Captain Bradford was a member of Headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Cavalry Division. He was taken Prisoner of War while fighting the enemy near Unsan, North Korea, on 2 November 1950. He died while a prisoner on 30 April 1951 at Pyoktong, North Korea, of malnutrition. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

For his leadership and valor, Captain Bradford was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart, the Combat Infantryman's Badge, the Prisoner of War Medal, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.