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The 25th Infantry Division in Vietnam


Andrei
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TAY NINH – Cannoneers of Battery C, 3d Battalion, 13th Artillery (The Clan).

POWDER HANDLERS Private Roderick Woods of Bolivar, Tenn. (left), and Private First Class Jose F. Manzaanares of Pharr, Tex., take powder charges to be loaded behind the projectile in the gun tube.

 

Perhaps your jacket original owner ?

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Thanks Andrei!

 

I saw that on the 25th ID Association website when I did a search for Woods.

Certainly possible it was his.

 

I haven't been able to find anything on Swindell.

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SSGt Paul Tuleikis

 

Vietnam Veterans Database

Name: TULEIKIS PAUL E JR

Branch: ARMY

Rate: E06

Rank: STAFF SERGEANT

MOS: 11D

MOS Title: Armor Reconnaissance Specialist

Entered:

Discharged:

Service Number:

State: PENNSYLVANIA

Race: CAUCASIAN

 

This jacket was found in Northern Paris Fleamarket in the early 80s by a friend of mine.

 

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It seems like SSGT Tuleikis went to jump school while in-counrty. CiB has been moved up to let space for the para wings.

You can see the former emplacement of the CIB just above the USA tape.

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The 25th Inf. SSI has been lowered for a new AIRBORNE tab.

 

I have never been able to locate Paul Tuleikis on the different 25th Inf. units rosters.

Was he an early LRP or a member of the Pathfinder Det. ?

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post-467-1237394614.jpg

 

It seems like SSGT Tuleikis went to jump school while in-counrty. CiB has been moved up to let space for the para wings.

You can see the former emplacement of the CIB just above the USA tape.

I once spoke to a guy who was assigned to the 3rd Brigade 82nd Airborne in Vietnam as a "leg" replacement after the unit was taken off jump status. He said he was so impressed by the unit's esprit de corps and all the pumping that his squad leader gave him about being "Airborne" that he extended his tour for six months and during his 30 day leave back to America he got for extending, he went to jump school at Ft. Benning. I'm sure his family thought he was nuts but he was definitely proud of his decision.

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I picked up a nice shirt at the thrift store today and while doing a going to search to learn more about the unit I was directed to our very own forum :) This is quite a long thread so I thought I'd make it a little longer.

 

This has a label dating it to Fiscal Year 1965.

 

shirt.jpg

 

shirtpatch.jpg

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shirt.jpg

 

I am trying to track down the person named on the shirt: Capt. Norberg. So far the only Capt. Norberg of the 25th ID I can find is:

 

U.S. Army Personnel and Dependent Casualties, 1961-1981

about William G Norberg

Name: William G Norberg

Birth Date: 1933

Gender: Male

Race: Caucasian (White)

Home State: Pennsylvania

Casualty Country: Vietnam, Republic of

Casualty Category: Battle Dead

Casualty Status: Hostile Dead: Killed Out-right (previous)

Casualty Date: 7 Jun 1966

Cause of Death: Not Booby Trap Connected: None Of The Above; Mines

Report Date: 7 Jun 1966

Officer Branch: Infantry

Division: 25th Inf Div

Personnel Catagory: Active Duty Army

Military Class: Officers

Rank: Captain

 

 

(by the way, some sources list him as a Major, but that appears to have been a posthumous promotion as he is also listed as a Captain, as in the above casualty report and in this official report:

 

" HEADQUARTERS

2D BATTALION 14TH INFANTRY

(BATTLE DRAGONS)

APO San Francisco 96225

 

AVTLFBB 19 July 1966

 

SUBJECT: Combat Operations After Action Report MACV (RCS/J3/32)

 

THRU: Commanding Officer

1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division

APO 96225

 

TO: Commander

US Military Assistance Command, Vietnam

ATTN: J343

APO US Forces 96243

 

1. Name or Identity and/or Type of Operation:

 

a. Operation FORT SMITH.

 

b. Search and Destroy; Pacification.

 

2. Dates of Operation:

 

03 June to 03 July 1966."

 

 

"....A 2/14 requested dozer use in his area to cover trench lines. Dozer arrived his location 071100 June 66, and hit a mine. Killed Capt Norberg, A Co Commander and Pfc Rivera of [CO, A 2/14 Inf]. Both were standing alongside dozer. "

 

Does anyone have a source that might help me learn if there was more than one infantry Capt. Norberg in the 25th ID in the early days of the war? Thanks.

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Bonjour,

According to a veteran database, only three captain Norberg served in the army during the VN. Only one has a 1542 MOS (INFANTRY UNIT COMMANDER), William Gunther, the others are Rotary Wing Aviator (Unit Commander) and Petroleum Products Supply Officer.

