wise, Virginia, Wise county.
Parents: Lonnie L. Hopkins Jr.
Service era: Vietnam
Schools: J.J. Kelly High
Date of death: Tuesday, February 24, 1970
Death details: Killed in Vietnam
Source: National Archives, Johnson City Press (1970)
Roger Smith Bryant from Exeter, Virginia, Wise county.
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Sunday, January 18, 1970
Source: National Archives
Don Gene Stallard, age 23, from Wise County Norton, Virginia .
Parents: Creed P. Stallard
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Sunday, December 5, 1965
Death details: Killed in action in Vietnam
Source: National Archives, Roanoke Times (1965)
Boyce Eugene Lawson, age 24, from Wise County Wise, Virginia .
Parents: Mary Lawson
Spouse: Ann Roberts Lawson
Children: Nelda Ann Lawson
Service era: Vietnam
Date of death: Friday, January 11, 1963
Death details: Killed in a helicopter crash in South Vietnam.
Source: National Archives, Biloxi Sun Herald (1943), Bristol Virginia Tennessean (1963)
James Chadwell Slemp, age 21, from Big Stone Camp, Virginia, Wise county.
Service era: Korea
Military history: 35th Infantry Regiment
Date of death: Thursday, March 29, 1951
Death details: Killed in action, South Korea
Cemetery: McGrudger Slemp, Wise County
Source: National Archives, 35th Infantry Regiment Association
Willard Hoyt Edwards from Virginia, Wise county.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Saturday, December 2, 1950
Death details:
On the evening of November 27, 1950, Chinese Communist Forces (CCF) launched a massive attack against the U.S. and United Nations troops stationed in the Chosin Reservoir area in northeast North Korea, resulting in a seventeen-day conflict that became known as the Battle of Chosin Reservoir. At the time of the initial CCF attack, members the U.S. Army’s 31st and 32nd Infantry Regiments were defending the area north of Sinhung-ni, on the east side of the reservoir. The defenders were overwhelmed by the numerically superior CCF, and on December 1, were forced to withdraw to friendly lines at Hagaru-ri. Chinese roadblocks from Sinhung-ni to Hagaru-ri along with the constant enemy fire from the surrounding high ground, made the withdrawal route extremely dangerous. Eventually, the column was broken into separate segments, which the CCF attacked individually. Many men were lost or captured during the moving battle, with survivors reaching friendly lines in Hagaru-ri on December 2 and 3.
Private First Class Willard Hoyt Edwards, who entered the U.S. Army from Virginia, was a member of Company M, 3rd Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. Private First Class Edwards was killed by enemy fire on December 2, during the withdrawal to Hagaru-ri. A fellow U.S. soldier who witnessed this loss reported he buried PFC Edwards’ remains along the roadside near the place where he fell. However, his remains have not been recovered and he is still unaccounted-for. Today, Private First Class Edwards is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
James F. Johnston from Virginia, Wise county.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Saturday, December 2, 1950
Death details:
On the evening of November 27, 1950, Chinese Communist Forces (CCF) launched a massive attack against the U.S. and United Nations troops stationed in the Chosin Reservoir area in northeast North Korea, resulting in a seventeen-day conflict that became known as the Battle of Chosin Reservoir. At the time of the initial CCF attack, members the U.S. Army’s 31st and 32nd Infantry Regiments were defending the area north of Sinhung-ni, on the east side of the reservoir. The defenders were overwhelmed by the numerically superior CCF, and on December 1, were forced to withdraw to friendly lines at Hagaru-ri. Chinese roadblocks from Sinhung-ni to Hagaru-ri along with the constant enemy fire from the surrounding high ground, made the withdrawal route extremely dangerous. Eventually, the column was broken into separate segments, which the CCF attacked individually. Many men were lost or captured during the moving battle, with survivors reaching friendly lines in Hagaru-ri on December 2 and 3.
Sergeant James Fred Johnston entered the U.S. Army from Virginia and was a member of Company B, 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He went missing at some point during this withdrawal from Sinhung-ni to Hagaru-ri, though specific details regarding his loss are unknown. He was never reported as a prisoner of war, and he remains unaccounted for. Today, Sergeant Johnston is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency