National Archives Records - RIP 102

 
Close this window
 

Records Relating to
American Prisoners of War and Missing-in-Action Personnel
from the Korean War and During the Cold War Era

 
Reference Information Paper 102 (1997) was compiled by Tim Wehrkamp.  It is copied in its entirety on this page of the Korean War Educator.

Contents:

Preface

Part I

Sources Of Additional Information About Records Described In This Paper

Part II

Textual Records Relating to Korean War And Cold War Prisoners Of War And Missing In Action Personnel

  • RG 24 - Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel
    • Records of the Administrative and Management Division
    • Secret General Correspondence, 1957-60
    • Records of the Casualty Assistance Branch
      • Casualty Notification Case Files for Korean War and Post-Korean War Era Navy POWs/MIAs, 1950-56
      • Post-World War II Casualty Lists and Related Records, ca. 1950-57
  • RG 38 - Records of the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations
    • Records of the Office of Naval Intelligence
      • Operations Section Files, 1949-54
      • Case Files of American Prisoners of War During the Korean War, 1952-56
  • RG 46 - Records of the U.S. Senate
    • Records of the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs, 102d Congress, 1991-93
      • Records Received From Other Agencies
      • Records of the Committee
      • Investigators Case Files
  • RG 59 - General Records of the Department of State
    • Central Foreign Policy File of the United States
      • Decimal file, 1945-63, and the Subject-Numeric File, 1963-73
    • Records of the Office of the Legal Advisor
      • Aircraft Incidents Files (Sam Klaus Files), 1944-62
    • Records of the Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs
      • "Black Book" on Cease-Fire, December 12, 1950-December 25, 1952 (Lot File 55D128)
      • Files Relating to Southeast Asia and the Geneva Conference, 1954 (Lot Files 55D480 and 55D481)
      • [Office of East Asian Affairs] Central Files, 1958-63
      • Alpha-Numeric File on Korea, 1952-57 (Lot Files 58D643 and 59D407)
  • RG 84 - Records of the Foreign Service Posts of the Department of State
    • Germany-Bonn Embassy, Classified General Records, 1956-58
    • Korea-Seoul Embassy, Classified General Records, 1953-55, 1956-63
    • Japan-Tokyo - Office of the U.S. Political Advisor for Japan,
           Classified General Records, 1945-52
    • Japan-Tokyo Embassy, Classified General Records, 1952-63
    • Switzerland-Bern Embassy, General Records, 1953-55
    • U.S.S.R.-Moscow Embassy, Confidential File, 1941-55, and Classified General Records, 1960-63
  • RG 92 - Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General
    • Correspondence
      • Classified and Unclassified General Correspondence Relating to Places ("Geographic File"), 1936-54
      • Classified and Unclassified General Correspondence Relating to Organizational Unites ("Miscellaneous File"), 1936-54
      • Formerly Classified and Unclassified General Correspondence ("Subject File"), 1936-61
  • RG 112 - Records of the Office of the Surgeon General (Army)
    • [Psychiatry and Neurology Consultant] Subject Files, ca. 1945-ca. 1975
  • RG 153 - Records of the Office of the Judge Advocate General (Army)
    • Records of the War Crimes Branch, International Affairs Division
      • Records Relating to the Korean War
        • Korean War Crimes Case Files, 1952-54
        • Historical Reports of the War Crimes Division, 1952-54
        • Operation Big Switch Interrogation Reports, 1953-54
    • Records of the RECAP-K Program
      • Case Files of Returned, Exchanged, and Recaptured American Personnel, 1953-54
      • Records Relating to the Ad Hoc Board for Review of Sentences in RECAP-K Cases (RECAP-K Program), 1956-58
      • Records Pertaining to U.S. Army Personnel Who Refused Repatriation in Korea ("Voluntary Non-Repatriates, 1955-57)
      • General Records, 1953-55
      • Department of the Army Directives, 1954-57
      • Records Relating to the Prosecution of Korean War POWs, 1954-58
      • Final Report of the Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff, G-2 (Intelligence) Regarding Phase II of the RECAP-K Program, September 1954
  • RG 218 - Records of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff
    • Central Correspondence, ("Decimal File"), 1942-63
    • Geographic Correspondence ("Geographic File"), 1942-58
    • Messages Relating to Operations in the Far East, May 29, 1950-July 31, 1973
  • RG 319 - Records of the Army Staff
    • Records of the Army Chief of Staff
      • General Correspondence (Decimal File), 1948-62
      • Security Classified Index to the Decimal File, 1948-62
      • Top Secret Decimal Files Indexes, 1948-62
      • Top Secret Registers, 1951-62
    • Records of the Assistant Chief of Staff for Personnel (G-1)
      • General Correspondence (Decimal File), 1949-54
    • Records of the Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence (G-2)
      • G-2 Decimal File
        • Top Secret Decimal Correspondence File, 1942-62
        • Secret Decimal Correspondence File, 1953-64
        • Decimal Correspondence File, 1941-64
      • G-2 Decimal File Indexes
        • Cross-Reference Sheets to Army Intelligence Project Decimal File, 1941-45
        • Cross-Reference Sheets to Army Intelligence Project Decimal File, 1941-45 [Security Classified]
        • Cross-Reference Sheets to Army Intelligence Decimal File, 1941-48
        • Cross-Reference Sheets to Army Intelligence Decimal File, 1949-50
        • Cross-Reference Card Subject Index to the Project Decimal Files, 1953-56
        • Cross-Reference Card Subject Index to the Decimal File, 1953-56
      • Other Records
        • Numerical Series of Intelligence Documents ("ID" File), ca. 1938-62
          • Subseries: Intelligence Document File; Publications ("950000" File), 1947-62
          • Item: Publication 950774: RECAP-K
        • Retired Records Group, 1940-65
        • Counterintelligence Files, Korea, 1950-58
    • Records of the Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations (G-3)
      • Security Classified Correspondence ["Decimal File"], 1950-55
      • Subject Indexes to Security Classified and Top Secret Correspondence, 1950-55
      • Korean Armistice Negotiations Files, 1951-58
  • RG 330 - Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense
    • General Correspondence Files and Indexes
      • Formerly Security Classified General Correspondence, 1947-54
      • Unclassified General Correspondence, 1947-54
      • Card and Slip Indexes to Formerly Security Classified General Correspondence, 1947-54
      • Indexes to Unclassified General Correspondence, 1947-53
    • Records of the Defense Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Office
      • Copies of Records Relating to Korean War POW/MIAs, 1951-58
      • Records of Task Force Russia and the Joint Commission Support Directorate Relating to Work of the U.S.-Russian Joint Commission on POW/MIAs
        • Reports and Verbatim Translations Prepared for the U.S.-Russian Joint Commission on POW/MIAs, July 17, 1992-May 1995
    • Records of the Office of Public Information
      • Press Releases Relating to Korean War Casualties, June 29, 1950-September 13, 1953
      • Microfilm Copy of Press Releases and Other Records Relating to Korean War Casualties, [August 28,] 1950-[September 13,] 1953
  • RG 333 - Records of International Military Agencies
    • Records of the United Nations Command
      • Korean Armistice Agreement Documents [Maintained by the United Nations Command, Advance], July 1953
      • Korean Armistice Negotiations Records [Maintained by the United Nations Command Secretariat of the Military Armistice Commission], June 1951-July 1953
      • Minutes of Meetings [Number 1 through 55] of [Military Armistice Conference] Subdelegates for Agenda Item 4 on Prisoners of war, December 11, 1951-February 6, 1952
      • Minutes of Meetings of the Military Armistice Commission, July 28, 1953-February 13, 1981
      • Armistice Implementation Records, 1951-57
      • [Microfilmed Records of] United Nations Command Korean Armistice Negotiations, 1951-53
      • General Administrative File [of the Logistics and Liaison Division of the United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission], June 1953-June 1957
      • Administrative Decimal File [of the United Nations Command Repatriation Group Adjutant General], September 1, 1953-February 1954
    • Records of the United Nations Command, Adjutant General Section General Administrative File, 1951-55
  • RG 335 - Records of the Office of the Secretary of the Army
    • General Correspondence Files and Indexes
      • General Correspondence, July 1947-December 1964
      • Security Classified General Correspondence, July 1947-December 1964
      • Cross-Reference Sheets to the Correspondence of the Office of the Secretary of the Army, 1947-64
      • Top Secret Cross-Reference Sheets for Security Classified General Correspondence, 1953-62
      • Cross-Reference Sheets to Security Classified General Correspondence, 1947-64
  • RG 338 - Records of U.S. Army Commands, 1942-
    • Records of Headquarters, Far East Command, Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, and the United Nations Command
    • Records of the Adjutant General Section, Operations Division
      • General Correspondence, 1949-52
      • Secret General Correspondence, 1947-52
    • Records of Headquarters, U.S. Army Forces, Far East
    • Records of the Adjutant General Section
      • General Correspondence, 1952-57
      • Registers of Unclassified General Correspondence, 1953-55
    • Records of the Casualty Division, Adjutant General Section
      • Affidavits and Related Records Pertaining to Former Prisoners of War, 1950-53
      • Transcripts and Related Records Pertaining to Radio Peking Broadcasts Made by U.S. Prisoners of War, 1951-53
      • Returnee Reports of Personnel Returned to Military Control in Operation Little Switch ("Exchange Processing Orders"), 1953
      • Interrogation Reports of Personnel Returned to Military Control in Operation Little Switch ("Exchange Processing Orders"), 1953
      • Communist Prisoner of War Rosters, 1951-53
      • Roster and Related Records Pertaining to Personnel Missing in Action, 1951-54
      • Korean War Casualty Rosters, 1953
      • Rosters and Related Records Pertaining to Personnel Missing in Action, 1951-54
      • After-Action Report and Daily Logs of the Repatriated Personnel Processing Team, [ca. Aug.-Sept. 1953]
      • Correspondence of the Casualty Division Relating to Department of the Army Reports of Death, 1951-53
      • Correspondence of the Casualty Division Relating to Returned Personnel Casualty Questionnaires, 1953-54
      • Incoming and Outgoing Radio Messages of the Casualty Division, 1950-53
      • General Correspondence of the Casualty Division, 1950-54
      • General Records of the Casualty Division, 1950-54
    • Records of the Provost Marshal Section
      • Change of Casualty Status Reports Relating to U.S. and U.N. Military Personnel Held as Prisoners of War, 1950-52
      • Miscellaneous Records of the Prisoner of War Division, 1951-54
      • United Nations Command and Far East Command Prisoner of War Rosters, 1950-51
    • Records of the Judge Advocate Section
      • Case Files of the War Crimes Branch, 1951-ca. 1953
    • Records of the U.S. Army, Pacific
      • Military History Office
        • Organizational History Files, 1956-73
        • Classified Organizational History Files
    • Records of U.S. Army Forces Strike Command
      • 22d U.S. Army Prisoner of War/Civilian Internee Information Center
        • Unclassified Records, ca. 1930-ca. 1976
        • "Confidential" Records, ca. 1944-ca. 1973
        • "Secret" Records, ca. 1950-ca. 1975
  • RG 340 - Records of the Office of the Secretary of the Air Force
    • Security Classified General Correspondence (Decimal Files), 1947-54
  • RG 341 - Records of Headquarters U.S. Air Force (Air Staff)
    • Records of the Deputy Chief of Staff, Operations-Office of the Director of Plans
    • Formerly Top Secret Decimal Correspondence File, 1942-54
      • Decimal File (Formerly Top Secret Decimal Correspondence File), 1942-54
      • Project Decimal File (Formerly Top Secret Decimal Correspondence), 1942-54
    • Formerly Secret Decimal Correspondence File, 1942-54
      • Central Decimal Files [Formerly Top Secret Decimal Correspondence File), 1942-54
    • Records of the Deputy Chief of Staff, Operations-Office of the Director of Intelligence
      • Air Intelligence Reports, 1942-53
    • Records of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel
      • Directorate of Military Personnel-Promotions and Separations Division
        • Records Relating to Air Force Prisoners of War from the Korean
             Conflict (POW Projects), 1954-56
    • Records of the Deputy Chief of Staff, Materiel
      • Mortuary and Graves Registration Branch
        • Case Files (Korean Conflict), 1950-55
        • Case Files, 1949-53
        • Korean and Personal Effects Files, 1954
        • [Records Relating to] Current Deaths, 1954-56
        • Case Files (Korean Conflict), 1950-56
        • Records Relating to Group Burials, Crash Files, and Floods, 1949-53
    • Records Relating to Project Wringer
      • Reports of Interrogations (Wringer Reports), 1949-55
  • RG 342 - Records of U.S. Air Force Commands, Activities, and Organizations
    • Records of the Engineering Division, Materiel Command, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio
      • Research and Development Project Files: 5th Air Force Interrogation Reports, 1951
    • Mission Reports
      • Mission Reports of U.S. Air Force Units During the Korean War Era, 1950-52
      • 5th Air Force Mission Reports, ca. August 25, 1950-March 18, 1952
  • RG 349 - Records of Joint Commands
    • Records of the Far East Command
      • Intelligence Division (J-2) Decimal Correspondence File, 1953-54
  • RG 389 - Records of the Office of the Provost Marshal General, 1941-
    • OPMG Correspondence
      • General Correspondence, 1955-62
    • Records of the Prisoner of War Division
      • Security Classified General Correspondence, 1942-57
  • RG 407 - Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1917-
    • The Adjutant General (AG) Central Decimal File, 1940-62
    • Organization of the AG Central Decimal File
    • AG Central Decimal File
      • Army AG Decimal File, 1940-54
      • General Correspondence, 1955-62
      • Army AG Top Secret Central Decimal File, 1946-54
      • Army AG Classified Decimal File, 1948-54
      • Classified Central General Administrative Files, 1955-62
    • AG Central Decimal File Indexes
      • Microfilmed AGO [Adjutant General's Office] Central Files Cross Indexes, 1940-45
      • Army AG Central Decimal Files Cross-Reference Sheets, 1946-54
      • Microfilmed Cross Index Sheets to Classified AGO Central Files, June 1941-December 1947
      • Army AG Central Decimal Files Cross-Reference Sheets, 1948-54
    • Records of the Legislative and Precedent Branch
      • Legislative and Policy Precedent Files, 1943-76
      • Subject Index to Legislative and Policy Precedent File, 1943-75
    • Other Records
      • Adjutant General Command Reports, 1949-54
        • Army-AG Command Reports, 1949-54
        • U.S. Army-Far East [Command Reports, ca. August 1953-December 1954]
        • Army-AG Command Reports, 1949-54 [January 1951-November 1954]
        • Card Index to Command Reports File, 1949-54
    • Donated Records
      • Records of the American Red Cross, National Headquarters
        • Records of the American National Red Cross [General Correspondence], 1947-64
        • Records of the American National Red Cross [General Correspondence], 1965-79

Part III

Electronic Records Relating to Korean War And Cold War Prisoners of War and Missing-In-Action Personnel

Part IV

Electronic Records Relating to Korean War And Cold War Prisoners Of War And Missing-In-Action Personnel

Part V

Still Picture Records Relating to Korean War and Cold War Prisoners of War and Missing-In-Action Personnel

  • RG 80 - General Records of the Department of the Navy, 1798-1947
    • General Photographic File of the Department of the Navy, 1900-58 (80 G)
    • Index to the General Photographic File of the Department of the Navy, 1900-58 (80 GG)
  • RG 111 - Records of the Office of the Chief Signal Officer
    • Color Photographs of Signal Corps Activity, 1944-82 (111 C)
    • Index to U.S. Army Signal Corps Color Photographs Relating to American Military Activity, ca. 1942-ca. 1983 (111 CX)
    • Color Print Subject File, 1944-54 (111 CPF)
    • Signal Corps Photographs of American Military Activity, ca. 1900-ca. 1981 (111 SC)
    • Index to U.S. Army Signal Corps Black and White Photographs in Series 111 SC, ca. 1900-ca. 1981 (111 SCY)
    • U.S. Army Signal Corps Photographs of Military Activity During WWII, Korea, and Vietnam, 1941-81 (111 SCA)
  • RG 127 - Records of the U.S. Marine Corps
    • Photographs of Marine Corps Activities in Korea, 1950-58 (127 GK)
    • General Photograph File of the U.S. Marine Corps, 1927-81 (127 N)
    • Indexes to Photographs of Marine Corps and Noted Civilian Personalities, 1927-81 (127 PX)
  • RG 306 - Records of the U.S. Information Agency
    • Master File Photographs of U.S. and Foreign Personalities, World Events, and American Economic, Social, and Cultural Life, 1948-83 (306 PS, PSA, PSB, PSC, PSD, PSE)
    • Subject Indexes to Master File Photographs of U.S. and Foreign Personalities, World Events, and American Economic, Social, and Cultural Life, 1948-83 (306 X)
  • RG 319 - Records of the Army Staff
    • Miscellaneous Activities of the U.S. Army, 1940-66 (319 SF)
    • Aerial and Panoramic Photographs of Various Countries and the United States, 1942-64 (319 CE)
  • RG 342 - Records of U.S. Air Force Commands, Activities, and Organizations
    • Photographs of U.S. Air Force Occupation of Japan and Germany, 1945-62 (G, J)
    • Index to Photographs of the U.S. Air Force Occupation of Japan and Germany, 1945-62 (342 GJX)
    • Photographs of U.S. Air Force Activities, Facilities, and Personnel, Domestic and Foreign, 1954-80 (342 B)
  • RG 428 - General Records of the Department of the Navy, 1947-
    • General Photographic Files of the Department of the Navy, 1958-81 (428 N, K, KN)
    • Vis-Aid Index to the General Photographic File of the Department of the Navy, 1958-81 (428 GX)
    • Vis-Aid Index to Photographs of U.S. Navy Activities, 1957-64 (428 GXA)

Appendix A: Box and File List, Office of Naval Intelligence, Operations Section (POW Desk), Operations Section Files, 1949-54

Appendix B: List of Navy and Marine Corps Personnel Represented in Case Files of American Prisoners of War During the Korean War, 1952-56

Appendix C: Box List for Aircraft Incidents Files (Sam Klaus Files), 1944-62 (Lot File 64D551)

Appendix D: Box and File List for Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs, Office of East Asian Affairs, Central Files, 1958-63 (Boxes 157-161) (Lot Files 63D168, 65D93, 65D235, 66D224, 66D245)

Appendix E: List of Code Terms Utilized During the Early Cold War Years By U.S. Military Forces in Reporting Casualties

Appendix F: Deceased Military Personnel Case Files Maintained by the U.S. Army

Appendix G: Microfilmed Records Cited

Index


Back to Page Contents

PREFACE

This reference information covering Records Relating to American Prisoners of War and Missing-in-Action Personnel from the Korean War and During the Cold War Era is the latest in a series that was begun by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) more than fifty years ago.  The papers are part of a program that helps people inspect for themselves the record of what government has done and hold officials accountable for those actions.  The format and style of papers like this one have varied over the years, but they generally consist of an introduction that places the topic in the context of Federal recordkeeping, followed by sections that describe and discuss specific pertinent records.

NARA's descriptive program comprises a variety of information products.  These include inventories, lists, guides, and reference information papers that, increasingly, are being made available to researchers in electronic as well as paper-based formats.  Information products of particular interest to users of this reference information paper include: Records Relating to Personal Participation in World War II: American Prisoners of War and Civilian Internees (Reference Information Paper 80, 1992) and Records Relating to American Prisoners of War and Missing in Action from the Vietnam Era, 1960-1994 (Reference Information Paper 90, 1996).  A comprehensive source of information about the archival holdings of NARA is the Guide to Federal Records in the National Archives of the United States.  The text of that guide can be browsed electronically by accessing NARA's website at http://www.nara.gov.  Other online resources available at this URL include the NARA Archival Information Locator, a pilot database of descriptions of selected holdings.  The database includes, in particular, citations to many audiovisual resources relating to the topic of prisoners of war.

NARA's mission is to ensure ready access to the essential evidence that documents the rights of American citizens, the actions of Federal officials, and the national experience.  We hope that all of our information products will help citizens to more easily use the resources held in trust for them, and we welcome suggestions for ways to enhance our services.

John Carlin, Archivist of the United States

 

Please Note

During preparation of this publication for printing, NARA staff members declassified a U.S. Air Force intelligence report dated October 19, 1955, concerning Korean War "USAF Personnel Possibly Alive in Communist Captivity."  The report, compiled by the Escape and Evasion Section of the 6004th Air Intelligence Service Squadron, lists 137 Air Force personnel who, as of August 1, 1955, "may [have been] alive in communist prison camps," or who may have been alive in captivity at one time.  The compilers culled information from missing-in-captivity files and intelligence reports (including repatriated prisoner-of-war interrogation summaries) to "establish a basis for further analysis and study of any additional information on detainees that may be received in the future."  The report lists personnel alphabetically.  Information for each individual represented usually included name; rank; serial number; date missing; narrative summary focusing on circumstances of last combat action and/or sightings in captivity; and citations to documentary sources of information.  The report bears Air Force Intelligence Report number AF 703569 and was accessioned by the Office of the National Archives under job number NN341-96-001 (records center accession number 341-60A-1047, box 9).  It was declassified under authority of Presidential Executive Order 12958, Section 3.4 on June 5, 1997.  As Reference Information Paper 102 went to press, the report had not been organized as part of a permanent series.  However, a comparison of the report number (structure, sequencing, chronological occurrence) with other documents in the existing Record Group 341 series titled air intelligence reports, 1942-53, suggests the likelihood that it will be processed either as part of an accretion of documents to that series or as part of another similarly titled series.


Back to Page Contents

Part I

Introduction

SCOPE OF THE PAPER

I.1   This reference information paper provides descriptions of over 190 series of textual, electronic, still picture, motion picture, ad sound recording records that provide information about American prisoners of war and servicemen listed as missing in action from the Korean War and the Cold War era (excluding the Vietnam War).  Descriptive entries in this paper focus on accessioned records that were housed in the Washington, DC, area archival facilities of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) as of September 1, 1995.  There are two exceptions.  Records of the Cartographic and Architectural Branch accessioned prior to that date include no specific documentation of Korean War/Cold War POW or prison camps.  Consequently, this paper does not describe holdings of that branch.  Coverage is also generally limited to accessioned records over which the Office of the National Archives had achieved adequate intellectual control as of September 1, 1995.  For that reason, unarranged textual records of the U.S. 8th Army and the Korean Communications Zone (located in Record Group 338) are not covered in this paper.

I.2   For purposes of establishing the subject scope of this reference information paper, the years of the Cold War era were loosely defined as 1945 to 1991 (from the end of World War II through the dissolution of the Soviet Union into the Commonwealth of Independent States).  In addition, the compiler of this paper has defined Cold War prisoners and missing individuals as those U.S. servicemen or U.S. employed paramilitary personnel who were seized or detained by a Communist country as the result of an aircraft incident ("shoot down"), invasion attempt, or action at sea.  This definition includes American military personnel about whom the U.S. Government had acquired evidence suggesting capture or detention by a Communist country.  Thus, this paper covers records that relate to Cold War topics such as military aircraft "shoot downs" involving the U.S. and a Communist country, the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion, and North Korea's seizure and detention of the U.S.S. Pueblo and its crew in 1968.

I.3   The bulk of this paper, however, focuses on the description of records that provide information about historically significant POW/MIA issues that arose during the active combat phase of the Korean War (June 25, 1950-July 27, 1953).  Some of these issues extend to the role played by the People's Republic of China in detaining American servicemen during and after that conflict.  In order to define a manageable scope for this paper, the compiler has narrowed descriptive coverage to encompass only significant records series, data files, or items that pertain to American POWs and missing-in-action personnel.  Consequently, this paper does not include descriptions of records that would provide information about Communist POWs held by the United Nations Command during the Korean War.

I.4   As noted above, descriptive coverage is limited, generally, to pertinent records accessioned by the Office of the National Archives as of September 1, 1995.  For information on records accessioned since then, researchers should contact the Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park.

I.5   This paper is the fourth in a series of NARA reference information papers that describe significant records relating, directly or indirectly, to American servicemen listed as prisoners of war or as missing in action from World War II to the present.  Records Relating to Personal Participation in World War II: American Prisoners of War and Civilian Internees, Reference Information Paper 80, compiled by Ben DeWhitt and Jennifer Davis Heaps (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1992), and Records Relating to Personal Participation in World War II: American Military Casualties and Burials, Reference Information Paper 82, compiled by Benjamin L. DeWhitt (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1993), immediately precede this reference information paper in topical coverage.  Federal records relating to Vietnam War era POW/MIA issues are described in Records Relating to American Prisoners of War and Missing in Action from the Vietnam War, 1960-1994, Reference Information Paper 90, compiled by Charles E. Schamel (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1996).

I.6   A fifth reference information paper, currently in preparation, will survey Presidential Library records that relate to Korean War, Vietnam War, and Cold War POW/MIA topics.

Back to Page Contents

OVERVIEW OF THE ISSUES

I.7   The Federal Government generated a massive amount of paperwork in the course of addressing various Cold War and Korean War POW/MIA issues.  These issues directly or indirectly affected thousands of individuals.  In 1955, for example, the Army estimated that 7,190 U.S. servicemen (6,656 Army, 263 Air Force, 231 Marine Corps, and 40 Navy military personnel) had been captured by Communist forces during the Korean War. [1]

[Footnote 1 - Paul M. Cole, POW/MIA Issues: Volume 1, The Korean War (Santa Monica, CA: RAND, 1994), p. 37 (Table 2.8).]

On December 31, 1953, The Department of Defense listed the American "MIA total" from that conflict at 13,325 servicemen, including 5,140 "dead or presumed dead," 5,131 known to have "returned to military control," 101 carried as "current captured" personnel, and 2,953 reported as "current[ly] missing. [2]

[Footnote 2 - Cole, POW/MIA Issues: Volume 1, The Korean War, p. 17 (Table 2.3).  In citing casualty statistics concerning the Korean War, Cole notes that the "casualty data have always been dynamic.  During the war, casualty data changed as casualties increased, as ambiguous losses were resolved, and as information about the missing was collected and assessed.  What is often left, however, is the development of final reports, graphs, and figures.  Since the process of reshaping casualty data continued long after the end of hostilities, one should be cautious when comparing one set of casualty statistics from one year prepared by one organization with another set prepared years before or later by a different agency.  In many instances, there is no historical record of the process by which data were processed.  During and after the Korean War, hundreds of American [body not recovered' cases were progressively reclassified as many as four or five times, depending on how much information was acquired over time."]

The number of U.S. servicemen who were or may have been detained by Communist countries as the result of various Cold War incidents remains to be determined, but Department of Defense figures for one category are available.  Between 1946 and 1977, 40 American aircraft on military or intelligence missions were shot down by the military forces of Communist countries.  A total of 364 crew members were on board these aircraft, of whom 187 were recovered alive, 34 others were recovered deceased, 8 others who are known to have died were not recovered, and 135 crew members were listed as "fate unknown." [3]

[Footnote 3 - Paul M. Cole, POW/MIA Issues: Volume 2, World War II and the Early Cold War (Santa Monica, CA: RAND, 1994), p. 36 (Table 2.1).  Cole's statistics on U.S. prisoners of war held by the Soviet Union following World War II contrast sharply with those presented by Jim Sanders, Mark Sauter, and R. Cort Kirkwood in Soldiers of Misfortune: Washington's Secret Betrayal of American POWs in the Soviet Union (Washington, DC: National Press Books, 1992).]

If the immediate family members who shared emotionally in the fate or welfare of these servicemen are also considered, the number of Americans affected by the status of Korean War and Cold War prisoners of war, detainees, and missing personnel grows significantly.

I.8   The numbers were one among many important POW/MIA issues that confronted government officials during the Korean War and throughout the extended Cold War era.  In the first year of the Korean War, for example, the Army heard reports of "death marches" and war crimes perpetrated by North Korean military forces on captured soldiers of the United Nations Command.  These reports would be the subject of an extensive U.S. Army "war crimes" investigation program that operated between 1950 and 1954.  On July 10, 1951, military negotiators representing Communist forces and the United Nations Command initiated Military Armistice Conference meetings at Kaesong, Korea, to discuss terms of an armistice.  But for nearly two years thereafter, discussions bogged down over disagreements concerning terms of prisoner-of-war repatriation procedures and over discrepancies in Korean War POW lists produced by the two sides. [4]

[Footnote 4 - James T. Patterson, Grand Expectations: The United States, 1945-1974 (New York: Oxford University Press, 1996), p. 232-234.  See also the bibliographical essay (p. 798) for a short but useful list of general military and diplomatic studies pertaining to the Korean War.  The armistice negotiations are treated in Walter G. Hermes, Truce Tent and Fighting Front, The U.S. Army in the Korean War (Washington, DC: Office of the Chief of Military History, United States Army, 1966).]

And, as in no other previous conflict, the Korean War also demonstrated that prisoners of war could be exploited for political and diplomatic purposes.  Repatriated American POWs reported examples of systematic Communist political indoctrination, physical deprivation and terror, or psychological manipulation, all of which were utilized to achieve POW reduction, force a war crimes confession, or solicit a public denunciation by the POW of his country's war policies and actions.  At the end of the conflict, 21 American POW servicemen ("voluntary non-repatriates") elected to reside in the People's Republic of China.  Many other repatriated American POWs were prosecuted by U.S. military authorities for war crimes or collaboration.  These prosecutions took place even as many U.S. policymakers argued that future U.S. prisoners of war would need a more flexible standard of resistance to guide their conduct in a changed, more hostile POW environment characterized by systematic pressure, relentless hardship, and calculated deprivation. [5]

[Footnote 5: That "standard of resistance" was discussed at length within the Department of Defense after the Korean War.  The end result was incorporated in the Code of Conduct for Members of the United States Armed Forces, issued as Executive Order 10631 by the President on August 17, 1955.  Thereafter, Code of Conduct training became a prominent feature of basic training for all military personnel entering on duty in the armed forces of the United States.]

I.9   Ambiguity seems to have been the most significant problem faced by government officials who wrestled with various POW issues that arose as the result of a Cold War incident.  An American pilot shot down and captured by a Communist country during the Cold War years might not be treated as a prisoner of war.  Rather, he might be viewed as a spy or war criminal, tried on charges ranging from espionage to bacteriological warfare, and, if convicted, sentenced to prison.  The status of American prisoners, of course, often reflected sharp differences between the United States and a Communist country concerning what the captive was doing (reconnaissance activities or spying?) and where he was captured (in international airspace or waters or within a country's boundaries?).  Captured U.S. citizens who held dual citizenship in a second country (particularly a Communist country), or who were naturalized American citizens born in a Communist country, might not even be recognized as U.S. citizens.  There were, in short, few guarantees that American military personnel captured by a Communist country as the result of a Cold War incident would be held and repatriated as prisoners of war.

I.10   These ambiguities operated less freely during the Korean War.  Agenda item 4 of the Military Armistice Conference meetings focused specifically on prisoner-of-war issues and status definitions.  After nearly two years of vexing and contentious discussion, conference delegates agreed to the formal exchange of POWs.  Phase one of the exchange involved the repatriation of sick and wounded prisoners of war.  The return of 684 United Nations Command POWs (149 Americans) occurred between April 19 and 26, 1953, and was known as Operation Little Switch.  The phase two return of an additional 12,760 United Nations Command POWs (3,597 Americans) during Operation Big Switch took place between August 5 and September 6, 1953. [6]

[Footnote 6 - Cole, POW/MIA Issues: Volume 1, The Korean War, pp. 74-78.  The code names provided to the two-phase return of Communist POWs by the United Nations Command were Operation Little Swaps (coinciding with Little Switch) and Big Swap (coinciding with Big Switch.)]

Finally, in the fall of 1954, North Korea honored its agreement to return the remains of 4,023 United Nations personnel (1,868 Americans) during Operation Glory. [7]

[Footnote 7 - Cole, POW/MIA Issues: Volume 1, The Korean War, pp. 68-74]

This reference information paper describes several records series that were created as the result of these three POW and remains repatriation operations.  (See the index under name of operation.)

I.11   Most repatriated American POWs from the Korean War were interrogated by military intelligence specialists working for the Army-administered RECAP-K program (ca. 1953-ca. 1969).  RECAP-K was an acronym for "Returned or Exchanged Captured American Personnel-Korea."  The program prescribed procedures for the administrative processing and intelligence debriefing of returned or repatriated American POWs (Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force) from the Korean War.  There were four types ("phases") of RECAP-K interrogations.  Phase I focused on the POW's personal history and the general categories of information that he had acquired in captivity.  Phase II was oriented toward gathering information that might be of security or counterintelligence value.  Phases III and IV were detailed intelligence information interviews of POWs who had acquired knowledge about various topics that government agencies had identified as of importance to their interests.  The resulting interrogation summaries provided abundant firsthand testimony concerning the POW's capture, confinement, and treatment.  The interviewers were particularly interested in gathering information about POW resistance to enemy interrogation and indoctrination, POW camp organization and staffing, successful "escape and evasion" tactics, instances of POW collaboration with the enemy, enemy war crimes, and "live sightings" or reliable information concerning unaccounted for POW/MIA servicemen.  They were also interested in tactical and strategic military intelligence (enemy military units and troop strength, tactical movements and battle plans, military and industrial facilities and installations, transportation, etc.).  NARA's fragmentary holdings of RECAP-K interview summaries, intelligence reports, and administrative procedures are located in several records series described in this reference information paper.  (See index under "RECAP-K Program.")

I.12   Throughout most of the Cold War era, the Army also administered RECAP-WW ("Returned or Exchanged Captured American Personnel--World-Wide") for the purpose of gathering intelligence about detained military personnel in Communist countries such as the Soviet Union, East Germany, and the People's Republic of China.  NARA records include some policy and procedure records pertaining to the RECAP-WW program (see index under "RECAP-WW Program"), but, again, these holdings are minimal. [8]

[Footnote 8 - More information on RECAP-K and RECAP-WW can be found in Cole, POW/MIA Issues: Volume 1, The Korean War, pp. 88-92.]

I.13   Between 1949 and 1955, the Air Force conducted Project Wringer as a program of intelligence debriefings and analysis for the purpose of gathering information about strategic targets in the Soviet Union, eastern European countries, and in the Far East.  Project Wringer interrogators relied heavily upon the testimony of prisoners of war and other detainees who were repatriated or escaped from areas under Soviet control.  For that reason, some of the resulting reports of interrogations (Wringer reports), 1949-55 (paragraph II.137), provide information about detention camps and conditions in Communist countries.

Back to Page Contents

PREVIEW OF PERTINENT RECORDS

I.14   The records described in the five parts of this paper are arranged in numbered record groups, where each record group covers the records of a major government unit, such as an agency or bureau.  Within each record group, the basic archival unit of control is the series, which is a body of records arranged according to a filing system or logically kept together for some other reason (for example, the records may relate to a particular subject or function, result from the same activity, document a specific kind of transaction, take a particular physical form, or have some other relationship arising out of their creation, receipt, or use).

I.15   The choice of appropriate series for inclusion in this reference information paper tends to reflect the compiler's preference for records that contain information about the lives, experiences, and observations of specific prisoners of war.  The compiler has also attempted to locate and describe important series that convey significant historical and biographical details concerning the fate of missing-in-action personnel.  Some of the most important records are listed and briefly described below.  The series are listed according to record category, thereunder by record group number, and then by series title.  Series titles are followed by citations to numbered paragraph descriptions in the main body of this paper.  This short series list should also provide good starting points for beginning researchers.

CASE FILES (KOREAN WAR AND COLD WAR POWs/MIAs)

RG 24 - casualty notification case files for Korean War and post-Korean War era Navy POWs/MIAs, 1950-56 (paragraph II.2).  Includes casualty reports, sighting reports, broadcast message transcripts.

RG 38 - case files of American prisoners of war during the Korean War, 1952-56 (paragraphs II.6-II.7).  Summaries of RECAP-K Korean War POW interrogations (Phases I, II, and III); Navy and Marine Corps, but some Army personnel as well.

RG 59 - aircraft incidents files (Sam Klaus files), 1944-62 (paragraphs II.19-II.21).  Witness statements, maps, charts, autopsy reports, photographs, and other records relating to various Cold War aircraft incidents.

CASE FILES (KOREAN WAR CRIMES)

RG 153 - Korean War crimes case files (investigations of atrocities against POWs in Korea), 1952-54 (paragraph II.37).  Detailed documentation (case summary sheets, witness statements, supporting papers) of reported atrocities committed by Communist forces on United Nations Command servicemen during the Korean War.

RG 153 - case files of returned, exchanged, and recaptured American personnel, 1953-54 (paragraph II.40).  RECAP-K program records documenting prosecution of repatriated Army POWs on various charges.

RG 338 - Records of Headquarters, U.S. Army Forces, Far East (USAFFE), Judge Advocate Section case files of the War Crimes Branch, 1951-ca. 1953 (paragraph II.122).  Korean War POW interrogation summaries, lists of U.S. military personnel mentioned as atrocity victims in POW testimony and in affidavits.

CASE FILES (KOREAN WAR AND COLD WAR CASUALTY REMAINS)

RG 92 - Individual deceased personnel files, 1939-54 (Appendix F).  department of the Army servicemen's remains case files pertaining to the disposition of recovered remains and to the search for remains (whether recovered or unrecovered).  Permission to access must be requested from the Department of the Army.

RG 341 - Records of the Deputy Chief of Staff, Materiel, Mortuary and Graves Registration Branch (paragraph II.136).  Remains and autopsy reports pertaining to Air Force POWs/MIAs from the Korean War; official findings relating to unaccounted for POWs/MIAs and to personnel involved in Cold War aircraft incidents.

CONTEMPORARY CASUALTY REPORTS

RG 330 - press releases relating to Korean War casualties, June 29, 1950-September 13, 1953 (paragraphs II.82-II.83).  Basic identifying information about POWs/MIAs.

RG 407 - [U.S. Army] Korean War Casualty File (TAGOKOR) (paragraphs III.19-III.21).  Computer-readable records of Army casualties (including POWs/MIAs), 1950-53.

DIPLOMATIC CORRESPONDENCE
(Including Korean War Military Armistice Conference Negotiation Records)

RG 59 - "Black Book" on cease-fire, December 12, 1950-December 25, 1952 (paragraph II.24).  Documents that focus on POW repatriation issues discussed at the Military Armistice Conference negotiations.

RG 59 - sound recordings relating to Military Armistice Commission meetings convened to discuss repatriation of the U.S.S. Pueblo and its crew, January 24, 1968-December 23, 1968 (paragraph IV.5).  Recordings of meetings convened by U.S. and North Korean representatives.

RG 329 - Korean armistice negotiations files, 1951-58 (paragraphs II.72).  Proceedings and meeting minutes, and correspondence of Military Armistice Conference (MAC) staff officers, liaison representatives, and conference agenda item 4 (POW repatriations) subdelegations.  Some of the proceedings include lists of unaccounted for POWs/MIAs.

RG 333 - Records of the United Nations Command (paragraphs II.84-II.89).  Documentation of the work of the Korean War Military Armistice Conference (MAC).

Diplomatic correspondence is also found in RG 59 Department of State decimal file, 1945-63, described under Large Series (below).

FIRSTHAND ACCOUNTS

RG 111 - unedited black and white historical film footage, 1941-53 (111 ADC) (paragraph IV.6).  Interviews of repatriated Korean War POWs; silent footage of other POWs from that conflict.

RG 111 - unedited black and white and color documentary film footage, 1953-80 (111 LC) (paragraph IV.8).  Interviews of repatriated Korean War POWs (Operations Little Switch and Big Switch); silent footage of other POWs from that conflict, and of repatriated U.S.S. Pueblo crew in December 1968.

RG 153 - Operation Big Switch interrogation reports, 1953-54 (paragraph II.39).  Debriefing testimony of American POWs from the Korean War.

RG 263 - sound recordings of live speeches or statements on monitored foreign broadcasts, with related records [transcripts], 1950-75 (paragraph IV.17).  Recordings of POWs from the conflicts in Korea and Vietnam, and of detained crew members from the U.S.S. Pueblo.

RG 319 - Item 950774: RECAP-K, "intelligence document file; publications ('950000' file), 1947-62" (paragraph II.64).  Phases II and III RECAP-K Korean War POW interrogation reports.

RG 335 - The Army Hour (paragraphs IV.21-IV.22).  Interviews with Korean War POWs.

RG 341 - air intelligence reports, 1942-53 (paragraph II.134a).  Debriefing testimony of repatriated Air Force POWs from the Korean War.

DONATED RECORDS

ABC Radio collection, 1943-79 (paragraph IV.29).  Two interviews with U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers.

Firsthand accounts are also found in the various Case Files sections (above) and the Lists and Rosters section (below).

LARGE SERIES

Some series, in accordance with the inclusive nature of their original function, incorporate a broad range of document categories (such as casualty remains records, firsthand accounts, formal studies and reports, lists and rosters, and diplomatic records) that pertain to Korean War/Cold War POWs/MIAs.  Examples of these large series are listed here.

