U.S. Marine Operations in Korea, 1950-1953, Volume 5 (of 5): Operations in West KoreaUnited States. Marine Corps
History
U.S. Marine Operations in Korea, 1950-1953, Volume 5 (of 5): Operations in West Korea
United States. Marine Corps
Korean War, 1950-1953 -- Campaigns; United States. Marine Corps -- History -- Korean War, 1950-1953
[131] Two Marines killed in the action were later posthumously
awarded the Medal of Honor. Corporal David B. Champagne,
A/1/7, was responsible for saving the lives of the
three other members of his fire team. When a grenade
fell in their midst, Champagne grabbed it to hurl back
to CCF positions. Just as it cleared his hand, the
grenade exploded, showering lethal shrapnel into the
body of the 19-year-old Rhode Islander. One of the C/1/7
reinforcement Marines, Private First Class John D. Kelly,
had conducted a one-man assault against a dug-in Chinese
machine gun crew. Though painfully wounded during this
encounter, he disposed of the enemy, then reduced a
second weapons bunker. While firing point-blank into a
third position the brave Marine was fatally wounded. This
1/7 action was the first in the western Korea defense to
result in multiple Medal of Honor awards.
[132] 1/7 ComdD, May 52, pp. 17–18.
Following this late May offensive, a brief period of relative calm
settled over the MLR. Marine and Chinese units continued the active
defense of their respective sectors, with generally only a limited
number of contacts. Fire fights between Marine patrols and CCF
defenders lasted only a short time and usually ended when artillery
fire caused the patrol to pull back. Even though this state of affairs
remained essentially unchanged through June, several other events that
month would affect Marine defense of the westernmost sector in I Corps.
_End of the Second Year of War_[133]
[133] Unless otherwise noted, the material in this section is
derived from: _PacFlt EvalRpts_ No. 4, Chap. 9, No. 5,
Chap. 8; 1stMarDiv ComdD, Jun 52; 5th Mar ComdDs, Apr,
Jun 52; 7thMar ComdDs, May-Jun 52; 1/7 ComdD, May 52; KMC
Regt Unit Rpt 120, dtd 30 Jun 52.
A second realignment of the Marine-Commonwealth boundary along Line
JAMESTOWN was made on 1 June. Part of the rear of the MLR was moved
eastward to enable the Marine division to assume full responsibility
for a key ridgetop. Prior to this date the hill mass had been divided
along its crest, a factor that made it a potential trouble spot for
both divisions. On 23 and 24 June, the 7th Marines MLR battalions
relocated their positions towards the enemy along JAMESTOWN. This
readjustment of the line varied from 1,300 yards in the center of the
regimental sector to 400 yards near its right. The additional terrain
strengthened the division front by placing the center regiment on
improved and more defensible ground.
A week before this MLR change took place, there had been a shift in
occupants in its far right sector. Colonel Culhane’s 5th Marines
replaced the 1st on line, which then went into division reserve.
Manning the MLR were 2/5 on the left and 1/5 to the right.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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