August 13, 2025 • 33 mins
The Chosin Reservoir was one of the most brutal battles of the Korean War, with overwhelming enemy forces and deadly weather. Into that fight came Captain Carl Sitter, a pudgy guy who wasn’t even supposed to be there. His inspiring leadership in the face of terrible odds came down to one thing: faith.
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Episode's bibliography:
O'Donnel, Patrick K. “Give Me Tomorrow.” Grand Central Publishing, October 25, 2011.
https://www.amazon.com/Give-Me-Tomorrow-Greatest-Story/dp/0306820447.
Sterner, C. Douglas, Pamla M. Sterner, Dwight Jon Zimmerman, and Scott Baron. “Beyond Belief: True Stories of American Heroes that Defy Belief.” Independently Published, November 16, 2021. https://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Belief-Stories-American-Heroes/dp/B09M57XDCV.
Hardy, Gordon. “Above and beyond: a history of the Medal of Honor from the Civil War to Vietnam by Congressional Medal of Honor Society.” Boston Pub. Co, May 3, 1985.
https://www.amazon.com/Above-beyond-history-Congressional-1985-05-03/dp/B01F820WNE.
Simmons, Edwin H. Frozen Chosin U.S. Marines at the Changjin Reservoir. USMCU, 2002.
https://www.usmcu.edu/Portals/218/Frozen%20Chosin%20US%20Marines%20at%20the%20Changjin%20Reservoir%20%20PCN%2019000410000.pdf.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Hey everyone, We've put together a survey for listeners of
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Tell us what you love about the show, what we
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(00:27):
The link is also in our show notes below. Pushkin.
A deadly winter storm whipped across the Jagged Hill in
(00:51):
North Korea. It was the last day of November nineteen
fifty and it was more than twenty degrees below zero.
The Marines of Company G tried to find a foothold
on the hill. It was pure ice. They kicked their
frozen guns, hoping to get them to work. They tried
(01:13):
to carve fox holes in the rock hard ground. They
searched for some way to shelter from what was coming,
and they had to do it fast. They heard the
sound of bugles and whistles. The Marines knew what that meant.
They were about to face an onslaught of enemy soldiers,
(01:36):
and they were totally and completely outnumbered. UN forces had
been trying to hold this ground for days. Many had
already been wounded or killed, and some had snuck off
the hill. They knew certain death when they saw it,
but not the men of Company g There was something
(01:59):
that kept them going. It sure wasn't food. Their cans
or rations were frozen solid. It wasn't adrenaline either. It
was their captain, Carl Sitter. He moved from one position
to the other. He checked their guns, but mostly he
(02:21):
talked to them. He told them they could do it,
They could fight off the enemy. They could survive and
hold that heel. Secretly in his heart, Carl believed that
he might not survive. In fact, he was pretty sure
he would never make it home, but he had faith
(02:45):
that his men would. I'm j R. Martinez and this
is Medal of Honor Stories of Courage. The Medal of
Honor is the highest military decoration in the United States,
awarded for gallantry and bravery and combat at the risk
(03:07):
of life, above and beyond the call of duty. Each
candidate must be approved all the way up the chain
of command, from the supervisory officer in the field to
the White House. This show was about those heroes, what
they did, what it meant and what their stories tell
us about the nature of courage and sacrifice. Carl Sitter
(03:31):
wasn't your typical marine. He wasn't an amazing physical specimen,
all muscle and rawn. He was kind of pudgy, round
faced and kind. But he had a superpower, a talent
for taking care of his men, shepherding them through the
worst days of their lives, inspiring them. They knew for
(03:56):
sure he would never leave them behind. And that's the
crazy thing. Carl wasn't really supposed to be there. His
story of leadership is filled with crazy good luck and
crazy bad luck. His story is about fate and faith,
the kind of faith that can keep you alive against
(04:20):
impossible odds. When Carl Sitter got to Korea in nineteen fifty,
(04:40):
he wasn't supposed to be leading any marines at all.
He was supposed to be a Special Services officer. And
if you don't know what that is, it's the officer
in charge of equipment. And Carl's case, that equipment wasn't
guns or ammo. It was basketball's football and jockstraps. Not
(05:03):
exactly the job he'd wanted. Carl was only twenty seven,
but he was pretty out of shape, so out of
shape that his superiors had him in a desk job.
But Carl wanted to be on the front lines, so
he pushed and pushed. But Special Services was the most
(05:25):
the Brass would give him. It was a demotion. Still,
Carl didn't complain. It was a job in the war,
and he took it for a second because right after
he got to the base in Japan with all that equipment,
a typhoon blew it into the water, all of it gone,
(05:51):
and that's how his career in Special Services ended. The
Brass had no choice but to give him the job
he'd wanted in the first place, on the front lines,
so he was given command of Company G. When his
Marines looked at him, they couldn't quite believe this dumpy
(06:11):
guy was going to be their leader. He didn't have
a six pack, but he had something that a lot
of other guys didn't experience. He had enlisted when he
was just seventeen years old, right out of high school.
He served in World War II, rising quickly through the ranks,
(06:31):
and by the time the Marines landed in Guam in
nineteen forty four, he was a lieutenant and had received
the first of what would be four purple hearts. But
he also picked up a habit wearing his pistol holstered
over his heart. Here's why. During one battle he felt
(06:54):
the slam of a bullet into the left side of
his chest. He thought, this is it. I'm going to die.
But wait a minute. He was definitely alive. So he
touched his chest and he felt warm blood. But he
also felt the cold steel of his pistol. It had
(07:16):
stopped the bullet. He would wear the pistol there for
the rest of his combat career. By the time the
war was over, Carl had a Silver Star and a
life in the core. Sure, maybe he'd gotten a little
soft since World War Two, but that didn't mean he
(07:37):
wasn't keen to fight in the next conflict, Korea.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
On Sunday, June twenty fifth, communist forces attacked the Republic
of Korea.