RG 59 - Department of State decimal file, 1945-63 (paragraphs II.15-II.17).

RG 319 - Army Chief of Staff general correspondence (decimal file), 1948-62 (paragraphs II.49-II.51)

RG 319 - Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence (G-2), G-2 Decimal File (3 constituent series) (paragraphs II.54-II.59).

RG 319 - counterintelligence files, 1950-58 (paragraph II.66).

RG 319 - Assistant Chief of Staff, Operations (G-3) security classified correspondence [decimal file], 1950-55 (paragraphs II.67-II.68)

RG 333 - United Nations Command, Adjutant General general administrative file, 1951-55 (paragraph II.90)

RG 335 - Secretary of the Army general correspondence, July 1947-December 1964 and security classified general correspondence, July 1947-December 1964 (paragraphs II.92-II.96)

RG 407 - Adjutant General Central Decimal File, 1940-62 (paragraphs II.146-II.149e).

LISTS AND ROSTERS

Part III of this reference information paper describes records in electronic format from which casualty reports, such as POW/MIA lists and rosters, can be produced.  The following textual records series also contain lists of Korean War POWs, MIAs, and atrocity victims:

RG 24 - post-World War II casualty lists and related records, ca. 1950-57
(paragraph II.3).  Contemporary and retrospective lists of Navy and Marine Corps POWs/MIAs from the Korean War.

RG 338 - Records of Headquarters, Far East Command, Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, and the United Nations Command, Adjutant General Section, Operations Division general correspondence, 1949-52, and secret general correspondence, 1947-52 (paragraphs II.99-102), and Records of Headquarters, U.S. Army Forces, Far East (USAFFE)Adjutant General Section general correspondence, 1952-57 (paragraphs II.103-II.104).  Korean War POW lists, rosters, and interrogation reports; POW camp lists supplied by North Korea; reports relating to Communist treatment of POWs.

RG 338 - Records of the USAFFE Adjutant General Section (paragraphs II.106-II.121).  These 14 Casualty Division and 3 Provost Marshal series are probably the best and most complete sources for contemporary Korean War POW lists and rosters.  These series also include POW interrogation reports and affidavits.

VISUAL RECORDS

Part V of this reference information paper contains descriptions of several still picture series that include black and white and color photographs of identified individual Korean War POWs.  Two Air Force still picture series contain photographs of U.S. aircraft and crew members who were involved in Cold War "shoot down" incidents:

RG 342 - photographs of U.S. Air Force occupation of Japan and Germany, 1945-62 (342 G, J) (paragraph V.16)

RG 342 - photographs of U.S. Air Force activities, facilities, and personnel, domestic and foreign, 1954-80 (342 B) (paragraph V.17)

The following motion picture film series also provide visual images of prisoners of war from the Korean War and the Cold War era:

RG 127 - unedited black and white and color film, ca. 1920s-1980 (127 USMC) (paragraphs IV.11-IV.13).  Silent motion picture footage of repatriated Korean War POWs (1953).

RG 342 - unedited black and white and color film, ca. 1942-ca. 1981 (342 USAF) (paragraph IV.23).  Motion picture footage of Korean War POWs repatriated during Operation Little Switch; and scenes depicting the return (through Florida) of Cuban prisoners who participated in the Bay of Pigs invasion.

RG 428 - unedited color and black and white film, ca. 1941-ca. 1980 (428 NPC) (paragraphs IV.24-IV.25).  Motion picture footage with sound interviews of repatriated Korean War POWs; silent film footage of other POWs;; scenes of repatriated crew members of the U.S.S. Pueblo (December 1968).

Other significant motion picture film series that contain silent images of prisoners of war and detainees are identified under FIRSTHAND ACCOUNTS.  (See above.)

RECORDKEEPING PRACTICES

I.16   Government records pertaining to prisoners of war and missing-in-action personnel share two common characteristics.  First, many were created to serve a particular purpose at a specific time; and second, they were frequently relocated to various offices or agencies that were considering POW/MIA issues at given times.  Files that returned to an originating office were occasionally altered in format.  Sometimes the documents were also annotated or otherwise amended as agencies utilizes them for different purposes.  Some files never returned to the agency of origin.

I.17   In the years following the Korean War armistice agreement, the Army Adjutant General's Office was responsible for gathering evidence (much of it from other agencies such as the Army Quartermaster General and the FBI) to support rulings of death under terms of the Missing Persons Act in the cases of American servicemen who were still listed as "missing in action."  Thus, there are eyewitness accounts, fingerprint records, disinterment documentation, and investigative reports pertaining to Korean War MIA personnel in the unclassified Army AG decimal file, 1940-54 (paragraph II.149a) and the security classified Army AG classified decimal file, 1948-54 (paragraph II.149d).  Although many of these records were created by other Federal agencies, they "migrated" to Adjutant General custody because the AG had immediate post-combat responsibilities for fulfilling specific requirements of the Missing Persons Act.

I.18   Another example can be seen in the focus and movement of Korean War POW interrogation records.  As American POWs were repatriated during Operation Little Switch, United Nations Command authorities began to suspect that the Communist side was not returning all known POWs.  Consequently, the interrogation of returning POWs concentrated on knowledge that the interviewee might have about nonreturned POWs.  Such testimony was, of course, useful to United Nations Command negotiators at the Military Armistice Conference.  But it was also important to war crimes investigators and other Army staff who were responsible for determining the fate of unaccounted for POWs and MIA personnel.  For that reason, copies of many Operation Little Switch POW interrogation summaries appear in the textual records series of the War Crimes Branch, International Affairs Division, Record Group 153 (paragraphs II.35-II.39), and in the records of the Casualty Division, Adjutant General Section, U.S. Army Forces Far East, Record Group 338 (paragraphs II.106-II.118).

I.19    The largest records series described in this reference information paper tend to be agency or staff central correspondence ("decimal") files.  More specifically, many are large decimal file correspondence series created by various agency offices and staffs of the Army, Air Force, Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Department of Defense.  Descriptions for many of these decimal files series can be found in Part II under Record Groups 92, 218, 329, 330, 333, 335, 338, 340, 341, 342, 349, 389, and 407.

I.20   Researchers who use these large, military decimal correspondence series should understand how they are organized.  During the early Cold War era (to around 1963), many Army, Air Force, and Department of Defense command and staff offices utilized the War Department decimal file system to arrange their general correspondence files.  The War Department decimal filing manual prescribed a records filing system in which specific file numbers represented particular subject categories within the central office correspondence or decimal file.  Thus, War Department decimal file 383.6 relates to "Prisoners of War" and file number 704 to "Casualties, Wounded, and Wounds".  These are the two most important file number designations for POW/MIA records in the large, pre-1963 Army, Air Force, and Department of Defense general correspondence (decimal) files.  Other War Department decimal file numbers that are relevant to POW/MIA research are file 293 "Funerals, Burials and Reports," 314.6 "Death and Interment Records," and--for 1953-56 Army general correspondence files--311.51 "Code Names" (acronymed POW interrogation programs such as RECAP-K and RECAP-WW).  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains copies of the War Department Decimal Classification System Filing Manual.

I.21   For many of the War Department decimal file series, there are index sheets or cards, cross-reference sheets, and register lists that were maintained either as a section of the relevant decimal file or as separate series.  These finding aid series are also described in this paper.  They are usually arranged according to the system utilized in the general correspondence series to which they apply.  For researchers, indexes, cross-reference sheets, and register lists are useful because they identify documents that were once a part of the general correspondence by names of sender and recipient, date, subject matter, primary file location, and secondary file location.  Because the index and cross-reference sheets and registers denote a document's secondary file locations, they thereby suggest other War Department decimal file numbers that might contain records pertinent to POW/MIA research.

I.22   The Department of State decimal file, 1945-63 (also described in paragraphs II.15-II.16) is another example of a large series that utilizes decimal number filing schemes to arrange records by subject category.  The first scheme (utilized for decimal file records filed through the end of 1949) was supplanted by a second scheme (a major revision of the first) for records filed after 1949.  Each of these unique State Department filing schemes prescribed file numbers that--though different--were designed to organize decimal file records, according to broad diplomatic issues and subissues that became the topic of discussions, negotiations, or correspondence between two specific countries.

I.23   The following Department of State decimal file categories contain significant documentation of major topics covered by this reference information paper:

  • Files 611.61241 and 611.61251, 1950-63.  U.S. servicemen and civilians allegedly held or taken prisoner by the Soviet Union, or last seen or reported under Soviet control.
  • Files 611.93241 and 611.93251, 1950-63.  U.S. servicemen and civilians allegedly held or taken prisoner by the People's Republic of China, or last seen or reported under the control of Communist Chinese authorities.
  • File 611.95a241, 1950-63.  U.S. POWs (and some American civilians) from the Korean War held by Communist forces.  File includes some records on American voluntary non-repatriates.
  • File 761.5411, 1955-63.  Attacks by the Soviet Union on U.S. military aircraft.
  • File 793.5411, 1955-59.  Attacks by the People's Republic of China on U.S. military aircraft.

I.24   The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains copies of the State Department decimal file classification manuals.  The branch staff can also assist visiting researchers in identifying various useful indexes to the decimal file.

RESTRICTIONS ON ACCESS

I.25   Presidential Executive Order 12812 (July 22, 1922) and Presidential Decision Directive NSC-8 (1993) required Federal executive agencies (including NARA) to expedite declassification and release of POW/MIA documents in their custody.  NARA staff complied with E.O. 12812 and NSC-8 by locating and declassifying many of the records that are described in this paper.  But researchers should also understand that NARA continues to discover documents pertaining to Korean War and Cold War era POWs and MIA personnel within its security classified records holdings.  In other words, POW/MIA researchers should assume that NARA will continue to identify and review security-classified records that contain relevant information.

I.26   Record series that remained security classified as of September 1, 1995, are noted in the appropriate records descriptions.  Occasionally, there are relevant files within security-classified records series that have been declassified.  When applicable, that fact is noted in the records descriptions.  As declassification review of NARA records proceeds under Presidential Executive Order 12958 (April 17, 1995), many of the security-classified records described in this paper may be declassified.  In addition, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and E.O. 12958 define procedures by which researchers may request declassification of security-classified Federal agency records that pertain to their research.  For further information on these procedures, researchers should contact the Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park.

I.27   Many records series described in this paper contain information of a personal nature that relates to living individuals.  In these cases, specific records (or portions thereof) may be exempt from disclosure to researchers under provision B(6) of the FOIA.  Examples of information about living individuals that might be excluded from disclosure are social security number, detailed medical information, accounts of some incidents that occurred during captivity, and some photographs of individual prisoners.  When such restrictions are known to exist, they are clearly noted in the records descriptions of this paper.  But, for many records series described in this reference information paper, the applicability of FOIA exemptions must be decided on a case by case basis.  Researchers seeking further information about the relevance of FOIA exemptions to information in specific series should contact the Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park.

HOW TO USE THIS PAPER

I.28   The descriptive portions of this reference information paper are organized according to records format, as follows: introduction (Part I); textual records (Part II); electronic records (Part III); motion pictures and sound and video recordings (Part IV); and still pictures (Part V).  Within each part of the paper, records descriptions are organized by record group, thereunder usually by creating organization (staff, office, division, or branch), and thereunder by records series title.  In the case of motion picture, sound, and video records, some descriptions pertain to items.  The paper concludes with an appendixes section that consists of box and file or folder lists for four textual record series, a list of code terms used by U.S. military forces in reporting casualties during the early years of the Cold War era, a description of deceased military personnel case files maintained by the U.S. Army, and a list of microfilmed records cited in this reference information paper.  All paragraphs (excluding those in the appendixes section) have been numbered for indexing and cross-reference purposes.

I.29   Textual records descriptions (Part II) usually consist of the following elements: record group number and title; series title and date span (boldface, lowercase type font); linear measurement or item count; arrangement, structure, or organization statement; and records format and subject narrative.  Some series descriptions also include statements that identify access restrictions and finding aids.  Occasionally, series descriptions are preceded by short agency histories--when such background was readily available and was also considered to be a critical context for the records descriptions.

I.30   The following example, keyed to descriptive elements, illustrates the basic elements of textual records descriptions.  (The presence of lined dots [...] indicates that narrative has been excised for purposes of clarity.)

Record Group 153 Records of the Office of the Judge Advocate General (Army) (A)

RECORDS OF THE WAR CRIMES BRANCH, INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS DIVISION (B)

Beginning in World War II and continuing through the Korean War, the Judge Advocate General's War Crimes Branch served as the America military forces agent for investigating acts of war criminality and prosecuting alleged war criminals.  Following the repatriation of Korean War POWs during Operations Little Switch and Big Switch, RECAP-K prisoner-of-war interrogation testimony provided a significant body of evidence that corroborated earlier eyewitness accounts of various war crimes and atrocity incidents perpetrated by Communist forces on United Nations Command POWs and missing-in-action personnel.  RECAP-K testimony also included references to actions and behavior of some captured American military personnel that the Judge Advocate General would later define as acts of collaboration with the enemy.

Records Relating to the Korean War

Sometime after May 1954, the War Crimes Branch acquired Korean War crimes and atrocity files of the War Crimes Division, Judge Advocate Section of the Korean Communications Zone (KCOMZ).  The KCOMZ Judge Advocate was responsible for investigating all allegations of crimes and atrocities during the Korean War.  Because numerous reports of such incidents came early in the conflict, the KCOMZ Judge Advocate Section established a War Crimes Division in October 1950 to investigate reports of war crimes in both South and North Korea.  Before the Division was terminated in May 1954, it had investigated 1,956 war crimes incidents.

(C) Operation Big Switch Interrogation reports, 1953-54
(E) (2ft.),
(G) consists of interrogation testimony provided by American prisoners of war repatriated during Operation Big Switch.  Testimony focuses on conditions of captivity and treatment by North Korean and Communist Chinese forces.  A typical interrogation narrative will usually provide the POW's name, rank, service number, and unit; details of his capture and march to captivity; his medical treatment; and the names, personal details, and circumstances of other prisoners of war that he knew or about whom he had some knowledge.  Other records within this series include aerial photographs and POW sketch maps of North Korean prisoner-of-war compounds.
(F) The interrogation narratives are arranged alphabetically by POW surname.

KEY:
  • (A) Record group number and title
  • (B) Agency/program history
  • (C) Series title and date span
  • (D) Series designator
  • (E) Linear measurement or item count
  • (F) Arrangement, structure, or organization statement
  • (G) Records format and subject narrative
  • (H) Access restrictions statement
  • (I) Finding aids statement

I.31   Descriptive entries for some small textual records series (under 5 inches) or others that are essentially unarranged do not include arrangement statements.  Other series are more complex.  For example, some (usually the large military and State Department decimal correspondence files) are composed of "security-classified" and "unclassified" subseries.  These large series also tend to be divided into chronological segments that consist of functional sections (e.g., "decimal correspondence," "project files").  These sections may be further subdivided into topical and subtopical categories, under which records are arranged by War Department decimal file numbers.  Series descriptions in this reference information paper are arranged to reflect and clarify such organizational complexities through the use of hierarchically nested series, subseries, segment, section, and subsection titles.

I.32   The description of textual records within a specific file or file category always includes the file number (e.g., 383.6) and, when appropriate, the file or file category title.  The file or file category linear measurement also may be provided.  However, many decimal file categories contain a mixture of records that are both relevant and irrelevant to a specific descriptive topic.  In those cases, there is no file size citation; description focuses on specific types of records within the file category, folder titles, or (less frequently) box number locations.  There are file size measurements for most Department of State decimal correspondence file and diplomatic post records series descriptions.  There are fewer file size measurements for Army, Air Force, and Department of Defense decimal correspondence file series.

I.33   Nontextual records descriptions in Parts III, IV, and V of this paper basically consist of the same elements that appear in textual records descriptions.  There is one exception.  NARA has assigned series designators to many of its media series and also to some of its electronic records series.  This series designator is useful to researchers seeking information about the contents of a specific nontextual records series in the National Archives Information Locator (NAIL) database (see paragraphs I.39-I.40).  For that reason, assigned series designators are cited as part of the nontextual records series descriptions in this paper.  The following example illustrates description of a still picture series.

(A) Record Group 319 Records of the Army Staff
(C) Miscellaneous activities of the U.S. Army, 1940-66
(D) (319 SF)
(E) (3 ft.),
(G) is an assemblage of approximately 2,400 mostly black and white photographs that focus on a wide variety of Army activities, functions, and personalities from 1940 to 1955.
(F) Series photographs
(G) are arranged alphabetically by subject.  Series 319 SF contains numerous images of the Korean War, including five photographs of malnourished American POWs released during Operation Little Switch (filed under "Prisoners, Released - Operation Little Switch," box 5, folder 87),
(I) A folder list that identifies series subjects, correlated to box and folder numbers, is maintained in the Still Picture Research Room.

KEY: (See paragraph I.30.)
RELATED FINDING AIDS

I.34   Several other NARA publications supplement or amplify the research information contained in this reference information paper.  A good starting point is the National Archives and Records Administration Guide to Federal Records in the National Archives of the United States, 3 volumes, compiled by Robert B. Matchette et al. (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1995).  This guide provides a concise overview of all permanently accessioned Federal agency records (textual, electronic, cartographic and architectural, still picture, motion picture, sound recording, and video) held and managed by facilities of the National Archives and Records Administration as of October 1, 1994.  Descriptive entries are arranged by record group and include agency histories, records subgroup and series titles, dates, linear measurements, contents, facility locations, citations to relevant NARA descriptive publications and microfilm editions, and notes on access restrictions.  The guide index provides access to records entries and descriptions that relate to subjects, such as "prisoners of war" or the "Korean War."  Thus, the guide offers researchers and opportunity to locate NARA records that were created by a specific Federal agency, or that relate to general or specific topics.  For that reason, the guide is a good place to start for POW/MIAs or with the Korean War.  NARA will regularly update records and agency descriptions in the electronic version of the guide, which is available through the Internet on the NARA homepage (http://www.nara.gov).

I.35   NARA has published one inventory and two preliminary inventories that provide descriptive information about the textual records of specific record groups mentioned in this reference information paper:

  • Preliminary Inventory of the Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel [Record Group 24] (Preliminary Inventory 123), compiled by Virgil E. Baugh (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Service, 1960)
     
  • Inventory of the General Records of the Department of State, 1789-1949 [Record Group 59] (Inventory 15), compiled by the staff of the Office of the National Archives (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1992).  The microfiche edition covers records accessioned through 1985.
     
  • Preliminary Inventory of the Records of the Headquarters, United Nations Command [Record Group 333] (Preliminary Inventory 127), compiled by Paul Taborn and Andrew Putignano (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Service, 1960)

Both types of publication usually consist of records series descriptions that relates directly to Korean War and Cold War POW/MIA issues.  However, these publications do describe other records series (and agency responsibilities) that would be useful to researchers who seek information about other Cold War/Korean War issues.

I.36   There is little additional information in these publications that relates directly to Korean War and Cold War POW/MIA issues.  However, these publications do describe other records series (and agency responsibilities) that would be useful to researchers who seek information about other Cold War/Korean War issues.

I.37   These and other NARA publications are listed in the Select List of Publications of the National Archives and Records Administration (General Information Leaflet Number 3), which also provides information on purchasing and ordering copies of these and other NARA records finding aids.  Copies of the select list can be obtained from

Product Sales Section (NWPS)
National Archives and Records Administration
Room G-7
700 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20408-0001
Telephone: 202-501-7190/1-800-234-8861
Fax: 202-501-7170

I.38   General Information Leaflet Number 3 is also available through the Internet at gopher://gopher.nara.gov:70/00/about/publ/gil3.txt.

I.39   The NARA Archival Information Locator (NAIL) database (available through the Internet on the NARA home page at http://www.nara.gov) is a useful tool for obtaining information about special media records that pertain to POW/MIA research.  For example, the database includes field searchable descriptions for most of the still picture records series in the National Archives.  In addition, NAIL includes descriptive information about individual items from two of the largest and most significant Army (Record Group 111) and Navy (Record Group 428) motion picture film series at the National Archives and Records Administration.  Consequently, NAIL is an important finding aid for POW/MIA researchers.

I.40   NAIL is a relatively new information source.  At the time of this writing it covers only a small fraction of the holdings of the National Archives and Records Administration, but updates to the descriptions of nontextual records occur on a continuous basis, and there are plans to add more textual records descriptions to the database in the near future.

****

I.41   The main compiler of this reference information paper is Tim Wehrkamp (Parts I, II, IV, and V).  Ted Hull and Margaret Adams of the NARA Center for Electronic Records contributed Part III.  Some of the descriptive sections in this narrative are (or derive from) the work of other archivists.  For example, the descriptions in this paper of Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs records rely heavily on descriptions written by Ed Schamel for Reference Information Paper 90 (see paragraph I.5 for full citation).  In addition, Mr. Schamel's still picture series descriptions from Reference Information Paper 90 were utilized as the basis for still picture series descriptions in this reference information paper.  Other archivists (past and present) whose series descriptions and agency histories were adapted, summarized, or used nearly verbatim include: Carolyn Bernaski, Bill Getchell, and Dan Jansen (several Record Group 338 textual records series and administrative histories); Lisha Penn (selected textual series descriptions and administrative histories in Record Groups 38 and 330); Jeff Lash (selected textual series descriptions and agency histories in Records Groups 299 and 319); Nicholas Natanson (numerous still picture records series); Bob Gruber (selected Record Groups 218 and 330 textual series descriptions); and Ben DeWhitt (selected Record Group 92 textual series descriptions).

I.42   In planning and conducting the research for this paper, the compiler benefited greatly from lists of relevant textual records series prepared by archivists Cliff Snyder and Richard Boylan of the former Suitland Reference Branch, and by David Wallace, formerly an archivist with the Records Relocation Branch who has since moved on to the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library in Austin, TX.  Mr. Boylan and Mr. Snyder, along with fellow archivists Tim Nenninger and Wil Mahoney, generously shared their extensive knowledge of and experience with POW/MIA records and research, thereby identifying a number of particularly significant series and topics that have added to the coverage of this paper.  Dr. Nenninger also compiled the box and file lists of Navy POW/MIA records that appear in Appendixes A and B.

I.43   Several other archivists and staff members provided fundamental guidance and advice on records of specific agencies or specific record groups.  David Langbart, Milt Gustafson, Ken Heger, and David Pfeiffer shared their extensive working knowledge of the Department of State records, identifying series, explaining filing systems, and charting the important administrative and historical context of those records.  Jerry Nashorn identified current and future accessions of records from the Department of Defense Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Office (DPMO).  Other archivists who found time to identify and discuss records series, filing schemes, and agency histories or to provide the compiler with series lists or location registers include Barry Zerby (Record Groups 24 and 38); Ken Schlessinger (Record Groups 218, 330, 341 and 342); Becky Collier (Record Group 319); Terri Hanna (Record Group 319); Les Waffen, Donn Roe, and Charles DeArman (motion picture, sound, and video records); and Nicholas Natanson, Barbara Burger, Dale Connelly, Ed McCarter, and Kevin Morrow (still picture records).  Mr. Morrow's guide to NARA still picture records relating to Korea (described in paragraph V.19) is a useful finding aid for both staff and researchers.

I.44   Special needs were addressed by Brian Tilley, Justine Tolson, Brad Chase, and Chris Dunn (who provided useful, accurate, and up-to-date series location registers), and by Marvin Russell, Bill Cunliffe, and Dwight Wilbanks (who provided advice and answered numerous questions about security-classified textual records).  A special thanks is due to Henry Mayer, former supervisory archivist at the Washington National Records Center and now Chief Archivist, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, for his comprehensive,  "on demand" clarifications concerning the arrangement, subject content, and interrelationships of several textual records series described in this paper.  Mr. Mayer also shared his seasoned knowledge of the subtle accessioning and processing histories that characterize some of those records.

I.45   Several NARA staff members (some previously mentioned) reviewed drafts of this paper for subject content and phrasing, sharing their expertise and experience in ways that have added clarity, depth and perspective to the narrative.  The compiler thanks Sharon Thibodeau, Tim Nenninger, Bill Getchell, Richard Boylan, Nicholas Natanson, Milt Gustafson, Les Waffen, Donn Roe, and Margaret Adams for their indispensable and much appreciated comments and suggestions.  The compiler also extends his thanks to Mr. John Manning of the Mortuary Affairs Branch, Total Army Personnel Command, for his careful review of Appendix F.

I.46   NARA is served by a wonderful research library staffed by exceptional professionals.  Reference librarians Jeff Hartley and Sheryl Griffith assisted the compiler with bibliographical citations, answers to a wide range of reference questions, and several bibliographies produced from electronic database searches.  Sam Anthony provided efficient help with several interlibrary loan requests.

I.47   The compiler would also like to thank Mark Meader for his assistance in interpreting various motion picture records series, Marilyn Lee for supplying accession records that answered important questions pertaining to various sound recording records series, and Larry Heflin for last minute help--"above and beyond," graciously rendered.

I.48   Several individuals affiliated with the Archival Publications and Accessions Control Staff have influenced and shaped the format and presentation of this paper.  Ben DeWhitt's organization and descriptive approaches in Reference Information Papers 80 and 82 served as models for this one.  Judy Koucky and Bob Kvasnicka shared research and editorial suggestions based on their extensive experience in describing NARA records.  Thorough and constructive editorial review from Jan Danis and Anne Eales provided a sharper focus and smoother flow to the narrative.  Ms. Danis's index has also provided the paper with a clear and comprehensive subject focus that is critical for any finding aid publication.  Credit for design of the publication must go to Serene F. Werblood, who spent long hours preparing the text.  Sharon Thibodeau, Director of the Records Control and Product Management Staff, provided patient, sound, and always encouraging advice for addressing various issues associated with this project.  Her support, and the working atmosphere that she encourages, were greatly appreciated.

I.49   And so, the work of a compiler reflects the knowledge, dedication, and sustained efforts of many people.

I.50   Tim Wehrkamp dedicates Reference Information Paper 102 to Roy Wehrkamp, whose experiences on the Bataan Death March and as a World War II prisoner of War have inspired his son with a profound respect for all POWs and for the families of those POW/MIA servicemen who never returned.

Sources of Additional Information About Records Described in This Paper
 

NARA RECORDS SOURCE OF ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Part II

Textual Records of Military and Civilian Organizations

Textual Reference Branch
National Archives at College Park
8601 Adelphi Road
College Park, MD 20740-6001

Part II

Textual Records of Congressional
Investigations of POW/MIA Affairs

Center for Legislative Records
National Archives and Records Administration
700 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20408-0001
Telephone: 202-501=5350

Part III

Electronic Records

Center for Electronic Records
National Archives at College Park
8601 Adelphi Road
College Park, MD 20740-6001
Telephone: 301-713-6645

Park IV

*Motion Pictures
*Sound Recordings
*Video Recordings

Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch
National archives at College Park
8601 Adelphi Road
College Park, MD 20740-6001
Telephone: 301-713-7060

Part V

Photographs

Still Picture Branch
National Archives at College Park
8601 Adelphi Road
College Park, MD 20740-6001
Telephone: 301-713-6625
 

PART II

Textual Records Relating to
KOREAN WAR AND COLD WAR PRISONERS OF WAR
AND MISSING-IN-ACTION PERSONNEL

Record Group 24 - Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel

RECORDS OF THE ADMINISTRATIVE AND MANAGEMENT DIVISION

II.1   Throughout the Cold War years, various American military and civilian intelligence agencies gathered information on a variety of topics from the testimony of escaped prisoners and detainees of Communist countries.  One of those topics was American POWs and civilians imprisoned or allegedly imprisoned by the Soviet Union or the People's Republic of China during the early Cold War years.  Examples of intelligence reports that convey information about detained American POWs and civilians can be found in the Administrative and Management Division's secret general correspondence, 1957-60 (10 ft.).  These reports, which amount to less than 1 inch of records, are located (in box 3) under the Navy Filing Manual code A16-2 "Belligerents, Combatants (Hostages, Prisoners of War)," 1958.  The series is arranged chronologically, and thereunder according to either the Navy Filing Manual (NFM) scheme (through 1958) or (after 1958) according to an adapted NFM/SSIC (standard subject identification code) scheme.

RECORDS OF THE CASUALTY ASSISTANCE BRANCH

II.2   Beginning in 1942, the Bureau's Casualty Assistance Branch (known at various times as the "Casualty Branch" and the "Casualty Section") was given responsibility for recording personnel casualties and for assisting family and relatives of Navy personnel listed as missing in action or as prisoners of war.  The casualty notification case files for Korean War and post-Korean War era Navy POWs/MIAs, 1950-56 (2 ft.), provide information on all 31 U.S. Navy personnel (that is, Navy aviators and hospital corpsmen, but not Marine Corps personnel) who were prisoners of war during the Korean War.  This series is divided into two parts: "MIA Returned" (part 1) and "MIA Presumed Dead" (part 2).  Each part consists of case files that are arranged alphabetically by the surname of MIA servicemen.  Part 1 of the series pertains to Navy personnel from the Korean War who were initially listed as missing in action, subsequently identified as POWs, and finally repatriated after the 1953 armistice agreement.  Part 2 relates to Navy MIA airmen who were eventually listed as deceased as the result of Korean War combat operations or subsequent military activities.  Each case file normally includes a report or "Certification of Casualty" form that lists the MIA serviceman's full name, rank, service number, unit, date of birth, and a brief description of the combat action or circumstances surrounding his disappearance.  Most case files also include Navy correspondence with family and relatives that provides fuller descriptions of the serviceman's last combat action, or that relays information pertaining to pay status and compensation procedures for MIA personnel and their families.

Part 1 files normally also contain documentation confirming POW status, such as copies of eyewitness sighting reports, transcripts of POW broadcast messages, and photostated copies of POW letters to friends and relatives.  Some files in both parts of the series contain photographs of MIA or POW servicemen, emergency notification information forms, and Navy correspondence documenting the repatriation and transportation of liberated U.S. Navy prisoners of war.  Most of the files in part 2 relate to the crew of a Navy P4M surveillance aircraft that was shot down north of Taiwan by Communist Chinese military aircraft on August 22, 1956.

II.3   The unarranged collection of post-World War II casualty lists and related records, ca. 1950-57 (1 ft.), consists mostly of casualty lists that provide basic identifying information (name, rank, service number, branch of service) on Navy and Marine Corps personnel who were listed as prisoners of war or as missing in action during the Korean War.  The most comprehensive of these lists is the computer-generated, alphabetical "Korean War Casualty File," dated February 7, 1957, which identifies Navy and Marine Corps POW and MIA servicemen by name, rank, service number, date of casualty (date missing), pay status, date of birth, casualty status (POWs are coded "0131"; MIAs, "0621"), and cause of death (if applicable).  This series also includes copies of "Certification of Casualty" forms for Navy and Marine Corps personnel who died in North Korean prisoner-of-war camps.  The forms provide the POW's name, rank, service number, unit, casualty control number, date missing, casualty status, cause of death, date of birth, place of enlistment, marital status, and the name(s) and address(es) of his next of kin.  There are also Korean War/Cold War era casualty lists that identify the name, rank, service number, casualty status ("killed in action," "missing in action," etc.), and casualty date of Navy and Marine Corps personnel whose remains had been recovered through 1953.  Other documents in this series include copies of Department of State instructions and dispatches (1955-56) that deal with the release of American POWs held by the People's Republic of China; and newspaper clippings, lists, and some Navy and Department of State correspondence that discusses various American aircraft "shoot downs," including that of a Navy patrol aircraft by Soviet Union interceptors over the Baltic Sea on April 8, 1950, and of another Navy patrol aircraft by interceptors from the People's Republic of China near Wenchow, China, on August 22, 1956.

Record Group 38 (Part II) - Records of the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations

RECORDS OF THE OFFICE OF NAVAL INTELLIGENCE

II.4   From 1946 to 1954, the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) gathered information on various political, military, economic, and technical issues and topics that the Navy deemed to be of strategic interest.  During the Korean War, one of those "strategic interests" was prisoners of war.  Within ONI, the Operations Section (POW Desk) created and maintained the operations section files, 1949-54 (13 ft.), for the purpose of documenting policies, procedures, and actions adopted or practiced by various countries (the People's Republic of China, Soviet Union, North Korea, Germany, the United States, Great Britain, etc.) and organizations (the United Nations Command) that had held prisoners of war since the beginning of World War II.  This series, which is arranged according to the alpha-numeric filing scheme of the Navy Filing Manual (NFM) and thereunder by folder number, contains groups of NFM-coded files that provide information on the treatment of American POWs during the Korean War and on specific Soviet Union and Communist Chinese prison camps that may have housed American prisoners or prisoners of war during the Cold War years.  (Appendix A of this reference information paper is a series box and file list.)  The first group of these files A16-2 "Belligerents, Combatants (Hostages, Prisoners of War)" includes copies of various U.S. Government agency intelligence reports, prisoner interrogations and interviews, manuals, and other records that relate to the organization and administrative structure of several specific Soviet and Communist Chinese prison camps.  The A16-2 files are especially rich in testimony from ex-prisoners (mostly Russian, Chinese, and Korean nationals) who were once interned in these camps.  Their recollections extend from camp living and working conditions to diet and sanitary conditions through interrogation and indoctrination practices and occasionally also to "live sightings" of other internees.  Some of the interview reports also include small maps or diagrams of the camps.

II.5   Another NFM file designation in this series, A16-14 "Terminating Military Operations (Armistice, Demobilization, Disarmament)," consists of records that relate specifically to the experiences of American and other United Nations Command prisoners of war held in North Korean prison camps during the Korean War.  Copies of Far East Command (J-2) repatriated POW interrogation reports account for the largest records segment in this file.  These interrogation reports provide information on the physical structure, staff and administration of North Korean POW camps; living conditions within those facilities; Communist prisoner-of-war labor, interrogation and indoctrination practices; and the exploitation of United Nations Command POWs by Communist authorities for propaganda purposes.  Other records include United Nations Command or Communist-compiled lists of POWs held by North Korea; correspondence relating to discrepancies between those lists; intelligence reports (1950-53) that identify the location of North Korean prisoner-of-war camps; copies of repatriated United Nations Command POW interrogation reports compiled by various U.S. intelligence agencies; copies of letters written by American POWs to family members; Communist propaganda pamphlets that feature written statements or "confessions" by U.S. prisoners of war; sworn statements of repatriated POWs pertaining to the treatment and conduct of American prisoners of war; operational reports on United Nations Command POW repatriation activities (Operations Big Switch and Little Switch); and other records, such as reports relating to the work of the Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission, United Nations Command instructions for debriefing repatriated United Nations personnel, and lists of United Nations prisoners of war who refused repatriation ("voluntary non-repatriates").  Many individual documents from this series have been withheld from public access for national security reasons or privacy considerations.

II.6   Case files of American prisoners of war during the Korean War, 1952-56 (19 ft.) arranged alphabetically by surname of returned POW, contain dossiers of repatriated American Navy, Marine Corps, and some U.S. Army prisoners of war who were exchanged or returned under the provisions of articles 109 and 110 of the August 12, 1949, Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War.  Many of the dossiers pertain to United Nations Command POWs repatriated during Operation Little Switch.  The records contain military intelligence summaries of POW interviews conducted during Phases I, II, and III of the RECAP-K interrogation program.  Collectively, these summaries focus on the details of captures and escapes (dates and locations), interrogations by Communist forces, strategic intelligence information about those forces, details of their military maneuvers, war crimes and atrocities, casualties, the number of POWs in a specific North Korean camp, and the proximity of Communist Chinese and Soviet military personnel.  The interrogations also include psychiatric and security evaluations of the POWs, and personal history background information.  The dossiers pertaining to those POWs who were alleged to have collaborated with North Korean military personnel were categorized "special intelligence."

II.7   Appendix B lists Navy and Marine Corps personnel for whom dossiers exist in this series.  Privacy restrictions apply to records in this series.  Depending on the contents of individual documents, individual case files (or parts thereof) may be withheld from research access.

Record Group 46 - Records of the U.S. Senate

RECORDS OF THE SENATE SELECT COMMITTEE ON POW/MIA AFFAIRS,
102D CONGRESS, 1991-93

II.8   The Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs was created in the fall of 1991 to conduct a comprehensive investigation of evidence and allegations that American servicemen had been detained by Communist countries throughout the Cold War and particularly after the cessation of combat in Korea and Vietnam.  As the committee held hearings and gathered evidence, it sought to reconstruct a complete and accurate picture of what information the U.S. Government, foreign governments, and private organizations had obtained that would answer questions pertaining to unaccounted for Cold War era American prisoners of war and missing in action personnel.  although the select committee concentrated heavily on Vietnam War POW/MIA issues, it also probed the history of American POW repatriations by the Soviet Union at the end of World War II, by North Korea and the People's Republic of China at the end of the Korean War, and by other Communist governments who, for one reason or another, reportedly held American military personnel during the Cold War years.

II.9   During the course of its existence, members and staff of the select committee interviewed and heard testimony from numerous U.S. and foreign government officials, POW family members and activists, former POWs, and professional researchers.  The committee also obtained extensive documentation on POW/MIA issues from U.S. and foreign government agencies, private researchers, POW organizations, and POW family members.  At the conclusion of its work, the Committee published a report of its findings, titled POW/MIAs: Report of the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs, Senate Report 103-1 Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1993), xii, 1,223 pp., and eight volumes of verbatim hearings testimony.  The hearings volume for testimony on Cold War/Korean War POW/MIA issues is Hearings Before the Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs...: Cold war, Korea, WWII POWs (Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1993), iv, 1,044 pp.  This volume is particularly useful because in addition to transcripts of the committee's hearings and testimony, it contains copies of documents on POW/MIA affairs obtained by Gen. Dimitri Volkogonov from Russian archives and government sources, as translated and transcribed by the staff of Task Force Russia (see paragraph II.81) and placed in record with the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs.

II.10   When the committee disbanded in January 1993, its records were retired to the National Archives and Records Administration's Center for Legislative Archives.  These records have been organized as series within the following topical subgroups: Records Received from Other Agencies, 21 series (158 ft.); Records of the Committee, 13 series, 52 ft.; Investigators Case Files, 14 series (57 ft.); Audiovisual Records of the Select Committee (described in paragraphs IV.2-3); Electronic Records of the Select Committee, 1 series; and Classified Records Filed with Senate Security, 1 series (92 ft.).  A detailed descriptive list of these subgroups and series can be found in Appendix J of Records Relating to American Prisoners of War and Missing in Action from the Vietnam War, 1960-1994, Reference Information Paper 90, compiled by Charles e. Schamel (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1996), vi, 127 pp.

II.11   Because the select committee concentrated its inquiries and research on Vietnam War POW/MIA issues, its records also reflect that emphasis.  However, three of the six subgroups noted above do contain records that provide some information on Korean War and Cold War prisoners of war and missing servicemen as well.  For example, records series among the subgroup of Records Received From Other Agencies includes POW/MIA affairs correspondence, policy files, investigative reports, POW/MIA personnel database lists, document file lists with indexes, and other records requested by the select committee from Federal agencies such as the Department of State, Central Intelligence Agency, Foreign Broadcast Information Service, Department of the Army, Department of the Navy, Joint Chiefs of Staff, Department of Defense Joint Casualty Resolution Center, Defense Intelligence Agency, Joint Service SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance, Escape) Agency, and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.  These records are useful primarily because they provide a convenient and concentrated overview of the U.S. Government's policies, decisions, and actions pertaining to all Cold War era POW/MIA issues.  They also illustrate the type, range, and depth of POW/MIA documentation that has been collected by Federal agencies since World War II.

II.12   The Records of the Committee subgroup consists partly of series that include committee deposition and hearings testimony transcripts.  A number of witnesses who gave testimony or evidence to the select committee were ex-POWs who had information about missing servicemen, POW/MIA research specialists, representatives of veterans' organizations, and officials who represented U.S. Government agencies that were actively involved in POW/MIA affairs.  Some of this testimony and evidence appears in the published hearings.  Alphabetical lists of Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs depositions can be found in Appendix K of the previously cited Records Relating to American Prisoners of War and Missing in Action from the Vietnam War.  (See paragraph II.10 above.)  Other records series in this subgroup include the select committee's correspondence file, briefing books, and the working files of the committee's chief clerk, deputy clerk, and chief counsel.  Information in these records includes biographical background on committee witnesses, Federal agency responses to select committee requests for records and information, select committee document security and declassification procedures, and a few case files pertaining to specific individuals who allegedly disappeared as the result of a Cold War incident.  The Center for Legislative Archives maintains detailed folder or document lists for many of the committee staff's records.

