1918 Army chaplain school organized at Fort Monroe VA
On This Day In History
Birthdates which occurred on February 09:
1404 Constantine XI Dragases last Byzantine Emperor
1441 Ali Sjir Neva'i [Fani] Turkish poet/author (Mahbub al-kulub)
1602 Franciscus van de Enden Flemish Jesuit/free thinker/tutor of Spinoza
1744 Amos Bull composer
1772 Frans Mikael Franzén Finnish-Swedish poet (Abo)
1773 William Henry Harrison Virginia, (Whigs) 9th President (March 4-April 4, 1841)
1775 Farkas/Wolfgang Bolyai Hungary, mathematician (parallel axiom)
1814 Samuel Jones Tilden philanthropist for New York Public Library
1826 John Alexander Logan Major General (Union volunteers), died in 1886
1830 Abdül Aziz Istanbul Ottoman, 32nd sultan of Turkey (1861-76)
1846 Wilhelm Maybach German engineer, designer of 1st Mercedes
1865 Erich von Drygalski German Federal Republic, geographer/glaciologist/Antarctic explorer
1891 Ronald Colman England, 1947 Academy Award actor (Tale of 2 Cities)
1901 Brian Donlevy Portadown Ireland, actor (Barbary Coast, Glass Key, Wake Island, Dangerous Assignment)
1909 Dean Rusk US Secretary of State (1961-69)
1909 Carmen Miranda [Maria do Carmo Miranda Da Cunha] Marco de Canavezes Portugal, vocalist/actress (Copacabana, Date With Judy)
1914 Bill (Rhymes with Wreck) Veeck baseball club owner
1914 Ernest Tubb Texas, guitarist/singer (I'm Walking the Floor over You)
1928 Roger Mudd Washington DC, news anchor (CBS Weekend News, NBC Evening News)
1940 Smokey Robinson rocker (& Miracles-Tears of Clown)
1942 Carole King [Klein], Brooklyn NY, pianist/singer (Tapestry)
1943 Joe Pesci Newark NJ, actor (Goodfellas)
1944 Alice Walker US, novelist (Color Purple, Meridian)
1945 Mia (Maria) Farrow Los Angeles CA, actress (Rosemary's Baby, Purple Rose of Cairo)
1947 Joe Ely Amarillo TX, country vocalist (Honky Tonk Masquerade)
1954 Ulrich Walter German Federal Republic, cosmonaut
1960 Peggy A Whitson Mt Ayr IA, PhD/astronaut
1963 Travis Tritt Marietta GA, country vocalist (Country Club)
1965 Lennox Lewis London England, Super heavyweight boxer (Olympics-gold-1988)
1918 Army chaplain school organized at Fort Monroe VA
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MCLEAN, JAMES HENRY  REMARKS: CAPTURE CONF BY VIET PWS Source: Compiled by from one or more of the following: raw data from U.S. Government agency sources, correspondence with POW/MIA families, published sources, interviews. Updated by the P.O.W. NETWORK. SYNOPSIS: SP4 James H. McLean was a medic assigned to Advisory Team 88, MAC-V, serving with a South Vietnamese Regional Forces unit at Duc Phong, Phuoc Long Province, Republic of Vietnam. On February 9, 1965, at about midnight, Duc Phong came under attack and was seized by the Viet Cong. The following day, an ARVN unit was inserted into the area, and learned that an American had been observed being held captive in the vicinity of Duc Phong. Enemy fire drove observing helicopters away. By mid-afternoon on February 10, the ARVN unit that had been inserted had recaptured the camp and recovered the remains of 3 American advisors. As none of them was McLean, it was determined that the captured American was McLean. Several released and escaped South Vietnamese captured in the same incident or held in various camps with McLean later reported that SP4 McLean had been captured uninjured. He was last seen alive in late 1966, having detained all this time in camps in northern Phuoc Long Province. Although one of the released POWs stated that he had seen McLean sick and then never saw him again, McLean's name never appeared on lists provided which named those who died in captivity. He was not released in 1973 in the general prisoner release. McLean is one of