 |
Remember...Mason Nowlin Patterson
|
Mason registered for the draft, as required by law for males turning 18 years of age, on November 19, 1945, and his draft registration states that he was born in 1927, not 1928. He would not have been required to register if he was only 17. Of course, it's entirely possible he indicated he was older than he actually was; that happened frequently when young men signed up for the draft, and all other records point to the 1928 birth date. On his draft registration he stated that his stepmother Thelma was the person who would always know his address. On May 20, 1950, Mason married Juanita Elizabeth Lewis.
| Ideally, history would record that they lived happily ever after. However, the Korean War - sometimes called "The Forgotten War" - was looming. Rather than being drafted, in January 1952, Mason joined the Marines. Work in the coal mines was always uncertain. The Marines meant employment. He served with Platoon 59, 6th Recruit Training Battalion, at Parris Island, South Carolina. Overseas, Mason would be assigned to Company H, 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division. Not unexpectedly, he would be deployed to Korea. ("Patterson, Mason Nowlin, PFC," TogetherWeServed, accessed 4 November 2020, https://marines.togetherweserved.com/usmc/servlet/tws.webapp.WebApp?cmd=ShadowBoxProfile&type=Person&ID=177615.) |  Insignia for 3rd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment (3/7) |
During the third Korean winter (1952-1953), Pfc. Patterson was killed in action relieving the 5th Marines at combat outpost "Vegas," North Korea, on April 3, 1953. His unit's history on TogetherWeServed describes the battle in which he was killed:
The Battle for Outpost Vegas was a battle during the Korean War between the armed forces of the United States and China from March 26–28, 1953, four months before the end of the Korean War. Vegas was one of three outposts called the Nevada Cities north of the Main Line of Resistance (MLR), the United Nations defensive line which stretched roughly around the latitude 38th Parallel. Vegas, and the outposts it supported, Reno and Carson, were manned by elements of the 1st Marine Division. On March 26, 1953 the Chinese army launched an attack on the Nevada Cities, including Vegas, in an attempt to better the position of China and North Korea in the Panmunjon peace talks which were occurring at the time, and to gain more territory for North Korea when its borders would be solidified. The battle raged for five days until Chinese forces halted their advance after partially obtaining their objective through capturing one outpost north of the MLR on March 28. The battle for outpost Vegas and the surrounding outposts are [sic] considered the bloodiest fighting to date in western Korea during the Korean War. It is estimated that there were over 1,000 American casualties and twice that number of Chinese during the battle of outpost Vegas. The battle is also known for the involvement of Sergeant Reckless, a horse in a USMC recoilless rifle platoon who transported ammunition and the wounded during the U.S. defense of outpost Vegas. ("Korean War/Third Korean Winter (1962-53)/Battle of the Outposts [Vegas-Reno-Carson]," in "Patterson, Mason Nowlin, PFC," accessed 4 November 2020, https://marines.togetherweserved.com/usmc/servlet/tws.webapp.WebApp?cmd=ShadowBoxProfile&type=BattleMemoryExt&ID=93892.)
 Pfc. Patterson's military headstone in Meadow Haven Memorial Park. Find A Grave photo courtesy Heather Manley-Duncan |
Pfc. Patterson's remains were recovered, and he was returned to the States, where he was interred in Meadow Haven Memorial Park, Ingram Branch, Fayette County. |
Article prepared by Patricia Richards McClure
July 2021
West Virginia Archives and History welcomes any additional information that can be provided about these veterans, including photographs, family names, letters and other relevant personal history.