II.13   The Investigators Case Files subgroup contains several series of background files created and maintained by the select committee investigative staff.  These series include copies of correspondence from various military agencies, private individuals, and organizations.  There are also reference copies of reports prepared by numerous committees, commissions, and agencies that investigated POW/MIA affairs, various records pertaining to the identification of remains, and other documents.  Information in each case file series reflects a specific investigator's area of concentration.  For example, the working files of committee investigator William E. LeGro, 1991-92 (6 ft.), contain some information on servicemen listed as missing in action during the Korean War.  The Center for Legislative Archives maintains detailed folder or document lists for many of the committee investigators records.

Record Group 59 - General Records of the Department of State

II.14   Record Group 59 POW/MIA records are located in the central foreign policy file of the Department of State and within numerous "lot files."  Lot files include accessioned records of Department of State organizational units based in the Washington, DC area and departmental records relating to certain functions or special subjects that were not filed in the central foreign policy file of the Department of State.

CENTRAL FOREIGN POLICY FILE OF THE UNITED STATES

II.15   The most important source of information on U.S. diplomatic relations during the Cold War is the central foreign policy file of the Department of State, the decimal file, 1945-63, and its successor, the subject-numeric file, 1963-73.  Both series have been organized according to complex arrangement schemes.  The decimal file, for example, is subdivided into chronological blocks (1945-49, 1950-54, 1955-59, and 1960-63), and then arranged according to a State Department-devised subject and country file classification system that underwent major revision in 1950.  Current NARA holdings of the subject-numeric file are also subdivided into chronological segments (1963 and 1964-66, 1967-69, and 1970-73), and arranged thereunder according to a more complicated State Department alpha-numeric subject and country file-coding scheme.  To assist researchers with these arrangement details, the Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains State Department file manuals and National Archives informational handouts that facilitate access to documents in both of these series.  On-site researchers also can use State Department-created name index card, source index card, and "purport" list series to identify documents in the decimal file.

II.16   Both the decimal file and the subject-numeric file provide significant documentation of the State Department's participation in Cold War POW/MIA affairs negotiations and intelligence-gathering activities.  Series records include diplomatic correspondence, telegrams, despatches and instructions, POW/detainee sighting reports, and intelligence analyses that provide detailed information on State Department efforts to locate and recover specific unaccounted-for American POWs/MIAs and civilian detainees from the Korean War.  Other records in these series document Department of State efforts to obtain information about prisoners seized during various Cold War incidents.  Relevant decimal files are listed below.  Reference copies for some of the cited decimal files are contractor-produced 35mm microfilm publications (noted parenthetically in the decimal file descriptions).  Appendix G provides more detailed information about microfilmed records cited in this reference information paper.

  • File 611.61241, 1950-54 (1 in.), 1955-59 (contract microfilm C-0015 [UPA], rolls 14-15), and 1960-63 (1 in.), U.S. military and naval personnel, and some civilians, allegedly held or taken prisoner by the Soviet Union, or last seen or reported under Soviet control.
     
  • File 611.61251, 1950-54 (3 in.), 1955-59 (contract microfilm C-0015 [UPA], roll 15), and 1960-63 (1 in.), U.S. civilians, and some military personnel, allegedly held or taken prisoner by the Soviet Union, or last seen or reported under Soviet control.
     
  • File 611.93241, 1950-54 (1 in.), 1955-59 (1 in.), and 1960-63 (1 in.), U.S. military and naval personnel, and some civilian detainees, allegedly held or taken prisoner by the People's Republic of China, or last seen or reported under control of Communist Chinese authorities.
     
  • File 611.93251, 1955-59 (1 in.), and 1960-63 (less than 1 in.), U.S. civilians, and some military personnel, allegedly held or taken prisoner by the People's Republic of China, or last seen or reported under control of Communist Chinese authorities.
     
  • File 611.95a241, 1950-54 (1 ft.), 1955-59 (contract microfilm C-0018(SR), rolls 1-3), and 1960-63 (3 in.), Korean War prisoners of war held by Communist forces, including some civilian detainees and the 21 U.S. POWs who chose to remain in China as voluntary non-repatriates after the armistice agreement.  (See also decimal file classifications 611.95a251, 611.95241, and 611.95251.)
     
  • File 761.5411, 1955-59 (8 in.), 1960-63 (1 linear foot).  Attacks by the Soviet Union on U.S. military and naval aircraft.  The 1960-63 segment consists almost entirely of records relating to the case of U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers, who was shot down over the Soviet Union in February 1960.
     
  • File 793.5411, 1955-59 (1 in.).  Attacks by the People's Republic of China on U.S. military and naval aircraft.

II.17   Decimal file 611.37241, 1960-63, includes a few items of correspondence (October-November 1962) between Senator Sam Ervin of North Carolina, Presidential adviser Lawrence O'Brien, and William Brubeck of the State Department that details U.S. Government involvement in securing the release of Cuban national and American prisoners seized by Cuban forces during the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion.  Other correspondence on this topic can be found in the subject-numeric file, 1963 segment, file POL.27-7 CUBA (1 in.).

II.18   In that same series, subject-numeric file, 1963 segment, POL. 27-7 CHICOM (less than 1 in.), contains correspondence between the Department of State and various United States embassies and consulates that outlines efforts by the Department to negotiate with the People's Republic of China through the United Arab Republic for the release of four unidentified Americans imprisoned in Communist China.

RECORDS OF THE OFFICE OF THE LEGAL ADVISOR

II.19   Sam Klaus was Special Assistant to the Department of State Legal Advisor from 1946 to 1963.  During those years, he had responsibility for representing the United States in various legal proceedings before the International Court of Justice.  In the course of his research, he gathered evidence concerning Cold War aircraft "shoot down" incidents and detentions of American military personnel that involved the United States with the Soviet Union, the People's Republic of China, and other--most Communist--nations.  That documentation comprises most of the records in the aircraft incidents files (Sam Klaus files), 1944-62 (Lot File 64D551, 44 ft.).  Specifically, this series consists of diplomatic correspondence, memorandums of conversations, witness statements (affidavits, interrogations, and interviews), reports, intelligence reports, autopsy findings, photographs, maps, charts, tracings, audiotape interviews, gun camera film, and a few artifacts that Klaus gathered for the purpose of reconstructing the background, facts, and sequence of events pertaining to numerous Cold War air confrontations and incidents that resulted in U.S. deaths or detentions.

II.20   The records in this series are arranged roughly by aircraft incident.  Significant "shoot down" and detention cases for which Klaus gathered documentation include the following:

  • A U.S. Air Force RB-29 aircraft shot down by Soviet Union military forces north of Hokkaido, Japan, June 13, 1952.
     
  • A U.S. Air Force RB-29 aircraft shot down by Soviet Union military forces north of Hokkaido, Japan, October 7, 1952.
     
  • The detention of U.S. Air Force Col. John K. Arnold, Jr., and his B-29 aircraft crew in the People's Republic of China from early 1953 until August 1955.  Arnold's plane was shot down near the North Korea-Manchuria border on January 12, 1953.
     
  • A U.S. Air Force RB-50 aircraft shot down by Soviet Union military forces over the Sea of Japan on July 29, 1953.
     
  • A U.S. Navy Neptune (P2V) aircraft shot down by Soviet Union military forces north of Hokkaido on September 4, 1954.
     
  • A U.S. Air Force RB-29 aircraft shot down by Soviet Union military forces near Hokkaido on November 7, 1954.
     
  • A U.S. P2V reconnaissance aircraft shot down by Soviet Union military forces over the Bering Sea, June 22, 1955.
     
  • A U.S. Navy Mercator (P4M) aircraft shot down by People's Republic of China military forces near Taiwan on August 22, 1956.
     
  • A U.S. Air Force C-118 aircraft shot down by Soviet Union military forces over Armenia on June 27, 1958.
     
  • A U.S. Air Force C-130 aircraft shot down by Soviet Union military forces over Armenia on September 2, 1958.
     
  • A U.S. Air Force U-2 shot down by Soviet Union military forces on February 1, 1960 (Francis Gary Powers case).
     
  • A U.S. Air Force RB-47 aircraft shot down by Soviet Union military forces over the Barents Sea on July 1, 1960.

II.21   Several of the audiotape, artifact, and motion picture film items have been removed from this series either because they are security-classified items or because of preservation concerns.  The series accession dossier contains a list of these removed items, correlated to current box number locations.  Appendix C of this reference information paper provides a box and file list for this series.  The list identifies all cases for which Klaus kept records.

RECORDS OF THE BUREAU OF FAR EASTERN AFFAIRS

II.22   The Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs was responsible for managing relations of the United States with all nations, republics, and sovereign governments of Southeast Asia and the South Pacific islands.  The Bureau was involved in area politics, security, economics, public affairs, social affairs, and consular activities.  It also maintained and supervised relations with Far Eastern foreign missions in the United States and guided U.S. Foreign Service organizations within the Far East.

II.23   In June 1950, with the outbreak of combat operations in Korea, the Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs began to collect records relating to that conflict.  The resulting "Black Book," initiated by Dean Rusk while he was Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs, documents State Department and Defense Department efforts to negotiate a cease-fire.

II.24   Sixteen of the chronologically arranged "Black Book" volumes can be found in the series "Black Book" on cease-fire, December 12, 1950-December 25, 1952 (Lot File 55D128, 3 ft.) (contract microfilm C-0042 [UPA], rolls 1-7).  Each volume includes Department of State letters, memorandums, communiques, press releases, memorandums of conversations, Department of State and Department of the Army telegrams, drafts of telegrams and memorandums, intelligence reports, and extracts from National Security Council numbered documents.  Although the volumes cover a large number of Korean War issues and U.S. Government policies, there is detailed information on the cease-fire negotiations, prisoner of war issues, and repatriation procedures.  Each of the 16 volumes contains a list of the top secret security-classified documents in it; most volumes also include a table of contents.  Box 1 of the series includes a box contents list.  The reference copy of this series is the 7-rool microfilm publication cited above.

II.25   The "Korean Black Book, January 1, 1954-December 1954" section (1 ft.) of files relating to Southeast Asia and the Geneva Conference, 1954 (Lot Files 55D480 and 55D481), consists of chronologically arranged Department of State and Department of the Army memorandums, statements, messages, and other records that relate to various issues discussed by U.S. negotiators with North Korean representatives at the armistice talks.  Some of these records focus on attempts by both sides to account for and repatriate known prisoners of war and other missing-in-action personnel who had not been exchanged or located during Operations Little Switch and Big Switch.  There are no document lists or table of contents for the 1954 records.

II.26   The mostly security-classified central files, 1958-63, of the Office of East Asian Affairs, Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs, include 2 feet of declassified POW/MIA case files and other records (boxes 157-161, Lot Files 63D168, 65D93, 65D235, 66D224, 66D245) utilized by U.S. representatives at the Korean War armistice and peace negotiations to determine the fate of unrepatriated American prisoners of war and missing-in-action service personnel for whom there were eyewitness accounts, reliable evidence, or reasonable possibilities suggesting that they had survived as captives of Communist forces.  The largest portion of these records are case files of unaccounted for Army and Air Force personnel.  These files include forms, affidavits and depositions, some photographs, and other documents that provide basic information on the unrepatriated individual's personal history and military career, along with fuller accounts of the date and circumstances of his last sighting in combat or subsequent sightings in captivity.  Among these records are various categorical lists of unaccounted for POWs and MIA personnel (including one list of U.S. servicemen transported to the People's Republic of china), an affidavit of a captured U.S. Air Force pilot who was interrogated in Communist China, and Department of Defense statements concerning unaccounted for service personnel.  Appendix D is a box and file list for boxes 157-161 of this series.

II.27   The alpha-numeric file on Korea, 1952-57 (Lot Files 58D643 and 59D407, 4 ft.) (contract microfilm C-0042 [UPA], rolls 7-11), contains four folders of records that pertain to Korean War prisoner of war issues.  Folder P5.2/2 "POWs Captured by Communists and Still Detained, 1955-57" (less than 1 in.), consists of correspondence and memorandums which focus on allegations that North Korea and the People's Republic of China continued to hold American POWs (notably African American POWs) after the cease-fire.  Folder P5.2.2d "State-Defense Working Group on POWs Held By Chinese Communists, 1955" (less than 1 in.), contains Working Group memorandums and minutes that focus on proposed U.S. Government negotiation tactics with Communist China on the release of American civilian and military personnel.  Folder P5.2/4 "U.S. Prisoners of War in the Korean Operation, 1954" (ca. 2 in.), consists of a major study conducted by the Army Security Center titled "U.S. Prisoners of War in the Korean Operation: A Study of Their Treatment and Handling by the North Korean Army and the Chinese Communist Forces," xiv, 695 pp. (November 1954).  This study addresses such topics as "The POW in Communist Hands Prior to 1950"; "Development of [the Communist] POW Camp System"; "Internal Organization of the POW Camps"; "POW Groups and Organizations"; "Interrogation"; "Indoctrination"; "The Bacteriological 'Confessions'"; "Escape and Evasion"; "Judicial and Disciplinary Measures"; "Camp Life and Routine"; "Food"; "Clothing"; "Medical Treatment"; "Correspondence"; and "Radio Broadcasts."  It also includes unique aerial photographs and maps of the North Korean prisoner-of-war camps.  Folder P5.4 "Miscellaneous POW Matters, 1955-56" (less than 1 in.), includes a Department of State critique of the Department of Defense's proposed Prisoner of War Code of Conduct policy draft.  Box 1 of this series includes a box and folder list.  The reference copy of this series is the 5-roll microfilm publication cited above.

Record Group 84 - Records of the Foreign Service Posts of the Department of State

II.28   Several declassified embassy and post records series contain documentation of U.S. Government efforts to solicit and gather information about U.S. POWs/MIAs from the Korean War or concerning Cold War military prisoners held by the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China.  Post and embassy records series are arranged hierarchically by name of country, thereunder by name of embassy and/or consulate, then by name of series, and thereunder by decimal file number.  Some individual embassy decimal files are of interest.

  • Germany-Bonn Embassy, classified general records, 1956-58, file 321.4 "Prisoners of War" (1956-58) (less than 1 in.), pertaining to efforts of the Department of State to identify, locate, and repatriate American military prisoners and other detainees held or allegedly held by the Soviet Union during the early Cold War years.
     
  • Korea-Seoul Embassy, classified general records, 1953-55, 1956-63, file 321.4 (1953-58) (4 in.), consisting of diplomatic correspondence, messages, Department of State instructions, and other records pertaining to U.S. participation in the Korean War cease-fire agreement talks, and Department efforts to acquire information about unaccounted for U.S. prisoners of war.
     
  • Japan-Tokyo-Office of the U.S. Political Advisor for Japan, classified general records, 1945-52, file 321.4 "Prisoners of War" (1950-52) (3 in.), consisting of diplomatic messages, correspondence, and instructions that relate to sightings of American prisoners in North Korea and the People's Republic of China and to issues raised in the Korean War armistice talks.
     
  • Japan-Tokyo Embassy, classified general records, 1952-63, file 321.4 "Prisoners of War" (1952-58) (6 in.), concerning the return of several American voluntary nonrepatriates from the Korean War, sightings of American prisoners of war in North Korea and the People's Republic of China, and procedures governing the interrogation of foreign sources (such as repatriated World War II Japanese POWs held captive in the Soviet Union for several years after 1945) for information on American prisoners detained in Communist countries.
     
  • Switzerland-Bern Embassy, general records, 1953-55, file 321.4 "Prisoners of War" (1953-55) (6 items), documenting U.S. diplomatic negotiations in 1954 with representatives of the People's Republic of China for the release of Americans imprisoned in that country.
     
  • U.S.S.R.-Moscow Embassy, confidential file, 1941-55, and classified general records, 1960-63, files 321.4 "U.S. POWs from Korea in the USSR" (1954) (less than 1 in.), and "Prisoners of War" (1960) (less than 1 in.), containing consulate and embassy despatches, prisoner/detainee debriefing summaries, intelligence reports, and Department of State correspondence with the Soviet Union Ministry of Foreign Affairs dealing with reports and alleged sightings of Cold War or Korean War prisoners of war and detainees in the Soviet Union.

Record Group 92 - Records of the Office of the Quartermaster General

CORRESPONDENCE

II.29   During the Korean War, the Quartermaster Corps exercised responsibility for the proper identification and disposition of remains of deceased American military service personnel.  Quartermaster Corps remains recovery and analysis facilities determined the fate of many American MIA servicemen and unaccounted-for POWs from that conflict.

II.30   The series classified and unclassified general correspondence relating to places ("geographic file"), 1936-54 (748 ft.), consists of "security classified" (26 ft.) and "unclassified" (722 ft.) records subseries.  The subseries are divided into chronological segments, each of which contains records that are organized alphabetically by geographic location and thereunder according to the War Department decimal classification scheme.  Locations overseas and in the United States are alphabetized together, and include cities, states, territories, foreign countries, forts, camps, and military cemeteries.  Under Korea, decimal file 293 "Funerals, Burials, and Reports" contains records relating to techniques and policies developed by the Army to identify unknown remains from the Korean War.  Most records in the security-classified subseries have been declassified.  Only the classified geographic file, 1953-54 [4 ft.] remains security classified.

II.31   The series of formerly classified and unclassified general correspondence relating to organizational units ("miscellaneous file"), 1936-54 (295 ft.), also contains records pertaining to Korean War casualties, most of which can be found under decimals 293 and 314.6 "Death and Interment Records."  The series includes formerly security "classified" (27 ft.) and "unclassified" (268 ft.) subseries, each of which consists of chronological segments.  The chronological segments are divided alphabetically by category, name of unit, or subject, under which records are arranged according to the War Department decimal scheme.  Researchers who approach this series with knowledge of a specific individual's organizational unit, date of capture, or the date on which he was last seen will have the most success in extracting information from it.  The following subseries and categories are the most productive for Korean War/Cold War POW/MIA information.

II.31a   The formerly "classified" subseries (1946-52 segment), and the "unclassified" subseries (1949-50, 1951-52, and 1953-54 segments) include categories such as "Army Forces in Korea," "Army, Korea," and "Army Forces-Far East."  Under these categories, decimal files 293 and 314.6 contain burial, casualty, and remains identification reports and other records that pertain to Army personnel listed as missing in action during the Korean War.  Decimal files 293 and 314.6 under the "Army Forces-Army, Korea" category of the "unclassified" subseries for 1953-54 include 8204th Army Unit board findings relating to bodies and remains of Korean War servicemen that were repatriated during Operation Glory (1954).  The findings of identified remains provide the serviceman's name, rank, service number, service branch, the name of the place from which remains were recovered, and evacuation number.

II.31b   All of the above listed subseries and chronological segments, plus the "unclassified" subseries for 1946-48, contain "Graves Registration" categories that are subdivided according to geographical subcategories (for example, "Graves Registration Service Europe," "Graves Registration Far East," "Graves Registration Mediterranean," etc.)  Under these headings, decimal files 293 and 314.6 include "weekly burial reports" that list names of individuals or set of remains buried ("X" files), along with the location of burial.  Under "Graves Registration Far East," 293 files include correspondence and other records that pertain to the recovery, identification, and interment of American military personnel who had been listed as missing in action during the Korean War.

II.32   Formerly classified and unclassified general correspondence ("subject file"), 1936-61 (1,514 ft.), is also divided into "formerly classified, 1936-54" (329 ft.), and "unclassified, 1936-61" (1185 ft.), records subseries.  Records within each subseries are then arranged according to the War Department decimal scheme.  The "subject file" is essentially a Quartermaster General policy file.  However, the 293 and 314.6 files in this series do contain cross-reference sheets that identify some Korean War Army and Air Force prisoners of war and missing-in-action personnel by name, rank, and service number.  The cross-references are usually to documents in other records series, such as the Quartermaster General's "miscellaneous file" and the Department of the Army's individual deceased personnel files, 1939-54.  (See Appendix F.)

Record Group 112 - Records of the Office of the Surgeon General (Army)

II.33 The subject files, ca. 1945-ca. 1975 (12 ft.), of the Psychiatry and Neurology Consultant are divided into two sections: "Center for Prisoner of War Studies Subject Files" (i ft.); and "Vietnam POW/MIA Subject Files" (3 ft.).  Each section is arranged in rough alphabetical order by folder title.  This series consists of original medical and psychological research studies, reports, and publications that focus on the health, welfare, and postwar adjustment problems of former American prisoners of war who were held captive during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.  Other records within the "Center for Prisoner of War Studies Subject Files" include two unpublished reports on the work of the Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission during the Korean War, and an unpublished report titled "The Historical Management of POWs: A Synopsis of the 1968 U.S. Army Provost Marshal General's Study Entitled 'A Review of United States Policy on Treatment of Prisoners of War," prepared and edited by the Environmental Stress Branch, Center for Prisoner of War Studies, Naval Health Research Center, San Diego, California.

Record Group 153 - Records of the Office of the Judge Advocate General (Army)

II.34   Record Group 153 includes a large body of repatriated POW interrogation testimony, along with other records that document Korean War crimes and atrocities.

RECORDS OF THE WAR CRIMES BRANCH, INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS DIVISION

II.35   Beginning in World War II and continuing through the Korean War, the Judge Advocate General's War Crimes Branch served as the American military forces agent for investigating acts of war criminality and prosecuting alleged war criminals.  Following the repatriation of Korean War POWs during Operations Little Switch and Big Switch, RECAP-K prisoner-of-war interrogation testimony provided a significant body of evidence that corroborated earlier eyewitness accounts of various war crimes and atrocity incidents perpetrated by Communist forces on United Nations Command POWs and missing-in-action personnel.  RECAP-K testimony also included references to actions and behavior of some captured American military personnel that the Judge Advocate General would later define as acts of collaboration with the enemy.

RECORDS RELATING TO THE KOREAN WAR

II.36   Sometime after May 1954, the War Crimes Branch acquired Korean War crimes and atrocity files of the War Crimes Division, Judge Advocate Section of the Korean Communications Zone (KCOMZ).  The KCOMZ Judge Advocate was responsible for investigating all allegations of crimes and atrocities during the Korean War.  Because numerous reports of such incidents came early in the conflict, the KCOMZ Judge Advocate Section established a War Crimes Division in October 1950 to investigate reports of war crimes in both South and North Korea.  Before the Division was terminated in May 1954, it had investigated 1,956 war crimes incidents.

II.37   The Division maintained its investigatory records as a series of numbered and sequentially arranged Korean War crimes case files (investigations of atrocities against POWs in Korea), 1952-54 (37 ft.).  "KWC" prefix case numbers were assigned chronologically by the date that investigation of a specific war crime incident began.  A typical file includes case summary sheets, statements of witnesses, and supporting papers collected by the War Crimes Division.

II.38   Prisoners of war held by the United Nations Command who are named in the case files as either war crimes suspects or witnesses and U.S. personnel who are named as witnesses or victims of atrocities are listed alphabetically and cross-referenced to KWC case numbers in Appendix IV of the "Final Historical and Operational Report of the War Crimes Division" (May 31, 1954).  Appendix I of that same report is a case roster, arranged by KWC case number, that records actions taken in each of the war crimes cases investigated in Korea.  Copies of these appendixes and the report can be found in the chronologically arranged historical reports of the War Crimes Division, 1952-54 (1 ft.), which include other reports--both interim and final--that document war crimes investigations conducted throughout the Korean War and during Operations Little Switch and Big Switch.  These reports, and their appendixes, also provide summaries of verified atrocity incidents and captioned photographs of war crimes victims.

II.39   Operation Big Switch interrogation reports, 1953-54 (2 ft.), consists of debriefing testimony provided by American prisoners of war repatriated during Operation Big Switch.  Testimony focuses on conditions of captivity and treatment by North Korean and Communist Chinese forces.  A typical interrogation narrative will usually provide the POW's name, rank, service number, and unit; details of his capture and march to captivity; his medical treatment; and the names, personal details, and circumstances of other prisoners of war that he knew or about whom he had some knowledge.  Other records within this series include aerial photographs and POW sketch maps of North Korean prisoner-of-war compounds.  The interrogation narratives are arranged alphabetically by POW surname.

RECORDS OF THE RECAP-K PROGRAM

II.40   Following the Korean War cease-fire agreement, Army lawyers prosecuted a number of returning American POWs under various provisions of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.  Much of the evidence utilized by court-martial attorneys was obtained from Army RECAP-K intelligence interrogations of returning Korean War prisoners of war.  Case files of returned, exchanged, and recaptured American personnel, 1953-54 (2 ft.), provide information on several of these court-martial trials.  Documents in a typical file include legal briefs and Army correspondence that detail charges filed against a specific ex-POW, the legal basis for prosecuting him, and various issues raised in trial proceedings.  Some case files include additional documentation of court-martial charges and proceedings in the form of newspaper clippings and correspondence between Army prosecutors and defense attorneys and congressional representatives.  These case files are arranged by year and thereunder alphabetically by ex-POW surnames.

II.41   The Army later reviewed many of these court-martial convictions.  Partial documentation of the review process can be found in records relating to the Ad Hoc Board for Review of Sentences in RECAP-K Cases (RECAP-K program), 1956-58 (5 in.).  This series includes board meeting notices and minutes, a list of cases, counsel arguments, appellant medical and psychiatric evaluations, reports (case decisions), and a copy of the board's final report.

II.42   Records pertaining to U.S. Army personnel who refused repatriation in Korea ("voluntary non-repatriates"), 1953-57 (9 in.), and records pertaining to voluntary non-repatriates, 1955-57 (4 in.), include letters from the American public to government officials that capture a range of opinions about those American prisoners of war who chose to reside in the People's Republic of China after the Korean War cease-fire agreement.  These series also contain Department of Defense investigatory summaries of information on specific voluntary nonrepatriates, and various records gathered by Army investigators as evidence of criminal behavior.

II.43   Several additional small series that relate to the RECAP-K program focus on the investigation, interrogation, and prosecution of repatriated American POWs from the Korean War.  General records, 1953-55 (1 ft.), arranged according to a numerical-subject classification scheme, include correspondence, memorandums, reports, studies, messages, newspaper clippings, minutes of conferences, directives, and other records that document Army policies and procedures governing the investigation and prosecution of returned or exchanged American POWs who may have committed violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.  Official policies and procedures relating to the interrogation, investigation, and prosecution of American POWs from the Korean War can be found in the chronologically arranged Department of the Army directives, 1954-57 (1 in.).  Records relating to the prosecution of Korean War POWs, 1954-58 (2 in.), consist of correspondence, messages, press clippings, and other records regarding prosecution in Federal courts of honorably discharged prisoners of war on treason and other criminal charges that stemmed from alleged misconduct in captivity.  Records in this series are arranged chronologically.

II.44   The final report of the Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff, G-2 (Intelligence) regarding Phase II of the RECAP-K Program, September 1954 (1 in.), is a mimeographed copy of the final report prepared by Army G-2 to document its participation in Phase II of the RECAP-K program.  During Phase II, G-2 reviewed evidence in 215 cases involving active duty former American POWs from the Korean War who were accused of flagrant collaboration.  G-2 then forwarded its findings, along with trial recommendations from major commanders, to the Department of the Army and Department of Defense for trial authorization.  The report summarizes charges and specifications against 78 individuals whose names were submitted to the Department of the Army's Board on Prisoner of War Collaboration for consideration of disciplinary action.

Record Group 218 - Records of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff

II.45   At various times during the Cold War years, the Joint Chiefs of Staff formulated policies and guidelines governing aerial surveillance of foreign countries for intelligence and scientific purposes.  Selected files within two JCS records series provide background on some of the military issues, deliberations, and decisions that deprived that derived from U.S. military reconnaissance flights over the Soviet Union, Korea, and the People's Republic of China following World War II.

II.46   The JCS central correspondence ("decimal file"), 1942-63 (1,425 ft.), consists of separate "security classified" (640 ft.) and "formerly security classified" (785 ft.) records subseries.  Each subseries is arranged in chronological segments (1942-45, 1946-47, 1948-50, 1951-53, 1954-565, and yearly thereafter(, and thereunder according to either the War Department decimal classification scheme (through 1958) or the Navy's standard subject identification code (SSIC) system (1959-63).  In both the "security classified" and "formerly classified" subseries, War Department decimal file 000.5 (5-12-49) for 1954-56 segments includes a few messages between the Department of the Army and the United Nations Command that focus on attempts made in 1951, 1955, and 1956 by United Nations Command negotiators at Panmunjom and by State Department diplomats in Geneva to obtain information from North Korean and People's Republic of China representatives.  Both the United Nations Command the State Department were seeking information about known prisoners of war in Communist custody; about other, unaccounted-for POWs; and about missing-in-action personnel from the Korean War.  File 000.5 (5-12-49) also includes various policy documents relating to misconduct indictments and prosecutions of U.S. POWs from the Korean War and to the implementation of POW conduct training throughout the U.S. military services.  File 062 "Coordination of Photographic Reconnaissance" (both subseries) includes correspondence, memorandums, JCS decisions, and other program and policy records that document the intelligence, cartographic, and scientific rationale for military aerial reconnaissance operations through 1958.  SSIC files 2410 "Photographic and Survey Intelligence" in both subseries include much the same information for operations after 1958, but they occasionally focus on more specific issues arising from the implementation of military aerial reconnaissance policy.  For example, SSIC 2410, 10 August 1960, Sec. 2 ("formerly security classified" subseries) and SSIC 2410, 10 August 1960, Sec. 1 & 2 ("security classified" subseries) include JCS correspondence, briefings, action proposals, and policy papers, along with various Department of State diplomatic communications pertaining to the release of two Soviet-detained American RB-47 crew members shot down over the Barents Sea on July 1, 1960.  Those files also include other records that document JCS policies and justifications for U-2 surveillance flights.  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains box and folder lists for the formerly security-classified sections of this series.

II.47   The JCS geographic correspondence ("geographic file"), 1942-58 (387 ft.), also consists of separate "security classified" (114 ft.) and "formerly security classified" (273 ft.) records subseries.  Each subseries is divided into chronological segments (1942-45, 1946-47, 1948-50, 1951-53, 1954-56, 1957, and 1958).  The segments are divided alphabetically by name of country or geographic area (e.g., "Far East," "Korea," "U.S.S.R."), under which records are arranged according to the War Department decimal classification scheme.  File CCS-062 "Photo Reconnaissance-Far East, 7-4-50, Sections 1-3" ("formerly security classified" subseries for 1948-50 and 1954-56) contains the most detailed JCS policy information on military aerial reconnaissance missions over Communist China, Korea, and the Soviet Union during the Cold War years.  Individual documents within these files include operational requests and justifications and JCS decisions.  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains box and folder lists for all of the declassified geographic correspondence.

II.48   JCS messages related to operations in the Far East, May 29, 1950-July 31, 1953 (4 ft.), consist of dispatches exchanged between the Joint Chiefs of Staff and other officials, including the Commander in Chief of the Far East Command and the United Nations Command, along with information copies of dispatches that were sent or received by the Department of State, U.S. ambassadors and negotiators in Korea, the Defense Department, and the Supreme Commander Allied Powers.  The dispatches are arranged in two subseries ("JCS declassified dispatches" and "dispatches not reviewed by JCS for declassification"), thereunder by type of message ("incoming" or "outgoing"), and thereunder chronologically by date of message.  Some relate specifically to Korean War POWs and the armistice negotiations.

Record Group 319 - Records of the Army Staff

RECORDS OF THE ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF

II.49   The Army Chief of Staff general correspondence (decimal file), 1948-62 (423 ft.), includes lists and rosters, correspondence, reports, studies, and other records that provide broad information on Army involvement with Korean War prisoner-of-war issues.  This series comprises several subseries, including

  1. the declassified "decimal file, 1948-54";
     
  2. "security classified general correspondence [decimal file], 1955-62";
     
  3. declassified "top secret correspondence, 1948-52"; and
     
  4. security-classified "top secret general correspondence, 1953-62."

II.50   Each of the subseries is divided into chronological segments under which records are arranged according to the War Department decimal number filing scheme.

II.51   The 383.6 "Prisoners of War" and 704 "Casualties, Wounded, and Wounds" War Department decimal files of subseries 1 and 2 are the most useful sources of information about Korean War/Cold War era prisoners of war and missing-in-action status personnel.  For example, the 1951-52 383.6 files of subseries 1 include correspondence and reports pertaining to alleged war crimes and atrocities perpetrated by the North Korean Army on captured United Nations Command troops.  Those files also contain a "Roster of U.N. Military Personnel Believed to Be in Enemy Hands But Not on [the] Communist List Dated 18 Dec. 1951."  Categorical lists of captives within that roster identify the various sources of information about each prisoner of war, such as Red Cross report; Communist radio or press release; POW letter received by relative or friend; mentioned in captured enemy document or noted in enemy photographs; mentioned in debriefing of repatriated POW; mentioned in interrogation of enemy prisoner; and "other" sources.  The post-1953 383.6 files of both subseries 1 and 2 contain extensive documentation of Army RECAP-K program functions, such as POW Phase II and Phase IV interrogation procedures, record keeping practices, and the evaluation and presentation of evidence pertaining to alleged POW misconduct.  These files also include lists of repatriated POWs who were charged with misconduct as a result of RECAP-K interrogations.  The lists include statements of specific charges, along with evidence and witness summaries.  Other 383.6 records in the series focus on the legal status and conduct of American voluntary nonrepatriates, on revisions in prisoner-of-war training for American service personnel, on the development of an interservice Code of Conduct following the Korean War, and on attempts by American officials to negotiate with North Korea and China concerning the identification of American service personnel who remained unaccounted for after the Korean War cease-fire agreement.  The 1950 and 1951-52 704 files of subseries 1 supplement these rosters with casualty reports and lists that provide name and statistical information on POWs and missing-in-action personnel by categories such as date of capture, Army branch of service, grade, and state of residence.

II.52   A security classified index to the decimal file, 1948-62 (201 ft.), provides file locations, names of senders and recipients, and content descriptions for individual documents located within subseries 1 and 2.  Top secret decimal files indexes, 1948-62 (12 ft.), provide the same information for documents filed in subseries 3 and 4.  These two card indexes are arranged by War Department decimal file number.  The Army tracked classified and formerly classified top secret correspondence (subseries 3 and 4) by chronologically assigned document numbers, which were entered into top secret registers, 1951-62 (2 ft.).

RECORDS OF THE ASSISTANT CHIEF OF STAFF FOR PERSONNEL (G-1)

II.53   Some information on the Army's administration of prisoner-of-war affairs during the Korean War can be found in the general correspondence (decimal file), 1949-54 (562 ft.), which is divided into chronological segments (1949-50, 1951-52, 1953, and 1954) under which records are arranged according to the War Department decimal scheme.  File 383.6 "Prisoners of War" includes correspondence, memorandums, reports, policy documents, and other documents that illustrate United Nations Command procedures for the exchange and reprocessing of prisoners of war, and Army policies governing the promotion and pay of POWs during their captivity.  The 383.6 files for 1953 and 1954 also contain references to the names of some individual prisoners of war who were prosecuted in court-martial proceedings for various acts of misconduct and collaboration following their return to U.S. control.

RECORDS OF THE ASSISTANT CHIEF OF STAFF FOR INTELLIGENCE (G-2)
G-2 DECIMAL FILE

II.54   Throughout the Cold War years, the Army intelligence staff (G-2) collected vast amounts of documentation on Army personnel who were held as prisoners of war or listed as missing in action during the Korean and Vietnam Wars.  G-2 also gathered and investigated eyewitness accounts (intelligence summaries) that conveyed information on alleged sightings of Army personnel held by Communist countries during the Cold War period.

II.55   Many of these documents can be found in the three main records series that constitute the G-2 Decimal File: the top secret decimal correspondence file, 1942-62 (33 ft.); the secret decimal correspondence file, 1953-64 (244 ft.); and the decimal correspondence file, 1941-64 (2,971 ft.).

II.56   Each of these series is divided into chronological (usually yearly) segments that are then normally subdivided into "decimal correspondence" and "project decimal correspondence" sections.  Records filed within the "decimal correspondence" section are arranged by War Department decimal number.  However, documents within the more complex "project decimal correspondence" section are arranged hierarchically by broad topic, such as "Army Attaches," "Liaison Offices" (foreign attaches), "Armies," "Small Army Units," "International Organizations or Defense Pacts," "Special Projects," "Camps, Posts and Stations," "Schools," and "Countries and Geographical Areas," then by specific subtopics, and thereunder according to the War Department decimal filing scheme.

II.57   In addition to the two major subdivisions noted above, some series also include other, smaller sections.  For example, within the decimal correspondence file, 1941-64 there are "C" Letter Files, 1957-64" (controlled Army attache correspondence), and "A/A Country Files, 1961, 1963-64" (Army attache correspondence), an "Access File, 1961" (personal name security clearance accreditations), and "Miscellaneous Files, 1961" (general administrative records.  The secret decimal correspondence file includes "Secret 'C' Letter Files, 1957-64" ("Secret A/A 'C' Letter File, 1961), "Secret A/A Country Files, 1961-64," and a "Secret Alphabetical Name File and A/A Country File, 1964" (mostly Army attache correspondence).

II.58   At the time of this writing, the only G-2 Decimal File records available for public research are those that constitute the largely declassified 1941-52 chronological segments of the decimal correspondence file, 1941-64, and individual declassified War Department decimal file records--some pertaining to POWs and MIAs--in the other two G-2 Decimal File series.

II.59   For researchers who successfully negotiate the organizational complexities and current access restrictions of the G-2 Decimal File, there are substantial rewards.  The three component series offer extensive documentation on a wide variety of POW/MIA issues that confronted Army officials during the Cold War years.  Some examples follow:

  • Army memorandum comments on proposed revisions to the Geneva Convention of July 27, 1929, Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War.  See decimal correspondence file, 1941-64, 1941-48 segment, decimal file 383.6 (1948).
     
  • Random issues of the serially issued official Army battle casualty reports, which provide periodic and cumulative statistical documentation of Army personnel who were listed as missing in action and as prisoners of war during the Korean War.  See decimal correspondence file, 1941-64, 1949-50 segment, "decimal correspondence" section, decimal file 704; and 1951-52 segment, "decimal correspondence" section, "main" and "supplemental" subsections, decimal file 704.
     
  • Detailed lists of camps and facilities used by the North Korean Army to house American prisoners of war during the Korean War.  See secret decimal correspondence file, 1953-64, 1953 segment, "project decimal correspondence" section, "Countries and Geographical Areas--Korea" [broad topic and subtopic categories], decimal file 383.6.
     
  • Prisoner-of-war debriefing interviews, reports and studies, and other documents that focus on the type and effectiveness of interrogation, indoctrination, and "brainwashing" techniques that Communist forces practiced on American prisoners of war during the Korean War.  These records are scattered throughout all three series of the G-2 Decimal File.  However, within these series they are concentrated mainly in two areas: the 383.6 decimal files of the "decimal correspondence" sections of the various 1950-63 segments; and in the 383.6 decimal files located under "Countries and Geographical Areas--Korea" [broad topic and subtopic] within the "project decimal correspondence" sections of the various 1950-63 segments.
     
  • Army correspondence with various congressional investigating committees which sought information on charges that during the Korean War Communist forces recruited American POWs to carry out sabotage and espionage missions in the United States following their repatriation.  See decimal correspondence file, 1941-64, 1959 segment, "project decimal correspondence" section, "Countries and Geographical Areas--Korea," decimal file 383.6.  These files include an Army intelligence report that evaluates accusations made by returning POWs during intelligence debriefings against 75 individuals "who allegedly returned to the United States as trained agents of Communist espionage."
     
  • Reports and studies that focus on Communist atrocities against American POWs during the Korean War.  See decimal correspondence file, 1941-64, 1953 segment, "project decimal correspondence section," "Countries and Geographical Areas--Korea," decimal file 383.6.
     
  • Correspondence, reports, memorandums, and policy documents detailing the Army's policy position and participation on the Department of Defense's Ad Hoc Committee on Prisoners of War.  The ad hoc committee was created by the Secretary of Defense on August 7, 1954, for the purpose of recommending a program of indoctrination and training of military personnel in "conduct while in a POW status."  The ad hoc committee also formulated a post-Korean War interservice Code of Conduct (1955) that prescribed a standard of conduct for U.S. military personnel interned as prisoners of war.  See decimal correspondence file, 1941-64, and secret decimal correspondence file, 1953-64, 1954 segments, "decimal correspondence sections," decimal file 383.6.
     
  • Army RECAP program policy and procedure memorandums and publications governing the intelligence debriefing and return to duty or discharge of Army personnel who were captured by Communist forces during the Cold War (RECAP-WW) or the Korean War (RECAP-K), but who then returned to U.S. control as the result of escape or exchange.  See decimal correspondence file, 1941-64, 1959 segment, "project decimal correspondence" section, "Countries and Geographical Areas--Korea," decimal file 383.6; and 1963 chronological segment, "decimal correspondence section," decimal file 383.6.
     
