The Graybeards - Korean War Veterans Association

The team continued its review of U.S.
Army morning reports for Nov.-Dec.
1950. To date, 45 reels of microfilm have
been reviewed, with each reel containing
hundreds of reports. These reports provide
an accurate accounting of servicemen
who were listed either as MIA or
KIA in major engagements during that
period.
The morning report data will be analyzed
to provide more precise unit data,
date of loss, and status for specific individuals
listed on PMKOR. Some of this
data has already been forwarded to the
next-of-kin. Thus far, the focus of the
morning report research has been on the
1st Cavalry Division and the 7th Infantry
Division for November and December
1950. Other units’ morning reports will be
reviewed on future trips to the NPRC.
November 30, 1999
Archival Research Leads to
PMKOR Updates
During a trip to the National Personnel
Records Center, DPMO researchers
found documentation that led to the
removal of six Navy personnel from
PMKOR, the database which lists MIA
servicemen from the Korean War.
The Navy casualty office recently contacted
the next-of-kin of a seaman listed
on PMKOR. He related that the seaman’s
remains had been recovered and interred
in the U.S. shortly after the loss incident
in September 1950.
The Navy asked DPMO to obtain
copies of the deck logs for the USS Brush
from the National Archives at College
Park, Md. A DPMO researcher found the
deck logs and a statement that two sets of
remains had been recovered. (A total of
nine seamen were listed on PMKOR from
the USS Brush loss incident).
After the Navy casualty office requested
the personnel records for the two seamen
whose remains had been recovered,
they found documentation indicating that
the remains of other personnel may have
been recovered. Two weeks ago, DPMO
researchers reviewed the personnel
records of an additional four seamen and
found documentation which indicated
that all four sets of remains had been
recovered from the USS Brush loss incident
and repatriated to the U.S.
Belarus Official Presents Pow
Materials
Two DPMO staff members from the
Joint Commission Support Directorate
met recently in New York with Gen. Lt
Nikolai I. Cherginets, Chairman of the
Committee for International Affairs and
National Security, Balarus Parliament.
The general passed copies of POW-related
materials brought from Minsk for
JCSD analysis. Cherginets expressed the
Belarus government’s desire to continue
working closely with the U.S. on
POW/MIA matters. Belarus has been supportive
of our POW/MIA accounting mission,
and has assisted in arranging a number
of important interviews with Belarus
veterans of the Korean and Vietnam wars.
December 13, 1999
Alaska Peak Named in Honor of
POWs, MIAs
Mount POW/MIA is now a reality in
Alaska, thanks to a unanimous decision
by the U.S. Boards on Geographic
Names. The Board, voted on October 21
to name a 4,314 foot peak “Mount
POW/MIA “ approved the proposal forwarded
by the Chair of the Alaska
Historical Commission., Lt. Governor
Fan Ulmer.
“I applaud the actions of the Board on
Geographic Names and the Alaska
Historical Commission in naming this
peak in honor of our veterans,” said
Interior Secretary Babbitt. “I am proud to
be a part of a well-deserved recognition
and unique reminder of those courageous
men and women that answered our
nation’s call.”
Vietnam veteran John Morriessey of
Patterson, New York proposed the name.
Morrissey, who had previously lived and
worked in Alaska, had been searching for
a suitable monument to honor approximately
800,000 Americans who served as
Prisoners of War or remain listed as
Missing in Action. In June 1999, he planted
a flag atop the unnamed peak, approximately
six miles southeast of Wasilla,
Alaska. It is in direct view from Wasilla’s
“Veteran’s Wall of Honor,” a local, popular
roadside memorial.
In Alaska, the Historical Commission
has designation over geographic names
within the state. “Even though we officially
adopted the mountain as Mount
POW/MIA, it was not an official U.S.
name until it was accepted by the U.S.
Board on Geographic Names,” explained
Lt. Gov. Ulmer. “I am very pleased the
federal government has agreed to recognize
this special peak as Mount
POW/MIA. It gives special meaning to
veterans.” Said Ulmer.
Governor Knowles, a Vietnam Army
veteran, said “It’s a fitting tribute to
POWs and MIAs. We must never forget
them and this peak will be a permanent
reminder to us. My thanks to the many
veterans and veterans groups in Alaska
and around the country who supported
this idea.”
The peak, in Chugach State Park, is at
61 degrees 26 minutes 47 seconds north
latitude and 149 degrees 11 minutes 47
seconds west longitude.
December 17, 1999
North Korean Talks End
Without Agreement
U.S. and North Korean negotiators
ended talks in Berlin late Friday, Dec. 17,
1999 without reaching agreement on joint
recoveries of the remains of American
servicemen missing in action from the
Korean War.
The three days of negotiations were to
establish a schedule of operations in
North Korea for the coming year. U.S.
teams have conducted remains recovery
operations in North Korea each year since
1996. In these four years, 42 sets of
remains believed to be American soldiers
were recovered over 12 operations. Three
of the soldiers have been identified and
returned to their families for burial with
full military honors. The U.S. teams, led
by the U.S. Army’s Central Identification
Laboratory Hawaii conducted recovery
operations in several battlefield areas of
North Korea, including Unsan county and
the Chong Chon River, each approximately
60 miles north of Pyongyang.
The negotiators discussed ways to continue
cooperation on remains recovery
operations, but failed to reach an overall
agreement as the North Korean side
sought to link an extensive humanitarian
aid program to the remains recovery operations.
The sides set no date for future
discussions, but the United States will
continue efforts to conclude an agreement
consistent with past arrangements.
January/February, 2000 Page 25