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Member of the Joint Services Honor Guard reflected on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial prior to a wreath-laying ceremony to commemorate the anniversary of the Vietnam War, March 2016. (Photo Credit: Drew Angerer / Getty Images)
Episode 3125 of the Vietnam Veteran News Podcast will feature a story about the real Vietnam War start date. Information featured in this episode comes from a story titled: Because of the uncertainty surrounding the Vietnam War’s exact start date, fallen soldiers like Richard Fitzgibbon Jr. weren’t recognized as official war fatalities. The featured story appeared in the War History Online website and was submitted by Jesse Beckett.
Beckett reported that the Vietnam War’s official start date has long been debated, with proposed beginnings ranging from French colonization in 1887 to Ho Chi Minh’s 1946 insurgency, and U.S. military aid starting in 1950. For decades, the U.S. government recognized 1961 as the war’s start, excluding earlier casualties like Air Force Tech. Sgt. Richard Fitzgibbon Jr., who was killed in 1956. After years of advocacy by his family, the Department of Defense revised the official start date to November 1, 1955, acknowledging those early sacrifices.
Born in 1920 in Massachusetts, Fitzgibbon served in both the Navy and Air Force. He was stationed in Vietnam as part of the Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG), where he trained South Vietnamese pilots. On June 8, 1956, following a confrontation with fellow serviceman Staff Sgt. Edward C. Clarke, Fitzgibbon was fatally shot by Clarke, who later died while attempting to flee.
Though Fitzgibbon’s death occurred during U.S. involvement in Vietnam, it wasn’t officially recognized as a war casualty at the time. His son, Richard Fitzgibbon III, later died in combat in 1965, making them one of only three father-son pairs killed in the Vietnam War.
In 1988, a family member discovered Fitzgibbon Jr.’s name missing from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The family petitioned for its inclusion, but progress was slow until 1997, when they gained support from Rep. Ed Markey. His advocacy led to the 1999 addition of Fitzgibbon Jr.’s name to the memorial and the revised war start date—bringing long-overdue recognition to the family’s sacrifice.
Listen to Episode 3125 and discover more about the real Vietnam War start date.