  • Army policy and procedure memorandums and publications dealing with the official status, return to U.S. control, and prosecution of Army prisoners of war who chose to remain in Communist China as voluntary nonrepatriates after the Korean War cease-fire.  See decimal correspondence file, 1941-64, 1953 segment, "project decimal correspondence" section, "Countries and Geographical Areas--Korea," decimal file 383.6; 1957 segment, "project decimal file 383.6; and top secret decimal correspondence file, 1942-62, 195 segment, "project decimal correspondence" section, "Korea," decimal file 383.6.
     
  • POW/MIA lists, memorandum recommendations, and other records that document the Army's response to requests from United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission representatives for support in documenting demands submitted to Communist Military Armistice Commission to negotiators at Panmunjom for information on unaccounted-for Army POWs/MIAs.  See decimal correspondence file, 1941-64, 1957 segment, "project decimal correspondence" section, "Countries and Geographical Areas--Korea," decimal file 383.6.
     
  • Semiannual progress reports of the Army's post-Korean War POW code of conduct program, with copies of training manuals on such topics as "escape and evasion," enemy "indoctrination and interrogation" techniques, and resistance techniques.  See top secret decimal correspondence file, 1942-62, 1957 segment, "decimal correspondence section," decimal file 383.6.
     
  • Correspondence between the Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence (G-2) and the Department of State along with some intelligence interrogations that relate to reported sightings of Army personnel held in captive status by Communist nations (mainly the Soviet Union, but also Communist China) during the Cold War years.  See decimal correspondence file, 1941-64, 1960, 1961, and 1962 segments, "project decimal correspondence" section, "Countries and Geographical Areas--Russia [or U.S.S.R.]," decimal file 383.6; same series, 1961 segment, "project decimal correspondence" section, "Countries and Geographical Areas--China," decimal file 383.6; same series, 1957 segment, decimal correspondence section, decimal file 383.6; same series, 1941-48 segment, "decimal correspondence" section, decimal file 383.6.
     
  • Lists of American Army personnel "abducted, captured, or detained" by Sino-Soviet and irregular Communist forces, 1954-62.  See decimal correspondence file, 1941-62, 1962 segment, "decimal correspondence" section, decimal file 383.6.
G-2 DECIMAL FILE INDEXES

II.60   The Army created working "index" sheets and cards for each document in the three G-2 Decimal File series.  They have been organized into seven series, listed below.  The sheets or cards generally provide the following information for individual decimal file documents: main subject; brief subject summary; War Department classification main and cross-reference file numbers; date of document; and name of document sender and recipient.  Each sheet or card also indicates whether the document was originally security classified or unclassified--thereby providing clues to its current probable location among the three constituent G-2 Decimal File records series.

II.61   The seven component G-2 Decimal File index series are as follows:

  1. Declassified microfilmed cross-reference sheets to Army intelligence project decimal file, 1941-45 (Microfilm Publication T1010, 179 reels of 16 mm microfilm, numbered 213-391).  Arranged by broad topic (e.g., "Countries," "Postal Censorship," "Islands," "Stations and Cities," "Schools," "Offices," "Military Installations"), thereunder by subtopic, and thereunder by War Department decimal number.
     
  2. Security-classified microfilmed cross-reference sheets to Army intelligence project decimal file, 1941-45 (396 reels of 16 mm microfilm).  Arranged by broad topic (e.g., "Service Commands," "Departments," "Commands," "APOs," "Corps," "Armies," "Units," "Military attaches," "Countries," "Postal Censorship," "Islands," "States and cities," "Schools," "Branch Offices," "Military Installations"), thereunder by subtopic, thereunder by War Department decimal number.
     
  3. Security-classified microfilmed cross-reference sheets to Army intelligence decimal file, 1941-48 (350 reels of 16 mm microfilm).  Arranged by War Department decimal number.
     
  4. Security-classified microfilmed cross-reference sheets to army intelligence decimal file, 1949-50 (50 reels of 16 mm microfilm).  Arranged by War Department decimal number.
     
  5. Security-classified microfilmed cross-reference sheets to army intelligence decimal file, 1951-52 (36 reels of 16 mm microfilm).  Arranged by War Department decimal number.
     
  6. Security-classified cross-reference card subject index to the project decimal files, 1953-56 (151 ft.).  Arranged by broad topic (e.g., "Military attaches," "Army attaches," "Liaison Offices," "Armies," "Small Army Units," "Special Projects," "Installations," "States and Cities," "Countries"), thereunder by subtopic, thereunder by War Department decimal number.
     
  7. Security-classified cross-reference card subject index to the decimal file, 1953-56 (192 ft.).  Arranged by War Department decimal number.

II.62   In theory, G-2 staff would have filed all records pertaining to POW and MIA personnel under decimal files 383.6 or 704.  But that is not always the case.  Under War Department decimal file 311.51 "Code Names," the cross-reference card subject index to the decimal file, 1953-56, includes approximately 75 index card references to RECAP-K program policy records and roughly 20 other card references to similar records of the RECAP-WW program.  Cross-reference citations on these index cards indicate that G-2 filed POW/MIA records under several decimal file locations other than 383.6 and 704.  In addition, researchers who work with these index sheets and cards should be aware that they do refer occasionally to documents that are missing from the G-2 Decimal File series.  Thus, the indexes service different research purposes: they provide document citations and primary locations; they cross-reference additional locations for pertinent documents; and they alert researchers to documents that might once have been filed in the G-2 Decimal File.

OTHER RECORDS

II.63   Army intelligence officers conducted numerous RECAP-K program POW interrogations at the end of the Korean War and following the armistice agreement.  The Army was mainly interested in learning what it could about the attempts of American POWs to "escape and evade" the enemy.  However, the debriefing reports, also known as "RECAP-K Phase II and III Interrogations of Repatriated American Prisoners of War," provide information on many other aspects of POW life, including the details of an individual's capture and his treatment in camp, the names of POWs who died as captives, indoctrination and interrogation techniques employed by Communist officials, camp names and topographic features, diet, and sanitation conditions.

II.64   These reports are arranged alphabetically by the surnames of interviewed ex-POWs.  They are accompanied by 3 linear feet of computer punchcards that provide an alphabetical listing of American POWs who were repatriated in Operations Little Switch and Big Switch.  For each name, these cards also list the POW's rank, service number, date of birth, and various "dossier" numbers.  Information from the punchards is also available in electronic format.  (See paragraphs III.12-III.13.)  The declassified reports and punchcards are filed as item number 950774: RECAP-K (6 ft.), within the "intelligence document file; publications ('950000' file), 1947-62" (503 ft.) subseries of the main file numerical series of intelligence documents ("ID" file), ca. 1938-62 (ca. 8,100 ft.).  (The main file series is commonly known as the "Army Intelligence Document File.")

II.65   The security-classified retired records group, 1940-65 (35 ft.), consists of records retained by G-2 in its Records Section until 1965 because of their topical sensitivity.  This series is arranged by subject (e.g. "Attaches," "Liaison Officers," "Posts, Camps and Centers," "Schools," "States and Cities," "Countries," and "Correspondence"), thereunder by the War Department decimal scheme, and thereunder chronologically.  Many of these items were once part of the G-2 top secret decimal correspondence file.  Several boxes within this series contain declassified documents that pertain to Cold War and Korean War prisoner-of-war issues.  The 383.6 folder in box 9, for example, includes a G-2 memorandum, dated August 17, 1954, responding to questions raised by the chairman of the Senate Permanent Committee on Investigations pertaining to U.S. personnel detained in "Iron Curtain" countries.  The August 17 memorandum summarizes what Army G-2 knew about American prisoners in those countries, based on interrogations that were conducted by the U.S. Government or supplied by foreign sources.  It includes a list of U.S. Army personnel who were taken to Manchuria during the Korean War but eventually repatriated, another list of American detainees and defectors who were subsequently returned by Communist-bloc countries, and two other lists of persons "believed to be" in East Germany or in "Soviet Territory other than East Germany."  Folder 383.6 in box 24 includes a declassified memorandum written by the U.S. military attache in Moscow on September 23, 1948, that summarizes American inquiries and Soviet responses to charges that U.S. prisoners were being held by the U.S.S.R.  Folder 383.6 in box 63 contains declassified memorandums, correspondence, reports, and other records that focus on East German detention of American personnel, the Army's definition of "detainee" and "defector," and evidence that some Americans repatriated during the Korean War "might have received assignment by the Soviets or Chinese Communists to conduct sabotage or espionage missions on their return to the U.S."  This folder also includes declassified correspondence that documents Army cease-fire negotiation proposals for the release and repatriation of Korean War POWs.

II.66 Counterintelligence files, Korea, 1950-58 (23 ft.), include reports, studies, testimony, debriefings, rosters, black and white photographs, and other records that focus on the treatment, character, and behavior of American prisoners of war during the Korean War.  There are, for example, Army reports and studies that provide information on the psychological effects of captivity and on Communist POW interrogation and indoctrination techniques.  There are also prisoner-of-war interrogations and investigative reports that pertain to the personal history and behavior of American voluntary nonrepatriates and to allegations of POW collaboration with the enemy.  Box 1 of this series includes several black and white photographic prints of American prisoners of war in captivity, most of which are copies of work produced by Communist officials and journalists.  Other photographic prints in box 1 were provided to the Army by Life magazine, several of which were featured in an article on American prisoners of war that ran in the May 11, 1953 (vol. 34, no. 19), issue of that publication.  Other records in this series include transcripts and summaries of POW broadcasts over Radio Peking and Radio Pyongyang, and a few records relating to "irregularities" in the Army's prosecution of repatriated American prisoners of war on charges of collaboration.  The records in this series are arranged by the War Department decimal classification number 383.6, and thereunder in chronological order.  Parallel sections of miscellaneous and chronologically arranged "enclosures" follow the 383.6 files.  Although most of these records have been declassified, some documents remain FOIA-exempt because they provide detailed information on the personal and medical history of ex-POWs, voluntary nonrepatriates, and witnesses of alleged crimes.

RECORDS OF THE ASSISTANT CHIEF OF STAFF FOR OPERATIONS (G-3)

II.67   The Assistant Chief of Staff for Operations security classified correspondence [decimal file], 1950-55 (1,059 ft.), is divided into five chronological segments (1950-51, 1952, 1953, 1954, and 1955), under which records are generally arranged according to the War Department decimal classification scheme.  (The 1952 and 1953 chronological segments, however, are divided into "main," "bulky," and "bulky bulk" decimal file sections, under which records are arranged according to the War Department decimal filing scheme.)  The series includes records that document the Army's involvement with prisoner-of-war and missing-in-action personnel issues during the Korean War.  these records, which are usually filed under the yearly 383.6 and 704 decimal designations, include POW/MIA lists and casualty statistics, correspondence and messages relating to POW/MIA exchange negotiations and repatriation operations, and analyses of "lessons learned" from POW interrogations.  There are also reports and studies that focus on such topics and Communist POW indoctrination techniques, improvements in "captive status" training offered by the American military, and the development of an interservice Code of Conduct that would reflect "lessons learned" from the Korean War.  The 383.6 files also include assorted records that focus on the legal and administrative status of voluntary nonrepatriates, and on the Army's handling of alleged criminal activity and conduct violations by some U.S. Army POWs while in captive status.

II.68   Nearly all of the 383.6 and 704 files within this series have been declassified.  Specific documents or record items within the yearly decimal files include the following:

  • File 383.6 (1950-51 segment).  Alphabetical lists of American POWs arranged by North Korean camp number.  These lists provide the POW's name, serial number, rank, and unit.
     
  • File 704 (1950-51, and 1952 "main" section).  Incomplete runs of biweekly statistical reports titled "Battle Casualties of the Army" [CTB-39], DA Report CASCAP-90, August 1, 1950-52.  These compilations include statistics on "missing in action" and "captured or interned" personnel listed by date, rank, state of residence, and branch of Army service.
     
  • File 383.6 (1953 "bulky file" section).  "Final Report, Joint Classification Board, Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff, J-2 (Intelligence), [Far East Command], Operation Little Switch," which includes sections on Little Switch organization and mission, counterintelligence and psychological warfare, psychiatric evaluation, legal aspects, and recommendations."
     
  • File 383.6 (1954).  An 18-page "Memorandum Summary of an Analysis of Interrogation Data From Little Switch" prepared by the Psychological Warfare Research Division of the Human Resources Research Office, July 1953 (which includes sections on POW camp conditions, indoctrination techniques and POW responses, resistance, adjustments to captivity, camp locations and dates of establishment, and the names of alleged collaborators mentioned in interrogation reports and interviews); and an undated "United Nations Command Report on Operations of [the] Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission," 288 pp.  The Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission (Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, and India) was established in 1953 by Military Armistice Conference delegates to assist in resolving various nonrepatriate prisoner-of-war issues.

II.69  The most useful finding aid for this series is the G-3 document register that precedes each decimal file classification within the yearly records segments and sections.  The registers include document number (assigned generally in chronological order), document source (usually the name of sender), date of document, subject, type of document, and file cross-references.

II.70   Other finding aids for this series include the subject indexes to security classified and top secret correspondence, 1950-55 (86 ft.), a series of document lists and cross-reference sheets that is divided into chronological segments (1950-51, 1952, 1953, 1954 and 1955) under which the sheets and lists are arranged according to the War Department decimal classification scheme.  Under each decimal number (for example, 383.6), the lists and cross-reference sheets identify documents filed under that same number (383.6) or a different (but related) War Department decimal number within the G-3 security classified correspondence, 1950-55.  The lists provide the original decimal number of each document, its office or origin, the date, and a synopsis of each document.  The cross-reference sheets cite the decimal under which the document was filed, the decimals where other cross-reference sheets for the document were filed, the subject, the date, the office of origin, the suspense date, and the office to which the document was referred for action.

II.71   On July 10, 1951, representatives of the United Nations Command met formally with commanders of the Korean People's Army (North Korea) and the Chinese People's Volunteers (People's Republic of China) to initiate discussions ("Military Armistice Conference" negotiations) to reach a cease-fire agreement that would bring an end to combat operations during the Korean War.  POW repatriation (Military Armistice Conference agenda item 4) developed into a major issue at the conference, blocking final agreement on an armistice until July 27, 1953.  By terms of the cease-fire agreement, a joint Military Armistice Commission (MAC), composed of delegates and staff appointed by the opposing sides, supervised implementation of the cease-fire accords.  Delegates and staff representing United Nations forces were chosen from the United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission (UNCMAC), which had been established on June 20, 1953--a little over one month prior to the cease-fire agreement.  MAC was assisted in its responsibilities by the Neutral Nations Supervisor Commission (NNSC), which investigated violations of MAC agreements and oversaw the exchange and return of prisoners of war.  NNSC was composed of representatives from Sweden, Switzerland, Poland, and Czechoslovakia.

II.72   Work of the Military Armistice Conference is thoroughly documented in the collection of conference agendas, proceedings, transcripts, proposals, reports, summaries, standard operating procedures, memorandums, correspondence, and maps that comprise the subject-arranged Korean armistice negotiations files, 1951-58 (11 ft.).  Conference agenda item 4 of the armistice focused on prisoner-of-war repatriation and the resolution of missing-in-action personnel accounting issues.  Boxes 707, 708, and 710 of this series include proceedings of the conference subdelegations, staff officers, and liaison representatives charged with working out an agreement on agenda item 4.  Some of these proceedings include attached lists of unaccounted-for POWs and missing-in-action personnel submitted by United Nations Command delegates to their Communist counterparts.  Other records in this series include meeting agendas, meeting minutes, transcripts of meeting proceedings, correspondence, reports, and other records that document cease-fire agreement implementation activities of the Military Armistice Commission and the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission.  MAC focused most of its early efforts on issues and problems surrounding the release of prisoners of war and captured civilians held by both sides.

II.74   For other Military Armistice Commission armistice negotiation textual records, see the descriptions of various series of records of the United Nations Command in Record Group 333 (paragraphs II.84-89).

Record Group 330 - Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense

II.74   During the years of combat in Korea and shortly thereafter, Defense Department officials addressed a host of inquiries and policy issues raised by the capture, internment, treatment, and eventual release of American prisoners of war.  The Department also consulted with the President and the Department of State and advised United Nations Command negotiators on various POW and casualty accounting issues and proposals that were discussed with Communist negotiators at meetings of the joint Military Armistice Commission in Panmunjom, Korea.

GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE FILE AND INDEXES

II.75   Department of Defense policies and actions that evolved from the development of Korean War POW/MIA issues and negotiations are well documented in the Secretary of Defense's general correspondence, 1947-54, which consists of three series:

  1. formerly security-classified general correspondence, 1947-54 (228 ft.);
     
  2. unclassified general correspondence, 1947-54 (242 ft.); and
     
  3. security-classified (restricted data) general correspondence, 1948-54 (2 ft.).

II.76   Only series 1 and 2 contain significant information pertaining to POW/MIA issues.  Each of these two series, in turn, consists of two or more subseries.  For example, both series 1 and 2 include subseries of "decimal correspondence files" (divided into chronological segments under which records are arranged according to the War Department decimal classification scheme) and "numerical correspondence files (also divided into chronological segments, but under which records are arranged according to various DOD-devised numerical file schemes).  The unclassified general correspondence, 1947-54, also consists of an alphabetically arranged "subject correspondence file" subseries.

II.77   Fortunately, nearly all of the important documents pertaining to Korean War POW/MIA issues are located in file 383.6 of the chronological segments of the "decimal correspondence files" subseries of series 1 and 2.  Examples of Korean War POW/MIA records within these two series are described below.

II.77a   Formerly security classified general correspondence, 1947-54, "decimal correspondence files," July 1950-54.

  • Files 383.6 (1951 and 1952) include Department of Defense reports, internal policy memorandums, meeting minutes, and correspondence with Congress, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the United Nations Command, the Department of State, the President, and the public on such topics as proposals for the exchange of prisoners of war in Korea; the issue of prisoner of war "forced repatriation" in armistice negotiations; and public release of names of repatriated U.S. prisoners of war.
     
  • File 383.6 (1953) includes correspondence between the Department of Defense and the Secretary of the Army that documents terms of a nonpublic agreement made by the U.S. Government with Japan to interview approximately 30,000 repatriated Japanese prisoners of war who were detained by Communist China after World War II and roughly 400,000 repatriated Japanese prisoners of war held by the Soviet Union after that same conflict.  Through these interviews, U.S. military officials sought, in part, to learn more about Communist treatment of prisoners of war and indoctrination techniques.  But a few of the interviewees also provided live sighting reports of Soviet-held prisoners.  Most of the other records in these files focus on efforts made by the Department of Defense to measure and counter the effects of Communist political indoctrination on American prisoners of war in the Korean War.  There is, for example, correspondence between the Department of Defense and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) on CIA studies of "brainwashing" techniques applied by Chinese Communist interrogators to American prisoners of war.  File 383.6 (1953) also includes reports and correspondence generated by various Army special and ad-hoc committees convened after the Korean War cease-fire to analyze the effects of Communist indoctrination on U.S. POWs, and to propose a program of "deindoctrination" for those servicemen.  Additional records in file 383.6 (1953) include congressional correspondence with the Department of Defense pertaining to Military Armistice Commission negotiations for the release and exchange of Korean War prisoners-of-war, and a memorandum report issued by the Psychological Strategy Board (April 1953) on suggested negotiating strategies with Communist representatives on various prisoner of war repatriation issues.  There is also a background report on the efforts made by the Communist Chinese and North Korean Governments to utilize American prisoners of war and their relatives and friends for the purpose of political propaganda.
     
  • File 383.6 (1954) includes numerous Department of Defense responses to inquiries made by various congressmen and the Senate Permanent Committee on Investigations about Korean War servicemen who were listed as unaccounted-for prisoners of war or as missing in action.  Many of these individuals had been declared dead under the Missing Persons Act.  In such cases, Defense Department replies to requests for information about specific servicemen usually summarize the results of investigation and rationale pertaining to the official ruling on the fates of those individuals.  Responses to Senate Permanent Committee on Investigations inquiries about specific servicemen were handled by the Office of Legislative Liaison.  They generally provide more information about unaccounted-for individuals, including "name, rank and serial number," lists of American servicemen believed to have been held by North Korea or the People's Republic of China, and summaries of evidence or interrogation testimony that the Department of Defense had gathered about suspected detainees or unaccounted-for personnel.  The inquiries and responses refer to repatriated and unrepatriated prisoners of war, and to various Cold War "shot down" victims.  Also in the 383.6 (1954) file is a memorandum drafted by the Department of Defense Legislative and Public Affairs Office for use by the Senate Permanent Committee on Investigations that summarize events leading up to the downing of an American B-29 over North Korea on January 12, 1953, the fate of the crew (commanded by Col. John K. Arnold, Jr.), and details of the eventual incarceration and espionage trial of crash survivors in the People's Republic of China.  Other documents in file 383.6 (1954) consist of correspondence between the Department of Defense, the Department of State, and Congress about efforts to secure the release of American prisoners of war held by North Korea and the People's Republic of China after the Korean War cease-fire; congressional correspondence, DOD policy memorandums, and legal opinions pertaining to the dishonorable discharge or prosecution of various repatriated and voluntary nonrepatriate Korean War prisoners of war; and a court of inquiry findings report pertaining to a Marine Corps field grade officer charged with misconduct during his time as a Korean War POW.

II.77b   Unclassified general correspondence, 1947-54, "decimal correspondence files," July 1950-53.

  • Files 383.6 (1951, 1952, 1953) include Department of Defense correspondence with congressional representatives and the general public on issues such as U.S. Government efforts to effect or negotiate the release of American prisoners of war in Korea; Department of Defense information concerning the health and welfare of American POWs in North Korea; Communist indoctrination of prisoners of war; efforts by United Nations Command negotiators and the U.S. Government to secure more information about Korean War POWs and some missing-in-action personnel not accounted for by North Korean and Communist Chinese authorities; and Department of Defense policy on the issue of "forced repatriation" of Korean War prisoners of war.  The 1953 files include correspondence between the Defense Department and Congress that focuses heavily on various administrative and political issues that pertained to the status of 21 American voluntary nonrepatriates from the Korean War.  The 1953 files also contain Defense Department policy statements pertaining to the prosecution and administrative status of those repatriated Korean War POWs accused of misconduct or collaboration with the enemy.

II.78   Two useful indexes for the Secretary of Defense's general correspondence are card and slip indexes to formerly security classified general correspondence, 1947-54 (29 ft.); and indexes to unclassified general correspondence, 1947-53 (91 ft.).  These index series are divided generally into chronological segments and arranged thereunder by subject.  They consist of index cards, index slips, cross-reference sheets, and cross-reference "stay back" document copies ("pinks") that provide the following information for records in the various series and subseries that constitute the Secretary of Defense's general correspondence:  date of document, names of sender and recipient, subject of document, file number and cross-reference file numbers, and enclosure notations.  There are index subject categories for "Casualties" and "Prisoners of War."

RECORDS OF THE DEFENSE PRISONER OF WAR/MISSING IN ACTION OFFICE

II.79   The Defense Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Office (DPMO) was established on July 16, 1993, for the purpose of managing and coordinating all Department of Defense business that pertains to prisoner of war and missing-in-action personnel.  DPMO responsibilities include representing the Defense Department in negotiating with foreign governments on issues pertaining to unaccounted-for or unlocated post-1940 prisoner of war/missing-in-action personnel; gathering and analyzing information for inclusion in an electronic database that will focus on all U.S. military personnel who have been listed as prisoners of war or missing in action from World War II to the present; declassifying Department of Defense documents for public release; and serving as an information liaison between the Department, Congress, POW/MIA families, and veterans organizations.

II.80   Section 1031 of the National Defense Authorization Act of 1995 requires DPMO to transfer records that it gathers in the course of research to NARA.  The first installment of DPMO records, copies of records relating to Korean War POW/MIAs, 1951-58 (5 ft.), includes copies of documents held by other Federal records repositories, such as the Library of Congress, the U.S. Army Center for Military History, the U.S. Navy Operational Archives, and the National archives.  Records within this series are arranged by the name of the agency from which DPMO obtained document copies.  Filed with the records is an unaccessioned copy of a DPMO-produced series finding aid titled "Index of Releasable Documents Related to Korean/Cold War POW/MIA."  This index lists documents hierarchically by agency repository, thereunder by record group or collection title or type of document, and thereunder by the appropriate subdivisions (records series title, box number, document title).  This index is a valuable finding aid for information on Korean War/Cold War prisoners of war and missing-in-action personnel because it identifies specific documents by names of correspondents, dates, and subject content (which often includes the names of specific prisoners of war or missing-in-action personnel).  Many of those documents reside in series described in this reference information paper.  However, the index also identifies and describes other relevant National Archives documents and records series that do not fall within the scope of this paper.

RECORDS OF TASK FORCE RUSSIA AND THE JOINT COMMISSION SUPPORT DIRECTORATE
RELATING TO WORK OF THE U.S.-RUSSIAN JOINT COMMISSION ON POW/MIAs

II.81   The U.S.-Russian Joint Commission on POW/MIAs was established by the Presidents of Russia and the United States on March 20, 1992.  The commission meets periodically to resolve issues pertaining to U.S. and Russian civilians and military personnel who, in 1992, were listed as unaccounted-for prisoners of war or as unaccounted-for missing in action from World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the Cold War.  On June 26, 1992, the Secretary of the Army (by direction of the Secretary of Defense) created Task Force Russia to serve as executive agent for the joint commission.  When DPMO became the Department of Defense agency contact for POW/MIA affairs in July 1993, Task Force Russia responsibilities were transferred from the Department of the Army to the DPMO Joint Commission Support Branch (later known as the Joint Commission Support Directorate).  Task Force Russia and the Joint Commission Support Directorate have assisted the joint commission by gathering and analyzing records located in both Russia and the United States, interviewing Russian citizens, and cooperating in the preparation of periodic reports of the commission's work.  These reports, along with research document translations, research analyses, and minutes of commission plenary and working group sessions, are located in the chronologically arranged reports and verbatim translations prepared for the U.S.-Russian Joint Commission on POW/MIAs, July 17, 1992-May 1995 (2 ft.).

II.82   The chronologically arranged and numbered Department of Defense press releases relating to Korean War casualties, June 29, 1950-September 13, 1953 (12 ft.), report casualties for all components of the armed forces.  The releases, which were compiled by the Press Branch, contain information on individuals who were killed, wounded, or missing in action.  Also listed are individuals who subsequently died of wounds, who were injured, or who died of injuries, and who were initially reported missing but were later ascertained to have been captured by the enemy or returned to duty.  Information on each individual includes his name and rank, date of casualty, name and address of next of kin, and occasionally a brief note or account of the circumstances surrounding his casualty status.  Releases issued after July 31, 1950, are formatted alphabetically by state of residence, thereunder by type of casualty, thereunder by arm of service (Army, Marine Corps, etc.), and thereunder alphabetically by name of casualty.  Prior to that date, the releases do not have a state of residence category.  Immediately preceding the numbered press releases are copies of Press Branch fact sheets, dated August 10 and 11, 1950, that summarize Defense Department policies which governed the reporting and release of casualty information.

II.83   A duplicate set of all but the first 77 of these press releases can be found in rolls 2 through 19 of the microfilm copy of press releases and other records relating to Korean War casualties, [August 28,] 1950-[September 13,] 1953 (Microfilm Publication P2264, 21 rolls [numbered 2 through 22] of 35 mm microfilm).  Rolls 20 through 22 of this series contain other records that deal with American POW/MIA issues, such as press releases, newspaper clippings, a list of sick and wounded American captives returned by Communist forces to United Nations Command military control in Korea, and another list of "Men Reported by Reds to Have Died."  Roll 1 was never located.

Record Group 333 - Records of International Military Agencies

RECORDS OF THE UNITED NATIONS COMMAND

II.84   The United Nations Command (UNC), with general headquarters in Tokyo, was established on July 24, 1950, for the purpose of assisting the Republic of South Korea in repelling the North Korean invasion that began the Korean War.  The Commander in Chief, United Nations Command, oversaw naval, ground combat, service, and medical operations conducted by the military units of 21 member nations that fought alongside American forces during the Korean War.  Structurally, the United Nations Command consisted of an advance command (UNC Advance), the UNC Military Armistice Commission (UNCMAC), and the United Nations Command Repatriation Group (UNCREG).  UNC Advance (July 1951-July 27, 1953) was created to assist in armistice negotiations with the Communist forces of North Korea and the People's Republic of China.  UNCMAC, established on June 20, 1953, provided UNC delegates and administrative support to the joint Military Armistice Commission created by UNC and Communist forces representatives on July 27, 1953, for the purpose of implementing the Korean War cease-fire agreement.  UNCREG, which functioned between September 1, 1953, and February 25, 1954, represented the United Nations Command on matters concerning implementation of those Korean War armistice agreement terms that provided for the care, treatment, and repatriation of prisoners of war.  In that capacity, UNCREG dealt extensively with the joint Military Armistice Commission, UNC-MAC, and the Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission.

II.85   Records of the Secretary, General Staff, Headquarters, United Nations Command (Advance) include chronologically arranged Korean armistice agreement documents, July 1953 (1 ft.).  This series includes the United Nations Command's copy of the original signed armistice agreement, dated July 27, 1953, with separate "Temporary Agreement Supplementary to the Armistice Agreement" and map portfolios.  These documents are in three languages--English, Korean, and Chinese--and all are signed by commanders of the United Nations Command, the Korean People's Army (North Korea), and the Chinese People's Volunteers (People's Republic of China).  This series also includes the original message received by the Department of the Army from the UNC Commander in Chief announcing the armistice signing at Panmunjom, Korea, two original maps (one American, the other Russian) denoting the 38th parallel line of Korean political division agreed to by a joint U.S.-Soviet Union survey team in April 1947, and assorted correspondence pertaining to the armistice agreements.

II.86   Copies of Korean War Military Armistice Conference agendas, proceedings, meeting minutes, reports, memorandums, correspondence, maps, and other records that document negotiations on conference agenda item 4 (POW issues) can be found in the following series:

  1. Korean armistice negotiations records, June 1951-July 1953 (7 ft.).  Military Armistice Conference records maintained by the Secretariat, United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission.
     
  2. Security-classified Korean armistice negotiations records, July 1951-July 1953 (9 ft.).  Military Armistice Conference records maintained by the Secretary, General Staff, Headquarters, United Nations Command (Advance).  Declassified portions of this series appear on Microfilm Publication T1152.  (See item 6 below.)
     
  3. Minutes of meetings [number 1 through 55] of subdelegates for agenda item 4 on prisoners of war, December 11, 1951-February 6, 1952 (1 ft.).  Military Armistice Conference records maintained by the Secretary, General Staff, Headquarters, United Nations Command (Advance).
     
  4. Minutes of meetings of the Military Armistice Commission, July 28, 1953-February 13, 1981 (9 ft. and 8 rolls of 35 mm microfilm).  Military Armistice Commission records maintained by the Secretariat, United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission.  The series includes paper copies of minutes for all Military Armistice Commission meetings (numbered 1-405) between July 28, 1953 and February 13, 1981.  There are microfilm copies of meeting minutes for the period July 28, 1953, through December 30, 1964.
     
  5. Formerly security-classified armistice implementation records, 1951-57 (7 ft.), also maintained by the UNCMAC Secretariat, and arranged alphabetically by subject.  This series includes a 56-page study of "Communist Utilization of POWs" compiled in January 1953 by the G-2 staff of the U.S. Army Forces, Far East (Advance) (filed under that title as subject heading), and a March 13, 1953, U.S. 8th Army operations plan for Operation Little Switch (filed under the subject Little Switch).  Under the subject heading "POW," there is a two-volume "Plan for Coordination, Supervision and Negotiation [of the Military Armistice Commission plan for POW repatriation]" (dated January 15, 1953), prepared by the United Nations Command Committee for Repatriation of Prisoners of War.  Also filed under "POW" is a copy of the "Standing Operating Procedure for Intelligence Processing and De Briefing of Recovered Navy and Marine Corps Prisoners of War," as distributed in April 1953 by the Intelligence Section of the Office of the Commander, Naval Forces Far East.  Other documents in the "POW" subject files include some 1953 correspondence between United Nations Command officials and American citizens relating to efforts by United Nations Command negotiators to secure information from Communist negotiators at the Korean War armistice talks about unaccounted for POWs, and an undated, 1:250,000-scale map of named and numbered Communist POW camps situated in the northwestern quarter of North Korea.
     
  6. [Microfilmed records of] United Nations Command Korean armistice negotiations, 1951-53 (Microfilm Publication T1152), 11 rolls of 35 mm microfilm.  This series consists of filmed, unclassified documents from series item 2 listed above.

II.87   These six Record Group 333 series largely duplicate records found in the Record Group 319 Korean armistice negotiations files, 1951-58.  (See para. II.72.)  However, it is possible that one series may contain copies of documents (such as meeting minutes and proceedings) that do not exist in another.  And, even where copies of the same basic document exist in two or more series, these two documents may differ because one contains a substantive annotation of evidential or historical significance while the other one does not.  At present, all of the Record Group 333 cease-fire negotiation series described above, except item 2, are open to public research.  Other records relating to work of the Military Armistice Conference and the United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission are described in Records of the United Nations Command, Adjutant General Section, (paragraph II.90).

II.88   The UNCMAC Logistics and Liaison Division general administrative file, June 1953-June 1957 (7 ft.), consists of subject-arranged correspondence, reports, messages, memorandums, journals, and other documents pertaining to service, supply, and liaison functions exercised by UNCMAC during the post armistice period.  The records include some information on the repatriation and rehabilitation of prisoners of war and the exchange of sick and wounded.

II.89   Other records that provide information on the repatriation of all Korean War prisoners of war in accordance with armistice provisions can be found in the UNCREG Adjutant General's administrative decimal file, September 1, 1953-February 1954 (2 ft.), which is arranged within yearly blocks according to the War Department decimal file scheme.  The most useful documents within this series are reports issues by the Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission, and correspondence between UNCREG and the Commission on armistice agreement implementation, interpretations, disputes, and violations.  All of these documents are located under the yearly 383.6 decimal designation.

RECORDS OF THE UNITED NATIONS COMMAND, ADJUTANT GENERAL SECTION

II.90   The security-classified UNC Adjutant General's general administrative file, 1951-55 (46 ft.) contains correspondence, messages, reports, and other records that document various United Nations Command policies and program functions.  The series is basically divided into yearly segments that consist of "decimal file," "confidential decimal file," and "secret decimal file" sections.  Records are arranged in these sections according to the War Department decimal scheme.  There are, however, no "confidential decimal file" and "secret decimal file" sections for the 1951 and 1952 segments.)  Decimal file 387.2 "Terminating War, Treaties" (all sections) includes about 9 feet of reports, proceedings, and other records generated by Korean War Military Armistice Conference delegates, UNCMAC staff, and members of various Joint International Red Cross teams that, between 1951 and 1955, participated in negotiating and implementing terms of the Korean War armistice agreement.  These records are significant because Military Armistice Conference delegates focused a great deal of attention on POW/MIA issues.  Reports of the Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission, which managed the implementation of Korean War armistice agreements pertaining to POW repatriation, can be found among the records in file 883.6 "Prisoners of War" (all sections) (ca. 2 ft.).  File 383.6 also contains a few records pertaining to American voluntary nonrepatriate POWs, including correspondence, memorandums, and other records that illuminate Army policy governing the requests of relatives to visit with their voluntary nonrepatriate sons, brothers, or husbands in Korea.  There are also copies of letters written by several voluntary nonrepatriates in 1953 to relatives and various American newspapers.  In these letters, the voluntary nonrepatriates explain their political views and decisions to reside in the People's Republic of China after the armistice agreement.  File 383.6 records pertaining to voluntary nonrepatriates are located in all sections of the 1953 segment.  File 383.6 (1953-55 segments, all sections) also includes correspondence between the United Nations Command and the Department of the Army pertaining to the progress and effectiveness of discussions about unaccounted-for United Nations Command prisoners of war with North Korean officials.

II.91   Additional records in the 383.6 files include a copy of the final report of the Joint Classification Board on Operation Little Switch, issued on or about June 17, 1953, by the Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence (J-2) of the Far East Command.  This report summarizes POWS debriefing and intelligence analysis responsibilities of the Joint Classification Board, general psychiatric findings from POW debriefings, various legal issues raised in the course of these interviews, and recommendations for further action.  This report can be found in file 383.6 (declassified) of the "secret decimal file" section of the 1953 segment.  File 383.6 of the "confidential decimal file" section (1955 segment, box 98) contains a message copy of the "Revised List of 450 American Personnel Missing in Korea as of 28 July 1955," as transmitted from the Department of the Army to the United Nations Command in November 1955.  This list refers to 450 American servicemen not accounted for by Communist forces (as of July 28, 1955) but about whom U.S. officials had some evidence (eyewitness account, documentary evidence, etc.) suggesting that they might have been, at one time, in Communist custody during the Korean War.  A few messages and some correspondence listing unaccounted-for American Korean War POWs by name, rank, and serial number (and including references to named eyewitness testimony or documentary evidence that placed specific POWs in North Korean captivity) can be found in declassified file 383.6 of the "secret decimal file" section of the 1954 segment, box 78.

Record Group 335 - Records of the Office of the Secretary of the Army

GENERAL CORRESPONDENCE FILES AND INDEXES

II.92   Information about Korean War/Cold War POW/MIA issues can be found in two series: the Secretary of the Army's unclassified general correspondence, July 1947-December 1964 (627 ft.), and security classified general correspondence, July 1947-December 1964 (387 ft.).  Each series is divided into the following chronological segments: July 1947-December 1950; January 1951-January 1953; January 1953-December 1956; January 1957-December 1960; and January 1961-December 1964.  In both series, each chronological segment is divided into a "numerical files" section (under which documents are arranged according to the War Department decimal classification scheme), and a "project files" section (which is subdivided alphabetically by subject categories, under which records are arranged according to the War Department decimal classification number, and then by date of document).  Few records within the security-classified correspondence have been declassified, so research access to documents within that series is usually restricted.

II.93   Both series include correspondence, memorandums, and official statements that illustrate Army policies for compiling, evaluating, and reporting Korean War casualty statistics, which included categories for soldiers listed as missing in action.  See July 1947-December 1950 segments, "numerical files" sections, decimal file 704 "Casualties, Wounded, and Wounds."

II.94   In 1955 the Department of Defense established an internal Defense Advisory Committee on Prisoners of War to make recommendations on interservice Code of Conduct training, on the equitable treatment of repatriated prisoners of war, and on the protection and recovery of POWs still held by Communist countries.  Reports and formal presentation scripts of the advisory committee can be found in decimal file 383.6 "Prisoners of War" of the "numerical files" section, January 1953-December 1956 segment, security-classified correspondence.  Other records in that specific 383.6 file include Department of the Army procedures outlining the Army's role in repatriating 11 Air Force B-29 crew members who were detained in the People's Republic of China until 1955 after their aircraft, commanded by Col. John K. Arnold Jr., was shot down in proximity to the border between Manchuria and North Korea on January 12, 1953.  In addition, that file contains Army responses to requests for information on American prisoners of war reportedly held by Communist countries, and Department of the Army contingency instructions for receiving and processing any of the 21 American voluntary nonrepatriates from the Korean War who might seek repatriation to the United States.

II.95   Following the Korean War, Army training began to reflect an emphasis on lessons learned from the experiences of American prisoners of war in Communist captivity.  Much of what Army interrogators and researchers learned from the returning POWs appeared in Army instruction manuals that contained sections on escape and evasion, Communist interrogation and indoctrination techniques, and practical resistance to enemy persuasion.  A sample of these manuals can be found in decimal file 383.6, "numerical files" section, January 1957-December 1960 segment, security-classified correspondence.

II.96   Other files in these two series include lists of unaccounted for Korean War POWs, correspondence and reports pertaining to a few of the cases involving Army prisoners of war who were captured by North Korea following the cease-fire agreement, Army instructions for POW repatriation during the Korean War, records relating to Army prosecution of repatriated Korean War POWs charged with misconduct or collaboration, and correspondence and memorandums that deal with attempts by the Army to acquire information about unaccounted-for prisoners of war and missing-in-action personnel from the Korean War.  Information on these subjects can be found under several file designations, but mostly in the "numerical files" under 383.6.  Other locations include the "project files" sections ("Foreign Countries-Russia," 383.6 decimal files, and "Foreign Countries-Korea," 383.6 decimal files) of both series.

II.97   The index for specific documents in the unclassified correspondence is the microfilmed series of cross-reference sheets to the correspondence of the Office of the Secretary of the Army, 1947-64 (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1101), 485 rolls of 35mm microfilm.  The cross-reference sheets are divided into the following chronological segments: July 1947-June 1949; June 1949-December 1950; January 1951-January 1953; January 1953-December 1954; and in 2-year time periods thereafter.  Each chronological segment is then divided into a "numerical files" section and a "project files" section.  Cross-reference sheets for the "numerical files" are arranged by War Department decimal classification number; "project files" sheets are arranged alphabetically by subject, thereunder by subtopic, then by decimal classification number, and finally by date of document.  The filmed sheets include the document's primary decimal number (upper left corner), decimal numbers for other copies of the cross-reference sheet, the names of a document's originator and recipients, date of document and ate of receipt, subject and brief summary of contents, and notations concerning enclosures and document disposition.  Copies of the original cross-reference sheets are also housed with the unclassified correspondence.