Hope it helps

Valery

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Bonjour,

According to a veteran database, only three captain Norberg served in the army during the VN. Only one has a 1542 MOS (INFANTRY UNIT COMMANDER), William Gunther, the others are Rotary Wing Aviator (Unit Commander) and Petroleum Products Supply Officer.

Hope it helps

Valery

 

Thanks. I also just searched the Army Register for 1961 to 1967 and found only Capt. William Norberg in there (the only other Norberg's listed in that period were retired). Since the shirt is FY 1965 and I'm guessing the white name tape is an early 60's thing, then whomever wore this shirt should have showed up in the Register for that period????????? The database I used only seems to have the Register through 1967.

 

It does increasingly appear that this shirt may have belonged to Capt. William Gunther Norberg.

 

norbergarmyreg.jpg

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Valery:

 

Again, merci!

 

Based on your information, the Army Register and other sources, I think it's safe to conclude this is Capt. WG Nordberg's shirt. How it ended up in a thrift shop near the Mexican border is anyone's guess: he had three children so perhaps one had moved to this area. The shirt has a couple of small flecks of white paint near the sleeve cuffs, but nothing serious and overall is in very good condition. I'd glad I came across before some skateboarder found it and turned it into his latest piece of slacker wardrobe.

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I have checked the Honor Roll of the yearbooks for the 2nd and 3rd year in-country and Captain Norberg is not listed.

The First yearbook doesnt have a Honor Roll at the end.

Unfortunately some early casualties of the division could have been overlooked in the second yearbook.

But doubt about this shirt belonging to Cpt Norberg of the 2/14 Inf.

This is a nice pick up. The sad note is that Cpt Norberg was KIA.

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First Lieutenant James A. Hill, HHC/25th Avn Battalion, OG-107 shirt.

 

LT Hill had this shirt while assigned to the Wolfhounds before the war. He did a first tour or a TDY with the 1/101st Div., hence the combat patch and the CIB added to the shirt. The CIB replaces an EIB. The wear marks of the CIB and the 101st SSI are ligther than the ones for the other insignias.

Then he was assigned to the pathfinder platoon of the 25th Avn Batt for a second tour with the 25th Inf and used again his old shirt.

This shirt was part of a set of three identical ones offered by Lee Jackson Militaria.

 

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Andrei

just noticed your shirt named to Hill. Curious. I have the exact same shirt, identical in all respects. Must be one of the 'three' from LJ that you mention. I bought mine from the now-defunct Militaria Market in Camden Passage, London, from a Frenchman who normally dealt in modern Foreign Legion stuff but who one day turned up with a pile of fine VN US shirts/jackets. Purchased the Hill shirt as it had such an exceptional spread of insignia. Was about 6 or 7 years ago..

Is there a link here ?

Do you have more info on Hill's service history ?

cheery wishes

Pluto

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Andrei

just noticed your shirt named to Hill. Curious. I have the exact same shirt, identical in all respects. Must be one of the 'three' from LJ that you mention. I bought mine from the now-defunct Militaria Market in Camden Passage, London, from a Frenchman who normally dealt in modern Foreign Legion stuff but who one day turned up with a pile of fine VN US shirts/jackets. Purchased the Hill shirt as it had such an exceptional spread of insignia. Was about 6 or 7 years ago..

Is there a link here ?

Do you have more info on Hill's service history ?

cheery wishes

Pluto

Oi Pluto,

nothing more than what I have wrote in this post. Check the link of the 25th Avn Batt. Lt Hill is cited. I am very suprised that another shirt showed up in UK. I fondly remember that Jack told me he had three shirts from Lt Hill.

Now we must find where is the third one !

Cheers,

A.

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Oi Pluto,

nothing more than what I have wrote in this post. Check the link of the 25th Avn Batt. Lt Hill is cited. I am very suprised that another shirt showed up in UK. I fondly remember that Jack told me he had three shirts from Lt Hill.

Now we must find where is the third one !

Cheers,

A.

Enjoyed looking through this topic and there are some neat things being shown. Keep it up! For you Wolfhound Fans out there, I just picked up a book that is right in your wheelhouse (perhaps you may have seen it by now) entitled "Vietnam No Regrets...one soldier's tour of duty" written by J. Richard Watkins. He was with the 1/27th Wolfhounds in 1969 as a radioman. He was a very nice man to talk with as well. Anyway, for those interested he has a website where you can order the book. It is www.vietnamnoregrets.com

 

Hope this is of some help.

 

Jake Powers

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Valery:

 

Again, merci!

 

Based on your information, the Army Register and other sources, I think it's safe to conclude this is Capt. WG Nordberg's shirt.

 

 

Another forum member has confirmed that in 1961 then 1st Lt. Norberg was XO of one of the 7th Special Forces Group teams in Laos during operation Hotfoot/White Star.

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