Speaker 1 (07:49):
That's President Harry Truman.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
We know that the cost of freedom is high, but
we are determined to preserve our freedom no matter what
the calls.
Speaker 1 (07:59):
At first, it looked like the United Nations forces would
make quick work of this new war. General Douglas MacArthur
led them into South Korea, and they easily drove the
North Koreans back above the thirty eighth parallel, but then
MacArthur decided they should try for a second victory, this
(08:20):
time in the north. By the winter of nineteen fifty,
UN troops had landed in North Korea and were moving inland.
They went up treacherous mountain passes and straight into a trap.
They didn't know that around four hundred thousand Chinese troops
(08:41):
had secretly crossed the Manchurian border to aid the North Koreans.
Some were battle hardened veterans, and most were so called
volunteers who had been forced into combat. They didn't have
enough weapons, they were fed very little, but there were
so many more of them, and on the night of
(09:04):
November twenty seventh they attacked. Chinese soldiers surrounded the group
of Marines who had gotten the farthest into the mountains,
and the Americans realized they were outnumbered by the thousands.
General MacArthur ordered a hasty withdrawal, but then those withdrawing
(09:25):
troops got trapped. They were miles inland near the Chosen
or chang Jin reservoir. There was only one road out,
and the Chinese forces captured it. They were hopelessly stuck.
Reporters were there to witness the mayhem.
Speaker 3 (09:44):
Here, thousands of Marines and other United Nations forces are
trapped by overwhelming masses of Chinese Reds who encircle them
near the chung Jin Reservoir.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
Carl and Company G were in North Korea, but far
from the fighting that didn't last. Stephen Olmsted was a
young Marine private in Carl's company.
Speaker 4 (10:05):
Then we got the word, you guys are going to
join up with your parent thet time.
Speaker 1 (10:11):
They were going to bring ammunition, food, and supplies to
the trap Marines.
Speaker 4 (10:17):
The people up around the reservoir desperately needed reinforcements, particularly
some more tanks.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
Most of the troops were near the UN force's last
best foothold, a town called hagaroo Re. It had makeshift
hospital facilities and to have constructed airstrip. It was their
only hope to unite the separated groups of Marines. Hagaroo
(10:46):
Re had to be held at all costs. Carl's men
would have to fight their way there up the main
supply route, that dangerous mountain road. Then they would clear
the path for all the UN troops to retreat to
the port and get out of North Korea and they
(11:09):
would be outnumbered ten to one. There's something important you
need to know about the Battle of the Chosen Reservoir.
It wasn't just the enemy that was deadly, it was
(11:31):
the weather. It was the coldest Korean winter in one
hundred years. Raymond Davis was there, like Carl. He was
commanding a group of marines.
Speaker 5 (11:44):
The snow cames of Tempture dropped to forty below zero
into the mountains. My Weather Service said that wind chill
was something like seventy below zero.
Speaker 1 (11:56):
Weapons froze, shut truck batteries.
Speaker 5 (11:59):
Died, faces covered with the ice. The radios wouldn't work.
They were frozen food, frozen water, frozen terrible conditions.
Speaker 1 (12:10):
And the men didn't have the right gear. After all,
everyone including leadership, had been sure they'd be home by Christmas.
Their coats were thin. On their feet, they wore something
called shoe packs. They weren't winter boots, just rubber soles
and a leather top. They made your feet sweat when
(12:32):
you marched and freeze when you stopped. Tons of men
got frostbite.
Speaker 5 (12:39):
Anytime I find a marine down, get him on his feet,
because he'd freeze to death.
Speaker 1 (12:46):
And now Carl and his men were going deeper into
the mountains. Carl's company had joined forces with Colonel Douglas
Drysdale of the British Royal Marines. On November twenty ninth,
they all set out for the un camp at Hagaroo Re.
(13:08):
Here's Stephen Olmsted again that private in Carl's company.
Speaker 4 (13:12):
We boarded trucks and there was kind of like an
old Western movie going through what is later called Hellfire Alley.
Speaker 1 (13:20):
Hell Fire Alley is right on one side of the road.
There were steep drop offs going down thousands of feet.
On the other side, Chinese fighters held the high ground.
They turned that mountain road into a shooting gallery.
Speaker 4 (13:38):
We're going to jump out and gauge them, drive them away,
and go and do it all over again.
Speaker 1 (13:45):
Carl was focused and calm as they made their way
towards Hagaroo Re. At one point they came under intense fire.
The Chinese had set up a road block up ahead
and company g sitting ducks. Unless they got out and
cleared it, their trucks would explode where they stood. Now
(14:11):
we don't have access to recordings of Carl, but he
was interviewed many times during his life. Our editor and
good friend of the podcast, Ben Nadaf Hoffrey, is going
to read his words here. This is what Carl told
leather Neck Magazine in nineteen eighty six.
Speaker 6 (14:31):
I yelled for everybody to get off the trucks, and
it seemed like anybody close to me was getting shot,
like I was protected by an invisible shield, and I
wasn't being hit.
Speaker 1 (14:41):
Carl didn't have time to marvel at his survival. As
the bullets rained down. He raced to the front of
the convoy. He had to check in with Drysdell, but
when he got there, he discovered that Drysdell had been shot.
He could no longer lead the group. Command to Carl,
(15:03):
in case all of this action has wiped your memory,
let me remind you Carl wasn't even supposed to be
on the front lines, and he certainly wasn't supposed to
be leading this group of men on this deadly mission.
But he didn't question it. He had a sense that
if he was there, it was for a reason. By
(15:27):
this point it was night. The surviving Marines cleared the
roadblock and jumped back in the trucks. They rattled forward
through the dark, unsure of how far they had come
and how much further they had to go. Tracers and
explosions lit up the night as they inched towards Hagaroui.
(15:51):
Then they saw the distant lights of the marine encampment.
Carl breathed a sigh of relief. There were tents on
the side of the road. They had to be Americans.
They weren't. Chinese fighters jumped out of the tents and
the Marines were right back in the battle. Three of
(16:12):
the trucks went over the side of the road on fire,
lost for good, and the rest of the convoy hit
the gas and made it out of the ambush, and
at nine pm they finally reached Hagaruri. The twelve mile
journey had taken twelve hours. Of the nine hundred men
(16:37):
who started out that morning, one hundred and sixty nine
were killed, one hundred and fifty nine were wounded, and
three hundred and twenty one were missing or captured. That
left them with less than a third of their fighting force.
(16:57):
Once they got to camp, Carl told his men to
get some rest. They would have to sleep on the
frozen ground.
Speaker 6 (17:05):
Half the people didn't have sleeping bags. I didn't have one.
I gave mine up.
Speaker 1 (17:10):
When they woke up the next morning, they were covered
in snow.
Speaker 6 (17:15):
You could see all these holes where people had melted
through the snow while they slept.
Speaker 1 (17:20):
They were freezing and exhausted. But if the un troops
ever wanted to leave the chosen reservoir, Carl and his
marines would have to fight again. They had to take
East Hill. East Hill rose about five hundred meters above
the valley floor. It was the high ground. Whoever controlled
(17:44):
East Hill controlled that one road in and out of Hagarui. Plus,
if the Chinese took East Hill, the Marines would never
be able to finish the airfield. That means they would
never get more supplies. They wouldn't be able to bring
out their wounded, and they're dead.
Speaker 4 (18:06):
If we had not controlled it, physically controlled it. First
Marine division in all likelihood put him in annihilated.
Speaker 1 (18:15):
Carl would be going to relieve Major Reginald Myers. Myers
had been fighting on East Hill for two days. He
and his men were just barely hanging on. Myers needed
help badly. Here's what interests me as a leader. Myers
(18:36):
was the opposite of Carl Sitter, a tough marine with
an old school way of leading his men. If he
felt they weren't moving fast enough, he'd just well, I'll
let him tell you. You kick them and you shot
at them.
Speaker 5 (18:52):
Rather you pulled your pistol out and you fired the
sh in the air and did everything.
Speaker 1 (18:57):
You could to get him removed. Basically, you treated your
men like cattle, which is how a lot of guys
treated soldiers. But let's be honest, that didn't always work.
A lot of Meers' men had gotten off the hill
as quickly as they could. They took wounded soldiers down
(19:18):
to the aid station and somehow never managed to go
back up, And now Myers was down to just seventy
five men. So on the morning of the thirtieth Carl
and his marine started up that icy hill, slipping and crawling,
passing the bodies of fallen soldiers as they made their
(19:41):
way higher. The Chinese machine guns kicked up dirt and
shards of ice around them, but finally they got to
the top, they began to dig in. They tried to
carve out fox holes in the ice, but their tools
snapped like machsticks. They knew the counter attack was coming,
(20:04):
and at ten thirty that night it did a Chinese
illumination grenade went off, and the sky turned to a
sickly green, and the dim light, the Marines could see
the hill below them. There were so many men climbing
up it looked like the ground was moving. The sound
(20:27):
of their bugles and whistles cut through the icy air.
Carl told the Richmond Times Dispatch in nineteen ninety three
that it was the scariest sound in the world.
Speaker 6 (20:40):
If you're not afraid, you're stupid. I think everybody was afraid.
Speaker 1 (20:45):
Carl's men looked up at him with hopelessness. They were
so outnumbered, but Carl knew what his job was, not
to force them like myers, not even just lead them,
but to motivate by understanding what they were going through.
Speaker 6 (21:03):
Those people were depending on me, and when they depend
on you, you have to live up to their expectations.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
And soon enough the enemy soldiers were right on top
of them.
Speaker 6 (21:15):
It was hand to hand grenades that night. You're all
hepped up and the bugles screaming and people screaming. It
seemed to me they kept coming and coming.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
It was a free for all, everyone shooting at close range,
and when the bullets ran out, they hit each other.
With helmets, stabbed them with bayonets. Carl was hid in
the face and chest by grenade fragments, but he kept
shooting back with that pistol he kept holstered on his heart.
The blood froze on his wounds, but against those crazy odds,
(21:49):
Carl's men held the lie. They held that hill all night.
Once the sun came up, Carl had a view across
the valley and what he saw was awful bodies everywhere
(22:11):
and about a thousand more Chinese troops forming up to
get back into the hills. He knew they would return
that night, and he knew he didn't have enough men.
Speaker 7 (22:23):
To take them.
Speaker 1 (22:25):
So he had a crazy idea. He called down to
the bottom of the hill and asked for any able
body man to be sent up east hill. Cooks and
supply people and engineers answered the call. This ragtag crew
made their way up to join Carl and his marines.
(22:46):
Carl was already an improbable leader, and now he was
leading men who weren't even supposed to be fighting. But
if anyone could inspire them, it was Carl. In nine
nine nine, he told a Richmond Times Dispatch reporter that
he had total faith in those men, even if he
(23:07):
wasn't sure he would survive.
Speaker 6 (23:10):
I had no doubt we were going to get out
of there, but I didn't know if I personally would
make it.
Speaker 1 (23:16):
As darkness descended again, the enemy returned in full force,
just as Carl had feared. The hill was rocked with
mortar fire. The Chinese soldiers attacked, and group after group,
their numbers seemed endless. All through that long night, Carl
(23:39):
exposed himself to fire again and again, just so he
could take care of his guys. He went from foxhole
to foxhole, adjusting machine guns, telling his men to stay
strong and hang on. Once again, he was wounded, hit
(23:59):
with an in the face, chest and arms, but he
would not leave. All of his other officers had been hit,
or evacuated or killed. He felt it was his duty
to stay.
Speaker 6 (24:17):
They knew that I wouldn't leave them, and when they
believe in you, then things can get done that maybe
under normal conditions would never get done. But these were
abnormal conditions, and people had faith in themselves and their
units in the core, That's what all boils down to.
Speaker 1 (24:34):
And then just before dawn, the attack slowed. As the
sun rose, it was quiet. They were alive. Carl Sitter
had led his team of supply guys, Cook and Maarines
through the darkest night. He had believed in them, and
so they had believed in themselves. Carl and his marines
(25:14):
would spend one more night on East Hill, but the
attacks wane. Soon the airport at hagaroo Ree was open.
Reinforcements and supplies were finally on their way. Carl had survived.
Only ninety six of his men walked off that hill
(25:35):
with him. He took no personal credit for the victory.
Maybe he thought this is why he had that invisible
shield around him on the road to Hagaroori, this is
why God had saved him when so many others had fallen.
(25:56):
Carl's grandfather was a Presbyterian minister. Religious faith was core
to the family, and I think that faith helped Carl
feel like he could do what he needed to do.
The UN forces fought their way back down those mountain
passes towards the port. The men must have all been
(26:19):
shell shocked by that point, exhausted, but Carl's leadership didn't waiver.
He made sure that his men knew that they mattered
and that he would not leave a single person behind.
Stephen Olmsted remembers it well.
Speaker 4 (26:38):
I felt that if I were a hit, killed, or
badly wounded, my fellow marines, the guys on my right
on my left would get beyond the hill and take
care of my body, And that meant a lot.
Speaker 1 (26:53):
On December eleventh, the last American forces reached the port
of hung Na, where ships were waiting to take them home.
Speaker 7 (27:02):
Company G was decimated, badly shattered, men and men frostpitten
beyond belief in the terrible cold, are put aboard platons
for a safe harbor.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
Carl had survived, but the battle had changed him. It
had shown him how fleeting life was, how fragile we are.
There was something else that struck him that all the
men noticed. As bad as it had been for the Americans,
the Chinese soldiers had it even worse. They had been
(27:37):
cannon fodder. It seemed like no one in their leadership
expected them to survive. Here's Raymond Davis again.
Speaker 5 (27:46):
They didn't have our children, didn't have air. We found
whole Chinese units frozen to death, tennis shoes and no shocks.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
Carl's heart went out to those enemy fighters, even after
after what he had faced. He felt sympathy and respect
for them. He saw their humanity. Carl eventually returned to
the States. He got promoted again, and then he got
(28:16):
the call to go to his commanding general's office. He
was going to be awarded the Medal of Honor by
President Truman. Carl and Reginald Myers, the major who had
started the battle on East Hill, both received the medal
at the White House. Reporters were there to film it.
Speaker 3 (28:36):
Two marine officers received from the President's hands the nation's
highest award, the Congressional Medal of Honor. Major Reginald Myers
is joined in the occasion by his family. Both he
and Major Carl Sitter were cited for their heroic conduct
during the disastrous retreat from the chung Jin Reservoir a
year ago in Korea.
Speaker 1 (28:55):
But Carl didn't believe he did anything particularly special.
Speaker 6 (28:59):
Or I had the easy job, because as commanding officer,
you're worried about the troops and hoping your past training
and everything will give you the knowledge to go ahead
and do the right thing, and you hope the mission
will be completed. The hardest position was some private down
there in a hole, and the only thing he knows
is someone's coming.
Speaker 1 (29:21):
Carl stayed in the Marine Corps for a total of
thirty years. He had a full life, a family, two
boys and a girl, and after he retired from the service,
he and his wife Ruth settled in Richmond, Virginia. Carl
worked with the Department of Social Services. He retired again,
(29:45):
but he had spent the decades since Korea thinking about
why he had been spared when so many others had died.
He wondered what God wanted from him. Was fighting in
wars really what he was put on this planet to do.
Speaker 6 (30:02):
What war does is destroy people on both sides, and
it takes many years to get back what we destroyed.
We don't really win anything by war, and so he.
Speaker 1 (30:13):
Dug into his faith. What he found there was a
core lesson.
Speaker 6 (30:18):
God says we're to love everybody.
Speaker 1 (30:22):
So in nineteen ninety seven, when he was seventy four
years old, he decided to get a master's degree in
Christian education. He knew he was too old to be
a minister. His plan was to volunteer to help the elderly,
but then his friend Bill Crawford passed away. Crawford was
a Medal of Honor recipient from Pueblo, Colorado. Carl had
(30:44):
grown up in Pueblo too, so Carl flew out to
the funeral. It was a cold and windy day, but
Carl insisted on joining the procession to the cemetery, standing
outside for the service, brave the elements being there to
honor his friend's heroism and service. After all, he stood
(31:07):
out in far worse weather than that. When he got home,
Carl came down with the cold. The coal turned to pneumonia.
He died three weeks later at the age of seventy seven.
What I love about Carl's story is how grounded it
(31:28):
is in faith. Not faith in higher power necessarily, though
he certainly had that. I'm talking about faith in the
potential of others. Carl's men had faith in him, and
he had faith in them. It was a virtuous circle,
(31:48):
and that circle made them all stronger. It inspired them.
That was Carl's superpower. It's an amazing way to lead,
and more than that, it's a beautiful way to live.
(32:17):
Medal of Honor. Stories of Courage is written by Meredith
Rowlins and produced by Meredith Rawlins and Jess Shane. Our
editor is Ben nadaf Hoffrey Sound design and additional music
by Jake Gorsky. Our executive producer is Constanza Gayarto, fact
checking by Arthur Gomperts and original music by Eric Phillips.
