Korea: Camp Coiner 69-70 - Rick Dunn (rickrick1946)'s Photos- powered by SmugMug

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Rick Dunn (rickrick1946) > Bunked with these cool guys. House boy "Cookie" just had his right ear chewed off in a bar brawl. Clark broke his hand when it suddenly stopped in somebody's face.

Most of the time everyone in the hootch got along well together. At this time in 1969 most guys in the 304th had one thing in common; they knew exactly how much time they had left before leaving Korea.

Rick Dunn (rickrick1946) > Me, much younger and skinny. The company was in the middle of a field exercise. I ended up on top of a place we called "Bayonne". We picked up HF radio and carrier and sent it off to someplace else. Generators screamed 24hours a day. We got hauled down off the mountain only once for a shower if we needed it or not. Didn't make much difference because everyone stunk the same.

I was standing on the edge of this mountain top that had been leveled off for the communication rigs. It isn't difficult to imagine how horrible it must have been on our guys in the early 50's to have faught up and down these mountain sides.

Rick Dunn (rickrick1946) > Just up the road and a few blocks away from Yongsan (in 1969) was the main entrance to Camp Coiner. Being the "Home of Zero Defects" was to be questioned yet the communication networks that the battalion set up worked. To be called on in a combat function no doubt the 304th would have come through.

Back then the gate guard checked ID the city was Seoul was yours if you had a pass. A few feet from the gate one would be met by "Slicky boys". These were the local guys that had everything for sale a young soldier needed like a carved wooden hand with the middle finger pointing north. Rolex watches were sale priced at "five dalla - Can do?" "No can do!" "Girly pictures - can do?" Well, since the military allow Playboy Magazine for sale in the PX girly pictures weren't all that popular.

The gate at Camp Coiner was real busy close to 11p.m. Taxis were everywhere dumping off drunk GI's returning from the hot night spots around Seoul. Curfew was city wide. NOTHING moved in the streets except military vehicles and local police after eleven. If the GI wasn't spending the evening with a hooker he had better be in his hootch. Being outside the walls and on the streets after curfew was unthinkable.

Rick Dunn (rickrick1946) > In 1969 fences were everywhere dividing compounds. Camp Coiner had concrete brick walls with barbed wire on top. Coiner was guarded by contracted Korean nationals that carried shotguns. It would have been stupid to mess with the guards. When they weren't guarding the walls they were stealing the toilet paper out of the latrines. Toilet paper was worth a small fortune out in the ville. The nationals probably didn't like the GI all that much, but they sure loved his money and toilet paper.

Rick Dunn (rickrick1946) > Me getting "short". At this time I probably had less than a month to serve before I was sent home. You could always tell how long someone had been in country by the color of their fatigues. Military laundrys are tough on clothes. What once started out as olive drab washed away to just drab. The only winter issue of winter clothing to signal guys were long johns and a liner for the field jacket. Army issue gloves were good for looks only. Guys up around the DMZ and those that worked outside a lot were issued warmer protective gear.

Rick Dunn (rickrick1946) > Company B 304th Signal Bn. Downtown Seoul, Korea. Summer of 1969. We stood formation twice a day rain or shine. Notice the painted rocks. The army had a thing for painting rocks in those days.

Rick Dunn (rickrick1946) > Another view of the company area. The military had just contracted out to Korean nationals to put in a fire hydrant system through Camp Coiner. About twice a week we'd have to call a munitions disposal outfit to come and pick up all the unexploded "duds" the ditch diggers dug up. Just under the surface was the evidence of past wars. When the Japanese occupied this area (1910 - 1945) it was headquarters of the Imperial Japanese Army and also housed a horse-drawn artillery unit. It was said that it also had an air field. After an afternoon rain shower, we went out to these dirt piles and picked up human bones and teeth that had been exposed by the rain. Like most of Korea the history of this place was desperate.

Rick Dunn (rickrick1946) > Katusas were cool. Here's their story. These guys were the better educated Korean and because of their higher education and ability to speak a little English they got into the Katusa program. If they weren't in the Katusa program their butts were in the ROK Army and that was no picnic by any U.S. standard. The army's plan was this. If the North Koreans ever decided to invade the south the Katusas would be "embedded" with the US Army. So when the order came to bug out we had someone who spoke the language and knew what road to take. Simple concept in 1969 and it would work.

These guys were good. They had their poop in a group and knew their stuff. They knew that if they screwed up in the slightest way, they were back in the regular ROK army the next day. The guy on the left is Kim Young Bok. He was a short fella but for sure you would not want to mess with him. He could hand you your head.

Rick Dunn (rickrick1946) > If you didn't write, you didn't get letters. Here I got some pictures of my newborn daughter. She was born when I was in Korea and didn't get to hold her until she was close to 9 month old. Unlike today with the cellphones and E-Mail all there was in 1969 were letters and photos.

Bunked with these cool guys. House boy "Cookie" just had his right ear chewed off in a bar brawl. Clark broke his hand when it suddenly stopped in somebody's face.

Most of the time everyone in the hootch got along well together. At this time in 1969 most guys in the 304th had one thing in common; they knew exactly how much time they had left before leaving Korea.

> Bunked with these cool guys. House boy "Cookie" just had his right ear chewed off in a bar brawl. Clark broke his hand when it suddenly stopped in somebody's face.

Most of the time everyone in the hootch got along well together. At this time in 1969 most guys in the 304th had one thing in common; they knew exactly how much time they had left before leaving Korea.

Bunked with these cool guys. House boy "Cookie" just had his right ear chewed off in a bar brawl. Clark broke his hand when it suddenly stopped in somebody's face.

Most of the time everyone in the hootch got along well together. At this time in 1969 most guys in the 304th had one thing in common; they knew exactly how much time they had left before leaving Korea.

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