Correspondent photo / Karla Dines Thomas Taylor, 79, of Warren, stands next to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial at Courthouse Square. Taylor was drafted into the Army in October 1966 at the age of 20 and served in Vietnam.

EDITOR’S NOTE: To suggest a veteran for this series, which runs weekly through Veterans Day, email Metro Editor Marly Reichert at mreichert@tribtoday.com or call her at 330-841-1737.

WARREN — Thomas Taylor was born to a family with deep military roots.

His great-grandfather, Edward Manley, joined the Buffalo Soldiers in 1898, at age 21, during the Spanish-American War. Seventy-nine years after Manley fought at San Juan Hill, Cuba, Taylor was drafted into the Army and served in Vietnam, continuing the legacy of service.

Buffalo Soldiers were African-American soldiers who served in the Army from the post-Civil War era to the mid-20th century. Unlike Vietnam veterans returning from the war, Buffalo Soldiers achieved remarkable recognition for their military service despite facing severe racial discrimination.

Taylor said that before he even returned from Vietnam, he heard about people being spat on for going to the war.

While taking courses at Youngstown State University, Taylor was drafted into the Army in October 1966 at the age of 20. Basic training took place at Fort Benning, Georgia.

Basic training was cut short, and Taylor was off to radio relay courier operator training at Fort Gordon, also in Georgia.

“I had options after I had to go, as far as being guaranteed school after another year of service, but they told us that 95% of you people are going to Vietnam,” Taylor said.

After the 12 weeks of job training at Fort Gordon, Taylor and the other draftees were sent to Cleveland. While in Cleveland, Taylor received advice that he said served him well during his time in the Army.

“A gentleman in Cleveland told me that when they call you to get in line, don’t get into the first row or the last row. So I just happened to get in the middle because I was taking my time when they called us to line up. They took the first and last rows of people and said, ‘Step forward or step back.’ He said those people were going to the United States Marine Corps. Some of them began to cry when they were told that. It was hard enough being drafted to go into the Army, but the Marine Corps is a little different. You are getting drafted and sent to one of the worst ones (military branches) there is,” Taylor said.

When Taylor landed in Vietnam, he said because of the extreme heat, opening the plane door and exposure to it took his breath away. In mid-day, especially, it was so hot that some of the draftees had to hold on to something as they exited the plane.

“When you hit that 120-130 degree heat, it affected you after the long flight,” Taylor said.

“That early advice stuck with me all the time I was in the service because when I flew over to Vietnam, the same thing happened.”

Upon arrival in Vietnam, Taylor again got into the middle of the line, and the soldiers in the front row were told they would be in the infantry.

There were young Vietnamese women whom Taylor recognized as being as young as his sister back home. They would come onto base and cut hair, shine boots or work in the kitchen to earn money. They seemed to like the Americans, but Taylor said he never knew whether they were spies and felt they could not be trusted.

“You never knew if they would put something in your food or something,” he said.

Most of the soldiers were in the infantry. The infantry protected the military occupational specialty (MOS) for Taylor’s job, which was communications.

“I carried a rifle, but never had to use it. A whole lot of people suffered more than I did because they protected me,” Taylor said.

Taylor was stationed at Long Binh Post, the largest U.S. Army base in South Vietnam and the site of the main ammunition dump, a specialized storage facility. General William Westmoreland was stationed at the base during Taylor’s time there. A blast happened one day, and it shook people off their bunks. The soldiers had no idea what had happened.

“Everyone crawled low around the hut. We thought an atomic bomb had been dropped on us,” Taylor said.

A few months later, Taylor was transferred to another base near Saigon. He and a group of fellow soldiers were outside looking north, toward Long Binh Post. They saw a large red-and-yellow ball go up and they knew what was happening at that point.

“They hit the ammo dump again,” Taylor said.

“While at Long Binh, I took two showers a day sometimes. People would ask me why. Nothing grew there. ‘This orange stuff, and purple and green, is going to kill us. We are guinea pigs.’ Sure enough, I have Agent Orange,” he said.

Taylor said the extra year of training he received while in the Army helped him get a better job later. He worked for GM Lordstown, first as a tool and die maker and later in welder maintenance. He worked six or seven days a week and appreciated having a position that required more physical labor. He retired at age 58 because of the overtime he had accumulated.

Thomas Taylor

AGE: 79

RESIDENCE: Warren

SERVICE BRANCH: U.S. Army

OCCUPATION: Retired from GM Lordstown

FAMILY: Wife, Genevieve; three sons; 10 grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren