Herbert Benson - USMC 1968-69

Herbert E. Benson (Kidd) grew up in Philadelphia and joined the Marine Corps at age 17 and served with 2nd Battalion, 26th Marines, “The Nomads”, in Vietnam as a Combat Engineer. Herbert landed in Danang in March of 1968 eventually being sent up to Phu Bai and Camp Carol where he did daily mine sweeps from Carol to Khe Sanh. After transferring up to Khe Sahn according to Herbert “the shit hit the fan”. Herbert was assigned to 226 blocking force to hold off multiple divisions of the NVA. According to military records more than 103,000 tons of bombs we dropped during the battle. Herbert was also part of 2/26 Marines at LZ Margo when they were hit by over 150 rounds of mortar fire resulting in 21 U.S killed and 135 wounded.

The 2/26 Marines were true to their name, “The Nomads”. Herb served at Okinawa, Danang, Phu Bai, Quang Tri, Con Thien, Dong Ha, Camp Carol, The Rock Pile, Khe Shan, Dong Ha Mountain, Mai Loc, LZ Margo and many other posts in Vietnam. At some point Herb’s unit became a BLT (Battalion Landing Team) and was stationed aboard the USS Dubuque between missions.

Herb’s story represents the Black American experience in Vietnam. While he and his fellow Marines fought side by side in battle, they self-segregated into Black and White clicks in their downtime and created Black unity and pride among the “Soul Brothers”.

When Herb returned home, he felt that “the government turned his back on me”. Although he attended EOD school with the promise of becoming a Lance Corporal and was field promoted to acting Sergeant he was discharged as a PFC. “They keep telling me it's going to catch up with me.” – Herbert Benson

In his interview Herb honors the memory of his two friends from Philadelphia he was with when they were killed in Vietnam; James Carnell Heard and Walter Seawright. We all can honor their memories by visiting their Virtual Wall memorial by clicking on their names above.