Mitchell Red Cloud, Jr.

Mitchell Red Cloud, Jr.
Born 2 July 1925
Hatfield, Wisconsin
Died 5 November 1950 (aged 25)
near Chonghyon, North Pyongan Province, North Korea
Place of burial Winnebago Mission, Wisconsin
Allegiance United States of America
Service/branch United States Marine Corps
United States Army
Years of service 1941–1946 (USMC)
1948–1950 (USA)
Rank Sergeant (USMC)
Corporal (USA)
Service number 16299515[1]
Unit 2nd Marine Raider Battalion
29th Marine Regiment
19th Infantry Regiment
Battles/wars

World War II

Korean War

Awards Medal of Honor
Purple Heart

Mitchell Red Cloud, Jr. (2 July 1925 – 5 November 1950) was a Marine in the United States Marine Corps during World War II, and later a soldier in the United States Army during the Korean War. Corporal Red Cloud posthumously received the Medal of Honor for his actions near Chonghyon, North Pyongan Province, North Korea on 5 November 1950.

Born in Hatfield, Wisconsin, Red Cloud, a Ho-Chunk Native American, dropped out of high school to enlist in the US Marines during World War II. He served first with Carlson's Raiders during the Battle of Guadalcanal before health problems forced him stateside to recover. Red Cloud avoided discharge, and served with the 6th Marine Division during the Battle of Okinawa.

Red Cloud enlisted in the US Army shortly before the beginning of the Korean War. Serving with the 24th Infantry Division, he was among the troops who fought the first battles of the war, being pushed back with the 19th Infantry Regiment during the Battle of Taejon and the Battle of Pusan Perimeter. He was then a part of the Eighth United States Army advance into North Korea. On the night of 5 November 1950, Red Cloud was manning a forward observation post when he spotted an imminent surprise attack by Chinese forces. Red Cloud singlehandedly held off the Chinese forces despite being shot eight times, at one point ordering his men to tie him to a tree because he was too weak to stand by himself. His company found him the next morning, surrounded by dead Chinese troops. He was credited with alerting his company to the ambush and saving them from being overrun. For these actions, he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

Early life

Mitchell Red Cloud, Jr. was born on 2 July 1925 in Hatfield, Wisconsin. He was the eldest son of Mitchell Red Cloud and Lillian Red Cloud. The family were ethnic members of the Ho-Chunk Native American tribe.[2] Red Cloud attended Nellsville High School in Black River Falls, Wisconsin.[3] The school taught primarily Native American students, a large portion of whom joined the military after finishing school.[4] At age 16, Red Cloud dropped out of high school and, with his father's approval, decided to enlist in the United States Marine Corps. He entered service on 11 August 1941,[2] the earliest date on which he was legally allowed to enlist.[5] The family may have relocated to Merrillan, Wisconsin, which was where Red Cloud enlisted.[6]

Career

World War II

With World War II looming, Red Cloud joined "Carlson's Raiders," the 2nd Marine Raider Battalion under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Evans Carlson. As a light infantry special forces unit, the raiders held high standards of physical and mental fitness, and was known to perform very well with this unit.[2] His only major deployment with the raiders was the Battle of Guadalcanal. Red Cloud landed on Guadalcanal on 6 November 1942. The 2nd Raider Battalion conducted a number of mopping up operations to assist in the clearance of the island and to cut off troops from the Empire of Japan who had been attempting to escape. However, his time on Guadalcanal was plagued by several bouts of tropical disease, and he left the island a month later, on 4 December 1942.[7]

Red Cloud contracted diseases frequently during his time overseas, and he was returned to the United States to recuperate. The US Marine Corps offered him a medical discharge, but Red Cloud refused. Instead, he recovered from illness and requested reassignment to a combat unit. This request was granted, with Red Cloud subsequently assigned to the 29th Marine Regiment, 6th Marine Division. In this unit, he participated in the invasion of Okinawa on 1 April 1945. In the ensuing Battle of Okinawa, his unit saw intense fighting in the campaign to secure the island. After several months of fighting, the unit was withdrawn to Guam to prepare for Operation Coronet, the second phase of the anticipated invasion of mainland Japan. However, these plans were scrapped following the surrender of Japan. Red Cloud left the Marine Corps in 1946 during the demobilization that followed the war.[7] He left the military as a Sergeant.[1]

