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Remember...Thomas Alan Johnson
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Thomas Alan Johnson was born September 30, 1938, in Albert, West Virginia, the son of Frederick and Ruth Long Johnson. Thomas had five brothers and five sisters.
Thomas Johnson entered the Army in March 1956. While on a tour of duty in Germany, he married Renate Hilla. The couple had two children, Dagmar Anita and Thomas Alan Jr.
Arriving in Vietnam on January 15, 1968, on February 14, Staff Sgt. Thomas A. Johnson, a member of Troop A, Third Squadron, was reported missing in action. It was later learned that he was killed on that date. Sgt. Johnson's unit was on a search and destroy mission in the village of Ap Cho when, according to his Silver Star citation, "with partially disabled tank and one armored personnel carrier at his command, Sergeant Johnson took the initiative to maneuver into a beleaguered infantry unit's location. While receiving heavy and effective fire from the Viet Cong force he fearlessly exposed himself to return this fire with all the power available to him." Sergeant Johnson was mortally wounded but his actions "contributed immeasurably to the success of the mission and the defeat of the enemy force." He was posthumously awarded the Silver Star and Purple Heart.
The body of Staff Sergeant Thomas A. Johnson was returned to the United States and interred in Rose Hill Cemetery in Thomas, West Virginia.
West Virginia Archives and History welcomes any additional information that can be provided about these veterans, including photographs, family names, letters and other relevant personal history.