(32:39):
Production support by Suzanne Gabber. The rest of the team
includes Carl Catel, Greta Cone, Christina Sullivan, Sarah Nix, Nicole Optenbosch,
Eric Sandler, Morgan Ratner, Jordan McMillan, Keira Posey, Owen Miller,
Amy Haggerdorn, and Jake Special thanks to the Congressional Medal
(33:03):
of Honor Society and the Korean War Legacy Foundation. This
is our last episode of this second season, but we
want to keep hearing from you, so please send us
your personal story of courage or highlight someone else's bravery.
Email us at Medal of Honor at Pushkin dot Fm.
(33:24):
You might hear your stories on future episodes of Metal
of Honor, or see them on our social channels at
Pushkin pots. I'm your host, JR. Martinez
Hey everyone, We've put together a survey for listeners of
Medal of Honor and we want to hear from you.
Tell us what you love about the show, what we
can improve on, or stories you think we've missed. We're
committed to making this show even better and you can
help to take the survey. Visit bit dot lee slash
MH survey. That's bit dot l y slash mh survey.
(00:27):
The link is also in our show notes below. Pushkin.
A deadly winter storm whipped across the Jagged Hill in
(00:51):
North Korea. It was the last day of November nineteen
fifty and it was more than twenty degrees below zero.
The Marines of Company G tried to find a foothold
on the hill. It was pure ice. They kicked their
frozen guns, hoping to get them to work. They tried
(01:13):
to carve fox holes in the rock hard ground. They
searched for some way to shelter from what was coming,
and they had to do it fast. They heard the
sound of bugles and whistles. The Marines knew what that meant.
They were about to face an onslaught of enemy soldiers,
(01:36):
and they were totally and completely outnumbered. UN forces had
been trying to hold this ground for days. Many had
already been wounded or killed, and some had snuck off
the hill. They knew certain death when they saw it,
but not the men of Company g There was something
(01:59):
that kept them going. It sure wasn't food. Their cans
or rations were frozen solid. It wasn't adrenaline either. It
was their captain, Carl Sitter. He moved from one position
to the other. He checked their guns, but mostly he
(02:21):
talked to them. He told them they could do it,
They could fight off the enemy. They could survive and
hold that heel. Secretly in his heart, Carl believed that
he might not survive. In fact, he was pretty sure
he would never make it home, but he had faith
(02:45):
that his men would. I'm j R. Martinez and this
is Medal of Honor Stories of Courage. The Medal of
Honor is the highest military decoration in the United States,
awarded for gallantry and bravery and combat at the risk
(03:07):
of life, above and beyond the call of duty. Each
candidate must be approved all the way up the chain
of command, from the supervisory officer in the field to
the White House. This show was about those heroes, what
they did, what it meant and what their stories tell
us about the nature of courage and sacrifice. Carl Sitter
(03:31):
wasn't your typical marine. He wasn't an amazing physical specimen,
all muscle and rawn. He was kind of pudgy, round
faced and kind. But he had a superpower, a talent
for taking care of his men, shepherding them through the
worst days of their lives, inspiring them. They knew for
(03:56):
sure he would never leave them behind. And that's the
crazy thing. Carl wasn't really supposed to be there. His
story of leadership is filled with crazy good luck and
crazy bad luck. His story is about fate and faith,
the kind of faith that can keep you alive against
(04:20):
impossible odds. When Carl Sitter got to Korea in nineteen fifty,
(04:40):
he wasn't supposed to be leading any marines at all.
He was supposed to be a Special Services officer. And
if you don't know what that is, it's the officer
in charge of equipment. And Carl's case, that equipment wasn't
guns or ammo. It was basketball's football and jockstraps. Not
(05:03):
exactly the job he'd wanted. Carl was only twenty seven,
but he was pretty out of shape, so out of
shape that his superiors had him in a desk job.
But Carl wanted to be on the front lines, so
he pushed and pushed. But Special Services was the most
(05:25):
the Brass would give him. It was a demotion. Still,
Carl didn't complain. It was a job in the war,
and he took it for a second because right after
he got to the base in Japan with all that equipment,
a typhoon blew it into the water, all of it gone,
(05:51):
and that's how his career in Special Services ended. The
Brass had no choice but to give him the job
he'd wanted in the first place, on the front lines,
so he was given command of Company G. When his
Marines looked at him, they couldn't quite believe this dumpy
(06:11):
guy was going to be their leader. He didn't have
a six pack, but he had something that a lot
of other guys didn't experience. He had enlisted when he
was just seventeen years old, right out of high school.
He served in World War II, rising quickly through the ranks,
(06:31):
and by the time the Marines landed in Guam in
nineteen forty four, he was a lieutenant and had received
the first of what would be four purple hearts. But
he also picked up a habit wearing his pistol holstered
over his heart. Here's why. During one battle he felt
(06:54):
the slam of a bullet into the left side of
his chest. He thought, this is it. I'm going to die.
But wait a minute. He was definitely alive. So he
touched his chest and he felt warm blood. But he
also felt the cold steel of his pistol. It had
(07:16):
stopped the bullet. He would wear the pistol there for
the rest of his combat career. By the time the
war was over, Carl had a Silver Star and a
life in the core. Sure, maybe he'd gotten a little
soft since World War Two, but that didn't mean he
(07:37):
wasn't keen to fight in the next conflict, Korea.
Speaker 2 (07:43):
On Sunday, June twenty fifth, communist forces attacked the Republic
of Korea.
Speaker 1 (07:49):
That's President Harry Truman.
Speaker 2 (07:51):
We know that the cost of freedom is high, but
we are determined to preserve our freedom no matter what
the calls.
Speaker 1 (07:59):
At first, it looked like the United Nations forces would
make quick work of this new war. General Douglas MacArthur
led them into South Korea, and they easily drove the
North Koreans back above the thirty eighth parallel, but then
MacArthur decided they should try for a second victory, this
(08:20):
time in the north. By the winter of nineteen fifty,
UN troops had landed in North Korea and were moving inland.
They went up treacherous mountain passes and straight into a trap.
