McGowan, Donald Jr.
Army Private

Donald Jr. McGowan from Michigan, Van Buren county.

Service era: Korea

Date of death: Friday, May 25, 1951
Death details: On May 25, 1951, elements of the 187th Regimental Combat Team (RCT) were assigned to secure a bridgehead on the Soyang River in South Korea. The RCT, bolstered by two companies of tanks, launched a counter-attack against Chinese Communist Forces (CCF) that had taken control of the river’s northern shore. Despite fierce enemy resistance, the 187th RCT successfully dislodged the CCF, and then began a cautious push northward in an attempt to locate and destroy other enemy forces. The 187th RCT was still engaged with CCF troops by the end of the day, and suffered several casualties over the course of the fighting.

Corporal Donald McGowan Jr. joined the U.S. Army from Michigan and was a member of the Service Company, 187th Regimental Combat Team. He took part in the fighting on May 25 and was captured by the enemy at some point during that day. He joined a group of prisoners who were marched north into North Korean territory. Corporal McGowan died of malnutrition and illness in June 1951, after his group arrived at the Suan Mining Camp. His remains have not been recovered, and he was not identified among remains returned to U.S. custody after the war. Today, Corporal McGowan is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency