Private First Class Walter Joseph Taylor, Jr.

Early Life

Walter Joseph Taylor, Jr., was born October 30, 1947. He grew up in Moss Point, Mississippi, during the peak of racial violence. In 1966, he graduated from Magnolia High School, four years before it merged with the all-white Moss Point Central High School. 

At a critical point in his life, stability was essential amidst overwhelming unrest and uncertainty. The military presented appealing and daunting opportunities during the tense economic and social dynamics at home. 

Home Front

Contributing to the War Effort 

Moss Point, located on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, is a few miles away from Pascagoula, where Ingalls Shipbuilding constructed military ships. The USS Washoe County (LST-1165), a landing ship tank, received numerous commendations and battle stars for its service in Vietnam. Many local men also joined the ranks of the estimated 227,000 Mississippians who volunteered or were drafted to serve in the Vietnam War. In 1966, the federal government launched Project 100,000 to encourage military recruitment in poor areas. Mississippi was one of the poorest states, but the exact number of its recruits among the more than 150,000 that served is unknown. 

Growing Hostilities in Mississippi 

Project 100,000 led to disparities among soldiers serving in Vietnam. The program fueled anti-war protests and the growing tensions of the Civil Rights Movement, to which Mississippi diverted much of its attention during the 1960s. 

In 1967, a Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee volunteer in Moss Point observed that membership in their group had declined. Many activists endured police beatings and unlawful arrests. The heightened intensity of the violence and the struggle for civil rights created a war-like environment that, for many, was more urgent than war overseas.  

Disaster Strikes the Coast 

Mississippi faced another crisis in 1969 when Hurricane Camille devastated the Gulf Coast, leaving many homeless. Uprooted communities were left to rebuild as more soldiers left for Vietnam. With the state reckoning with disaster and race relations, many civilians bore battle scars of their own.
 

Creator: Randall, William (Bill) T. 

URL: http://collections.msdiglib.org/digital/collection/jsg/id/473/rec/52  

Military Experience

After basic training, Walter Taylor joined Company A of the 158th Assault Helicopter Battalion,101st  Airborne Division. After a year of service, he was promoted to private first class. 

He bravely served as a door gunner of a Utility Helicopter-1 Iroquois Helicopter, an iconic symbol of the war. His job involved using an M-60 machine gun to provide protection during missions. Often under heavy enemy fire, this role was crucial for defending troops as they landed or took off.  

His chopper was one of 12,000 U.S. military helicopters that flew two million missions above Vietnam. They assisted in the rescue of over 90,000 wounded and saved countless lives. 

Commemoration

On December 6, 1970, Taylor’s aircraft crashed in the South China Sea near Da Nang Harbor. His name is listed on the Honolulu Memorial at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi. 

In April 2018, he was honored at Arlington National Cemetery with a monument recognizing the service of over 4,800 helicopter pilots and crew members who sacrificed their lives in Southeast Asia from 1961 to 1975. 

Soldiers who witnessed his last moments remembered him smiling and waving with his crew. This spirit of camaraderie forged during an era defined by deep division is a testament to a life characterized by perseverance.  

Private First Class Walter Taylor Joseph, Jr. was awarded the National Defense Service Medal for his service. 

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