Inter-war years

In December 1945, Red Cloud published an article in the Wisconsin Archaeologist, an account from his tribe's traditional stories about the 1832 surrender of Sauk leader Black Hawk to US authorities after the short Black Hawk War. In the article, he expressed support for historical theories that Black Hawk had voluntarily surrendered. He also assisted anthropologist Nancy Lurie, informing her studies of how childcare customs among Native Americans were changing over time.[8]

Red Cloud decided to return to the military two years after he left, in 1948. He enlisted in the United States Army and was assigned to E Company, 2nd Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. The regiment was part of the Occupation of Japan, and Red Cloud was assigned to Kyushu. During this time, training opportunities were limited, many of the troops were inexperienced and their equipment was of low quality due to budget cuts.[7] On joining the army, Red Cloud was not permitted to retain his sergeant rank from the Marine Corps.[1]

In the inter-war years, Red Cloud married and had a daughter, Annita.[9]

Korean War

With the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950, the 24th Infantry Division was the closest unit to the Korean Peninsula, and so Red Cloud's company was among the first units into the country.[7] The division was heavily engaged throughout July 1950 by North Korean troops as it attempted to stem their invasion of South Korea, and the 19th Infantry saw action in the Battle of Taejon, fighting at the Kum River before being forced out of Taejon.[10]

The unit subsequently moved back to the Naktong River, and was involved in the subsequent Pusan Perimeter campaign during August and September 1950. During the First Battle of Naktong Bulge, the 19th Infantry was moved up from reserve positions in to combat the NK 4th Division, which was attempting to break through their lines.[11] Having been badly mauled in these fights, the division was moved into reserve along the Pusan Perimeter on 23 September. It was replaced by units of the US 2nd Infantry Division.[12] In the subsequent Great Naktong Offensive, the 19th Infantry served as a reserve force to help units under attack in the Second Battle of Naktong Bulge.[13] It would later participate in the Battle of Kyongju, assisting troops of the Republic of Korea Army to help push back North Korean troops from the Kyongju area.[14] During these battles, Red Cloud's experience as a combat veteran made him a valued member of his unit for leading the less experienced troops.[7]

Following the Battle of Inchon and subsequent Second Battle of Seoul, the North Korean Army was largely defeated, and the 19th Infantry was one of the units of the Eighth United States Army which pursued the fleeing North Koreans north of the 38th Parallel with the intention of reuniting the country. However, beginning in October 1950, the People's Republic of China conducted the First Phase Offensive, a surprise attack against the advancing United Nations forces, which were unprepared to counter the offensive. By early November, Red Cloud and his unit had advanced to the Ch'ongch'on River.[7]

Medal of Honor action

On the night of 5 November, 2nd Battalion was holding positions on Hill 123, near Chonghyon, just north of the river. Red Cloud, then a Corporal, was manning a forward listening post in front of E Company's position.[7]

In the middle of the night, he began hearing suspicious noises, before spotting a number of Chinese troops intent on surprising the Americans. Red Cloud raised an alarm and began firing on the advancing Chinese troops with an M1918 Browning Automatic Rifle. The Chinese returned fire, wounding him. In spite of these wounds, he refused to withdraw from his post, continuing to attack the Chinese troops with accurate fire which caused significant casualties among their advancing force.[15] Crucially, his actions alerted the American troops to the impending attack, preventing an ambush. Red Cloud propped himself against a tree to continue firing, exposing himself to intense Chinese fire. He was shot at least eight times in this battle.[15] Suffering from severe injuries, he ordered his troops to tie him upright to the tree, as he was too weak to support himself, before he ordered them to withdraw to the main positions.[9] Eventually, the Chinese overran his position.[15]

