About Us Site Map Main Site
Shimek, Samuel D., Specialist 4, United States Army
Penn's POW/MIAs

Back Next

Click for Uniontown, Pennsylvania Forecast

 

Department of the U.S. Army

 

Specialist 4 (E4)

 

 

Loss Coordiantes Map -- Click for larger view.

Loss Coordinates Map

 

 

 

 

 

Name:

Samuel Dale Shimek

Branch / Rank:

US Army / Specialist 4 (E4)

Unit:

Company A, 5th Battalion, 7th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division

Date of Birth:

November 3, 1947

Home of Record:

Uniontown, PA

Date of Loss:

December 9, 1968

Country of Loss:

South Vietnam

Loss Coordinates:

113659N 1063245E (XT687848)

Status (in 1973):

Killed/Body Not Recovered

Category:

2

Duty:

Ground

Other personnel in incident:

(none missing)

Remarks:

Source:  Compiled by Homecoming II Project 01 September 1990 from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews.

 

On December 9, 1968, SP4 Samuel D. Shimek was taking part in a company-sized operation in Binh Long Province, South Vietnam when his unit engaged a superior enemy force. Members of the unit stated that they had seen SP4 Shimek hit by either a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) or a hand grenade, which caused the M79 rounds that he was carrying to explode. As the company’s position became untenable, SP4 Shimek’s body was left behind.

 

A recovery mission returned to the area, but the body could not be found. A source observed the remains of a large foot in that vicinity which local inhabitants claimed was an American foot. This potentially correlates to Shimek.

 

Witnesses believe that Samuel D. Shimek was killed on December 9, 1968. Others who are missing do not have such clear-cut cases. Some were known captives; some were photographed as they were led by their guards. Some were in radio contact with search teams, while others simply disappeared.

 

Since the war ended, over 250,000 interviews have been conducted with those who claim to know about Americans still alive in Southeast Asia, and several million documents have been studied. U.S. Government experts cannot seem to agree whether Americans are there alive or not. Detractors say it would be far too politically difficult to bring the men they believe to be alive home, and the U.S. is content to negotiate for remains.

 

Well over 1000 first-hand, eye-witness reports of American prisoners still alive in Southeast Asia have been received by 1990. Most of them are still classified. If, as the U.S. seems to believe, the men are all dead, why the secrecy after so many years? If the men are alive, why are they not home?

Incidental Information

Click Here to view a queried report of messages and files concerning Samuel from the POW/MIA Database at the Library of Congress's Federal Research Division. (Links will open in New Browser Window).  You can run queries on various name spellings to view the messages.

Honored on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial:  Panel 37W - - Line 78 


The VietNam Veterans' Memorial Wall Page

Did you serve with this HERO?  Is he Family, an old friend, or a High School Sweetheart?  Is there something special you would like to share about Samuel -- If so, I would like to hear about it and post it on this page!!
Please send me an e-mail

 
bullet

The First Cav Association Homepage

bullet

http://www.vvm.com/~firstcav/

bullet

The Seventh Calvary Association

bullet

http://gator.naples.net/presents/7thcav/

bullet

The Virtual Wall

http://www.virtualwall.org/

bullet

The Moving Wall

http://www.themovingwall.org/

bullet

Vietnam Veterans Homepage

http://www.vietvet.org/

bullet

The VietNam Casualty Search Page

http://www.no-quarter.org/

bullet

Operation Just Cause

http://www.ojc.org

Back Up Next

 

Copyright [2004] [Pennsylvania's POW/MIAs]. All rights reserved.

 

Home ] Penn's POW/MIAs ]