OUTPOST WAR

U.S. Marines from the Nevada

Battles to the Armistice
by Bernard C. Nalty

Marines in the Korean War Commemorative Series

About the Author

B ernard C. Nalty, a member

of the Marine Corps histor-
ical program from October
1956 to September 1961, col-
THIS PAMPHLET HISTORY, one in a series devoted to U.S. Marines
laborated with Henry I. Shaw, in the Korean War era, is published for the education and training of
Jr., and Edwin T. Turnbladh on Marines by the History and Museums Division, Headquarters, U.S.
Central Pacific Drive, a vol- Marine Corps, Washington, D.C., as part of the U.S. Department of
Defense observance of the 50th anniversary of that war. Editorial costs
ume of the History of U. S. have been defrayed in part by contributions from members of the
Marine Corps Operations in Marine Corps Heritage Foundation. To plan and coordinate the Korean
War commemorative events and activities of the Sea Services, the Navy,
World War II. He also com- Marine Corps, and Coast Guard have formed the Sea Services Korean
pleted more than 14 short his- War Commemoration Committee, chaired by the Director, Navy Staff.
torical studies, some of which appeared in For more information about the Sea Services commemorative effort,
please contact the Navy-Marine Corps Korean War Commemoration
Leatherneck magazine or the Marine Corps Gazette. Coordinator at (202) 433-4223/3085, FAX 433-7265 (DSN288-7265), E-
He joined the history office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mail: [email protected], Website: www.histo-
in 1961, transferred in 1964 to the Air Force history ry.usmc.mil.
KOREAN WAR COMMEMORATIVE SERIES
program, and retired in 1994. Mr. Nalty has written or DIRECTOR OF MARINE CORPS HISTORY AND MUSEUMS
edited a number of publications, including Blacks in Colonel John W. Ripley, USMC (Ret)
the Military: Essential Documents, Strength for the GENERAL EDITOR, KOREAN WAR COMMEMORATIVE SERIES
Fight: A History of Black Americans in the Military, Charles R. Smith
The Vietnam War, Tigers Over Asia, Air Power and the EDITING AND DESIGN SECTION, HISTORY AND MUSEUMS DIVISION
Fight for Khe Sanh, and Winged Shield, Winged W. Stephen Hill, Visual Information Specialist
Catherine A. Kerns, Visual Information Specialist
Sword: A History of the U.S. Air Force. In addition to
contributing to this series on the Korean War by writ- U.S. Marine Corps Historical Center
ing Stalemate: U.S. Marines from Bunker Hill to the 1254 Charles Morris Street SE
Washington Navy Yard DC 20374-5040
Hook, he took part in the Marines in World War II
2002
commemorative series, completing two pamphlets,
Cape Gloucester: The Green Inferno and The Right to PCN 190 0041 0400
Fight: African-American Marines in World War II.

Sources Corps operations in his contribution to

the official history of Army activity dur-
William H, Jantzen, a participant in
one of the fiercer actions of 1953, has
The best account of operations by ing the Korean War, Truce Tent and written a riveting account of that fight in
Marines during 1953, their role in estab- Fighting Front (Washington, D.C.: Office A Bad Night at Reno Block, in the
lishing the Demilitarized Zone, and their of the Chief of Military History, 1966), a March 1998 issue of Leatherneck maga-
eventual withdrawal from South Korea volume that deals with negotiation as zine.
appears in Operations in West Korea, well as fighting. The Marine Corps Gazette has ana-
volume five of U. S. Marine Corps Martin Russ, a wartime Marine Corps lyzed the tactics and lessons learned of
Operations in Korea, 1950-1953 infantryman, has written the best known the Korean War in three especially use-
(Washington, D.C.: Historical Division, and most revealing memoir covering the ful articles: Peter Braestrups Outpost
Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps, 1972), final months of the fighting, The Last Warfare (November 1953) and Back to
by LtCol Pat Meid, USMCR, and Maj Parallel: A Marines War Journal (New the Trenches (March 1955); and
James M. Yingling, USMC. York: Rinehart, 1957). Random Notes on Korea (November
The Marine Corps historical program Personal accounts by other Marines 1955) by LtCol Roy A. Batterton. Also of
also has dealt thoroughly with the treat- appear in Korean Vignettes: Faces of use was the article by MSgt Paul
ment received by Marines held as pris- War (Portland, OR: Artwork Publica- Sarokin, Going Home, in the May 1955
oners of war, their reaction to depriva- tions, 1996), a compilation of narratives issue of Leatherneck.
tion and hostile pressure, and their and photographs by 201 veterans of the The personal papers collection of the
repatriation. James Angus MacDonald Korean War, prepared by Arthur W. Marine Corps history program contains
has made extensive use of interviews Wilson and Norman L. Stickbine. journals, photographs, letters, memoirs,
with former prisoners in his The Valuable insights and first-hand and at least one academic paper, a mas-
Problems of U. S. Marine Corps Prisoners accounts are also available in The ters thesis on outpost warfare by a
of War in Korea, published by the Korean War: The Uncertain Victory; The Marine, Maj Norman W, Hicks. For
History and Museums Division, Concluding Volume of an Oral History events of the year 1953, the most valu-
Headquarters, U. S. Marine Corps, in (New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, able of these items were the submis-
1988. 1988), by Donald Knox with additional sions by Eldon D. Allen and Gen Vernon
Walter G. Hermes discusses Marine text by Alfred Coppel. E. Megee.
 OUTPOST WAR
U.S. Marines from the Nevada Battles
to the Armistice
by Bernard C. Nalty
hen 1953 began, the
Jamestown Line had
become, in the
words of Marine
Corporal Robert Hall
who fought there, a messy, ram-
bling series of ditches five to seven
feet deep that linked a succession
of bunkers constructed of sand-
bags and timber and used for shel-
ter or fighting. The trenches
wandered erratically to prevent
Chinese attackers who penetrated
the perimeter from delivering
deadly enfilade fire along lengthy,
straight segments. As for the
bunkers themselves, since piles Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A167141
of trash, ration cans, scrap paper, By the end of 1952, the 1st Marine Division defended a static main line of resis-
and protruding stove pipes tance and its outposts, fighting from trenches, covered holes, and bunkers like
revealed their location, the enemy these manned by Company E, 2d Battalions, 7th Marines.
must have known where every
bunker was. and a sound-powered telephone ment from Chinese observers.
A bunker, therefore, could easi- linked the hole to the company Other bunkers served as living
ly become a death trap. As a command post. Along with the quarters for five to 10 Marines and
result, the Marines had learned to fighting holes, Hall and his fellow might also provide a brief respite
dig and man fighting holes outside Marines dug rabbit holes, emer- for those standing watch in the
the bunkers. Hall described such a gency shelters near the bottom of rain or cold. Because of the
hole as simply a niche in the for- the trench wall that provided pro- emphasis on fighting holes, the
ward wall of the trench, usually tection from the stray Chinese living bunkers that Hall remem-
covered with planks and a few mortar round that sometimes bered had no firing apertures and
sandbags. Within the hole, a dropped into the trench. sometimes a curtain of blanket
crude shelf held hand grenades Some bunkers contained firing wool or canvas instead of a door.
ports for .30-caliber or .50-caliber Candles, shielded so they would
ON THE COVER: Spotting targets of machine guns and accommoda- not attract Chinese fire, provided
opportunity, a Marine crew fires its
tions for the crews. Chicken wire light, and kerosene or oil stoves,
75mm recoilless rifle directly against
enemy bunkers. National Archives
strung across the firing ports pre- vented through the roof, supplied
Photo (USMC) 127-N-A170206 vented Chinese assault troops heat. The more elaborate living
AT LEFT: A Marine packs his gear from throwing grenades inside, bunkers to the rear of the main
before leaving Korea following the but fire from the machine guns line of resistance had electric
signing of the armistice in July 1953. soon tore away the wire, which lights, the power produced by
National Archives Photo (USN) 80-G- could be replaced only at night gasoline generators.
626452 when darkness provided conceal- By night, during the early

1
 seemed to be making progress,
the Chinese used a more subtle
approach, trying to persuade
members of the United Nations
forces not to risk their lives in a war
that had almost ended.
Despite cold-weather clothing
and insulated boots, the chill of
the winter night could numb the
senses. As a result, a Marine usual-
ly stood nighttime watch in a fight-
ing hole for 30 to 45 minutes
before warming himself in a near-
by bunker. On some nights,
Corporal Hall recalled, an outgoing
salvo or ripple of 4.5-inch rockets
might swish overhead to explode
on some distant hill. All through
the night, he said, there were
sporadic shots, grenades going off,
artillery fireas outposts came
under attack, ambushes were trig-
gered, and patrols drew fireand
at first light a ripple of random
shots would greet the new day,
as visibility improved revealing
targets previously hidden by dark-
ness.
From time to time, Marines
manning the Jamestown Line got a
brief respite from the danger, ten-
sion, and discomfort. One of the
most pleasurable things in moving
off the line, said Corporal Hall,
was to walk back to battalion for
a hot meal and a shower. A
Marine just come from the battle-
field could sit down to the kind of
meal he might have been served at
a mess hall in the United States,
eat at his own pace instead of the
tempo set by the mess sergeant,
months of 1953, a cold wind usually Chinese, however, also tried to have a hot shower in tents modified
blew from the north, sometimes take advantage of the fact that the for that purpose, and exchange a
bringing with it the sound of combatants in Korea were dis- filthy uniform for a clean one. A
Chinese loudspeakers broadcast- cussing a ceasefire even as they laundered utility jacket, formerly
ing English-language appeals to fought. Since the summer of 1951, worn by a staff sergeant whose
surrender, interspersed with coun- truce talks had taken place at chevrons remained in place, might
try music. The enemys propagan- Kaesong and later at Panmunjom, be issued to a corporal like Hall.
da tended to reflect Communist with the United Nations delegation After a trip to the shower, he said,
ideology, urging members of the traveling to the site of the talks you could never be sure about a
United Nations forces to escape through a carefully marked demil- persons rank unless you knew
their capitalist masters. The itarized corridor. When the talks him.

2
 Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A170084
Inside view of one of the cramped sleeping caves, which on fortifications at night, while a small security team was on
sheltered two to four Marines, on Outpost Carson (Hill 27). duty during the day.
A majority of the outposts strength stood watch and worked

Marines on the battle line, who Marines of Company B, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines, enjoy hot chow on the reverse
could not be reached with food slope of the main line of resistance. These field mess areas, where Marines got at
prepared at field kitchens and least one hot meal a day, were set up 50 to 100 yards from the frontlines.
brought forward in insulated con- Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A170997

tainers, relied on C-rations easily

transported in cardboard boxes
and quickly prepared. The C-
ration featured canned foods like
sausage patties in gravy, corned
beef hash, or beans and frank-
furters that could be heated over a
Sterno flame, along with candy, a
cookie, crackers, instant coffee,
cigarettes, canned fruit, toilet
paper, and an ingenious can open-
er. Although the object of many a
joke, C-rations were quite re-
markable in the opinion of one
Marine. Everything was used, he
said, even the oiled cardboard
box into which a person could
relieve himself.

3
 Refinements in Position Warfare
Experience on the Jamestown
Line in 1952 inspired innovations in
static warfare, although not all
were immediately applicable to
the battlefield. The concept of a
main line of resistance and its pro-
tecting line of combat outposts
persisted into 1953, but the ideal
placement and construction of
trenches and bunkers changed.
Chinese mortar and artillery fire
demonstrated that trenches had to
be deeper, fighting holes better
protected, and bunkers stronger.
Moreover, the military crest of a
hill or ridgelinethe position on
National Archives Photo (USA) 111-SC428270 the forward slope with the longest
In February 1953, LtGen Maxwell D. Taylor, USA, left, who led the 101st fields of observation and fire
Airborne Division at Normandy during World War II, replaced Gen James A. Van need not be the best location for
Fleet, USA, center, in command of the U.S. Eighth Army. Standing to the right is the defenses protecting vital ter-
Gen Mark W. Clark, USA, commander of United Nations forces. rain. The topographic crestthe

4
spine of a ridge or top of a hill graphical crest without crossing Instead of two aprons of barbed
might be a better site for the main the skyline and risking direct fire wire separated by about one yard,
line of resistance, provided that from flat trajectory weapons. the Marines adopted the so-called
fighting positions, readily accessible Those Marines who could shift Canadian system, which featured
from the main trench, were located from the military crest to the topo- random strands of wire connecting
a short distance down the forward graphical crest would enjoy cer- the parallel aprons in the void
slope. Formerly, machine guns tain advantages. Plunging fire, between them. Artillery or mortar
tended to fire directly into draws directed by mortars or howitzers fire, which might rip apart the old
that the Chinese might follow to against trenches on the topograph- aprons, merely churned and tangled
attack an outpost or a portion of the ic crest, proved difficult for the the wire between the aprons, thus
main line of resistance; now the Chinese to register or adjust, since making the barrier harder to pene-
machine gun crews, protected as observers could not see the explo- trate.
necessary by riflemen, would dig in sion of shells that fell beyond These changes could easily be
near the tips of fingers of high Marine positions. In contrast, incorporated in the fall-back posi-
ground extending outward from when firing against the military tions, the Wyoming and Kansas
the main line or its outposts and crest, the enemy could spot shells Lines, to the rear of the main line of
place interlocking bands of fire that detonated both beyond and resistance. Major changes to the
across the front. Moreover, units in short of the target and adjust his fire Jamestown Line itself and its com-
reserve immediately behind the accordingly. bat outposts proved all but impos-
main line of resistance could move Another defensive innovation sible when in contact with an
through trenches on the topo- proved as effective as it was simple. aggressive enemy able to make
deadly use of artillery and mortars.
A fire team from Company I, 3d Battalion, 1st Marines, sets out on a daylight The frontline Marines could rarely
reconnaissance patrol to one of outposts in front of the main line of resistance.
do more than put out the addi-
Aggressive patrolling and improvement of the secondary defenses of the
tional wire, dig deeper, and add
Wyoming and Kansas Lines occupied much of the reduced wintertime schedule.
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A168856 timbers and sandbags to the exist-
ing defenses.

Daylight Raids
Besides strengthening the de-
fenses, especially of the Wyoming
and Kansas Lines, Marines of the
divisions reserve regiment contin-
ued to undergo training while
patrolling the rear area. On the
Jamestown Line and its outposts,
the lull that settled in after the
fight for the Hook ended when
one of the regiments on the main
line of resistance, the 5th Marines,
raided Hills 31 and 31A in the
Ungok hill mass. Because the
Chinese had fortified this high
ground so strongly, the Marines
made elaborate preparations,
planning feints to divert attention
from the main thrust, bringing in
pilots from the 1st Marine Aircraft
Wing to visit observation posts
and become familiar with the bat-
tlefield, arranging for air strikes
and artillery concentrations, recon-

5
 Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A169911
Marine fliers batter Hill 67 with high explosives and Ungok hill mass to destroy fortifications, inflict casualties, and
napalm on 3 February in support of the 1st Battalion, 5th take prisoners. The air strikes were designed to divert enemy
Marines two-reinforced-platoon-raid on the Chinese-held attention from the final objective area.
noitering routes of attack and Battalion, 11th Marines, added to succeeded in destroying a flame-
withdrawal, and clearing mines the realism of the feint by shelling throwing M-4 Sherman tank.
from them. The complex opera- the apparent objective. Supported by air, armor, and
tion, named Clambake, required a Taking advantage of the diver- artillery, the Marine raiding party
half-dozen rehearsals, the last on 1 sion, two reinforced platoons from prevailed. Clambake captured no
February. Unlike Operation Wake- Company A, 1st Battalion, 5th prisoners but accomplished its
up in November 1952, which had Marinesarmed with bangalore main purpose by collapsing
sought to take prisoners and gath- torpedoes to breach barbed wire bunkers, trenches, and caves, and
er intelligence on the Chinese and flamethrowers, satchel char- killing perhaps 390 Chinese before
defenses, planners designed Clam- ges, and 3.5-inch rocket launchers the attackers withdrew. Marine
bake primarily to kill the enemy to destroy heavier fortifications casualties totaled 14 killed and 91
and destroy his bunkers and stormed Hills 31 and 31A. The wounded.
trenches. tanks taking part in the diversion Operation Clambake demon-
The raid began at first light on 3 protected the left flank of the strated anew the value of planning
February, when three platoons of attacking Marines by crossing a and rehearsal, the ability of flame-
tanks roared toward the enemy- frozen paddy to open fire on the throwing tanks to discourage
held high groundHill 104, trenchline connecting Ungok with Chinese tank-killer teams armed
Kumgok, and Red Hilla short the hills to the west. The Chinese with shoulder-fired rocket launch-
distance west of the real objective, blazed away at the Marine tanks ers, and the importance of coordi-
Ungok. While the armored vehi- that either protected the flank nating air, artillery, and armor in
cles cut loose with 90mm guns from beyond the rice paddy or support of an infantry assault.
and flamethrowers, the 1st accompanied the assault force and Colonel Lewis W. Walt, commander

6
 of the 5th Marines, believed that
Clambake taught his regiment how
to forge an effective tank-infantry
team, a weapon he soon em-
ployed.
On 25 February, Colonel Walts
5th Marines conducted a raid simi-
lar to Operation Clambake, attack-
ing Hill 15, where the Chinese had
overrun Outpost Detroit in early
October. The commander of the
2d Battalion, Lieutenant Colonel
Oscar F. Peatross, chose Company
F, under Captain Harold D. Kurth,
Jr., to execute the attack. After
detailed planning and careful
rehearsal, the raid, designated
Operation Charlie, kicked off on
the morning of the 25th. Tanks and
artillery fired as planned, but bad
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A169719 weather interfered with the sched-
After being examined at the company aid station, a Marine of Company A, 1st uled air strikes. The two assault
Battalion, 5th Marines, who was wounded during the battalions daylight raid platoons reported that the support-
on Ungok is put onto a helicopter for evacuation to a hospital ship for further treat- ing fire had isolated the objective as
ment. planned, but they found that the
Officers of the 5th Marines assemble for a photograph dur- Maj Robert L. Willis, Capt Ralph L. Walz, Maj Jack M. Daly,
ing a lull in the fighting. Pictured in the front row, from left, Maj Ross T. Dwyer, Jr., Maj Robert H. Twisdale, Capt
are: LtCol Oscar F. Peatross, LtCol Jonas M. Platt, Col Lewis Richard G. Gilmore, and Maj William C. Doty. Third row,
W. Walt, LtCol Edwin B. Wheeler, LtCol Robert J. Oddy, and Capt James R. Schoen, Capt Dean W. Lindley, Capt James E.
LtCol James H. Finch. Second row, Maj Harry L. Sherwood, Hendry, and Capt Arthur J. Davidson.
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A170216

7
 The Marine Division and Its Weapons

B etween 1 January 1953 and the end of the fight-

ing in July, the strength of Marine Corps ground
forces hovered between 25,000 and 28,000, fluc-
tuating as casualties occurred, tours of duty or enlistments
expired, and replacements arrived. In terms of organi-
had seen action in World War II. Riflemen still used the
semi-automatic M1 or, if trained as snipers, the bolt-
action M1903 with a telescopic sight. Although designed
for World War I, the Browning Automatic Rifle still
increased the firepower of the Marines. Officers, or
zation, the 1st Marine Division adhered to a triangular con- those enlisted men assigned to crew-served weapons
cept, with three organic infantry regimentsthe 1st, 5th, like mortars or machine guns, carried the .45-caliber pis-
and 7th Marinesan artillery regiment, the 11th tol or the lightweight .30-caliber carbine, which came in
Marines, and a variety of other combat and support ele- both automatic and semi-automatic versions.
ments under control of the division or its components. The The standard crew-served infantry weapons had also
combat elements employed tanks, mortars, and other helped fight World War II. The 60mm, 81mm, and 4.2-inch
weapons; the support units provided such specialized mortars were at best modifications of older weapons, as
activity as transportation, by truck or amphibian tractor, were the machine guns, whether heavy .50-caliber
communications, engineering, reconnaissance, and weapons, water-cooled .30-caliber guns, or lightweight,
cargo handling. air-cooled .30-caliber types. The 3.5-inch rocket launch-
On the Jamestown Line, a fourth regiment served er, however, had replaced the 2.36-inch Bazooka of
with the 1st Marine Division, the 1st Korean Marine World War II, which had failed to effectively penetrate the
Regiment, which had been organized, trained, and armor of the Soviet-built tanks used by the North
equipped with the assistance and advice of U. S. Koreans and Chinese.
Marines. The Korean Marine regiment, with a maximum Artillery and armor relied heavily on designs used in
strength in 1953 of 4,400, had been attached to the 1st World War II or intended for that conflict. The 11th
Marine Division in time for the Inchon invasion of Marines, aided by a battery of 4.5-inch rockets on mul-
September 1950, but after the Chosin Reservoir fighting, tiple launchers, provided the divisions organic fire sup-
the Korean Marines passed under the control of the port with three battalions of 105mm howitzers and one
Republic of Koreas Army. During 1951, however, the battalion of 155mm howitzers. A battalion of tanks
Korean Marine regiment was again attached to the 1st added to the mobile firepower of the division with
Marine Division and, along with the 5th Battalion that weapons ranging from rebuilt M-4 Shermans from World
joined in 1952, remained a part of the American division War II, some of them mounting a flamethrower as well
for the rest of the war. The Korean Marines assigned to as a 105mm gun, to new M-46 Pershings with a 90mm
the division had their own organic artillery and armor. The gun.
2d Korean Marine Regiment provided troops to man the In short, the 1st Marine Division was using the
islands off the east and west coasts. weapons of World War II to fight the kind of trench war-
The basic infantry weapons of the 1st Marine Division fare characteristic of World War I.

majority of enemy installations was attempting to set up an of the Ungok hill mass, using
were relatively undamaged, per- ambush and forced it to turn back. flamethrowers to deadly effect. On
haps because the Chinese bunkers On 19 February, artillery and mor- the following night, a reinforced
were so solidly built. tar fire frustrated a Chinese attack on platoon from the 1st Battalion, 7th
Although the raids that culmi- Combat Outpost 33, manned by Marines, supported by four M-46
nated in Operation Charlie were South Korean Marines. tanks set out to raid Hill Yoke,
the most ambitious attacks during The Marines, whether American southwest of Bunker Hill. Shortly
February, Chinese troops and the or South Korean, exerted pressure after midnight, however, as the
American and South Korean of their own. On the night of 13-14 raiding party regrouped for the
Marines conducted many smaller February, two platoons of South final assault, the Chinese struck
probes. On the night of 12-13 Korean Marines had successfully from ambush. Another reinforced
February, for example, a Chinese raided Hill 240, on the west bank of platoon went to the aid of the first,
platoon, supported by mortars and the Sachon River roughly three and the enemy broke off the
artillery, tested the defenses of miles upstream from its conflux action; but not before the raid on
Outpost Hedy on Hill 124. Two with the Imjin. On the morning of Hill Yoke had to be called off,
nights later, hostile troops stalked a the 22d, the 5th Marines raided Hill even though the Marines accounted
patrol from the 7th Marines that 35A, some 1,300 yards southwest for perhaps five times their own

8
 losses of five killed and 22 wound-
ed.
The succession of raids and
ambushes continued into March.
In a restaging of Operation Clam-
bake, Company B, 1st Battalion,
5th Marines, attacked Hill 31A of the
Ungok massif on the 19th. Once
again, air strikes, and artillery
preparations shattered the pre-
dawn calm and forced the defend-
ers to move to positions on the
reverse slope until the attacking
Marines withdrew. On the same
morning, however, the enemy hit
Outposts Esther and Hedy and
tried unsuccessfully to crack the
Jamestown defenses to the rear of
Hedy, failing despite a lavish
expenditure of mortar and artillery
shells.
1stMarDiv Historical Diary Photo Supplement, Feb53
Three Marines from Company F, 2d Battalion, 5th Marines, who participated in Improvements in Logistics
the raid on Hill 15 (Detroit), display captured enemy weapons and material. The
raid was launched during early daylight hours with a smoke screen in an During the first three months of
attempt to gain surprise. 1953, the supply of howitzer
During February and March, as night fighting intensified, Tank Battalion, fire their 90mm guns to harass the Chinese
Marine M-46 Patton tanks assigned to Company D, 1st and disrupt their movement.
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A169267

9
 too quickly. Redesigned body
armor began arriving in November
1952. The new model protected
the groin as well as the upper
body, greatly improving morale as
it reduced casualties still further.
Experiments continued in the
use of helicopters as flying pack
mules to deliver supplies over bro-
ken terrain. In February 1953,
Lieutenant Colonel John F. Careys
Marine Helicopter Transport
Squadron 161 (HMR-161) carried
out Operation Haylift II, resupply-
ing two front-line regiments, the
5th and 7th Marines. This opera-
tion, lasting from 23 through 27
February, proved more demanding
that Haylift I, conducted in
September 1952, which had resup-
plied only one regiment. On the
first day of Haylift II, Careys
squadron had to divert helicopters
from the 7th Marines to rush
ammunition to the other regiment,
and on the final morning fog dis-
rupted the schedule of flights.
Nevertheless, Haylift II delivered
1.6 million pounds of cargo; five
times the total of the earlier opera-
tion.

