Within his wallet with miscellaneous papers and tokens he carried with him, Robert had on him $3.11, half of a one-dollar bill, one yen, 100 won notes, and one note in Russian currency. He also carried his Combat Infantry Badge, some photos and newspaper clippings, a pocket watch and wristwatch, and precious letters from home. All of these items were recovered and sent to a personal effects depot before his body was wrapped in a shelter half and buried in Tanggok in February 1951.
It wasn't until July 18, 1951 that the American Graves Registration service recovered his remains and confirmed his identity based on his physical characteristics and the few items kept with him. His body returned to the United States later that year.
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The Army accepted Robert for “adventure in the Far East,” the main attraction of the recruiting offices funneling boys to Japan for service in one of the divisions on occupation duty. Robert managed to be accepted despite his slender stature and horrible vision in his left eye, but almost six months after his enlistment at the end of January 1949, he was in Japan with the 1st Cavalry Division.
What he did not expect about adventure was to be thrown into conflict in Korea. In June, when North Korean forces invaded South Korea, it appeared the occupation forces would need to assist. Rumors were that they did not have much “just single-shot weapons and sharpened sticks." The young cavalrymen of the Division were enthralled with the prospect of applying their training and heard that they would be among the first to go over.
Reports from the 24th Division arriving piece meal were concerning and many friends, including 168 non-commissioned officers, were plucked from the 1st Cavalry Division to bolster their ranks were never seen again. After brief training in using cargo nets, the 7th Cavalry embarked from Japan for Pohang-dong in late afternoon of July 17th, leaving all their personal items behind keeping only what was necessary for combat. Rough seas from typhoons kept them off shore until July 22d. The battalion promptly debarked and moved through the small fishing town, settling for the night and ready to move the next day.
The move to Kumchon by rail was dusty and lined with white clothed refugees. The number of civilians was staggering and the men were quickly alerted to the threat of infiltrators within the swarths of innocent people fleeing their homes. The 7th Cavalry moved toward the 5th who were facing difficulties along their line and though combat felt imminent, it was only mosquitos eating away at their ranks during the night. It was the first of several moves during their first days in Korea, always ready to support another unit combating the North Korean onslaught southwards. G Company finally met the enemy near No Gun-ri between the mornings of July 26th and 28th. Eighth Army had just issued an explicit order stating “no refugees will be permitted to cross battle lines at any time.” Hundreds of such refugees preceded the North Koreans on the morning of the 26th. Aircraft overhead initiated the massacre with rockets and machinegun fire, leaving the battalion to round up the remaining civilians into nearby tunnels. Behind them came the North Koreans who targeted the company with a much larger force, hoping to squeeze into the line. The cavalry troopers held them off under steady rain and through several limited firefights, continued withdrawal to the Naktong. It was considered a strategic withdrawal, but to Robert and his friends it was a never-ending series of bugging out. He would dig a foxhole each time movement stopped, wait anxiously to fight a sharp battle and immediately move out and dig in again to repeat the process. No matter how far they fled he never forgot the horrible atrocity at No Gun-ri.
PUSAN PERIMETER
By the end of August, they were set up in the ‘Bowling Alley’ along the Naktong as part of what became the Pusan Perimeter. The corridor between Taegu and Tabu-dong was aptly nicknamed the ‘Bowling Alley’ due to its incredibly straight stretch of land lined with rice paddies, dikes, ditches and evenly spaced trees along the roads. From this flat valley rose mountains on either side where the Cavalry took their places.
The 2d Battalion seemed to be spared in each engagement acting as reserve or mopping up and patrolling, but when breaking out of the Pusan Perimeter appeared achievable by September and there was a crack forming in the 1st Cavalry sector, the 2d Battalion was attached to the 5th Cavalry on the night of September 16th. Early the next morning, G Company crossed the wide valley toward Hill 300 north of Waegwan road.
On the morning of the 19th, G and E Company set out in support of F Company for Hill 300. While F Company was getting obliterated, G Company faced well entrenched enemy as well from nearby hills. Accurate machinegun and mortars cut into them. Anticipating a counterattack, Wilson volunteered to defend the flank and stop any surprises. With Sergeant McDermott and Private First Class Tarnow, they repulsed two flanking movements while under mortar fire and protected the company’s flank in order for them to hold their ground. Robert would never see the Bronze Star Medal he received for his action that day.
