Scope and Contents

The collection includes approximately 0.75 linear feet of materials documenting William Helmer's service with the 111th Engineer Company (Water Supply), U.S. Army Engineer Construction Agency Vietnam (USAECAV) stationed in Phu Bai from December 1968 to November 1969. The materials include clippings; letters home to Helmer's parents and siblings; slides; photographs; a periodical; and personal recollections.

Biographical / Historical

William N. Helmer attended Rutgers University and was apart of Army ROTC. He trained as a chemical engineer. Mr. Helmer graduated in 1967 and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant (2LT) in the Army Corps of Engineers. His service number was 05-249-848. Mr. Helmer was married with one daughter prior to being called into active duty in Novermber of 1967. While in Vietnam, his wife gave birth to their second daughter. Mr. Helmer spent three (3) months at Fort Belvoir, Virginia where he learned how to be a US Army Combat Engineer officer: MOS 1331. He was then assigned as an action officer to the G2 of Fort Dix, New Jersey. While there, Mr. Helmer supervised an enlisted soldier who was attempting to correct issues with recruit's' security clearences (incomplete paperwork and/or fingerprints were unsuable) which was delaying their training. Mr. Helmer was the only 2LT assigned to Post HQ— typically service in G2 was for Captain and up. Mr. Helmer then received orders to deploy to Vietnam just before Thanksgiving, 1968. Mr. Helmer thought he might miss this assignment because tours of duty in Vietnam were one (1) year in length and that his two (2) year service obligation expired 24 November, 1969. Mr. Helmer was then ordered to report to Washington state for transport to Vietnam immediately after Christmas, 1968.

Mr. Helmer served in Vietnam from 31 December, 1968 to 23 November, 1969. He was assigned to the United States Army Engineer Constrution Agency Vietnam (USAECAV), specifically to the 111th Engineer Company, Water Supply (WS), which was headquartered in Phu Bai, I Corps, Republic of South Vietnam. By this point Mr. Helmer has been promoted to First Lieutenant (1LT) and was one of two (2) platoon leaders for the 111th Engineer Company.

At the time the Army had three (3) of these types of specialized engineer units. Mr. Helmer and his unit converted local streams into potable drinking water using truck mounted water purification plants. One (1) in Korea and one (1) in the Northern part of South Vietnam. Each of these trucks could produce 3,000 gallons of drinking water. Before his tour of duty was over Mr. Helmer commanded 10 of these truck mounted units. Mr. Helmer and his comrades called them ERDALATORs (from "US Army Engineer Research and Development Labs"). They were located near streams at the edge of the battalion bases of the 101st Airborne Division, the Americal Division,and the Republic of China Tiger Division. Their water points typically had a Specialist 5 or 6 in charge, and 3-4 men under him.

They would make drinking water from "dusk to dawk" and would fill up water trailers called "water buffaloes" which held several hundred gallons of water. Their owning unit would tow these to their subordinate units or have them carried by helicopter out to surrounding fire bases. Mr. Helmer's men mostly operated on their own. They would see Mr. Helmer for approximately 1-2 hours once a week. Mr. Helmer did not have a platoon sergeant. They got their supplies from units on their bases, and parts/repairs from Mr. Helmer's unit's headquarters platoon in Phu Bai—in some cases nearly 400 miles away.

Mr. Helmers first assignment was for the four (4) units located far to the South near Qui Nonh, and also near Chu Lai. Several months later the other platoon leader rotated out and Mr. Helmer "inherited" all of the water points. He would travel to the southern water points one week and the next he would stay "at home" and visit the nothern water points daily. Mr. Helmer left Vietnam in late 1969 and returned to civilian life and his "old job" as a chemical engineer in Delaware. He served in a reserve unit in Delaware and, after a six (6) month temporary transfer to Texas in 1971, served in an Army Reserve school teaching petrolium handeling to a unit of the Texas National Guard. Mr. Helmer had a dispite with his Colonel and resigned his commission in May, 1977.

Since 1977 Mr. Helmer has had a career as a chemical engineer at various Texas locations: Marshall, Pampa, Corpus Christi, and Dallas. He also worked as a consultant in process safety from 2000 until his retierment in 2015. Mr. Helmer has had three (3) children and three (3) grandchildren. He was divorced once from the wife he had while in Vietnam, and later remarried. He met his second wife, Nancy, in Marshall, Texas and they were married for 39 years. Nancy passed away due to cancer in 2013. Mr. Helmer met his third wife, Mary Ann, near Dallas, Texas and married in 2019.

As of May 2019, Mr. Helmer lives in Double Oak, Texas.

Biographical information provided by donor.
Service number was located on original box containing slides.