The Korean War is called “The Forgotten War.” Not for the 5.7 million Americans who served in it. Not for families of the 54,000 Americans who died in it – including nearly 600 Iowans -- and the 104,000 wounded during it. Not for the 2 million Koreans on both sides and Chinese who died in it.
The North Korean army invaded South Korea on June 25, 1950. The United States and its United Nations allies were unprepared, but rallied and drove deep into North Korea. Warnings of Chinese Communist intervention were unheeded. The Americans and UN were overrun, beaten back, but rallied again. The sides battled in stalemate until an armistice was reached July 27, 1953.
An interactive video screen tells the history of that conflict. Our state’s namesake warship, the USS Iowa, saw considerable service during Korea. Naval shells and powder bags sit on a replica section of the ship deck with video elements focusing on the ship’s service. “Faces of the Fallen” chronicling Iowans who died during the war, near a shipping crate for one of their caskets.
“We gave 50,000 lives so those people could keep what they have,” Lt. Charles H “Chuck” Dalton, Waterloo, 1st Marine Division, Chosin Reservoir.