It was not the last fight for the 1st Cavalry in South Korea, but it began the end of their hard summer rushing toward the coast. Almost all organized North Korean units began moving back north towards Seoul to recapture in the wake of Inchon landings. Five days later, a blast of shrapnel took Robert out of action for the next month. It was nearly what troops hoped for as the ‘million-dollar wound,’ embedding in his right hip and butt cheek, with some in his elbow and knee. By the end of November, he was back through the pipeline as a temporary sergeant and moved into North Korea. He had missed very little in Japan while 2d Battalion was in Corps reserve or on the fringes of any real action, but in the final push for Kumchon they were called on to take the city of Mamchonjom along the main rail on the road to Pyongyang. After an air strike, they moved through the town with ease.
NORTH KOREA
He rejoined his company in time to meet the Chinese for the first time. While regrouping from some major skirmishes, the entire 1st Cavalry Division was called on from reserve by a flash-warning on the evening of November 27th. The 7th Cavalry spent the following morning moving through Sunchon toward the Taedong River where 2d Battalion established a road block near Kujang-ni. Early the next morning, the regimental perimeter came under attack. Before dawn they spotted a long column of ROK troops retreating from Wolpo-ri. They soon became a pile of men and equipment. The battalion refused to let them pass through the roadblock on orders from General Gay through Colonel Harris assuming there could be infiltrators. The experiences of their dark summer were still fresh and their suspicions proved true when a lieutenant of E Company and another trooper were killed by about ten enemy soldiers.
The Chinese followed the ROKs closely and 2d Battalion repulsed their drive within two hours. Snow showers started and continued during the withdrawal to Sinchang-ni, facing the Chinese as the rear guard was the 2d Battalion. They fought them off the entire route until two miles east of the town when the Chinese pierced between them and 1st Battalion to attack both command posts. They dug foxholes again with frozen hands into the hard ground and held until the next day. These actions continued into late December, relying on mortars, artillery and air strikes to deter the Chinese advance to Pyongyang which they had only recently liberated.
Near Christmas, they waited through clear, quiet nights. The peace made the men anxious as they were always prepared for an attack, but nothing came. Wilson was lucky to sleep at least four hours each night tucked down in his foxhole with the beloved mountain sleeping bag to resist the negative temperatures. They celebrated Christmas with a well-appreciated hot turkey dinner with all the trimmings and ended the year on a similar high note with hot breakfasts and music. It seemed the Chinese had stopped their offensive for the moment.
SEOUL BRIDGEHEAD
It had been quiet for too long and the troopers of the cavalry were getting suspicious that the Chinese were planning something big. In the first days of January, the regiment was detached briefly to the 24th Division as they neared Seoul and dug into foxholes in the hills to hold the bridgehead line until forced to pull back in the pre-dawn hours of January 4th. They crossed the Han over the I Corps shoofly bridge and rejoined the 1st Cavalry south of Seoul which they had to give up.
Air support held the Chinese back after the battered cavalrymen resisted encirclement. At night, the temperature drops and clouds form to bring a drizzling rain that freezes, making it slippery and hard to walk. C rations become difficult to open and the men grumble and complain about their situation and need for replacements.
At the end of the month, as part of Operation Thunderbolt, the line stabilized and they were moving up Route 13 to territory above Ich’on to take over from the 8th Cavalry who had suffered considerable losses and were unable to advance. Finally, on the 28th, they moved to the second phase line where a Chinese regiment stopped them a mile short. The resistance quickly grew to an entire six Chinese divisions facing the Thunderbolt forces. Engagements remained scattered and limited to company sized firefights, but ground was hard-won and measured in yards during the last two days of the month.
Wilson’s last day in Korea was January 31st when G Company was attacking enemy positions in the hills of Ochon-ni. An aggressive machinegun nest had pinned down his men for some time before he decided to knock it out. After half a year of combat and minor wounds last September, he could handle one machine gunner. But he was barely able to dash forward when the gunner opened up and struck Wilson with a burst of fire in his chest. He toppled over lifeless and a few days later he was collected and rolled up in the shelter half he was to be buried in.