Kenneth Eugene Hines, age 21, from Van Wert County Ohio City, Ohio .
Parents: Andy R. Hines
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Monday, November 27, 1950
Death details: On November 27, 1950, the 31st Regimental Combat Team (RCT), tasked with replacing the 5th Marine Regiment on the east side of the Chosin Reservoir in North Korea, arrived at the P’ungnyuri Inlet. That night, Chinese Communist Forces (CCF) launched a massive surprise attack against the soldiers and Marines at the inlet. The 31st RCT managed to repel the numerically superior CCF’s initial attack; however, the enemy continued to attack over the next two nights. On December 1, the 31st RCT began its withdrawal from the P’ungnyuri Inlet to Hagaru-ri. Sergeant First Class Kenneth Eugene Hines, who joined the U.S. Army from Ohio, served with the Heavy Mortar Company, 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division. He was reported missing in action on November 27, 1950, during the Battle of Chosin Reservoir, as his unit fought the CCF at P’ungnyuri Inlet. The specific circumstances behind his loss are unknown; however, he was not reported to be a prisoner of war and his remains were not located or identified after the war. Today, Sergeant First Class Hines 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, Toledo Blade (1951)