They didn't know that around four hundred thousand Chinese troops
(08:41):
had secretly crossed the Manchurian border to aid the North Koreans.
Some were battle hardened veterans, and most were so called
volunteers who had been forced into combat. They didn't have
enough weapons, they were fed very little, but there were
so many more of them, and on the night of
(09:04):
November twenty seventh they attacked. Chinese soldiers surrounded the group
of Marines who had gotten the farthest into the mountains,
and the Americans realized they were outnumbered by the thousands.
General MacArthur ordered a hasty withdrawal, but then those withdrawing
(09:25):
troops got trapped. They were miles inland near the Chosen
or chang Jin reservoir. There was only one road out,
and the Chinese forces captured it. They were hopelessly stuck.
Reporters were there to witness the mayhem.
Speaker 3 (09:44):
Here, thousands of Marines and other United Nations forces are
trapped by overwhelming masses of Chinese Reds who encircle them
near the chung Jin Reservoir.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
Carl and Company G were in North Korea, but far
from the fighting that didn't last. Stephen Olmsted was a
young Marine private in Carl's company.
Speaker 4 (10:05):
Then we got the word, you guys are going to
join up with your parent thet time.
Speaker 1 (10:11):
They were going to bring ammunition, food, and supplies to
the trap Marines.
Speaker 4 (10:17):
The people up around the reservoir desperately needed reinforcements, particularly
some more tanks.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
Most of the troops were near the UN force's last
best foothold, a town called hagaroo Re. It had makeshift
hospital facilities and to have constructed airstrip. It was their
only hope to unite the separated groups of Marines. Hagaroo
(10:46):
Re had to be held at all costs. Carl's men
would have to fight their way there up the main
supply route, that dangerous mountain road. Then they would clear
the path for all the UN troops to retreat to
the port and get out of North Korea and they
(11:09):
would be outnumbered ten to one. There's something important you
need to know about the Battle of the Chosen Reservoir.
It wasn't just the enemy that was deadly, it was
(11:31):
the weather. It was the coldest Korean winter in one
hundred years. Raymond Davis was there, like Carl. He was
commanding a group of marines.
Speaker 5 (11:44):
The snow cames of Tempture dropped to forty below zero
into the mountains. My Weather Service said that wind chill
was something like seventy below zero.
Speaker 1 (11:56):
Weapons froze, shut truck batteries.
Speaker 5 (11:59):
Died, faces covered with the ice. The radios wouldn't work.
They were frozen food, frozen water, frozen terrible conditions.
Speaker 1 (12:10):
And the men didn't have the right gear. After all,
everyone including leadership, had been sure they'd be home by Christmas.
Their coats were thin. On their feet, they wore something
called shoe packs. They weren't winter boots, just rubber soles
and a leather top. They made your feet sweat when
(12:32):
you marched and freeze when you stopped. Tons of men
got frostbite.
Speaker 5 (12:39):
Anytime I find a marine down, get him on his feet,
because he'd freeze to death.
Speaker 1 (12:46):
And now Carl and his men were going deeper into
the mountains. Carl's company had joined forces with Colonel Douglas
Drysdale of the British Royal Marines. On November twenty ninth,
they all set out for the un camp at Hagaroo Re.
(13:08):
Here's Stephen Olmsted again that private in Carl's company.
Speaker 4 (13:12):
We boarded trucks and there was kind of like an
old Western movie going through what is later called Hellfire Alley.
Speaker 1 (13:20):
Hell Fire Alley is right on one side of the road.
There were steep drop offs going down thousands of feet.
On the other side, Chinese fighters held the high ground.
They turned that mountain road into a shooting gallery.
Speaker 4 (13:38):
We're going to jump out and gauge them, drive them away,
and go and do it all over again.
Speaker 1 (13:45):
Carl was focused and calm as they made their way
towards Hagaroo Re. At one point they came under intense fire.
The Chinese had set up a road block up ahead
and company g sitting ducks. Unless they got out and
cleared it, their trucks would explode where they stood. Now
(14:11):
we don't have access to recordings of Carl, but he
was interviewed many times during his life. Our editor and
good friend of the podcast, Ben Nadaf Hoffrey, is going
to read his words here. This is what Carl told
leather Neck Magazine in nineteen eighty six.
Speaker 6 (14:31):
I yelled for everybody to get off the trucks, and
it seemed like anybody close to me was getting shot,
like I was protected by an invisible shield, and I
wasn't being hit.
Speaker 1 (14:41):
Carl didn't have time to marvel at his survival. As
the bullets rained down. He raced to the front of
the convoy. He had to check in with Drysdell, but
when he got there, he discovered that Drysdell had been shot.
He could no longer lead the group. Command to Carl,
(15:03):
in case all of this action has wiped your memory,
let me remind you Carl wasn't even supposed to be
on the front lines, and he certainly wasn't supposed to
be leading this group of men on this deadly mission.
But he didn't question it. He had a sense that
if he was there, it was for a reason. By
(15:27):
this point it was night. The surviving Marines cleared the
roadblock and jumped back in the trucks. They rattled forward
through the dark, unsure of how far they had come
and how much further they had to go. Tracers and
explosions lit up the night as they inched towards Hagaroui.
(15:51):
Then they saw the distant lights of the marine encampment.
Carl breathed a sigh of relief. There were tents on
the side of the road. They had to be Americans.
They weren't. Chinese fighters jumped out of the tents and
the Marines were right back in the battle. Three of
(16:12):
the trucks went over the side of the road on fire,
lost for good, and the rest of the convoy hit
the gas and made it out of the ambush, and
at nine pm they finally reached Hagaruri. The twelve mile
journey had taken twelve hours. Of the nine hundred men
(16:37):
who started out that morning, one hundred and sixty nine
were killed, one hundred and fifty nine were wounded, and
three hundred and twenty one were missing or captured. That
left them with less than a third of their fighting force.
(16:57):
Once they got to camp, Carl told his men to
get some rest. They would have to sleep on the
frozen ground.
Speaker 6 (17:05):
Half the people didn't have sleeping bags. I didn't have one.
I gave mine up.
Speaker 1 (17:10):
When they woke up the next morning, they were covered
in snow.
Speaker 6 (17:15):
You could see all these holes where people had melted
through the snow while they slept.
Speaker 1 (17:20):
They were freezing and exhausted. But if the un troops
ever wanted to leave the chosen reservoir, Carl and his
marines would have to fight again. They had to take
East Hill. East Hill rose about five hundred meters above
the valley floor. It was the high ground. Whoever controlled
(17:44):
East Hill controlled that one road in and out of Hagarui. Plus,
if the Chinese took East Hill, the Marines would never
be able to finish the airfield. That means they would
never get more supplies. They wouldn't be able to bring
out their wounded, and they're dead.
Speaker 4 (18:06):
If we had not controlled it, physically controlled it. First
Marine division in all likelihood put him in annihilated.
Speaker 1 (18:15):
Carl would be going to relieve Major Reginald Myers. Myers
had been fighting on East Hill for two days. He
and his men were just barely hanging on. Myers needed
help badly. Here's what interests me as a leader. Myers
(18:36):
was the opposite of Carl Sitter, a tough marine with
an old school way of leading his men. If he
felt they weren't moving fast enough, he'd just well, I'll
let him tell you. You kick them and you shot
at them.
Speaker 5 (18:52):
Rather you pulled your pistol out and you fired the
sh in the air and did everything.
Speaker 1 (18:57):
You could to get him removed. Basically, you treated your
men like cattle, which is how a lot of guys
treated soldiers. But let's be honest, that didn't always work.
A lot of Meers' men had gotten off the hill
as quickly as they could. They took wounded soldiers down
(19:18):
to the aid station and somehow never managed to go
back up, And now Myers was down to just seventy
five men. So on the morning of the thirtieth Carl
and his marine started up that icy hill, slipping and crawling,
passing the bodies of fallen soldiers as they made their
(19:41):
way higher. The Chinese machine guns kicked up dirt and
shards of ice around them, but finally they got to
the top, they began to dig in. They tried to
carve out fox holes in the ice, but their tools
snapped like machsticks. They knew the counter attack was coming,
(20:04):
and at ten thirty that night it did a Chinese
illumination grenade went off, and the sky turned to a
sickly green, and the dim light, the Marines could see
the hill below them. There were so many men climbing
up it looked like the ground was moving. The sound
(20:27):
of their bugles and whistles cut through the icy air.
Carl told the Richmond Times Dispatch in nineteen ninety three
that it was the scariest sound in the world.
Speaker 6 (20:40):
If you're not afraid, you're stupid. I think everybody was afraid.
Speaker 1 (20:45):
Carl's men looked up at him with hopelessness. They were
so outnumbered, but Carl knew what his job was, not
to force them like myers, not even just lead them,
but to motivate by understanding what they were going through.
Speaker 6 (21:03):
Those people were depending on me, and when they depend
on you, you have to live up to their expectations.
Speaker 1 (21:10):
And soon enough the enemy soldiers were right on top
of them.
Speaker 6 (21:15):
It was hand to hand grenades that night. You're all
hepped up and the bugles screaming and people screaming. It
seemed to me they kept coming and coming.
Speaker 1 (21:24):
It was a free for all, everyone shooting at close range,
and when the bullets ran out, they hit each other.
With helmets, stabbed them with bayonets. Carl was hid in
the face and chest by grenade fragments, but he kept
shooting back with that pistol he kept holstered on his heart.
The blood froze on his wounds, but against those crazy odds,
(21:49):
Carl's men held the lie. They held that hill all night.
Once the sun came up, Carl had a view across
the valley and what he saw was awful bodies everywhere
(22:11):
and about a thousand more Chinese troops forming up to
get back into the hills. He knew they would return
that night, and he knew he didn't have enough men.
Speaker 7 (22:23):
To take them.
Speaker 1 (22:25):
So he had a crazy idea. He called down to
the bottom of the hill and asked for any able
body man to be sent up east hill. Cooks and
supply people and engineers answered the call. This ragtag crew
made their way up to join Carl and his marines.
(22:46):
Carl was already an improbable leader, and now he was
leading men who weren't even supposed to be fighting. But
if anyone could inspire them, it was Carl. In nine
nine nine, he told a Richmond Times Dispatch reporter that
he had total faith in those men, even if he
(23:07):
wasn't sure he would survive.
Speaker 6 (23:10):
I had no doubt we were going to get out
of there, but I didn't know if I personally would
make it.
Speaker 1 (23:16):
As darkness descended again, the enemy returned in full force,
just as Carl had feared. The hill was rocked with
mortar fire. The Chinese soldiers attacked, and group after group,
their numbers seemed endless. All through that long night, Carl
(23:39):
exposed himself to fire again and again, just so he
could take care of his guys. He went from foxhole
to foxhole, adjusting machine guns, telling his men to stay
strong and hang on. Once again, he was wounded, hit
(23:59):
with an in the face, chest and arms, but he
would not leave. All of his other officers had been hit,
or evacuated or killed. He felt it was his duty
to stay.
Speaker 6 (24:17):
They knew that I wouldn't leave them, and when they
believe in you, then things can get done that maybe
under normal conditions would never get done. But these were
abnormal conditions, and people had faith in themselves and their
units in the core, That's what all boils down to.
Speaker 1 (24:34):
And then just before dawn, the attack slowed. As the
sun rose, it was quiet. They were alive. Carl Sitter
had led his team of supply guys, Cook and Maarines
through the darkest night. He had believed in them, and
so they had believed in themselves. Carl and his marines
(25:14):
would spend one more night on East Hill, but the
attacks wane. Soon the airport at hagaroo Ree was open.
Reinforcements and supplies were finally on their way. Carl had survived.
Only ninety six of his men walked off that hill
(25:35):
with him. He took no personal credit for the victory.
Maybe he thought this is why he had that invisible
shield around him on the road to Hagaroori, this is
why God had saved him when so many others had fallen.
(25:56):
Carl's grandfather was a Presbyterian minister. Religious faith was core
to the family, and I think that faith helped Carl
feel like he could do what he needed to do.
The UN forces fought their way back down those mountain
passes towards the port. The men must have all been
(26:19):
shell shocked by that point, exhausted, but Carl's leadership didn't waiver.
He made sure that his men knew that they mattered
and that he would not leave a single person behind.
Stephen Olmsted remembers it well.
Speaker 4 (26:38):
I felt that if I were a hit, killed, or
badly wounded, my fellow marines, the guys on my right
on my left would get beyond the hill and take
care of my body, And that meant a lot.
Speaker 1 (26:53):
On December eleventh, the last American forces reached the port
of hung Na, where ships were waiting to take them home.
Speaker 7 (27:02):
Company G was decimated, badly shattered, men and men frostpitten
beyond belief in the terrible cold, are put aboard platons
for a safe harbor.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
Carl had survived, but the battle had changed him. It
had shown him how fleeting life was, how fragile we are.
There was something else that struck him that all the
men noticed. As bad as it had been for the Americans,
the Chinese soldiers had it even worse. They had been
(27:37):
cannon fodder. It seemed like no one in their leadership
expected them to survive. Here's Raymond Davis again.
Speaker 5 (27:46):
They didn't have our children, didn't have air. We found
whole Chinese units frozen to death, tennis shoes and no shocks.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
Carl's heart went out to those enemy fighters, even after
after what he had faced. He felt sympathy and respect
for them. He saw their humanity. Carl eventually returned to
the States. He got promoted again, and then he got
(28:16):
the call to go to his commanding general's office. He
was going to be awarded the Medal of Honor by
President Truman. Carl and Reginald Myers, the major who had
started the battle on East Hill, both received the medal
at the White House. Reporters were there to film it.
Speaker 3 (28:36):
Two marine officers received from the President's hands the nation's
highest award, the Congressional Medal of Honor. Major Reginald Myers
is joined in the occasion by his family. Both he
and Major Carl Sitter were cited for their heroic conduct
during the disastrous retreat from the chung Jin Reservoir a
year ago in Korea.
Speaker 1 (28:55):
But Carl didn't believe he did anything particularly special.
Speaker 6 (28:59):
Or I had the easy job, because as commanding officer,
you're worried about the troops and hoping your past training
and everything will give you the knowledge to go ahead
and do the right thing, and you hope the mission
will be completed. The hardest position was some private down
there in a hole, and the only thing he knows
is someone's coming.
Speaker 1 (29:21):
Carl stayed in the Marine Corps for a total of
thirty years. He had a full life, a family, two
boys and a girl, and after he retired from the service,
he and his wife Ruth settled in Richmond, Virginia. Carl
worked with the Department of Social Services. He retired again,
(29:45):
but he had spent the decades since Korea thinking about
why he had been spared when so many others had died.
He wondered what God wanted from him. Was fighting in
wars really what he was put on this planet to do.
Speaker 6 (30:02):
What war does is destroy people on both sides, and
it takes many years to get back what we destroyed.
We don't really win anything by war, and so he.
Speaker 1 (30:13):
Dug into his faith. What he found there was a
core lesson.
Speaker 6 (30:18):
God says we're to love everybody.
Speaker 1 (30:22):
So in nineteen ninety seven, when he was seventy four
years old, he decided to get a master's degree in
Christian education. He knew he was too old to be
a minister. His plan was to volunteer to help the elderly,
but then his friend Bill Crawford passed away. Crawford was
a Medal of Honor recipient from Pueblo, Colorado. Carl had
(30:44):
grown up in Pueblo too, so Carl flew out to
the funeral. It was a cold and windy day, but
Carl insisted on joining the procession to the cemetery, standing
outside for the service, brave the elements being there to
honor his friend's heroism and service. After all, he stood
(31:07):
out in far worse weather than that. When he got home,
Carl came down with the cold. The coal turned to pneumonia.
He died three weeks later at the age of seventy seven.
What I love about Carl's story is how grounded it
(31:28):
is in faith. Not faith in higher power necessarily, though
he certainly had that. I'm talking about faith in the
potential of others. Carl's men had faith in him, and
he had faith in them. It was a virtuous circle,
(31:48):
and that circle made them all stronger. It inspired them.
That was Carl's superpower. It's an amazing way to lead,
and more than that, it's a beautiful way to live.
(32:17):
Medal of Honor. Stories of Courage is written by Meredith
Rowlins and produced by Meredith Rawlins and Jess Shane. Our
editor is Ben nadaf Hoffrey Sound design and additional music
by Jake Gorsky. Our executive producer is Constanza Gayarto, fact
checking by Arthur Gomperts and original music by Eric Phillips.
(32:39):
Production support by Suzanne Gabber. The rest of the team
includes Carl Catel, Greta Cone, Christina Sullivan, Sarah Nix, Nicole Optenbosch,
Eric Sandler, Morgan Ratner, Jordan McMillan, Keira Posey, Owen Miller,
Amy Haggerdorn, and Jake Special thanks to the Congressional Medal
(33:03):
of Honor Society and the Korean War Legacy Foundation. This
is our last episode of this second season, but we
want to keep hearing from you, so please send us
your personal story of courage or highlight someone else's bravery.
Email us at Medal of Honor at Pushkin dot Fm.
(33:24):
You might hear your stories on future episodes of Metal
of Honor, or see them on our social channels at
Pushkin pots. I'm your host, JR. Martinez
Host
Malcolm Gladwell
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