Woodring, Raymond Leroy
Army Private 1st class
Raymond Leroy Woodring from Pennsylvania, Franklin county.
Service era: Korea
Date of death: Unknown
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. Corporal Raymond Leroy Woodring, who joined the U.S. Army from Pennsylvania, served with I Company, 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. He was captured by enemy forces north of Chochiwon on July 12 and was marched with other prisoners toward the Apex prison camps in North Korea. He died en route on an unspecified day as his group of prisoners moved through Chasong Pass, but the other prisoners were not allowed to stop long enough to bury him. His remains were not identified among those returned to U.S. custody after the war, and he is still unaccounted for. Today, Corporal Woodring is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
Source: National Archives, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency
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. Private First Class Myron Earl Gross, who joined the U.S. Army from Pennsylvania, served with B 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. He was forced to march to the Apex prison camps in North Korea, and died of dysentery and malnutrition at the camp at Chunggang-jin on an unspecified date in February 1951. His remains were not identified among those returned to U.S. custody after the ceasefire. Today, Private First Class Gross is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.
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. Private First Class William Reuben McGill, who joined the U.S. Army from Pennsylvania, served with B Company, 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. His unit was part of Task Force Smith and he was captured by enemy forces two miles north of Osan. He was marched to the Apex prison camps in North Korea, and died of malnutrition and dysentery at one of the Apex camps in late December 1950. Although he was buried near the camp, his remains were not identified among those returned to U.S. custody after the ceasefire. Today, Private First Class McGill is memorialized on the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.