Fighting Intensifies
When the winter of 1952-1953
ended, the deployment of the 1st
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A170050 Marine Division remained essen-
Cargo handling personnel prepare to hook a load of ammunition to a Sikorsky tially unchanged, although the unit
HRS-2 helicopter of Marine transport squadron 161 during Operation Haylift II, on the right was now the U.S.
the five-day experiment to resupply two frontline regiments carried out in late
Armys 2d Infantry Division rather
February.
than the British 1st Commonwealth
ammunition increased, and the month, and diesel fuel by seven Division. The American Marine
restrictions on artillery support, in percent. Stocks were rapidly regiments held the right of the
effect during the autumn, ceased. replenished, however, so that in linethe 5th and 1st Marines
The availability of hand grenades February consumption returned to occupying the Jamestown posi-
also improved, but 81mm mortar normal. tions and the 7th Marines currently
shells remained in short supply. Refinements in equipment also in reserve. Beyond the Panmunjom
Even as the ammunition shortage appeared. A thermal boot worn corridor, South Korean Marines
eased, the Marines had to impose during the Korean winter of 1952- defended the portion that extended
restrictions on the use of gasoline 1953 afforded better protection to the north bank of the Han River.
and diesel fuel. In January 1953, against cold and dampness than On the south bank of the Han, the
consumption of gasoline declined the footgear it replaced, but the divisions amphibian tractor battal-
by 17 percent from the previous leather combat boot wore out all ion and the Kimpo Provisional

10
 Air Support for the Division

M arine Corps aviation continued to play a critical

role on the battlefield. Indeed, its value had
increased as the Fifth Air Force, which exercised
operational control over land-based Marine airmen,
shifted emphasis to targets on or near the frontlines and
more beyond the main line of resistance.
The cautious attitude toward close air support
reflected the potential danger to friendly troops inherent
in the kind of operations routinely flown by the 1st
Marine Aircraft Wing. Indeed, with a mere 14.5 percent
away from industries, transportation links, and com- of the available tactical aircraft, Marine airmen had
mand and control facilities, all of them already heavily undertaken between 30 and 40 percent of all the close
bombed. Taking advantage of this change, Major air support missions flown for the United Nations forces
General Vernon E. Megee, who in January 1953 between January and October 1952. These attacks,
replaced Major General Clayton C. Jerome in command some of them within 100 yards of United Nations
of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, persuaded Major troops, could accidentally cause friendly casualties. The
General Glenn O. Barcus, commander of the Fifth Air battlefield itselfa succession of similar hills and
Force, to abandon the practice of dealing directly with ridges, separated by draws and intermittent streams,
Marine aircraft groups or even squadrons and work with few obvious landmarks except for major reservoirs
through the wing headquarters. To facilitate planning or riverscontributed to the possibility of error. During
within the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, Megee revitalized and the first nine months of 1952, Marine pilots figured in 18
enlarged his G-3 section, which, he conceded, had of 63 incidents in which air strikes killed or wounded
become somewhat rusty. General Megee also friendly troops.
replaced the lone Marine Corps liaison officer at the News reports appearing in the United States during
Joint Operations Center with an element drawn from of February 1953 focused on the involvement of Marine air-
the wings G-3 section that could deal more efficiently men in 28.5 percent of the recent accident attacks that
with requests for air support. killed or wounded friendly troops. Ignoring the dan-
Barcus endorsed Megees plan to expand the role of gerous nature of these strikes, which included almost all
wing headquarters, but the Air Force general retained the targets within 100 yards of friendly forces, the press
control over close air support, even though it was a accused the Marines of carelessness, a charge that had
Marine Corps specialty. Policy established jointly by the no merit. Given the difficulty in pinpointing targets on
Army and Air Force, to which the Navy assented, the Korean battlefield, effective close air support
required that the Joint Operations Center, which now had involved danger to the troops on the ground, especial-
a greater Marine presence, approve requests for this ly those manning outposts that were surrounded or
kind of mission. In waging the air war, the Joint under simultaneous attack from various directions.
Operations Center, paid stricter attention to requests for General Megee, when evaluating a January 1953 strafing
close air support, tending to screen carefully these run by Marine jets that killed one Marine and wounded
urgent strikes while assigning Megees headquarters another, concluded that the incident resulted from the
greater responsibility for interdiction, armed reconnais- inescapable operational hazard incident to laying on a
sance, and other missions, by day or by night, that had real close strike. The same judgment applied to the other
been planned in advance against targets 3,000 yards or similar accidents.

Regiment, the latter an improvised Carson, and Ava, all manned at the 105mm howitzers, a battalion of
United Nations force using end of March by the 5th Marines. 155mm howitzers, and a battery of
armored amphibian tractors as The 1st Marines maintained multiple 4.5-inch rocket launchers.
artillery, manned the defenses in Corrine, Dagmar, Esther, Ginger, One battalion of 105mm howitzers
addition to controlling civilians Bunker Hill, Hedy, Ingrid, Kate, supported the 5th Marines and
within the regimental sector and and Marilyn. Beyond the Pan- another the 1st Marines. The third
regulating river traffic. munjom corridor, the South such battalion provided general
Except on the far left of the divi- Korean Marines held, from right to support of the division and stood
sions line, where the Han River left, Outposts 39, 33, 31, and 51. ready to reinforce the fires of the
provided a natural barrier, a series As it had during the winter now battalion supporting the 5th
of combat outposts contributed to ending, the 11th Marines provided Marines, which held a critical sector.
the security of the main line of artillery support for the infantry Both the 155mm howitzers and the
resistance. From right to left, the regiments manning the Jamestown rocket launchers rendered general
principal outposts were East Line and its outposts, using the support for the division. The South
Berlin, Berlin, Vegas, Reno, firepower of three battalions of Korean Marines depended primar-

11
ily on a battalion of 75mm guns, The battalion assigned one tank ated the wounded and delivered
attached to the 11th Marines. U.S. company to support each of the supplies, while the light planes
Army artillery battalions, assigned to line regiments and designated a flew reconnaissance and liaison
I Corps, could reinforce the fires of third as a forward reserve to rein- missions, directed air strikes and
the 11th Marines anywhere along force the main line of resistance or adjusted artillery fire.
the line with 155mm howitzers spearhead counterattacks. The The coming of spring brought
and 8-inch howitzers. To protect fourth company became the rear rain and warmer temperatures that
the bridges across the Imjin River to reserve, undergoing unit training melted snow, thawed frozen
the rear of the Jamestown Line and conducting maintenance for rivers, and caused flooding. Roads
against possible aerial attack, the the entire battalion. became all but impassible, and
Marines deployed a provisional The 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, trenches turned into streams of
antiaircraft artillery platoon armed now participating more directly in mud. Water-soaked aging sand-
with automatic weapons. planning air strikes, supported the bags, which rotted and split,
The 1st Marine Divisions tank division with an array of piston- undermined timbers already weak-
battalion continued to support the engine and jet types, fixed-wing ened by sustained Chinese
defenses of the Jamestown Line, models and helicopters. Besides shelling. In March, noncommis-
mainly with M-46 tanks mounting conducting strikes, the wing sioned officers from the divisions
90mm guns, though the older M-4s placed its helicopters and light engineer battalion inspected the
armed with a 105mm howitzer and observation planes at the disposal Jamestown Line and evaluated the
a flamethrower were available. of the division. Helicopters evacu- condition of the defenses, deter-

12
 engaged in actual fighting.
Although the beer issued to
Marines had a lesser alcohol con-
tent than that sold to civilians in the
United States, it was welcome
indeed. Those who drank made
friends with those who did not,
and a brisk trade in beer ensued.
Spring also brought the certain-
ty that, as soon as weather permit-
ted, the Chinese would renew
their attacks on the Jamestown
Line and its outposts, duplicating
the intensity of the fight for the
Hook (now a responsibility of the
2d Infantry Division) that had
raged in October 1952. The
enemys capture of key terrain
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A169051
could yield political advantage as
After loading the 155mm howitzer, artillerymen of the 4th Battalion, 11th
well as immediate tactical gain.
Marines, make a final check on the sights. The gunner stands by with lanyard
in hand, waiting for the command to fire.
Chinese success might force the
Marines back to the Wyoming or
mining which bunkers and fighting posts or on those portions of the Kansas Lines, both of them fall-
holes had to be repaired or rebuilt. main line of resistance under back positions, or even open the
Marine infantrymen did the actual enemy observation, the work had way to Seoul. Smaller gains could
work under the supervision of the to be done at night. combine to exert pressure on the
engineers, using materials man- Warmer weather heralded the United Nations to accept a truce
handled into position by the appearance of a beer rationtwo and, if the ceasefire should fail,
Korean Service Corps. At the out- cans per day for each Marine not leave the Chinese in a stronger
A Marine 4.5-inch rocket crew launches a fire mission Marine Helicopter Transport Squadron 161 wait in the
against Communist positions. The launcher could dis- background to airlift the crew and their rocket launcher to
charge 24 rounds in rapid succession. Two helicopters from the rear or a new position.
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A346664

13
 portions of the Jamestown Line squads in different platoons,
and some its rear areas from formed composite units with num-
enemy observers. bers and firepower comparable to
Forty or fifty Marines, with two a reinforced platoon. In addition
Navy hospital corpsmen, manned to their rifles, Browning automatic
each of the combat outposts. The rifles, carbines, and pistols, the
Marines, often drawn from various defenders usually were reinforced

The Korean Service Corps

T he government of the Republic of Korea drafted men already reject-

ed for service in the army and assigned them to a labor force, the
Korean Service Corps, organized into companies, battalions, and reg-
iments that carried supplies, food, ammunition, and building materials to
combat units and performed other necessary logistics duties. Although the
service troops wore a uniform, they were not issued weapons. On the
Jamestown Line, a Korean Service Corps regiment, usually numbering
more than 5,000 men, supported the components of the 1st Marine
Division. Besides forming human pack trains, these Korean laborers
helped evacuate the wounded, buried enemy dead, and retrieved
weapons abandoned on the battlefield.
After the Marines moved onto the Jamestown Line in the spring of
1952, some 500 members of the Korean Service Corps helped cut timbers
1stMarDiv Historical Diary Photo Supplement, Mar53 for the construction of bunkers along the frontline and for the two fall-back
Each spring, protracted periods of positions, the Wyoming and Kansas Lines. By July, the Koreans had
rain and the seasonal thaw turn the helped cut and shape some 35,000 lengths of timber. Once the bunkers were
earth into a quagmire, impeding completed, the Korean Service Corps carried new timbers, sandbags,
movement even in trenches. Although barbed wire, and other materials to strengthen them and repair battle
road conditions became a serious damage, along with food and ammunition. When manhandling cargo,
problem, frontiline units were kept each Korean laborer was expected to carry 50 pounds a distance of 10 miles,
supplied. a burden affixed to an A-frame on the porters back. Over long distances
or rugged terrain, the laborers might adopt a relay system, dividing the jour-
position to renew the fighting. ney into manageable segments.
Certain of the Marine combat
Two members of the Korean Service Corps work under the supervision of an
outposts had already demonstrated
explosive ordnance disposal Marine and taught how to remove explosives
their importance, among them from bombs and artillery shells. Once the explosives were removed, the cases
Bunker Hill, the site of deadly were disposed of.
fighting during 1952. The list of Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A169560
critical outposts also included
Reno, Carson, and Vegas, north-
east of the Ungok hills, a massif
that had been the objective of a
number of Marine raids during the
winter. The importance of the
three outposts named for cities in
Nevada, which the 5th Marines
manned, derived from their prox-
imity to a potential invasion route
leading toward Seoul, a road that
passed between Carson and the
Ungok hills. In addition, control of
the three outposts provided obser-
vation of the Chinese main line of
resistance and certain areas imme-
diately beyond, while screening

14
 hills to the west and Hill 67 to the
north.
Reno, in the center, was the
most vulnerable of the three. It not
only lay closest to Chinese lines, but
also occupied a ridge that forced
the defenders into a perimeter
vaguely resembling the wishbone of
a turkey, open end to the north. As
at Carson, a cave served as living
quarters and might also become a
last-ditch redoubt. A tunnel pro-
vided access to the cave from the
main trench, which varied from
five to seven feet deep, but one
Marine, Corporal James D. Prewitt,
confessed that he hated to go
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A170193 through the entrance. As a boy, he
Members of the 1st Squad, 1st Platoon, Company C, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, explained: I had helped dig my
wait to be briefed on a night combat patrol involving the setting of an ambush. brother out of a collapsed play
Since early March, the 1st Battalion had conducted nearly a dozen such patrols tunnel, and I was left with a real
to test the enemy in the Carson-Reno-Vegas area.
horror of such things.
with two portable flamethrowers Two Marines at Outpost Reno make their hourly call to the company command
and as many as five light machine post. Located more than 1,600 yards from the main line of resistance, the out-
guns. One or more forward post was customarily manned by 40 to 43 Marines.
observers adjusted the fire of Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A170020
60mm and 81mm mortars in
defense of each outpost.
The three outposts of Carson,
Reno, and Vegas differed from one
another according to their loca-
tion, the terrain to be defended,
and the threat they faced. Combat
Outpost Carson, on the left, guard-
ed a largely barren hilltop where a
cave provided living quarters for
the Marines, who manned an oval
perimeter protected by barbed
wire and including bunkers, tun-
nels, and a main trench with fight-
ing holes. Except for the slope
nearest the Jamestown Line, where
a deeper entrenchment was being
dug, the main trench on Carson
averaged five feet deep by two
feet wide. Most of the 28 fighting
holes had excellent fields of fire,
though the overhead cover on
some of them had reduced the
opening for observation and firing.
During darkness, two listening
posts covered the likeliest avenues
of enemy attack, from the Ungok

15
 empty cans into nearby gullies. At
night, when the tin cans clattered,
the source of the noise might be
Chinese moving close to attack
behind a sudden barrage or mere-
ly rats scavenging for food.
Members of the Korean Service
Corps kept Reno supplied and
performed the unpleasant task, as
after the fighting in October 1952,
of burying the Chinese dead, a
task repeated whenever artillery
fire disinterred the corpses.
Marines from Reno accompanied
the Korean burial details to protect
them against ambush and also to
keep them at their grisly work.
Enemy snipers, as well as mortar
The Marines at Reno built no
bunkers, relying exclusively on
fighting holes in the trenches and,
as a last resort, the cave itself.
Outpost Reno had limited fields of
fire in the direction of enemy-held
Hill 67, also called Arrowhead Hill,
but Outpost Carson, on the left,
provided fire support in this area.
As a result, the approach that
seemed to pose the greatest danger
to Renos defenders followed a
ridge extending generally south-
ward from Hill 150.
Like the Marines defending the
other outposts, those at Reno
relied on C-rations and tossed the
and artillery crews, posed a con-
tinuing threat, forcing the Marines
to remain under cover during day-
light, insofar as possible. Indeed, a
sniper alerted by the reflection
from a forward observers field
glasses, fatally wounded the
Marine with a single shot. Because
of the danger, tension, and dis-
comfort, the Marines at Reno nor-
mally stayed only for a week
before being relieved.
To the south of Reno lay Reno
Block, an L-shaped trench with a
small bunker at the end of the
shorter leg and a machine gun
position at the point where the

16
 and Vegas, each manned by a
composite platoon from the 1st
Battalion, 5th Marines, underwent a
savage bombardment. An estimated
1,200 60mm and 82mm mortar
rounds exploded on Carson within
roughly 20 minutes, and the
shelling continued at the rate of
about one round every 40 seconds
until 2200. The Chinese gunners
also directed counterbattery fire at
the howitzer positions of the 11th
Marines, sought to interdict move-
ment behind the main line of resis-
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A170011
tance, and tried to sever the
The trenchline on Outpost Reno; to the left of the L where the trench changes telephone lines and routes of
direction lies Reno Block, the site of savage fighting on the night of 26-27 March movement between the battalion
1953. and the threatened outposts.
The bombardment of Carson,
legs joined. At night a reinforced steeply pitched slope too irregular Reno, and Vegas formed one part of
squad manned the blocking posi- for grazing fire and also by the a general shelling of outposts all
tion, which served as a listening small firing apertures in some of along the Jamestown Line. To the
post, helped screen the movement the covered fighting holes, right of the 1st Battalion, 5th
of supplies and reinforcements, weapons there could support Marines, the Chinese lashed out at
and provided a rallying point for Reno with long-range fire. By day, Berlin and East Berlin, manned by
relief columns ambushed by Vegas proved a magnet for sniper Marines of the regiments 3d
Chinese patrols. Perched on a hill- fire and harassment by mortars Battalion. To the left of the 5th
top, Reno Block afforded excellent and artillery, forcing the Marines Marines, artillery fire and some-
visibility, but conversely it could to remain under cover. A tour of times infantry threatened the out-
easily be seen from Chinese lines. duty at Vegas usually lasted three posts of the 1st Marines, like
Consequently, as a Marine who days for infantry and no more than Hedy, Bunker Hill, Esther, and
served there recalled: We would five for artillery forward observers. Dagmar. Chinese troops also
light a cigarette under cover of a seemed to be positioning them-
coat or blanket, then when we Attack on Carson, selves to attack in the sector of the
took a drag it was with both hands Reno, and Vegas Korean Marines.
cupped to hide the glow, which On the night of 26 March, the
could draw sniper fire. Marines Although the 5th Marines had general bombardment fell most
manning Renos east-west trench been active during Marchraiding heavily on Carson, Reno, and
could fire in support of the block- Hill 31A in the Ungok hill mass Vegas, and just 10 minutes after
ing position, as could the garrison and patrolling by night, especially the shells began exploding there,
at Carson. in the vicinity of Carson, Reno, some 3,500 soldiers from the
To the right of Reno loomed and Vegasthe Chinese tended to 358th Regiment, 120th Division, of
Combat Outpost Vegas, which avoid combat. The lull ended the Chinese 46th Army began con-
attained a height of 175 meters abruptly at 1900 on 26 March, verging on the three outposts.
and, as the tallest of the three, when the Chinese shattered the Taking advantage of the shelling,
afforded the best fields of observa- springtime evening with fire from two platoons advanced from the
tion. Barbed wire and a well-con- small arms, machine guns, mor- Ungok hills to attack Carson, while
structed trench encircled the tars, and artillery. Almost every one Chinese company stormed
egg-shaped perimeter on Vegas, Chinese weapon within range Reno and another Vegas. Yet
with its one warming and two liv- raked the left and center of the another companythis one from
ing bunkers. Although the fields of sector manned by the 1st Arrowhead Hill and nearby Hill
fire on Vegas were less than ideal, Battalion, 5th Marines. 29crossed the road to Seoul to
handicapped in places by a Combat Outposts Carson, Reno, attack Reno from the northwest.

17
 radio that the enemy controlled
everything outside the cave, which
was collapsing under the sus-
tained shelling. According to the
message, death, wounds, and the
lack of oxygen inside the cave left
only seven Marines able to fight.
Supporting weapons did their
best to save the doomed outpost.
Aided by flares from an aircraft
and illuminating rounds, machine
gunners on the main line of resis-
tance and rocket batteries just to the
rear fired into the Chinese swarm-
ing over Reno, while variable-time
artillery shells burst overhead,
showering the attackers with
deadly fragments. Two Marine M-46
tanks, on the Jamestown Line just
behind Reno, joined in with their
5th Marines Historical Diary Photo Supplement, Mar53 90mm guns. Radio contact with
Marines on Vegas huddle in the command post bunker as Chinese mortars and the Marines fighting at the outpost
artillery pound the outpost. While Marine artillery responded with protective box-
faded, and then failed entirely
ing and variable-time fires on the outpost and routes of approach, defending
infantry called down 60mm and 81mm mortar barrages.
never to be restored.
Chinese forces also seemed on
Meanwhile, Chinese troops from ing their attention to Reno and the verge of victory at Outpost
Hill 190 outflanked Reno on its left Vegas. The attack began to ebb at Vegas. The intensity of the bom-
to hit the outpost from the rear, about 2135, but mortars and bardment and overwhelming num-
and others advanced from the artillery continued to pound the bers forced the Marines from their
high ground north of Vegas to Marines on Carson. The violent least defensible positions. A break-
storm the outpost head-on. though brief assault, followed by down in communication ham-
The fight for Carson, a part of the sustained shelling, took a psycho- pered efforts to reinforce Vegas, as
enemys main effort, pitted logical as well as physical toll Chinese artillery fire tore up tele-
Chinese numbers, perhaps 20 among Carsons surviving defend- phone wires leading from the out-
attackers for every defender, ers. For example, the outpost com- posts to the battalion command
against a determined garrison that mander, First Lieutenant Jack F. post. Radio had to replace wire.
could be readily reinforced from Ingalls, who survived unwounded, While the defenders of Vegas
the main line of resistance. In the seemed to have aged 10 years, were undergoing attack, the 5th
first 35 minutes, the attackers pen- according to a sergeant who knew Marines sought to reinforce
etrated the outer trenches at him. Outpost Reno, with the 1st
Carson, but the Marines fought the Reno, where the terrain pre- Battalion assuming operational
Chinese to a standstill in a fierce cluded the establishment of a tight control of those elements of the 2d
hand-to-hand struggle. Moving perimeter, proved harder to Battalion involved in the effort. At
their wounded to the shelter of the defend than Carson and, because it 2015, advance elements of a pla-
centrally located cave, the defend- was farther from the main line of toon from Company F, 2d
ers continued to fire from their resistance, more difficult to rein- Battalion, set out from the main
fighting holes along the main force. As at Carson, the Chinese line of resistance, fought their way
trench. As squads from Companies gained a hold on the outer works, out of an ambush near Hill 47, but
C and D of Lieutenant Colonel but at Reno they capitalized on were pinned down short of Reno
Jonas M. Platts 1st Battalion, 5th this early success and forced the Block, which had yet to be
Marines, were moving out to rein- Marines to fall back to the cave manned that night and had been
force Carson, the Chinese relaxed that anchored the position. At occupied by the Chinese. The
the pressure on that outpost, shift- 2030, Outpost Reno reported by reinforced 3d Platoon, Company

18
 A Platoon at Reno Block

T he 3d Platoon, Company C, 1st Battalionrein-

forced by an attached machine gun section
manned a portion of the Jamestown Line on the
night of 26 March 1953. The men of the platoon, led by
Second Lieutenant Warren C. Ruthazer, were standing the
usual nighttime alert when they heard Chinese artillery
exploding along the combat outpost line. Soon the bom-
bardment began battering the main line of resistance, and
Ruthazer summoned his noncommissioned officers to
the command post where he told them that a Chinese
attack on Outpost Reno had driven the defenders into the
cave there and might soon overwhelm them.
Each night, a reinforced rifle squad, occupied Reno
Block, a listening post about 100 yards closer to the
main line of resistance than Reno itself. On this evening,
however, the Chinese bombardment prevented the
squad from moving out. As a result, the garrison intend- Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 13964
ed for Reno Block, a reinforced squad from the 1st At a December 1953 battalion review, MajGen Randolph
Platoon of Company C, joined forces with Lieutenant McC. Pate, commander of the 1st Marine Division, presents
Ruthazers 3d Platoon. the Navy Cross, the nations second highest award for mil-
Shortly after 2000, the reinforced 3d Platoon, and its itary valor, to Hospital Corpsman Paul N. Polley.
additional squad, received orders to drive the Chinese
from Outpost Reno and bring back the surviving believed that this decision enabled the platoon to cling
Marines. The men of the rescue force carried shovels and to the segment of trench, making it the anchor of a
entrenching tools to free Marines trapped in the cave or ragged perimeter. The arrival of Captain Ralph L. Walz and
in collapsed trenches, along with grenades for close-in two platoons from his Company F, 2d Battalion, 5th
fighting. Ruthazers platoon started along a trail that Marines, tipped the balance in favor of the Marines, at
extended some 1,800 yards, served Reno Block, and ter- least momentarily. The captain quickly mounted a bay-
minated at Reno. The Marines had to remain close to the onet charge, described by Janzen as magnificent, hero-
trail because of minefields on both flanks, thus becom- ic, and ghastly, that overwhelmed the Chinese at Reno
ing more vulnerable to ambush. They avoided bunching Block.
up, dropped to the ground when necessary to escape Two corpsmen with Ruthazers platoon, Hospitalman
enemy fire, and then jumped to their feet, rushing forward Third Class Paul N. Polley and Hospitalman Francis C.
until again forced to hug the muddy earth. One of the Hammond, struggled to care for the increasing number
many mortar shells that exploded along the trail burst of casualties at Reno Block. Temporarily blinded by dirt
close enough to Sergeant William H. Janzen, the platoon thrown in his face by an exploding shell, Polley contin-
guide, to pelt him with dirt, and another landed direct- ued as best he could to tend to the wounded by sense
ly in front of Private First Class Bobby G. Hatcher as he of touch. Hammond, though already wounded, voluntarily
sprawled for cover alongside the trail, but the round remained behind with Captain Walzs Marines when the
failed to explode. During this ordeal, as he later platoon from Company C received orders to withdraw.
recalled, Sergeant Janzen kept his sanity, although his face Hammond, killed when a mortar shell exploded near him,
was buried in the dirt and mud, by concentrating on was awarded a posthumous Medal of Honor; Polley
repeating the Lords Prayer. lived to receive the Navy Cross.
To reach Reno Block, the force had to climb the steep Casualty evacuation teams began arriving shortly
hill on which the trench and bunker lay. The Marines had after the 3d Platoon received orders to disengage. The sur-
rigged a strong rope alongside the trail to help the heav- vivors able to move about on their own had gathered at
ily laden troops pull themselves upward. Chinese mor- the base of the hill, when someone reported seeing a
tar and artillery fire had cut the rope, however, and the machine gunner, Private First Class Mario Lombardi,
platoon had to claw its way up the slope. Atop the hill, half-buried in a collapsed trench. A final search located
the men entered a trench so shallow that at times the Lombardi, whose legs had been broken, and his comrades
Marines had to crawl toward the blocking position. brought him back. Of the 40 Marines in the reinforced 3d
The Chinese concentrated on the head of the relief col- Platoon, fewer than 10 returned unscathed to the main
umn instead of trying to encircle it. Sergeant Janzen line of resistance.