II.98   The identically arranged and structured top secret cross-reference sheets for security classified general correspondence, 1953-62 (8 ft.), and cross-reference sheets to security classified general correspondence, 1947-64 (82 ft.), provide access to the security-classified correspondence.

Record Group 338 - Records of U.S. Army Commands, 1942-

RECORDS OF HEADQUARTERS, FAR EAST COMMAND (FEC),
SUPREME COMMANDER FOR THE ALLIED POWERS (SCAP)
AND THE UNITED NATIONS COMMAND
RECORDS OF THE ADJUTANT GENERAL SECTION, OPERATIONS DIVISION

II.99   The Operations Division general correspondence, 1949-52 (164 ft.), and secret general correspondence, 1947-52 (203 ft.), are important sources of information about Korean War POWs.  Each of these series is arranged by year, thereunder according to the War Department decimal file system, and thereunder generally in reverse chronological order.

II.100   Within both series, yearly records accumulations in two specific decimal locations pertain directly to Korean War POWs/MIAs.  Decimal file 383.6 "Prisoners of War" includes copies of some reports issued by the North Korean Government that provide the names and locations of its newly established or disestablished camps for U.N. Command POWs.  Records located in decimal file 383.6 of the secret general correspondence, 1947-52, convey information about the experiences of American POWs in captivity and Army efforts to secure their release.  There are, for example, reports relating to the treatment of U.N. Command POWs by their Communist captors, and Department of the Army instructions that governed the interrogation of returned American POWs.

II.101   The 704 "Casualties, Wounded, and Wounds" decimal files within both series provide more detailed information on individual American POWs and MIA personnel.  These files include lists, teletype messages, and forms that provide the name, rank, and serial number of individual POWs and sometimes also a brief description of the combat circumstances that led to the capture or disappearance of a particular serviceman.  Some of these records cite the date and place of capture or disappearance of specific individuals, along with the names and service numbers of those who witnessed his capture, last combat action, or status in captivity.

II.102   From 1947 through June 1952, the Adjutant General prepared yearly registers for each category of decimal records.  These registers, generally one for every decimal file folder, identify each document in reverse chronological order, listing (for every document entry) the name of sender, date, name of recipient, a contents synopsis, and a document item ("serial") number.

RECORDS OF HEADQUARTERS, U.S. ARMY FORCES, FAR EAST (USAFFE)
RECORDS OF THE ADJUTANT GENERAL SECTION

II.103   The USAFFE Adjutant General's general correspondence, 1952-57 (377 ft.), contains numerous records relating to Korean War POWs/MIAs.  The series is arranged by year and thereunder according to the War Department decimal system.  Decimal file 383.6 "Prisoners of War" documents include POW interrogation reports that focus on war atrocities, annotated copies of the "Master List of Unaccounted for U.N. Personnel" that show changes in a POW or MIA serviceman's casualty status based on live sightings or documentary evidence, lists of U.S. POWs released to U.N. control, and procedural correspondence listing names of participants in a 1956 survey the Army conducted to measure attitudes of Korean War POWs toward interservice Code of Conduct training.  There is also some intradepartmental Army correspondence pertaining to problems associated with the trial of repatriated POWs for post capture offenses.

II.104   File 704 "Casualties, Wounded, and Wounds" in yearly segments incorporates various records that provide the name, rank, and service number of many Korean War POWs and MIAs and sometimes additional information about the combat circumstances that led to the capture or disappearance of a particular serviceman.

II.105   Registers of unclassified general correspondence, 1953-55 (10 ft.), arranged by year and thereunder according to the War Department decimal filing system, provide important information about individual documents within the general correspondence, including the name of sender, date, name of recipient, a contents synopsis, and a document item ("serial") number.

RECORDS OF THE CASUALTY DIVISION, ADJUTANT GENERAL SECTION

II.106   During the years of combat in Korea, the Casualty Division of the Adjutant General's Section gathered, analyzed, and disseminated information on United Nations Command prisoners of war and missing-in-action personnel.  A number of small but important records series maintained by the division demonstrate efforts made by the military to determine the fate of MIA servicemen, monitor the status and treatment of captured American POWs, and track their movements from one detention locale to another.  These series also illustrate the voluminous body of evidence gathered and utilized by American military authorities in their attempts to account for Korean War servicemen listed as missing in action.

II.107   The series of affidavits and related records pertaining to former prisoners of war, 1950-53 (3 in.), contains lists of POWs whose names (or statements) were either broadcast by government radio stations in North Korea or the People's Republic of China, or whose names (or statements) appeared in publications of those countries.  This series also includes affidavits of returned POWs whose surnames began with the letter "J" through "W" only.  (Affidavits for POWs whose surnames begin with the letters A-I and X-Z were apparently not received by the Office of the National Archives with this accession.)  These affidavits usually provide the POW's name, rank, and service number, information on his capture, and his statements on the identity, health, status, and location of other POWs that he had known or knew about.  Other documents in this series include lists, photograph facsimiles, propaganda pamphlets, and newspaper clippings that the Army used along with the above mentioned affidavits to identify and determine the status of POWs.  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains a box and folder list for this series.

II.108   Transcripts and related records pertaining to Radio Peking broadcasts made by U.S. prisoners of war, 1951-53 (9 in.), consist mainly of copies of U.S. foreign Broadcast Information Bureau transcripts and summaries of statements or messages pertaining to or broadcast by American POWs over Radio Peking.  These messages, also known as the "Peking Intercepts," were recorded at North Korean POW camps by representatives of the Chinese Peace Committee and then broadcast over Radio Peking.  Broadcast messages were subsequently transcribed by the Japanese Liaison Section of the Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff, J-2 within the Far East Command.  Each transcript contains the date of broadcast, the date of transcription, and the name, address, and message of the POW.  Also included is the 1951 master file of the "Peking Intercepts," which consists of transcripts, memorandums, and forms relating to the verification of POW status from the messages.  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains a box and folder list for this series.

II.109   The series of returnee reports and related records pertaining to the death of captured military personnel, 1953 (2 in.), is largely a collection of standard reports (AFFE Form 545) produced by Army personnel after interviewing repatriated American prisoners of war for information about the deaths of other POWs in captivity.  The report forms contain blocks for the following information on each deceased prisoner of war: name; rank; service number; branch of service; whether or not the death was witnessed; source of information on death; date, place, and cause of death; date and place of burial; source of information on burial; date and place of capture; length of time the returnee knew the POW before death; types of identification buried with the body; and information on the deceased individual's family.  These forms also identify the name, rank, service number, and unit of the returnee who completed the form, along with the name of the place where he filled it out and the date of completion.  In addition, the series contains letters of transmittal and lists of POWs believed to be dead.  The lists include the name, rank, service number, status, and date of known status for each POW.  Some of the lists were smuggled out of enemy POW camps by returning prisoners of war.  Forms and lists in this series relate only to U.S. Navy, Marine, and Air Force personnel.  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains a box and folder list for this series.

II.110   Interrogation reports of personnel returned to military control in Operation Little Switch ("exchange processing orders"), 1953 (10 in.), also provide detailed, mostly eyewitness information about United Nations Command prisoners of war from the Korean War who died in captivity.  The series consists of two types of reports of debriefings of U.S. prisoners of war from the Korean War who had been returned to U.S. military control during Operation Little Switch..  Each report, known as an "exchange processing order," includes the date of interview, date of interrogation, and the name of the testifying POW along with his rank, service number, and unit.  Most of the reports also consist of a narrative section that provides details of the interviewee's testimony about the death of one or more POWs.  Such information might consist of the deceased's name; the date, cause, and place of his death; place of burial; and a description of his personal effects.  Testimony occasionally extended to the deceased's date of capture and other facts that would have assisted military authorities in identifying and recovering his remains.  Returnees frequently did not know the rank, service number, or service branch of individuals they mentioned in interrogation.  In many cases, such details were annotated onto the reports at a later date.  As these interviews were being conducted, United Nations Command officials suspected that North Korea and the People's Republic of China had not returned all allied POWs eligible for repatriation in Operation Little Switch.  For that reason, many interviewees were asked to provide information about all other POWs that they knew or about whom they had some knowledge.  Interview reports reveal that interrogators were especially interested in those POWs that the interviewee believed would not be released.  The reports also focus on the returnees recollections of POW mistreatment by enemy personnel.  The questioning of American POWs exchanged in Operation Little Switch occurred at two locations: Tokyo Army Hospital and the U.S. Army Hospital of the 8167th Army Unit.  This series contains a set of feeder reports from each of these sources (both arranged by name of hospital, and thereunder sequentially by repatriated POW register number) along with another set of reports that appear to be compilations of the feeder reports (arranged sequentially by POW register number).  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains a list of reports and a list of POWs repatriated in Operation Little Switch.

II.111   The Casualty Division also maintained lists and rosters of United Nations Command military personnel categorized as POWs or missing in action.  These records appear in the following series: Communist prisoner of war rosters, 1951-53 (5 in.); roster and related records pertaining to personnel missing in action, 1951-54 (5 in.); Korean War casualty rosters, 1953 (6 in.); and rosters and related records pertaining to personnel missing in action, 1951-54 (5 in.).  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains folder lists for all of these series.

II.112   Rosters and lists in these series are usually created or kept for specific purposes, such as tracking and updating the status of prisoners of war and servicemen classified as missing in action, or listing POWs and MIA status personnel by category.  There are, for example, lists that name recently identified POWs [ca. 1951-54], rosters of prisoners of war that cite the camps in which they were interned, rosters of POWs scheduled for repatriation, and lists of prisoners of war who were repatriated or--in some cases--not repatriated.  Within these series there are also copies of lists and rosters of United Nations Command missing-in-action personnel who were later identified as POWs or combat fatalities, who were witnessed by repatriated POWs, or whose names were never reported by Communist military authorities.  Other lists and rosters identify United Nations Command prisoners of war and missing-in-action personnel by country of origin or branch of service.  These lists and rosters were working records created by United Nations Command and Communist forces units that were involved in prisoner-of-war exchanges conducted by both sides in 1953.  Many of the lists and rosters are annotated to reflect changes in POW or MIA status that resulted from evidence and testimony gathered by United Nations Command personnel during repatriation operations.  Consequently, these rosters and lists provide valuable documentation of what United Nations Command military officials knew about allied POW and MIA personnel at specific times and places in the repatriation process up to 1954.  However, because of their contemporary nature, these records do not represent a final and definitive status "accounting" of allied POW and MIA personnel in the Korean War.

II.113   The series titled after-action report and daily logs of the repatriated personnel processing team, [ca. Aug.-Sept. 1953] (4 in.), includes records that detail activities of two repatriated personnel processing centers operated by the 8059th and the 8167th U.S. Army Units.  There are, for example, daily statistical reports that list, by nationality, the number of personnel received and repatriated at each processing center and the number of individuals evacuated to Japan by air.  There are also unit daily logs, and daily processing recapitulations that contain the name, rank, service number, arrival date, records status, departure date, and destination of returnees.  In addition, there is an 8167th Army Unit after-action report that includes repatriation operations plans, evacuation orders for repatriates, and returnee hospital admission and disposition reports that cite the name, rank, service number, unit, and dates in captivity for each repatriated serviceman.  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains a box and folder list for this series.

II.114   Correspondence of the Casualty Division relating to Department of the Army reports of death, 1951-53 (1 in.), includes copies of correspondence between the Department of the Army, the Commander in Chief, Far East, and the 8th U.S. Army that focus on Army deliberations or decisions to reclassify some Korean War servicemen from "missing in action" to "dead" under provisions of the Missing Persons Act.  This correspondence lists MIA personnel by name, rank, service number, service branch, and date of death for each individual.  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains a box and folder list for this series.

II.115   Correspondence of the Casualty Division relating to returned personnel casualty questionnaires, 1953-54 (4 in.), contains copies of lists that provide the name, rank, and service number of all repatriated POWs who had completed and returned casualty questionnaires.  Copies of each list and the questionnaires were sent to either the 8204th Army Unit (Graves Registration Service) or to the U.S. Army Adjutant General to assist in the determination, location, and identification of American casualties.  This series does not include copies of the returned casualty questionnaires.

II.116   Incoming and outgoing radio messages of the Casualty Division, 1950-53 (1 in.), consist of teletype correspondence between the United Nations Command, Far East Command, U.s. 8th Army, and Department of the Army pertaining mostly to repatriated American prisoners of war, but also to other Americans listed as prisoners of war and as missing in action throughout the Korean War.

II.117   General correspondence of the Casualty Division, 1950-54 (1 in.), includes extracts from Communist propaganda leaflets that featured statements by U.S. prisoners of war, Department of the Army instructions on the reporting of POW status and statistical information, a few messages pertaining to the status of specific individuals listed as prisoners of war or missing in action, and some background correspondence on the repatriation of United Nations Command prisoners of war during Operations Little Switch and Big Switch in 1953.  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains a box and folder list for this series.

II.118   General records of the Casualty Division, 1950-54 (9 in.), include summaries of interviews with returned or repatriated POWs conducted by the Central Interrogation Center, 8238th Army Unit (Translator and Interpreter Service), Far East command.  The summaries provide information about other POWs whom the interviewee had seen or known about, where he saw them, and when or whether he had witnessed or heard about their deaths.  Many of the summaries relate to POWs who were not released or to voluntary repatriates.  This series also includes extracts of interrogations of escaped American POWs conducted by U.S. 8th Army Intelligence (G-2) interviewers in May 1951.  Other records consist of lists compiled by either Communist or U.S. military authorities of United Nations Command personnel who were known to have died in enemy captivity, rosters (and some debriefing reports) of POW returnees interrogated in the course of Operations Little Switch and Big Switch, lists of American POW radio broadcasts on Radio Peking, lists of "atrocity" cases (1952-53), lists of letters received by family members from POWs (which confirmed the POW status of personnel originally listed as missing in action), and a few captioned photographs of POWs held in North Korea, 1951-52.  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains a box and folder list for this series.

RECORDS OF THE PROVOST MARSHAL SECTION

II.119   Files of the Office of the Provost Marshal include change of casualty status reports relating to U.S. and U.N. military personnel held as prisoners of war, 1950-52 (5 in.).  This series consists principally of copies of Far East Command "Change of Casualty Status" forms, which list the name, rank, and service number of personnel initially classified as missing in action but who were subsequently identified as prisoners of war.  Also noted on each status form is the location of the camp in which the prisoner of war was being held, the source of information on the POW's status, and the date he was listed as missing in action.  These forms are usually accompanied by copies of records that document the change in status (e.g., a POW's correspondence with his family, broadcast message, etc.).  This series also includes some correspondence between the Far East Command and POW relatives who requested information about the location and condition of specific captured servicemen.

II.120   Another Provost Marshal series, miscellaneous records of the Prisoner of War Division, 1951-54 (5 inches), includes newspaper clippings that deal with POW repatriation, annotated summaries of interviews conducted in December 1950 with ex-POWs and United Nations Command soldiers pertaining to the identity and status of United Nations Command POWs and servicemen listed as missing in action, and a draft copy of the United Nations Command report titled "Special Report to the United Nations Relative to the United Nations Prisoners of War in the Hands of the Enemy" (December 1951).  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains a box and folder list for this series.

II.121   United Nations Command and Far East Command prisoner of war rosters, 1950-51 (5 in.), consist of POW rosters and related correspondence generated by the Office of the Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence (J-2) of the Far East Command, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the Provost Marshal offices of both the Far East Command and the United Nations Command.  The rosters give the name, rank, serial number, unit, and proposed status of confirmed and unconfirmed United Nations and United States prisoners of war.  In addition, some cite dates of capture, confirmation of death, escape, or liberation, and the sources of information used to determine status.  Also included are rosters of confirmed and unconfirmed prisoners of war who were classified as atrocity victims.

RECORDS OF THE JUDGE ADVOCATE SECTION

II.122   Throughout the Korean War, Army intelligence and legal specialists investigated charges and evidence of atrocities and war crimes committed by Communist forces upon United Nations Command personnel.  This effort began early in the hostilities, with reports of numerous deaths and executions of United Nations Command POWs held by the North Korean Army.  As the conflict continued, U.S. Army war crimes inquiries extended to other allegations of criminal activity, brutality, and inhumane treatment inflicted by Communist officials upon United Nations Command prisoners of war, including POW murders and beatings; poor POW camp nutritional and sanitation conditions; prisoner interrogations that relied upon physical torture and psychological manipulation; ruthless indoctrination techniques; and involuntary medical experimentation utilizing POWs as subjects.  Many of these charges are documented in case files of the War Crimes Branch, 1951-ca 1953 (5 in.), a collection of POW interrogation summaries maintained and annotated by the USAFFE Judge Advocate General.  The summaries provide the name, rank, service number, and unit of the interrogated individual, date and place of his capture, name and unit of those with whom he was captured, and names of other prisoners of war or missing-in-action personnel that the interviewee identified in his testimony or affidavit.  This series also includes lists of U.S. military personnel who were mentioned as atrocity victims in POW testimony and affidavits.  These lists, arranged alphabetically by case file number, correlate alleged atrocity victims with the names of witnesses.  Information in this series should be compared with interrogations filed in the previously described series of Operation Big Switch interrogation reports, 1953-54 (See paragraph II.39).

RECORDS OF THE U.S. ARMY, PACIFIC (USARPAC)
MILITARY HISTORY OFFICE

II.123   The organizational history files, 1946-73 (141 ft.), of the U.S. Army, Pacific (USARPAC) Military History Office is a collection of monographs, studies, reports, after-action interviews, general orders, unit histories, officer biographies, operations summaries, issuances, and other records pertaining to or produced by various military jurisdictions and units subordinate to the U.S. Army, Pacific Command.  Most of these records are arranged generally by type of record and thereunder chronologically.  The unit histories, however, are arranged numerically by unit jurisdiction.  Within this series, there are a few studies, statistical records, and publicity releases that relate to Korean War POW conduct, treatment in captivity, release, and repatriation.  Box 46 contains a study by Julius Segal titled Factors Related to the Collaboration and Resistance Behavior of U.S. Army PW's in Korea (106 pp.), published by the George Washington University Human Resources Research Office in December 1956.  The Army contracted this report to assist in the improvement of its training courses in POW resistance.  Box 47 includes the 1955 report titled POW: The Fight Continues After the Battle (82 pp.), published by the Secretary of Defense's Advisory Committee on Prisoners of War.  After reviewing the experiences of American POWs during the Korean War, this committee proposed a new interservice Code of Conduct for POWs along with improved training in captive survival and resistance for all American military personnel.  The committee also suggested a review of all court-martial sentences imposed on returned American POWs from the Korean War.  Two folders in box 85 contain information that pertains to United Nations Command prisoners of war.  Specific documents within these folders include the following: Far East Command and United Nations Command Public Information Office publicity releases concerning the proposed wording for armistice agreements that dealt with POW issues; lists of military personnel and civilians who United Nations Command officials believed were being held by Communist forces; records relating to the release, care, and transportation of United Nations Command prisoners of war; and a sketch map and lists of POW camps maintained by Communist forces in North Korea.  Box 87 contains daily worksheet numerical lists of Americans who were repatriated in August and September 1953 (Operation Big Switch) in accordance with terms of the various POW joint exchange provisions of the Korean War armistice agreement.  These lists, compiled in August and September 1953, provide daily statistical counts of repatriated American military personnel, broken down by branch of service (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines), and thereunder for the Army by the name of the tactical unit.  No names appear on any of these lists.  A series box and folder list is maintained by the Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park.

II.124   The USARPAC Military History Office also maintained the classified organizational history files (145 ft.).  This series, arranged generally by name of military unit and thereunder usually in alphabetical order by document title, consists of security-classified studies, reports, after-action interviews, general orders, unit histories, officer biographies, operations summaries, and other records pertaining to or produced by various military jurisdictions and units subordinate to the U.S. Army, Pacific Command.  Box 101 of this series includes "A Study of Repatriation, U.S. Military Personnel, 25 September 1953" (42 pp.), the Far East Command.  The purpose of this study was to evaluate Communist forces compliance with those provisions of the Korean War armistice agreement that governed joint POW repatriation operations.  The study includes an "amendment" of October 6, 1953, and various lists of U.S. POWs who had not been repatriated as of September 25, 1953.  These lists were hand-annotated to show military personnel whose names subsequently appeared on lists prepared by Communist authorities, or who were later turned over to the Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission.  There is an index for the classified organizational history files that lists series documents by the name of producing or subject USARPAC unit.  The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park also maintains a box and folder list for this series.

RECORDS OF U.S. ARMY FORCES STRIKE COMMAND
22D U.S. ARMY PRISONER OF WAR/CIVILIAN INTERNEE INFORMATION CENTER

II.125   The 22d U.S. Army Prisoner of War/Civilian Internee Information Center collected a number of documents that relate to American military personnel who were listed as prisoners of war or as missing in action from World War II through the Vietnam War.  These records are organized into three series: unclassified records, ca. 1939-ca. 1976 (22 ft.); declassified "confidential" records, ca. 1944-ca. 1973 (15 ft.); and declassified "secret" records, ca. 1950-ca. 1975 (1 ft.).  Reports and studies within these series focus on such topics ad the conduct, treatment, interrogation, and indoctrination of American POWs during the Korean War; POW resistance to Communist interrogation and indoctrination; the U.S. Army's performance of its POW repatriation responsibilities during Operations Little Switch and Big Switch; United Nations Command administration of POW programs and camps; development of an American interservice Code of Conduct following the Korean War; and the Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, August 12, 1949.  Other records include lists of United Nations Command servicemen classified as POWs and MIA during the Korean War; lists, correspondence, and newspaper clippings pertaining to United Nations Command military personnel who were not accounted for during the Korean War; reports and other records prepared by the Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission; and copies of the Korean War armistice agreement, with supplements.  Considered as a whole, these records provide a detailed contemporary picture of what U.S. and allied military leaders were learning from the Korean War about such topics as: international law and prisoners of war; POW treatment, welfare, interrogation, and indoctrination; and the need for training of military personnel in POW survival and resistance.

II.126   Each of these three series is arranged by The Army Functional Filing System (TAFFS) number, thereunder generally by "war" (e.g., World War II, Korean, or Vietnam), thereunder roughly alphabetically by subject, and thereunder chronologically by date of document.  Box and folder lists for all three of these series are maintained by the Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park.

Record Group 340 - Records of the Office of the Secretary of the Air Force

II.127   During the Cold War and the Korean War, the U.S. Air Force dealt with numerous issues that arose from Communist treatment of American prisoners of war and from the conduct of specific POWs in captivity.  On December 31, 1953, the Department of Defense reported that 224 Air Force personnel had been captured by Communist forces during the Korean War. [9]

[Footnote 9:  Paul Cole cites this figure in POW/MIA Issues: Volume 1, The Korean War, p. 17 (Table 2.3).  The same Department of Defense statistical table shows a total of 926 Air Force military personnel reported as missing in action during the course of the Korean War.]

In addition, most Cold War POWs/MIAs were either Air Force or Navy pilots and crew.  Following combat operations in Korea, Air Force officials cooperated with other service representatives and the Department of Defense in devising policies, training programs, and administrative procedures to cope with such issues as the effects of Communist indoctrination on captured American personnel; alleged Air Force POW misconduct or collaboration with the enemy; return of those American POWs who were detained as political prisoners by the People's Republic of China after the Korean War cease-fire agreement; the need to account for missing-in-action personnel not reported by Communist forces; and various POW compensation proposals enacted by Congress for repatriated Korean War POWs.  In the course of addressing these issues, Air Force officials worked with the Army, Department of Defense policy makers, Congress, the public, and the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission on various programs and proposals.  Air Force correspondence with these agencies is located in the Secretary of the Air Force's security classified general correspondence (decimal files), 1947-54 (693 ft.).  This series is divided into chronological segments (November 1947-June 1948; July 1948-December 1949; 1950; 1951; 1953; 1953; 1954).  Chronological segments for the years 1951 through 1954 consist of two sections: "confidential and unclassified decimal files"; and "secret decimal files."  Within the chronological segments (November 1947-1950) or sections (1951-54), records are arranged according to the War Department decimal filing scheme.  Only a few files in this series have been declassified.

II.128   Declassified records pertaining to POWs and POW/MIA issues are located under decimal file 383.6 "Prisoners of War" of the "confidential and unclassified decimal file, 1954."  This file includes correspondence and other records that illustrate the work of the Air Force on various Department of Defense committees that were formed after the Korean War to overhaul the training of American service personnel in appropriate POW conduct and in resistance to enemy indoctrination.  Other records in this file include Air Force correspondence with the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission pertaining to the payment of compensation to American prisoners of war as prescribed by Public Law 83-615; correspondence between the Air Force and Congress that focuses on Air Force board of inquiry investigations, procedures, and findings pertaining to repatriated Air Force POWs accused of collaboration with the enemy or misconduct while in captive status; and correspondence, lists, reports, and other records that identify American POWs detained by Communist China for alleged war crimes after the Korean War armistice agreement (these records relate mostly to the detained B-29 crew of Col. John K. Arnold, Jr.).  The file also contains correspondence between the Air Force and Congress that describes how the Air Force reached presumptive findings of death for unrecovered personnel (wartime MIA personnel and crew members of aircraft shot down in various Cold War incidents), and teletype messages that provide the name, rank, and serial number of air Force prisoners of war repatriated during the Korean War.

II.129   Decimal file 383.6 of the security-classified "confidential and unclassified decimal file, 1953" includes a declassified photograph of American POWs from the Korean War marching through the streets of Seoul in the summer of 1950.

Record Group 341 - Records of Headquarters U.S. Air Force (Air Staff)

RECORDS OF THE DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF, OPERATIONS (DCSO)-
OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR OF PLANS

II.130   Following the establishment of an independent Department of the Air Force in 1947, many Air Force staff offices (including the Deputy Chief of Staff, Operations) continued to maintain central decimal files and project decimal files arranged according to the War Department decimal filing system.  (NOTE: To assist NARA staff and researchers in identifying DCSO records series, bracketed references to NARA finding aid "entry" numbers immediately follow the boldface DCSO series title line.  In addition, narrative descriptions include citations to box locations).

FORMERLY TOP SECRET DECIMAL CORRESPONDENCE FILE, 1942-54

II.131   Decimal file 383.6 "Prisoners of War" (boxes 440-443A, ca. 1.5 ft.) of the declassified Director of Plans decimal file (formerly top secret decimal correspondence file), 1942-54 [NM 15, Entry 335c] (ca. 1952 ft.), contains Air Force correspondence and policy documents relating to POW "escape and evasion" instructions and procedures in effect during World War II and the Korean War.  In addition, that file contains numerous published and unpublished Air Force and Department of Defense studies and reports that describe the treatment and exploitation of American prisoners of war by their Communist captors during the Korean War.  Other records in file 383.6 include correspondence and messages that relate specifically to the Cold War POW case of 11 B-29 crew members whose aircraft, commanded by Col. John K. Arnold, Jr., was shot down in proximity to the Manchurian border with North Korea on January 12, 1953.  Arnold and his crew were captured and detained in the People's Republic of china until August 1955.  Scattered throughout file 360.43 [box 261, 3 in.) are a few items (messages, reports, correspondence) pertaining to the "ransoming" of 4 Air Force C-47 crew members whose aircraft was forced down over Hungary on November 18, 1951, and also to the fate of 10 unrecovered Navy P2V crew members whose aircraft was shot down off the coast of Siberia on November 6, 1951.

II.132   The mostly declassified Director of Plans project decimal file (formerly top secret decimal correspondence), 1942-54 [NM 15, Entry 335a] (ca. 102 ft.), arranged generally by country name and thereunder by War Department decimal number, includes correspondence, messages, and reports that focus on Korean War issues such as negotiations for the release of prisoners of war, the "confessions" of Communist held Air Force POWs to participation in bacteriological and biological warfare missions.  Air Force investigations concerning the substance of these "confessions," and Air Force policy in evaluating evidence or charges of POW misconduct.  These records are located under the country name "Korea," file 383.6 (12 July 1951) (boxes 902-903, ca. 6 in.).

II.133   The decimal file (formerly top secret decimal correspondence file), 1942-54 [NM 15, Entry 335c] and the project decimal file (formerly top secret decimal correspondence), 1942-54 [NM 15, Entry 335a] have been merged to form an integrated Formerly Top Secret Decimal Correspondence File, 1942-54.

FORMERLY SECRET DECIMAL CORRESPONDENCE FILE, 1942-54

II.134   A few reports of interrogations of repatriated Air Force POWs from the Korean War are located in the declassified central decimal files [formerly] secret decimal correspondence file), 1942-54 [NM 15, Entry 336] (ca. 197 ft.), "project decimal file" section, under the country name "Korea," file 383.6 (12 July 1951), Section 8 (boxes 393-394, 1 in.).  These reports describe POW camp conditions in North Korea, evidence of war crimes committed by Communist forces against American POWs, and sightings of prisoners of war in North Korean captivity.  In that same series, files under "Russia," file 383.7 (8 March 1950) (box 404, ca. 1 in.), are a few copies of foreign source interrogation reports that identify the location of Russian prison camps and that also provide some eyewitness detail on living conditions within those facilities.

RECORDS OF THE DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF, OPERATIONS (DCSO)-
OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR OF INTELLIGENCE

II.134a   Over 200 repatriated Air Force Korean War POW interrogation summaries have been located in the series of numerically arranged air intelligence reports, 1942-53 (951 ft.).  Some summaries relate to POWs who were detained after the Korean War armistice agreement, including most of the captured B-29 crew piloted by Col. John K. Arnold, Jr.  These summaries usually include the following information: the debriefed POW's name, rank, serial number, and unit; details about his last mission and capture; the names and locations of POW camps in which he was detained (including detention dates); identification of other POWs known to the respondent but who had not been repatriated with him; the interrogated POW's knowledge of war crimes and atrocities; reports of POW attempts to escape and evade the enemy; details of life in the POW camps (health, medicine, sanitary conditions); descriptions of Communist indoctrination techniques; identification of enemy strategic sites and observations concerning North Korean terrain and weather features.  Series numbers were assigned to each of these interrogation summaries as they were received by the Office of the Director of Intelligence.  Because the summaries were apparently received individually or in batches over a period of time, they are not concentrated in a specific numerical range of the series.  Moreover, there is no series index that would assist staff and researchers in locating relevant interrogation summaries by POW name or subject.  Fortunately, staff of the Defense Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Office (DPMO) are compiling a cross-index list of debriefed Air Force Korean War POWs correlated to the appropriate series document number.  When completed, DPMO will provide a copy of this list to the Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park.

RECORDS OF THE DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF FOR PERSONNEL
DIRECTORATE OF MILITARY PERSONNEL-PROMOTIONS AND SEPARATIONS DIVISION

II.135   Following the Korean War, the Air Force faced the delicate task of processing promotions and discharges for repatriated prisoners of war whose conduct while Communist captives was simultaneously under official review.  Responsibility for resolving this problem fell to the Promotions and Separation Division, which sought guidance from documentary evidence that can be found in records relating to Air Force prisoners of war from the Korean conflict (POW projects), 1954-56 (1 ft.).  Of primary importance to the Division were the instructions, proceedings, and recommendations of officially convened Air Force review boards that investigated alleged instances of misconduct by some Air Force POWs.  But Division staff collected other records as well, including Air Force studies, reports, and analyses of Korean War POW responses to the various stresses of captivity, including Communist interrogation and indoctrination sessions; Air Force policy documents pertaining to the pay and promotion of personnel in captive status; after-action reports of Air Force POW repatriation operations during the Korean War; and correspondence with the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission concerning the compensation of Air Force prisoners of war.  Many of these records focus on the treatment and conduct of B-29 pilot Col. John K. Arnold Jr., and his crew.

RECORDS OF THE DEPUTY CHIEF OF STAFF, MATERIEL
MORTUARY AND GRAVES REGISTRATION BRANCH

II.136   Records of the Deputy Chief of Staff, Materiel, include six small series of Mortuary and Graves Registration Branch case files that provide information on deceased Korean War Air Force POWs/MIAs.  Four series deal primarily with airmen whose remains were recovered: case files (Korean conflict), 1950-55 (1 ft.); case files, 1949-53 (8 ft.); Korean and personal effects files, 1954 (5 in.); and [records relating to] current deaths, 1954-56 (15 ft.).  They consist of remains identification, autopsy and interment reports, lists of personal effects, remains disposition correspondence between the Air Force and a deceased individual's next of kin, and occasionally a map that shows a location in Korea from which a specific individual's remains were recovered.  All of these series are arranged alphabetically by surname of deceased airman.  A separate series of alphabetically arranged Mortuary and Graves Registration Branch case files (Korean conflict), 1950-56 (6 ft.), contains correspondence, reports, and findings that relate to Air Force personnel (including POWs/MIAs) whose remains were never recovered and who were subsequently declared dead by provision of the Missing Persons Act.  Records relating to group burials, crash files, and floods, 1949-53 (1 ft.), include "group burial" remains identification and disposition instructions, interment records, and cross-references to Army unidentified remains case files ("X" files).  See Appendix F.)  This series is arranged by subject ("Group Burials," "Crash Files," etc.), and thereunder by folder title or case number ("Group Burial 1," "Group Burial 7," etc.).  Although these Mortuary and Graves Registration Branch records focus heavily on Korean War casualties, they also provide information on Air Force civilian deaths and noncombat casualties.  Some of the "noncombat death" records may relate to one or more of the several Cold War "shoot down" incidents.

RECORDS RELATING TO PROJECT WRINGER

II.137   Project Wringer, 1949-55, was a high-priority Air Force interrogation project conducted by that service's European and Far Eastern Commands for the purpose of gathering strategic information through formal questioning of repatriated prisoners of war and detainees who had been held by the Soviet Union.  Intelligence thus gathered primarily concerned industrial installations of tactical or strategic importance in the Soviet Union or Eastern Europe, and only incidentally concerned prisoners of war and detainees allegedly held by Communist countries.  The strategic information was used in the preparation of bombing target folders and navigational maps.  Reports and other records pertaining to these POW and detainee interrogations can be found in reports of interrogations (Wringer reports), 1949-55 (1,682 rolls of 35 mm microfilm), which were maintained by the Air Force Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations, Office of the Director of Intelligence.  (Recently, the Office of the National Archives has also accessioned approximately 500 cubic feet of unarranged and unindexed paper copies of Wringer reports.  Further processing will be required to determine whether the paper copies supplement or duplicate copies of Wringer reports contained in the accessioned microfilm series.)  The microfilmed reports are divided into two segments: those originating from the U.S. Air Force Europe (EP) and those from the Far Eastern Air Force (FP).  Each segment is then arranged, with numerous exceptions and gaps, sequentially by report number.  Access to these records is difficult, due to the absence of name indexes that would link report numbers to the names of specific individuals who were interrogated.  However, copies of some interrogation summaries compiled by the Far Eastern Air Force can be found in research and development project files: 5th Air Force interrogation reports, 1951, which are described in paragraph II.138.  In addition, the Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains finding aids that might be useful to researchers who are interested in Wringer reports that pertain to specific areas in the Soviet Union.  But it is necessary to emphasize that the reports are mostly valuable for the strategic observations that they convey.  Staff archivists who service the Wringer reports observe that they contain little information of any kind about POWs and detainees who were or might have been held by Communist countries.

Record Group 342 - Records of U.S. Air Force Commands,
Activities, and Organizations

RECORDS OF THE ENGINEERING DIVISION, MATERIEL COMMAND,
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, OHIO

II.138   In the closing weeks of World War II, many Japanese soldiers, sailors, and airmen were captured in Manchuria and Korea and then interned as prisoners of war by the Soviet Union.  some of these POWs spent several years in Russia, living in prisoner-of-war camps or working in industrial facilities prior to repatriation or escape from Soviet control.  U.S. Far East Air Force intelligence officers interrogated a number of these returning Japanese servicemen for information about Russian industrial sites and factories, mines, natural resources, prison compounds and administration and prisoner-of-war indoctrination practices.  This interrogation program had close ties to Project Wringer.  (See paragraph II.137.)  In June 1950, with the onset of the Korean War, Far East Air Force intelligence staff began to acquire information on additional "strategic" targets in North Korea, china, and Manchuria by interrogating captured North Korean soldiers, defectors, and escapees from Communist control.  But these interviews with Japanese and North Korean subjects provided the Air Force with other information as well.  Some of the interviewees provided detailed descriptions of prison camp facilities, extensive biographies of Communist prison camp and industrial plant staff, information on living conditions in the camps, accounts of other prisoners whom they encountered, and recollections of escape attempts.  Occasionally, their statements extended to impressions of the Russian populace (health, diet, living conditions, social circumstances, and political attitudes) or to recollections of local climatological conditions and natural catastrophes (i.e., earthquakes, floods).  Unarranged, typed summaries of these interrogations, along with accompanying maps, plats, and other records, are housed in the "RD" numbered research and development project files: 5th Air Force interrogation papers, 1951 (RD 3518-RD 3524) (7 ft.).  Although prisoner-of-war "live sightings" were not a primary focus of the Air Force's interrogations, the interview summaries do contain information on conditions in Russian prison compounds where Americans may have been held.  The probability of obtaining this kind of information from the interrogations of Japanese repatriated POWs is more likely because they apparently were interned at several different camps throughout the Soviet Union, where they came into contact with other Russian held POWs (e.g., Germans, Romanians, French) following World War II.  There are no name indexes for the interrogation summaries.

MISSION REPORTS

II.139   For at least the first 2 years of the Korean War, the 5th Air Force required combat pilots to submit reports of missions that they flew in Korea.  These reports were frequently transmitted as teletype messages from group- and squadron-level headquarters to the 5th Air Force.  The messages were formatted to parallel 5th Air Force Intelligence Form #1 numerical categories, which included the following paragraph titles: 1. date of mission; 2. mission type and number; 3. unit; 4. number and type of aircraft; 5. takeoff and landing times; 6. targets (with subparagraphs for name, coordinates, and results); 7. observations; 8. enemy aircraft encountered (type, location, time, duration); 10. friendly casualties; 14. weather conditions; 18. brief resume of mission; and 19. name of interrogator.  In cases where friendly aircraft or pilots were lost on a combat mission, the mission report usually provides details such as a brief narrative and geographic coordinates of combat action or circumstances surrounding that loss under paragraph titles 7. observations; 8. enemy aircraft encountered; 9. friendly casualties; and 18. brief resume of mission.  Some of these records can be found in mission reports of U.S. Air Force units during the Korean War era, 1950-52 (74 ft.), which consist of teletype message reports submitted by units of the 6147th Tactical Air Control Group, units of the 3d and 17th Bomb Groups, units of the 18th Fighter Bomber Wing, and the 7th, 8th, and 9th Fighter-Bomber Squadrons.  Fifth Air Force Intelligence Form #1 transcriptions are attached to most of the teletype messages.  Reports and messages in this series are arranged by Air Force unit name, and thereunder generally in chronological order by report date.

II.140   Another series, the closely related "RD" numbered 5th Air Force mission reports, August 25, 1950-March 18, 1952 (RD 3597-RD 3629) (41 ft.), includes teletype message mission reports for various Air Force, Navy, and Marine units that flew combat missions during the Korean War.  They are arranged chronologically by date and thereunder by unit designation.  The teletype messages are formatted with 5th Air Force Intelligence Form #1 numerical categories, minus the category title.  However, there are few Form #1 transcriptions attached to the messages.  Consequently, researchers must know the correlation between Form #1 report paragraph numbers and titles in order to interpret the teletype messages.  (See paragraph II.139.)  This series was once maintained as part of the Materiel Command, Engineering Division, records ("Sarah Clark" collection) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, OH.

Record Group 349 - Records of Joint Commands

RECORDS OF THE FAR EAST COMMAND

II.141   The Intelligence Division (J-2) decimal correspondence file, 1953-54 (5 ft.), arranged by War Department decimal classification number, includes three folders of 383.6 "Prisoners of War" records that consist mainly of correspondence requests to the United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission and the Far East Command for assistance in locating or determining the fate of civilian detainees or military personnel believed to have been held by Communist forces during the Korean War.  Most of these requests were submitted by the commanders of national military forces that formed part of the United Nations Command in Korea.  There are also Far East command draft instructions and comments pertaining to the handling of information gathered during repatriated prisoner-of-war interrogations, summarized accounts of POW sightings, and reports and lists of American prisoners of war held or unaccounted for by the People's Republic of China following the Korean War cease-fire agreement.  The POW lists are broken down by categories such as "possible collaborators," "possible voluntary nonrepatriates," and "men under trial or convicted by Communists for alleged war crimes," and then, within each category, by "accounted for" and "unaccounted for" personnel.  Other records include memorandums and messages pertaining to procedures worked out by United Nations Command and Communist forces for the post-cease-fire exchange of casualty remains, provisions of the cease-fire agreement, and reports that American prisoners of war were being detained involuntarily by Communist forces after the Korean War POW repatriation operations.

