Basil L. Plumley

Basil L. Plumley (January 1, 1920 – October 10, 2012) was a career soldier and airborne combat infantryman in the United States Army who rose to the rank of command sergeant major. As a combat veteran of World War II and the Vietnam War, he is most noted for his actions during the Battle of Ia Drang in Vietnam.

Basil L. Plumley
CSM(R) Basil Plumley at West Point, May 10, 2010
Born	(1920-01-01)January 1, 1920 Shady Spring, West Virginia, United States
Died	October 10, 2012(2012-10-10) (aged 92)[1] Columbus, Georgia, United States[2]
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1942–1974
Rank	Command Sergeant Major
Unit	320th Field Artillery Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division
Battles/wars	World War II Battle of Normandy Operation Market-Garden Rhine Germany Vietnam War Ia Drang Valley
Awards	Silver Star Legion of Merit Bronze Star Medal Purple Heart (2)
Spouse(s)	Deurice Plumley (c. 1949 – d. 2012)[3]
Other work	Administrative worker at Martin Army Community Hospital (1975–1990)

Military career

Plumley enlisted in the United States Army as a private on March 31, 1942. He was a gliderman of the 320th Glider Field Artillery Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division. He saw action during the Invasion of Normandy, and Operation Market Garden.

Plumley participated in two glider assaults in the European Theater. His first was on June 6, 1944, during the Invasion of Normandy, and his second was for Operation Market Garden on Sept. 18, 1944. Plumley was shot in the hand the same day for which he received the Purple Heart and was awarded multiple decorations for his service in World War II.

Basil Plumley was stationed from 1950 through 1953 at Fort Campbell, Kentucky then he went on to serve in Germany.

He fought in Vietnam with the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment. He participated in the Battle of Ia Drang in Vietnam in 1965, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Hal Moore, who praised Plumley as an outstanding NCO and leader in the 1992 book about this battle, We Were Soldiers Once… and Young. The book was the basis for the 2002 film We Were Soldiers, in which Plumley was played by actor Sam Elliott. Plumley was known affectionately by his soldiers as "Old Iron Jaw". Command Sergeant Major Basil Plumley served in the Republic of Korea between 1972 and 1973.

He retired as a command sergeant major on December 31, 1974, having been awarded 28 different personal, unit, campaign and service awards and decorations in almost 33 years of military service, spanning World War II and the Vietnam War. After his retirement, he worked 15 more years for the army as a civilian in administration at Martin Army Community Hospital and at various medical clinics around Fort Benning, Georgia, retiring again in 1990.[4]

Personal life

Plumley was born on January 1, 1920, in Shady Spring, West Virginia, the second son and fifth child of coal miner Clay H. Plumley (September 19, 1879[5] – 26 February 1952[6]) and his wife Georgia B. Morton (January 19, 1895[7] – February 16, 1962[6]), both of whom were natives of West Virginia. After two years of high-school, he worked as a chauffeur/driver before enlisting in the US Army on March 31, 1942. In 1948/49, Plumley married Deurice Dillon, who died on May 28, 2012, after 63 years of marriage. Plumley died of cancer after nine days in Columbus Hospice (Columbus, Georgia), on October 10, 2012. He is survived by his daughter, Debbie Kimble, a granddaughter, and two great-grandchildren.[3]

In popular culture

Plumley was a prominent and central figure in the 1992 book We Were Soldiers Once… and Young by Lt. Gen Hal Moore and Joseph L. Galloway about the Battle of Ia Drang and was portrayed by actor Sam Elliott in the 2002 film adaption.

Awards and decorations

There have been disputes about the medals and decorations Plumley was entitled to wear and allegations by Brian Siddall in 2015 that Plumley wore unauthorized combat and valor awards that exaggerated his wartime achievements.[8][9][10] The resolving of the dispute is hampered by the death of Plumley three years prior to the allegations and the personnel records of the army, that are not uncommon to be in error, especially during war times and prior to electronic files.

