Remember...
William Codar States
1948-1969
"The sun doesn't always shine in West Virginia, but the people do."
- John F. Kennedy
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Remember...William Codar States
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On January 27, 1948, in Camden Clark Memorial Hospital, William Codar States was born in Parkersburg, Wood County, West Virginia. William lived in Leachtown, a town east of Mineral Wells. The community is located on Route 47 in eastern Wood County. William had one sister (Linda States Peine), and his parents were Denzel Junior States (1924-2011) and Mary "Majorie" Freed States (1927-2015). Around 1950, the States family moved to Orrville, Ohio, and then moved back to Walker, West Virginia, in 1960.
William was part of the Boy Scouts in elementary school and started at Parkersburg High School in ninth grade. By his junior year, he was a drummer in the Big Red Band. He was a member of the Vaught Chapel United Methodist Church. William's great-grandfather, Augustus R. Freed, built Vaught Chapel United Methodist Church in the mid-1800s. (Linda States Peine, Virtual Interview, 18 October 2023.)
When William was around the age of seven, the Vietnam War started. While some hostilities began as early as 1955, the United States officially entered the Vietnam War around March of 1965. In August of 1964, President Johnson addressed the nation in a television speech that U.S ships had been attacked twice in international waters in the Gulf of Tonkin near North Vietnam. Therefore, the Tonkin Gulf Resolution went into effect. In 1965, the first U.S troops were sent to Vietnam to fight the war. ("Tonkin Gulf Resolution [1964]," National Archives website, last reviewed 8 February 2022, accessed 7 November 2023, https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/tonkin-gulf-resolution.) The United States' main goal from the Vietnam War was to prevent Communist domination of Southeast Asia.
Meanwhile, in the United States, civilians were protesting in big cities. Many people in the United States did not think that the U.S. should be involved in the Vietnam War. On May 4, 1970, at Kent State University, members of the Ohio National Guard fired into the crowd, killing four and wounding nine students because they were protesting the Vietnam War.
| William graduated from Parkersburg High School in 1966 and worked as a lineman for a telephone company before enlisting in the military. At the age of 20, William was drafted into the United States Army for service in the Vietnam War and underwent advanced training in the Non-Commissioned Officers School at Fort Benning, Georgia, in 1968, earning the rank of E-5. |  |
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William was assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division, 1st Battalion, 505th Infantry, B Company. Rising to the rank of staff sergeant, States specialized in light weapons infantry for the U.S. Army. He started his tour of Vietnam on July 16, 1968, and served for nearly one year before being killed in action on April 20, 1969. His death occurred in Hau Nghia Province, South Vietnam. The infantry battalions assigned to the 3rd Brigade during its Vietnam tour were 1-505th, 2-505th, and 1-508th. Staff Sergeant States was killed by a fragmentation explosive device. His body was recovered and buried at the Vaught Chapel Cemetery in Leachtown, Wood County, West Virginia. William is honored on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., Panel 26W, Line 15. He is also honored at the West Virginia Veterans Memorial in Charleston, West Virginia, as well. |
Staff Sergeant Willam Codar States received the notable awards of the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star. His service record indicates he was also eligible for the Army Good Conduct Medal, Vietnam Gallantry Cross, Army Presidential Unit Citation, Vietnam Service Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Parachutist Badge, Marksmanship Badge, Combat Infantryman Badge, and the Army Commendation Medal. ("William Codar States," HonorStates.org website, accessed 7 November 2023, https://www.honorstates.org/index.php?id=299894.)
In 2022, the West Virginia legislature authorized the West Virginia Division of Highways to rename bridge number 54-047/00-009.61, originally known as Kites Run Bridge, carrying WV 96 over Walker Creek in Wood County, the "U.S. Army SSG William Codar States Memorial Bridge."
Article prepared by Caroline Kuhn, with assistance from Linda States Peine, sister of William
November 2023
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.