Record Group 389 - Records of the Office of the Provost Marshal General, 1941-

OPMG CORRESPONDENCE

II.142   Declassified general correspondence, 1955-62 (52 ft.), arranged according to the War Department decimal classification scheme, includes a report compiled by Edgar H. Schein, W.E. Cooley, and Margaret T. Singer titled A Psychological Follow-up of Former Prisoners of War of the Chinese Communists, Part I: Results of Interview Study (Cambridge: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1960), 91 pp.  This document was part of a study supported by the Research and Development Division of the Office of the Surgeon General (contract number DA-49-007-MD-754).  The report, along with a few items of correspondence pertaining to initiation of the research study and its findings, is located in file 383.6 (1962).

RECORDS OF THE PRISONER OF WAR DIVISION

II.143   The declassified Prisoner of War Division security classified general correspondence, 1942-57 (ca. 67 ft.), contains policy and program records that document OPMG involvement in the management of prisoner-of-war affairs, programs, and camps during World War II and the Korean War.  This series, which includes records dated as late as 1962, is divided into two chronological subseries (1942-46 and 1945-57).  Each of these is arranged according to the War Department decimal classification scheme.

II.144   The following descriptions provide a representative sampling of information about American POWs from the Korean War in records of the second subseries (1945-57):

  • File 040, folder titled "Misc. State Dept," 1951-52 (less than 1 in., box 3), consists entirely of copies of State Department embassy and consulate despatches, telegrams, and reports pertaining to eyewitness sightings, movements, or deaths of American prisoners of war in the People's Republic of China, Korea, and Manchuria during the Korean War.
     
  • File 092.2, folder titled "Korean Armistice Agreement," ca. 1953 (less than 1 in., box 5), contains printed copies of volume 1 of the Korean War armistice agreement and the "temporary supplementary agreement," dated July 27, 1953, pertaining to POW repatriation responsibilities and duties of the Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission.  There is also a copy of an administrative plan for the exchange of prisoners of war devised by the United Nations Command's Committee for the Repatriation of Prisoners of War.  Rules, plans, and procedures of that committee are included with the exchange plan.
     
  • File 383.6, folder titled "Americans Confined in PW Camps (Roster)" (less than 1 in., box 88), consists of an "18 December 1951 List of U.N. Prisoners of War" that was apparently compiled by staff of the U.S. 8th Army.  The list includes identified North Korean POW camps by camp number and name; two camp citations are annotated for location.
     
  • File 383.6 folder titled "American POW Rosters (IRC Lists)," 1950-51 (1 in., box 89), contains several Korean War POW lists prepared by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).  Among these is "IRC [Red Cross] List #157 (18 Aug. 1950)," a roster that identifies 49 American prisoners of war who were held in "Pyeng-yang" prison camp.  It provides the name, rank, serial number, and date of birth for each listed POW.  Other ICRC lists are in the form of transmitted Department of State embassy and consulate messages.  Many of these were annotated by OPMG staff for corrections in name, rank, and serial number information, or to indicate whether or not specific POWs had been mentioned in Communist radio broadcasts.  This folder also includes Army correspondence that documents some of the many official inquiries to Military Armistice Conference representatives relating to apparent discrepancies in POW lists provided by Communist forces.  In addition, there are a few U.S. intelligence agency messages that focus on the movement of United Nations Command prisoners of war by the Communists to various locations in North Korea.
     
  • File 383.6, folder titled "APWIB," 1951-53 (less than 1 in., box 89), includes a copy of the Army Adjutant General's "Procedures for Processing, Return and Reassignment of Exchanges in Korea (Short Title: POW-K)," 20 December 1951.  The other document in this folder, "Overt Acts of U.S. Personnel in Captured Status (Short Title: RECAP-K, Part II)," 3 July 1953, contains instructions and procedures from the Adjutant General on the administrative processing of American POWs whose actions or statements in captured status (as described in the interrogation statements of other prisoners of war) appeared to have been treasonous or criminal in nature.
     
  • File 383.6 (multiple documents in variously titled folders, various dates), (less than 1 in., box 90), includes one folder that contains an autostat copy of a program for the 1952 "Intercamp Olympics" at the Pyoktong (Camp Number 5) prisoner-of-war camp in North Korea.  The program, apparently printed in North Korea, lists American and United Nations Command POW/participants by "Olympic" event, participant name, and service number.
     
  • The file titled "Treatment of British Prisoners of War in Korea," 1955 (less than 1 in., box 91), consists of a copy of a 41-page study published, with that title, in London by Her Majesty's Stationery Office in 1955.  Page 36 is a general location map of camps in which British POWs were held captive during the Korean War.
     
  • File 383.6 (multiple folders, variously titled), ca. 1954-56 (3 in., box 92), contains memorandums, correspondence, and other records that document various interservice discussions between American military representatives in the Far East about prisoners of war.  These meetings and discussions focused on ways to assist United Nations Command representatives in obtaining information about unaccounted for U.S. POWs from Communist representatives at Military Armistice Conference negotiations.

II.145   Access to records in the second subseries (1942-57) is facilitated by a box contents span list (beginning and ending file for each box) located in box 1 of that subseries.

Record Group 407 - Records of the Adjutant Generals Office, 1917-

THE ADJUTANT GENERAL (AG) CENTRAL DECIMAL FILE, 1940-62

II.146   The AG Central Decimal File, 1940-62 is an important source of information on Cold War POW/MIA issues.  Following World War II and the Korean War, the Adjutant General made administrative rulings on the fates of thousands of American soldiers and airmen who had disappeared during those wars.  Throughout the Cold War period, the Adjutant General also represented the Army in dealings with Congress and the public on various POW/MIA issues.  In the course of addressing these responsibilities, the Adjutant General gathered and compiled casualty statistics, individual casualty investigation reports, policy documents, legal briefs and opinions, training manuals, and other records that provide a detailed view of factors that shaped Army POW/MIA programs and policies.  Because the Adjutant General's Office corresponded frequently with Congress and the public, the AG Central Decimal File also contains extensive written documentation of public opinion concerning the Army's handling of POW/MIA issues during the Cold War years.

ORGANIZATION OF THE AG CENTRAL DECIMAL FILE

II.147   The AG Central Decimal File consists of seven unclassified, declassified, and security-classified records series.  Each series is divided into chronological segments of varying lengths (usually 1, 2, 3, or 5 years).  Each segment, in turn, usually consists of one or more sections (typically "decimal files" or "case files," "special project files," and occasionally "bulky package files," and "cross-reference sheets").  Documents in each of the "decimal files" sections are arranged according to the War Department decimal classification scheme.  "Special project files," "project files," and "bulky package files" sections normally are divided into topical categories under which records are arranged according to the War Department decimal filing scheme.  In the case of "special project files," the topical categories are project names.  "Project files" topical categories feature subject terms such as "Civil Education"; "Geographic" [Army administrative jurisdiction]; "Aviation Schools"; "Flying Fields"; "Military Schools"; "Military Posts and Reservations"; "Cities"; "Mountains"; "Lakes"; "States and Counties"; "Foreign" [i.e., countries]; and "Nautical" [names of ships].  Subdivision and arrangement of the "cross-reference sheets" section are described below under AG Central Decimal File Indexes.  (See paragraphs II.150-II.154.)

II.148   Many of the most significant documents for POW/MIA research are located under files 383.6 "Prisoners of War" and 704 "Casualties, Wounded, and Wounds" of the "decimal files" sections of the various chronological series segments.

AG CENTRAL DECIMAL FILE

II.149   Five of the seven AG Central Decimal File series, described below, include records that relate to Korean War/Cold War POWs/MIAs.

II.149a   Unclassified Army AG decimal file, 1940-54 (4183 ft.).

  • This series is significant because it contains numerous individual casualty investigation reports and other documents pertaining to Army personnel killed, wounded, or listed as missing in the Korean War.  The reports summarize eyewitness accounts and debriefings, burial and disinterment reports, fingerprint analyses, and other records that pertain to sightings and last-observed actions of known prisoners of war, personnel listed as missing in action, and other individuals who were wounded or killed in action but whose remains were not recovered.  Army officials conducted these investigations to determine the fate of individual servicemen under terms of the Missing Persons Act.  The investigation reports can be found within the "decimal files" sections of all chronological segments of this series, under file 704.  Other records in the 704 files include Army regulations, instructions, and policy correspondence pertaining to the collection, evaluation, categorization, and public dissemination of Army casualty information and statistics.  Throughout the Cold War years, the Adjutant General's staff responded to numerous correspondence inquiries and comments from Congress and the American public regarding Army POW/MIA policy, programs, procedures, and specific actions pertaining to prisoners of war or missing-in-action personnel.  Correspondence documenting the Adjutant General's responses to Congress and the public, along with research notes and documents that AG staff gathered for these replies, provide a detailed view of how the Army's policies for handling and reporting POW/MIA issues evolved from the end of World War II to the eve of the Vietnam War.  These records, which are largely concentrated in file 383.6 of the "decimal files" section of all chronological segments of this series, also document the conflicting pressures of wartime exigencies, Cold War politics, and public opinion that influenced Army policy-makers who struggled with Cold War POW/MIA issues.  For example, file 383.6 in the "decimal files" section, 1951-52 and 1953-54 segments, includes correspondence that documents public and congressional information requests and Army replies pertaining to Korean War prisoners of war and missing-in-action personnel.  Other correspondence between the Army and Congress or the public focuses on such topics as the progress of prisoner-of-war exchange negotiations conducted by United Nations and Communist forces during the Korean War; Army plans to court-martial or prosecute some repatriated American POWs from the Korean War on charges of misconduct and collaboration with the enemy; and Army policy toward American prisoners of war from the Korean War who refused repatriation (voluntary nonrepatriates).

II.149b   Declassified and unclassified general correspondence, 1955-62 (1,103 ft.)

  • Records in this series include Adjutant General correspondence replies to public inquiries concerning the Army's prosecution of some repatriated Korean War prisoners of war on charges of misconduct and collaboration with the enemy, replies to other public requests for information on Army voluntary nonrepatriates from the Korean War, and a draft copy of Department of the Army Pamphlet 30-101, "Communist Interrogation, Indoctrination and Exploitation of Prisoners of War."  (See decimal file 383.6, "case files" section, 1955-56 segment.)  File 383.6 in the "case files" section of the 1957-58 segment includes some Adjutant General correspondence with Congress and the public that focuses on American soldiers who were identified as prisoners of war during the Korean War but about whom Communist forces had provided no information.  File 383.6, "case files" section, 1962 segment contains an Army response to a congressional inquiry about the detention of an American citizen, Hewett H. Fey, in China.

II.194c   Declassified Army AG top secret decimal file, 1946-54 (56 ft.)

  • POW/MIA related records in this series consist of Army and Department of Defense messages, correspondence, and policy statements that focus on contemporary official concerns that some "indoctrinated," returned POWs from the Korean War posed a security risk to the United States.  Most of these documents, which are located in file 383.6, "decimal files" section, 1953-54 segment, focus on "deindoctrination" proposals and POW debriefing procedures adopted by the Army.  There are also a few records that relate to revision of the interservice Code of Conduct following the Korean War.

II.149d   Security Classified Army AG classified decimal file, 1948-54 (94 ft.)

  • (NOTE: Although the series remains security classified, some of the records described below have been declassified.)  Much of the POW/MIA related documentation in this series consists of "RECAP-K" program policy and procedure statements, personnel lists, and administrative guidelines pertaining to the debriefing and administrative status of "returned or exchanged captured American personnel" from the Korean War.  These records are located in file 383.6, "decimal files" section, 1951-52 and 1953-54 segments.  Other records in file 383.6, "decimal files" section, 1953-54 segment, include Department of the Army-Joint Chiefs of Staff correspondence on policies for training military personnel subject to enemy capture; a summary of interrogation data gathered from debriefings of American POWs from the Korean War who were repatriated during Operation Little Switch; correspondence and Department of the Army instructions relating to requested parental visits with American voluntary nonrepatriate POWs in North Korea and the People's Republic of China; an Army fact sheet on "Communist Mistreatment of U.S. Prisoners of War"; Army correspondence and policy memorandums dealing with the administrative treatment of those repatriated Korean War POWs who, in POW debriefing testimony, were alleged to have collaborated with the enemy or to have engaged in criminal activity or other acts of misconduct; and various lists, amended lists, research reports, rebuttals, testimony, and other records pertaining to Army POWs whom Communist forces reported as deceased during the Korean War.  Declassification casualty records pertaining to soldiers listed as missing in action during the Korean War can be found in file 704, "decimal files" section, 1951-52 and 1953-54 segments.  These records include some casualty report forms (FEC, AGO 241) that provide an individual's name, rank, service number, unit, casualty status, date of casualty, home address, and names and addresses of next of kin.  Other records include a few casualty investigation reports and witness interrogations that focus on last sightings of soldiers listed as missing in action.  The 704 decimal files, "decimal files" section, 1953-54 segment, include correspondence requests from Army Forces, Far East (AFFE) headquarters to the Adjutant General for fingerprint records of missing-in-action personnel.  AFFE utilized these records to identify recovered remains.  A few of the many reports that summarize the findings of individual remains examinations can also be found in these files.

II.149e   Classified central general administrative files, 1955-62 (225 ft.)

  • (NOTE: Although the series remains security classified,  many of the records described below have been declassified.)  Most of the records in this series focus on the evolution of Army policies and procedures for administering affairs that pertained to the status of Korean War voluntary nonrepatriates who chose to remain in the People's Republic of China.  Among these records are Army correspondence with the legal staffs of the Department of Defense and the Department of Justice, and name lists of voluntary nonrepatriates.  This series also contains Army regulations, correspondence, and instructions that relate to intelligence debriefing and administrative processing of "returned, exchanged or captured American personnel worldwide" (Army RECAP-WW program).  These records can be found in file 383.6, "case files" sections, 1955-56 and 1957-58 segments.  File 383.6 of the "case files" section in the 1959 segment includes an Army report on "75 individuals who allegedly returned to the U.S. [after the Korean War cease-fire] as trained agents of Communist espionage."  This report includes a roster of those who made the allegations.  Access to this report may be subject to restrictions based upon personal privacy considerations.
AG CENTRAL DECIMAL FILE INDEXES

II.150   Listed below are the four series of separately maintained cross-reference sheet indexes for all of the series that constitute the AG Central Decimal File.  Cross-reference sheets for documents filed in AG Central Decimal File series described in paragraphs II.149b and II.149e and the 1953-54 segment of the series described in paragraph II.149c were maintained as sections of those series.

  1. Unclassified microfilmed AGO [Adjutant General's Office] central files cross indexes, 1940-45.  (132 ft., 1522 reels of 16 mm microfilm).
     
  2. Unclassified Army AG central decimal files cross-reference sheets, 1946-54 (598 ft.). 
     
  3. Declassified microfilmed cross-index sheets to classified AGO central files, June 1941-December 1947.  (ca. 99 ft., 1,486 reels of 16 mm microfilm).
     
  4. Security-classified Army AG central decimal files cross-reference sheets, 1948-54. (156 ft.)

II.151   Cross-reference index sheets generally provide the following information about specific documents in the decimal files: War Department decimal number for primary and secondary locations (document and document copy); names of sender and recipient; date of document; document subject and synopsis; and date received by the Adjutant General's Office.

II.152   Organization of the cross-reference sheet index series and sections closely parallels that of the AG Central Decimal File series.  Thus, each cross-reference sheet index series or series section is normally divided into chronological segments, and then subdivided into sections (for example, "decimal files" or "project files").  "Decimal files" cross-reference sheets are arranged according to the War Department decimal classification scheme.  "Project files" cross-reference sheets are broadly divided into various topical categories that correspond with the same AG Central Decimal File "project file" topical categories of documents to which they refer.  Within these parallel categories, cross-reference sheets are then arranged according to the War Department decimal filing scheme.

II.153   Cross-reference sheet indexes serve as a useful subject index to records in the AG Central Decimal File.  For example, cross-reference sheets filed under decimal files 383.6 and 704 of the "decimal files" section and the various "project files" sections and subsections provide references to a large number of documents in the AG Central Decimal File series that pertain to prisoners of war and missing-in-action personnel.  As noted above, the cross-reference index sheets also identify secondary file locations for copies of specific documents--thereby providing clues to other War Department file numbers that may contain information about specific prisoners of war, missing servicemen, or various POW/MIA issues.

II.154   In working with the AG Central Decimal File series and the cross-reference sheet indexes, researchers should bear in mind that the Army defined servicemen who were listed as "missing in action" during armed conflict as casualties.  For that reason, War Department file number 704 is the primary location for casualty lists, reports, and remains analysis.  Due to the large number of casualties sustained in the Korean War, the Army generally subdivided its 704 files into "wounded," "dead," and "missing" segments during the years 1950-54.

RECORDS OF THE LEGISLATIVE AND PRECEDENT BRANCH

II.155   The series of legislative and policy precedent files, 1943-76 (52 ft.), contains copies of messages, reports, studies, correspondence, press releases, and other documents that the Adjutant General's Office maintained for the purpose of documenting Army policies and precedents on various administrative and legal issues.  This series, which is arranged sequentially by folder numbers that correspond to various topics, includes information on prisoners of war (folder number 150), missing-in-action personnel (folder number 544), and Korean War casualties (folder number 1536).  Records in folder 150 include Army staff comments and suggests that relate to proposed revisions of the 1929 Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War.  There are also studies that analyze the definition and status of Korean War prisoners of war according to the provisions of international law, and Army administrative and legal opinions that focus on the definition and classification of nonrepatriated POWs or MIA personnel in accordance with provisions of the Missing Persons Act.  Other records in folder 150 include clippings, speeches, and news releases that reflect Army policy pertaining to American POWs and issues such as resistance to indoctrination and collaboration with the enemy, a press release that contains background information on American POWs from the Korean War who refused repatriation (voluntary nonrepatriates), and other records relating to Army precedents for the prosecution of repatriated Korean War prisoners of war who were accused of collaborating with the enemy.  Folder 150 also contains a list of eight permanent and four temporary North Korean prisoner-of-war camps that identifies these facilities by number, name, and universal transverse mercator grid system coordinates.  Folder 544 consists of Army administrative regulations that defined benefit entitlements for personnel classified as missing in action during the Korean War, and a 1953 presumptive statement of death that applied to roughly 4,000 American servicemen who had been listed as missing in action for more than a year during the Korean War.  Folder 1536 consists of messages, memorandums, correspondence, and other records that document the Army's definition, interpretation, and reporting of Korean War casualty statistics.

II.156   The most useful finding aid for this series is the subject index to legislative and policy precedent file, 1943-75 (8 ft.).  This index, which lists records according to alphabetically arranged subject categories such as "prisoners of war," "prisoners (war and general)," "missing in action," "casualty," and "casualties," provides the following information for specific documents; folder number, document number within folder, document topic or subject, document type (letter, report, etc.), date of document, and cross-references to other file locations.

OTHER RECORDS
ADJUTANT GENERAL COMMAND REPORTS, 1949-54

II.157   Three similarly arranged but separately maintained subseries of Adjutant General Command Reports, 1949-54, include historical reports, operations journals, staff studies, and other documents produced by Army commands, staffs, and units.  These records provide information about the activities of combat and support units that might be of general interest to POW/MIA researchers.  Unclassified through formerly secret Army-AG command reports, 1949-54 (2,869 ft.) [NM-3, Entry 429a], are arranged by military administrative or geographic area, thereunder by Army unit, then by document type, and finally by date of document.  Under "Korea, Munsan-ni Provisional Command" are approximately 8 inches of monthly reports submitted by that command to the Army Adjutant General between May and September 1953.  The Munsan-ni Provisional Command had responsibility for providing support to the Korean Communications Zone in the repatriation of United Nations Command prisoners of war (Operations Little Switch and Big Switch).  The command's reports, which detail these POW return operations, include statistical tabulations (but no names) of American POWs reported on Communist transfer rosters, and the number, physical condition, and rank of POWs actually received by the Command.  The reports also include maps and overlays of buildings within the Munsan-ni compound, rosters and biographies of the command's senior and general staff officers, and standard operating procedures (SOPS) for the Panmunjom POW receiving point.  Other records filed with the command reports include 33 dated and captioned 8-inch by 10-inch black and white photographs of individual American POWs taken as they were repatriated through "Freedom Village"; United Nations Command and U.S. 8th Army informational brochures given to POWs as they returned to allied control; and a Munsan-ni Provisional Command briefing report that provides background information on Operations Little Switch and Big Switch and on the responsibilities and facilities of various Army medical and administrative units at Munsan-ni.  Unclassified through formerly secret U.S. Army-Far East [command reports, ca. August 1953-December 1954] (3 ft.) [NM-3, Entry 429b], consist of post-Korean War armistice reports and other records of the U.S. Army Forces, Far East.  Formerly top secret Army-AG command reports, 1949-54 [January 1951-November 1954] (13 ft.) [NM-3, Entry 428a], contain documents generated by General Headquarters, Far East Command/United Nations Command.  Records within these three subseries can be located through the card index to command reports file, 1949-54 (8 ft.).  (NOTE: Index boxes are currently labeled "Index to the Series Titled: Army-AG Command Reports, 1949-54.")

DONATED RECORDS
RECORDS OF THE AMERICAN RED CROSS, NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS

II.158   Records of the American National Red Cross [general correspondence], 1947-64 (ca. 1,189 ft.), include approximately 3 linear feet of correspondence, reports, lists, newspaper clippings, and other records that focus on efforts made by various national chapters of the Red Cross to assist American prisoners of war, civilian detainees, and their relatives during the Korean War; in Cuba following the Bay of Pigs invasion; and in the People's Republic of China, the Soviet Union, and East Germany during the Cold War era.  There are, for example, narrative reports and correspondence written by Red Cross officials who were allowed to deliver parcels to American POWs and civilians detained in People's Republic of China prisons after the Korean War.  A few of the reports describe prison conditions, and the health and welfare of specific prisoners.  There are also reports and correspondence (1953) of the Korean War Joint Red Cross Team Operation that was responsible for inspecting Communist and United Nations Command POW camps and for aiding and assisting United Nations Command POW repatriates during Operations Big Switch and Little Switch.  Other Korean War era records in this series include lists of unaccounted-for American prisoners of war (ca. 1955-62), Red Cross correspondence with families of repatriated POWs, military travel orders for groups of POWs who returned to the United States by U.S. Navy transport ships, and American Red Cross correspondence with the Department of State, various U.S. military officials, and other Red Cross national chapters that conveys information about American prisoners of war.  This series also contains correspondence and reports that document American Red Cross efforts to assist Air Force Colonel John K. Arnold Jr. and his B-29 crew, who were detained in the People's Republic of China after their aircraft was shot down.  Some of the reports provide information on prison conditions and treatment afforded to the Arnold crew during their captivity.  Other correspondence and reports in this series provide information about American Red Cross operations to relieve and supply American prisoners of war and civilian detainees held captive in Cuba after the Bay of Pigs Invasion in 1961.  Additional records document attempts by American Red Cross officials to assist or acquire information about American prisoners of war and other detainees held by Communist bloc countries (the Soviet Union, East Germany, North Korea) as the result of various Cold War incidents that occurred between the early 1950s and the mid-1960s.  This series is arranged by an American Red Cross devised decimal file code.  The above described records pertaining to "prisoners of war" are filed under decimal code 619.2.

II.159   Records of the American National Red Cross [general correspondence], 1965-79 (ca. 673 ft.), arranged according to the same American Red Cross decimal file scheme, includes (within the 619.2 decimal files) approximately 6 feet of records that focus on other Cold War/Korean War prisoner-of-war issues.  Among these documents are correspondence, reports, newspaper clippings, and other items pertaining to assistance rendered by the Red Cross to voluntary nonrepatriate Korean War POWs in the People's Republic of China.  There are also reports and correspondence that focus on the welfare of crew members of the U.S.S. Pueblo, who were captured by North Korean military forces in January 1968 and detained until December of that year.  Other records in this series provide information about assistance rendered by American Red Cross officials to American civilians and prisoners of war who were held captive in the People's Republic of China during the Cold War, or who were captured by North Vietnam during the Vietnamese War.  Many of the 619.2 files that relate to Americans imprisoned in Communist China contain extensive documentation concerning specific, named individuals.

II.160   The Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park maintains folder title lists for both of these series.


Part III

Electronic Records Relating to
KOREAN WAR AND COLD WAR PRISONERS OF WAR
AND MISSING-IN-ACTION PERSONNEL

III.1   Several electronic records files and databases accessioned by the National Archives provide basic biographical and identifying information about Korean War and Cold War prisoners of war and missing-in-action personnel.  Various Federal civilian and military agencies created these records to assist them in compiling and analyzing casualty statistics or in determining veterans benefits.  Although most of the information in these electronic records files is available for public research, privacy restrictions do apply to some of the data that relates to living individuals.  These restrictions are noted in the records descriptions that follow.  For further information on National Archives electronic records holdings and access, researchers should contact the Center for Electronic Records, National Archives at College Park, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001.

Record Group 15 - Records of the Veterans Administration

III.2   In 1978 the Veterans Administration undertook a "Study of Former Prisoners of War" to fulfill requirements of the Veterans' Disability Compensation and Survivors Benefits Act of 1978.  an important product of this study was the Repatriated American Prisoners of War File, which, in 1980, consisted of 109,841 record entries pertaining to repatriated World War II, Korean War, and apparently some Cold War era POWs (such as the crew members of the U.S.S. Pueblo).  After completing the former prisoner-of-war study, the Veterans Administration continued to enter and update records to this data file to aid in processing benefit requests from former POWs.  Therefore, when the VA transferred the Repatriated American Prisoners of War File to the National Archives in 1986, it had grown to 122,390 POW records, an addition of 12,549 entries.  Among the new entries were records relating to Iran hostage crisis prisoners.  (The National Archives has not accessioned earlier versions of this data file.)

III.3   Each record includes data elements that may provide the following information on specific prisoners of war: 1. name; 2. service number; 3. claim number; 4. Social Security number; 5. dates of birth and death; 6. period of service [service dates]; 7. branch of service; 8. dates of capture and release; 9. prisoner-of-war camp; 10. folder location; 11. entitlement code; 12. dependency information; 13. disability and compensation codes; 14. diagnostic codes; 15. detaining power; and 16. days incarcerated.

III.4   Information in this file apparently originated from a number of sources, including the National Archives and Records Administration, the Department of Defense, and the Veterans Administration.  For example, data pertaining to World War II veterans came from punchcards in the National Archives.  (The converted punchcard records for repatriated World War II U.S. military prisoners of war are also available as separate electronic records files: one file each for the European and Pacific Theaters.  Records Relating to Personal Participation in World War II: American Prisoners of War and Civilian Internees, Reference Information Paper 80, compiled by Ben DeWhitt and Jennifer Davis Heaps [Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1992], pp. 8-9, includes a description of these files.)

III.5   Records in the Repatriated American Prisoners of War File pertaining to Korean War POWs reportedly originated from typewritten lists that each military service maintained.  From these records, the VA also created a separate Korean War POW electronic records file known as the Repatriated Korean Conflict Prisoners of War File.  This accessioned data file is described in paragraph III.9-III.10.

III.6   The Office of the Secretary, Department of Defense, supplied information about repatriated Vietnam POWs for use in the Repatriated American Prisoners of War File.

III.7   Because this file includes medical and compensation information about individuals, as well as information about dependents of former POWs, many of whom are still alive, the National Archives and Records Administration will not release data elements in the file which would invade the privacy of an individual (36 CFR 1256.16).

III.8   The Center for Electronic Records also maintains a microfiche copy of a computer printout of records from the Repatriated American Prisoners of War File.  The date of the microfiche is August 7, 1986.  The fiche are in two groups: "deceased POWs" (22 micofiche) and "living POWs" (54 microfiche).  Records in the two groups of microfiche are sorted alphabetically by last name.  The last names in the first four records of the "living POWs" microfiche begin with a blank, causing the records not to be in alphabetical order.  the microfiche contain coded information identical to that in the electronic records, so the same documentation must be used to interpret the coded information in the microfiche records.  Information reported in the microfiche with records for the "deceased POWs" is open; microfiche with records for "living POWs" have restrictions on access.

III.9   As noted in paragraph III.5, one by-product of the "Study of Former Prisoners of War" was the Repatriated Korean Conflict Prisoners of War File, which consists of 4,447 electronic records whose data elements may provide the following information about specific POWs: 1. name; 2. service number; 3. Social Security number; 4. dates of capture and release; and 5. prisoner of war camp.

III.10   The VA gathered this information from typewritten lists maintained by each military service branch.  Because many of the individuals identified in this file are still alive, the National Archives and Records Administration withholds the Social Security number before releasing records on specific prisoners of war, or the entire file, to the public.

III.11   More detailed information on these Record Group 15 POW data files, and the VA "Study of Former Prisoners of War," is available in the Veterans Administration publication titled POW: Study of Former Prisoners of War (Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1980), 184 pp., compiled by the Studies and Analysis Service of the VA's Office of Planning and Program Evaluation.  This study reports results from the use of the Repatriated American Prisoners of War File in the Veterans Administration's "Study of Former Prisoners of War."

Record Group 319 (Part III) - Records of the Army Staff

III.12   The Index to RECAP-K [Returned or Exchanged Captured American Personnel-Korea] Phase III Interrogation Reports is an index to the interrogation reports of military personnel involved in the Little Switch and Big Switch POW repatriation operations at the conclusion of the Korean War (see paragraphs II.63-64).  The index originated on punchcards.  Staff of the National Archives migrated the punchcard records to a magnetic format.  There are electronic records for approximately 4,000 individuals.

III.13   Data elements in the records may include the following: 1. name; 2. serial (service) number; 3. date of birth; 4. camp code; 5. dossier number; and 6. rank.

Record Group 330 (Part III) - Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense

III.14   The Korean Conflict Casualty File (KCCF) contains selected descriptive data about U.S. military personnel who died by hostile means as a result of the Korean War.  There is one record for each individual, 336,642 in all.  The dates of death range from 1950 to 1957.  The file includes 4,521 records for military personnel who were declared dead while missing and 2,415 records for military personnel who were declared dead while in captured status.

III.15   The Directorate for Information, Operations, and Reports, Washington Headquarters Services, a field activity of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, maintains a centralized information source within the Department of Defense for memorialization and other public issuances.  The KCCF is the database used to respond to requests regarding Korean War casualties and is the companion information source to the [Southeast Asia] Combat Area Casualties Database in the Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense (Record Group 330).  Each of the four military services contributed to the creation of the KCCF.  The DD Form 1300, "Report of Casualty," is the usual source of information about casualties in the KCCF.  The version of the KCCF records in the National Archives is from 1980; access to the records in the file is completely open.

III.16   Individual casualty personnel records in the KCCF include the following data elements: 1. military service branch of casualty; 2. country of casualty [always Korea]; 3. casualty group code; 4. file reference number; 5. name of casualty; 6. [record] processing date; 7. service number; 7. military grade or rank; 9. pay grade; 10. date of casualty; 11. service component; 12. home of record [place and state]; 13. birth date [year only for most records]; 14. cause of casualty, Aircraft Involvement [air/nonair casualty]; 15. race; 16. sex [all are male]; and 17. citizenship.

III.17   The majority of the records have no meaningful data in the "cause of casualty, aircraft involvement" data elements.  The KCCF names county as the "home of record" for Army and Air Force casualties; the city, town, or municipality for Navy and Marine Corps casualties.

III.18   The [Southeast Asia] Combat Area Casualties Database (see paragraph III.15) is described in paragraphs III.13-III.15 of Records Relating to American Prisoners of War and Missing in Action from the Vietnam War, 1960-1994, Reference Information Paper 90, compiled by Charles E. Schamel (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1996), pp. 29-30.

Record Group 407 (Part III)  - Records of the Adjutant Generals Office, 1917-

III.19   The Department of the Army transferred the [U.S. Army] Korean War Casualty File (TAGOKOR) data file to the National Archives in September 1989.

III.20   there are 109,975 records in the TAGOKOR file.  The records appear to have been maintained by the Army during the Korean War.  According to analysis of the records by the variable "type of casualty," 27,727 records identify fatal Army casualties, and 82,248 records pertain to nonfatal Army casualties.  Three fields deal with casualty status: "Type of Casualty," "Group Code [of casualty type]," and "Detail [previous] Code [of casualty type]."  Each of these has codes for "missing in action" and "prisoner of war."  The "Type of Casualty" and "Group Code [of casualty type]" fields also combine "missing in action" and "prisoner of war" with indicators of death of casualty, or his return to U.S. military control and duty.  For any given casualty record in the TAGOKOR file, then, an analysis of the "Detail [previous] Code [of casualty type]" with the "Type of Casualty" or "Group Code [of casualty type]" potentially indicates changes in casualty status over time.  In other words, it would be possible to use TAGOKOR to follow the Army's original classification of a Korean War infantryman as "missing in action" or "prisoner of war" to his subsequent status change to "returned to military control," "killed in action," or "declared dead."

III.21   Data elements for each TAGOKOR record include: 1. name of casualty; 2. service prefix and number; 3. grade and grade code; 4. [Army] branch; 5. place of casualty; 6. date of casualty; 7. state and county of residence; 8. type of casualty; 9. detail (previous) code [of casualty type]; 10. group code [of casualty type]; 11. place of disposition; 12. date of disposition; 13. year of birth (for deceased casualties only); 14. military occupational specialty (MOS) code; 15. organization TPSN (as well as element sequence and unit number); 16. race; 17. component; 18. line of duty; and 19. disposition of evacuations.

III.22   The Army originally transferred the [U.S. Army] Casualty Information System, 1961-81 (TAGCEN) data file to the National Archives in 1980.  In 1982 the U.S. Army transferred to the National Archives an updated version of this data file that incorporates records for casualties from 1961 to 1981.  NARA uses the 1982 version for reference and reproduction purposes.

III.23   The TAGCEN file (1982) has 293,858 records and covers worldwide mortal and nonmortal battle and nonbattle casualties for U.S. Army personnel (including U.S. Army dependents, and active-duty and non-active-duty U.S. Army military personnel).  TAGCEN includes numerous duplicate records.  For privacy considerations, the National Archives created a "public use" version of all records of the TAGCEN database; it does not include the names or service (Social Security) numbers in the records of nondeceased casualties.  In addition, any individual with records in the TAGCEN file can, with appropriate identification, receive a print copy of his or her TAGCEN records.  NARA has also generated extract printouts for reference use from the TAGCEN file that list only the records of deceased active-duty Army personnel, some of whom died while in a missing or captured status.  Access to these printouts is unrestricted.

III.24   As with the TAGOKOR file, the TAGCEN file has a number of data elements whose codes identify casualty status and show changes in casualty status over time.  These elements include the "Category of Casualty," "Current Casualty Status," "Previous Casualty Status," and "Previous Master Casualty Group."  Several different types of indicator codes utilized in these elements pertain to POW and missing-in-action status.

III.25   TAGCEN data elements include: 1. country of casualty; 2. category of casualty; 3. master casualty number; 4. Social Security or service number; 5. name; 6. category of personnel; 7. military grade; 8. military classification/dependent; 9. current casualty status; 10. previous casualty status; 11. major attributing cause; 12. complimentary cause; 13. vehicle type involved; 14. vehicle position; 15. vehicle ownership; 16. date of casualty; 17. report processing date; 18. province (of casualty); 19. grid coordinates; 20. report number; 21. component; 22. military occupation specialty (MOS) code; 23. officer branch; 24. source of commission; 25. sex and marital status; 26. posthumous promotion; 27. race; 28. religion; 29. home of record (place and state); 30. birth date; 31. major [Army] organization; 32. date commenced tour or retired; 33. previous master casualty country; 34. previous master casualty group; 35. adjustment code; and 36. card-ID/battle determination.


Part IV

Motion Pictures and Sound and Video Recordings Relating to
KOREAN WAR AND COLD WAR PRISONERS OF WAR
AND MISSING-IN-ACTION PERSONNEL

IV.1   Listed and described below, in record group order, are the motion picture, sound, and video media series that contain footage relating to American POWs and MIAs from the Korean War and the Cold War era.  Each description includes a note on relevant finding aids.  Access to these records is generally open, but there are important copyright restrictions that govern use and reproduction of donated materials such as newsreels and broadcast sound recordings produced by private corporations.  Additional information about National Archives motion picture, sound and video records can be obtained from the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch at the National Archives at College Park, 8601 Adelphi Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001.

Record Group 46 (Part IV) - Records of the U.S. Senate

IV. 2   Videotapes of the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs, 1991-92 (126 items), include recordings of committee hearings, meetings, and trips; Senate floor coverage of POW/MIA debate; statements by senators; television news coverage of POW/MIA issues, especially those relating to the select committee; television documentary and special programs on Vietnam-era POWs/MIAs' segments of "Phil Donahue," Pat Robertson's "700 Club," "MacNeil/Lehrer," "Dateline," "Unsolved Mysteries," and "Nightline" shows on POW/MIAs; and videotapes produced privately by family groups, veterans groups, and concerned individuals.  A list of the Senate Select Committee's videotapes can be found in Appendix M of Records Relating to American Prisoners of War and Missing in Action from the Vietnam War Era, 1960-1994, Reference Information Paper 90, compiled by Charles E. Schamel (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1996).

IV.3   The audio-cassette recordings of the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Affairs, 1991-92 (151 items), consist of cassette recordings of depositions taken before committee members or staff.  Depositions were taken from former U.S. Government officials, military intelligence analysts, and a variety of persons interested in POW/MIA issues.  Transcripts of the depositions are among the textual records described in this paper (see paragraph II.12).  A list of recordings in this series can be found in Appendix I of the previously cited Records Relating to American Prisoners of War and Missing in Action from the Vietnam War, 1960-1994 (see paragraph IV.2)

Record Group 59 (Part IV) - General Records of the Department of State

IV.4   Motion pictures concerning the Pueblo incident, 1968 (2 items), contain a U.S. Navy produced 16 mm motion picture film ("The Pueblo Incident") that analyzes evidence used by North Korea to justify seizure of the U.S.S. Pueblo and its crew in January 1968.  This film is listed as item "59 PUEBLO 1" in the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch Preservation Books (Audio).

IV.5   Sound recordings relating to Military Armistice Commission meetings convened to discuss repatriation of the U.S.S. Pueblo and its crew, January 24, 1968-December 23, 1968 (31 items), include tape recordings of 29 closed meetings convened by U.S. and North Korean representatives to discuss terms of release for the U.S.S. Pueblo and its crew.  But because these recordings are security classified, they are unavailable for public research.  Another security-classified sound recording in this series features statements made by Rear Adm. J.V. Smith at the 261st meeting of the Military Armistice Commission on January 24, 1968.  This series also includes an unclassified sound recording of Cmdr. Lloyd M. Bucher's "confession" as broadcast by Radio Pyongyang on January 25, 1968.  A list of all sound recordings in this series is maintained by the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch.

Record Group 111 (Part IV) - Records of the Office of the Chief Signal Officer

IV.6   Unedited black and white historical film footage, 1941-53 (111 ADC), contains several motion picture films that provide information about U.S. prisoners of war and casualty victims from the Korean War.  For example, series item 111 ADC 8823 includes silent film footage of captured American soldiers who were executed by Communist forces during the early months of the Korean War.  The film was shot near Pyongyang on October 25,1 950.  Items 111 ADC 8584-8587 include motion picture with sound interviews of identified U.S. soldiers from the 24th Infantry and 1st Cavalry Divisions who were captured by Chinese Communist forces early in the conflict, held as prisoners of war, and released or repatriated in the fall of 1950.  The interviews were conducted at Zama, Japan, and at the Tokyo General Hospital on November 29 and 30, 1950.  Items 111 ADC 8733, 8822, 8823, and 8829 include silent footage of numerous American prisoners of war (some wounded, injured, or ill) who were repatriated, interviewed, or hospitalized at various locations in Korea and Japan in October 1950 and March 1951.

IV.7   The Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch maintains three series of index cards for the 111 ADC series, including master numerical cards [for series 111 ADC]; subject cards for [series] 18 CS and 111 ADC; and combined subject cards [for series] 111 ADC and 111 LC.  The master numerical cards are arranged by 111 ADC item number, while the subject cards are arranged alphabetically by subjects such as "Korean War, 1950-53-[subject subdivision]"; "Prisoners"; "Prisoners, American"; "Prisoners of War"; and "Atrocities, by Koreans."  Information on each card includes a film title or supplied title, film date, film shooting location, film source information, film type (silent, sound), film physical information (footage, color or black and white, etc.), and detailed film scene descriptions (film setting, subjects, actions, etc.).  Researchers who use the subject cards should understand that they also refer to motion picture films that have not been accessioned by the National Archives and Records Administration.