Red Cloud's actions gave E Company time and warning to blunt the Chinese offensive, eventually repelling the attack.[8][15] His actions are also credited with allowing the company to evacuate several others wounded in the attack.[16] When the troops of E Company returned to his position the next morning, his body was reportedly surrounded by a large number of dead Chinese troops.[15]

Burial and honors

In April 1951, Red Cloud's mother received the Medal of Honor from General of the Army Omar Bradley in a ceremony at The Pentagon in Washington, D.C..[15] Red Cloud was initially buried at a UN cemetery in Korea. However, in 1955, his body was exhumed and moved to Wisconsin where he was buried in accordance with Ho-Chunk tribal customs.[15] He was interred at the Decorah Cemetery at Winnebago Mission, Wisconsin, and in 1967 a monument was erected for him in the cemetery.[8] Another plaque honoring Red Cloud was subsequently erected in Black River Falls.[17] In La Crosse, Wisconsin, a park was dedicated in Red Cloud's honor in 1957. A memorial park was also dedicated in his memory that year, the Red Cloud Highway Memorial Park adjacent to the Black Hawk Powwow Grounds in Komensky, Wisconsin. A portion of Wisconsin Highway 54 was also renamed Red Cloud Highway. The American Legion post in Adams, Wisconsin was renamed for him.[8] The Ho-Chunk Nation observes Corporal Mitchell Red Cloud Jr. Day on July 4.

On Armed Forces Day, 18 May 1957, the United States Army named Camp Red Cloud after him, in recognition of his actions. Additionally, in 1999 the United States Navy named the newly commissioned USNS Red Cloud (T-AKR-313), a Watson-class vehicle cargo ship and Large, Medium-Speed Roll-on/Roll-off ship, in his honor.[15] The ship was christened by his daughter Annita, who was dressed in traditional regalia. It was attended by several men who served alongside her father as well as several flag officers.[9]

Finnigan's War

Mitchell Red Cloud Jr. is one of the featured Korean War heroes honored in the 2013 documentary "Finnigan's War" directed by Conor Timmis. Actor Mark Hamill narrates Red Cloud's Medal of Honor citation in the film.[18]

Awards and decorations

Red Cloud's awards and decorations include:[1]

A metal device depicting a blue bar with a rifle, in front of a wreath of silver leaves.
A light blue military ribbon with five white stars with five points each.
A purple ribbon with white stripes on each end.
Bronze star
A blue ribbon with a gold outline.
A red circle with a black outline containing a green leaf shape with a yellow outline
Combat Infantryman Badge
Medal of Honor Purple Heart Good Conduct Medal
American Campaign Medal Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal World War II Victory Medal
Army of Occupation Medal National Defense Service Medal Korean Service Medal
with service star
Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation United Nations Service Medal for Korea Korean War Service Medal[n 1]
24th Infantry Division SSI-FWTS

Medal of Honor citation

Red Cloud was the third of four Native Americans to be awarded the Medal of Honor in Korea. Charles George of the Cherokee and Raymond Harvey of the Chickasaw were also awarded medals.[16] Woodrow W. Keeble of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate was also honored with the Medal of Honor in 2007, after a long campaign by members of his family.[17]

Cpl. Red Cloud, Company E, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action against the enemy. From his position on the point of a ridge immediately in front of the company command post he was the first to detect the approach of the Chinese Communist forces and give the alarm as the enemy charged from a brush-covered area less than 100 feet from him. Springing up, he delivered devastating pointblank automatic rifle fire into the advancing enemy. His accurate and intense fire checked this assault and gained time for the company to consolidate its defense. With utter fearlessness he maintained his firing position until severely wounded by enemy fire. Refusing assistance he pulled himself to his feet and, wrapping his arm around a tree, continued his deadly fire again, until he was fatally wounded. This heroic act stopped the enemy from overrunning his company's position and gained time for reorganization and evacuation of the wounded. Cpl. Red Cloud's dauntless courage and gallant self-sacrifice reflects the highest credit upon himself and upholds the esteemed traditions of the U.S. Army.[19]

See also

References

Notes

  1. ↑ In 2000 this award was made retroactive to all US military personnel who served in the Korean War.

Citations

Sources

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army Center of Military History.
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