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Illinois and the Korean War, June 1953

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[June 01, 2013]  SPRINGFIELD -- The state of Illinois is commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Korean War by supplying information each month about the state's involvement in the conflict.

The Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs, Illinois Korean Memorial Association, and the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, along with media partners the Illinois Press Association and the Illinois Broadcasters Association, are sponsoring "Illinois Remembers the Forgotten War." For more information, visit www.illinois-history.gov or www.veterans.illinois.gov.

Illinoisans killed in action in Korea,
June 1953
By county of residence
(Source: U.S. Department of Defense records)

Adams:

  • 1st Lt. Roger F. Buxman, Army, June 5.

  • Pvt. Billy E. Reagan, Army, June 15.

Cook:

  • Pfc. Thaddeus Bobowiec, Army, June 11.

  • 1st Lt. Richard S. Drezen Jr., Air Force, June 29.

  • 2nd Lt. James E. Ford, Army, June 13.

  • Pfc. David R. Hagen, Army, June 24.

  • Pfc. Curlie McIntosh, Army, June 26.

  • Cpl. Elmer B. Olinger Jr., Army, June 2.

  • Pfc. George J. Polcer Jr., Army, June 11.

  • 2nd Lt. Kenneth F. Reimer, Army, June 11.

  • Pfc. Percy E. Stine Jr., Army, June 12.

  • Pvt. William A. Thome, Army, June 24.

  • Pfc. Richard Veld, Army, June 13.

Hamilton:

  • Cpl. Charles H. Karcher, Army, June 12.

LaSalle:

  • 2nd Lt. Joe V. Cerri Jr., Army, June 11.

Richland:

  • Master Sgt. Donavan J. Jackson, Army, June 12.

Rock Island:

  • Pvt. Charles V. Claeys, Army, June 15.

  • Pfc. Ebner C. Holke, Army, June 24.

  • Pvt. Dick G. Tate, Army, June 12.

  • Pvt. Francis J. Whipple, Army, June 16.

St. Clair:

  • 2nd Lt. Phillip F. Bauer Jr., Army, June 12.

White:

  • Sgt. Carl E. Carter, Army, June 11.

Will:

  • Sgt. 1st Class Donald E. Yahnke, Army, June 25.

Winnebago:

  • Sgt. 1st Class Martin E. Budack, Army, June 26.

  • Pvt. Roland L. Gates, Army, June 15.

  • Pfc. Herman L. McCollum, Army, June 17.

Key events during the Korean War, June 1953

After nearly three years of fighting in Korea and two years of peace talks, June 1953 dawned with a realistic hope that an end to the war might be found. Finally, on June 8, the two parties agreed to the terms of prisoner repatriation, the issue that had caused the war to drag on for nearly two years.

South Korean President Syngman Rhee, however, was vehemently opposed to the agreement. He sought nothing less than a reunified Korea, the North Korean army disarmed and the removal of all Chinese troops, none of which were points of serious discussion.

On the night of June 18, Rhee tried to sabotage the talks by releasing approximately 25,000 North Korean prisoners of war from South Korean custody. These prisoners had refused to be repatriated, fearing for their lives once in Communist hands, and they soon melted into the South Korean countryside. The Communists, in response, threatened to break off the armistice talks. It took the personal intervention of President Dwight D. Eisenhower in July before the recalcitrant Rhee reluctantly agreed to an armistice.

Meanwhile, sensing that an end to the fighting might be near, the Chinese launched a massive offensive, determined to end the war on the best possible terms. The Chinese sent almost 100,000 soldiers against a South Korean force half that size, concentrating their drive near Outpost Harry on June 10. They succeeded in driving the U.N. forces back more than two miles, a huge gain in a front line that had barely moved in more than a year.

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American units, including the 15th Infantry Regiment, 5th Regimental Combat Team, 10th Engineer Battalion, 39th Field Artillery Battalion and various 3rd Division support units, joined in on the vicious fight. The Communist drive was stopped only after a massive U.N. artillery barrage and airstrikes.

Before June was over, more than 2.7 million artillery rounds would be fired in just one month, a level not even seen during World War II. The USS Princeton launched 184 sorties from its flight deck on June 15, establishing a single-day Korean War record for offensive sorties flown from an aircraft carrier. On June 15, U.S. Navy and Marine Corps aircraft flew a total of 910 sorties, the highest combined number for a single day in the war. And on June 30, United Nations fighter jets destroyed 16 Communist MiGs, the largest number shot down in one day.

Illinois Korean War Memorial

The Illinois Korean War Memorial is located in Springfield's Oak Ridge Cemetery, the same cemetery that contains the Lincoln Tomb. Oak Ridge is the nation's second-most-visited burial ground, behind only Arlington National Cemetery.

Dedicated on June 16, 1996, the memorial consists of a 12-foot-tall bronze bell mounted on a granite base. At the circumference of the base are four niches, each with a larger-than-life figure representing a branch of the armed services. Inscribed on the base are the names of 1,754 Illinoisans killed in Korea.

The Illinois Korean War Memorial is administered by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency and may be visited daily free of charge.

Korean War veterans oral history project
Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum

The oral history program at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum offers "Veterans Remember," a collection of interviews with Illinois residents about their wartime experiences, at the library's website, http://www2.illinois.gov/alplm/
library/Pages/default.aspx
. The interviews concern the experiences of Illinois veterans who fought in several conflicts, including the Korean War, as well as the experiences of those on the home front. Visitors to the website can listen to or watch the interviews in their entirety. Several of the interviews have transcripts, and most have still images as well.

Website visitors will need a computer capable of playing MP3 audio files or MPG compressed video files in order to listen to the interviews. The transcripts and still images are also accessible. Volunteers conducted and edited many of the interviews and developed the transcripts that accompany them.

Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs

The mission of the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs is to empower veterans and their families to thrive. The department does this by assisting them in navigating the system of federal state and local resources and benefits; by providing long-term health care for eligible veterans in the state's Veterans' Homes; and by partnering with other agencies and nonprofits to help veterans address education, mental health, housing, employment and other challenges. For more information, visit http://www2.illinois.gov/veterans/. Follow them at http://twitter.com/ILVetsAffairs or  http://www.facebook.com/illinois.veterans.

Korean War booklet

The Illinois Korean Memorial Association, an all-volunteer organization, has published a booklet, "A Brief History of the Korean War," copies of which have been provided free of charge to public libraries, high schools and junior high schools in Illinois. Individuals may obtain a copy by sending a $10 check or money order to: Illinois Korean Memorial Association, P.O. Box 8554, Springfield, IL 62791.

Tax-deductible donations are welcome. All donations go to the book project and to the upkeep of the Illinois Korean War Memorial.

[Text from file received from the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency]

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