2 Captives of War
As promised in my previous blog, 70+ Years After the Korean War Children of POWs 3, I will share some of the stories that Ed Treffery and I shared with one another about our fathers. I’ll start by telling you the story of their capture.
Captured In a Convoy
My father, SFC George J. Matta, was 29 years old and a member of the 2nd Infantry Division. He was part of a machine gun crew travelling in a convoy just north of Wonju, South Korea, 60 miles east of Seoul and 40 miles south of the 38th Parallel. They were progressing along a narrow dirt road in a canyon. Mountains bordered each side of the road. He was in a weapon’s carrier. About 100 yards from a bridge, they were ambushed.
A Swarm of Enemy Soldiers
Hundreds of Chinese soldiers came swarming down the mountains. My father and his fellow soldiers did their best to hold off the enemy troops. He said it felt like hours, but in reality, the firefight only lasted about 10 minutes. He found himself surrounded by 20 Chinese soldiers, all pointing their weapons at him.
Suicide or Fight?
He thought of committing suicide by raising his rifle. The Chinese soldiers would open up on him and he wouldn’t feel a thing. But he wasn’t alone, there were 3 fellow soldiers with him. He looked in the eyes of the one closest to him, seeing a pleading look on the face of the young man, and he knew he couldn’t commit them all to death. He dropped his rifle in the mud. They were now captives of the Chinese communists.
The March to “Bean Camp”
It was 12 February 1950. My father was one of 50 prisoners marched north for about 140 miles, for 64 days. It was cold. When they were allowed to sleep, there might be a shack or just the hard ground with no shelter. On 17 April 1950, they arrived at Bean Camp, named by the POWs because beans were about all they got to eat. Of the 50 men captured that day, 35 were still alive.
So began my father’s 802 days of imprisonment.
