M1 Garand Picture of the Day

[CapnJohn]

PFC Letcher V. Gardner (Montgomery, Iowa), Co D, 8th Cavalry, 1st Cavalry Division, fires his M1 Garand on a Communist North Korean emplacement, along the Naktong River, near Chingu, Korea, 13 August 1950. Note the 8-round .30-06 en-bloc clips for the M1 Garand on the sandbags.
The Naktong was the area around the western side of the Pusan Perimeter. Extremely heavy and brutal fighting took place in this locale.
The NAKTONG River defense line was a defensive line set up on the south and east banks of the NAKTONG River. The NAKTONG River varied in width from fifty yards to two hundred yards and depth from waist deep to twelve to fifteen feet deep. The NAKTONG River was not a fast flowing river and it was possible to make log rafts and pole across the river with little difficulty. In the vicinity of HILL 409, the enemy constructed two underwater sand bag fords which were almost impossible to destroy. The defensive positions were located along the near bank of the river on terrain features which averaged slightly over two hundred meters in height. The highest terrain feature on the near bank of the river was HILL 409 and was in enemy hands. Paralleling the defensive positions was the HYONPUNG-CHANGYONG-YONGSAN-MIRYANG road. This was a dirt surface, dry weather road and not originally constructed to carry the loads required at this time. There were only two roads leading from this main road to the river itself. The roads were one way only and because of a great amount of rainfall were often impassable to all traffic. Throughout the sector other roads and trails had been hacked out of the side of the hills, but the first rainfall made them impassable.

Generally, in the center of the division sector, just west of CHANGYONG, was a large lake surrounded by swamp land and rice paddies. there was no definite system of compartments or corridors, but more of a maze of both. As a whole, the sector was one of relatively low rolling hills overlooking the slow moving, relatively narrow, shallow river. The existing road net was barely adequate, but additional one way dry weather roads were easily constructed. Courtesy "The 2nd Infantry Division during the Korean War"

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