Clatterbuck, Roland Weaver
Army Sergeant
Roland Weaver Clatterbuck, age 33, from Orange County Barboursville, Virginia .
Parents: Herbert Clatterbuck
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Tuesday, February 13, 1951
Death details: On February 5, 1951, Allied forces in Korea launched an offensive against North Korean and Chinese Communist Forces (CCF) north of Wonju. Republic of Korea units and the 38th Infantry Regiment and supporting artillery units, including the 15th and 503rd Field Artillery Battalions, and the 82nd Antiaircraft Artillery and Automatic Weapons Battalion, initially met light resistance on their drive to the north. On February 11, the CCF launched an aggressive counteroffensive that caused the Allies to withdraw back southward. However, the CCF had established a series of roadblocks on the road to the south, forcing the Allies to fight their way back to friendly lines. Sergeant Roland Weaver Clatterbuck, who entered the U.S. Army from Virginia, was a member of L Company, 3rd Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He was initially reported as missing in action during the Regiment’s fighting withdrawal. However, subsequent reports from returned prisoners of war (POWs) indicated that he was captured by the enemy. He was last seen during a forced march north towards the Suan Bean POW camp, suffering from severe frostbite that made him unable to keep up with the rest of the group. He was reportedly left behind with a single guard, who later rejoined the column alone, leading other POWs to believe that SGT Clatterbuck had likely been killed by the guard. The disposition of his remains is unknown, and he has not been associated with any of the remains that were later returned to U.S. custody. Today, Sergeant Clatterbuck is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. His name is also inscribed on the Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, DC, which was updated in 2022 to include the names of the fallen.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Orange County Review (1951)