Kenneth R. Shadrick (August 4, 1931 – July 5, 1950) was a private in the United States Army at the onset of the Korean War. He was widely but incorrectly reported as the first American soldier killed in action in the war. His death is now believed to have occurred after the first American combat fatalities in the Battle of Osan. However, since the identities of other soldiers killed before Shadrick remain unknown, he is still often incorrectly cited as the first US soldier killed in the war.