William Edward Tieman was born on March 30, 1948, to Harold and Mary Tieman. His home of record is Delanco, NJ.
William, who was called Bill or Billy, attended Riverside High School and graduated in June 1966. Billy was on the Varsity Football and Wrestling Teams and lettered in both sports. Billy also enjoyed working on his car and collecting Matchbox cars and trucks. He also was a gun collector.
After graduation, he went to work for Kaiser Gypsum Co. Inc. in Delanco.
William was drafted into the US Army on March 6, 1967. He received basic training at Fort Dix and further instruction at Fort Polk, PA. He was sent to Vietnam on August 1, 1967. He attained the rank of Specialist Four (E4). William served with Company B, 3rd Battalion, 39th Infantry, and 9th Infantry Division.
Tieman was killed in action on January 8, 1968. He is buried in Odd Fellows Cemetery in Burlington, NJ.
Tieman was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal and the Purple Heart. Prior to his death, William had been awarded the Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, and the Vietnam Campaign Ribbon. He was also certified as an expert rifleman.
Even before graduating, he felt his duty was to be with his young fellow Americans fighting in Vietnam. It was inevitable that he would volunteer for the draft and go fight with them. He was shipped to Vietnam on August 1, 1967. Before he left, he had a premonition that he would not come home. He told his mother to bury him in Odd Fellows Cemetery.
Bill’s father, Harold, served in the U.S. Navy on the USS Camden as a Fireman Second Class. He held ratings as an AS, F3cF2 until his discharge on September 20, 1928. His uncle, John Tieman, was a US Naval Officer in the 1920s or 1930s. His uncle, Pete Pacevich, served in the US Army during WWII in Europe. He had one cousin, Bill Farnum, who served in the US Army. He went in the second wave driving an ammo truck two days after D-Day on June 6, 1944. He had another cousin, Charles (Goodies) Pippitt, who served in the US Marines in combat during WWII in the South Pacific. He was a machine gunner. Bill’s oldest brother, Harold Allen Tieman, was in the US Army in the Advance Infantry Training and was due to be shipped to Korea when the war ended. He finished out his tour in Germany in the Tank Division. After Bill’s death, his younger brother, Gary Douglas Tieman, enlisted in the US Army in June 21, 1968, and went to Vietnam as a Demolition Expert. He returned home in January 1970, when his father passed away. He was discharged May 5, 1970. Exactly two years to the day when Bill’s body was recovered after being missing in action, his father passed away. His niece, Stacia Zachary Tieman (Gary’s Daughter), enlisted in the US Air Force February 12, 2002. her last day of active duty was 31 August 2022. She retired at the rank of Senior Master Sergeant out of Ramstein Air Base, Germany after 20 years of service. She was a Public Affairs Airman and combat correspondent.  — She is married to a (Ret.) Master Sergeant Christopher  Zachary, who retired in 2015 after 25 years as a Air Force Combat Controller. They currently reside in Arkansas and help combat veterans with The Few and Warrior Hunts.
Bill was survived by his father, Harold, until his death in January 1970, his mother Mary, until her death in June 1997, and his oldest sister, Joan, until her death in October 2004. He is still survived by his sisters, Marie Peck, Dorothy Tieman, Barbara Kowaleski and his brothers Harold, John, Gary, Edward and James Tieman.
Prior to his death, Tieman had been awarded the Good Conduct Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal, the Vietnam Campaign Ribbon and the Combat Infantryman Badge. He was wounded in action in November 1967, and was awarded a Purple Heart. The paperwork must have gotten lost because he was killed so soon after returning to Vietnam after his R & R. His parents never received the first Purple Heart. He was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star Medal and the Purple Heart.
His Bronze Star citation reads:
For distinguishing himself by outstanding meritorious service in connection with ground operations against a hostile force in the Republic of Vietnam during the period of 20 July 1967 to 8 January 1968. Through his untiring efforts and professional ability, he consistently obtained outstanding results. He was quick to grasp the implications of new problems with which he was faced as a result of the ever-changing situations inherent in a counterinsurgency operation and to find ways and means to solve those problems. The energetic application of his extensive knowledge has materially contributed to the efforts of the United States Mission to the republic of Vietnam to assist that country in ridding itself of the communist threat to its freedom. His initiative, zeal, sound judgment and devotion to duty have been in the highest tradition of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.
The cook in Bill’s outfit was from the neighboring town of Riverside, NJ, and told us upon his return that Bill’s platoon went out for a small skirmish. It turned out that they were out numbered 10 to 1. This was because of apparent poor intelligence and nobody in the platoon survived. Only three from the rest of the company, who came in as reinforcements, survived. This happened near Long Au in the Mekong Delta, during the offensive.
Written by John Tieman, Brother
September 6, 2005
Sources: John Tieman (brother) and NJVVMF.
12/17/2024
