February 15, 2013

Oroville Mercury Register
November 14, 1952
Held By Reds, Son Writes Father Here
Earl Barnard, a prisoner of war in North Korea since July 4, 1951, was heard from last week in a letter received by his father Vernon C. Barnard, of Rose Street. The letter, written on rice paper and imprinted with the olive branch bearing dove of the Chinese People’s Committee for World Peace, gave few details of life in Compound 1, somewhere in North Korea. Barnard said only that he was well fed. He was captured when Chinese over-ran his hill-top position after the infantry unit that also included his twin brother ran out of ammunition. Charles Barnard, Earl’s twin, related that he and his captive brother became separated during hand-to-hand fighting in the dark after their unit had exhausted its ammunition supply trying to turn back the Red advance. They were defending Hill 682, 20 miles east of Chorwon. As the Americans retreated, Earl paused to assist a wounded man and was taken by the Chinese. Charles Barnard said the Reds managed to take only the position whose defenders ran out of ammunition, and were driven off the ridge the following morning. “I was pretty sure Earl was a prisoner,” Charles said. “The next morning we couldn’t find any trace of him, not even a helmet. Then later we found his .45 pistol on a dead Chinese.” But it was not until a month after that Earl’s name was released in a prisoner of war list in Stars and Stripes magazine. Charles, now discharged from the army, makes his home at Concord, but was an Oroville visitor recently. The boys had been in Korea with the Seventh Infantry regiment of the Third Division only three days when Earl was captured.

Oroville Mercury Register
May 18, 1951
611 Causalities Added To List
Washington-(U.P.) – The Defense Department today released a new total of 67,427 American battle casualties in Korea, an increase of 611 over the total reported one week ago. The casualties reflect the total of those whose next of kin have been notified through last Friday. It takes from one to three weeks for such notification, so the actual number of total casualties is somewhat higher. The total casualties include 11,513 deaths, 44,705 listed as wounded, 9987 missing, 115 captured and 1207 who previously were listed as missing but have returned to duty. The Breakdown by services; Army – 56,176 casualties, 9487 dead, 36,126 wounded, 9280 missing, 112 captured, and 1171 previously missing but returned to duty. Navy-721 casualties,115 dead, 535 wounded, 67 missing, four previously missing but returned to duty. Marine Corps- 9925 causalities, 1636 dead, 8018 wounded, 271 missing. Air Force- 605 casualties, 175 dead, 26 wounded, 369 missing, three captured, 32 previously missing, but returned to duty.

Mercury Register
May 18, 1951
UN Assembly Votes Embargo Against Enemy
Flushing, N.Y. –(U.P.)- The United Nations General Assembly today ordered a world-wide strategic embargo on Communist China and North Korea by a 47 to 0 vote. India, leading a bloc of eight countries which abstained from voting, called on the UN to specify its Korean war aims inline with Gen. Matthew B. Ridgway’s statement several weeks ago when he said the world organization would have scored a major victory if it cleared South Korea of invading forces. Russia and her four common form partners refused to participate in the vote after arguing that the Assembly was not empowered to recommend such an embargo. Only the Security Council-where Russia’s veto could block it- could legally consider the measure, the Soviet delegates contended.

Oroville Mercury Register
May 18, 1951
Friends of Reds May Lose Aid
Washington –(U.P.) Senate House conferees agreed today to outlaw economic aid to countries that knowingly permit exports of arms or strategic materials to Soviet Russia, Red China, communist North Korea, or other communist countries. The prohibition-tacked onto an administration supplemental appropriations bill by Sen. James P. Kern (R.) , Mo.- was agreed to with some modifications. The banned shipments would include arms, or any other material which the Secretary of Defense certifies to the Economic Co-operation Administration could be used in manufacture of arms, armaments, or military material.
(Stu Now’s a good time to see who our World friends are.)

Stu’s Notes:
Well at this point we don’t know if Earl Barnard made it home. What a hero to stop to aid a wounded man knowing death was right behind him and all instincts said run, run, run. Unlike WWII, which was a World War, Air, Land and Sea, Korea was a down in the dirt ground war with most of the causalities and deaths in the Army and Marines and the above statistics were only after about 11 months of war with over two more years to go. As I write this I said “Honey isn’t this Lincoln’s Birthday, which it was, February 12th. I consider President Abraham Lincoln my favorite President; he died for our country as Commander in Chief of All Armed Forces. The South lost a lot on that sad day.