nearly 2500 Americans who remain prisoner, missing or otherwise unaccounted for in Southeast Asia. There can be no question that the Vietnamese know his fate. With thousands of reports being received relating to Americans still held prisoner, one has to wonder if McLean is one of those that experts believe are still alive. If he is, what must he be thinking of us? UPDATED 01/06/96 extracted from the newsletter by: NATIONAL ALLIANCE OF FAMILIES FOR THE RETURN OF AMERICA'S MISSING SERVICEMEN WORLD WAR II - KOREA - COLD WAR - VIETNAM DOLORES ALFOND - VOICE/FAX - (206) 881-1499 LYNN O'SHEA ---- VOICE/FAX - (718) 846-4350 BITS 'N' PIECES JANUARY 6, 1996 IN OUR OCTOBER 7TH EDITION WE DISCUSSED PROJECT X. WE HAVE HEARD FROM SIX FAMILIES WHO WERE UNAWARE OF THE EXISTENCE OF "PROJECT X" AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO THEIR LOVED ONES CASES. NO "PROJECT X" INFORMATION WAS EVER PROVIDED TO THESE FAMILIES AND NO "PROJECT X" INFORMATION WAS CONTAINED IN CASUALTY FILES REVIEWED BY THESE FAMILIES. THE OBVIOUS QUESTION -- WHAT ELSE IS OUT THERE THAT THE FAMILIES DON'T KNOW ABOUT? ONE OF THE "PROJECT X" CASES IS JAMES MC LEAN, CONFIRMED CAPTURED. WE DECIDED TO LOOK AT THE CASE OF JAMES MC LEAN TO SEE WHAT INFORMATION WAS AVAILABLE. HERE BASED ON OUR LIMITED EFFORTS AND RESOURCES IS WHAT WE HAVE ON JAMES MC LEAN. THE FOLLOWING IS FROM THE "PROJECT X" REPORT: "RATIONAL FOR SELECTION: THERE ARE REPORTS THAT SP4 MC LEAN WAS CAPTURED ALIVE AND UNINJURED, AND NUMEROUS LATER REPORTS IDENTIFIED HIM AS A PRISONER OF WAR. NO REPORTS OF DEATH HAVE BEEN RECEIVED SUBSEQUENT TO THESE SIGHTINGS." SUMMARY OF PROJECT X SUMMARY: A: VIETNAMESE CAPTURED IN SAME INCIDENT AND RELEASED 27 MARCH 1965 REPORTED AT TIME OF CAPTURE MC LEAN "HAD NOT BEEN WOUNDED." B: IN JUNE 1965 - AN ARVN RANGER HELD BY THE VC FROM 11 MAY 1965 TO 9 JUNE 1965 REPORTED SEEING MC LEAN IN THE SAME CAMP. C: AUGUST 1966 - A MONTANARD CAPTURED IN AUGUST 1965 AND ESCAPED SOMETIME IN MAY OR EARLY JUNE 1966 STATED HE MET MC LEAN AND WAS GIVEN THE DUTY OF CARING FOR HIM. MC LEAN WAS ILL WITH DIARRHEA AND MALARIA. THE MONTANARD STAYED AT THE CAMP TWO MONTHS D: TWO ARVN RELEASED IN SEPT 1965 STATED THEY WERE HELD WITH A PW BELIEVED TO BE MC LEAN. E: 20 OCT. 1966 - AN ARVN INTELLIGENCE AGENT REPORTED THAT HE SAW AN AMERICAN PW AT (GC) YU 336 155. THE AMERICAN IS BELIEVED TO BE MC LEAN. AFTER REVIEWING PROJECT X WE WONDERED -- WHAT ELSE IS OUT THERE ON JAMES MC LEAN? WE FOUND THAT THE INFORMATION ON JAMES MC LEAN IS CONTAINED IN EACH OF THE DOCUMENTS OR LISTS MENTIONED BELOW. HERE BASED ON OUR LIMITED EFFORTS AND RESOURCES IS WHAT WE HAVE ON JAMES MC LEAN. JANUARY 1973 - KISSINGER LIST APRIL 18, 1973 - DEPT. OF ARMY MEMO -SUBJ: PW OF WHOM PRG/DRV SHOULD HAVE KNOWLEDGE JUNE 1973 - LIST OF 67 - "HOSTILE CAPTURED" JULY 3, 1973 - MEMO TO CHIEF US DELEGATION FOUR PARTY JOINT MILITARY TEAM (FPJMT) - PROBABLY CAPTURED - "LAST SEEN AS AN ADVISOR WHEN CAMP WAS OVER RAN. IDENT AS PW BY COMPARISON OF PHOTOS FURNISHED BY FAMILY WITH SOME CAPTURED PHOTOS." JULY 14, 1973 - MEMO U.S. PERSONNEL BELIEVED TO BE IN A CAPTURED STATUS - SVN PROBABLY CAPTURED - "LAST SEEN ON DUTY AS AN ADVISOR WHEN HIS STATIONS WAS OVERRUN BY A HOSTILE FORCE. HIS FAMILY POSITIVELY IDENTIFIED SOME CAPTURED PHOTOS AS BEING SUBJECT. PHOTOS INDICATE SUBJECT WAS PW OF VC. DIA 1979 LIST - CAPTURE CONFIRMED DISCREPANCY CASE ORIGINAL 119 JAN. 22, 1992 JCRC MEMO - SUBJ: STORED REMAINS - VIETNAM (THIS RELATED ONLY TO THE 119 DISCREPANCY CASE LIST) SECTION: C: ALL OTHER INDIVIDUALS. VESSEY 135 DISCREPANCY LIST 55 DISCREPANCY CASE LIST AS OF FEB. 17, 1995 VIETNAM, YOU CAPTURED JAMES MC LEAN. YOU HELD HIM AS PRISONER OF WAR. WHERE IS JAMES MC CLEAN? |