South Korean War Flag

 

My South Korean War Flag dated January 3rd, 1951

The acquirement

Bought this South Korean Flag of Ebay a while ago for just 98 USD. I was very nervous when the auction ended as I thought 98 dollars was very cheap. Fortunately I won it and is very pleased to have it in my collection. 
Flags/designs that are still in use today are very hard to date if you want them from a certain period. Based on the note that came with the flag and some investigation I'm 100% certain this flag is actually from the Korean War. Lets have a look :)


The note


This note was attached to the flag (and still is) and it reads:

Mason, Korea
January 3, 1951

Dear Kenneth

Just a little flag for a keepsake.
I hope you like it.

Sincerely yours

Clifford P. Ochoa

The story

I haven't been able to locate "Mason" in Korea besides its a university, so it is still a mystery where Mr. Ochoa wrote the note.
But I have investigate Clifford Patrick Ochoa himself and it turns out he as a soldier in US army, 4,2 Mortar Company, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division. He was born 18th of March 1928 and enlisted in the army 23rd of December 1947 with the army serial number: 1054897 and had the rank of Corporal.

A quick online lookup in the National Archives Database reveals that he was KIA (Killed In Action) on the 2nd of October 1951, so around 10 month after he send the flag to Kenneth. I have requested his records from the archive and the death certificate states he was killed in the field in Sabwa-Mayn, Korea due to a missile to the head and write side of his body causing a fatal wound.

From what I can find it must have been under the "Battle of Heartbreak Ridge" which took place from September to October 1951.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Heartbreak_Ridge

He was awarded the Purple Heart.

Link to his grave:
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/3616076/clifford-patrick-ochoa


Part of his death certificate

Next step was to determine if this Ochoa was actually the same person who send the flag. Another certificate from the archive shows his signature and it is pretty much the same as on the flag


His signature

This was a great find! And shows the flag was actually from the Korean War. 
Mr. Ochoa sadly died before the war ended so I know that it was signed during the war and send to Kenneth on the date stated on the note. Could it be a different flag with the original note? Sure, but the yellowing tape on the note and really "sticked" into the fabric, then I'm sure this is the real deal.

Picture of the flag

The fabric seems to be kind of silk but then not really. Not sure what it is made of? But it is printet and over the years the print has faded, especially where it was folded.
Maybe it could be some kind of table flag? Or a small flag for a shrine or something like that?

It measures 70x47cm (around 27,5 x 18,5 inches) unstrecthed.















Final thoughts

I haven't yet found who this "Kenneth" is. Along with the flag there was also a cardboard where some pictures have been removed. If you know this Kenneth and have any pictures of Mr. Ochoa. 
Also if you know about Korean flag history/fabric, etc then please leave a comment :)

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

WWII (post?) era Red Ensign (Red Duster)

Image
Red Ensign, Red Duster wool flag from 1930's or 40's The story So this is one of my Red Ensign's, Red Duster flag in my collection and is one of my favorits as it show signs of heavy use. Its a flag that "has been there". Other collectors might go for the mint condition flags but as written on previous posts I go for the used ones, the one with story, the one that has been in duty :) There is no need for me to write half a page about the flag as a symbol as there are several sites who has done this. I like this one : https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/gb-ensr.html#red which has a very fine description about the Red Ensign and also a few comments on why it was called "Red Duster". The construction My flag is made of wool and smells of diesel and the classic "attic wool", which also makes sense as the flag was usually hoisted at the stern of the ship there the engine exhaust also flows by. It has the classic wool woven horizontal lines throughou...
Read more

White Ensign - WWII era

Image
     British White Ensign flag - WWII era Brought this flag on Ebay about a year ago rather cheap I believe. It is almost in pristine condition so my bet is, it has never been in use. It measures 180x90cm (70x35 inches) ratio 2:1, it is made of wool and has the "classic" woven horizontal lines typical for flags in the 1930's to early 50's It has a couple of moth holes and brass grommets on the hoist along with what seems to be brass clips attached to hemp rope. I dont believe it was made for naval use as it doesn't have any reinforcements on the fly end. I dont have the story behind the flag but have found an almost identical flag on Imperial War Museums website.   https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/30018030 In the description is is stated the flag was hoisted on the first station the British took in Algiers on the 8th of November 1942 and later hoisted on D-Day. So, who knows? Maybe my flag is from WWII also and has been carried around :P   ...
Read more

The "Fake" flags

Image
  Background This post is to warn unknown buyers about fake flags for sale on Ebay among others! About a year ago I bought a white ensign flag on a flea market. I was very suspicious about the construction of the flag and the fabric used but became very curious as I love to find the history fake or not. The flag had a year stamp on it and admiral stamp as well. I posted it on my old blog and a guy named Paul made a comment on it, saying it was fake as I also suspected. You can argue the flag is not a fake, how can a flag be fake? A flag is a flag. It could be a replica? But when it has the year stamp on it and the flag is more a mid 1900's flag and tries to be something its not, I would say its a fake! Ok. After Paul made the comment and stated they were sold on Ebay I became more curious. I rarely! buy flags on E-bay as there are so many unknown sellers selling cheap crap. If you want to loose your money then go crazy but if you want to buy the real thing then be very carefull and...
Read more