Private First Class Wallace was a veteran of World War II. In Korea, he was a member of the 21st Chemical Decontamination Company, U.S. Army. He contracted leukemia and was evacuated to the 10th Station Hospital in Pusan, South Korea, where he died on 5 April 1951.

Wallace was awarded the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation, the Republic of Korea War Service Medal and the World War II Victory Medal.