Samuel Lee McDonald

The gravestone of Samuel McDonald in the Gettysburg National Cemetery.

NPS Photo.

Quick Facts

Significance:

PFC Samuel Lee McDonald an African American soldier who served during the Vietnam War

Place of Birth:

Harrisburg, PA

Date of Birth:

September 13, 1944

Place of Death:

la Drang, Vietnam

Date of Death:

November 1965

Place of Burial:

Section III, Row F, Site #116

Cemetery Name:

Gettysburg National Cemetery

Section III, Row F, Site #116

Born on September 13, 1944, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Samuel Lee McDonald, an African American soldier, served in C Company, 7^th Cavalry, 1^st Battalion, 1^st Cavalry Division. His tour of duty in Vietnam commenced on August 15, 1965.

PFC Samuel L McDonald, courtesy of Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund (vvfm.org)

He lost his life just three months later at la Drang on November 15, during the intense combat that raged at Landing Zone X-Ray. He was just twenty-one years of age. He left behind a widow, Ethel, and a son who was born shortly after Samuel had departed for Vietnam. The remains of Private First Class. McDonald were laid to rest in Section 3 of the Gettysburg National Cemetery. He is one of at least eight African Americans who lost their lives in Vietnam to be interred in the Gettysburg National Cemetery.

The Battle of la Drang is widely regarded as the first major battle of the Vietnam War waged between the United States military and the North Vietnamese Army. Fought in the central highlands of Vietnam, there were two main engagements during the Battle of la Drang, each centered on helicopter landing zones: Landing Zone X-Ray and Landing Zone Albany.

During the intense, five-day-long battle that ensued (November 14-18, 1965), 237 Americans were killed, more than 250 were wounded, and 4 were reported missing.