James Francis Riley

Waukon native James Francis Riley was drafted by the Army and trained as an infantryman. He was sent to South Vietnam in July 1970 and was assigned to Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 20th Infantry Regiment in the Americal Division. In the fall of 1970 he briefly returned from Southeast Asia and married his fiancé. Three weeks later he was killed in South Vietnam. PFC Riley died on November 16, 1970 when he was wounded in the Quang Ngai Province. He died after being medevac’d from the field. The 20-year-old’s body was returned to Iowa and buried at the Mount Olivet Cemetery in Allamakee County.