From Jay VWith:
An interesting new book: One historical note is that the 187th RCT attempted to rescue these guys, and bad weather delayed them by one day.
In October, 1950, over two hundred-fifty American POWs boarded a train in Pyongyang, North Korea. Their guards were taking them to join a much larger group of prisoners being collected near Manpo. The men were in bad condition. They'd already marched hundreds of miles. They were exhausted and malnourished. They suffered from dysentery and other illnesses. A few miles after Sunchon, almost a hundred were taken off the train and machine gunned. About twenty-five survived. The train went on. After being attacked by American jets, it became disabled just outside Kujang-dong. Thirty-three more were shot. Only three survived. The rest walked off into the night with their guards. Only three from that group made it to Manpo.
The story of the Sunchon Tunnel Massacre is a little known to the general public. Of the roughly, thirty survivors from this group of POWs, only nine are alive today. My co-author, Pat McGrath Avery and I have been working on this book for years. The book is based on personal interviews, research at the Truman and Eisenhower Presidential Libraries, original testimonies to congress and books about the period. In the process, we stumbled upon something of historical interest -- the name of the North Korean Major who ordered their execution. Many believe this Home Security Guard officer might also be the infamous and unnamed Tiger from the Tiger March.
Take a look at the website:
www.SunchonTunnelMassacreSurvivors.com and the Blog: www.rrpstorytellers.blogspot.com . Be sure to check out the movies and sound files on both the site and the blog. They are so very moving. If anyone wants a numbered book with the signatures of these guys, there's a special on the site. We'll get them to sign them during the launch and then we'll send the books out the third week of November. I don't know how many times more we'll be able to get them all together.
On November 6, 2007 -- at 9 AM at Celebration City Theater in Branson MO, we'll be hosting a prepublication launch. Seven of the nine survivors will be there. Many Branson and academic celebrities will be in attendance. My co-author, Pat McGrath Avery, and I would like to invite you to join us for this momentous occasion. Samuel L. Clark, a member of the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team (RCT), Rakkasans, who participated in the drop to block North Korean Retreat and rescue the POWs may come to the launch if his health permits. If so, it will be a great surprise for the survivors who have pondered the 'what might have beens' for so long. Apparently, Mr. Clark has had those thoughts too.
If you would like to join us in Branson for Veterans' Week, check out www.Branson.com. Also, contact Pat at 417.230.5555 or riverroadpress@yahoo.com and she can give you more information about the event. We'd love to see you there.
The book's official publication date will not be until March, 2008 so it will be a while before you can get these books through other venues.