IV.8   Unedited black and white and color documentary film footage, 1953-80 (111 LC), includes several motion picture film interviews of American prisoners of war from the Korean War who were repatriated during Operations Little Switch and Big Switch.  Many of the interviewees are identified.  The interviews were conducted at various locations, including: Tripler Army Hospital, Territory of Hawaii, May 5, 1953 (111 LC 32573, 32574 and 32575); Munsan-ni POW repatriation camp, Korea, August 27, 1953 (111 LC 33539); Tokyo Army Hospital and the 121st Army Evacuation Hospital, Seoul, South Korea, October 1953 (111 LC 34230) and Hickam Air Force Base, May 1, 1953, and June 1-2, 1953 (111 LC 32566).  Other items in series 111 LC include several silent film scenes of American prisoners of war as they returned to freedom in South Korea; recuperated in Army hospitals; arrived at several different military transit facilities in Japan, the Territory of Hawaii, and the United States; and processed through these facilities.  There is silent film footage of repatriated prisoners of war (some of whom are identified) at the following locations: Travis Air Force Base, CA, April 29, 1953 (111 LC 32393) and May 6-7, 1953 (111 LC 32713 and 32834); Tokyo, Japan, August 8, 1953 (111 LC 33496); Tokyo Army Hospital, April 20-22, 1953 (111 LC 32384 and 32468), and October 8, 1954 (111 LC 36551); Tokyo Army Hospital and Freedom Village, Munsan-ni, South Korea, August 15, 1953 (111 LC 33625); the 509th Replacement Center, Inchon, Korea, August 22 and 28 and September 9, 1953 (111 LC 33734 and 33917); Panmunjom and Freedom Village at Munsan-ni, South Korea, April 1953 (111 LC 32500, 32502, 32506, and 32530) and August 8, 1953 (111 LC 33495); Tachikawa Air Force Base, Japan, August 7, 1953 (111 LC 33755); Seoul, South Korea, October 1953 (111 LC 34231); 8167th Army Hospital, Tokyo, August 1953 (111 LC 333548, 33474, 33795); Fort Mason, CA, September 5, 1953 (111 LC 33676), and September 23, 1953 (111 LC 33874); Fort Mason and the Presidio of San Francisco, CA, August 23, 1953 (111 LC 33530); the USHS Haven, San Francisco, September 4, 1953 (111 LC 33697); Hickam Air Force Base, Territory of Hawaii, April 28, 1953 (111 LC 32590, 32592-32594), and June 1-2, 1955 (111 LC 40011); and Fort DeRussy, Territory of Hawaii, May 1 and 5, 1953 (111 LC 32521).  This series also includes silent motion picture depictions of the December 23, 1968, arrival, reception, processing, and departure of Cmdr. Lloyd Bucher and the crew of the U.S.S. Pueblo at the 121st Army Evacuation Hospital in South Korea.

IV.9   The Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch maintains three series of index cards for the 111 LC series, including master numerical cards; combined subjects [cards for series 18 CS and 111 ADC]; and color subjects [cards for series 111 LC].  The numerical cards are arranged by 111 LC item number, while the subject cards are arranged alphabetically by subjects, such as "Atrocities, Korea"; "Prisoners"; "Prisoners, American"; "Prisoners of War"; and "Korean War-Prisoners of War."  Information on each card provides a film title or supplied title, film date, film shooting location, film source information, film type (silent, sound), film physical information (footage, color or black and white, etc.), and detailed film scene descriptions (film setting, subjects, actions, etc.).  Some motion picture films identified in the 111 LC subject and numerical cards have not been accessioned by the National Archives and Records Administration.

IV.10   Motion picture index cards (111 LC) from the period 1963-80 (LC numbers 47601-59000) have been entered into the National Archives Information Locator (NAIL) database.  As a result, researchers can locate individual motion pictures in this series through searches of the NAIL database by field or field combinations such as film title, item number, and descriptive term or keyword.

Record Group 127 (Part IV) - Records of the U.S. Marine Corps

IV. 11   Unedited black and white and color film, ca. 1920s-1980 (127 USMC), which is divided into 16 mm and 35 mm film format segments, contains extensive footage that documents military activities at Munsan-ni and Freedom Village in Korea, where United Nations Command prisoners of war were repatriated at the end of the Korean War.  The 16 mm film footage of repatriation activities includes scenes that show American POWs arriving at Freedom Village during Operations Little Switch and Big Switch, receiving medical attention, being interviewed, eating, relaxing, processing through, and departing (16 mm series items numbered 127 USMC 1845 through 1847, 1898, 1912, 1914, 1944 and 1945).  Several 35 mm motion picture films in this series provide additional coverage of Little Switch and Big Switch activities at Munsan-ni and Freedom Village (35 mm series items 127 USMC 1270 through 1274, 1293, 1305, 1344, 1371, 1373, 1382 through 1386, 1407, 1409, 1413, 1415, 1415 and 1422).  These 35 mm items provide more coverage of individual Marine Corps POWs.  Consequently, the names of many of these servicemen are featured as cross-reference headings in the 127 USMC subject catalog cards.  (Surname heading cards are arranged alphabetically under "Personalities" in the 127 USMC subject card catalog.)  The subject cards refer to specific 127 USMC master catalog card descriptions that provide content descriptions of each film in the 127 USMC series.  In cases where subject catalog cards list POWs by name, the corresponding master catalog card will usually describe scenes in which that POW appears.

IV.12   Broader subject access to 127 USMC film footage of Korean War POWs is also possible.  For example, the "Marine Corps Picture Authority Film Book" lists general subject terms, such as "Prisoners-POW-Korea" or "Prisoners-Repatriation."  These terms are among those used in the 127 USMC subject catalog cards to index master catalogue card film descriptions that relate to Korean War POWs.

IV.13   One final note about the 127 USMC indexes.  Because the 127 USMC film series is divided into 16 mm and 35 mm format segments, subject and master catalogue cards for that series are also divided into 16 mm and 35 mm sections.  The Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch has compiled an informational handout that explains the contents and formats of 127 USMC catalog cards, the authority film book, and their functional interrelationships.

Record Group 242 (Part IV) - National Archives Collection of Foreign Records Seized

IV.14   This record group includes two North Korean-produced motion pictures of American prisoners of war who were held by Communist forces during the Korean War.

  • 242 MID 5312, "American Prisoners in North Korea-Pyongyang."
  • 242 MID 5401, "American Prisoners of Seoul."

IV.15   Both films feature close up shots of individual subjects, but there are no captions or other personal details that would assist in identifying specific prisoners of war.

IV.16   All 242 MID motion picture master catalog cards have been entered into the NAIL database.

Record Group 263 (Part IV) - Records of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)

IV.17   Sound recordings of live speeches or statements on monitored foreign broadcasts, with related records [transcripts], 1950-75 (3,100 items and 23 ft. of textual records), consist largely of mixed format audio recordings of foreign radio broadcast statements and speeches made by world leaders, American POWs, defectors, political dissidents, and captured American spies.  The recordings were made by various bureaus of the CIA's Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS).  Most of the recordings are of broadcasts that originated in Communist governed countries, and many of these involve statements and messages of American POWs captured during the wars in Korea and Vietnam.  There are other recordings of Americans who fell into the hands of Communist governments as the result of various Cold War confrontations, such as the U.S.S. Pueblo incident of 1968.  This series also includes transcripts for most of the POW broadcast statements, and a prisoner-of-war name index that provides cross-references to CIA broadcast recording series and item numbers.  In addition, the NAIL database provides researchers with the ability to conduct field searches of POW broadcast statements by name of POW, date of statement, FBIS recording title, the recording series/item number, or by any combination of these fields.

Record Group 306 (Part IV) - Records of the U.S. Information Agency

IV. 18   Two motion picture films in this record group relate to prisoners of war and military prisoners in Korea.

  • Item 306.00745, "American Fliers Released from Captivity," is undated, silent footage of two Americans returning to U.S. control at Panmunjom.  Scene images suggest that the film was shot sometime between 1958 and 1965.
     
  • Item 306.06007, "Prisoners of War 'POWs' in Korea," consists of undated spliced footage of captured American POWs from the Korean War.

Record Group 330 (Part IV) - Records of the Office of the Secretary of Defense

IV.19   Two sound recordings in this record group focus on "brainwashing" of American prisoners of war in the Korean War.

  • Item 330.291, "'Brainwashing' and the American Prisoner of War in Korea," Lecture, November 27, 1956 (74 minutes).
     
  • Item 330.180, "'Brainwashing,' Story of an American POW in Korea" (24 minutes).

IV.20   Another sound recording, "Why Did Twenty-one GIs Stay in Korea," 1954, (30 minutes) (Item 330.165B), focuses on American voluntary nonrepatriates.  This sound recording was produced as part of the "Service Chaplains" series.

Record Group 335 (Part IV) - Records of the Office of the Secretary of the Army

IV.21   During World War II, and again from 1953 to 1974, the Army Command Information Unit produced The Army Hour as a public service radio program series.  It was distributed by various radio networks and the Armed Forces Radio and Television Service.  The National Archives holds sound recordings of several broadcasts of The Army Hour, including those that were heard on stations of the Mutual Broadcasting System (335 AHM).  In 1953 and 1954, The Army Hour featured the following program interviews with former Korean War POWs:

  • Item 335 AHM 7 (September 24, 1953).  Maj. Gen. William Frisbie Dean, describing his POW experience at a Tokyo news conference.
     
  • Item 335 AHM 11 (October 23, 1953).  Lt. Michael Dowe, relating how U.S. soldiers faced up to being Korean POWs.
     
  • Item 335 AHM 25 (January 28, 1954).  At Fort Dix, NJ, Lt. Pat Milatoni describing his experiences as a POW of the Chinese Communists.

IV.22   Program summaries for The Army Hour (335 AHM), have been entered into the National Archives Information Locator (NAIL) database.  As a result, individual program descriptions can be searched by date, subject, and name of program guest or participant.  The Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch also holds program scripts and textual summaries for several of The Army Hour broadcasts.

Record Group 342 (Part IV) - Records of U.S. Air Force Commands,
Activities, and Organizations

IV. 23   Unedited black and white and color film, ca. 1942-ca. 1981 (342 USAF), include silent, black and white, North Korean combat footage captured during the Korean War that shows unidentified U.S. and South Korean prisoners of war (342 USAF 20420); several reels of silent, black and white film (342 USAF 20535) that feature repatriation scenes of identified and unidentified American and other United Nations Command prisoners of war from the Korean War at Munsan-ni village and K-16 Air Base, Korea, and Tachikawa Air Base, Japan, during Operation Little Switch in April 1953; and eight reels of silent, color film footage (342 USAF 33934) of the return (through various Florida locations) and processing (December 21-24, 1962) of "1,113 Cuban prisoners who participated in the Bay of Pigs Invasion."  Although complete indexes are not yet available for all of the films in this series, there are substantial runs of 342 USAF subject catalog and master catalog cards in the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch research room.  The master numerical catalog cards are currently being entered into the NAIL database.

Record Group 428 (Part IV) - General Records of the Department of the Navy, 1947 -

IV.24   Unedited color and black and white film, 1941-ca. 1980 (428 NPC), includes several motion picture film items that document Korean War POW repatriation activities, and the return, in December 1968, of Navy Cmdr. Lloyd Bucher and the crew of the U.S.S. Pueblo.  Several series items document the repatriation of American POWs from the Korean War at Munsan-ni, Korea, during Operation Little Switch (428 NPC 153, 158, 161, 186, 263) and Operation Big Switch (428 NPC 428, 532, 823, 1926, 2578, 3100, 3101, 3355, 3358, 3363, 3749, 4713, 4716).  This footage, mostly silent, features scenes and closeups of unidentified, returning prisoners of war.  Item 428 NPC 4409 includes scenes of POWs returning to San Francisco.  There are many other motion picture film items in this series that document POW interviews conducted by United Nations officials and reporters from the major American broadcasting networks.  On most films, the interviewees are identified.  Interviews for which there are also motion picture soundtracks are 428 NPC 68, 94, 1650, 1668, 3109, 3112, 3117, 3122-3124, 3326, 3322, 3661, 3662, 3697, 3702, 3752, 3755, 3764, 4271, 4274, 4278, 4279, 4284, 4289, 4307, 4309, 4310, 4347, 4348, 4909, 5481, and 6638.  Silent motion picture footage of interviews can be found in the following series items: 428 NPC 183, 1638, 1880, 1920, 3114, 3141, and 3362.

IV.25   Item 428 NPC 41277 features scenes of a Navy homecoming ceremony held at the U.S. Navy Hospital, San Diego, in 1968 for Cmdr. Lloyd Bucher and the crew of the U.S.S. Pueblo.

IV.26   The basic finding aids for 428 NPC are subject catalogue cards and master catalog cards that provide information on a particular film item's size and format, along with detailed film scene descriptions.  Many of these catalog cards list the identity of specific individuals who appear in particular 428 NPC motion picture footage.  Because 428 NPC catalog card information has been entered into the NAIL database, researchers can use that database to locate 428 NPC film footage that pertains to a specific individual.  Consequently, many of the filmed Korean War POW interviews in this series can be located by POW name and series designator (428 NPC) field searches of the NAIL database.  NAIL will also accommodate broad subject category searches of 428 NPC catalog card descriptions under such terms as "Prisoners" or "Prisoners of War" linked to historical topics such as "Korean War."

Donated Material (Part IV)

IV.27   The collections of donated motion picture film that contain Cold War and Korean War era POW/MIA information are primarily commercial newsreels and documentary footage.  Examples from the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch holdings include the following items:

IV.27a   Paramount News, October 1941-March 1957 (200 PN)

  • July 29, 1953 (200 PN 9.93), Part 3, Korean War, shows American POWs who were reportedly murdered.
     
  • December 26, 1951 (200 PN 11.36), Part 5, includes scenes of families across the United States who received word that their sons were imprisoned by the Communists in Korea.
     
  • April 22, 1953 (200 PN 12.72), features scenes of POW exchanges in Korea: POWs liberated from Communist captivity arriving at Panmunjom in ambulances; the loading of litter cases into helicopters; Generals Mark Clark and Maxwell Taylor greeting POWs as they arrive in Munsan-ni; shots of exchangees as they are taken into interrogation huts for questioning about their treatment as prisoners; and other scenes of exchanged American POWs as they deplane, or are carried, from C-97 Stratofreighters at Tokyo's Haneda Airport.
     
  • April 29, 1953 (200 PN 12.74), Part 1, shows released POWs as they board C-97 Stratofreighters at Tokyo's Haneda Airport, deplane at Honolulu's Hickam Field, fly over Golden Gate Bridge, and land at Travis AFB, CA, as well as POW greetings at New York City, Boston, and Philadelphia airports.
     
  • October 28, 1953 (200  PN13.22), Part 3, captured Communist film, shows U.S. POWs "confessing" to germ warfare charges in the presence of North Korean interrogators.
     
  • December 30, 1953 (200 PN 13.40), "review of 1953" includes scenes of prisoner exchanges and armistice talks in South Korea.
     
  • August 10, 1954 (200 PN 14.103), Part 4, shows U.S. fliers near Hong Kong after their release by Chinese Communists.
     
  • August 31, 1955 (200 PN 15.5), Part 3, shows the release of a wounded U.S. pilot by the North Koreans to U.N. officials at Seoul, Korea.

IV.27b   Movietone News, January 1957-October 1963 (200 MN)

  • 1963 (volume 46, number 65) (200 MN 46.65), Part 2, "Korea Truce Ten Years Old" includes scenes of prisoner-of-war exchanges and GIs returning to the United States.

IV.27c   Universal Newsreel, ca. July 1929-ca. December 1967 (200 UN)

  • The Universal Newsreel collection, including outtakes, was donated to the National Archives and Records Administration in its entirety.  Individual reels contain coverage of the Korean War, with some footage of American POWs from that conflict.  The collection includes an extensive donor-created card catalog that is available on microfilm.  A brochure describing the Universal Newsreel collection can be obtained from the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch.

IV.28   Many newsreel items are listed and described in the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch main card catalog (subjects) under such terms as "Korean War, 1950-53-Prisoners of War, American" and "Korean War, 1950-1953-Prisoner Exchange."   Most catalog card newsreel descriptions are in the National Archives Information Locator (NAIL) database, and can be searched under numerous topical terms, including "American prisoners," or under "prisoners of war" in combination with historical subjects such as "Korean War," "Korean Conflict," or "Korea" and with the series designator (200 MN, 200 MT, etc.).  Most of the motion picture newsreel series are also indexed by their own subject and main entry catalog cards.  The Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch can provide researchers with more detailed information on National Archives holdings of newsreel film series and finding aids.

IV.29   Over the years, the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Branch has also acquired extensive collections of radio and television news and special program broadcasts.  Three of the largest and most complete are the National Public Radio (NPR) news and special programs collection, 1971-78 (200 NPR); the CBS television news and special programs collection, April 1, 1974-present (200 CBS); and the ABC Radio collection, 1943-79 (200 ABC).  it is likely that all of these series contain some interviews with former Korean War POWs and a few special news programs devoted to Cold War POW issues.  In 200 ABC, for example, items 200 ABC 23209 and 200 ABC 28283 include two interviews with U-2 spy plane pilot Francis Gary Powers, who was shot down and captured during a 1960 reconnaissance mission over Russia, subsequently tried and convicted of war crimes against the Soviet Union, and later repatriated through a diplomatic exchange of personnel.  There is a subject index for the ABC Radio collection in the Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Research Room.  Access to the NPR news and special programs broadcasts is through a microfiche catalog that lists broadcasts by broad subject ("keywords" such as "war"), date, name, and program title.  News broadcasts and specials in the CBS collection are indexed in the Vanderbilt Television News Archives Television News Index and Abstracts, copies of which are available in the National Archives Motion Picture, Sound, and Video Research Room and in most major research libraries.

IV.30   Other donated materials include:

  • Item 200 G 753 (sound recording), Prisoner of War: A Study in Survival, June 9, 1958, Columbia Broadcasting System, Mutual Broadcasting System (2 reels, 58 minutes), consisting in part of a detailed report, narrated by Edward R. Murrow, on life in a Communist prisoner-of-war camp in North Korea (POW Camp Number 5).  Murrow's report incorporates interview segments of former American POWs who describe capture, treatment, indoctrination techniques, resistance, interrogation methods, and witnessed acts of collaboration at Camp Number 5.  This Murrow documentary is part of the David Goldin Collection series of programs aired by armed forces radio and commercial radio networks, 1932-ca. 1972 (200 G).
     
  • Item 200.380 (motion picture), The Red Cross Report, 1954, American National Red Cross (16 mm black and white, 13 minutes), which includes a short narrated segment on Red Cross workers greeting returned prisoners of war in Korea and assisting servicemen and their families.

PART V

Still Picture Records Relating to
KOREAN WAR AND COLD WAR PRISONERS OF WAR
AND MISSING-IN-ACTION PERSONNEL

V.I   Still picture records at the National Archives and Records Administration are another source of visual information about Korean War/Cold War prisoners of war and missing-in-action personnel.  There are, for example, numerous captioned photographs of American prisoners of war from the Korean War who were repatriated in Operations Little Switch and Big Switch.  Other photographs portray the return to the United States of Cuban invaders who were captured and imprisoned by Cuban military forces during the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion. There are also a few images that focus on the rescue of American military personnel whose aircraft were shot down by Soviet planes over waters that separate Japan from the east coast of Russia.  As with motion picture, sound recording, and video items, most still picture records are available for unrestricted research and copying.  Copyright restrictions may exist, however, for several accessioned still picture images that were originally acquired by Federal agencies from private, commercial sources.  Further information on the availability and duplication of National Archives still picture images can be obtained from the Still Picture Branch, National Archives at College Park, 8601 Adelphia Road, College Park, MD 20740-6001.

Record Group 80 (Part V) - General Records of the Department of the Navy, 1798-1947

V.2   The general photographic file of the Department of the Navy, 1900-58 (series 80 G) (ca. 1,625 ft. of original negatives), includes approximately 700,000 negatives and matching prints of naval ships, shipboard activities, American and foreign naval aircraft, military and civilian personalities, and naval engagements and actions.  Numerous photographic items in this series document naval actions and personalities in the Korean War.  "Visual aid" card indexes to this series include series 428 VX and WX (alphabetically arranged personality indexes, maintained in the Still Picture Branch records stacks) and the index to the general photographic file of the Department of the Navy, 1900-58 (80 GG).  Series 80 GG is an alphabetically arranged subject index that is available in the Still Picture Research Room.  It includes references to over 300 unique photographs of Korean War prisoners of war under such terms as "Prisoners of War," "Prisoners of War, Exchange of," "Prisoners of War-U.N.," "Prisoners of War-U.S.," "Prisoners of War-Released," "Operation 'Big Switch'," and "Operation 'Little Switch.'"  Most of the POW-related photographs are of individual Marine Corps and Navy prisoners of war as they were repatriated at Panmunjom and Munsan-ni village during Operations Little Switch and Big Switch, Series 80 G index card and photographic image captions usually identify individual servicemen.

Record Group 111 (Part V) - Records of the Office of the Chief Signal Officer

V.3   The series of color photographs of Signal Corps activity, 1944-82 (111 C) (ca. 450 ft. of original negatives, slides, and transparencies), provides images of combat, Army posts, equipment, guns and weapons, aircraft, military exercises, military units and Special Forces, medical facilities, military ceremonies, American and foreign prisoners of war, foreign landscapes and populations, foreign armies and equipment, and art work depicting World War II, Korea, and Vietnam.  Typed captions appear on the back of prints.  Most negatives, transparencies, and slides also have captions noted either on envelope jackets or on accompanying slips of paper.  This series contains over 102,000 images, arranged by Signal Corps assigned "C" or "CC" numbers.

V.4   The major finding aid for this series is the index to U.S. Army Signal Corps color photographs relating to American military activity, ca. 1942-ca. 1983 (111 CX) (112 ft.).  This index series, located in the Still Picture Research Room, consists of two chronological sections (1942-54 and 1955-83) or alphabetically arranged subject card indexes.  Under such terms as "Operation 'Big Switch,'" "Operation Little Switch," "Prisoners of War, Repatriated," and "Prisoners Released, American," the 1942-54 section lists references to approximately 14 series 111 C images of repatriated prisoners of war from the Korean War.  Most of these POWs are Army personnel.  All of these images have captions, which usually include the individual POW's name.

V.5   Several 111 C derivative series organize images into subject special categories.  Negatives, slides, transparencies, and--in most cases--corresponding contact prints are filed in the primary 111 C series, but additional copies of relevant prints can be found in the derivative series.  One of these series, the color print subject file, 1944-54 (111 CPF) (ca. 15 ft.), consists of approximately 3,500 color prints and some black and white prints made from color negatives and transparencies that document and publicize U.S. Army activities during and after World War II and the Korean War.  These images are arranged by subject and include approximately 20 unique black and white photographic prints of Army POWs from the Korean War who were repatriated during Operations Little Switch and Big Switch.  These images are filed under "Korea-POW-Exchange-'Little Switch'" and "Korea-POW-Exchange-'Big Switch'" (box 19).  A 111 CPF subject, folder, and box list is available in the Still Picture Research Room.  None of the other 111 C derivative series contain significant documentation pertaining to Korean War/Cold War POW/MIA research issues.

V.6   Signal Corps photographs of American military activity, ca. 1900-ca. 1981 (111 SC) (2,054 ft. of original negatives), is a large series of over 680,000 black and white photographic negatives and corresponding prints covering events that occurred during the 1754 to 1981 period.  The series is arranged in numerical order by Signal Corps photo number.  The images are indexed by subject in the index to U.S. Army Signal Corps black and white photographs in series 111 SC, ca. 1900-ca. 1981 (111 SCY), a card index that is available in the Still Picture Research Room.  The 111 SCY subjects such as "Prisoners of War" (with various subheadings), "Operation 'Little Switch,'" and "Operation 'Big Switch'" cite over 400 images that pertain to U.S. Army prisoners of war from the Korean War.  Most of these POWs are identified.  In addition, there are citations to an additional 200 images pertaining to "Atrocities" and "Atrocities, Communist," which include black and white photographs of apparently executed American military personnel captured by Communist forces early in the Korean War.  These "atrocity" photographs generally contain no identification of individual victims.

V.7   U.S. Army Signal Corps photographs of military activity during WWII, Korea, and Vietnam, 1941-81 (111 SCA) (ca. 1,280 ft.), consist of over 600,000 black and white photographic prints arranged in 7,717 albums and 9 boxes.  Photographs are arranged in albums by broad categories such as "Army Posts," "Geographic Locations," "Aerial Views," "Army Maneuvers," "Branch of Service," "Personalities," "Subjects," and "Overseas Geographical Areas," and thereunder by more refined subject headings.  The albums are numbered sequentially.  The most valuable finding aid for 111 SCA is a six-volume album subject list, located in the Still Picture Research Room.  The list cites seven photographic volumes that contain captioned photographs of repatriated U.S. prisoners of war from the Korean War (mostly identified Army personnel) who were repatriated through either South Korea or Japan.  These photographic volumes are as follows:

  • 4950-4951 "Prisoners-Operation 'Big Switch'" Books 1 and 2 (4 in.)
     
  • 4952-4953 "Prisoners-Operation 'Little Switch'" Books 1 and 2 (4 in.)
     
  • 4961-4962 "Prisoners, Released-American-Korea" (4 in.).  Photographic images of American prisoners of war liberated or repatriated from the beginning of the Korean War through Operation Big Switch.  Volume 4962 contains images of repatriated crew members from the B-29 commanded by Air Force Col. John K. Arnold, Jr.  That volume also contains photographic prints of other American service personnel who were captured and subsequently released by North Korean military forces during and after the Korean War through 1964.
     
  • 4971 "Prisoners, Released-Non-Repatriated" (2 in.).  Five images in this volume feature the October 1953 repatriation of Cpl. Edward Dickenson, identified on photographic captions as the "first non-repatriated [Korean War voluntary nonrepatriated] POW of the Communists to return to U.S. control."

Record Group 127 (Part V) - Records of the U.S. Marine Corps

V.8   Photographs of Marine Corps activities in Korea, 1950-58 (127 GK) (ca. 21 ft.), consist of approximately 14,000 images (mostly black and white) that document Marine Corps combat and noncombat activities in Korea both during and after the Korean War.  Series photographs are organized according to Marine Corps-devised numeric groups (or "dividers") corresponding to subject categories.  Some of the larger subject categories are subdivided into more refined subject headings, and thereunder generally in alphabetical order by subject categories.  Included within 127 GK, dividers 65 and 165, are approximately 130 captioned images that identify Marine Corps and other United Nations Command prisoners of war who were repatriated during Operations Little Switch and Big Switch.  There is an alphabetical subject list for series 127 GK in the Still Picture Reference Room.

V.9   Negative images for most of the photographic prints in series 127 GK are filed in the larger general photograph file of the U.S. Marine Corps, 1927-81 (127 N) (1,417 ft.).  This series contains over 356,000 images (a mixture of black and white and color negatives, slides, and transparencies).  It is a comprehensive pictorial record of Marine Corps history, with emphasis on combat campaigns, personnel recruitment and training, and personalities from World War II and the Korean War through the Vietnam War.  The alphabetically arranged card indexes to photographs of Marine Corps and noted civilian personalities, 1927-81 (127 PX) (374 ft.), is the most useful finding aid for series 127 N.  The index cards include caption references to noteworthy Marine Corps and civilian personalities whose names appear on photograph captions in the various Marine Corps photographic series, along with citations to item numbers for negatives in series 127 N.  Among the Marine Corps personalities identified on these index cards are many of the Marine Corps prisoners of war from the Korean War who were repatriated during Operations Little Switch and Big Switch.

Record Group 306 (Part V) - Records of the U.S. Information Agency

V.10   The United States Information Agency (USIA) maintained a photo library in which the centerpiece was a "master file" consisting of photographic prints and negatives that were disseminated aboard through various press and Government publications.  This file, now in NARA custody and referred to as USIA master file photographs of U.S. and foreign personalities, world events, and American economic, social, and cultural life, 1948-83 (306 PS) (578 ft.), consists of over 168,000 prints, slides, and transparencies, with negatives matching most of the black and white items found in the USIA master file black and white negatives of U.S. and foreign personalities, world events, and American economic, social and cultural life, 1948-83 (306 N).  The series 306 PS is organized into the following six subseries: 306 PS (1948-early 1960s), PS-A (1948-73), PS-B (2948-64), PS-C (1948-75; PS-D (1948-72, and PS-E (1973-83).  Each of these subseries has a separate subject and personality card index.  These indexes, located in the Still Picture Branch Research Room, comprise the subject indexes to master file photographs of U.S. and foreign personalities, world events, and American economic, social, and cultural life, 1948-83 (series 306 X).  Under the terms "Prisoners of War - Korea" and "Prisoners of War - Repatriation," the index for subseries 306 PS cites approximately 150 Command prisoners of war.  Citations to an additional 30 images of mostly unidentified, repatriated United Nations Command POWs can be found under the 306 PS index subject heading "Prisoners of War-United Nations."  A few additional citations to American POWs and POW/MIA atrocity victims of the Korean War can be located in the 306 PS index under the heading "Korea-[geographic location]."  Under "Prisoners of War-Cuba," the 306 PS index also identifies a photograph of 3 of the 1,214 captives taken by the Cuban Government during the April 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion.  Two images depicting Bay of Pigs prisoners returning to the United States through Homestead Air Force Base, FL, on December 24, 1962, are cited in the 306 PS-D index under "Prisoners-Foreign-Cuba."

V.11   Because the USIA acquired many of its photographs from private, nongovernmental sources, duplication of many images in the various 306 PS series and subseries may be subject to copyright restrictions.

Record Group 319 (Part V) - Records of the Army Staff

V.12   Miscellaneous activities of the U.S. Army, 1940-66 (319 SF) (3 ft.), is an assemblage of approximately 2,400 mostly black and white photographs that focus on a variety of Army activities, functions, and personalities from 1940 to 1966.  Series photographs are arranged alphabetically by subject.  Contained in 319 SF are numerous images of the Korean War, including five photographs of malnourished American POWs released during Operation Little Switch (filed under "Prisoners Released-Operation 'Little Switch,'" box 5, folder 87).  A folder list that identifies series subjects, correlated to box and folder numbers, is maintained in the Still Picture Research Room.

V.13   Aerial and panoramic photographs of various countries and the United States, 1942-64 (319 CE) (ca. 10 ft.), is a series of approximately 12,000 captioned, black and white photographs that are arranged alphabetically by country and thereunder numerically by Signal Corps photograph identification number.  In box 39 of this series, the folder titled "American Casualties-Korea" (1 in.) includes several detailed photographs, dated 1951, of U.S. Army casualties and possible atrocity victims from the Korean War whom military authorities may have listed originally as missing in action or as prisoners of war.  Several of these images convey facial features, and unknown casualty ("X" file) case numbers.  Occasionally, photograph captions also provide personal data (casualty's name, rank, unit) and a general description of the geographic location from which the Army recovered specific remains.

Record Group 372 (Part V) - Records of U.S. Air Force Commands,
Activities, and Organizations

V.14   The U.S. Air Force Still Photograph Collection, 1903-54, currently on loan from the Air Force to the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC, apparently includes significant documentation of Air Force activities and personalities during the early Cold War years.  There are, for example, over 250 feet of black and white prints and color images that are organized into several categories, including "World War II," "Pre-195," "Pre-1954," "Non-Domestic," "Korean Conflict," and miscellaneous prints.  There are also approximately 18 feet of color negatives and slides (some shot in Korea), along with approximately 314 feet of black and white negatives.  Indexes for this collection include subject cards that cover Korea, Japan, Germany, color subjects, general subjects, geographic locations, and personalities.  In addition, the National Air and Space Museum has created a series of videodisc image indexes for black and white prints, color negatives, and slides in this collection.

V.15   Some of these images undoubtedly relate to Korean War and Cold War POWs and MIA personnel.  The National Air and Space museum will soon transfer the Air Force Still Photograph Collection, 1903-1954, to the Still Picture Branch of the National Archives, where the collection will be integrated into existing permanently accessioned Air Force photographic series.

V.16   Photographs of U.S. Air Force occupation of Japan and Germany, 1945-62 (342 G [Germany], J [Japan] (ca. 36 ft.), consist of 112 albums of mostly black and white photographic prints, along with negatives (approximately 7,681 total images) that document various activities associated with the Air Force presence in allied-occupied Japan and Germany following World War II.  The prints are organized into "J" (Japan) and "G" (Germany) subseries, and arranged thereunder in alphabetical order by subject.  The series includes images of aircraft, geographic features of Germany and Japan, ceremonies, crews, equipment, bases, weapons, Air Force social activities, and notable personalities.  Three photographic albums (ca. 1 ft.) labeled "Occupation-Japan-Rescues I, II, and III" document Air Force rescues of various downed American aircraft and their crews, including some shot down by the Soviet Union Air Force at various Sea of Japan locations.  The finding aid for series 342 G, J is the card index to photographs of the U.S. Air Force occupation of Japan and Germany, 1945-62 (342 GJX) (ca. 8 ft.).  This index is divided into six broad headings ("Germany," "Japan," "Korea," "Okinawa," "Ryukyu Islands," and "Personnel"), and arranged thereunder alphabetically by subject or surname.  Each card includes the negative identification number, full caption, and the subject heading under which each print is filed.

V.17   Photographs of U.S. Air Force activities, facilities, and personnel, domestic and foreign, 1954-80 (342 B) (ca. 374 ft.), contain over 133,000 images arranged generally in alphabetical order by subject within 1,927 albums, the first sets of which are organized according to an Air Force-devised numeric subject scheme, with the remainder organized along geographic lines.  The finding aid for this series is a four-volume master list of numeric album subject headings and alphabetical subject subheadings.  Album 04-050 "Events/Activities, ca. 1954-1974-POWs, Repatriated From Cuba, Vietnam, Iran" contains five captioned images of Cuban "political prisoners" (some identified) disembarking from planes at Homestead Air Force Base, FL, in December 1962.  Another photograph in the same section of album 04-050 documents the February 10, 1961, repatriation of unidentified RB-47 pilots whose aircraft had apparently been shot down by Soviet Union military forces on a date and at a location not specified in the caption notes.  Negatives, slides, and transparencies corresponding to 342 B prints are found in series 342 AF (black and white) and 342 C (color), with accompanying subject and personality indexes (series 342 X, Z) located in the Still Picture Branch Research Room.

Record Group 428 (Part V) - General Records of the Department of the Navy, 1947-

V.18   Color and black and white photographs from the post-Korean War period are among the general photographic files of the Department of the Navy, 1958-81 (2,478 ft.), which consists of black and white negatives (series 428 N), and color negatives, slides and transparencies (series 428 K and KN).  There are two "visual aid" index card compilation series providing access to these materials: vis-aid index to the general photographic file of the Department of the Navy, 1958-81 (428 GX), and vis-aid index to photographs of U.S. Navy activities, 1957-64 (428 GXA).  Cards in both index series feature miniature prints and are arranged alphabetically by subject.  Under "Prisoners of War-Allied" (series 428 GXA), there are imaged citations to 13 photographs of American civilian and Navy military personnel who were seized and then released in 1958 by Cuban rebel forces under the command of Fidel Castro.

V.19   The Still Picture Branch maintains a useful, unpublished guide to all National Archives Still Picture Branch sources documenting U.S. involvement in the Korean Peninsula, 1945-54.  This nine-part guide, divided by topics, consists of approximately 1 foot of still picture series descriptions, electrostatic copy samples of captioned and numbered photographs, and other records or information pertaining to various aspects of American involvement in Korea after World War II.  Folder VI of the guide focuses on representative still images that relate to "Death; Atrocities; Cemeteries; Havoc of War; Peace Talks; Press; [and] U.N. POWs."  Still Picture Branch staff emphasize that the guide "was not designed to be exhaustive, just representative" of National Archives still picture holdings on the Korean War.  However, Folder VI does cite POW-related photographic items that did not fit within the scope of this reference information paper.

V.20   Duplication of some photocopied images in this guide may be restricted, due to copyright considerations.  A copy is available for consultation in the general subjects files of the Still Picture Research Room.


APPENDIX A

BOX AND FILE LIST, OFFICE OF NAVAL INTELLIGENCE,
OPERATIONS SECTION [POW DESK],

OPERATIONS SECTION FILES, 1949-54

 

BOX

FILE NO.

FILE TITLE

1 A16-2/26.00 General indeces
 

/26.03

National military establishment (USSR etc.)
 

/26.04

Navy in national & intl. affairs (USSR)
 

/26.05

Navy organization (USSR, NoK, Polish)
 

/26.06

Navy doctrine & tactics (USSR, DDR, ChiCom)

2

/26.09

Strength & disposition (USSR)
 

/26.10

Raw background intelligence (trip reports etc.)
 

/26.11.7

Naval personnel; training - Chinese
 

/26.11.8

Naval personnel; training - Satellite
 

/26.11.9

Naval personnel; training - Russian

3

/26.12

Naval vessels
 

/26.12.8

Naval vessels - Satellite
 

/26.12.9

Naval vessels - Russian
 

/26.12.13

Naval ordnance and related material
 

/26.12.16

Port facilities (USSR, Warsaw Pact, Chinese)

4

/26.12.16

Port facilities (USSR, Warsaw Pact, Chinese)
 

/26.17

Documents required by personnel
 

/26.18

Shipbuilding & repairs
 

/26.19

Logistics
 

/26.20

Merchant marine (USSR, Korea, Poland)

5

/26.21

Coastal defenses
 

/26.23

Communications
 

/26.24

Scientific research & development
 

/26.25

Graphic material
 

/26.26

Biographic; personalities - Satellite
 

/26.26

Biographic; personalities - Less Sov. & Satellite

6

/26.26

Biographic; personalities - Soviet
 

/26.27.8

Prisons & camps - Satellite

7

/26.27.9

Prisons & camps - USSR

8

/26.28

Interrogation reports

9

/26.28

Interrogation reports - State Dept. (Chinese)
 

/26.29.7

Sociological - Chinese
 

/26.29.8

Sociological - Satellite

10

/26.29.9

Sociological - Russian
 

/26.31

Security Forces
 

/26.31.7

Security Forces - Chinese

11

/26.31.8

Security Forces - Satellite
 

/26.31.9

Security Forces - Russian (conditions in camps)
 

/27.00

Treatment of prisoners-general (Geneva Convntn.)

12

/27.02

Treatment of POWs - Joint US
 

/27.04

Treatment of POWs - Navy
 

/27.06

Treatment of POWs - Army/AF
 

/27.14

Treatment of POWs - Vietminh (US POWs of VM, 1954)
 

/27.16

Treatment of POWs - Others
 

/31.00

Interrogation techniques - suggested
 

/33.00

Interrogation techniques - general
 

/33.09

Interrogation techniques - escapes
 

/33.13

Interrogation techniques - German & Russian

13

/33.14

Interrogations - US/UN by Eastern Europeans
 

/33.18

Interrogations - US/UN by Asiatics
 

/33.19

Interrogations - US/UN by Russians
 

/33.38

Interrogations - Europeans by Satellites
 

/33.39

Interrogations - Germans by Russians

14

/33.39

Interrogations - Germans by Russians
 

/33.59

Interrogations - Japanese by Russians
 

/33.71

Interrogations - Satellite by UN/US

15

/33.88

Interrogations - Satellite by Satellite
 

/33.89

Interrogations - Satellite by Russians
 

/33.91

Interrogations - Russian by UN/US
 

/33.93

Interrogations - Russians by Germans
 

/33.99

Interrogations - Russians by Russians
 

/34.00

Interview techniques
 

/36.00

Resistance - Policy

16

/36.01

Resistance - Correspondence
 

/36.02

Resistance - Publications, drafts
 

/36.04

Resistance - Publications, received
 

/36.10

Resistance - Examples, etc.
 

