thedrifter
03-27-06, 07:09 AM
http://www.americanheritage.com/assets/images/photos/20060325/03-25-640-480.jpg
A young private waits warily on the beach as Marines land at Da Nang, Vietnam, in August 1965.
The Marine Corps had been engaged in Vietnam since 1954, when the first liaison officer arrived in an advisory capacity. Marines served as advisors until 1962, when a helicopter squadron first gave combat support to the struggling South Vietnamese army. Two years later, in April 1964, the first Marine ground units were deployed. The Gulf of Tonkin incident, in August 1964, marked a turning point, with a major shift from advisory to combat duties and an increasing number of troops. In August 1965 Marines engaged in their first major battles with the Viet Cong, and U.S. troops continued to fight in Vietnam until 1972.
Though this photo has been widely published, the young Marine has never been identified. Did he ever return home, or was he among the more than 58,000 U.S. casualties of our nation’s longest war?
—Martha Davidson
National Archives
Ellie
A young private waits warily on the beach as Marines land at Da Nang, Vietnam, in August 1965.
The Marine Corps had been engaged in Vietnam since 1954, when the first liaison officer arrived in an advisory capacity. Marines served as advisors until 1962, when a helicopter squadron first gave combat support to the struggling South Vietnamese army. Two years later, in April 1964, the first Marine ground units were deployed. The Gulf of Tonkin incident, in August 1964, marked a turning point, with a major shift from advisory to combat duties and an increasing number of troops. In August 1965 Marines engaged in their first major battles with the Viet Cong, and U.S. troops continued to fight in Vietnam until 1972.
Though this photo has been widely published, the young Marine has never been identified. Did he ever return home, or was he among the more than 58,000 U.S. casualties of our nation’s longest war?
—Martha Davidson
National Archives
Ellie