19
C, 1st Battalionled by Second elements of Company F dispatched Marines to beat back three sepa-
Lieutenant Warren C. Ruthazer earlier, and a platoon from rate assaults by midnight and
started toward Reno at 2030, Company D sent to reinforce denying them an opportunity to
together with the squad that had Outpost Vegas but stopped near mount a strong attack of their own.
been assigned to Reno Block but Reno Block by Chinese fire. While the fighting raged at Reno
had not yet deployed, and reached Captain Walz took command of the Block, the Chinese marshaled rein-
the enemy-held blocking position group and launched an attack that forcements of their own behind
despite twice coming under long- drove the enemy from the blocking Hills 31 and 31D. Fire from Marine
range fire and twice being position. artillery and from tanks on the
ambushed. Two platoons of The cobbled-together force of main line of resistance scattered
Company F, 2d Battalion, followed Marines clinging to Reno Block, one such group as it massed to
in the wake of Ruthazers men, now commanded by Captain Ralph join in attacking Reno, but the
leaving the Jamestown Line at 2227 L. Walz of Company F, tried gal- Chinese prevailed, killing or cap-
and advancing toward Reno Block lantly but unsuccessfully to reach turing all the defenders. The sur-
until stopped by fire from the the composite force from the 1st vivors consisted of just five
Chinese holding the blocking posi- Battalion, 5th Marines, that Marinesamong them the outpost
tion. Here these latest reinforce- manned Outpost Reno when the commander, Second Lieutenant
ments, under Captain Ralph L. battle began. Chinese attacks on Rufus A. Seymour of Company C,
Walz, the commander of Company the blocking position continued 1st Battalion, 5th Marinesand a
F, found Ruthazers Marines, the without respite, forcing the Navy corpsman. They became
Marines of the 4.2-inch mortar company, 5th Marines, were unable to get to the companys mortar positions, so the
unload ammunition in support of the assault to retake Marines had to haul the ammunition up by carts.
Outpost Vegas. Because of the heavy incoming fire, trucks
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A170437

20
prisoners of war and were ulti-
mately repatriated.
The Chinese capture of Reno
freed one of the companies that
had helped subdue that outpost.
The enemy assigned it the mission
of delivering a coup de grace to
Reno Block, but Marine artillery
and tanks firing from the main line
of resistance caught the Chinese as
they moved south and frustrated
the plan. The blocking position
remained in Marine hands, at least
temporarily.
During the struggle for Reno
and Reno Block, Outpost Vegas
continued to hold out, but almost
from the time the Chinese
attacked, contact with Vegas
proved uncertain. To facilitate the
restoration of reliable communica-
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A170429
tions by wire, and if necessary
A Marine gives a wounded buddy a drink while others prepare him for evacua-
with runners, Colonel Walt, the
tion. During the initial attempts to regain control of Outposts Reno and Vegas,
commander of the 5th Marines, both Marine and enemy casualties were heavy; an estimated 600 Chinese had
shifted operational control of the been wounded or killed while Marine losses were placed at more than 150.
Marines on Vegas, and those
attempting to reinforce them, from fire from mortars and small arms. reserve, placed its Company F
the 2d Battalion to the 3d For now the outpost would remain under the operational control of
Battalion. Shortly before midnight, in Chinese hands. The attempts to the 3d Battalion, 5th Marines, for
contact with Vegas ended. All the reach Outpost Reno on the night this new effort to reach Vegas. The
Marines there were either killed or and early morning of 26-27 March platoon leading the way advanced
captured; the dead included the resulted in severe Marine casual- to within 200 yards of the outpost,
officer in charge, First Lieutenant ties that Colonel Walt later estimat- but could only confirm that the
Kenneth E. Taft, Jr. ed as being as high as 35 percent, enemy had already seized it.
with many dead. Beginning at about 0300, the
Initial Counterattacks End On the early morning of 27 Marines who had made this early
March, while the attempts to fight morning attempt to break through
At midnight, after some five through to Outpost Reno were to Vegas withdrew to the main line
hours of fighting, the Chinese con- ending in frustration, two platoons of resistance, arriving there at
trolled Vegas and Reno, although organized from Companies D, 2d 0417. Earlier on the night of the
Carson remained under Marine Battalion, and C, 1st Battalion, of the 26th, Colonel Walt had given his
control. The Marines trying to 5th Marines advanced toward 3d Battalion operational control
break through to Vegas or Reno Vegas. They worked their way as over the attempts to save Vegas;
had thus far got no farther than close as 400 yards to the entrance to now he ratified the decision by
Reno Block, but they kept trying. At the outposts trenches before a shifting the boundary between the
0144, Captain Walz, in command fresh Chinese assault stopped 1st and 3d Battalions some 250
of Company F and in charge of the them. This setback forced the 1st yards to the west.
composite force at the blocking Marine Division to commit a part of The eight-hour fight at Vegas
position, reported that he had only its reserve. and on its approaches cost the
the equivalent of one reinforced The 2d Battalion, 7th Marines, Chinese an estimated 600 casual-
platoon to break through to Reno. commanded by Lieutenant Colonel ties, four times the total of Marines
Within an hour, Walz had launched Alexander G. Cereghino and func- killed or wounded. Unremitting
three attacks, each one stopped by tioning as part of the division Chinese mortar and artillery fire

21
claimed most of the Marine vic- however, to avoid confusion that Lieutenant Benjamin H. Murray of
tims. A platoon from Company F, 2d might prove advantageous to the Company I, 3d Battalion, to contain
Battalion, joined Company C, as enemy. the penetration until help arrived.
did a provisional unit assembled One reinforced squad from Before midnight on 26 March,
from the 1st Battalions Headquar- Company G held Berlin, and Second Lieutenant John J. Peeler,
ters and Service Company. Rather another East Berlin. Both garrisons the executive officer of Company I,
than taking part in an attempt to beat back the Chinese with the led a counterattack from the main
regain Vegas, these latest rein- help of barrages that boxed-in the line of resistance that regained
forcements helped evacuate those outposts and variable-time fire that control over all of Outpost
Marines wounded in the earlier rained fragments on the enemys Dagmar. The clashes at Dagmar
fighting. routes of approach. By midnight, a and the other outpostsHedy,
Marines wounded in the vicinity second squad had reinforced each Bunker Hill, and Estherkilled
of Outpost Vegas followed one of of the outposts. perhaps 10 Chinese and wounded
two routes to a collection point The Chinese also probed the 17 at the cost of four Marines
behind the position held by outposts held by the 1st Marines killed and 16 wounded. A feeble jab
Company H, 3d Battalion, 5th on the left of Colonel Walts regi- at Outpost Kate proved an annoy-
Marines. From here, casualties ment. The enemy bombarded four ance rather than a threat, and
went either directly to the 3d outpostsHedy, Bunker Hill, Es- Chinese troops massing in front of
Battalion aid station or to a camp of ther, and Dagmarand tested the the Korean Marines did not attack
the Korean Service Corps enroute to defenses of all of them. Only at at this time. Marine artillery again
the aid station of the 1st Battalion. Combat Outpost Dagmar did the demonstrated its importance during
The most severely wounded trav- attackers break through the wire. the outpost actions on the night of
eled by helicopter directly to a The 27 Marines defending the out- 26-27 March. The 11th Marines
hospital ship, Haven (AH 12) or post held their own against an fired more than 10,000 105mm and
Consolation (AH 15), in Inchon approximately equal number of 155mm rounds at targets from East
Harbor. The others received fur- Chinese. Some 300 rounds of mor- Berlin and Berlin westward to
ther treatment from the divisions tar and artillery fire helped the Outpost Hedy. The bombardment
medical battalion before being defenders, commanded by Second of Vegas and Reno, the outposts
transferred to better-equipped
facilities in the rear. A Marine mans the main trenchline on the forward sloop of Outpost Dagmar. The
outpost was the site of a two-squad Chinese diversionary assault with automat-
ic weapons and satchel charges that was beaten back with help from Marines on
Chinese Diversionary Attacks the main line of resistance.
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A169923
On the night of 26 March, the
Chinese diverted attention from
Carson, Reno, and Vegas by jab-
bing at Berlin and East Berlin in
the sector of Lieutenant Colonel
Robert J. Oddys 3d Battalion, 5th
Marines. Berlin occupied a round-
ed hilltop roughly the same height
as the main line of resistance; a
400-yard ridge linked the two.
Supplies or reinforcements bound
for Berlin, unlike those destined
for Vegas or Reno, were screened
by the hill from direct enemy
observation. Taking advantage of
the concealment, carrying parties
of the Korean Service Corps shut-
tled supplies to the entrance to the
outpost. The porters were not
allowed to enter the trenches,

22
 Reno, observation planes from bursting on Hills 57A and 90 blind-
Marine Observation Squadron 6 ed the Chinese observers there
(VMO-6) began flying missions to and marked the launching of the
direct friendly artillery fire against attack, which got under way short-
Chinese batteries. Aerial observers ly after 1100. Artillery, mortars,
called down some 60 fire missions tanks, and aircraft hammered
against targets that included mor- Vegas, Reno, and the enemys firing
tars, artillery, and self-propelled batteries, including some located
guns. During the morning dark- by Marine airmen earlier in the
ness, Douglas F3D-2 Skyknight day.
night fighters conducted radar As bombs, shells, and rockets
bombing against Chinese gunners exploded on Vegas and the other
and troop concentrations. As dawn targets, Company D, 2d Battalion,
approached, the time chosen for 5th Marinesan element of
an attempt to recapture Vegas and Colonel Walts regimental re-
Reno, air strikes intensified. serveadvanced from the main
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A317670 Grumman F9F Panther jets of line of resistance. The assault com-
A graduate of Stanford University and Marine Fighter Squadron 115 pany, commanded by Captain
veteran of the British Commando (VMF-115) arrived overhead at John B. Melvin, launched its attack
Program, LtCol Alexander D. 0650 to help neutralize the at 1120 but immediately came
Cereghino spent most of World War II Chinese defenders of the two cap- under fire from Chinese mortars
in command of the 1st Provisional tured outposts. A breakdown of and artillery. Within an hour, the
Battalion stationed in Northern
communications forced a post- companys first platoon had been
Ireland. Following a three-year stint
ponement, however; H-Hour for reduced to just nine able-bodied
at Headquarters Marine Corps, he was
given command of 2d Battalion, 7th
the assault on Reno and Vegas Marines, but Melvins survivors
Marines, in Korea. slipped until 0900, but persistent slogged forward through flooded
problems of coordination caused rice paddies and up a rain-soaked
the Chinese had seized, continued further delay. Airmen took advan- slope. Marine casualties and
into the morning of the 27th in tage of the additional time; with enemy reinforcements slowed
preparation for a more powerful two-dozen Marine fighter-bombers Company D, as the men worked
counterattack. joining Air Force jets in delivering their way from one depression or
strikes. rocky outcropping to another until
Marine Counterattack of Marine tankswhich the divi- the counterattack stalled some 200
27 March sion commander, Major General yards short of the objective.
Edwin A. Pollock, had ordered to Chinese fire raked the slope where
Preparations for a major coun- join the rocket battery, mortars, the assault had bogged down, but
terattack went ahead on the and artillery regiment in supporting Marine jet fighters and piston-
ground and in the air. At 0345 on the counterattackmade their powered attack planes joined the
the 27th, Lieutenant Colonel contribution to the preliminary 11th Marines and the 1st Tank
Cereghinos 2d Battalion, 7th fires. Company A of the divisions Battalion in trying to silence the
Marines, an element of the divi- tank battalion spotted two groups of hostile weapons.
sion reserve, came under the oper- Chinese carrying logs for the con- Shells from Chinese 122mm
ational control of Colonel Walts struction of bunkers on the site of artillery and 120mm mortars
5th Marines. Cereghinos unit had Outpost Reno. The tank company churned the slopes of Vegas; mak-
already moved into an assembly wiped out one group with 90mm ing the detonations from 60mm
area behind the 1st Battalion, 5th fire, but the other presumably mortar rounds seem like mere fire-
Marines, and Company F had reached its destination. crackers. Captain Melvin recalled
taken part in as unsuccessful Before the attack finally began, that the enemy fire was so intense
attempt to break through to Major General Pollock agreed to a at times that you couldnt move
Outpost Vegas. change of plan. Vegas would be forward or backward.... You could
By the time the Marines aban- the sole objective; while attacking only hope that the next round
doned the early attempts to fight there the Marines would neutral- wouldnt be on target. Despite the
their way through to Vegas and ize Reno with fire. Smoke shells deadly barrage, a handful of

23
Marines succeeded in entering the ing to the enemy-held outpost and porting weapons in the rear, and
outer trench and making a brief relieved the surviving elements of also from the site of Outpost Reno,
lodgment there. Melvins Company D, 5th Marines, helped the enemy prevail.
To sustain the counterattack, which returned to the main line of Pressure on the Marine foothold
two forces set out shortly after resistance. While 90mm guns from continued throughout the night.
1200 from the lines of Company H, Captain Clyde W. Hunters Com- By midnight, Captain Esteys men
3d Battalion, 5th Marines. Captain pany A, 1st Tank Battalion, fired had beaten off three attacks and
Floyd G. Hudson led the way with from the main line of resistance clung firmly to the position at the
a provisional unit made up from against a Chinese strongpoint on base of Vegas. Marine night fighters
the 2d Battalion, 5th Marines. the crest of Vegas, Marine aircraft and attack planes made nine
Captain Herbert M. Lorence com- maintained a smoke screen that radar-controlled strikes between
manded the second, Company F blinded enemy observers. Estey darkness on the 27th and 0115 the
of the same battalion. These rein- combined his men with those of next morning, dropping some 24
forcements reached the slope Company E of the 5th Marines, tons of bombs on enemy positions
where Melvins Marines were and formed the equivalent of three and supply lines. The bombard-
undergoing their ordeal but could platoons. After a savage fight last- ment of Esteys perimeter gradual-
advance no farther. As a result, ing about an hour and a half, the ly abated, as Chinese gunners
Company F, 2d Battalion, 7th counterattack succeeded by 2000 shifted their fire from the base of
Marinesavailable from what had in overrunning the trenches nearest Vegas to the main line of resis-
been the division reserveset out the Marine main line of resistance. tance.
at 1530 under Captain Ralph F. The Chinese who held the rest of During the counterattack on
Estey to lend its weight to the Vegas contained the breakthrough Chinese-held Outpost Vegas,
counterattack on Outpost Vegas. short of the summit and forced the Hospitalman Third Class William
Captain Esteys company Marines to fall back to the base of R. Charetteattached to Company
reached the fire-swept slope lead- the hill and dig in. Fire from sup- F, 2d Battalion, 7th Marines
Grumman F9F Panther jets taxi into position for takeoff Fighter Squadrons 115 and 311 not only attacked Chinese
against enemy concentrations. During the Marine coun- trenches, bunkers, and mortar emplacements, but also
terattack on Outpost Vegas, Panther jets from Marine bombed enemy resupply points.
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A346720

24
repeatedly risked his life to care grenade range of the Chinese through Company F, 2d Battalion,
for the wounded. While Charette before being driven back by fire 7th Marines. Captain Esteys com-
was giving first aid to a Marine, a from small arms and mortars. pany, reduced to just 43 able-bod-
Chinese grenade landed next to While the company regrouped, ied men after a half-dozen
them. Charette pounced on the Marine aircraft joined in battering attempts to recapture Vegas, fell
grenade; his armored vest saved the enemy. After sunrise, Marine back to regroup at the base of the
him from serious injury, but the fliers laid a smoke screen to conceal hill.
force of the explosion tore away air strikes from Chinese antiaircraft While the relief of Esteys com-
his helmet and his medical kit. gunners on Hill 67, north of pany was taking place, aircraft,
Since he could not waste time Outpost Carson. During the early mortars, and artillery continued to
searching for the kit, he used his morning, Marine aircraft conducted scourge not only outpost Vegas,
clothing to improvise bandages. four powerful strikes, the first of a but also Chinese supply routes,
When he was tending to another series that lasted throughout the enemy-held Outpost Reno, nearby
wounded Marine, whose armored day. Hill 25A, and other high ground
vest had been blown off by the The second infantry assault of from which hostile gunners could
concussion from an explosion, the morning, launched at 0600, fire in support of their comrades
Charette removed his own vest failed to recapture Vegas, ending dug in on Vegas. Taking advantage
and placed it over the wounded when Captain Esteys Marines took of the savage bombardmentdur-
man. Without either a helmet or an cover from enemy fire about 375 ing a 23-minute period, aerial
armored vest, he stayed with his yards south of the crest. After fur- bombs fell at the rate of more than
platoon throughout the fighting. ther air strikes, Esteys Company F a ton per minutethe 1st Platoon of
According to one of the Marines attacked once again and by 1015 Captain Lorences company
who fought there, the corpsman penetrated to within 15 yards of launched its assault at 1301. Led by
was everyplace seemingly at the the trenches, where it engaged in a Staff Sergeant John J. Williams,
same time, performing inex- firefight that lasted 22 minutes and who had taken over when Second
haustibly. In recognition of his deprived the assault of its momen- Lieutenant Edgar R. Franz was
bravery and devotion to duty, tum. wounded, the platoon killed or
Charette received the Medal of When this latest counterattack drove off the Chinese defending
Honor. Of the corpsmen whose stalled in front of a machine gun fir- the former site of Outpost Vegas.
service in Korea earned them the ing from the base of a rock forma- The platoon took only one prison-
nations highest award for valor, he tion, Sergeant Daniel P. Matthews, er, the second the Marines had
alone survived to wear it. a squad leader in Company F, saw captured during the day.
The Marines counterattacking that the weapon had pinned down As soon as Captain Lorences
Vegas had seized a strong foothold a wounded Marine and the corps- Marines regained the ruins of
at the base of the hill where the out- man trying to bring him to safety. Outpost Vegas, the Chinese coun-
post stood, but the summit and the The sergeant crawled to the forma- terattacked, but fire from tanks
shell-battered complex of trenches tion, scrambled onto the rocks, dug in on the main line of resistance
and bunkers remained in Chinese opened fire with his rifle, and and artillery helped break up the
hands. Preparations for another charged the gun. Although wound- assault. Although the Marines con-
assault up the hill began at 0335 on ed almost immediately, Matthews trolled Vegas itself, a few Chinese
28 March when the 105mm and killed two members of the gun stubbornly held out at the very
155mm howitzers of the 11th crew and silenced the weapon. His summit of the hill. The work of
Marines fired the first of more than bold action enabled the corpsman preparing to meet the next coun-
2,300 rounds directed at Chinese to save the wounded Marine, but terattack went ahead under the
weapons positions and assembly Matthews died of his wounds command of Major Benjamin G.
areas, as well as the defenses of before members of his squad Lee, who had earned the Silver
the summit itself. could reach him. His heroism Star and Purple Heart as a non-
After half an hours bombard- earned a posthumous Medal of commissioned officer at Guadal-
ment, the men of Captain Esteys Honor. canal during World War II.
Company F, 2d Battalion, 7th Shortly after the one-man Although Lee, operations officer of
Marines, who had entered the fight assault by Sergeant Matthews, the 2d Battalion, 5th Marines, took
at mid-afternoon the previous day, Captain Lorences Company E, 2d command, the resupply of Vegas
worked their way to within Battalion, 5th Marines, passed became the responsibility of the

25
 whelm Lees perimeter but suc-
ceeded only in forcing the Marines
to yield some non-critical ground.
While aircraft dropped flares,
howitzer batteries of the 11th
Marines dueled with Chinese gun-
ners, firing more than 6,000
rounds by midnight. The attack
continued until 0130 on the morn-
ing of 29 March, when another
savage bombardment by the divi-
sions artillery and the fire of
Captain Connollys Company E, 2d
Battalion, 7th Marines, forced the
enemy to relax his pressure. The
bulk of the Chinese assault force,
totaling two battalions during the
fight, withdrew behind a curtain of
fire from weapons emplaced on
Reno.
As Connollys Company E, 7th
1stMarDiv Historical Diary Photo Supplement, Mar53 Marines, and Lorences Company
Although Vegas was retaken, Marines still had to keep low when moving around E, 5th Marines, prepared to elimi-
the ruined outpost. Daylight hours were relatively quiet with only an occasion-
nate the Chinese die-hards still
al burst of machine gun or sniper fire, while night witnessed renewed Chinese
clinging to the crest of the hill,
attempts to overrun the outpost.
artillery and 4.5-inch rockets kept
regiments 3d Battalion. To defend American Bazooka antitank wea- on pounding the enemy. More
the newly recaptured outpost, Lee pon. An enemy battalion advanced than 4,000 rounds neutralized
at first could muster only 66 from captured Outpost Reno, but Reno while others tore into the
Marines, eight of them members of fell back after coming under dead- Chinese-held portion of Vegas. A
Company F, 2d Battalion, 7th ly fire from Army and Marine final Marine assault secured the
Marines, who had not fallen back to artillery and the 1st Marine summit of Vegas at 0450.
the base of the hill with the units Divisions 4.5-inch rocket battery. Chinese mortar and artillery fire
other survivors, and the rest from Outpost Carson came under fire directed at the Marines continued
Captain Lorences Company E, 2d at about the same time from mor- after the recapture of Vegas.
Battalion, 5th Marines. Fortunately, tars and automatic weapons. Shortly after 0500 a 120mm mortar
Captain Thomas P. Connollys Chinese patrols probed the shell killed both Major Lee and
Company E, 2d Battalion, 7th approaches to the outpost, but the Captain Walz, the commander of
Marines, reached the hill with an garrison, supported by weapons Company F, 2d Battalion, 5th
additional 150 men and prepared to on the main line of resistance, Marines, who had led the charge at
take over from Lorences Marines drove off the enemy. The attack, if Reno Block. Also killed in this flur-
and spearhead a final attack. one was planned, did not take ry of shelling was First Lieutenant
place. John S. Gray, a forward observer
Further Action on Outpost Vegas At 2130, Major Lee radioed from from the 1st Battalion, 11th
Vegas to report that a second Marines.
The Chinese held the initiative, Chinese assault was imminent, and Major Joseph S. Buntin, the
however, and at 1955 on 28 March, within an hour the enemy struck. executive officer of the 3d
as darkness enveloped Vegas, they Box-me-in fires helped Lees Battalion, 5th Marines, which was
counterattacked. The preparatory Marines cling to their position, but responsible for rebuilding the out-
fires included the usual artillery the Chinese struck again, launching post, now took command.
and mortar barrages supplemented the nights third attack about an Replacements, including corps-
by 3.5-inch rockets fired from the hour before midnight. At least 200 men, arrived that morning, along
Chinese equivalent of the Chinese soldiers tried to over- with weapons, tools, construction

26
supplies, and laborers from the the divisions 4.5-inch rocket bat-
Korean Service Corps. By noon, tery, exploded among the attacking
work was underway on trenches, troops. Army 8-inch howitzers and
fighting holes, and bunkers, 4.2-inch mortars also helped break
screened as necessary by smoke up the assault.
missions fired by the 11th Marines, After a brief flurry of activity at
but the muddy, shell-churned about 2045, perhaps an attempt to
earth complicated the efforts of retrieve men wounded in the ear-
the Marines and the Korean labor lier attack, the Chinese mounted
troops helping them. As daylight another major effort early in the
faded, rain and light snow added to morning of 30 March, again striking
the discomfort of the men on the from Reno and Hill 153. This latest
ground and forced the aerial attempt to isolate Outpost Vegas
observers, who had been directing and destroy it also collapsed
the maintenance of smoke screens under an avalanche of artillery and
and other artillery missions, to mortar shells.
return to their airstrips. Sunrise brought clearing skies, National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A365894
The Chinese had not yet aban- enabling Marine AU Corsairs to For outstanding services performed
doned their designs on Vegas. At disrupt Chinese attempts to in the line of his professional ser-
1805 on 29 March, they advanced regroup for further assaults. vices, Maj Joseph S. Buntin would
from assembly areas in the vicinity Throughout the day, Marine air- later receive the Bronze Star Medal
of Reno and Hill 153 and hit Vegas men attacked troops, fortifications, from MajGen Randolph McC. Pate.
on both flanks. This attack trig- and firing batteries on Reno and The award was presented in
December 1953.
gered the most violent single bar- other hills that menaced Vegas. On
rage of the battle for Vegas, as Vegas, the Marines were like rab- that the replacements jumped
more than 6,400 shells from five bits digging in, said Corporal right in, as members of hastily
artillery battalions, plus two George Demars of Company F, 2d organized squads worked together,
rounds from each launching tube in Battalion, 5th Marines, who added even though they didnt know
half the people on the fire teams.
By daybreak on 31 March, the men on Vegas could relax in the partially recon- In the afternoon, Company G, 3d
structed trench works. The five-day siege involving more than 4,000 ground and
Battalion, 5th Marines, relieved
air Marines was the bloodiest action Marines on the Western Front had yet
engaged in.
Captain Connollys Company E, 2d
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A170454 Battalion, 7th Marines, and Major
George E. Kelly, operations officer
of the 2d Battalion, 7th Marines,
replaced Major Buntin.
At about 1100 on the morning of
30 March, five Chinese soldiers
approached Outpost Vegas, giving
the impression they intended to
surrender. Instead they threw
grenades and cut loose with sub-
machine guns in a suicidal gesture
of defiance. Marine infantrymen
returned the fire, killing three of
the intruders outright. Another
died of his wounds, and the sur-
vivor was taken prisoner.
During the night, Army search-
lights provided illumination for
Marine artillery, including the half-
track-mounted .50-caliber machine
guns of the 1st Provisional

27
 Marines continued to relieve the
garrisons at their combat outposts.
To prevent the enemy from
exploiting his conquest of Outpost
Reno, the Marines strengthened
Vegas after its recapture, manning
it with a company rather than a
platoon. The 1st Marine Division
also established a new outpost,
Elko (named like Reno, Vegas, and
Carson for a city in Nevada). Elko
stood on Hill 47, southeast of
Carson and 765 yards north of the
main line of resistance. During the
unsuccessful attempt to break
through to the Reno garrison,
Chinese troops had used Hill 47 to
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A170436
ambush the rescue forces. Marine
Members of the 2d Battalion, 5th Marines, take time out after returning from the
possession of the hill improved
fierce five-day battle for Outpost Vegas to eat chow and take a well-deserve
breather. With a touch of sarcasm, they called the disputed crest of Vegas the
the security of Carson, Vegas, and
highest damn beachhead in Korea. the main line of resistance.

