Photo By William Jones | Four surviving spouses received roses in memory of their late husbands and to...... read more read more
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MILAN, Tenn. – Korean War veterans, Tennessee Guardsmen from the 2998th Engineer Treadway Bridge Company, gathered together one more time to reminisce and remember their friends and fellow soldiers who have passed away.
In 1951, 71 men from a small town in rural west Tennessee were activated and sent overseas to help turn back the communist threat. Of those 71 men who returned home in 1952, 14 remain.
“This is our 65th reunion since we landed in Pusan, Korea,” said Bill McClean one of the remaining veterans who organized the event. “We have celebrated our 50th, 56th and 60th reunion. On our 60th reunion, Governor Phil Bredesen proclaimed Aug. 19, 2010, as the 2998th Engineer Treadway Bridge Company Day”. Today, that proclamation is on display at Troop C, 1st Squadron, 278th Regimental Combat Team, in Milan.
“We went from Japan over to Korea, it was an overnight trip. We were actually on a Japanese ferry boat. It had no kitchen, but they did have C-rations on board for emergencies. We got into the C-rations and threw everything overboard except the franks and beans. The officer in charge of the ship got mad and he called us all together. He said that we all acted like a bunch of kids. I chuckled and said, ‘We are kids, sir.' We were 17, 18, 19 years old. And he said, ‘Well, you’re going now where it’s going to separate the men from the boys.’”
“I remember when we got there. It was raining, it was cold, and it was muddy. One of my buddies threw his duffle bag down in the mud and he started laughing. It was quite a sight. He said crying won’t do us any good, so I might as well laugh”.
The unit’s mission was to construct bridges that consisted of rubber pontoons that supported steel roadways. The bridges were fast to set up, usually taking less than a day and all the equipment necessary was brought to the worksite on trucks. The unit accomplished its mission and returned home a year later without a single casualty or serious injury. McClean said the one of the highlights upon returning home were meals with fresh vegetables, milk and drinks with ice in them.
“The Korean War is the ‘Forgotten War’. You go to the VA and there all kinds of pictures on the wall for the Vietnam War and WWII, but there’s hardly anything for Korea,” said McClean. “We just went and did our duty, came home and went back to work”.
Six veterans and their spouses attended the 65th reunion at Northside Baptist Church in Milan. Additionally, four surviving spouses received roses in memory of their late husbands and to recognize their personal sacrifices during the war.
Bill McClean has chronicled the history of the 2998th and has dedicated it to the Soldiers and family members of the unit. It’s available at: http://tn-roots.com/tngibson/WAR/2998/Page_2.htm
| Date Taken: | 08.15.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 08.25.2015 15:18 |
| Story ID: | 174216 |
| Location: | MILAN, TN, US |
| Hometown: | MILAN, TN, US |
| Web Views: | 108 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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