What Was It Like?
updated 4/14/2011
The Korean War of 1950-1953 brought American soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines in large numbers to a tiny peninsula half a world away from their homes.
Half a century later, they still come to Korea because that war did not end with a peace treaty. Instead, there is an unsettled and unsettling armistice. It's important to recognize the sacrifices, particularly those endured in the early and sparse conditions, that the warriors have contributed to the freedom, security and prosperity of Korea and the Korean people.
"What Was It Like?" is a series of slides shows made up from photos taken by those who came during and after the war. We see Korea and the Koreans through the eyes of young Americans, taken from their comfortable lives in the United States to a strange and war-torn country. The captions are mostly their own words, and the pictures tell their stories.
Because the Korean language was (and is) so different from English, wartime planners assigned the air bases with arbitrary designators known as "K" numbers. You'll see these designators along with the more common names. If you're interested in the full list, you can view it here (with a correction to K-54).
| Year | Title/Nr of Slides | Location | Last Update | Description/Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | Construction of K-55/34 |
Osan AB | 2/17/08 | The construction of K-55 (Osan Air Base) during the second half of 1952, photos by Robert Evelsizor. |
1953 |
Osan AB |
2/17/08 |
Once operational, K-55 manning included Army air defense artillery, with an introduction by Ron Freedman who provided the photos. |
|
1953 |
Vince's Visual Vignettes/73 |
Korea and Japan |
4/13/11 |
A series of four slide shows by Vince Stolfi, who took his camera to Korea and recorded the people, places and things as the Korean War hostilities wound down. |
 1953 |
Osan AB |
7/29/2011 |
These photos were taken by SAAF pilot 2LT Ivan Holshausen and supplement the photos taken by Vince Stolfi (above). The photos were provided by Keith Holshausen, Ivan's son. |
|
1953 |
Seoul Spring/24 |
Seoul |
2/17/08 |
War-torn Seoul, as the end of hostilities neared, shows the effects of war and resiliency of the people, with an introduction by Bob Hasselbring who provided the photos. |
1954-1955 |
Various |
11/7/10 |
A series of |
|
1958-1959 |
Osan AB, Songtan, Seoul & P-Y-Do |
9/18/09 |
Monte Shriver arrived at Osan AB in August 1958, a young 1Lt. His experiences at Osan AB, Songtan and Paengyeong-do (P-Y-do island) as described in his introduction adds new information and pictures to the memories in these slide shows. You can see Monte Then and Now here. |
|
1958 |
Osan AB, Seoul & P-Y-Do |
12/20/09 |
1st Lieutenant David Loxtercamp was hoochmate with Monte Shriver. His photos around Osan AB, Seoul and Paengyeong-do (P-Y-do island) add new information and pictures to the memories in Monte's slide show above. Dave had an interesting job as described in his introduction. You can see Dave Then and Now here. |
|
1959-1960 |
Osan AB & Songtan |
2/17/08 |
Ed Stirling arrived at Osan AB in April 1959, a young A2C. His photos of Osan AB and Songtan and particularly his introduction should stir memories for some. Ed's e-mail address is stirl@jvlnet.com and you can see Ed Then and Now here. |
|
1965-1976 |
Osan AB & Songtan |
2/17/08 |
Harry Tetzlaff spent three tours at Osan 1965-66, 1970-73 and 1975-76, and the highlight was the destruction of the Wing Hq in 1971, in which he had a hand. |
|
1774-1979 |
Osan AB, Songtan, Expressway, Kwangju |
2/17/08 |
Ken Shallenbarger returned to Osan AB in April 2004. He took a number of current photos that are available as self-running slide shows that show Ken Now. After this trip, he sent a CD back with many old photos. "Ken Then" is four slide shows of photos Ken took 1974-1979 and some from later visits. |
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