Antiaircraft Artillery Battery strikes against Chinese positions Outpost Vegas: Summing Up
(Automatic Weapons), which took on the night of the 31st, and aircraft,
a hand in the fighting on the mortars, and artillery continued to The five-day battle that ended
ground. Marine aircrews directed harass the enemy on the following with the recapture and successful
by Marine Corps radar made seven day, as the 5th Marines and 1st defense of Outpost Vegas cost the

Standing together at I Corps headquarters in early April manding general, I Corps, MajGen Bruce C. Clarke, newly
are, from left, BGen John K. Waters, Chief of Staff, I Corps, appointed commanding general, I Corps, MajGen James C.
MajGen Bak Lim Hang, Commanding General, 1st Fry, Commanding General, 2d Infantry Division, MajGen
Republic of Korea Division, MajGen M. A. R. West, Arthur G. Trudeau, Commanding General, 7th U.S.
Commanding General, 1st Commonwealth Division, Infantry Division, and Col Pak Ki Sung, Commander, 101st
MajGen Edwin A. Pollock, Commanding General, 1st Korean Service Corps.
Marine Division, LtGen Paul W. Kendall, departing com-
National Archives Photo (USA) 111-SC429583

28
1st Marine Division 1,015 casual- congratulations from the Com- that stood by to rescue the United
ties or some 63 percent of those suf- mandant of the Marine Corps, Nations negotiators if the other
fered by the division, including the General Lemuel C. Shepherd, Jr., side should spring a trap.
Korean Marine regiment, during who praised the stubborn and As the division reserve, the 5th
the entire month of March 1953. heroic defense of Vegas, Reno, Marines assumed responsibility for
Chinese losses were estimated to be and Carson Hills coupled with the maintaining the fallback positions
2,221, of whom 536 had been superb offensive spirit which char- behind the main line of resistance.
actually counted. Whatever the acterized the several counterat- One of these, the Kansas Line, had
exact toll, the Marines had crip- tacks. The sustained and deadly suffered severe structural damage
pled the 358th Regiment of the action earned a respite for the 5th from torrential rains and the spring
Chinese army, which faced the Marines, which on 4 and 5 April thaw. Its restoration required the
task of rebuilding before it could moved into division reserve, full-time efforts of the regiments
again take the offensive. replaced by the 7th Marines after 68 3d Battalion, which had to cancel its
During the loss and recapture of days on line. Meanwhile, on 28 scheduled training. The 2d
Vegas, the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing March the Chinese high command, Battalion, however, participated in
flew 218 missions in support of the perhaps motivated to some extent a landing exercise at Tokchok-to, an
combat outpost line, most of them by the failure to hold Vegas and island southwest of Inchon, but
to help hold positions manned by crack the Jamestown Line, advised high winds and rolling seas cut
the 5th Marines. This total repre- Army General Mark W. Clark, the short the training. While the 5th
sented some 63 percent of the 346 United Nations commander, of its Marines was in reserve, its staff
close air support missions flown willingness to discuss an exchange participatedtogether with staff
by the wing during March. Despite of sick and wounded prisoners of officers of the 1st Marines, the
rain and snow that sometimes war. Commonwealth Division, and U.S.
restricted visibility, Marine aircraft Army and South Korean forcesin
dropped some 426 tons of bombs Shuffling Marine Regiments a command post exercise staged
in support of Marines on the by I Corps.
ground, provided battlefield illu- After the battles for Reno, Meanwhile, the Chinese tested
mination, and laid smoke screens. Carson, and Vegas, the 5th Marines the 7th Marines. On 9 April, after
In addition, helicopters evacuated went into division reserve. Shortly mortars and artillery battered the
the critically wounded. afterward, on 14 April, Colonel regiment with some 2,000 rounds,
Although Marine tanks not only Harvey C. Tschirgi took command the Chinese launched an attack on
fired some 9,000 rounds from the of the regiment, replacing Colonel Carson, followed by a series of
main line of resistance but also Lewis Walt, who was reassigned to probes of that outpost and nearby
illuminated some targets using the division staff. The 7th Marines, Elko. At 0345 on the morning of the
their shuttered searchlights, ar- under Colonel Glenn C. Funk after 9th, some 300 Chinese, advancing
tillery proved the deadliest he took over from Colonel Loren E. in two waves, hit Outpost Carson.
weapon in support of the infantry. Haffner on 27 March, replaced the After an hour, some of the assault
Between 27 and 31 March, the 5th Marines on 4-5 April, moving troops reached the trenchline and
11th Marines, the 1st Marine from division reserve to man the for another hour exchanged fire at
Divisions rocket battery, and the portion of the Jamestown Line for- point-blank range with the
Army artillery and heavy mortar merly held by Colonel Walts regi- defenders. A platoon set out at
units reinforcing their fires, deliv- ment. The 1st Marines, 0530 to reinforce Carson but got
ered almost 105,000 rounds commanded by Colonel Hewitt D. no farther than Elko, the newly
against targets in the vicinity of Adams from 1 November 1952 established outpost some 400
Vegas, Carson, and Reno. The until Colonel Wallace M. Nelson yards southeast of Carson, before
heaviest artillery action took place took over on May 1, remained in fire from mortars and small arms
during the 24 hours ending at place, holding the segment of the stopped the unit until 90mm tank
1600, 29 March, when four Marine line between the 7th Marines and guns and Marine mortars broke up
howitzer battalions fired 33,041 the Korean Marine regiment. After the ambush. Howitzers and rocket
rounds and two Army battalions truce talks resumed at Pan- launchers joined in, battering the
another 2,768. munjom, the 1st Marines under approaches to Carson until the
The recapture of Outpost Vegas Colonel Adams provided a force of Chinese fell back.
and the related fighting earned 245 men and five armored vehicles To strengthen Carsons defenses,

29
 Little Switch

D uring December 1952, when the truce talks at

Panmunjom seemed to have reached a dead
end, General Mark W. Clarkwho in May of
that year had replaced another Army officer, General
Matthew B. Ridgway, in command of the United Nations
of uncertainty. Indeed, if Malenkov or some other ruler
proved less supportive than Stalin, the limited exchange
of prisoners might enable China to revive the truce talks
and perhaps bring to an end a long and thus far incon-
clusive war. On 28 March, while the fight for Vegas and
forcestook note of a suggestion by the International the other outposts still raged, General Clark received
League of Red Cross Societies that the combatants in not only a formal Chinese acceptance of the proposal to
Korea exchange sick and wounded prisoners of war. On exchange prisoners, but also an offer to resume serious
22 February 1953, Clark formally proposed an immedi- armistice negotiations at Panmunjom.
ate exchange, but, as he expected, the Chinese and On 6 April, representatives of the two sides began talks
North Koreans did not respond. On 5 March, however, at Panmunjom that resulted in an agreement for the
the death of Joseph Stalin deprived the Soviet Union of exchange, Operation Little Switch, scheduled to begin on
a forceful dictator and the Peoples Republic of China of the 20th. To prepare for the transfer, 100 Marines from the
a strong ally. 1st Engineer Battalion and the 1st Shore Party Battalion
In this time of transition, as Georgei Malenkov built the so-called Freedom Village at Munsan-ni, a tent
emerged from the shadows to become Stalins successor, city complete with roads, a helicopter pad, and facilities
at least temporarily, the Chinese leadership began think- for emergency medical treatment, administration, and
ing of Clarks proposal as an anchor to windward in a gale press coverage.

Frontline Marines watch a U.S. Army ambulance convoy one-and-a-half hour trip, each Marine prisoner received
bringing the first freed United Nations prisoners from a medical check and a new utility cap with its Marine
Panmunjom to Freedom Village. Following the long Corps emblem.
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A170964

30
 through 26 April when Little Switch ended. The first
Marine welcomed by Major General Pollack, and by the
other dignitaries that included General Clark, was
Private Alberto Pizzaro-Baez of Company H, 3d
Battalion, 7th Marines, wounded in the leg and captured
at Outpost Frisco in October 1952. During his imprison-
ment, the leg became gangrenous and had to be ampu-
tated. The men of the 1st Marine Division returned in
Operation Little Switch totaled 15 Marines and three
Navy hospital corpsmen. Two of the Marines, Corporal
Jimmie E. Lacy and Private First Class George F. Hart, and
one of the corpsmen, Hospitalman Thomas Doc
Waddill, had been wounded and captured when the
Chinese overran Outpost Reno on the night of 26 March.
The Communist forces released 684 sick and wounded
captives from 11 nations, more than half of them South
National Archives Photo (USN) 80-G-480686
Koreans, in return for 6,670 North Koreans and Chinese.
Marine Pvt Alberto Pizzaro-Baez talks with MajGen
The disparity in numbers may have reflected the desire
Edwin A. Pollock at Freedom Village following his
of the Americans to rid themselves of dedicated and dis-
release. Pvt Pizzaro-Baez was among the 15 Marines
ciplined Communists among the prisoners like those
and three Navy Corpsmen who had been captured from
who had seized a prison compound at the island of
the 1st Marine Division.
Koje-do and briefly held the commander hostage. Little
When the exchange began on 20 April, Major General Switch did not address, let alone resolve, the question of
Edwin A. Pollack, the division commander, stood by to the forced repatriation of prisoners unwilling to return
greet the Marines among the 149 Americans released when a truce finally went into effect.

Company E, 2d Battalion, 7th the night of the 9th, three Chinese far as the ruins of a bunker just 50
Marines, moved there from regi- platoons, possibly searching for yards from Outpost Carson. The
mental reserve, more than making the days casualties, advanced as Chinese activity attracted fire that
good the days losses of 14 killed
Not every veteran of the 1st Marine Division was a human being. The pack
and 64 wounded. The Marines horse Reckless, shown here with her handler, took her name from the recoil-
counted 60 Chinese killed in the less (or rec-less) rifle, like the one next to her, for which she carried ammunition.
fighting on the early morning of 9 The horse returned to Camp Pendleton, California, with the division in 1955.
April. Another 160 may have been Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A171729
killed or wounded, which would
have brought the mornings casu-
alties to more than half the
Chinese assault force that triggered
the action.
During the first days fighting on
the ground, Marine aircraft ap-
peared overhead after 0715,
attacking visually or with the help
of ground-based Marine radar. By
mid-afternoon, fighter-bombers
had dropped more than 67 tons of
bombs on Chinese positions north
of Carson. Radar-directed strikes
took place after dark, and visual
strikes resumed after daylight on
10 April.
As aerial action intensified,
activity on the ground slowed. On

31
 front, from coast to coast, was
known collectively as the main
line of resistance. At the same
time, the Eighth U.S. Army in
Korea became simply the Eighth
U.S. Army.
While the bulk of the Marine
division moved 15 miles eastward
over muddy roads to occupy the
three cantonment areas that com-
prised Camp Casey, named in
memory of U.S. Army Major Hugh
B. Casey, the 11th Marines and the
divisions rocket battery remained
attached to I Corps Artillery, in
position to provide general sup-
port and fire counterbattery mis-
sions as necessary. The artillery
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A170606 battalion of the Korean Marines
Marine Cpl Dennis W. Burker, using a Browning automatic rifle, fires at enemy moved into position to reinforce
positions in front of Company I, 3d Battalion, 7th Marines place on the main line the fires of I Corps Artillery. The
of resistance. Cpl Burker wears one of the 24,000 armored vests issued the divi- Marine 1st Tank Battalion came
sion by 1953.
under the control of the 25th
definitely killed 15, may have and its attached Turkish brigade Infantry Division; two companies
killed 15 more, and wounded replaced the 1st Marine Division supported the Turkish brigade,
between seven and 27. Shortly on what had been called the which had no armor of its own,
before midnight, some 70 Chinese Jamestown Line. The practice of another was assigned to the Army
advanced from the Ungok hills naming each separate segment of divisions 35th Infantry, and the
and attacked Carson, only to lose the line, like Jamestown, ended on fourth served as a reserve. The
perhaps 20 additional men to 28 April, after which the entire Korean Marine tank company
Marine mortars, tank guns, and The first contingent of the 3d Turkish Battalion begins the relief of the 3d
machine guns. A couple of Battalion, 7th Marines. On 5 May, the U. S. Armys 25th Infantry Division, to
Chinese squads probed Outpost which the Turkish troops were attached, took over from the 1st Marine Division,
Elko on the night of the 11th, but which went into corps reserve.
for the most part, the enemy now Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A171351

contented himself with trying to

exploit the renewal of truce talks by
showering the Jamestown Line
with propaganda leaflets warning
the Marines against risking their
lives because a ceasefire was at
hand. The Chinese reinforced the
printed message with loudspeaker
broadcasts, and on one occasion
they dropped leaflets from an air-
plane to supplement those scat-
tered from special mortar shells.

Into I Corps Reserve

On 5 May, the Armys 25th
Infantry Division, commanded by
Major General Samuel T. Williams,

32
 Women Marines

T he role of women in the Marine Corps during the

Korean War was the result of a checkered series of
events in the preceding years. When World War II
ended, there were 820 officers and 17,640 enlisted mem-
bers of the Marine Corps Womens Reserve. They had
served to free a Marine to fight, as the recruiting slogan
proclaimed.
In one tumultuous year of peacetime demobilization,
the number of women reservists plummeted to a total of
298 in August 1946. Simultaneously, there was skepticism
at the highest levels in Headquarters Marine Corps as to
whether there should be any women reservists on active
duty, or, in fact, any women at all in a peacetime Marine
Corps. With other branches of the Armed Services
retaining women, the Marine Corps finally agreed to a
minimum step, it would enlist former women reservists
in its Reserve and authorize their formation into Marine Corps Historical Center Photo Collection
Volunteer Training Units (January 1947). The first post-World War II Women Marines arrived at
The decisive breakthrough occurred on 12 June 1948 Quantico, Virginia, in 1950 and were assigned to the
with the passage of the Womens Armed Services Administrative Section of the Landing Force Develop-
Integration Act. This led to women in the Organized ment Center. Although limited to a minute number of
Reserve and, for the first time, in the Regular Marine Corps. occupational fields, Women Marines numbered more
They were now confirmed as a permanent part of a than 2,700 by mid-1953.
peacetime Corps, with authorization to seek 100 offi-
cers, 10 warrant officers, and 1,000 enlisted women dur- women reserve enlisted on active duty.
ing the next two years. A bombshell exploded on 25 June 1950 when South
To take charge of this rebirth, a superb leader was Korea unexpectedly was invaded. Now the trials and
essential. There would be endless problems and details tribulations that Marine women had experienced in the
in organizing this latest expansion, as well as a crucial past years would bear fruit in a time of crisis. With the
need for a firm but diplomatic style at Headquarters brutal strength reductions that had been forced upon it
Marine Corps. The right person emergedKatherine A. in the preceding years, the Marine Corps suddenly need-
Towle. She had been a captain in 1943 and had returned ed all the personnelhopefully trainedthat it could
to a college campus in 1946. General Clifton B. Cates, scrape together. And here were the women! Their
Commandant of the Marine Corps, asked her to return to potential went far beyond those on active duty and out
active duty and take charge. On 18 October 1948, she was into a reservoir of civilians who would soon be joining
sworn in as Director of Women Marines with the rank of up.
colonel. It was she who would lead Women Marines The Marine Corps immediately called up its 13
throughout the Korean War. Progress came quickly after women reserve platoons, with 287 enlisted veterans
thatcommissioning of women as regulars, with their title going straight to active duty and 298 non-veterans being
changed from women reservists to Women Marines. sent to Parris Island. This mobilization was characterized
The year 1949 saw a variety of activities, which, by President Harry S. Trumans 19 July call up of all
unknowingly, prepared women reservists and Women Reserves for active duty, including the Marine Corps
Marines for the wartime demands which would erupt the Organized Reserve and Volunteer Reserve.
following year. Enlisted training began at Parris Island, For women, the Marine Corps had strict standards: an
South Carolina. Drawing on the Volunteer Training age limit of 18 to 31 (with 20 as the minimum for a reg-
Units, Organized Womens Reserve platoons were acti- ular); single with no dependents; and a high school
vated, with 13 functioning by February 1950. At diploma or its equivalent. Within a year, the eager
Quantico a Woman Officer Candidate Course and a response had brought the total number of women in the
Woman Officer Training Class were instituted, and 86, later Corps to 2,065.
reduced to 27, appropriate military occupational spe- The flow of recruits led to a battalion of women at
cialties were targeted as potential for women. By March Parris Island and a similar company at Camp Lejeune,
1950, there were 28 Regular Women Marine officers, 496 North Carolina, and the air base at El Toro, California, by
regular enlisted, 18 women reserve officers, and 41 October 1950. There they worked five days, spent a half-

33
 day on instruction in military subjects, and finished off were Women Marine companies at Cherry Point, Camp
after their evening meal with close order drill. It was not Pendleton, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, Norfolk, San
surprising that the vast majority of their assignments Diego, and Quantico, with Kaneohe Bay added in 1953.
were clerical and administrative, given the culture of the The year 1953 saw the establishment at Camp Lejeune
1940s and 1950s, when many civilians, and not a few of a Staff Noncommissioned Officer Leadership School for
Marines, believed that a womans place was in the women. Military occupational specialties available to
home. This also was evidenced when family and friends officers were expanded in March. Three more women
would often try to dissuade young women from enlisting. reserve platoons had been formed by April.
And then there were some Marines who made life diffi- There was a change of command on 1 May 1953.
cult for the women who did join up. Colonel Towle had reached the statutory age limit of 55
This narrow limitation of assignments for women for colonels, and she had to retire. She had been a
resulted in their being untrained for billets that needed superb leader, and a Letter of Commendation from the
them, as well as strange anomalies such as a woman pri- Commandant and an award of a Legion of Merit medal
vate first class filling a master sergeants billet. recognized her achievements.
Colonel Towle, alert as always, wrote a pithy memo- Her successor as Director of Women Marines was
randum to the powers at Headquarters Marine Corps in Lieutenant Colonel Julia E. Hamblet. She was a graduate
January 1951. She stated unequivocally that Marine of the first training class for women officers in 1943, and
Corps policies for women were unrealistic and short- was only 37 years old when, after a wide variety of
sighted, as well as uneconomical. Thus, there was an active duty, she was promoted to colonel in her new
urgent need, she continued for a systematic, long-range assignment.
training [plan]. When she took office, the Korean War was winding
As the number of women grew, so did the range of down. June 1953 saw a total of 160 women officers and
their activities. At their assigned bases, they organized ath- 2,502 enlisted. Then, on 27 July, the war was over.
letic teams and had a variety of off-duty interests. There As one author summed up these years:
was also a modest expansion of duties, with some
women now in billets for motor transport, recruiting, The Korean War era witnessed a brief, temporary
photography, air traffic control, public affairs, and base surge of interest in WMs [Women Marines] on the
newspapers. A few even made it to duty in Italy and Corps part, but it did not result in major, long-term
Germany. changes in either the womens standing within the
With the increase in active duty billets, women Corps or in the duties they were assigned. In the
reservists with minor-age children were released while, wake of the war their numbers began to decrease,
at the same time, applications for active duty rose. the sense of urgency that surrounded their redux
In January 1952, women reserve platoons were subsided, and WM-related issues were shelved
reestablished and by the end of the year totaled 14. In indefinitely. The ambivalence the Corps felt about
addition to basic military subjects, they received indi- women in the ranks never really disappeared,
vidualized training in one of five occupational specialties: even when the war was on the WMs were sorely
administration, supply, classification, disbursing, and needed.
communications. Besides regular drill nights these
women reservists had a two-week summer training peri- Besides these institutional evaluations, there was
od. another vital factor to record, the impact that duty in the
In spite of these expanded roles for women in the Corps had on these women. Their later comments were
Corps, billets for officers were still limited to 10 occupa- nearly unanimous: The best years of my life.
tional specialties in April 1952. Nevertheless, by May, there Captain John C. Chapin, USMCR (Ret)

remained in its former sector, food, water, fuel, and ammunition to counterattack after occupying
although now under control of I to the tanks. The presence of any of the back-up lineslike the
Corps. Marine armor at the front provided former Wyoming and Kansas
The tanks on the main line of a bonus in addition to firepower, for behind the four divisions manning
resistance occupied fixed posi- when Chinese artillery ripped up the main line of resistance: the
tions, functioning mostly as telephone wires leading to the 25th Infantry Division; the
artillery; they shifted as necessary to rear, the tank radios ensured reli- Commonwealth Division; the 1st
alternate sites to prevent Chinese able communications. Republic of Korea Division; and
gunners from zeroing in on them. While in reserve, the 1st Marine the 7th Infantry Division. In addi-
The Army division provided Division added depth to the I tion, the Marines made improve-
armored personnel carriers to haul Corps positions by standing ready ments to Camp Casey, repaired the

34
 went a week of training for an
amphibious exercise held at
Yongjong-ni, on the west coast
near Kunsan. Dense fog forced
cancellation of a planned rehearsal
that might have highlighted the
impact of a shallow beach gradient
that grounded landing craft far
from shore and complicated the
landing of vehicles.
While Colonel Tschirgis regi-
ment was carrying out this exer-
cise, other elements of the division
took part in a combined command
post exercise and firing exercise
designed to help the division pre-
pare for an Eighth Army exercise,
then scheduled for the end of May
but later canceled. The 7th
Marines landed at the Yongjong-ni
training area on 5 June, employing
Department of Defense (USMC) A171330
a 144-foot pontoon bridge, sup-
Marines of Company H, 3d Battalion, 5th Marines, set up their tents after mov- plied by the Army, to speed the
ing from the frontlines into corps reserve in the central area of the Casey com- movement of vehicles over the
plex. Although the division had been on line for more than 20 months, there was shallow-sloping beach. However,
a reluctance to turn over positions. the possible need for amphibious

back-up positions, especially the Members of the 81mm mortar platoon, Weapons Company, 2d Battalion, 7th
former Kansas Line which had Marines, receive refresher instruction on the parts and nomenclature of the
been severely damaged by rains 81mm mortar during the eight-week reserve period. Lectures such as this were
and the spring thaw, and em- kept to a minimum with at least 50 percent of the tactical training conducted
barked on a program of instruc- at night.
Department of Defense (USMC) A171518
tion that emphasized night combat
and began with the individual and
small unit. The larger-unit exercis-
es included the use of helicopters
in conjunction with a rifle compa-
ny, proceeded to regimental land-
ing exercises, and culminated in a
field exercise. All of this training,
which had to be somewhat cur-
tailed, was to take place before the
division returned to the main line of
resistance in early July.
Although the spring weather
that had damaged the old Kansas
Line also turned roads to rivers of
mud, the division completed its
move to Camp Casey and
launched the programs of training
and rebuilding. The 5th Marines,
the reserve regiment when the
division moved off line, under-

35
 A New Commanding General

O n 15 June 1953, Major General Randolph McCall

Pate took command of the 1st Marine Division,
replacing Major General Edwin A. Pollack, who
became director of the Marine Corps Educational Center,
Quantico, Virginia. A native of South Carolina who spent
his boyhood in Virginia, General Pates military career
began in 1918, the final year of World War I, when he
enlisted in the Army, serving long enough to qualify for
the Victory Medal though he did not fight in France.
After graduating from the Virginia Military Institute in June
1921, he accepted in September of that year a commis-
sion as a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps Reserve.
He received a regular commission in May 1922, afterward
carrying out a variety of assignments in the Dominican
Republic and China, as well as at posts in the continen-
tal United States and Hawaii.
During World War II, General Pate served as supply
officer on the staff of the 1st Marine Division at
Guadalcanal, where he was wounded, and held other
wartime staff positions. After Japans surrender, he
became Director of Reserve at Marine Corps headquar-
ters, served on the Navys General Board, and held the
assignment of Chief of Staff, Marine Corps Schools,
Quantico, Virginia. While at Marine Corps Schools, he
achieved promotion to brigadier general in 1949 and
during the following year took over as Director, Marine
Corps Educational Center at Quantico.
After an assignment with the Office of Joint Chiefs of
Staff as the Joint Staffs Director for Logistics, General Pate
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A172239
returned to Marine Corps headquarters and in August 1952
MajGen Randolph McC. Pate, left, relieves MajGen
was promoted to major general, while serving his second
Edwin A. Pollock in command of the 1st Marine
tour directing the Marine Corps Reserve. In September of
Division. The departing Pollock was presented the
that year, he assumed command of the 2d Marine
Distinguished Service Medal for his outstanding success
Division at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. After taking
in the defense of Carson, Vegas, and Elko.
over the 1st Marine Division in June 1953, he com-
manded the unit for the remainder of the Korean fight- Corps moved away from the trenches and bunkers and
ing, finally turning the division over to Major General reestablished itself as a highly mobile amphibious force
Robert H. Pepper in May 1954. in readiness. Following four years as Commandant, he
Upon leaving Korea, General Pate became Assistant retired in December 1959 with the rank of general.
Commandant of the Marine Corps and Chief of Staff, Following a brief illness, General Pate died in 1961 and
advancing to the rank of lieutenant general. On 1 was interred with full military honors in Arlington
January 1956, he received a fourth star and became National Cemetery. Pates military colleagues described
Commandant of the Marine Corps, succeeding General him as: A man of deep sincerity and untiring integrity,
Lemuel C. Shepherd, Jr. General Pate served as who is thoughtful and considerate of othersa true gen-
Commandant for four years, during which the Marine tleman of the old school.

shipping to repatriate prisoners of while the division formed the I from the divisions rocket battery,
war in the event of a truce caused Corps reserve. Fighter-bombers along with infantry from the 5th
the cancellation of a landing exer- covered the landing exercises, for Marines.
cise scheduled for the 1st Marines example, and helicopters of HMR- The principal mission of the 1st
between 14 and 23 June. 161 landed at Camp Casey for a Marine Aircraft Wing, although it
Marine aircraft participated in practice redeployment of two sec- took part in the training program,
the training program conducted tions of 4.5-inch rocket launchers remained the support of United

36
 Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A169791
While the division was in corps reserve in May and June, the main line of resistance, as it had in March when the
1st 4.5-inch Rocket Battery supported units manning the Marines were fighting to hold Reno, Vegas, and Carson.

