Closson, Archie James
Army Private

Archie James Closson from Rhode Island, Kent county.

Service era: Korea

Date of death: Wednesday, March 21, 1951
Death details: On July 11, 1950, the U.S. Army’s 21st Infantry Regiment, which had arrived in Korea six days earlier, was placed in defensive positions near the town of Chochiwon, South Korea. The regiment was not at full strength and lacked artillery and anti-tank weapons. That day, they were attacked by North Korean forces and were forced to withdraw to avoid being surrounded, as well as to buy time until they could be reinforced and resupplied. Private First Class Archie James Closson, who joined the U.S. Army from Rhode Island, served with M Company, 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was captured by enemy forces on July 12, near Chochiwon, and forced to march north to the Apex prison camps in North Korea. He died of exhaustion and pneumonia on March 21, 1951, at the camp near An-dong and was buried a short distance from the camp. His remains were not identified among those returned to U.S. custody after the cease fire. Today, Private First Class Closson is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency