James Clarence Adams was born September 3, 1947, in Martinsburg, West Virginia, to Lawrence and Eva Cage Adams. He had two sisters.
James graduated from Martinsburg High School in 1965 and worked for his father at the Stoney Corner Service Station and at the J.C. Penney Store. He also worked for Burroughs Corporation located in Washington D.C. where he was employed at the time of his enlistment in the Army in October 1966. He served at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. In 1967 he graduated from Officer’s Candidate School in Fort Benning, Georgia, and was commissioned a second Lieutenant.
Lieutenant James Adams was stationed in South Vietnam beginning September 9, 1968, a member of Alpha Company, 4th Battalion, 9th Infantry, 25th Division. On November 27, he was in Tay Ninh Province, where he received wounds which caused his death. His body was returned to the United States and buried in Rosedale Cemetery in Martinsburg on December 9, 1968.
Lieutenant James Adams’s name appears on panel 38w of the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington D. C. In February of 1969 his parents were presented with the Bronze Medal and Purple Heart, which had been posthumously awarded to their son.
We honor you, James Adams.