Nations ground forces by day and three minutes, effectively silenced renewed pressure on the portion of
by night. The crews of Marine the hostile gunners, but with repe- the main line of resistance that the
night fighters, Grumman F7F tition the technique declined in Marines had formerly held. The
Tigercats and Douglas F3D Sky- effectiveness, serving to alert the enemy struck first at the outposts
knights, learned to take deadly Chinese that an air strike was now held by the Turkish
advantage of beams from search- imminent. Besides providing close brigadeBerlin and East Berlin,
lights along the main line of resis- air support for the ground forces, Carson, Elko, and Vegas. Shortly
tance that illuminated terrain Marine night fighters escorted Air before 0200 on 15 May, advancing
features held by the Chinese, Force B-29s on missions against behind deadly mortar and artillery
bathing in light those on the near North Korea and flew long-range fire, one Chinese battalion
slope and creating an artificial interdiction. attacked Berlin and East Berlin,
horizon for air strikes against those while another hit the Carson-Elko-
on the shadowed slope farther On the Main Line of Resistance Vegas complex. The Turks held
from United Nations lines. their ground, thanks in part to
Artillery, firing time-on-target or While infantry, service, and accurate fire from Marine tanks on
variable-time concentrations, blan- some support elements of the 1st the main line of resistance, which
keted known Chinese antiaircraft Marine Division repaired the posi- may have inflicted 300 casualties,
batteries within 2,500 yards of a tions that added depth to the I and from the 11th Marines and the
target. At first, this kind of bom- Corps front and underwent training rocket battery, which fired some
bardment, usually lasting about to the rear, the Chinese exerted 5,500 105mm and 155mm howitzer

37
 Events at Panmunjom

T he fighting along the combat outpost line, which

caused the commanding general of I Corps to
shift the 1st Marines into position for a possible
counterattack, coincided with resolution of the lingering
issue of forced repatriation. By the end of May 1953, the
II. Widespread refusals to return to China or North
Korea would shatter the image of a Communist paradise
and lend substance to Western propaganda.
On 25 May, Lieutenant General William K. Harrison of
the Army, the senior American delegate at the
United States was insisting that there be no forced repa- Panmunjom negotiations, persuaded the Communist
triation, as had happened in Europe after World War II side to agree to a closed session. The absence of press
when American troops handed over refugees and pris- coverage, Harrison believed, would prevent posturing
oners of war to Soviet authorities, the representatives of designed to influence world opinion and instead focus the
a wartime ally. The alliance that defeated Hitlers attention of the delegates on progress toward a settlement.
Germany soon collapsed, and the Soviet Union emerged At this meeting, Harrison declared that there could be no
as Americas principal antagonist in a Cold War that forced repatriation and then offered compromises to
burst into flame in Korea. China and the Democratic make this principle palatable to the Chinese and North
Peoples Republic of Korea, at first indifferent to the Koreans.
issue, had come to insist on forced repatriation upon real- The United Nations forces would neither force captured
izing how many of their captured soldiers might prefer Communist troops to return to their homeland nor sim-
to remain in South Korea. ply release them. Harrison proposed instead that sol-
In short, both sides faced possible embarrassment. diers who refused repatriation be turned over, as the
American acceptance of involuntary repatriation would Communist delegates desired, to a Neutral Nations
seem a repetition of the transfers of both captives and Repatriation Committee with representatives of five so-
civilians to Soviet control in the aftermath of World War called neutral statesSwitzerland and Sweden, with ide-

After a high wind blew down the tents in August 1952, the the left is the Communist delegates tent, while the two dark
Communist built a more substantial wooden structure for ones on the right are the United Nations delegates tent and
the armistice meetings at Panmunjom. The white tent on press tent.
National Archives Photo (USN) 80-G-482368

38
 ological ties to the West; Poland and Czechoslovakia, ed in refusing repatriation would then be turned over to
Soviet satellites at the time; and India, which followed an the control of the United Nations General Assembly.
often erratic political course determined largely by its own The Communist negotiators demanded certain
self-interest. To minimize friction among the neutral changes. They called for an additional 30 days for re-edu-
nationsPoland and Czechoslovakia against Sweden cation and the elimination of the United Nations General
and SwitzerlandIndian troops would assume custody Assembly from the repatriation process, since the inter-
of all newly released prisoners seeking asylum. national organization, as a belligerent, could not serve as
The Communist side, troubled by the prospect of a disinterested guardian of the rights of Chinese or
mass defections, insisted on an opportunity to persuade North Korean prisoners. On 4 June, however, the
its soldiers who refused repatriation to change their Communist parties accepted the principle of voluntary
minds and return. The United Nations, however, feared repatriation, although without formally endorsing it, in
that persuasion would give way to coercion, and, as a return for the additional 30 days of persuasion and the
result, Harrisons compromise specifically forbade the substitution of Indias Red Cross organization for the
threat or use of force and limited the time allotted for re- General Assembly as custodian of those prisoners who
indoctrination to 90 days. Those prisoners who persist- refused to return to their homelands.

shells and 4.5-inch rockets during smoke screen to storm Vegas, and abated swiftly, suggesting that the
four hours of fighting. In addition, a third menaced Berlin and East enemy launched the probe to
the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing flew 21 Berlin. At the same time, still other divert attention from the adjacent
strikes against Chinese positions Chinese troops attacked Combat Carson-Elko-Vegas complex.
threatening the Turkish troops. Outpost 2, on the left of the 25th Marine air, artillery, and armor
Neither the successful Turkish Infantry Divisions sector, and the continued to support I Corps as
resistance nor the continuing talks Hook, along with Outposts the fighting entered a second day.
at Panmunjomwhere negotiators Ronson and Warsaw, on the right of Attack planes and fighter-bombers
were addressing both the issue of the I Corps line. hit Chinese troops, artillery posi-
repatriation and South Korean The 11th Marines, commanded tions, and supply points by day
concerns that a truce could place by Colonel James E. Millswho and night. Additional tanks moved
their country at a fatal disadvan- had taken over from Colonel into prepared positions on the
tagedissuaded the Chinese from Harry N. Shea on 22 February main line of resistance until 33 of
intensifying their offensive. On 25 1953fired some 9,500 rounds them supported the Turkish
May, despite signs of real progress during the night of 28 May, and brigade. After Chinese counterbat-
in the truce talks, Chinese gunners Marine aircraft flew eight strikes tery fire silenced six Turkish how-
resumed pounding the Turkish against Chinese artillery positions. itzers, the 2d Battalion, 11th
brigade, and three days later, the The Marine divisions 4.5-inch Marines, took over the direct-fire
enemy launched a series of attacks rocket battery, now firing from the mission. By dusk on 29 May, the
along much of the combat outpost vicinity of the Hook, supported total rounds fired by Marine how-
line held by I Corps. At 1800 on 28 the Commonwealth Division. itzers and rocket launchers in
May, the enemys 120th Division Marine tanks, dug-in along the defense of the outposts exceeded
launched simultaneous attacks main line of resistance, provided 40,000.
against Combat Outpost 2, to the deadly fire from prepared posi- This intense fire, and the tenac-
east of the Panmunjom Corridor, tions, especially in the sector of ity of the Turkish soldiers who suf-
on Carson, Elko, and Reno, Berlin the Turkish brigade. fered 150 killed and 245 wounded,
and East Berlin, and against the The deluge of shells and rockets could not save the Carson-Elko-
Hook and its two outposts, from Marine weapons helped the Vegas complex. By mid-day,
Ronson and Warsaw, these last 35th Infantry Regiment hold Lieutenant General Bruce C.
three held by the British 1st Combat Outpost 2 and the Clarke, the corps commander, and
Commonwealth Division. Commonwealth Division to main- General Williams, in command of
The major thrusts by the tain its grip on the Hook, Warsaw, the 25th Infantry Division, decided
Chinese division sent a battalion, and Ronson. The Chinese, howev- to withdraw from these outposts at
advancing behind a mortar and er, succeeded in capturing Carson, least temporarily. Carson had fallen
artillery barrage, against Outposts although Turkish troops clung to the Chinese on the previous
Carson and Elko, while another stubbornly to Elko and Vegas. The day, and fewer than 40 survivors
battalion took advantage of a threat to Berlin and East Berlin continued to resist on Vegas. Since

39
 attackers. The enemy, moreover,
had pushed the South Koreans
back as far as 4,000 yards on seg-
ments of the frontlines totaling
about 15,000 yards in width. The
offensive of mid-June proved the
most successful Chinese thrust
since April and May 1951 when
the enemy penetrated as deeply as
30 miles at some points along the
United Nations line.
Even as the negotiators at
Panmunjom were resolving the
outstanding issues concerning the
repatriation of prisoners, Syngman
Rhee, the president of the Repub-
lic of Korea, became increasingly
concerned about the impact of a
ceasefire on the survival of his
nation. His dream of one Korea
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A172204
unified under the government at
On 29 May, Col Wallace M. Nelsons 1st Marines move up on foot in full gear to
Seoul was rapidly vanishing. He
set up a hasty blocking position on the Kansas Line in case of a breakthrough by
Communist forces during their attack on 25th Infantry Division outposts. had little direct leverage on the
Chinese government; his only
Elko could not survive if the tance. Moreover, a truce agree- hopea slim one, indeedwas
enemy held both Vegas and ment that seemed on the verge of somehow to prod his war-weary
Carson, the Turkish troops with- acceptance dissuaded the United American ally into turning its back
drew to the main line of resis- Nations Command from making on the Panmunjom negotiations
tance. By the time the withdrawal the obviously costly effort to and exerting renewed pressure on
took place, the attacking Chinese recapture Carson, Vegas, and Elko. the battlefield. To achieve this
had lost perhaps 3,000 men but unlikely end, President Rhee
showed no signs of breaking off The Truce in Jeopardy threatened to pull South Korean
the action. forces out of the United Nations
In the meantime, General After the bitter fighting on the Command. The threat, however
Clarke had ordered the 1st Marines outpost line at the end of May, a lull unrealistic, brought a formal
to prepare for a possible counter- ensued on the I Corps front. The American offer to build up the
attack. The regiments infantry bat- Chinese, however, did not aban- South Korean armed forces and
talions and antitank and heavy don their attempt to improve their restore the nations shattered
mortar companies moved into military position before a truce economy, provided that the Seoul
position just south of the refur- should go into effect and lunged government accepted the settle-
bished defenses of the old Kansas instead at the South Korean II ment that was taking shape.
Line. In addition, the 1st Marine Corps, opposite the enemy-held Despite his weak bargaining posi-
Divisions reconnaissance company town of Kumsong, attacking on 10 tion, the South Korean president
came under control of the 25th June and in six days of fighting ignored the offer and demanded
Infantry Division, replacing a com- forcing the defenders to pull back the removal of Chinese forces
pany of that divisions 14th some 4,000 yards. A second blow from the Korean peninsula, along
Infantry in reserve along the east drove the South Korean 20th with a formal military alliance with
bank of the Imjin River. Division back from the northern the United States, the recently
The projected counterattack rim of the Punchbowl. By the time offered program of military and
never occurred. Torrential rains on the fighting died down after 18 economic aid, and the stationing
30 May frustrated any ambitions June, the South Koreans had suf- of American air and naval forces in
the enemy may have had for trying fered some 7,300 casualties, per- South Korea.
to crack the main line of resis- haps 600 more than the Chinese When progress continued

40
 The Offshore Islands

A merican Marines continued to provide essential

help in defending the islands off the east and
west coasts of the Korean peninsula that were gar-
risoned by their South Korean counterparts. The two
defensive organizations, formerly the East Coast and
West Coast Island Defense Commands, were redesignat-
ed task units effective 1 January 1953. The 2d Korean
Marine Corps Regiment furnished the troops that
manned these outposts under the direction of U.S.
Marines.
Two battalions of South Korean Marines manned the
West Coast Island Defense Task Unit, while the U.S.
Marine Corps contributed some 17 officers and 100
enlisted men. The western task unit manned outposts on
six islands in close proximity to the 38th Parallel, which
had separated prewar South Korea from the Communist
North. These islands, from north to south, were Sok-to,
Cho-do, Paengyong-do, Taechong-do, Yongpyong-do,
and Tokchok-to. An earlier attempt to occupy tiny Ho-do
had ended in failure when the Chinese overwhelmed the
garrison. The six surviving outposts served as bases for
artillery, intelligence collection, the direction of guerril-
la operations in North Korea, and training. At some of the

National Archives Photo (USN) 80-G-480993

Two members of the 1st Air and Naval Gunfire Liaison
Company spot and correct gunfire laid down against
Communist troops by the Dutch frigate Johann Maurits van
Nassau.

outposts, the South Koreans used their old-model radios

to call down fire from artillery or naval guns against hos-
tile batteries on the mainland. American Marines direct-
ed all this activity, although the language barrier
hampered their role in training.
Late in 1952, Communist artillery batteries on the
peninsula opened fire more frequently against United
Nations warships as well as the western island outposts.
For counterbattery missions from Cho-do, two 90mm
guns supporting a force of South Korean guerrillas were
shifted there from the island of Kanghwa-do at the
mouth of the Han River. Enemy light aircraft contributed
to the increased pressure on the islands, conducting nui-
sance raids against Cho-do, bombed as recently as
October 1952, Sok-to, and Paengyong-do.
Besides using the two artillery pieces available at
Cho-do, the guerrillas provided valuable information on
enemy activity. The South Koreans reported an increas-
ing number of Chinese junks offshore and identified
major military units on the peninsula itself. As the threat
of an assault against one or more of the western islands
intensified, counterbattery fire from the outposts kept
pace, only diminishing when the threat ebbed.

41
 From time to time, American or British pilots, low on
fuel or flying damaged aircraft, landed on the beach at
Paengyong-do. Unfortunately, obtaining the needed fuel
or aircraft parts proved difficult because of tangled and
unresponsive lines of supply. Logistics difficulties also
posed a threat to the large number of refugees that had
found asylum during 1952 on the islands protected by the
western task unit. As winter approached, concern
mounted that they could not be fed by air or sea and
would not survive the cold, but two supply-laden tank
landing ships arrived before the seasonal storms began
and eased the crisis.
By the spring of 1953, improving prospects for a
ceasefire generally along the 38th Parallel raised doubts
about the future control of two west-coast islands, Cho-
do and Sok-to, which lay north of the demarcation line.
Colonel Harry N. Shea, the task unit commander and his
successor, Colonel Alexander B. Swenceski, carried out nique than in the west. When United Nations gun crews
Operation Pandora, a plan for the evacuation of both on the eastern islands, or warships nearby, fired coun-
islands. Artillery on Sok-to and Cho-doeach of which terbattery missions against an enemy weapon, it fell
now had its own pair of 90mm gunspounded enemy silent and other artillery pieces took over the fire mission.
batteries along the coast, and warships joined in, includ- When winter gripped the east coast islands, tempera-
ing the battleship New Jersey (BB 62) with its 16-inch guns. tures dropped to 10 degrees below zero, Fahrenheit,
Despite the avalanche of American firepower, the enemy and high winds disrupted the movement of supply
stuck to his guns, firing some 1,800 rounds in June ships. The Yo-do garrison, for example, survived on
alone. By the end of June, Operation Pandora began the canned rations for a week, and for several days the
successful withdrawal first of the guerrillas and their defenders of Hwangto-do drank water from melted
families and then of the two island garrisons. snow. When the weather improved, so did the determi-
Whereas only two of the islands manned by the west- nation of Chinese artillerymen, who fired more than
ern task unit were located north of the 38th Parallel, the 1,050 rounds against the island outposts in April 1953 and
most important of those garrisoned by the East Coast twice that number against blockading warships. In addi-
Island Defense UnitTae-do, So-do, Sin-do, Mod-do, tion, United Nations sailors sighted 37 floating magnetic
Ung-do, Hwangto-do, and Yo-dolay just off the North mines that month, although the devices caused no dam-
Korean port of Wonsan, more than 100 miles north of the age. This was the greatest number of sightings in any
demarcation between the two Koreas. The unit also bore month since the previous summer, when mines sank the
responsibility for two other potentially vulnerable outposts: tug Sarsi (AT 111) off Hungnam and damaged the
Yang-do, off the town of Songjin, 150 miles northeast of destroyer Barton (DD 722) off Wonsan.
Wonsan; and Nan-do, near the North Korean town of Kojo, As pressure mounted against the islands near
some 40 miles south of Wonsan. A total of 1,270 South Wonsan, Fleet Marine Force, Pacific, increased the size of
Korean Marines, 35 U.S. Marines, and 15 American its contingents at these outposts by some 40 percent,
sailors manned the defense unit. The individual gar- adding nine Marine officers and 44 enlisted Marines and
risons varied from 300 at Yo-do, the largest of the island sailors. A new unit commander arrived in the spring of
outposts and the site of unit headquarters and an 1953. After a year in charge, Lieutenant Colonel Robert
airstrip, to the compact naval-gunfire spotting teams on D. Heinl, Jr., entrusted the organization to Lieutenant
the smallest of the islets off Wonsan. Colonel Hoyt U. Bookhart, Jr.
Like the western islands, those off the east coast Scarcely had this change of command taken place,
especially the ones nearest Wonsanendured frequent when preparations began for a withdrawal from the
shelling from batteries on the peninsula. Because eastern islands after the signing of an armistice. On 11
Wonsan had been a major port, the ability of the United June, the unit began retrenching by removing South
Nations forces to blockade it served as an affront to the Korean villagers, along with guerrillas and their families,
Chinese and North Koreans, as well as a disruption of their from Yang-do, the farthest north and least defensible of
coastal supply line. Besides hammering the offshore out- the outposts, and withdrawing noncombatants from Yo-
posts, hostile gunners fired upon United Nations warships, do, the site of the unit headquarters. Withdrawal of the
as they had off the opposite coast. At Wonsan, however, other east coast outposts awaited the signing of the
the enemy employed a more efficient fire-control tech- armistice.

42
toward a truce that he considered As it had during the battles of late 14th and the 17th, when the
disastrous, President Rhee sought to May, 1st Marine Divisions the 4.5- Chinese made their greatest gains
disrupt the negotiations. On 18 inch rocket battery deployed east- since 1951, American aircraft flew
June, he ordered the release of ward at the end of June to support 8,359 sorties, 1,156 of them by
some 27,000 Communist prisoners the hard-pressed South Koreans Marines. The air war again intensi-
who had refused repatriation, dug in to the right of the I Corps fied when the Chinese renewed
hoping to undo what the negotia- line. The battery shifted about 20 their attacks. On the last day of
tors had accomplished in resolving miles closer to the action and fired June, for example, Marine airmen
the issue of repatriation. His gam- some 25 missions that helped pre- flew 301 sorties, which included
bit failed. The Peoples Republic of vent a Chinese breakthrough. So 28 percent of the days close air
China launched additional limited grave was the threat on the right support and 24 percent of the
attacks, perhaps in retaliation, but that General Clarke alerted the 7th interdiction missions.
the government in Peiping had Marines to stand by to reinforce
grown too weary of the long and the South Korean 1st Division, Marines Return to the Bunkers
bloody war to mount an all-out even though Eighth Army policy
offensive. Similarly, the United forbade American units from serv- The abandonment of the least
States remained determined to end ing under South Korean com- defensible of the offshore outposts
the Korean fighting, regardless of mand. The crisis abated, however, took place as President Rhee was
Rhees objections. As an American and the alert of the Marine regi- attempting to wrest stronger guar-
special diplomatic mission made ment was canceled within 24 antees of future aid from his
clear, South Korea could expect no hours. The 1st Regimental Combat American ally, and time was
more than a security treaty with Team (less one battalion) of the approaching for the return of the 1st
the United States and a combination Korean Marine Corps took over Marine Division to the frontline.
of military and economic aid that from the 7th Marines and relieved The release of some 27,000 cap-
would include the presence of bloodied elements of the South tured North Korean or Chinese
American troops. Korean 1st Division. prisoners of war, who sought to
On 24 June, six days after Marine aviation took part in the remain in the Republic of Korea,
President Rhee tried to sabotage fighting during June. Between the and escape attempts by still oth-
the truce negotiations, Chinese
A .50-caliber machine gun covers the field of fire across the Han River on the Kimpo
troops attacked the sector held by
Peninsula. Marines firing the weapon were members of the 1st Amphibian
the South Korean II Corps, focusing Tractor Battalion, which manned bunkers overlooking the river, and in mid-June
on the South Korean 9th Division, had to deploy Company A to Ascom City to maintain order among the Chinese
which blunted the thrust after the and North Korean prisoners.
loss of an outpost. On the follow- Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A170806
ing day, the enemy hit the South
Korean 1st Division, to the right of
the Commonwealth Division dug
in at the eastern boundary of the
sector held by General Clarkes I
Corps. Despite fierce resistance,
the Chinese overwhelmed three
outposts manned by the South
Korean 1st Division. Efforts to
regain the lost ground halted on
the 29th when General Clarke
ended a series of gallant but
unsuccessful counterattacks, re-
peating the decision made a
month earlier during the fighting
for Outposts Carson and Vegas
elsewhere on the I Corps front that
the cost in lives would be prohibi-
tive.

43
ers, had an impact on the Marines The loss of Outpost Ve- and I, 3d Battalion, 7th Marines,
in I Corps reserve. The 1st gas...placed Berlin and East Berlin came under Cereghinos opera-
Amphibian Tractor Battalion, for in very precarious positions and tional control and prepared to
example, had to deploy one com- negated their being supported by counterattack if the enemy should
pany to a prisoner of war com- ground fire except from the MLR. break through.
pound at Ascom City to maintain The Chinese tried to take Meanwhile, the mixed force of
order after escape attempts there. advantage of any confusion result- Marines and Turkish soldiers suc-
By releasing the prisoners of ing from the relief of the Army ceeded in clinging to Outpost
war, the South Korean president division by General Pates Marines. Berlin. The Marines at East Berlin
caused a temporary suspension of On the evening of 7 July, Chinese succumbed, however, to an over-
the truce negotiations and per- mortars opened fire upon whelming force that surged up a
suaded the United States to agree Outposts Berlin and East Berlin steep slope and seized the main
formally to a mutual defense and the nearby portion of the trench despite stubborn resistance
arrangement that maintained main line of resistance, the area from the outpost itself and accurate
American forces in South Korea that Lieutenant Colonel Alexander fire from the main line of resis-
and provided economic and military Cereghinos 2d Battalion, 7th tance and beyond. Supporting
aid. Since both the Peoples Marines, was taking over from machine guns, mortars, and
Republic of China and the United Turkish soldiers attached to the artillerydeadly though they
States were ready to end the fight- 25th Infantry Division. By mid- werecould not save East Berlin.
ing, the talks resumed at night, assault troops from the A squad from Company F, 2d
Panmunjom, where the delega- Chinese 407th Regiment, 136th Battalion, 7th Marines, unsuccess-
tions tried to obtain whatever Division, advanced from the vicin- fully counterattacked Outpost East
advantage they could, although ity of Hill 190, a frequently used Berlin at 0415 on 8 July, dispensing
without sabotaging prospects for a staging area, then moved along with the usual artillery barrage in
ceasefire. the ridgeline broken by Carson, the hope of achieving surprise. A
During the latter part of June, Reno, and Vegasall of them now second force of Marines from
the 1st Marine Division completed in enemy handsand pounced on Company F moved out at about
its training and prepared to Berlin and East Berlin. 0440 to reinforce the squad
resume bunker warfare. The major At Berlin, Turkish soldiers already committed to attacking
elements that had been in reserve stayed in place for a time after the East Berlin. Chinese artillery
returned to the segment of the Marines arrived, and a patrol dis- caught the reinforcements in the
main line of resistance that the patched from Lieutenant Colonel open and wounded 15 Marines,
division formerly held, relieving Cereghinos battalion to set up an but the attempted counterattack
the Armys 25th Infantry Division. ambush got no farther than the continued for another hour until
By dawn 7 July, the 7th Marines outpost when the enemy struck. the men of Company F received
took over on the right of the divi- The remaining Turks and the orders to fall back so the 11th
sions line and the 5th Marines on newly arrived patrol reinforced the Marines could fire a time-on-target
the left, while the 1st Marines Marines manning Berlin. Higher concentration against the enemy-
formed the division reserve, pro- headquarters soon lost contact held outpost.
tecting the bridges across the Imjin with both Berlin and the other The Chinese who overran East
River and the Marine radar used to embattled outpost. Berlin had advanced by way of
direct air strikes. Because Berlin and East Berlin Reno and Vegas, where additional
The tactical situation had lay no more than 325 yards from forces were now gathering to
changed for the worse since the the main line of resistance, their exploit this early success. The 1st
Marines last occupied this sector. capture could provide the enemy 4.5-inch Rocket Battery hammered
Chinese troops now controlled the with a springboard for an attack the assembly areas and also the
three outpostsCarson, Vegas, designed to shatter the main Chinese attacking Berlin and con-
and Elkothat blocked the best defenses. As a result, Cereghino solidating their hold on East
approach to Combat Outposts organized a provisional platoon Berlin. Artillerymen of the 2d
Berlin and East Berlin, now being from members of his battalion Battalion, 11th Marines, fired a
taken over by the 7th Marines. As headquarters and sent the unit to time-on-target concentration that
General Pate, the divisions com- reinforce the main line of resis- shattered an enemy company as it
mander, immediately realized: tance. Elements of Companies H was organizing on captured

44
Outpost Vegas to continue the Colonel Cereghinos 2d Battalion, er from that battalions Company
attack. During the early mornings 7th Marines, had to fight at Berlin Hboth companies now under
fighting, all four battalions of the and East Berlin. Not until 0630 did Cereghinos operational control
11th Marines took part in the firing, Cereghino obtain confirmation launched the counterattack. The
along with the seven U.S. Army that East Berlin had fallen, and platoon from Company H led the
and Turkish artillery battalions still shortly afterward he learned that way but encountered an accurate
in the area until the relief of the Berlin, some 300 yards west of the Chinese mortar barrage that
25th Infantry Division was com- captured outpost, still survived. He pinned the Marines against the
pleted. These weapons matched promptly reinforced Berlin insofar barbed wire protecting the main
their Chinese counterparts almost as its compact size permitted, dis- line of resistance and in 15 minutes
round for round, and Army and patching 18 additional Marines reduced the force to about 20 men
Marine Corps tanks joined the and roughly doubling the number able to fight.
rocket battery and artillery battal- of the outposts American and The platoon from Company G
ions in battering the Chinese. Turkish defenders. advanced through the battered
Despite the savage fighting that To recapture East Berlin would unit and pressed home the coun-
erupted at Outposts Berlin and require a strong force of infantry terattack. Shells fired by tanks and
East Berlin on the night of 7-8 July, supported by intense fire from artillery exploded immediately in
the Marines succeeded in taking mortars, tanks, and artillery. At front of the infantrymen, enabling
over from the 25th Infantry 1000, taking advantage of an the assault force to reach the main
Division and its Turkish compo- artillery and mortar barrage totaling trench on East Berlin and use
nent. The 5th Marines and 1st perhaps 1,600 rounds, a reinforced grenades and small arms fire to
Battalion, 7th Marines, effected a platoon from Company G, 3d kill, capture, or drive off the
smooth transition, but Lieutenant Battalion, 7th Marines, and anoth- Chinese. At 1233, the platoon from
Pilots of Marine Fighter Squadron 311, from left, Capt John over their upcoming combat mission step by step. Each must
A. Ritchie, Capt Lenhrew E. Lovette, 1stLt Marvin E. Day, go know exactly what to do.
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A346707

45
 Regiment, and the Korean Marine
Corps regiment also returned to
the divisions control.
Once it returned to the main
line of resistance, the 1st Marine
Division again assumed opera-
tional control over VMO-6 and
HMR-161. Cloud cover at first
impeded the aerial observers from
VMO-6, but they successfully
directed four artillery fire missions
on 8 July against targets behind
enemy lines. On 10 July, Marine
helicopters from HMR-161 deliv-
ered some 1,200 pounds of
rations, water, and other cargo to
Marine outposts.

