1852-53 Robert Turner 1/3RCR Battles for Hill 355 and 187

[Mike Blais CD]

My name is Robert Turner, and I served in Korea with the Royal Canadian Regiment - the 1st and 3rd Battallions.



I joined 1 RCR in Korea on Hill 355 - better known as Kowang San, or Little Gibraltar. We were on Hill 355 from the 10th of August until the 22nd of October. In that period of time we were shelled continuously by the Chinese. And on the 22nd of October, we were in such bad shape that they took us out, and B Company of 1 RCR took over our position. And on the 23rd of October, the Chinese attacked B Company and overran the Company. The Chinese came in, in about... force of about a couple of battalions. The Chinese took over the position, and a lot of our people were killed. We lost 18 people that day.

When we came out in the morning, we were put back on... in company reserve. We got word in the afternoon of the 23rd that we were going to possibly put in a counter attack to take the hill back. Going into the position again, we were shelled continuously. And it was from both sides - from our own and from the enemy. I think it was around 1:30 in the morning we took the hill back, and by 3:30 hours the battallion's forward line was re-established.

I wasn't in the fight at 187, but I was there. I was in the pioneer section at this time. And the night of the attack I was on guard, but I wasn't up in the company where the fighting was going on. We did such jobs as mine-laying and blowing up unspent ammuntion and things like that. Going out in the valley and blowing up bunkers, or whatever was found by the patrols that were out there.



I was the founding President of London Unit No. 4 of the Korea Veterans Association. I was the President of the RCR Association for five years. And in that period of time we... I was Chairman of the group that sent three containers of food over to Bosnia. And I've been very active in other types of volunteer work, too. And I received the Base Commander's accomodation for my work on base. And also I received the Queen's Golden Jubilee Medal.

http://www.thememoryproject.com/digital-archive/profile.cfm?collectionid=381&cnf=kw

[rong]

Thanks to you Mike , and Robert for getting this up here.. a good read, and i hope to hear more from all Korea Vets.. so much told of sacrifices in a short order.. sacrifices that were forgotten for some great amount of time.. lets hear all your recollections , Korea Vets..rong

[eileen]

can anyone tell me what happened on hill 187 on may 29th, 1953, my father was injured, according to his military records at 1320 hrs on may 29th on hill 187, not may 2 and 3, but I can't find any information about what happened on the 29th, he had part of his index finger of his right hand blown off that day.  He didn't want to tell his children about the horrors over their, so he made up funny stories about the loss of his partial peter pointer.  He told us his buddy was cleaning his gun and it went off,I knew this was not true, because he would have shot the guy back, for cleaning a loaded gun, he hated stupity, and he said he cut it off on KP duty, peeling potatoes, and other such silliness.  My father has been gone since 1987 and until this year I still didn't know that it got blown off in Korea on hill 187, when I received his records from the archives. No mention anywhere of the battle on the 29th. Someone else must have been with him  that day.  So if anyone can tell about the day my dad lost peter, His name was Eric Barton Howard. he served in the 1st battalion mostly but was in the 3rd for part of his time in Korea.  My dad came back from there a very damaged human being, my mother says he was not the same man she married in 1950.  He got malaria, and his mental well being was never the same, but he soldiered on, until 1968. At least I finally know why he wouldn't tell us what really happened.  Alot of Mystery's and secrets surrounded our lives, and that was why I requested the file. Just a warning to anyone else requesting their parents records, there are some things in there you might not want to know. They send you everything they have at the archives.Eileen