James E. Moore, Jr.

James Edward Moore Jr. (28 June 1931 – 30 January 1999) was a United States Army three-star general who served in the Vietnam War. A 1954 graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, Moore served in Vietnam as the S-3 (operations officer) of the 3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division and the commander of the 1st Battalion, 35th Infantry. After the war he commanded the 7th Infantry Division, Combined Field Army, Korea, and the Sixth Army.

Early life James Moore Jr. was born in Fort Thomas, Kentucky on 28 June 1931, the second child and only son of James Edward Moore, an Army officer, and his wife Mildred May Lindberg. As a military brat, he moved about frequently, including Tientsin, China, where his father was stationed from 1932 to 1935, and he learned to speak Mandarin Chinese.

Moore graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in Washington, D.C., in 1949. While he was there, he dated a neighbor, Joan Marie Phillips. He then attended Sullivan's Prep School in Washington, DC. West Point cadets are not allowed to marry, but on 19 June 1954, shortly after graduation, he married Joan Phillips at Carlisle Barracks in Pennsylvania.

Vietnam War

That year, Moore volunteered for service in Vietnam, initially serving with the 1st Cavalry Division as a liaison officer to French plantation owners. He then became the S-3 (operations officer) of the 3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division. He became one of the first members of his class to command a battalion when he assumed command of the 1st Battalion, 35th Infantry while still a major. He distinguished himself in battle on 7 March 1967, and was awarded the Silver Star and the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry.

For his service in Vietnam, he was also awarded the Legion of Merit and five Air Medals. He was awarded a bronze oak leaf cluster to his Army Distinguished Service Medal for this service.