Ten Days of Patrols

Regaining Outpost East Berlin
on 8 July, which coincided with
the resumption of truce negotia-
tions at Panmunjom, did not end
the Chinese pressure on the
Marines. After dark on the 8th,
Colonel Glenn C. Funk, who had
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A171052 assumed command of the 7th
Whether on the frontlines or in reserve Marines were paid monthly in Military Marines on 27 March, moved a
Pay Certificates, a substitute for U.S. currency used to curb black market activ- platoon from the regiments 3d
ities. With little to spend it on, most Marines saved their money or had allotments
Battalion and four M-46 tanks into
taken out.
position to strengthen the main
Company I, reduced to fewer than officer of Marine Fighter Squadron line of resistance. The tanks had
two-dozen effectives, regained 311, Lieutenant Colonel Bernard just arrived at Hill 126, an outcrop-
control of the outpost. Another McShane, the jets dropped five ping just to the rear of the battle
platoon from the same company tons of bombs on bunkers and line, when the Marines heard the
immediately moved forward to troop concentrations. sound of trucks from beyond
reinforce the survivors. The recapture of East Berlin Chinese lines. From the hilltop, the
Throughout the fighting at enabled the last of the Turkish M-46s directed 90mm fire against
Berlin and East Berlin, storms had troops to withdraw, in effect com- known Chinese positions, and the
disrupted the movement of sup- pleting the relief of the 25th noise of truck motors ended.
plies by sending the Imjin out of its Infantry Division. The 11th Chinese troops, who meanwhile
banks and destroying a bridge. Marines, commanded after 5 July by had advanced from the assembly
The bad weather also created mud Colonel Manly L. Curry, resumed its area on Vegas, probed Outpost
that hampered movement on the normal mission of direct support Berlin and struck a stronger blow
battlefield and brought clouds that of the 1st Marine Division, as did against East Berlin. Fighting raged
reduced visibility from the cock- the 1st Tank Battalion. By 13 July, for almost two hours before fire
pits of supporting aircraft. At about the company of amphibian tractors from mortars, artillery, and tanks
noon on 8 July, however, four that had been guarding prisoners of forced the enemy to break off the
Marine F9Fs took advantage of war at Ascom City rejoined the action at about 0315 on the morn-
ground-based Marine radar to battalion under the control of the ing of 9 July.
attack targets a safe distance from division. The Reconnaissance After Lieutenant Colonel Ce-
East Berlin. Led by the commander Company, the Kimpo Provisional reghinos Marines ended this latest

46
threat to East Berlin, the Chinese warmer and the earth softer. Outpost Hedy, while killing three
remained content to jab at the Although the enemy did not Chinese and wounding one. The
division rather than try for a attack on the scale of 7-8 July, regiments second patrol of the
knockout. Entire days might pass Chinese patrols repeatedly clashed night ran into an ambush near Hill
during which Marine aerial or all along the divisions front with 90. The Chinese proved more
ground observers and patrols saw those sent out by the Marines. On aggressive than in recent days,
few, if any, signs of Chinese. The the night of 12 July, for example, a pinning down the patrol and
enemy seemed to be improving 13-man patrol from the 5th unleashing a flurry of mortar and
his tunnels and bunkers instead of Marines encountered a force of artillery fire that wounded every
venturing out of them to mount an Chinese near Outpost Esther, and a member of a unit sent to help
attack. The Marines still under- combat patrol from the 7th break the ambush. Another group
went sporadic shelling, but the Marines, looking for the enemy of reinforcements succeeded,
bombardments did not approach near Elko, engaged in an 18- however, in reaching the embat-
in ferocity those of 8 and 9 July. minute firefight. tled patrol. After two hours of
Mines for a time proved deadlier As the frequency of patrol fighting and several attempts to
than artillery and mortars, as on 12 actions increased, flooding again isolate and capture individual
July when these weapons killed interfered with the supply effort. Marines, the Chinese withdrew,
four Marines and wounded eight. At On the night of 14-15 July, the having suffered 22 killed and
least one minefield contained a Imjin River reached a maximum wounded. When seven Marines
new type of Russian-designed depth of 26 feet. Only the solidly- failed to return to the main line of
weapon that could be detonated built Freedom Bridge, carrying the resistance, a platoon from the 5th
by pressure or with a trip wire. road to Panmunjom across the Marines searched the battle site
Most of the fields employed mines swollen stream, could be used and recovered six bodies.
familiar to the Marines, types that until the water subsided. The third firefight of the night
may have been newly planted or On the night of 16-17 July, erupted just after midnight in the
perhaps had lain dormant under patrols from the 5th Marines sector of the 7th Marines, when a
the frozen ground and become engaged in two firefights, suffer- 30-man patrol from Company A,
deadly when the weather grew ing no casualties in the first, near 1st Battalion, was ambushed after it
passed through a gate in the
The never tiring doctors and corpsmen treat the wounded. At the forward aid sta-
barbed wire northwest of Outpost
tions patients are examined and their wounds dressed; few are discharged and
most prepared for further evacuation.
Ava. Between 40 and 50 Chinese,
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A173337 supported by mortars, opened fire
with grenades and small arms.
After a 15-minute exchange of fire
in which as many as 18 Chinese
may have been killed or wounded,
the ambush party vanished into
the darkness. As the Marines from
Company A returned through the
gate, a head count revealed four
men missing. A recovery squad
crossed and recrossed the area
until dawn drew near but found
only three bodies. One Marine
from Company A remained missing;
three had been killed and 21
wounded.
The actions near Outpost Elko
and in front of the Ava gate lent cre-
dence to Chinese propaganda.
Since the 1st Marine Division
returned to the main line of resis-
tance, Chinese loudspeakers had

47
gone beyond the usual appeals to the enemy. As a result, Chinese to increase at a critical moment,
surrender, on at least one occasion mortars and artillery could savage for on the night of 19-20 July, the
warning of the fatal consequences the troops using these well-worn Chinese again assaulted Combat
of going on nighttime patrols. This tracks to reinforce an embattled Outposts Berlin and East Berlin
threat, however, probably reflected outpost, withdraw from one that now manned by the 3d Battalion,
a Chinese policy of maintaining had been overwhelmed, or coun- 7th Marines, which had relieved
overall military pressure after the terattack to regain a lost position. Lieutenant Colonel Cereghinos 2d
resumption of truce talks rather Indeed, General Maxwell D. Battalionand also menaced
than a specific effort to demoralize Taylor, in command of the Eighth Outposts Dagmar and Ingrid, held
the Marines. Army since February 1953, agreed by elements of the 5th Marines.
Whatever the purpose of the that the enemy could, if he chose to The positions of the 5th Marines
enemys propaganda, the Marine pay the price in blood and effort, held firm, thanks in part to accurate
patrols continued. On the night overrun any of the existing out- fire from the 11th Marines, but
after the ambush of Company A, 1st posts, and endorsed the concept Berlin and East Berlin were in
Battalion, 7th Marines, a combat that General Pates staff was study- peril almost from the outset.
patrol from the regiments Com- ing. The change in tactics, howev- After a savage bombardment of
pany C advanced as far as the er, had not yet gone into effect both Berlins and nearby segments
Ungok hills to silence a machine when the Chinese next attacked of the main line of resistance,
gun that had been harassing the the Marine positions, but the new Chinese troops at 2230 on the
main line of resistance and, after a assault forced 7th Marines to night of the 19th stormed the
successful 20-minute firefight, left a adopt, in a modified form, the ridgeline where the two outposts
Marine Corps recruiting poster to principles of depth and density were located, attacking East Berlin
mark the point of farthest advance. that the division commander was first and Berlin immediately after-
Meanwhile, the Korean Marines suggesting. ward. Company I, 3d Battalion, 7th
had four patrol contacts with the When the enemy again Marines, commanded by First
enemy, none lasting more than a attacked, a ceasefire seemed immi- Lieutenant Kenneth E. Turner, gar-
few minutes. nent. President Rhee agreed on 11 risoned both outposts, posting 37
The combat outposts like the July to accept American assur- Marines at East Berlin and 44 at
Berlins, Esther, and Ava had ances of future support and enter Berlin. Mortars, machine guns,
become increasingly vulnerable. into a truce. By the 19th, the nego- howitzers, and 90mm tank guns
By mid-July, General Pate directed tiators at Panmunjom seemed to blasted the advancing Chinese in
his staff to study the possibility of have resolved the last of the major support of Company I. Despite the
the 1st Marine Divisions shifting issues. On this very date, however, firepower massed against him, the
from a linear defensethe contin- the Chinese struck. enemy overran both outposts
uous main line of resistance and within three hours.
the network of outlying combat The Fighting Intensifies A duel between American and
outposts in front of itto a system Chinese gunners continued after
of mutually supporting defensive Heavy downpours hampered the fall of the two Berlins. The
strongpoints that would result in frontline combat and grounded enemy fired some 3,000 rounds
greater depth and density. The the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing for a while overwhelming the outposts
Chinese attacks of 7 and 8 July on total of 12 days early in July. Rain and trying to neutralize the nearby
Berlin and East Berlin served as a fell on 22 days that month, but the main line of resistance and the
catalyst for the study that General wing nevertheless reported 2,668 artillery batteries behind it. One
Pate launched. As the I Corps combat sorties, more than half of Turkish and two Army artillery
commander, General Clarke, later them flown in close support all battalions joined three battalions
explained, these actions demon- along the United Nations line. The of the 11th Marinestwo of
strated that American minefields airmen supported their fellow 105mm and one of 155mm how-
and barbed wire entanglements Marines on the ground with some itzersin responding to the
had channeled movement be- 250 missions, four-fifths of them Chinese bombardment, battering
tween the main line of resistance using ground-based radar by night the assault force, its supporting
and the combat outpost lines into or day. mortars and howitzers, and the
comparatively few routes that had The weather improved after assembly areas used by reinforce-
become dangerously familiar to mid-month, enabling aerial activity ments in exploiting the early suc-

48
 severe Marine casualties, there
would be no counterattack to
restore a position that seemed
almost certain to be abandoned
when a demilitarized zone took
shape after the end of hostilities.
Instead, air strikes and fire from
tanks and artillery scourged the
lost outposts to prevent Chinese
from using them to mount an
assault on the main defenses.
Especially effective were attacks
by Marine airmen against Berlin
and East Berlin and bombardment
by Army 8-inch and 240mm how-
itzers, adjusted by Marine aerial
observers, which shattered bun-
kers and collapsed almost all the
trenches on both enemy-held out-
posts.
Colonel Jones 3d Battalion, 7th
Marines, estimated that the deadly
fighting on 19-20 July had killed
perhaps 75 Chinese and wounded
as many as 300, thus crippling an
enemy battalion that had to be
replaced by a fresh unit. The 7th
Marines and attached units lost six
killed, 118 wounded, and 56 miss-
ing, but 12 of the missing men sur-
vived as prisoners of war and
returned in the general exchange
when the fighting ended.
Once the enemy captured
Berlin and East Berlin, the critical
terrain feature on the right of the
sector held by the 1st Marine
cess. Barrage and counterbarrage received word to cancel the coun- Division became Hill 119, nick-
continued into the morning of 20 terattack. Rather than restore the named Boulder City, the segment of
July; at 0520, for example, Chinese outpost line, General Pate shifted the main line of resistance nearest
shells were exploding at the rate of elements of the division reserve, the two lost outposts and therefore
one per second on the main line of the 1st Marines, to strengthen the the likely objective of any deeper
resistance immediately behind main line of resistance in the event Chinese thrust. Company D, 2d
Outposts Berlin and East Berlin. the enemy should try to exploit his Battalion, 7th Marines, (attached to
Meanwhile, at 0400 Lieutenant capture of the two Berlins. the regiments 3d Battalion) held
Colonel Paul M. Jones, in com- While Colonel Wallace Nelsons Boulder City itself. Company E of
mand of the 3d Battalion, 7th 1st Marines reinforced the main the 2d Battalion, 7th Marines, (also
Marines, alerted Companies D and line of resistance, air power and attached to the 3d Battalion)
E of the regiments 2d Battalion, artillery tried to neutralize the out- joined Companies H and I of the 3d
already under his operational con- posts the Chinese had captured. Battalion in defending the high
trol, to counterattack Berlin and Since a ceasefire seemed only days ground extending from behind
East Berlin at 0730. Half an hour away and any attempt to regain Boulder Cityalthough within
before the scheduled time, Jones the lost ground would result in supporting distanceto Hill 111 at

49
 the boundary between the 1st
Marine Division and the Com-
monwealth Division. The newly-
arrived 2d Battalion, 1st Marines,
under Lieutenant Colonel Frank A.
Long, moved into position
between the 3d Battalion, 7th
Marines, on its right and
Lieutenant Colonel Harry A.
Hadds 1st Battalion, 7th Marines,
on its left. The 2d Battalion, 7th
Marines, served as regimental
reserve.
The introduction of Lieutenant
Colonel Longs battalion, which
came under control of the 7th
Marines, served as the first step in
a planned relief of the 7th Marines
by the 1st Marines. For now, the
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A173925
newly arrived battalion added fur-
Marines of the 2d Battalion, 1st Marines, board armored personnel carriers to
be taken to the front. As a result of the critical tactical situation and number
ther depth and density to the main
of casualties suffered during the Berlin operations, the battalion was positioned line of resistance, organizing Hill
in the center of the regimental main line of resistance as the first step in the relief 126 and the other commanding
of the 7th Marines. heights in its sector. In effect, three

50
 Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A173715
Men of the 1st Marines move toward the frontlines to rein- as Boulder City. Little did they know that they would see the
force other Marines fighting at Hill 119, known informally last of the wars heavy fighting.

battalions, rather than the two pre- regiments Company D, which Force to support the United
viously defending the regimental reverted to the control of its parent Nations troops fighting in central
area, formed a crescent of strong- battalion, the 2d, in reserve. and eastern Korea, joined Marine
points designed to contain and Attack Squadron 121 in pounding
defeat any offensive launched The Last Battle the Chinese threatening the 1st
from Berlin and East Berlin. Marine Division. Recurring cloud
In the sector held by the 7th Signs of an imminent Chinese cover produced frequent down-
Marines, Outpost Ava, manned by attack multiplied as July drew to a pours that interfered with opera-
a squad from Company A of the close. The probable objectives tions during the critical period of
regiments 1st Battalion, survived seemed to include Outposts Hedy 21-23 July, but the three squadrons
on the far left, near the boundary and Dagmar, but instead of attack- nevertheless flew more than 15
between the 7th and 5th Marines. ing either in force, the enemy sent radar-directed missions that drop-
Boulder City, formerly a compo- only a token force, wearing burlap ped some 33 tons of bombs.
nent of a continuous main line of camouflage, that appeared near As the threats to Outposts Hedy
resistance, now functioned as an Hedy on 21 July. The defenders and Dagmar abated, Chinese
outpost of the reconstituted opened fire, killing three of the forces menaced Boulder City,
defenses. By 22 July, Company G, Chinese, and the survivors fled. where Company G, 3d Battalion,
3d Battalion, 7th Marines, had Marine Fighter Squadrons 115 1st Marines, commanded by First
taken over Boulder City, from the and 311, released by the Fifth Air Lieutenant Oral R. Swigart, Jr.,

51
manned the defenses after relieving takeover of the lines of the 25th this flurry of action, apparently
Company D, 2d Battalion, 7th Infantry Division, the enemy intended to divert attention from
Marines. On the evening of 24 sought to take advantage of the Boulder City, the enemy ignored
July, hostile mortars and artillery relief of the 7th Marines by the 1st Hill 111 until the morning of 25
began hammering Swigarts pe- Marines. July, when artillery fire battered
rimeter. Marine artillery and 4.5- When the Chinese attack began, the perimeter but no infantry
inch rocket launchers immediately the 2d Battalion, 1st Marines, assault followed.
responded against targets that attached to the 7th Marines, had The two Chinese battalions
included a Chinese regiment mass- already taken over positions that attacking on the Marine right had
ing behind Hill 139, northwest of included Boulder City. The 3d their greatest success at Boulder
enemy-held Outpost Berlin. Battalion, 1st Marines, commanded City, seizing a portion of the
At 2030, Chinese troops began by Lieutenant Colonel Roy D. trenchline defended by Company
probing the right of the 1st Marine Miller, was relieving the 3d G, 3d Battalion, 1st Marines. In an
Divisions line. After a powerful Battalion, 7th Marines, as Com- attempt to exploit this foothold,
barrage by mortars and artillery, pany H took over Hill 111 and the enemy attacked the Berlin and
the assault force hit Hill 111 at the Company G defended the critical East Berlin gates, passages
far right of the positions held by the ground at Boulder City. through the wire that the Marines
7th Marines, then shifted to At about 1930 on 24 July the had used to supply and reinforce
Boulder City near the boundary enemy attacked Hill 111 and soon the two outposts before both were
between the 3d Battalion, 7th cracked the perimeter now overwhelmed. Cloud cover pre-
Marines, and the attached 2d manned by Company H of Millers vented aerial observers from sup-
Battalion, 1st Marines. As he had on battalion. For about 50 minutes, porting the troops protecting the
7 July, when he sought to capital- the Chinese clung to a salient on the gates, and the Chinese managed to
ize on the Marine divisions hilltop, but then withdrew. After gain control of Berlin gate and

52
 Second Lieutenant Raymond G. Murphy

A n ardent athlete with a major in physical education, Murphy was born in

Pueblo, Colorado, in 1930, and was commissioned in the Marine Corps
Reserves in 1951. In Korea, he was awarded a Silver Star Medal for his actions
on 22 November 1952 in assaulting an enemy strongpoint. Then his heroism, again
as a platoon commander with Company A, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, on 3 February
1953, resulted in a Medal of Honor with a citation, which read in part:

Undeterred by the increasing intense enemy fire, he immediately located casual-

ties as they fell and made several trips up and down the fire-swept hill to direct
evacuation teams to the wounded, personally carrying many of the stricken
Marines to safety. When reinforcements were needed by the assaulting elements,
Second Lieutenant Murphy employed part of his unit as support and, during the Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A49767
ensuing battle, personally killed two of the enemy with his pistol. With all the wounded evacuated and the
assaulting units beginning to disengage, he remained behind with a carbine to cover the movement of friend-
ly forces off the hill and, though suffering intense pain from his previous wounds, seized an automatic rifle
to provide more firepower when the enemy reappeared in the trenches.

After the war, he joined the Reserves and was discharged as a captain in 1959.

Hospital Corpsman Francis C. Hammond

B orn in 1931, Hammond enlisted in the U.S. Navy in 1951. Assigned to the
Marine Corps as a Hospitalman, he gave his life at Sanae-dong, Korea, serv-
ing with Company C, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, on 26 March 1953. His Medal
of Honor citation reads, in part:

Hospitalman Hammonds platoon was subjected to a murderous barrage of hos-

tile mortar and artillery fire, followed by a vicious assault by onrushing enemy
troops. Resolutely advancing through the veritable curtain of fire to aid his strick-
en comrades, Hospitalman Hammond moved among the stalwart garrison of
Marines and, although critically wounded himself, valiantly continued to admin-
ister aid to the other wounded throughout an exhausting four-hour period. When
the unit was ordered to withdraw, he skillfully directed the evacuation of casual- Navy Medicine Photo Collection
ties and remained in the fire-swept area to assist the corpsmen of the relieving unit
[Company F, 2d Battalion, 5th Marines] until he was struck by a round of enemy mortar fire and fell, mortal-
ly wounded.

After the war, a school in his hometown of Alexandria, Virginia, a medical clinic at Camp Pendleton, California, and
the Knox-class destroyer Francis Hammond (DE 1067) were named in his honor.
Captain John C. Chapin, USMCR (Ret)

mount a second determined most of the others. By midnight, the strength of the Boulder City
assault on the Boulder City Swigarts company could muster garrison, when Captain Louis J.
perimeter. Hand-to-hand fighting no more than half its earlier Sartor, at 15 minutes after midnight
raged all along the 700 yards of strength, but it still clung to the on the morning of the 25th, led
trench that Lieutenant Swigarts rear slope of Boulder City. In the Company I, 3d Battalion, 1st
Marines still held. The companys words of one of Company Gs Marines, toward the hill to rein-
ammunition ran low, and the Marines, only a never-say-die force Swigarts survivors. The
plight of casualties became resistance was keeping the enemy Chinese intercepted and correctly
increasingly difficult as Chinese from seizing the remainder of the interpreted the coded radio mes-
fire killed two of Boulder Citys position. sage ordering Sartors Marines for-
eight corpsmen and wounded Casualties had further eroded ward, thus obtaining information

53
that enabled enemy artillery and Captain Sartor that recaptured the cling to positions on the slopes
mortars to wound or kill about a hill by 0330. Further reinforce- nearest their main line of resis-
third of the reinforcements. ments from Company E, 2d tance.
Despite the deadly barrage, much Battalion, 7th Marines, and Since the enemy still controlled
of Company I reached Boulder Company E, 2d Battalion, 1st the approaches to Boulder City, he
City, joined forces with the rem- Marines, arrived by 0530 to con- was able to mount another attack
nants of Swigarts garrison, and solidate the position. A few on that position at 0820, 25 July.
took part in a counterattack led by Chinese, however, continued to Fire from Marine mortars and

Hospital Corpsman Third Class William R. Charette

A native of Ludington, Michigan, Charette was born in 1932 and enlisted in the
U.S. Navy in 1951. For his actions during the early morning hours of 27 March
1953 in the Panmunjom Corridor, while attached to Company F, 2d Battalion,
7th Marines, he was recommended for and later received the Medal of Honor. His
citation reads, in part:

When an enemy grenade landed within a few feet of a Marine he was attending,
he immediately threw himself upon the stricken man and absorbed the entire con-
cussion of the deadly missile with his body. Although sustaining painful facial
wounds, and undergoing shock from the intensity of the blast which ripped the
helmet and medical aid kit from his person, Hospital Corpsman Third Class Navy Medicine Photo Collection
Charette resourcefully improvised emergency bandages by tearing off part of his
clothing, and gallantly continued to administer medical aid to the wounded in his own unit and to those in
adjacent platoon areas as well. . . . Moving to the side of another casualty who was suffering excruciating pain
from a serious leg wound, Hospital Corpsman Third Class Charette stood upright in the trench line and exposed
himself to a deadly hail of enemy fire in order to lend more effective aid to the victim and to alleviate his anguish
while being removed to a position of safety.

Miraculously surviving his wounds, he rose to the rank of master chief hospital corpsman before retiring in 1977.
A hospital facility at the Naval Medical Center, Portsmouth, Virginia, is named for Corpsman Charette.

Sergeant Daniel P. Matthews

B orn in Van Nuys, California, in 1931, Matthews enlisted in the Marine Corps
in 1951. After completing recruit training he was assigned to the 1st
Battalion, 3d Marines, at Camp Pendleton, California. He sailed for Korea in
January 1953, joining Company F, 2d Battalion, 7th Marines. On 28 March 1953 he
was killed in a counterattack on Vegas Hill. His Medal of Honor citation reads, in
part:

Sergeant Matthews fearlessly advanced in the attack until his squad was pinned
down by a murderous sweep of fire from an enemy machine gun located on the
peak of the outpost. Observing that the deadly fire prevented a corpsman from
removing a wounded man lying in an open area fully exposed to the brunt of the
devastating gunfire, he worked his way to the base of the hostile machine-gun Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A76499
emplacement, leaped onto the rock fortification surrounding the gun and, taking the enemy by complete sur-
prise, single-handedly charged the hostile emplacement with his rifle. Although severely wounded when the
enemy brought a withering hail of fire to bear upon him, he gallantly continued his valiant one-man assault
and, firing his rifle with deadly effectiveness, succeeded in killing two of the enemy, routing a third and com-
pletely silencing the enemy weapon, thereby enabling his comrades to evacuate the stricken Marine to a safe
position. [He died of] his wounds before aid could reach him.
Captain John C. Chapin, USMCR (Ret)

54
 Staff Sergeant Ambrosio Guillen

B orn in La Junta, Colorado, in 1929, Guillen grew up in El Paso, Texas; he enlist-

ed in the Marine Corps in 1947. After sea duty and serving as a drill instruc-
tor at Marine Corps Recruit Depot, San Diego, he was assigned as a platoon
sergeant with Company F, 2d Battalion, 7th Marines, in Korea. He died of wounds
incurred near Songuch-on 25 July 1953. Ironically, the ceasefire was signed two days
later. His Medal of Honor citation reads, in part:

With his unit pinned down, when the outpost was attacked under cover of dark-
ness by an estimated force of two enemy battalions supported by mortar and artillery
fire, he deliberately exposed himself to the heavy barrage and attacks to direct his
men in defending their positions and personally supervise the treatment and evac- Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 407003

uation of the wounded. Inspired by his leadership, the platoon quickly rallied and engaged the enemy force
in fierce hand-to-hand combat. Although critically wounded during the course of the battle, Staff Sergeant Guillen
refused medical aid and continued to direct his men throughout the remainder of the engagement until the
enemy was defeated and thrown into disorderly retreat.

A middle school in El Paso, Texas, is named for Staff Sergeant Guillen.

