Posted on 04/23/2002 5:35:01 AM PDT by aimlow
William E. Barber, 82, a retired Marine Corps colonel who won the Medal of Honor for valiant behavior after being shot in the leg during the Chosin Reservoir campaign of the Korean War -- going so far as to conduct his troops by stretcher -- died April 19 at his home in Irvine, Calif. He had liver failure and bone marrow cancer.
Col. Barber's actions in battle, including his refusal to abandon a key supply route despite horrific odds, enabled 8,000 U.S. soldiers to escape an ambush by Chinese forces allied with the North Koreans.
At a news conference in 1952 for receiving the nation's highest military award for valor, Col. Barber was the consummate quiet hero. "One bullet doesn't stop a man," he told the crush of reporters. He likened the bullet wound to a bee sting.
By then, he had already passed his own standard of what it takes to fell a man. He had been shot during World War II while rescuing two wounded Marines from enemy territory during the battle for Iwo Jima. That action earned him the Silver Star and the Purple Heart.
Col. Barber -- then a captain -- won the Medal of Honor for his duty as commanding officer of a rifle company assigned to the Chosin Reservoir area near Korea's border with China.
He held his ground from Nov. 28 to Dec. 2, 1950, mere weeks after more than 100,000 Chinese had crossed the Yalu River into North Korea and were waiting to surprise U.S. and South Korean soldiers who had fought their way north to the border.
That bitter, brutal winter near the "Frozen Chosin," he was charged with defending a three-mile mountain pass along his division's main supply line. On the first night, during a seven-hour battle that began with the enemy's bugle call, his company suffered enormous losses but drove away the Chinese.
On the second night, about 50 Chinese broke through, and Col. Barber was shot in the right leg. Ordered to relocate, he told his superiors he could hold out if U.S. forces would airdrop more supplies.
By stretcher, he directed and inspired his company of 220 men to fight off the advancing Chinese -- thousands of them.
The fighting lasted six nights, and by the end, 1,000 Chinese lay dead. Only 82 of Col. Barber's men could walk away when they were relieved from their position. Many were dead; many were too frostbitten to stand.
His Medal of Honor citation read: "His profound faith and courage, great personal valor, and unwavering fortitude were decisive factors in the successful withdrawal of the division from the deathtrap in the Chosin Reservoir sector and reflect the highest credit upon Capt. Barber, his intrepid officers and men, and the U.S. Naval Service."
There have been about 3,400 winners of the Medal of Honor since it was created in 1861.
William Earl Barber was born on a farm near Dehart, Ky. He was attending what is now Morehead State University in Kentucky when he enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1940.
During World War II, he was a platoon leader in the Pacific theater when he was called on to replace his wounded commander. During that time, he rescued his fellow Marines.
Col. Barber went on to serve as a psychological operations officer during the Vietnam War and saw combat there. He received the Legion of Merit for that work and retired in 1970.
During his military career, he completed his undergraduate education at Morehead.
Reflecting on his Korean War exploits, he told a reporter that despite the enemy forces' overwhelming numbers, they were predictable.
"They attacked the same position five nights in a row, at the same time and using the identical route," he told the Los Angeles Times. "Luck in combat is very fickle. I've noticed through the years that those who make the best preparations have the best luck. . . . But we were also very good, and that wasn't luck."
Survivors include his wife, Ione Barber, and two children.
BARBER, WILLIAM E.
Rank and organization: Captain U.S. Marine Corps, commanding officer, Company F, 2d Battalion 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division (Rein.). Place and date: Chosin Reservoir area, Korea, 28 November to 2 December 1950. Entered service at: West Liberty, Ky. Born: 30 November 1919, Dehart, Ky. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as commanding officer of Company F in action against enemy aggressor forces. Assigned to defend a 3-mile mountain pass along the division's main supply line and commanding the only route of approach in the march from Yudam-ni to Hagaru-ri, Capt. Barber took position with his battle-weary troops and, before nightfall, had dug in and set up a defense along the frozen, snow-covered hillside. When a force of estimated regimental strength savagely attacked during the night, inflicting heavy casualties and finally surrounding his position following a bitterly fought 7-hour conflict, Capt. Barber, after repulsing the enemy gave assurance that he could hold if supplied by airdrops and requested permission to stand fast when orders were received by radio to fight his way back to a relieving force after 2 reinforcing units had been driven back under fierce resistance in their attempts to reach the isolated troops. Aware that leaving the position would sever contact with the 8,000 marines trapped at Yudam-ni and jeopardize their chances of joining the 3,000 more awaiting their arrival in Hagaru-ri for the continued drive to the sea, he chose to risk loss of his command rather than sacrifice more men if the enemy seized control and forced a renewed battle to regain the position, or abandon his many wounded who were unable to walk. Although severely wounded in the leg in the early morning of the 29th, Capt. Barber continued to maintain personal control, often moving up and down the lines on a stretcher to direct the defense and consistently encouraging and inspiring his men to supreme efforts despite the staggering opposition. Waging desperate battle throughout 5 days and 6 nights of repeated onslaughts launched by the fanatical aggressors, he and his heroic command accounted for approximately 1,000 enemy dead in this epic stand in bitter subzero weather, and when the company was relieved only 82 of his original 220 men were able to walk away from the position so valiantly defended against insuperable odds. His profound faith and courage, great personal valor, and unwavering fortitude were decisive factors in the successful withdrawal of the division from the deathtrap in the Chosin Reservoir sector and reflect the highest credit upon Capt. Barber, his intrepid officers and men, and the U.S. Naval Service.
. . . you can marvel at Col. Barber's bravery, and you can wonder, as I often have, where our nation finds such men.
But remember, those bronze words on the plaque, and the medal that he wore, only tell part of his story.
Because Col. William Barber's courage and honor and decency didn't begin on that frozen hill in Korea. And they didn't end there, either.
I fondly remember our old payday musters where we'd stand in-ranks inspections and then Top would read a MoH or Unit Citiation before we got paid.
Those were some of the best lessons in patriotism and devotion one could ever have.
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