1/27/2013:
President Richard Nixon signed a peace agreement ending the Vietnamese War on this date in 1973. Engineered by U.S. negotiator Henry Kissinger and North Vietnam’s Le Duc Tho, the agreement called for the release of American Prisoners from Laos and North Vietnam. The only North Dakotan among the 587 POWs was Air Force Captain Loren Torkelson of Cando, who was shot down over North Vietnam in 1967. His mother was overjoyed at the news of his impending release. For six years, she had received only a handful of short letters as evidence he was still alive. The 1973 agreement required the release within sixty days, leading Mrs. Torkelson to hope she would see her son by Easter.
Dakota Datebook written by Jayme L. Job
Sources:
Dill, Joseph (ed.). 1988 North Dakota: 100 Years: p. 131. The Forum Publishing Company: Fargo, ND.
The Forum, Fargo-Moorhead. Wednesday, January 24, 1973; 95(70): p. 1.