SP5 Hugh C. Clausen

On Thursday, September 4, 2025 at 6:00 p.m., Johnston & Williams, in partnership with the Ellensburg IOOF Lodge, will host a remembrance ceremony at High Valley Cemetery (2521 Robinson Canyon Road, Ellensburg) honoring SP5 Hugh Conrad Clausen, Kittitas County’s only casualty of the Vietnam War.

SP5 Clausen served with the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Battalion, 28th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 1st Infantry Division, United States Army Vietnam.

On September 22, 1966, tragedy struck. During efforts to expand the perimeter of their base camp, soldiers were ordered to dig in an area that had been declared cleared of mines. It was not. A mine detonated, gravely wounding three men. Fellow soldiers — many of them medics — rushed into the danger zone to render aid, knowing full well there could be more mines hidden beneath the soil. Moments later, a second explosion ripped through the field, claiming the lives of SP5 Clausen and six of his comrades: 

• SP4 Richard P. Bartle
• PFC Joseph N. Davi
• PFC Samuel E. Murph
• PFC Larry L. Reynolds
• SP4 Walter L. Wells
• PFC George Wycinsky
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• James Austin, who was present that day, later wrote of the chaos and courage shown by those who continued to risk everything to save their wounded brothers, carrying them one by one to waiting helicopters. His account reminds us that this was not just a tragic accident — it was a moment of selflessness, bravery, and sacrifice.
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Nearly sixty years later, our community pauses to remember SP5 Clausen — a young man from Kittitas County who never made it home, and whose name is forever etched on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., as well as The Wall That Heals,  Panel 10E, Line 131.

We invite you to join us at High Valley Cemetery on September 4 to honor his memory. The ceremony will last about 30 minutes. Parking is limited, so please plan to arrive early. Chairs will be available.

Let us gather, as a community, to ensure that SP5 Hugh Conrad Clausen is never forgotten.