Dunn, Francis
Army Private 1st Class

Francis Dunn from New York, Rensselaer county.

Service era: Korea

Date of death: Sunday, July 16, 1950
Death details: On the evening of July 15, 1950, the U.S. Army’s 19th Infantry Regiment held defensive positions along the south bank of the Kum River. As dusk approached, North Korean People’s Army (NKPA) tanks appeared on the opposite shore and began firing on the U.S. positions. Although U.S. troops repulsed the attacks that evening, the next morning the NKPA crossed the river and launched a major attack against the 19th Regiment. As the regiment began withdrawing south to Taejon, the North Koreans pushed deep into their defensive lines and set up a roadblock en route to Taejon. When retreating American convoys could not break through the roadblock, soldiers were forced to leave the road and attempt to make their way in small groups across the countryside. Of the 900 soldiers in the 19th Infantry when the Battle of Kum River started, only 434 made it to friendly lines. Corporal Francis Dunn entered the U.S. Army from New York and served with Company A, 1st Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was wounded by small arms fire on July 16, during the Battle of Kum River, as his unit attempted to withdraw through enemy roadblocks outside Taejon. While seeking medical care at a nearby first aid station, he was captured when the area was overrun by the enemy. After his capture, he was marched toward the “Apex” prisoner of war camps, but died en route near Kosan, on October 27, due to exposure, malnutrition and possibly his wounds. He was subsequently buried in Kosan. His remains have not been recovered. Today, Corporal Dunn is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency