Mar/Apr 2013 - Korean War Veterans Association

Remembering
Ihave rarely seen references to the many trucking companies
in Korea that were in direct support of the front-line troops.
As I sit here celebrating my 80th birthday, my memories go
back to January 30, 1951, when I graduated from New Utrecht
High School in Brooklyn, NY, at the tender age of 18-1/2. I was
contemplating joining the U.S. Army in the next few days. I went
to the Whitehall Street Recruiting Center in downtown New York
City, where I began with a complete physical checkup, shots that
were needed, etc.
After enjoying a 24-hour pass, we were placed on buses and
went off to Ft. Devens, MA, for the distribution of our GI
clothes, a GI haircut, and many classes on Army etiquette. After
a week or so, we were placed on a troop train headed for Ft.
Bragg, NC, where many of us were assigned to the 420th
Engineer Dump Truck Company. After settling in, we started our
16 weeks of basic training. When I finished the course, I received
a 10-day pass and went home.
Upon returning, we were taught how to drive those dump
trucks. The first week in August my orders came to report to
Camp Stoneman in Pittsburgh, CA. I knew then where I was
headed—KOREA!!
After we arrived at Camp Stoneman, we had classes on how
to take care of ourselves in a foreign country and what to do if
captured. After a week or two we were sent by ferryboat to
the San Francisco Port of Embarkation, where
I boarded the USS General William
Weigel (AP 119) with others
from the U.S. Navy and U.S.
Air Force.
Following a lovely cruise
on the Pacific Ocean, we landed
in Yokohama, Japan, where
we were placed on trains and
sent to Camp Drake for more
informational classes. Then
we returned to Yokohama,
where we boarded another
ship headed for
lnchon, Korea. The following
day we arrived in
the harbor,
which was loaded with ships from all the United Nations countries
that were fighting in Korea.
That night we went over the side of the ship with all our
equipment. We descended the rope ladders to an LCVP (Landing
Craft Vehicle Personnel), and we were off to the “Land of the
Morning Calm,” aka Korea. We boarded trucks and went to a
replacement depot. Then, we climbed on to a train, which transported
me to a town called Wonju, where I was assigned to the
504th Transportation Truck Company.
After a few weeks, many of us were sent to the 351st
Transportation Highway Transport Group, where we learned
how to drive vehicles from Jeeps to 2-ton trucks, along with the
maintenance of these vehicles. After several weeks we were sent
on a convoy and were tested on how we handled the vehicles and
ourselves. Once we graduated, we received U.S. Army driving
licenses. We were reassigned to our original outfits and accepted
our driving assignments.
Orders came down for us to break camp and proceed to a
town called Sokchori, on the east coast of the Japanese Sea. LSTs
landed in this area with all kinds of supplies for the front line
troops that we supported directly. We
hauled 55-gallon drums of gas, food supplies,
ammunition, and sometimes troops.
52
Photo courtesy of Stanley A. Jones (pictured), 25 Huckins Neck Rd., Centerville, MA 02632
March - April 2013
The Graybeards