Bucks County Bridge 161, which located in Buckingham Township, reopened Thursday with a new name: the Private First Class Allan George Griffin Memorial Bridge.
U.S. Army Private First Class Griffin, a Newtown, New Jersey native, was killed on Feb. 22, 1967, by an accidental friendly fire incident. The incident happened merely two months after his deployment to Vietnam. He was just 23 at the time of his death.
Born to a World War II veteran, Griffin spent significant portions of his life in Pennsylvania communities such as Honesdale, Pottstown, Doylestown, and New Hope prior to his drafting into the military in 1966.
The Griffin Memorial Bridge spans Mill Creek along Upper Mountain Road.
Griffin was posthumously awarded the Bronze Star with a “V” device for heroism.
PFC Allan George Griffin’s final resting place is in Wayne County, where he lies beside his family members.
The bridge is the fifth in Bucks County to be dedicated in memory of a Vietnam War soldier.
The effort to rename the bridges is done by the county in collaboration with local veterans’ advocate Ed Preston and the Pennsylvania Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, aims to commemorate the 136 Bucks County residents declared as killed or missing in action during the Vietnam War.
Leave a Comment