Lycan, John Smith Jr.
Army Private 1st class

John Smith Jr. Lycan from Idaho, Nez Perce county.

Service era: Korea

Date of death: Sunday, December 31, 1950
Death details: On July 5, 1950, Task Force Smith, the first U.S. ground element to engage North Korean People’s Army (NKPA) troops, was defending a position north of Osan, South Korea. The Task Force’s goal was to delay enemy forces by blocking their movement down the road south from Suwon to Taejon, which was a major avenue of advance for the NKPA. That morning, the Task Force was engaged by a column of enemy tanks. The anti-tank weapons that the infantrymen employed were ineffective, and a large number of tanks broke through their position. Task Force Smith was forced to withdraw to the south, suffering heavy casualties in the process. Corporal John Smith Lycan Jr., who joined the U.S. Army from Idaho, served with C Company, 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. His unit was part of Task Force Smith and he was captured by enemy forces on July 5, 1950. He was marched to the Apex prison camps in North Korea. He died of malnutrition on December 31, 1950 at the camp near Hanjang-ni, and was buried by his companions near the compound. His remains have not been recovered or identified among those returned to U.S. custody. Today, Corporal Lycan is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.

Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency