Warren Housten Thomas
Bio
Warren Housten Thomas was born in Cale, Indiana, on February 11, 1931. After graduating from high school, he married and was working a good paying job in the coal mines when he received a draft notice from the United States Army. While this was not his desired path, he accepted the task and went to basic training where he was trained to be a combat engineer and attended school for heavy construction equipment. While in Korea, his services were needed to clear roads as well as transport troops. Upon revisiting Korea later in life, he recalls it being the greatest trip of his life. He was in awe of the respect and admiration shown to him for his service during the Korean War.
Video Clips
Revisiting Korea
Warren Housten Thomas recalls the time he revisited Korea and how appreciated he felt. He describes how well the Korean civilians and the Republic of Korea government treated him and the other veterans. He remembers the streets being filled with civilians and how excited he was to see the population surviving so well.
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The Punch Bowl
Warren Thomas describes being stationed near the infamous "Punchbowl" area in Korea. He remembers the Punchbowl being an area surrounded with mountains and the difficulties it created in trying to climb those mountains in the winter. He recalls one event in which he was ordered to take his tractor and clear a road for the troops, having to crawl at times and work around twenty-foot-high snow drifts.
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Letters From Home
Warren Housten Thomas describes the difficulties in communicating with family back home. He recalls having to communicate the old-fashioned way with letters and that it could often take four to six weeks for mail to reach them. He remembers how sometimes the news was old by the time it reached him.
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Hearing Loss
Warren Housten Thomas reflects on his hearing loss associated with an incident during the war. He recalls driving his tractor underneath the big guns just as they received an order to fire, with the noise being so loud he thought his head would come off. He explains how, years later, the doctor attributed his hearing loss to a sudden loud sound he must have experienced.
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Video Transcript
I’m Warren Houston Thomas and I go by my
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middle name Houston and I was borned in
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1931 in kale Indiana and
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we moved to burn city when I was little
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and then we moved on to Linton Indiana
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and that’s reason why we left burn
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cities on account of the ammunition
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depot they built their crane crane
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dindin and my and that’s where i was
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drafted one now I there at Linton and I
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was drafted in 51 and I got out in 53 I
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took my basic training at Fort Leonard
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Wood Missouri and I went after my basic
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training I want to tractor scraper
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school and then from there they sent me
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to camp stove in California for the trip
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to Korea and I got their camps tolman in
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May of 52 Oh bleep was and I got on the
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general Debbie MBLAQ the ship and they
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was five thousand of us on the ship and
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we stopped at Pearl Harbor Hawaii and
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then from Hawaii we went to Okinawa let
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some the
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troops off there at Okinawa because they
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were a lot of men there that was doing
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work for that the that’s where a lot of
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the airports with that they’re in
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Oakland all and then from Okinawa we
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went went to Yokohama Japan and I was
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there about a day maybe I was overnight
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overnight and then they checked our
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teeth and this and that and
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identification everything you know
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before we load this back up and took us
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to Incheon Korea and then we went in on
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that landing craft and I was up the
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water up here when they dropped tail
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gate they engage their better to go out
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and a lot of times you’re not you don’t
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have to wait much water but it seemed
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like that I was one of them the dead and
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then we want they kept moving and went
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up to another thing to they was a these
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buildings had been hit by the Navy and
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there’s a lot of little children behind
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him buildings for the walls that’s
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always left them and then we’ll little
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ones they would come run out where we
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was at wanting something to eat so we
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would throw a more Syrians course we
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know we had more you know and they just
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dive in there after and I mean it was
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something to really I mean it was sad do
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you know to know that things like that
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has to happen but but anyway we would
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kept on moving and we I ended up in the
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punch bowl
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and it’s quite a few miles up for mincha
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and then I was in the Heartbreak Ridge
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area and I was with the 116th engineer
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combat battalion of the 19th engineer
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combat group and that 19th engineer
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combat group was the headquarters and I
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we course we used to come combat
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engineers you’ve got construction
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engineers and combat engineer nozzing
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the combat in there I was operated at a
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d7 or a d8 tractor dozer and I was out
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in the opening all time no the machine
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that I run had no top / no cab no
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nothing he was out in the weather rain
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or shine or snow or blizzard or whatever
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he was in it I mean he was out in in the
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opening and then that’s what I of course
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I was in in the foxholes and trenches
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and bunk and bunkers and intense I never
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was on a wood floor never thought it was
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always on the ground all the time i was
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there and then we eat them c-rations all
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time and which you know you kind of and
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I did I lost quite a bit of weight and
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but that’s something you know as a
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normal thing you know being
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on living in a condition and C rations
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and and they did send to meet one time
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to back to Japan for five days rest and
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recuperation they called it and I went
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there for five days I was in Korea and
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osaka japan and they r you know you
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really rest for five days for lawyers
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errand then they need the bad part you
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go back to Warrior was apt to start with
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and you’re kind of dread to go back
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after leaving Japan you know and that
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rest resting place but anyway I are left
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in 53 in in July 53 and it and it took
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me 34 days to come back I came back to
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New York I left California and come back
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to New York and went through the Panama
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Canal and it takes a day to go through
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there because it’s 52 mile believe it if
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52 mile and then you got those locks you
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know they Louis raise the ship and
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glower transferred from the from the
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Pacific to the land but and then I came
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to to capstone one or not camp Toma but
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breaking rich Kentucky and that’s why i
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was discharged separated
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but I I was glad that I went though and
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served my time but if if I had you know
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if we hadn’t to went there the United
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States hadn’t went to Korea and saved
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the Republic of South Korea they
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wouldn’t have that freedom today you
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know just like that city that I sewell
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there the capital it wouldn’t look like
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that it would be a dark under communism
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dictator but I’m really thankful that
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I’m lamb when you were first drafted
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kind of going back in your story when
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you were first drafted like how did that
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feel or what you know what were you
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thinking at that time oh well I tell you
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what we me and my wife we’re still
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married and we got married we just got
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married in April and then I got this
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good job i was making two dollars an
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hour which was union wages at the mine
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coal mine and it was good ever sixteen
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dollars a day boy it was two dollars and
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three cents an hour what it mounted to
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two dogs and three cents off and I got
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that good job and then I ended up I got
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it in this spray right after what we got
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married and then in October the 18th or
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well before that I got my notice that I
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take a physical and then I was inducted
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october they 18
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and of course my seniority went on there
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at that mind you know when I left but
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they shut down about the same time I got
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home and they told me that they were
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down but it would shut down but I would
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have my job back if I if they were still
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working but anyway that was the bad Bart
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just got married I and then I got that
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good job and then I was drafted but
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that’s part of it that’s you know I
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really i’m not complaining about it but
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i remembered yeah so when you first
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arrived at Inchon what was that like
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what were you well i was we was on the
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ship and we had to go down over the side
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see with them rope ladders and then down
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into the landing craft and this real
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good friend of mine John Bosh he was a
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German and he lived from he from North
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Dakota and he he he didn’t want to get
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off you know go down on and I said Marsh
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his name was boss John Bosh I said just
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get up and we’ll get on the craft and
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we’ll be there and and get something
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else on your mind he was what he was he
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a little bit Larry you know of course it
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it’s not easy to do something like him
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oh you got all you got your pack and you
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got your rifle and you got all your pen
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C rations and so we unloaded or got
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loaded on the landing craft
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and then they go in with the tide and
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it’s only way you can get in you’ve got
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to go in they have a time the Navy does
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and they we went in with the tide and
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then they had to come back out with the
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tide to get another load you know well
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so that worked out okay that everything
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was right on time you know and and then
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that’s then we like I said them children
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you know came out from behind them
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buildings and they were hungry and we
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throw her C rations to him but anyway we
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kept on moving we went up this railroad
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track and then we came to a bridge that
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had been hit with artillery and it was
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knocked out so we had to get on trucks
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up there we on the back of them trucks
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and we went for all I don’t know I was
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up there I think was around 50 mile
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north where I ended up at but it it’s
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quite an experience oh you mean you
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don’t forget it it stays with you but
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but it you know it’s an experience I
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wonder neethan mark Hillary guns you
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know and they was eight of them and the
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barrel was up over the road and I took
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his tractor underneath of them and of
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course this airplane that’s our killer
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II airplane is up on he’s there where
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the enemy is over and he the man in the
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plane he calls the artillery people and
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and tells them when too far they’re them
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105 artillery rounds and I was right
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in the middle of them and he told him
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too far and when he tells them far they
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have to regardless what who’s around her
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and I mean that tractor I was on that
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dozer it just like that and Mike I
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thought my head was going to come off I
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mean the noise and they had course them
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once it’s on the artillery guns they got
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them ear plugs in their ears you know
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and then I didn’t have nothing in my ear
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but I had my ears checked all had been
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about 10 years ago and I ask that man I
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didn’t tell him I was in Korea or
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nothing you know I didn’t he mention it
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I said what would cause my my ears to be
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in that shape well he said I’ll tell you
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what’s happened it’s been a loud real
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loud noise a long time ago I said well
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okay I know what it is I’ve always said
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that even before i went to to have my
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ears checked and then more children guns
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I voice said that that’s what caused my
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ear ear drums to being the shape they’re
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in I got two hearing aids but there’s
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sometimes I don’t hear very good even
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with them that really well I know that’s
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what done it your time at the punch
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fallen in that area what was that light
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can you paint a picture for me in the
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punch bowl the puck the punch bowl was a
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big it was a just like a big bowl I
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can’t remember how many miles it was
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crossed it you know but mountains all
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way around it and I would work I would
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be in there mountains and
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this spatial one spatial day or what
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special time I mean we they with a lot
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of troops and trucks and equipment
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trying to get up this hair mountain road
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that we had built and that blizzard that
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snow was so bad it was like 20 feet high
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the the the wind had blown dem snow
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drifts up 20 feet high and or some of
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them was even higher than that and
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Robert and then along the road or the
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road up the long side the mountain would
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be a lot of times in some places just be
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a drop I mean way down I don’t like
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thousands of feet so this lieutenant are
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the the platoon leader he told two men
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to go up one of them was like I was he
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was a tractor operator and he was a
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dozer up at the top of the mountain and
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he warned him to go up there these two
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men to go get it but they was three
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guards up there around it and they got a
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little ways up there and they come back
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and they told the lieutenant says we
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couldn’t make it so I heard him say that
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and the lieutenant said Thomas he called
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me but my last name its way it always
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was he called me by my last name he said
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Thomas he said let’s go and that meant
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an order you know you was ordered to go
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and he took off and this lieutenant did
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and I I didn’t stay up with him but I
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had to crawl always top up mountain I’ll
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never forget
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and thats not you couldn’t see your hand
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in front of you if we just bought the
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wind was blowing so hard I’m the snow
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that you couldn’t say end you just had
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to try to stay it make sure you was on
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the road that you didn’t get over too
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far and and gold with side well I I’ll
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never will forget that and I crawled I
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never I can’t remember ever walking if
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we just crawl but then you know me being
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21 years old I could do a lot of things
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I can’t do now I mean it it was but
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anyway I got up there I got the tractor
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started that bothered me I figured
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everything it would be froze up you know
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that I couldn’t get it started but I did
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I got started and the men got on the
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tractor the three guards and the
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lieutenant and I opened the road back
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come down and then I got down there and
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so I got them off the tractor and then
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he tells me to turn around and go back
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and and clean it off you know and so
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she’d get the troops through and
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equipment and so I did I got them all up
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there and he told me I tell you what he
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told me it’s lieutenant he said I’m
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gonna put you in for a reward but I
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never did I already get it he said I’m
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gonna put you in for room or cuz he said
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you done and out he told me I’d done an
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outstanding job and that’s all I ever
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heard so I didn’t I didn’t get anything
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but but he could have put me in but
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there’s a lot of things they wouldn’t
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you know it was hard to keep a wreck
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or anything where were just like mail I
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get mail from my wife maybe had taken a
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month or or six weeks before I could
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ever get and it was with that mail and
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then they would be some men tell me that
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that their their parents had died or
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somebody in close to the family brother
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sister maybe it been a month ago and
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they just got to report but now it’s
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just you back and forth now you can send
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it I don’t know how they did but you
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know but I don’t but then it took five
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or Tucker five six weeks it was
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altogether different in is now earlier
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before we started you said one of the
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things that you remember is you know the
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enemy and how many there were the
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animation we would be outnumbered
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probably a kid Chinese it be one bus ten
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to one yeah so a thousand Chinese be how
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many of us so I’d be at we was
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outnumbered all time and how did that
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feel that contrasts well that it don’t
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feel very safe but you’re you know you
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take basic like I took basic training at
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Fort Leonard Wood and they give they
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done a real good job down getting
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training but at the time the way they
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treated this it was you wouldn’t believe
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it they don’t I don’t think he’d do that
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no more but they would
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they well they took a hold of you there
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them by the shirt collar and this and
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that it was rough it was rough and but
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that really you know help to be in a
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place like fria IRA preciate the the
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basic training that they give us down
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there but at the time I thought they was
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mean to us but they wouldn’t they tell
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you where it is and that’s what you go
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by you said you went on the revisit
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program what was that like oh it was
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right I tell you what that was a bet
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Evan I believe that’s the best trip that
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I went on because they was the nice to
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us they couldn’t just seem like they
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couldn’t be nice enough it was just and
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you got your meals and they you didn’t
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pay for it and you didn’t and your hotel
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room you didn’t pay for it and we was
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there for five days and they would take
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a load us up on bus as you know and take
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his hair and there and show us a sand
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and the people on the sidewalks if the
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sidewalks was just loaded with people
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walk and they would and on the side of
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the bus we was on it had korean war
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veterans and the people on the streets
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would it’s loot but are you saluting all
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come they was a nicest place i’ve ever
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had and i get mail I get things from
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them today letters and bissonnet and and
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I got a letter from the president from
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of course they got my address
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are you know and real nice I should have
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brought it to and you could read it but
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but i don’t know i’m really thankful
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that I was part of it you know