Comparison of Awards and Decorations of CSM Plumley
name of award	listed on his DD 214 in 1974 [10]	worn in 2010 at West Point [11]	verifiable by memo of the Army 2015 [10]	notes
Combat Infantryman Badge	(2nd award, one star on top)	(3rd award, two stars on top)	(1st award, no star on top)	WW2 - Korea - Vietnam would be a CIB with 2 Stars.
Silver Star Medal with bronze Oak Leaf Cluster	(one oak leaf)	(one oak leaf)	(no oak leaf)
Legion of Merit				matching
Bronze Star Medal with "V" Device and bronze Oak Leaf Cluster	("V" Device, two oak leaf)	("V" Device, one oak leaf)	(no "V" Device, one oak leaf)
Air Medal with numeral device or Oak Leaf Cluster	(with numeral "7")	(eight oak leaf)	(with numeral "7")
Army Commendation Medal	(three oak leaf)	(no oak leaf)	(three oak leaf)
Purple Heart with one Oak Leaf Cluster				matching
Army Good Conduct Medal with good conduct loops	(silver clasp and three loops = 8 awards)	(silver clasp and one loop = 6 awards)	(silver clasp and three loops = 8 awards)
American Defense Service Medal	n/a		n/a	only available for service between September 8, 1939 and December 7, 1941
American Campaign Medal				matching
European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with Arrowhead device, silver and bronze campaign stars	(arrowhead, 1 silver star, 1 bronze star)	(arrowhead, 1 silver star, 2 bronze stars)	(arrowhead, 1 silver star, 1 bronze star)
World War II Victory Medal				matching
Army of Occupation Medal with "Germany" clasp				matching
National Defense Service Medal with bronze service star or bronze Oak Leave Cluster	(bronze star)	(bronze oak leaf)	(bronze star)
Vietnam Service Medal with one silver and three bronze campaign stars	(1 silver star, 3 bronze stars)	(3 bronze stars)	(1 silver star, 3 bronze stars)
Korea Defense Service Medal		not worn		awarded since February 2004 (retroactive to July 28, 1954)
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal				matching
French Croix de Guerre (for World War II service)	unclear		unclear	noted in the memo is "French Fourragère"
Belgian Croix de Guerre (for World War II service)	unclear		unclear	noted in the memo is "Belgian Fourragère"
Vietnam Cross of Gallantry with Gold Star				matching
Republic of Vietnam Armed Forces Honor Medal, second class		not worn
Vietnam Campaign Medal with "1960–" device				matching
Master Parachutist Badge				matching
Glider Badge		not worn		A Glider Badge is for Life
Netherlands Orange Lanyard	no picture	not worn	no picture
Republic of Vietnam Parachutist Badge with palm device (= Republic of Vietnam Master Parachutist Badge)				matching
Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation with Palm				matching
Army Presidential Unit Citation with bronze Oak Leaf Clusters	(1 oak leaf)	(2 oak leaf)	(1 oak leaf)
Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Honor Medal unit citation first class		not worn

Awards and decorations (Army memo from 2015)

	Combat Infantryman Badge
	Master Parachutist Badge
	Glider Badge
	Vietnam Master Parachutist Badge

	Silver Star
	Legion of Merit
	Bronze Star Medal with one bronze oak leaf cluster
	Purple Heart with oak leaf cluster
	Air Medal with bronze award numeral 7
	Army Commendation Medal with three oak leaf clusters
	Army Presidential Unit Citation with oak leaf cluster
	Army Good Conduct Medal (8 awards)
	American Campaign Medal
	European–African–Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with Arrowhead device, one silver and one bronze service stars
	World War II Victory Medal
	Army of Occupation Medal with "Germany" clasp
	National Defense Service Medal with service star
	Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
	Vietnam Service Medal with silver and three bronze service stars
	Korea Defense Service Medal
	Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Gold Star
	Vietnam Armed Forces Honor Medal, Second Class
	Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation
	Vietnam Civil Actions Medal Unit Citation
	Vietnam Campaign Medal

• CSM Plumley also received 3 fourragères: World War II War Cross from France and Belgium as well as the Orange Lanyard from The Netherlands.

References

1. Pitts, Fadell (October 10, 2012). "Retired CSM Basil Plumley dies, Fort Benning mourns loss". Columbus, GA: WTVM-TV. Archived from the original on October 13, 2012. Retrieved October 10, 2012.
2. "Basil Plumley, veteran of 3 wars, featured in 'We Were Soldiers' movie, dies in Georgia". Fox News. Associated Press. October 10, 2012. Retrieved October 11, 2012.
3. "Deurice Plumley Obituary". Columbus Ledger-Enquirer (by Legacy.com). May 29, 2012.
4. "Plumley, veteran of 3 wars, dies at age 92". CNN. Associated Press. October 11, 2012.
5. United States, Selective Service System. World War I Selective Service System Draft Registration Cards, 1917–1918. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration. M1509, 4,582 rolls. Imaged from Family History Library microfilm.
6. "West Virginia Deaths, 1853–1970." Index. FamilySearch, Salt Lake City, Utah. From originals housed in county courthouses throughout West Virginia. "Death Records."
7. "West Virginia Births, 1853–1930." Index. FamilySearch, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2008, 2009. From digital images of copies of originals housed in County Courthouses throughout West Virginia. Birth records.
8. Matthew Cox: Army Investigating 'We Were Soldiers' Legend for Inflating Awards, Military.com, 2018
9. Brian Siddall: The Original Plumley Article, Airborne In Normandy, 2015
10. Army HR Memo about Awards and Decorations for CSM Plumley, Department of the Army, U.S. Army Human Resources Command, Awards and Decorations Branch, 2015
11. File:CSM(R) Basil L. Plumley at West Point 10 May 2010.JPG

• 1920 and 1930 US census for Raleigh County, West Virginia
• US Army enlistment records of World War II
• 7th U.S. Cavalry Regiment Association
• Moore, Harold G.; Galloway, Joseph L. (1994). We were soldiers once – and young; Ia Drang: the battle that changed the war in Vietnam (First British ed.). Shrewsbury, UK: Airlife Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1853105023.