Captain John C. Chapin, USMCR (Ret)

artillery, and from the 90mm Esther by shelling and patrolling Lieutenant William H. Bates, pre-
weapons of 10 tanks dug in on the the routes leading there from the vailed because of the skillful use of
Marine positions, played the key main line of resistance and suc- their own weapons, including
role in breaking up the new ceeded in overrunning outer por- flamethrowers and the support of
assault, although the last of the tions of the perimeter. The mortars, machine guns, tanks, and
attackers did not withdraw until defenders, commanded by Second the always-deadly artillery. The 3d
afternoon. The M-46 tanks proved
Aerial view of the pockmarked terrain in front of Boulder City taken from an HMR-
deadly against advancing Chinese
161 helicopter. Although the monsoon rains of July limited normal support mis-
troops, but also presented an invit- sions, when weather conditions cooperated planes of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing
ing target for Chinese artillery and worked from morning to sundown unleashing tons of ordnance on Chinese
mortar crews, who directed some positions seen just beyond the Marine sector of the line.
2,200 rounds at the armored vehi- National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A173886
cles. Aircraft also helped repulse
the 25 July attack on Boulder City,
as when Panther jets flew nine
missions, guided by Marine radar
on the ground, against hostile
positions threatening Boulder City
and nearby defensive strong-
points.
Before midnight on 24 July, in an
attack perhaps loosely coordinated
with the thrust at Boulder City,
Chinese forces hit the positions
held by the 5th Marines. After
probing the defenses of Outposts
Dagmar and Esther, the enemy
concentrated against the latter,
manned by elements of Company
H, 3d Battalion, 5th Marines. The
Chinese tried to isolate Outpost

55
 National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A173809
A Marine holds a wounded buddy onto an armored per- Marines aid station during the heavy fighting in the Berlin
sonnel carrier being brought to the 3d Battalion, 1st sector.

Battalion, 11th Marines, fired 3,886 the enemy probed Boulder City beyond the Imjin River. In fighting
rounds against Chinese troops for the last time, sending a patrol the Chinese to a standstill during
attacking Outpost Esther, and hos- from captured Outpost Berlin that July 1953, the division suffered
tile gunners matched this volume of failed to penetrate the defensive 1,611 casualtieskilled, wounded,
fire. The Marines suffered 12 killed wire and shortly after midnight and missingthe most severe
and 98 wounded in the fighting dispatching another platoon that losses since October 1952 when
that began at Dagmar and contin- prowled about before Marine fire savage fighting had raged at
ued at Esther, while Chinese casu- repulsed it. Outposts Carson, Reno, and Vegas,
alties may have totaled 195 killed Although the last of the Chinese and on the Hook. Chinese losses
and 250 wounded. attacks seized Outposts Berlin and during July 1953 may have
Dawn on 26 July brought a lull in East Berlin, they failed to wrest exceeded 3,100.
these last battles. Chinese attempts Boulder City from its Marine
to revive their attack by infiltrating defenders. Had the enemy cap- The Final Patrols
reinforcements through the site of tured Boulder City, he might have
Outpost Berlin failed, thanks to exploited it and seized the high During the last few nights of
accurate fire from Marine riflemen ground to the south and east, from combat in July, Marines continued
and machine gunners. The 1st which he could have fired directly patrolling aggressively, even
Marines completed its relief of the into the rear areas that sustained the though a truce was fast approach-
7th Marines at 1330. That night, 1st Marine Division in its positions ing. The Last Parallela wartime

56
memoir by Martin Russ, a corporal crossed a rice paddy on the way to soft muck in which the rice thrived
in Company A, 1st Battalion, 1st raid Chinese positions on the Hill provided poor support for some
Marines, in July 1953describes 104. A reconnaissance probe, types of mines, thus reducing one
an action that took place just which had preceded the raiding threat to the patrol, but moving
before the truce, as the 1st Marines party, reported the presence of through the paddy would have
was taking over from the 7th Chinese on the approaches to the snapped the brittle rice stalks and
Marines. A Lieutenant from objective. created noise to alert any lurking
Company A, 7th Marines, led a 30- The route to Hill 104 followed a ambush party. Balancing less
man combat patrol, made up of trail flanked by waist-high rice, noise against greater danger from
men from Companies A of both growth that not only impeded off- mines, the Marines decided to fol-
regiments, that set out from trail movement, but also might low the trail.
Outpost Ava near midnight and conceal a Chinese ambush. The The patrols point man, as he
approached the far end of the rice
Two members of the 3d Battalion, 7th Marines, quickly clean a semi-automatic
paddy, found a trip wire stretched
M-1 carbine with grenade launcher after firing in support of a night patrol. A third
across the trail and followed it to a
Marine take a break in one of the sandbagged culverts, which provided overhead
cover along the trenchline. Russian-built, antipersonnel mine
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A173671 attached to a stick thrust deep into
the mud and aimed to scatter
deadly fragments low across the
surface of the trail. The patrol halt-
ed, bunching up somewhat as the
members tried to see why the lieu-
tenant was moving forward to
confer with the point man. At this
moment, Chinese soldiers crouch-
ing hidden in the rice opened fire
from as close as 50 feet to the
Marines.
The fusillade wounded the
patrol leader and within 10 sec-
onds killed or wounded nine of
the first 10 men in the patrol.
Dragged into the paddy by mem-
bers of the ambush party, the lieu-
tenant disappeared until he
surfaced in the exchange of pris-
oners after hostilities ended. The
point man proved luckier, howev-
er, hurling himself to the ground as
soon has he realized what was
happening, finding cover beside
the trail, and escaping injury. From
the rear of the patrol, the other
survivors fired at the muzzle flash-
es of the Chinese weapons. Marine
firepower prevailed, silencing the
enemy after five or so minutes,
although not before six members of
the patrol had been killed, 14
wounded, and the wounded lieu-
tenant carried off as a prisoner.
The survivors regrouped and
moved forward, retrieving as many

57
 National Archives Photo (USN) 80-G-625731
Flanked on the left by Gen Otto P. Weyland, USAF, com- East, and VAdm Joesph J. Clark, Seventh Fleet commander,
manding general of Far East Air Forces, and on the right by Gen Mark W. Clarke, commander in chief of United Nations
VAdm Robert P. Briscoe, Commander, Naval Forces Far forces, countersigns the armistice agreement at Munsan-ni.

as they could of the dead and uled to return shortly before the ows dancing in ravines and paddies
wounded. A half-dozen Marines fighting would end at 2200. As the and on hillsides, while the final
covered the patrols withdrawal, Marines prepared to move out, shells fired in the 37-month war
preventing the Chinese from encir- Chinese mortars fired on Outpost exploded harmlessly. As Russ
cling the group. When the men Ava, through which the patrol described the scene:
who had helped evacuate the staged, and nearby portions of the
wounded returned from the aid main line of resistance. The bom- A beautiful moon hung low
station and reinforced the firepow- bardment wounded five members in the sky like a Chinese
er of the hastily formed screening of the patrol and two of the lantern. Men appeared along
force, the Chinese vanished into Marines defending the outpost. the trench, some of them had
the night. The patrol returned as planned, shed their flak jackets and
The Marines kept up their and at 2200, Russ, who was not a helmets. The first sound we
patrolling until the moment the member, watched from the main heard was the sound of shrill
truce took effect. On the night of 27 line of resistance as white star voices.... The Chinese were
July, according to Martin Russ, his clusters and colored flares cast a singing. A hundred yards or so
company sent out a patrol sched- pulsating light that set the shad- down the trench, someone

58
 the safe movement of the organi-
zations that would oversee the
armisticethe Military Armistice
Commission, its Joint Observer
Teams, and the Neutral Nations
Supervisory Commission. For 45
days following the initial 72 hours,
the parties to the ceasefire would
salvage the materials still in the
designated Demilitarized Zone,
using only unarmed troops for the
task. Meanwhile, during the 10
days after 27 July, Chinese or
North Korean troops took over all
offshore islands, east coast and
west, that lay north of the 38th
Parallel. The United Nations
retained control of Taechong-do,
Paengyong-do, Sochong-do, and
National Archives Photo (USN) 80-G-626455
Yongpyong-do, along with U-do,
Marines take a well-deserved rest after word of the armistice is passed. Less than
Tokchok-to, and Kangwha-do, all of
24 hours after the signing of the armistice, Marine units began withdrawing from
them off the west coast and south
the Demilitarized Zone to their new battle positions.
of the demarcation line.
was shouting the Marine outposts, and dismantling fortifica- Since the agreement of July 27
Corps Hymn at the top of his tions simultaneously with their called for a truce rather than
lungs. Others joined in bel- construction of the new line and its peaceindeed, it sought to ensure
lowing the words. All along mutually supporting strongpoints. a cessation of hostilities until a
the battle line, matches flared A No-Fly Line supplemented the final peaceful settlement is
and cigarettes glowed, but no controls imposed by the Demilita- achievedthe possibility existed
snipers peered through tele- rized Zone. Restrictions on the that the fighting might resume.
scopic sights to fire at these movement of aircraft applied Despite the shower of flares and the
targets. The war had ended. throughout the Demilitarized Zone singing that marked the moment
and in a corridor extending from the truce went into effect, some
After the Ceasefire the vicinity of Panmunjom to battle-tested Marines fully expected
Kaesong. Only helicopters could a Chinese attack in the hours after
The ceasefire agreement, which fly beyond the No-Fly Line, pro- the ceasefire. As the skies light-
was signed on the morning of 27 vided they remained 500 yards ened on the morning of 28 July,
July and went into effect 12 hours from the Military Demarcation Chinese commanders obtained
later, required that both the United Line. permission to recover the bodies of
Nations forces and the Communist their men killed in the final
enemy withdraw from the most Establishing the assaults on Marine positions. The
advanced positions held when the Demilitarized Zone sight of the enemy moving
fighting ended. In effect, the aban- around within a stones throw of
doned area formed the trace of a The armistice document set a our front lines underscored the
Military Demarcation Line, as the timetable for the creation of the possibility of renewed attacks, but
opposing armies fell back 2,000 Demilitarized Zone. Within 72 nothing happened, and as the
yards to organize new main battle hours after the ceasefire went into morning wore on, it became obvi-
positions, thus creating the 4,000- effect, the combatants were to ous that the truce was holdingat
yard Demilitarized Zone between remove all military forces, sup- least for the present.
them. The Marines built as they plies, and equipment and report Like the Chinese, the Marines
destroyed, evacuating certain por- the location of demolitions, mine- used the first morning of the
tions of the old main line of resis- fields, wire entanglements, and ceasefire to recover the bodies of
tance, giving up some of its other hazards capable of impeding men killed in recent days. Most of

59
 National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A173878
Following the armistice, the commanding general of the 1st 1st Marines, Col Wallace M. Nelson, survey the aftermath of
Marine Division, MajGen Randolph McC. Pate, his chief of the battle for Boulder City.
staff, Col Lewis W. Walt, and the commanding officer of the
the dead had fallen at Hill 111 and using portable lighting to take line of resistance, while at the
Boulder City. By the end of the advantage of the comparative cool same time building the new main
day, all the bodies had been of the nightthe Marines and the battle position and sealing off the
retrieved and were on the way to Korean service troops helping Demilitarized Zone that the truce
the rear. them removed supplies and established between the contending
In the three days immediately ammunition, tore apart bunkers, armies. Some of the former Marine
after the armistice took effect, and stacked the timbers for ship- outposts like Bunker Hill, Esther,
some 50 companies of Marine ment to the new battle line. Some and Ava lay north of the Military
infantry, both American and South of the work parties treated the Demarcation Line. As a result, the
Korean, began dismantling the old bunkers like trenches and filled Marines could be sure of having
defenses, with the help of ele- them with earth, which then had to access to them only during the 72
ments of the divisions engineers. be shoveled out to provide access hours after the ceasefire began.
Working day and nighttaking to the salvageable timbers. Moreover, anything salvaged from
frequent breaks during the day- Dismantling the old battle line Bunker Hill or nearby Outpost
time heat, sleeping during the required the removal of some Hedy had to travel over a primitive
three hours after noon when the structures on elements of both the road described as particularly tor-
heat was most enervating, and combat outpost line and the main tuous, which made the transfer

60
of first the ammunition and then spikes 10 to 24 inches long, that disarmed tanks, tank retrievers,
the fortification materials a physical formed the skeleton of bunkers and other vehicles that fit the
ordeal. Further complicating the measuring perhaps 12 by 20 feet. armistice agreements imprecise
dismantling of these distant out- Wherever possible bulldozers bore definition of military equipment.
posts, a horde of reporters, pho- the brunt, but heavy trucks fitted Fortunately, two-and-one-half-ton
tographers, and newsreel with power winches and even tow trucks could still be used over the
cameramen arrived, eager to trucks helped out, as did medium next 45 days, although restricted
record the activity of both the tanks, their guns removed so they to designated routes of access into
Marines and the Chinese soldiers could enter the demilitarized area. the Demilitarized Zone.
who could be seen tearing down The Marines found that the fastest As the dismantling of the aban-
their own defenses on nearby method of dismantling a bunker doned defenses went ahead on
ridgelines or hilltops. was to uncover it, winch it out of its schedule, the 1st Marine Division
Salvaging building materials hole, and bounce it down the hill it moved into its new positions, a
proved to be hard work, whether had guarded. transfer completed by the morning
tearing apart structures on the Once the bunker had been dis- of 1 August. The main battle posi-
combat outpost line or on the assembled, the Marines manhan- tion, to the rear of the former line,
main line of resistance. The picks, dled the timbers onto vehicles, consisted of a succession of
shovels, and steel pry bars available usually several two-and-one-half- strongpoints. From the divisions
to the infantrymen could not ton trucks, although heavier vehi- right-hand boundary near the
remove timbers, measuring up to 12 cles saw service during the first 72 Samichon River, the new line
inches square and secured by hours until the ban took effect on formed a misshapen arc encom-
Marines begin the task of dismantling bunkers on the aban- dozed under, and usable timber carried to salvage collection
doned main line of resistance after the ceasefire went into points.
effect on 27 July. Trenchlines were filled in, tank slots bull- National Archives Photo (USN) 80-G-626370

61
passing the town of Changdan on
the north bank of the Imjin River
and the bridges across that stream.
The main battle position then
crossed to the south bank of the
Imjin, which it followed to the
conflux of that river and the Han
before shifting to the Hans south
bank and continuing westward.
The 5th Marines occupied the
ground north of the Imjin, organiz-
ing strongpoints that in effect
functioned as an outpost line for the
rest of the division. The 7th
Marines dug in south of the Imjin
and the 1st Marines provided a
reserve. The South Korean Marines
formed the left of the line, south of
the Imjin and along the Han.
From the end of the 72-hour
period until the 45-day deadline of
13 September, the infantry compa-
nies north of the Imjin sent out
each day work parties of from 25 to
100 men to finish the salvage
effort begun immediately after the
ceasefire took effect. By the time
the task ended, the 5th Marines
had retrieved some 12 tons of mis-
cellaneous equipment, 2,000 miles
of telephone line, 2,850 rolls of
barbed wire and 340 of concertina
wire, 19,000 pickets for use with the
wire, 339,000 sand bags, and
150,000 linear feet of timber. Most
Department of Defense Photo (USMC)
of the salvaged items were incor-
Marine Sgt Richard J. Thompson checks in on his radio at one of the checkpoints
porated on the positions being
throughout the 1st Marine Divisions front while patrolling the buffer zone south
built by the regiment to defend the
of the line of demarcation.
bulge north of the Imjin.
visible from the air. Next, the 5th ment. The salvage operation gen-
Maintaining Order in the Marines established 21 crossing erated heavy traffic, especially in its
Demilitarized Zone stations into the Demilitarized earlier stages; indeed, vehicles
Zone, each one manned by at least passed through the crossing sta-
At the outset of its salvage oper- two Marines who denied access to tions more than 3,500 times. After
ation, the 5th Marines marked the anyone carrying weapons or lack- 13 September, when the salvage
adjacent portion of the Demilita- ing authorization. As the work of project ended, I Corps assumed
rized Zone and began controlling salvaging material drew to a close, responsibility for issuing passes.
access to it. After constructing a the regiment closed the crossing Controlling access through its
so-called No-Pass Fence some 200 stations it no longer needed. lines to the Demilitarized Zone
yards south of the near edge of the Each person entering the and maintaining order there
Demilitarized Zone, the regiment Demilitarized Zone through the became continuing missions of the
marked the fence with warning area held by the 5th Marines had to 1st Marine Division. The ceasefire
signs, engineer tape, and panels show a pass issued by the regi- (Continued on page 68)

62
 The Prisoners Return

L ike the earlier exchange of sick and wounded prison-

ers, Operation Little Switch, the process of repatriation
following the ceasefire took place within the sector held
by the 1st Marine Division. Because the final exchange,
appropriately named Big Switch, involved more than 10 times
Besides helping evacuate the sick or wounded, Marine
helicopters played the principal role in an airlift designed
to placate President Rhee, who believed that Indias refusal
to send troops to help defend his nation demonstrated sup-
port for North Korea and China. The United States sought
the number repatriated earlier, the medical facilities used in to ensure his cooperation with Big Switch by promising that
April could not meet the new challenge. A large Army no Indian troops would set foot on South Korean soil. As a
warehouse at Munsan-ni, converted into a hospital by result, the Indian contingent involved in taking custody of
Marine engineers, replaced the old treatment center. A the prisoners who refused repatriation flew by helicopter
newly created administrative agency, the Munsan-ni from ships anchored in Inchon harbor to a camp in the
Provisional Command, assumed overall responsibility for Big Demilitarized Zone.
Switch, with the 1st Marine Division carrying out the actu-
al processing. Processing the Freed Prisoners
When Operation Big Switch got underway on 5 August,
a Marine receipt and control section, functioning as part of At Freedom VillageSouth Korea operated a Liberty
the provisional command, accepted the first group of pris- Village for its returneesthe newly freed prisoners under-
oners at Panmunjom, checked them against the names on went a medical evaluation, brought their records up to
a roster the captors had submitted, and began sending date, received new uniforms, mail, newspapers, and mag-
them south along the Panmunjom Corridor. Returnees not azines, and ate a light meal. The steak that many of them
in need of immediate medical care boarded ambulances for craved would have shocked weakened digestive systems and
the drive to the Freedom Village complex at Munsan-ni. had to wait until they had readjusted to American fare.
Those requiring prompt or extensive care were flown to Those former captives judged healthy enough could meet
Freedom Village in Marine helicopters; the most serious with reporters at Freedom Village and answer questions
cases were then rushed either to hospital ships off Inchon about their experiences. After a brief period of recuperation,
or directly to hospitals in Japan. the former prisoners embarked for the United States.
Ambulances carrying sick and wounded United Nations injured were transferred directly to hospital ships at Inchon
prisoners of war arrive at Freedom Village. The seriously or air-evacuated to Japan.
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A174375

63
 During the voyage, or shortly after disembarking, they
described for intelligence specialists the treatment they had
received at the hands of the enemy.
The fifth former prisoner to arrive at Freedom Village on
5 August turned out to be a Marine, Private First Class
Alfred P. Graham, captured in July 1951. Forced labor and
malnutrition left him too weak to meet with reporters at
Munsan-ni, but later, at a hospital in Japan, he would
describe how he had routinely been compelled to carry fire-
wood 11 miles for the stoves at his prison camp. Two other
Marines reached Munsan-ni on the first day: Sergeant
Robert J. Coffee, wounded and captured in November
1950, and Private First Class Pedron E. Aviles, knocked
unconscious by a Chinese rifle butt in December 1952 and
taken prisoner.
The stream of returning Americans continued until 6
September, apparently with scant regard for time in captiv-
ity, physical condition, rank, or duties. For example,
Private First Class Richard D. Johnson, a machine gunner in
the 5th Marines captured on 25 July 1953, returned on 24
August, two days before the repatriation of Captain Jesse V.
Booker, an aviator and the first Marine taken prisoner, who
was captured on 7 August 1950. Some of the returnees had
been given up for dead, among them: First Lieutenant Paul
L. Martelli, a fighter pilot officially listed as killed in action;
First Lieutenant Robert J. OShea, an infantry officer whose
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A174381 name did not appear on any list of prisoners; and Private First
For the benefit of the press and distinguished visitors, Class Leonard E, Steege, believed by his buddies to have
Marines maintained a map showing the progress of road con- been killed in the fighting at Boulder City.
voys bringing former prisoners from Panmunjom to Operation Big Switch continued until 6 September and
Freedom Village during Operation Big Switch. resulted in the release of 88,596 prisoners, 75,823 of them

Communist prisoners of war rip off their U.S. provided uni- Nations forces, they put on a propaganda show for the ben-
forms and toss them contemptuously to the ground. efit of world newsreel cameras.
Shouting Communist slogans and hurling insults at United National Archives Photo (USN) 80-G-626976

64
North Korean or Chinese. South Koreans, both soldiers and Behind Barbed Wire
Marines, totaled 7,862, and those repatriated to other coun-
tries in the United Nations coalition numbered 4,911, 3,597 As had happened in previous wars, Americans captured
of them Americans, including 197 Marines. in Korea endured mistreatment from their captors, whether
Although the overwhelming majority of prisoners agreed inflicted deliberately or the result of callousness. In this war,
to repatriation, more than 22,000 did not, entrusting them- unlike the earlier ones, prisoners served as pawns in an ide-
selves to the custody of the Indian troops overseeing the ological contest in which the Chinese and North Koreans
process on behalf of the five officially neutral nations. The tried to convert them to Communism or, failing that, to
Indians released 22,467 former prisoners; two-thirds of force them to make statements that would further the
them Chinese, after a final attempt at persuasion allowed by Communist cause in its world-wide struggle against capi-
the armistice agreement was made. Most of the Chinese were talism. The methods of conversion or coercion varied from
veterans of the Nationalist forces, who had been captured unceasing lectures extolling Communism to threats and tor-
on the mainland and impressed into the service of the ture, with the harshest treatment meted out for acts of resis-
Peoples Republic. Once released, these veterans joined tance. By using these techniques, the prison staffs sought a
the Nationalists who had fled the mainland and established variety of objectives that included maintaining order, per-
themselves on Taiwan and its satellite isles. The North suading prisoners to embrace Communism, obtaining mili-
Koreans disappeared into the populace of the South. tary information, or extorting confessions to alleged war
A total of 357 United Nations troops refused repatriation, crimes, statements designed to turn worldwide public
333 of them South Korean. Only 23 Americansnone of opinion against the United States. By 1952, the enemy was
them a Marinechose to stay behind, along with one focusing in particular on forcing captured fliers of all the
British serviceman, a Royal Marine. Two of the American sol- Services to confess to participating in germ warfare.
diers, swayed by the final efforts at persuasion, changed their The vigor of the persuasion or punishment varied
minds at the last minute. Over the years, another 12 recon- according to the camp, the whim of the guards, or the pol-
sidered their decision and returned to the United States. icy of the moment. In July 1951, for example, the Chinese,
MajGen Vernon E. Megee, center, Commanding General, 1st Commanding General, 1st Marine Division, at Freedom
Marine Aircraft Wing, introduces former prisoner of war, Village.
Capt Gerald Fink, to MajGen Randolph McC. Pate, Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A174480

65
 Lieutenant Colonel Thrash of the 1st Marine Aircraft
Wing and Major John N. McLaughlin of the 1st Marine
Division proved especially successful in creating solidarity
among the prisoners. After recovering from the effects of his
confinement, Thrash stirred up resistance to the indoctri-
nation effort and to a related attempt to encourage the writ-
ing of letters that might serve as Chinese propaganda. He
also warned that interrogators would try to pressure
accused reactionaries into implicating fellow prisoners who
shared reactionary views. McLaughlin created a chain-of-com-
mand using five veteran Marine Corps noncommissioned offi-
cers and, like Thrash, helped form the escape committees
that took shape shortly before the armistice.
Resistance to the Chinese might be passive, essentially an
internal rejection of Communist attempts at indoctrination,
or active, with a range of actions that varied from symbol-
ic to practical to defiant. Symbolic gestures included a cel-
ebration of the Marine Corps birthday on 10 November
1952, featuring a cake made from eggs, sugar, and flour
stolen from the Chinese. A 22-inch crucifix, carved by
Captain Gerald Fink with improvised tools and given the title
Christ in Barbed Wire, symbolized both hope and resis-
tance. Captain Fink also fashioned practical implements, an
artificial leg for an Air Force officer, Major Thomas D.
Harrison, injured when his plane was shot down, and
crude stethoscopes for the medical personnel among the pris-
oners.
Captain Finks handiwork also played a part in an effort
to keep track of as many of the prisoners as possible. The
hollow portion of the artificial leg he had made contained
a list of names, the dates of death for those known to have
perished, and details of treatment while in captivity. The
Department of Defense Photo (USN) 627709
Chinese forced Harrisona cousin of Lieutenant General
Marine prisoner of war 1stLt Richard Bell is dusted with DDT
William K. Harrison, Jr., the chief United Nations truce
prior to his departure for Inchon. Dusting with DDT was
negotiatorto give them the leg when he was repatriated,
mandatory for all Marines leaving Korea for the United
but the information survived. The Air Force officer had a
States.
copy in the hollow handgrip of his crutch, and another pris-
who had assumed custody of the prisoners, announced a pol- oner carried a copy in a hollowed-out part of his cane.
icy of leniency that offered organized athletic competition Escape was the ultimate act of defiance, and also the most
among the prisoners and promised better treatment in difficult. No underground existed in the Korean War, as
return for cooperation. The new policy aimed at winning there had been during World War II, to shepherd escaped
over world opinion while converting reactionaries prisoners or downed airmen through hostile territory to
those prisoners who resisted indoctrinationinto pro- safety. Moreover, the average American could not blend as
gressives, who did not. easily into the civilian populace of North Korea as he might
The new leniency did not apply to Lieutenant Colonel have in Europe.
William G. Thrash, an arch-reactionary. Accused of Despite the difficulty, captured Marines made several
Criminal Acts and Hostile Attitude, he spent eight months attempts to escape from various prison camps.
in solitary confinement. In January 1952, he was beaten, Unfortunately, most attempts ended in failure. Sergeant
dragged outside, and exposed overnight to the deadly Donald M. Griffith slipped away from a guard who had fall-
cold, an ordeal that nearly killed him. en asleep only to be recaptured when he asked a peasant
To facilitate the indoctrination of the prisoners, a family for food. Captain Byron H. Beswick, although badly
process that came to be called brainwashing, the enemy tried burned when his aircraft was shot down, tried with four other
to shatter the chain-of-command. He separated officers prisoners to escape from a column on the march, but
from enlisted men and tried to place progressives in places guards recaptured them all. While being held prior to trans-
of leadership. The reactionaries fought back by creating a fer to a prison camp, Private First Class Graham, the first
network of their own to frustrate the Chinese tactics by restor- Marine repatriated in Operation Big Switch, joined another
ing military discipline. Marine in an escape attempt, but both were recaptured try-

