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James
Edmonds
Edmonds
CPL · · 11B10 · Infantryman
KIA
In-Country Service
1968-10-20 –
Home of Record
Burlington, Alamance County, NC
Character of Service
Honorable
Archive Status
Active
Casualty records (Honor States, Virtual Wall, Wall of Faces) plus CPT Henry Colavita's memoir, "Company Grade: Memoir of an Angry Skipper" (Hellgate Press, 2015), ch. 10, "Homeless on Saint Barbara" — the first firsthand account of the action that killed him. If you served with or knew James Edmonds, please use the contribute form to share what you remember.
1968-10-20
Arrived
Arrived in Vietnam — October 20, 1968
CPL James Edmonds began his tour with D Company, 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division, Republic of Vietnam.
1969-02-05
Incident
Killed in action — February 5, 1969
CPL Edmonds was mortally wounded at a creek crossing in D Company's AO near FSB/LZ Saint Barbara, Tay Ninh Province — an ambush the company later nicknamed "Colavita Creek," which also killed SP4 Chester Kmit. The landing zone was too hot for a helicopter to land, so a jungle-penetrator lift was arranged to evacuate him by cable; during the lift, enemy fire led the medevac crew to cut the cable, and Edmonds fell. A Medical Service Corps colonel formally investigated afterward; company commander CPT Henry Colavita testified the cut was not necessary and has said he believes Edmonds may already have died of his wounds before the fall. He was 20 years old. See events/operation-sheridan-sabre-1969-02-05/ for the full account.
1969-02-05
Casualty record
Tay Ninh Province, III Corps, RVN — a creek crossing in D Company's AO near FSB Saint Barbara (confirmed grid XT275684, 11.4748/106.1651 — see locations/fsb-st-barbara/), nicknamed "Colavita Creek" by the company afterward. The exact grid of the creek crossing itself, relative to that base, is not established.
Did You Know James, or Serve Alongside James?
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