66
ing to obtain food. After one unsuccessful try, punished as Cain, an enlisted pilot, had the misfortune of being mistak-
usual by a period of solitary confinement, First Lieutenant en for a senior officer because of his age and military bear-
Robert J. Gillette, accompanied for a time by a South ing, thus becoming a prized target for the interrogators. He
African pilot, succeeded in remaining at large for 10 days. tried to satisfy them with elaborate details about a non-exis-
Lieutenant Colonel Thrash and Major McLaughlin, together tent logistics command in which he claimed to have
with First Lieutenant Richard Bell, got beyond the barbed served. The pressure continued, however, until he was
wire, only to be cornered and forced to try to sneak back taken to a hillside one day, blindfolded, and subjected to a
into the compound; Bell, however, was caught and punished mock execution. He spent 84 days in solitary confinement
with solitary confinement. Captain Martelli, who was before the Chinese intelligence officers either gave up or real-
reported killed but literally returned from the dead as a result ized their error.
of Big Switch, escaped and evaded recapture for 10 days. Attempts to outsmart the enemy could end in tragic fail-
The final attempt, the product of one of the recently ure, as demonstrated by the fate of Colonel Frank H.
formed escape committees, took place on 1 July 1953, but Schwable, the chief of staff of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing,
the escapees remained at large for only a short time. With who became a prisoner when his aircraft was shot down on
a ceasefire, and presumably an exchange of prisoners, a reconnaissance flight in July 1952. Deprived of sleep and
drawing nearer, escape planning was suspended. medical care, subjected to relentless pressure to confess to
On rare occasions, special circumstances enabled captured war crimes, he tried to frustrate the enemy by making a state-
Marines to escape and rejoin the United Nations forces. In ment so obviously false that it not only would fail to help
August 1950, Private First Class Richard E. Barnett, driving the Chinese, but also demonstrate their use of coercion. This
a jeep, took a wrong turn and was captured by North action, however, merely whetted the appetite of interroga-
Korean soldiers, who confined him in a cellar. When his cap- tors determined to exploit his rank and position. They
tors took him along on a night attack, he managed to lag rewrote the document to create an illusion of truth, and
behind, threw a rock to distract the guard nearest him, and forced him to choose between endorsing the revised version
bolted into the darkness. He avoided recapture and or spending the rest of his life in prison. After he was freed
rejoined his embattled unit before it had reported him as Operation Big Switch drew to an end, a Court of
missing. Inquiryfunctioning like a civilian grand juryrecom-
Other successful escapes took place in May 1951. On the mended that he not face a court-martial for aiding the
15th, four days after their capture, Corporal Harold L. Kidd enemy because he had resisted to the best of his ability. The
and Private First Class Richard R. Grindle, both from inquiry also found that his future in the Marine Corps was
Company B, 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, made their way to seriously impaired by his conduct as a prisoner, thus
United Nations lines. Later that month, a group of 18 putting an end to a once-promising career. Only one
Marines and an Army interpreter assigned to the 1st Marine Marine faced a trial, an enlisted man convicted of fraternizing
Division were forced to join Chinese troops near the 38th with the enemy and dismissed from the Service.
Parallel. As the prisoners approached the frontlines, the The 221 Marines captured in Korea endured an unex-
Army interpreter, Corporal Saburo Shimamura, reported to pected ordeal. Prisoners in past wars had suffered malnu-
the senior Marine, First Lieutenant Frank E. Cold that their trition, forced labor, and other acts of cruelty, but never
captors planned to release them near Marine lines. The before had their captors tried systematically to coerce them
Chinese issued safe-conduct passes, lending credence to the into participating in a propaganda campaign. Despite the
report, but rather than wait to see if the Chinese would do harsh treatment the Chinese meted out, 197 Marines survived
as they said, the group took advantage of the distraction captivity and returned in Operation Big Switch.
caused by United Nations artillery registering nearby and fled Five Marines received official recognition for their stead-
into the hills. They evaded the patrols looking for them; fast conduct and strong leadership while prisoners of war.
spread out improvised signal panels, and caught the atten- Lieutenant Colonel Thrash received a gold star signifying his
tion of an aerial observer who reported their location. On second Legion of Merit. Major McLaughlin also earned the
25 May, the day after their escape, two Army tanks clattered Legion of Merit, as did Major Walter R. Harris, another reac-
up to the men and escorted them to the nearest United tionary, who set up a communications network in one
Nations position. camp by designating locations where messages could be hid-
In the spring of 1951, the enemy actually did release two den and picked up. Harris also took advantage of the pol-
prisoners, presumably as an overture to the policy of icy of leniency by organizing Spanish-language classes as
leniency announced shortly afterward. Whatever the reason, cover for providing information and encouragement to off-
Corporal William S. Blair and Private First Class Bernard W. set Chinese attempts at indoctrination. Captain John P.
Insco were turned loose near the frontlines. Captured on 24 Flynn, who refused despite torture to confess to war crimes
April, they regained their freedom on 12 May. and encouraged others to resist, earned the Navy and
At times, captured Marines sought to invent fictitious Marine Corps Medal. Master Sergeant Cain, who did not yield
statements that would ease the pressure on them by creat- to solitary confinement and threats of execution, received
ing an illusion of cooperation. Master Sergeant John T. a Letter of Commendation with Ribbon.

67
(Continued from page 62) Armistice Commission, the Joint reserve, would respond.
agreement specified that each Observation Teams, and the Marine Demilitarized Zone
side, Communist and United Neutral Nations Supervisory Com- police manning the observation
Nations, maintain a force of 1,000 mission along with other persons posts monitored aerial activity as
civil police to preserve the status authorized to enter the zone. well as events on the ground.
of the demilitarized buffer. Since According to a Marine Corps jour- Besides keeping a record of all
no civilian law enforcement agen- nalist, the average enlisted man flights, they made sure that light
cies existed to provide this man- assigned to the police company reconnaissance planes had an
power, troops had to function as had to know map reading on an appropriate clearance and that
police. For maintaining the securi- officer level, first aid, radio, and helicopters operating in front of
ty of the Demilitarized Zone along understand the fine print of the the 5th Marines also had obtained
its portion of the main battle posi- ceasefire agreement like a striped- permission for each flight. Heli-
tion, the division on 4 September trouser diplomat. copters responding to medical
activated the 1st Provisional De- Besides providing armed es- emergencies need not obtain spe-
militarized Zone Police Company, cortsusually one-half-dozen cific approval from the ground
drawing men from its infantry reg- Marines carrying rifles and pis- commander.
iments. Attached to the 5th tolsand staffing fixed observa- The truce specified that prisoners
Marines, the police company, tion posts, the police company of war who had refused repatriation
which initially numbered 104 men operated roving patrols. Traveling to North Korea and China would
under Captain Samuel G. Goich, in radio-equipped jeeps these enter the Demilitarized Zone,
took over the crossing stations, groups reported any unusual activ- where their fellow countrymen,
manned observation posts to mon- ity in the Demilitarized Zone. In joined by Polish and Czech mem-
itor the demilitarized Zone, and case of a genuine emergency, a bers of the Neutral Nations
escorted members of the Military platoon, standing by as a mobile Supervisory Commission, could try

68
to persuade them to return. The succession, the 1st Republic of rely on bridges and fords to trans-
Communist persuasion teams Korea Division and the U.S. 7th port material and reinforcements
required escorts from the police Infantry Division. The Imjin River across the Imjin. Because the
company, which therefore had to continued to challenge the ability of salient was more vulnerable than
be tripled in size. the Marines to move men and before, the division would have to
cargo, perhaps to a greater degree react faster and in greater strength
Main Battle Position than before the armistice. A shal- to repulse any new attack there.
lower and less defensible crescent The main battle position began at
After the fighting ended, the 1st of Marine-controlled ground lay the No-Pass Fence, which served in
Marine Division formed the left of north of the stream, which sepa- effect as a trip wire to warn of an
the line held by I Corps. The rated the supply center at Munsan- attack across the Demilitarized
Commonwealth Division dug in ni from the lines manned by the 5th Zone, and consisted of successive
on the right of the Marines then, in Marines and forced the division to lines of mutually supporting
strongpoints, each stronger than
Machine gunners stand-by with loaded belts as riflemen take positions on the for-
ward line. When the Black Alert siren sounded, Marines did not know the one to its front, that extended
whether it was for real, but truce or not, they were always ready. from the near edge of the
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A349038 Demilitarized Zone to the vicinity of
the old Kansas and Wyoming
Lines. Indeed, wherever possible,
Marine engineers incorporated
portions of these two lines in the
new battle position. North of the
Imjin, the 5th Marines manned the
equivalent of an outpost line of
resistance, in which firepower
from large numbers of automatic
weapons took the place of man-
power. Within the northern salient,
Colonel Tschirgi, the regimental
commander, placed the 3d
Battalion on the right, the 1st
Battalion in the center, and the 2d
Battalion on the left. South of the
Imjin, the 7th Marines defended
the right of the line, with the 1st
Regiment of South Korean Marines
in the center and the 1st Marines,
the division reserve, manning a
series of positions behind the
South Koreans. The 11th Marines
emplaced its howitzers behind the
7th Marines and prepared to fire
in general support of the division.
In October, however, a major
reshuffling took place south of the
river. The ongoing exchange of
prisonerswhich brought to the
Demilitarized Zone large numbers
of North Koreans and Chinese
who had refused repatriation,
along with their former comrades
who were trying to persuade the
defectors to returnraised the

69
 Department of Defense Photo (USMC) A365246
MajGen Randolph McC. Pate breaks ground for a new ished brass plaque, bearing a Marine Corps emblem and the
tuberculosis hospital donated and built by the 1st Marine words, Built by the First Marine Division.
Division. The completed hospital eventually bore a highly pol-

specter of another South Korean August, the 5th Marines fortified ammunition faster than the usual
attempt to disrupt the settlement. To hills that included wartime mix of these weapons, rifles, and
guard against this eventuality, Outposts Marilyn and Kate, along automatic rifles, the gunners
troops from the reserve regiment, with Boulder City and the Hook. would have to open fire sooner
the 1st Marines, took over the sec- Behind this arc of mutually sup- than normal if they were to close
tor manned by South Korean porting strongpoints, the regiment the gaps between outposts. As a
Marines. established bridgehead positions result, the amount of ammunition at
Clearly, the strongpoints man- to protect the vital river crossings. the outposts had to be increased
ned by the 5th Marines formed the Maintaining an adequate supply and the reserve stocks moved for-
most vulnerable portion of the of ammunition to defend the ward from regimental to battalion
new battle position. The regiment salient posed a problem because dumps. These changes, however,
held a frontage of 36,000 yards, of the reliance on automatic could not solve the problem of
about three times the usual width weapons and the range at which dividing a finite supply of ammu-
during the Korean War. Under they would have to open fire. Not nition among the regiments and
Colonel Rathvon McC. Tompkins, only did the large number of replenishing the 5th Marines by
who assumed command on 2 machine guns devour .30-caliber bridges or ferries vulnerable to

70
 Courtesy of Leatherneck Magazine
Men of the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, poke holes in a clothing before stowing it in their seabags for the trip back
frozen Korean stream and ignore the icy waters to scrub their to the States.

flood, ice, orif the fighting re- ing on alert in case the fighting Armed Forces Assistance to Korea
sumedhostile fire. resumed, Marine airmen also program, also undertook 51 build-
The ceasefire provided an op- trained, sometimes in conjunction ing projects42 to them schools.
portunity for training to hone the with Air Force squadrons. They As each school was completed it
cutting edge of the Marine forces. practiced bombing and ground- received kits containing instruc-
Within the division, individuals controlled intercepts and support- tional supplies and athletic gear.
and small units practiced their ed an amphibious exercise at These extras were made possible
skills, and all but two of the Tokchok-to Island involving the solely by the donations of 1st
infantry battalions took part in 1st Battalion, 7th Marines. Division Marines and matching
landing exercises. Besides remain- The division, as part of the funds from CARE, the Cooperative

71
 National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A366243
Two Marines from Company A, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines, about returning to Korea from Japan was summed up by two
show men of the U.S. Armys 24th Infantry Division their new disillusioned privates: Man, sixteen months in this forsak-
positions near the Demilitarized Zone. The divisions attitude en place.

for American Remittances to also to eliminate foul odors. A The 1st Marine Division
Europe. Marine poured a quart or so of manned its portion of the main
The post-armistice activity gasoline into the privy, tossed in a battle position for almost two
included athletics that provided a lighted match, and stepped out- years after the ceasefire. General
break from training and routine side. Too much gasoline could Pate, in command at the time of the
housekeeping. Athletic competi- produce spectacular results, as truce, was succeeded by Major
tion took place among Marine Corporal Lee Ballenger recalled. A General Robert H. Pepper (12 May
units and between organizations buddy of his grew impatient when 1954 to 22 July 1954), Major
and bases. Indeed, some Marines a succession of matches seemed to General Robert E. Hogaboom (23
stationed at Pyongtaek played on fizzle, poured gasoline directly July 1954 to 17 January 1955), and
an Air Force softball team repre- from the can and was knocked Major General Merrill B. Twining,
senting that airfield. down by a blast that splintered the who took over on 18 January 1955
Routine housekeeping contin- wooden structure. Luckily, the and would bring the division
ued, however. Each day, for exam- flame did nothing worse than home.
ple, latrines had to be burned out, singe the Marines hair and eye- The first hint of the divisions
primarily to prevent disease but brows. redeployment came from the

72
White House when a reporter there was little spontaneous rejoic- line over to the U.S. Armys 24th
blandly asked the President if he ing; few celebrations or sayonara Infantry Division. Every Marine
could lend official credence to the parties were planned. hoped that lugging water up steep,
authoritative sources announce- Soon there was a gradual switch slimy hills, helmet baths, rations,
ment that the First Division would from hours spent on training to the sleeping bags, pot-belly stoves,
be pulled out of Korea. The packing and crating of gear. Most long-handled skivves, parkas,
reporter gained a grinning admis- trucks, tanks, tents, clothing, and DDT, and Mongolian piss cutters
sion from President Dwight D. other common gear would stay would become just memories.
Eisenhower that the Marines in Korea, while all Marine Corps The 1st Marine Aircraft Wing,
would be moved in the near peculiar gear would accompany now commanded by Brigadier
future. the division to Camp Pendleton, General Samuel S. Jack, began
When the news hit Korea, it was California. Despite contemporary withdrawing some of its compo-
greeted with mixed enthusiasm newspaper reports to the contrary, nents from South Korea in June
and skepticismevery Marine there was no massive swapping of 1956. The wing remained in the
knew that in the near future troops from the 1st to the 3d Far East, however. General Jack
could mean months or years. But Marine Division in Japan. The only established his headquarters at
soon clippings sent by mothers, exceptions were a Rocket Battery Iwakuni Naval Air Station, Japan.
wives, and girl friends began to and an Armored Amphibian Some of the wings elements
arrive, lending credibility to the Company. moved to Japan, but others contin-
move. Marines who had been wary In mid-March 1955, the division ued to operate from bases in South
now became convinced. However, turned its sector of the demarcation Korea.
The 7th Marines rode trucks to the Munsan-ni railhead landing teams, the 7th Marines followed the 5th Marines,
where they wait to board trains for Inchon. Divided into which was the first Marine unit to arrive in Korea.
Courtesy of Leatherneck Magazine

73
 presented an unexpected chal-
lenge, which the Truman adminis-
tration decided to meet, although
not at the expense of weakening
the newly formed North Atlantic
Treaty Organization. As a result,
the United States fought a limited
war in Korea, withholding nuclear
weapons and relying with few
exceptions on the weapons of
World War II or improved versions
of them.
In Korea, the Marines used to
deadly effect the weapons they
had, whether old or improved,
massing artillery, supplementing
the howitzers with rockets, and
when necessary employing tanks
as pillboxes on the battle line, but
new weapons lay just over the
horizon. The weight of the stan-
dard infantry weapons of World
War IIfor example, the M1 rifle
weighing 9.5 pounds, and the
Browning automatic rifle almost
twice as heavyaroused interest
in lighter, fully automatic weapons
like the sub-machine guns used by
Courtesy of Leatherneck Magazine
Chinese infantry. A lightweight
Packed on board small landing craft like sardines, Marines were carried out to
waiting Navy transports where they easily climb the cargo net with a full pack automatic rifle, the M16, was
and rifle. They were homeward bound. therefore developed but did not
become the standard weapon for
The War in Perspective by January 1953, defense over- Marine infantrymen until the
shadowed the offense, even Vietnam War. Although the steel
Marine participation in the though defensive operations re- helmet remained essentially un-
Korean War began with the des- quired frequent and often bloody changed since World War II, body
perate defense of the Pusan counterattacks to maintain the armor had undergone improve-
Perimeter, continued when the 1st positions held by the United ment because of experience in
Marine Division spearheaded a Nations. The Chinese succeeded in Korea, as had the original antitank
daring amphibious assault at capturing and holding several out- rocket launcher or Bazooka.
Inchon, and, after the Chinese posts, but the 1st Marine Division Infantry tactics changed to meet
intervention forced the United clung tenaciously to its segment of the evolving demands of the war on
Nations to withdraw from the Yalu the main line of resistance, helping the ground. Fighting at night,
River to the vicinity of the 38th force the enemy to agree to the especially patrol actions, received
Parallel, ended in static warfare ceasefire, with provisions for the greater emphasis, for instance.
fought along a battle line that exchange of prisoners of war, that Also, by the time of the battles for
extended across the width of the had become the overriding Berlin, East Berlin, and Boulder
Korean peninsula. A highly mobile American objective of the war. City in July 1953, the 1st Marine
amphibious assault force thus Before North Korea invaded the Division was committed to a
became tied to fixed positions, a South, American strategy focused defense in depth, made up of
condition that lasted from the on the defense of Western Europe mutually supporting strongpoints, a
spring of 1952 until the armistice in against the Soviet Union and its principal followed in establishing
July of the following year. Indeed, satellites. The aggression in Asia the post-armistice main battle line.

74
 The construction of the bunkers
and covered fighting positions that
made up these strongpoints had
improved greatly since the
Marines took over their segment of
the Jamestown Line in the spring of
1952.
The most dramatic changes
took place in aviation. The new jet
fighters, which had barely seen
action against the enemy during
World War II, proved their worth in
support of the 1st Marine Division
and also in aerial combat.
Fourteen Marine pilots, flying air-
craft of the 1st Marine Aircraft
Wing downed 16 hostile airplanes,
ranging from biplanes engaging in
nighttime harassment to modern
jets. Eleven other Marine pilots,
flying North American F-86 jet
fighters in U.S. Air Force squad-
rons, were credited with downing
Courtesy of Leatherneck Magazine 21 Chinese jet fighters. Moreover,
Col Raymond L. Murray, who commanded the 5th Marines during its first the helicopter showed tremendous
action in Korea almost five years before, greets the regiments current com- potential in limited use during the
manding officer, Col Robert H. Ruud, upon his arrival at San Diego, California, Korean fighting; this potential,
in March 1955. however, would not be realized
Marines of the 1st Division parade through downtown San was furnished the combat-clad veterans as they marched up
Diego following their return from Korea. A heros welcome Broadway to Balboa Park.
Marine Corps Historical Center Photo Collection

75
fully until the Vietnam conflict. of resources, no matter how well inawa, got underway while the 3d
Because the Korean War had that division had fought. Because of Marine Division was based in
demonstrated the importance of this commitment to amphibious Japan and continued after its rede-
integrated action between air and operations, the 1st Marine Division ployment to Okinawa.
ground components, the Marine participated in landing exercises The continued existence of a
Corps in January 1953 established whenever possible during the force, normally one battalion,
the 1st Provisional Air-Ground course of the fighting, activity that afloat with the Sixth Fleet in the
Task Force at Kaneohe in Hawaii. may well have reminded the Mediterranean provided a further
This unit, built around an infantry enemy of the abiding threat of demonstration of the abiding ori-
regiment and an aircraft group, another assault like the victory at entation of the Marine Corps
stood ready for deployment Inchon. toward amphibious warfare. Since
throughout the Pacific. After the truce went into effect, 1949, a succession of battalions
In short, the Marine Corps had amphibious training continued in drawn from the 2d Marine
responded quickly and effectively the Far East for the 1st Marine Division at Camp Lejeune, North
to the peculiar demands of the Division, until its return of the Carolina, had embarked with the
Korean War without losing sight of United States. In August 1953, as the Sixth Fleet. Clearly, the Korean
its amphibious mission and its role Demilitarized Zone took shape, fighting in 1952 and 1953 had not
as a force in readiness. To Marine the 3d Marine Division, teamed converted the Marine Corps from
eyes, the use of one of its with two aircraft groups, arrived in amphibious operations to extended
amphibious divisions in an Japan. A program of amphibious ground warfare, from assault to
extended ground campaign seem- training, which included regimental attrition, or affected its dedication to
ed an aberration, a misapplication landings at Iwo Jima and Ok- the air-ground team.
A Douglas F3D is hauled on board ship after being ferried Korea to Iwakuni, Japan, in June 1956. Postwar plans
out by two amphibious trucks, as the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing called for the wing to occupy bases in both Korea and
transferred its headquarters and most of its aircraft from Japan.
National Archives Photo (USMC) 127-N-A349563

76
About the Author

B ernard C. Nalty, a member

of the Marine Corps histor-
ical program from October
1956 to September 1961, col-
THIS PAMPHLET HISTORY, one in a series devoted to U.S. Marines
laborated with Henry I. Shaw, in the Korean War era, is published for the education and training of
Jr., and Edwin T. Turnbladh on Marines by the History and Museums Division, Headquarters, U.S.
Central Pacific Drive, a vol- Marine Corps, Washington, D.C., as part of the U.S. Department of
Defense observance of the 50th anniversary of that war. Editorial costs
ume of the History of U. S. have been defrayed in part by contributions from members of the
Marine Corps Operations in Marine Corps Heritage Foundation. To plan and coordinate the Korean
War commemorative events and activities of the Sea Services, the Navy,
World War II. He also com- Marine Corps, and Coast Guard have formed the Sea Services Korean
pleted more than 14 short his- War Commemoration Committee, chaired by the Director, Navy Staff.
torical studies, some of which appeared in For more information about the Sea Services commemorative effort,
please contact the Navy-Marine Corps Korean War Commemoration
Leatherneck magazine or the Marine Corps Gazette. Coordinator at (202) 433-4223/3085, FAX 433-7265 (DSN288-7265), E-
He joined the history office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mail: [email protected], Website: www.histo-
in 1961, transferred in 1964 to the Air Force history ry.usmc.mil.
KOREAN WAR COMMEMORATIVE SERIES
program, and retired in 1994. Mr. Nalty has written or DIRECTOR OF MARINE CORPS HISTORY AND MUSEUMS
edited a number of publications, including Blacks in Colonel John W. Ripley, USMC (Ret)
the Military: Essential Documents, Strength for the GENERAL EDITOR, KOREAN WAR COMMEMORATIVE SERIES
Fight: A History of Black Americans in the Military, Charles R. Smith
The Vietnam War, Tigers Over Asia, Air Power and the EDITING AND DESIGN SECTION, HISTORY AND MUSEUMS DIVISION
Fight for Khe Sanh, and Winged Shield, Winged W. Stephen Hill, Visual Information Specialist
Catherine A. Kerns, Visual Information Specialist
Sword: A History of the U.S. Air Force. In addition to
contributing to this series on the Korean War by writ- U.S. Marine Corps Historical Center
ing Stalemate: U.S. Marines from Bunker Hill to the 1254 Charles Morris Street SE
Washington Navy Yard DC 20374-5040
Hook, he took part in the Marines in World War II
2002
commemorative series, completing two pamphlets,
Cape Gloucester: The Green Inferno and The Right to PCN 190 0041 0400
Fight: African-American Marines in World War II.

Sources Corps operations in his contribution to

the official history of Army activity dur-
William H, Jantzen, a participant in
one of the fiercer actions of 1953, has
The best account of operations by ing the Korean War, Truce Tent and written a riveting account of that fight in
Marines during 1953, their role in estab- Fighting Front (Washington, D.C.: Office A Bad Night at Reno Block, in the
lishing the Demilitarized Zone, and their of the Chief of Military History, 1966), a March 1998 issue of Leatherneck maga-
eventual withdrawal from South Korea volume that deals with negotiation as zine.
appears in Operations in West Korea, well as fighting. The Marine Corps Gazette has ana-
volume five of U. S. Marine Corps Martin Russ, a wartime Marine Corps lyzed the tactics and lessons learned of
Operations in Korea, 1950-1953 infantryman, has written the best known the Korean War in three especially use-
(Washington, D.C.: Historical Division, and most revealing memoir covering the ful articles: Peter Braestrups Outpost
Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps, 1972), final months of the fighting, The Last Warfare (November 1953) and Back to
by LtCol Pat Meid, USMCR, and Maj Parallel: A Marines War Journal (New the Trenches (March 1955); and
James M. Yingling, USMC. York: Rinehart, 1957). Random Notes on Korea (November
The Marine Corps historical program Personal accounts by other Marines 1955) by LtCol Roy A. Batterton. Also of
also has dealt thoroughly with the treat- appear in Korean Vignettes: Faces of use was the article by MSgt Paul
ment received by Marines held as pris- War (Portland, OR: Artwork Publica- Sarokin, Going Home, in the May 1955
oners of war, their reaction to depriva- tions, 1996), a compilation of narratives issue of Leatherneck.
tion and hostile pressure, and their and photographs by 201 veterans of the The personal papers collection of the
repatriation. James Angus MacDonald Korean War, prepared by Arthur W. Marine Corps history program contains
has made extensive use of interviews Wilson and Norman L. Stickbine. journals, photographs, letters, memoirs,
with former prisoners in his The Valuable insights and first-hand and at least one academic paper, a mas-
Problems of U. S. Marine Corps Prisoners accounts are also available in The ters thesis on outpost warfare by a
of War in Korea, published by the Korean War: The Uncertain Victory; The Marine, Maj Norman W, Hicks. For
History and Museums Division, Concluding Volume of an Oral History events of the year 1953, the most valu-
Headquarters, U. S. Marine Corps, in (New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, able of these items were the submis-
1988. 1988), by Donald Knox with additional sions by Eldon D. Allen and Gen Vernon
Walter G. Hermes discusses Marine text by Alfred Coppel. E. Megee.
 OUTPOST WAR
U.S. Marines from the Nevada
Battles to the Armistice
by Bernard C. Nalty

Marines in the Korean War Commemorative Series