/36.17

Resistance - UN/US to Chinese
 

/36.39

Resistance - German to Russian (includes escapes)

17

/36.39

Resistance - German to Russian
 

/36.59

Resistance - Japanese to Russian
 

/36.71

Resistance - Satellite to UN
 

/36.88

Resistance - Satellite to Satellite
 

/36.89

Resistance - Satellite to Russia
 

/37.00

Resistance training
 

/37.01

Resistance training - Film
 

/37.02

Communist indoctrination methods
 

/37.03

Counter-indoctrination material
 

/37.04

Underground organizations (USSR)

18

/40

Training: interrogation, general
 

/41.1

Trainee candidates and leads
 

/41.2

Linguists
 

/42

Training courses, other schools, and units
 

/43

Training aids

19

/43F

Forms
 

/43G

Foreign glossaries
 

/43G

German glossaries
 

/43G9

Russian glossaries

20

/43.9

Training aids - Russia
 

/43M

Medals and decorations
 

/50

Interrogation operations - general
 

/57

Foreign interrogation agencies
 

/60

Collation of interrogation information - general
 

/66

Editing procedure
 

/70

Evaluation of interrogation information - general
 

/80

Dissemination of interrogation information
 

/86

Report formats
 

/90

Liaison with other units
 

/94

Directives; drafts
 

/94.1

Draft of "ONI 53-3"; POW directive

21

/97

SHAPE interrogation program
 

/97.1

Other interrogation programs
 

/97.2

WRINGER Project
 

/98NI

COMNAVFORGER interrogation program
 

/99

Proposed publications
 

/99.11

Proposed Russian glossary project
 

/99.12

International Handbook of Ships
 

/99.12.1

International Handbook of Ships - CLs
 

/99.12.2

International Handbook of Ships - AKAs
 

/99.12.3

International Handbook of Ships - BBs
 

/99.12.4

International Handbook of Ships - DDs
 

/99.12.5

International Handbook of Ships - DEs

22

/99.12.6

International Handbook of Ships - SSs
 

/99.12.7

International Handbook of Ships - CVs
 

/99G

Air Intelligence Interrogation Guide
 

/99.14

International Handbook-Personnel
 

/99.21

POW Weekly
 

/99.51

"Combat After Capture"

23

A16-11/B

Biological Warfare
 

A16-11/P

Psychological Warfare
 

A16-14/00

UN/US POWs - Korea; general and misc.
 

/01

POW Rosters - Korean War

24

/03

POW Rosters - American and British
 

/04

UN/US POW letters and photographs
 

/05

Bley-POW roster ( propaganda broadcasts by)
 

/05

Ettinger-POW roster (debriefing)
 

/05

Ferranto-POW roster (debriefing)
 

/05

Nixon-POW roster (debriefing)

25

/05

Schwable-POW roster (propaganda broadcasts by)
 

/05

Thorin-POW roster (debriefing)
 

/05B

Returnees; sworn statements on
 

/05S

Returnees; sworn statements on
 

/05

UN POWs; sworn statements concerning
 

/06

Captured Communist documents
 

/10

Communist care and handling of US/UN POWs

26

/11

POW camps (Indochina, Korea, Manchuria, USSR)
 

/12

Communist treatment and utilization of POWs
 

/13

Morale (POW camp behavior)

27

/20

Communist indoctrination
 

/22

Use of UN/US POWs for propaganda
 

/24

Communist interrogation methods  used by POWs

28

/25

UN/US resistance to Communist indoctrination
 

/33

Peace conference
 

/40

POW exchange
 

/41

Little Switch Operation Report
 

/42

Big Switch Operation Report
 

/43

POW release by Vietminh (US POWs, 1954)
 

/50

UN/US Non-Repatriates
 

/52

Involuntary non-repatriates
 

/53

Neutral Nations Repatriation Committee

30

/54

Non-repatriates - Communist
 

/60

Returnees
 

/61

Processing reports
 

/61

Debriefing of BRICK personnel
 

/61

Little Switch debriefing questionnaire

31

/63

Surveillance
 

/64

Requirements (debriefing of RECAP-Ks)
 

/70

UN/US handling and treatment of Communist POWs
 

/71

UN/US interrogation of Communist POWs
 

/81

Helicopter loss - Korea (Ettinger, Ferranto, Thorin)
 

/82

Meritorious conduct
 

A19

Conferences
 

A20

Committees
 

A27

POWs - World War II

32

A27

"ONI Review"
 

A27

Evaluation
 

SS/EF-37

Interrogation of ex-Japanese submariners
 

P1

Maj. Gen. William F. Dean, USA
 

FF

Fleets, forces, etc.
 

ND

Naval districts

APPENDIX B

LIST OF NAVY AND MARINE CORPS PERSONNEL REPRESENTED IN
CASE FILES OF AMERICAN PRISONERS OF WAR
DURING THE KOREAN WAR, 1952-56

 

BOX

NAME

RANK

SN

ORGANIZATION

1-3

Miscellaneous
Interrogation
Summaries
(Other Services)
     
         

4

Aguirre, Andrew C. CPL 954669 B Company, 1st Tank Battalion
  Amann, Emanuel R. CAPT 038140 VMF 323 MAG 12
  Antonis, Nick J. PFC 1056431 B Company, 1st Tank Battalion
  Arias, Robert R. CPL 1106934 E-2-7*
         

5

Armstrong, Samuel J. PFC 1783348 H-3-5
  Atkinson, Edward R. CPL 1126839 A-1-7
  Aviles, Pedro E. PFC 1278492 Recon. Company, HQ, 1st Marine Div
  Bagwell, Ralph M. LCDR 85753 VA-35 (CO)
  Baker, Jerry D. PFC 1226854 A-1-7
         

6

Bartholomew, Carl E. PFC 1335497 G-3-1
  Batdorff, Robert L. PFC 1064220 F-2-7
  Bassett, Kenneth J. PFC 1072425 MP Company, HQ, 1st Marine Division
  Baugh, Milton H. 1LT 010658 VMF 311, MAG 33
  Bell, Richard 1LT 045307 VMF 311, MAG 33
  Binig, Joseph B. HM3 571332 G-3-1
         

7

Beswick, Byron H. CAPT 029003 VMF 323, MAG 12
  Blas, Cipriano SGT 349552 MP Company, HQ, 1st Marine Division
  Bley, Roy H. MAJ 010450 HQs Squadron, 1st Marine Air Wing
  Blazevic, Raymond L. AT1 8704183 USS Princeton
  Booker, Jesse V. CAPT 020617 HQ MAG 12
         

8

Boulduc, Charles A. PFC 1089611 A Co., 1st Motor Transport Battalion
  Britt, Joseph P. Jr. PFC 1185707 H-3-5
  Brittain, Dewey E. SGT 309368 MP Company, 1st Marine Division
  Broomhead, Martin S. ENS 538977 VF 194

 

       

9

Brown, Billy A. PFC 1108329 B-1-1
  Cain, John T. MSGT 497205 VMO 6, 1st Marine Air Wing
  Bundy, Lyonel D. CPL 666423 H-3-1
  Burke, Stanley A. PFC 1092495 H&S, 1st Marine Regiment
  Byres, Allen R. PFC 1190377 H-3-5
  Cain, John T. MSGT 497205 VMO 6, 1st Marine Air Wing
  Chester, Robert J. PFC 1316541 I-3-7
  Clifford, Henry C. 2LT 058124 A-1-7
         

10

Coffee, Robert J. SGT 659953 Anglico, 1st Signal Battalion
  Conway, Henry J. Jr. 2LT 054354 G-3-7
  Cowen, George V. PFC 10465484 D-2-7
  Crabtree, Albert T. Jr. PFC 1330622 F-2-1
  Dagne, Joseph M. Jr. PFC 1223882 G-3-7
  DeMasters, John A. LTJG 522066 VF 64
         

11

Demasters (continued)      
  Dennison, Arthur L. PFC 1263513 A-1-7
  Dodson, Emmitt D. PFC 1286075 A-1-7
  Downey, Earl D. CPL 654337 MP Company, 1st Marine Division
  Doyle, Arthur E. Jr. CPL 1257062 A-1-11
  Drummond, Stephen E. CPL 1257454 A-1-11
         

12

Drummond (continued)      
  Edwards, Arnold R. PFC 1195452 A-1-7
  Ettinger, Harry E. Jr. LTJG 504133 VF 194
         

13

Ettinger (continued      
         

14

Ezell, Dee E. CAPT 029832 HQs Battery, 11th Marines
  Faler, Dale ENS 327702 VA 65
  Ferrantano, Felix 1LT 014978 Anglico, 1st Signal Bn., 1st Mar Div
         

15

Ferrantano (continued)      
         

16

Ferrantano (continued)      
  Fink, Gerald CAPT 023889 VMF 312, MAG 12
  Flores, Nick A. PFC 1091431 1st Service Bn, 1st Marine Division
         

17

Flynn, John P. Jr. CAPT 032419 MAG 12
  Foreacre, Louis K. PFC 1175294 A-1-7
  Gauthier, Gaston C. PFC 1165371 C-1-7
  Gabrielle, Fred J. Jr. PFC 1279874 I-3-7
  Gaynor, Melvin J. PVT 1176226 H-3-7
         

18

Gaynor (continued)      
  Gillette, Robert J. 1LT 035468 VF 194
  Gilliland, Julian H. AT2 8375986 VF 194
  Glenn, Joe A. PFC 1221962 Weapons Co., 2d Bn, 5th Marines
  Graham, Alfred P. Jr. PFC 1198510 H-3-5
  Gray, Roy C. Jr. CAPT 024638 VMF 311, MAG 33
         

19

Gray (continued      
  Graham (continued)      
  Gregory, Arthur J. PFC 1180947 A-1-5
  Grey, Vernie L. PFC 1211153 H-3-7
  Griffith, Donald M. SGT 584417 F-2-5
         

20

Gunderson, Carl J. PFC 1219397 G-3-7
  Hale, James L. PFC 1122176 E-2-5
  Hamilton, James F. SGT 1121870 G-3-7
  Harbin, Joseph B. CPL 1087610 4.5 Rocket Battery, 11th Marines
  Harcourt, Olaf W.B. CPL 1157781 Weapons Co., 2d Btn, 5th Marines
  Harris, Walter R. MAJ 016518 VMF 323 MAG 12
         

21

Hart, George F. PFC 1305304 G-3-5
  Hernandez-Hoyos, Rafael H. PFC 1225690 C-1-5
  Hollinger, Bernard R. PFC 1289375 H-3-5
  Irones, Lee J. PFC 1272091 I-3-5
  Jacobs, John A. Jr. PFC 1195842 E-2-5
  Henry, Kenneth W. 1LT 09300 MD, USS Manchester
         

22

Jacobs (continued)      
  James, Jesse L. SGT 594627 MP Co., HQ, 1st Marine Division
  Jones, Edwin B. III CPL 661065 HQ Battery, 11th Marines
  Johnson, Richard D. PFC 1190982 G-3-1
  Kennedy, Gathern Jr. CPL 1228036 I-3-1
  Kestel, Reginald E. PVT 1226629 C-1-7
         

23

Kestel (continued)      
  Kirby, John R. CPL 1083266 HQ, 1st Marine Division
  Kostich, Robert PFC 1214174 Weapons Co., 2d Bn, 5th Marines
  Kohus, Francis E. Jr. PFC 1177174 A-1-7
  Lacy, Jimmie E. CPL 1205643 C-1-5
         

24

Latora, Philip N. PFC 1204275 A-1-7
  Lessman, Billy J. PFC 1152336 HQ Battery, 11th Marines
  Lipscombe, Robert B. Jr. CAPT 037958 VMO 6, 1st Marine Air Wing
  Lloyd, Alan L. 1LT 047343 H&S Company, 5th Marines
  Lundquist, Carl R. 2LT 051303 VMF 312 MAG 12
         

25

Lunsford, Franklin I. PVT 1223889 H-3-7
  Lynch, Donald W. PFC 1200468 I-3-5
  Marks, Delbert L. PFC 1172211 D Co., 1st Engineer Battalion
  Martelli, Paul L. CAPT 029125 VMF 323 MAG 12
  Markevitch, Robert A. PFC 1150700 H-3-5
  Martin, Charles F. CAPT 032449 VMA 121 MAG 33
         

26

Mathis, Chester A. TSGT 271843 MP Co., HQ, 1st Marine Division
  McCool, Felix WO 049274 Support Co., 1st Sup. Bn, 1st Mar Div
  McCoy, Donald K. PFC 1247761 H-3-5
  McDaniel, Roland L. 2LT 052985 HQ Battery, 11th Marines
  McElroy, Jess R. ADU3 3578422 VF 194
         

27

McInernery, James P. CPL 1074365 Co. A, 1st Motor Transport Bn
  McLaughlin, John N. MAJ 08433 HQ, X Corps
  Messman, Robert C. 1LT 039208 K-4-11
  Moore, E.C. LT 304299 Helicopter Squadron 1
  Moritz, Dale E. LT 30150 VA 923
         

28

Moritz (continued)      
  Murphy, Rowland M. 2LT 052136 D-1-5
  Nation, Carl D. PVT 1331590 Weapons Co., 3d Bn, 5th Marines
  Nardolillo, Francis J. PFC 1160750 A-1-7
  Neal, George M. ADAN 5713287 Helicopter Unit #2
  Nelson, Noble I. Jr. PFC 1252507 A-1-7
  Nevill, Kenneth F. PFC 1221568 F-2-7
         

29

Nieman, Warner E. PFC 1285481 H-3-5
  Nixon, Edwin A. ENS 552869 VF 91
  Noeth, George E. CPL 1242647 C-1-7
  Oehl, Sidney CPL 1233269 4.2 Mortar Co., 7th Marines
  Osborn, Loyd E. PFC 670838 A Co., 1st Motor Transport Bn
         

30

Osborne, Henry H. LT 263936 VF 63
  Oven, Richard L. PFC 1193866 H-3-5
  Pabey, Luis E. PFC 1259414 C-1-7
  O'Shea, Robert J. 1LT 048902 HQ Co., 1st Mar Div.
         

31

Pacifico, Alfred J. PFC 1305069 G-3-7
  Padilla, Salomon PFC 1226900 H-3-5
  Paillette, T.E. HN 4237278 H&S Co., 1st Bn, 7th Marines
  Pavlik, Bernard P. HN 4168628 A-1-7
  Pawlowski, Donald J. CPL 1168119 A-1-7
  Peel, Gaylord Allen LTJG 374268 VA 95
         

32

Penn, Billy R. HM3 4200921 H-3-5
  Peralta, Pedro Jr. PFC 1268214 H-3-5
  Perry, Jack E. CAPT 027307 HQ, MAG 33
  Pettit, William R. TSGT 269956 MP Co., HQ, 1st Marine Division
  Pickett, Wayne A. CPL 606930 F-2-7
         

33

Pizarro-Baez, Alberto PVT 1210521 H-3-7
  Pumphrey, Louis A. PFC 1260301 H-3-7
         

34

Pumphrey (continued)      
  Ratliff, Roy V. CPL 663208 MP Co., HQ, 1st Marine Division
  Ramos, Augustine M. PFC 1245406 H-3-7
  Ray, Vernon PFC 1257309 A-1-7
  Razvoza, Richard J. SGT 667305 MP Co., HQ, 1st Marine Division
         

35

Reid, Ernest R. Jr. 1LT 047073 H&S Co., 1st Marines
  Ribbeck, Lester A. PFC 1193721 F-2-1
  Richards, Donald R. CPL 129516 H-3-5
  Richards, Harold E. PFC 1305338 E-2-7
  Richardson, Judson C. Jr. MAJ 011918 VMF(N) 513, MAG 12
         

36

Ricker, Lance G. PFC 1296985 A-1-7
  Riker, Andrew L. ENS 551737 VA 923
  Roberts, Albert J. Jr. TSGT 308306 MP Co, HQ, 1st Marine Division
  Robinson, Alvin M. PFC 1244296 Weapons Co., 1st Bn, 7th Marines
  Romero, Louis Jr. PFC 1195398 E-2-5
         

37

Rose, Donald A. SGT 1771076 4.2 Motor Company, 7th Marines
  Saxon, Joe E. PFC 668057 B Co., 1st Tank Battalion
  Schnitzler, Norbert W. PFC 1241142 I-3-5
  Scheddell, Thomas A. HN 4332295 D-2-7
         

38

Schommer, Charles P. PFC 1241147 I-3-7
  Schultz, William E. CPL 1030979 HQ Battery, 4th Bn, 11th Marines
  Schwable, Frank H. COL 04429 HQ Squadron, 1st Marine Air Wing
  Scott, Mickey K. PFC 613668 D-2-7
  Seymour, Rufus A. 2LT 055835 C-1-5
  Shanklin, Milas PFC 1275592 I-3-7
         

39

Shanklin (continued)      
  Shockley, William N. PFC 1195637 Reconnaissance Co., HQ, 1st Mar Div
  Smith, Edward L. HMC 3214442 H&S Co., 7th Marines
  Smith, Mercer R. CAPT 024054 VMF 311, MAG 33
  Smith, Roy S. HN 4245698 F-2-7
  Smith, Zacheus A. Jr. HM3 2535221 B-1-7
  Spence, Kenneth L. CPT 031844 VMO 6, 1st Marine Air Wing
         

40

Stanfill, Herman F. 1LT 047753 VMF 323, MAG 12
  Steege, Leonard E. PFC 1190684 H-3-7
  Stewart, Willie C. PFC 1324588 B-1-7
  Sterrett, Harlo E. ENS 538313 VF 653
  Still, Richard L. 2LT 050783 1st 90-mm Anti-aircraft Battalion
  Stine, James L. PFC 1325815 I-3-7
  Strachan, Robert A. Jr. CPL 1136319 G-3-7
         

41

Strachan (continued)      
  Stumpges, Frederick J. MSGT 274797 HQ Co., HQ, 1st Marine Division
  Taft, Leonard C. 2LT 047988 VMO 6, 1st Marine Air Wing
  Thompson, Robert G. SGT   C-1-7
  Thorin, Duane W. AMC 3165994 HU-1
         

42

Thorin (continued)      
  Thornton, John W. LTJG 391103 HU-2
  Thrash, William G. LTCOL 06141 HQ, MAG 12
  Trujillo, Pablo B. PFC 1266204 H-3-7
  Turner, Herbert B. 1LT 039278 D Co., 1st Tank Bn.
         

43

Tuscano, James E. PFC 1248932 G-3-7
  Vann, George H. PFC 1031930 K-4-11
  Vitrulus, Billy J. PFC 1202210 C-1-7
  Waddill, Thomas H. HN 4471445 C-1-5
         

44

Vavruska, Eugene R. PFC 1293705 H-3-7
  Wagner, Arthur CAPT 032680 VMF(N) 513, MAG 12
  Watson, Joseph PFC 1229887 C-1-7
  Wertman, Albert P. CPL 1065298 F-2-7
  Wessels, Harry P. PVT 1271307 I-3-7
  Wilkins, Edward G. Jr. PFC 1088692 I-3-5
         

45

Wilkins, James V. CAPT 021898 VMF 312, MAG 12
  Williams, Donald C. CPL 1098418 Anglico, 1st Signal Battalion
  Williams, Duke Jr. 1LT 047570 VMF 312, MAG 12
  Williams, Michaux L. PFC 1316575 C-1-7
  Williford, Troy A. PFC 669059 F-2-7
  Woodard, Preston D. PFC 1189089 H-3-7
         

46

Yerger, Maury F. LCDR 165477 VF 23
  Yesko, Daniel D. PFC 1064801 F-2-7

*This is a abbreviated designation for the serviceman's company-battalion-regiment.  Thus, E-2-7 is "E" Company, 2d Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment.  Another example, "H-3-5" would be "H" Company, 3d Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment.


APPENDIX C

BOX LIST FOR
AIRCRAFT INCIDENTS FILES (SAM KLAUS FILES), 1944-62
(LOT FILE 64D551)

 

BOX

CONTENTS

1

IL-12 Case (Soviet Aircraft), 7/27/53
    (Also see TS File in Box 101)
    Blackbook, Correspondence, and Memoranda
    Affidavits

2

    Red Chinese Belligerency
    Missionary Priest
    CIA Library Listing

3

    American POW's and POW tape recordings
    Interviews with Chinese Communist Soldiers
    POW Interviews & Chinese Originals

4-6

    POW Interviews - Reels of Tape

7

Colonel Arnold Case
    Transcripts of Interviews from AF Intelligence
    Correspondence - Memoranda
    Air Intelligence Information Report
    Prison Diary of Lt. Parks
    Affidavit by E.F. Llewellyn - Draft
Bering Sea Case (June 22, 1955)

8

Bering Sea Case (June 22, 1955)
F-84 Case (Czechoslovakia 3/10/53)
    Applications to ICJ

9

    Correspondence, Memos, Affidavit, Note, &    
    Applications to ICJ Operational Phase I

10

    Radar Phase I, II, & III

11

    Eye Witness Phases II & III - Objects

12

    Technical Phase

13-18

    Eye Witness Phase I

19

    Damage Phase
    Miscellaneous I & II

20

El Al Case (7/27/55) (See Also TS File, Box 101)
    Correspondence with Israel Embassy
    Memoranda (July 1955-1958)

21

    Memoranda 1958

22

    Memoranda, Jan. 1959-March 1962
    Memoranda, Mr. Klaus' Trip - 1958

23

    Correspondence, Dec. 1955-Dec. 1961
    Notes, Press Releases, Photos, etc.

24

    El Al Case in the ICJ (Israel vs. Bulgaria)
    El Al Case in the ICJ (Israel vs. Bulgaria) -
         Correspondence

25

    El Al Case in the ICJ (Israel vs. Bulgaria) -
          Misc. Publication
    Annexes to El Al Case to ICJ

26

    Case of the El Al to ICJ and various subject
           folders

27

    Material Received from Legal Advisor's Office
    Captain Otto Jenista's File
    Jurisdiction
    Other subject files

28-30

    Affidavits

31-32

    Annexes 1-65

33

     ICJ - Case re the Aerial Incident of 7/27/55
     "Written Observations of the US on the
         Preliminary Objections of Bulgaria," 6 copies
     "Memorial Submitted by the Government of
          the US," Vols. I & II, December 1958

34

B-29 Case - Hokkaido, Japan, October 7, 1952
     (See Also TS File, Box 101)
     Index
     File - Presentation to ICJ - Legal Issues
     Memoranda 1952-54
     Correspondence 1953-54

35

     Diplomatic Notes Exchanged
     Press Releases
     Maps
     Facts

36

     Damages
     History of Kuriles, Hokkaido, etc.
     Legal Issues - see TS files

37

     Article by Ulanovski
     Article by Kutakov
     The Notsushafu Diary
     Opinions of Capt. D.H. Sherr
     Intervention in the ICJ
     JCS to SCAP
     AAF Aeronautical Approach Chart

38

     Affidavits and Charts

39

     HAN Statement (12 envelopes)
     Crew - Identifying data and photos

40

     Application to ICJ dated 5/26/55 (3 copies)
     O.P. Books
     T.R.A. Books

41-42

     T.R.A. Books

43

C-47 Case (American Fliers in Hungary),
   November 19, 1951
     The Case of the Four Fliers Held in Hungary -
          Report and Recommendations
    ICJ Stage - Communications from Court
    Draft Letter for Registrar ICJ
    Soviet Case Application
    Hungarian Case Application
    ICJ Application - "Responsive Reply"
    Aircraft Cases after the International Court
       of Justice Stage
    Definition - Forum Prorogatum
    ICJ Rules - Intervention by Japan
    Jurisdiction Allegation in ICJ Applications
       Documentary History of Art. 32(2) of
       the Rules of the ICJ
    ICJ Time Table and Preliminary Procedure -
        Fliers Case
    Diplomatic Notes Exchanged
    Correspondence
    Memoranda

44

    Damages
    Damages - Computation of Damages Memo
    Memorandum on Tribunal
    Position Papers
    Memorandum to Secretary (and drafts)
    Relevant Legal Precedents
    Surplus Property Credit Agreements with
        Hungary
    American Flier - Misc. Documents and
        Evidence
    Press Releases
    Caperton - Report - Analysis of Flight C-47
    French, George - Memo Report - Weather
    Serkin, Captain - Weather & Wind Conditions

45

    Doroghi, Ervin - Analysis under the Domestic
        Law & Judicial Practice of Hungary
    Winship Report - Reconstruction of Flight
        Plan of Aircraft 6026
    International Treatment of Unauthorized
        Overflights
    Report and Recommendations
    Maps
    Certificates with Respect to Events from
         Nov. 21, 1951, through Dec. 28, 1951
     Book with Background Papers
          

46

    American Fliers - Statements
    Lanterman, John V. - Statement
    Affidavit of Capt. John J. Swift

47

    Affidavits concerning visit US Airmen to
       Yugoslav Consulate, Frankfurt
    Affidavits of Sgt. James A. Elam, Radio
       Operator of Aircraft 6026
    Affidavit of Tech. Sgt. Jess A. Duff, Engineer
        of Aircraft 6026
    Affidavit of Sgt. Calvin E. Hamm, Air Traffic
        Controller, 1968th AACS
    Affidavit of Capt. Dave H. Henderson, Pilot
        of Aircraft 6026
    Requests for & crating of cargo for Aircraft
        6026
    Crew Briefing of Aircraft 6026
    Damages

48

    Ground to Air Radio Contact with Aircraft 6026
    Operations & Functions of Erding Air Depot
    Search A/C 6026
    Test Flight Made at 7500 feet
    Weather Encounters, radio facilities available
        and course of A/C 6026
    Navigation Kit, Exhibit 5 (Henderson)

49

    Maps
    Transcript of Press Conference Erding Air Depot
    Photostats of Houses Fliers Case
    Photographs
    Photographs - Crew Members - Capt. Smith's
        family
    Map - Col. Holmes' Course
    American Fliers - Transcript of Proceedings

50

    Recordings
    Analysis of Flight of C-47
    Memo from Capt. Serkin re: weather information
    Analysis under Domestic Law & Judicial
        Practice of Hungary

51

    C-47 Case - Applications (USSR)
    C-47 Case - Applications (Hungary)
    C-47 Case - Notes (USSR and Hungary)

52-54

    Packages of Recording Tapes with Affidavits
       and Debriefings

55

B-50 Case, Sea of Japan, July 29, 1953
    Diplomatic Notes
    Correspondence, Memoranda, Press Releases
    Damages, Search & Rescue Cost
    Facts and Laws
    Re WAC-291 - Boundary & Annotations Reports
    Various Folders

56

    Affidavits
    Opinion of capt. R.A. Lerch, USAF
    Maps

57

    Rescue from Seas by Navy's ships Maddox,
       Picking, Bremerton, & Princeton (4 folders):
            COMNAVFE reports various naval units
            Crew Identification and Photos
            Note presenting Diplomatic Claim against
               USSR
            Affidavits

58

Navy Neptune Case (Sept. 4, 1954)
    Background and Briefing Books
    Notes Exchanged
    Memoranda - Correspondence
    ICJ (Int'l Court of Justice)
    Air Intelligence Info Reports
    Press Releases
    Claim
    Damages Radio Log
    Affidavits

59

POWs In Communist China
    Military POWs in Communist China
    Civilian POWs in Communist China
    Press Releases
    Kent Case 1953-54

60

    Affidavits - Fathers Garvey, Gordon, Hyde,
       White, Joyce

61

    Affidavits - Fathers Gross, Pavel, Phelps,
        Rigney, Bishop O'Gara, Malcolm Bersohn,
        Robert T. Bryan, Jr., Dixon, Krasner, &
        Applegate

62

CATHWAY Pacific Case (British Airliner) Near
   Hainan, July 23, 1954
     Background Information Book
     Memoranda - Correspondence
     Press Releases & Various Other Folders
     Affidavits - Emma F. Parish; Peter S. Thacher;
          Members of Rescue Plane; Members of
          Stand by Plane

63

B-29-II Case 11/7/54 Near Hokkaido (See also TS
  File Box 101)
     Background & Briefing Papers - Black Books
     Notes Exchanged
     Application to ICJ against USSR 6/8/59

64

     Correspondence - Memoranda
     International Court of Justice
     Issues of Fact and Legal Issues
     Press Releases and Maps
     Opinion of Capt. Sherr
     Affidavits of Feith, Lentz, Oliver, Rollins,
           Sechler, Weimer, & Whalen

65

     Memoranda
     Statements of Japanese Witnesses

66

     Recovery Books

67

     Annex II-A "Statements of Crew"
     Annex II-B "AC&W Interrogation Organizational
         Listing
     Annex II-C "Eye-Witness Statements"

68

     Annex II-C "Tab 2 - Tab 42"

69

     Annex II-C "Tab 2 - Tab 42"

70

     Annex II-D "HQ Far East Air Forces Directives"
     Annex II-E "The Wreckage and Guns"
     Annex II-F "Photographic Data"
     Annex II-G "AC&W Logs & Records"
     Annex II-H "Weather & Tide Data"
     Annex II-I "Deceased Crew Member"
     Annex II-J "Damages"
     Annex III "Report of Investigation" - Narrative
        Analysis and Charts"
     Annex I, IV, V "Report of Investigation"

71

Vogeler Case (See Also TS File, Box 101)
     Analysis of Vogeler Record
     Transcript of Proceeding of Interviews
         (5/21-6/14/1951)
     IT & T File

72

     Correspondence 1950-52
     Comments on Vogeler Book
     US Army File
     Kellogs Switchboard & Supply Co. Files
     Material for Brief
     Statements

73

     Tapes or Recordings of Trial
Czechoslovakia - Balloon Case (1/18/1956)
     Black Book
     Notes and Memoranda

74

     Issue of Fact
     Pogue and Neal Correspondence

75

     Time Table
     Rude Pravo and Maps
     Photographs

76-78

     Affidavits

79

B-47 Case, July 1, 1960, Barents Sea
     Background Books, Photos of Crew
     Notes and Correspondence

80

     Memoranda, Press Releases (See Also TS
         File, Box 102)
     Soviet Newspapers
     Olmstead & McKone Press Conf., 3-3-61
     Search & Rescue Operations
     Material on Bail-out
     Autopsy of Capt. Palm

81

     Maps
     Soviet Claim to Sovereignty of White Sea

82

     Docs. received with affidavits from 57th Air
         Rescue Squadron, 3-29-61
     Affidavits (See also TS File)

83

U-2 Case (Francis Gary Powers - Pilot)
     Memoranda
     Press Releases, Congressional Records etc.
     Int'l Law dealing with Overflights & Espionage
     Congressional Hearings
     Summit Meeting
     Security Council Debate
C-118 Armenian Case 6/27/58 (See also TS File,
   Box 102)
     Notes Exchange
     Correspondence, Memoranda
     Press Releases, CIA Report
     Preliminary Analysis of Fact and Law
Navy Korea Case (attack on US Navy Patrol Plane
   over Sea of Japan), June 16, 1959
     Memoranda
     Press Releases
     Congressional Record
     Maps
Navy Mercator Case (Navy Patrol Plane),
  8-23-1956 (See Also TS File, Box 102)
     Memoranda, Telegrams, Intelligence Reports
     Press Releases
     Issues of Law
     Letters from Admiral Ward with/enclosures

84

     Maps

85

C-120 (USAF Transport Plane) Soviet Armenia,
  September 2, 1958 (See also TS File Box 100)
     Black Book
     Petition and Letters
     Notes Exchanged
     Draft Application & related papers
     Correspondence
     Memoranda, Sept. 1958- Feb. 1961

86

     Press Releases
     Information Report

87

     Publication - Flying Inst. for the Aviation of
        the Armed Forces USSR-Moscow 1948
     Maps
     Weather Report - Capt. Jenista
     Transcript of Rape-recorded Radio Conversation
        among Soviet Fighter Pilots

88

     USAF Medical Records on 17 Crewmen
     Col. Smith - Material Record from 6/18/59
        + pistol

89

     Affidavits - 7 Turkish Statements

90

     Affidavits

91

Kendall Case, 3/22/1960 (Forced Landing of his
  Plane and its Destruction by Saudi Gunfire)
     Memoranda, April 1960-February 1962
     Correspondence
     Kendall Statement
     Law - Maps

92

     Documents re: Purchase of PBY
     Summary by William G. Moore - CAB California
     File on letter to FAA re: regulations
     Documents concerning Life Magazine
     Memo on Background Info

92

     Despatches and Telegrams - Inc.
     Testimony
     Affidavits

94

     Kendall Case Log Books

95

Advisory Committee on Personnel Security (ACOPS)
  1946-47 (See also TS File, Box 103)
     Relations with CON
     Survey of Dept. Personnel
     H.C. Barton, Carl A. Marzani, Marshall Wolfe,
        (Frank T. Baker), Fred E. Busbey, Karl E.
        Mundt, Karl Stefan, Bartel J. Jonkman,
        Harding Bancroft, William O. Baxter, Robert
        L. Clifford, Joseph E. Johnson, Marie Klooz,
        Samuel K.C. Kopper, and Robert G. Miner

96

     Beatrice Paul and Miscellaneous
     FBI Reports 10/23/46 and 8/15/46
     Drew Reports
     McCarran Rider
     SPA Survey
     Pearson Article 1946
     Personnel 1949-50
Klaus' Personal Alphabetical Administrative Files,
  1949-57

97-99

Incidents
     Polish-Korea 1955-56
     B-29 Missing 6/13/52
     Sabrejet Incident 5/10/55 (See also TS File
         Box 103)
     Baltic Sea and Sea of Japan Incident,
         11/7-8/58
     Bering Seas Incident 9/30/58
     Czech. Balloons - Germany Dec. 1959
     West German-Formosa Incident
         S.S. Morrika), 9/22/56
     Israel, C-47, November 1955
     Yugoslavia - Gruman N748G overflight,
         Sept. 1961
     Lt. Col. Thomas Howard Glenn (Claim of
         Widow)
     Navy Baltic Case (Col. Glenn) April 1950
     Eastern Airlines Case (Cuban Hijacking)
         7/24/61
     Arctic Incident - Soviet Protest 5/17/46
     Chihli Case B-50 4/17/56 Memo
     Aircraft Incidents - Gen. Prin. of Int'l
         Law & Facts
     Aircraft Cases - Status of
     Algerian Rebel Leaders - Captured by French
          in Algeria
     Imbrie Case (Trenton Fund) 1948,
          Correspondence
     Khrushchev Puppies - 1959 Correspondence
     Porter Hardy Case (Allegations by Sam Coon
           re activities of U.S. Operations Mission to
          Peru), 1960-61
     United Fruit Co. Case - Memo, 11/7/57
     Misc. Incidents (See also TS File, Box 106)
     JIOA (Joint Intelligence Objectives Agency)
     C-803 Radio Free Europe Balloons 1956
     Albanian Balloons RFE
     Czech. Balloon II 10/23/56 RFE
     Hungarian Balloon Case 7/19/56 RFE
     Polish Balloons 9/3/56 RFE
     German - Berlin Problem Sept.-Oct. 1961
     Military Maneuvers 1961-1962
     Nuclear Testing 1961-62 (See also TS File,
         Box 103)
     Offshore Procurement of F-86K Aircraft 1960
     Soviet-Chinese Alliance - Memo of 7/6/62
     War Claims Soto, Behrman, and Imbrie - 1947
     SAAB Matter Klaus Memo of Oct. 1948
     Committee on Civil Liberties - 1947
     Anti-Trust - General
     MEEC - Middle East Emergency Committee,
        1957
     Declassification and Release of OSS Files - 1960
     Outer space and Reconnaissance Satellites,
         1948
     FEA Folder of Klaus Memos 1944-45
Country Files - Klaus' File on Collection of TREVI
  Information

100

Top Secret
     B-50 Case (Sea of Japan) 7/29/53
          Charts, Taps
          Affidavits, Statements, and Transcript
     C-130 Soviet Armenia 9/2/58
           Radio Reports
           Memoranda
           Affidavits

101

     IL-12 Case (Soviet Aircraft) 7/27/53
     Legal Questions and Affidavits
            HO - Research Project #351 Dec. 1953
            Claims and War Booty
El Al Case (7/27/55)
     Memoranda (April 8, 1958-April 1960)
B-29 Case - Hokkaido - Japan 10/7/52
     Correspondence
     Memoranda
     Legal Issues
     HO - Research Project #120 - July 1949
B-29 II Case - Near Hokkaido, Japan - 11/7/54
     Correspondence
     Memoranda
Vogeler Case
     Memoranda

102

B-47 Case - Barents Sea - 7/1/60
     Memoranda
     Facts Elicited from Survivors 6/14/61
     Debriefing and Interrogations by USAF
     Affidavits and Statements
C-118 Armenian Case - 6/27/58
     Memoranda
Navy Mercator Case 8/23/46
     Letter from Chief Naval Operations, 8/24/1956

103-105

Israel, Survey of Legal and Economic Reporting
  Problems
ACOPS - Advisory Committee on Personnel Security
     Memoranda
     USAF Project RAND Research Memorandum
         #1346, 10/15/54
Sabrejet Incident 5/10/1955
     Letter, Memoranda and Telegrams
Caspian Seas Incident
     Memorandum
JIOA - Joint Intelligence Objectives Agency
     Memoranda
     German Scientists
     General File
     Reports by Klaus
     Withdrawal from JOIA
Korean Incident 1/22/1954
     Memo by Klaus to FE: McClurkin 1/25/1954
Nuclear Testing
     Memoranda, February 1962
Proof of Satellites Violations of Peace Treaty
     Human Rights Provisions Operations Plan
         3/16/1954
Divisional Operations - Progress Reports; Working
  Arrangements
JDC - Joint Distribution Committee in Hungary
  (AFA Israel G. Jacobson Case)
     Affidavit by Israel G. Jacobson 1/26/1950;
        Joseph J. Schwartz 6/22/1953; Moses W.
        Beckelman 6/11/1953; Moses A. Leavitt
        6/23/1953; Aaron Berkowitz 6/19/1953
     Transcript of Proceedings to discuss Mr. I.G.
        Jacobson's Recent Experiences in Hungary,
        1/12-13/1950
     Memo by Samuel Klaus re: Jacobson 4/31/1951
Alger Hiss (TS Memos 1945-46)
Gregory Case (TS Memos, FBI's name for current
  investigation of pro-Soviet espionage by
  Government personnel, and code name for the
  informant)
Cooper, Dennis
China Lobby, Memorandum on, 4/25/1950

106

F-84 Case (Czechoslovakia 3/10/1953)
     Miscellaneous III (Notebooks, Photographs,
        Microfilm)


APPENDIX D

BOX AND FILE LIST FOR
BUREAU OF FAR EASTERN AFFAIRS, OFFICE OF EAST ASIAN AFFAIRS

CENTRAL FILES 1958-63
(BOXES 157-161)
(LOT FILES 63D168, 65D93, 65D235, 66D224, 66D245

 

BOX

CONTENTS

157

List of U.S. Armed Forces Personnel Believed Held
   by the Communists

158

Documentary Material for UN Military Armistice
   Commission Negotiations, 10 March 1956 - Data
   re Missing and Unaccounted for US Servicemen,
   Korea
Missing US Military Personnel
Korean War POWs

159

Missing Military Personnel Cases
Information on Missing US Military Personnel
   (Korean War)
Missing Military Personnel

160

Dossiers - US Army Personnel Unaccounted for by
   the CCF-NKA

161

Missing US Service Personnel
US Service Personnel Dossiers (39 - Name)

APPENDIX E

LIST OF CODE TERMS UTILIZED DURING THE EARLY COLD WAR YEARS
BY U.S. MILITARY FORCES IN REPORTING CASUALTIES

 

1.    Killed in action ETHER
2.    Died as a result of wounds received in action HINGE
3.    Died as a result of injuries received in action SORRY
4.    Missing in Action GRAVY
5.    Captured by opposing forces URBAN
6.    Interned by neutral power BLAND
7.    Seriously wounded in action INGOT
8.    Seriously injured in action LEAST
9.    Slightly wounded in action (hospitalized) FRIAR
10.  Slightly wounded in action (not hospitalized) HUSKY
11.  Slightly injured in action (hospitalized) HEAVY
12.  Slightly injured in action (not hospitalized) CATCH
13.  Seriously ill, gas casualty POKEY
14.  Seriously ill, radioactivity BLAST

SOURCE: Paul M. Cole, POW/MIA Issues: Volume 1: The Korean War (Santa Monica, CA: Rand, 1994), p.16.


APPENDIX F

DECEASED MILITARY PERSONNEL CASE FILES
MAINTAINED BY THE U.S. ARMY

The most comprehensive series of records that pertain to the identification, location, and disposition of American military remains is the individual deceased personnel files, 1939-54 (WNRC accession 092-70A-0001) (ca. 10,490 ft.), which is maintained by the U.S. Army.  The series consists of two parts.  Part one refers to deceased military service personnel, whether or not their remains were recovered.  Part two covers unidentified remains.  Files in part one are grouped alphabetically according to the first letter of the surname of deceased individual.  Within each alphabetical category, files are grouped into six alpha-numeric segments, each roughly coinciding with the general era in which the deceased served.  Files for World War II-era fatalities generally can be found in alpha-numeric segments "A-1" through "Z-1" or "A-2" through "Z-2."  Korean War fatality files can be found in alpha-numeric segments ending in "4," "5," and sometimes "6."  Alpha-numeric segments ending in "3" consist of headstone application files for all eras.  Thus, within part one of the series, segment "A-1" would contain files for individuals whose surnames begin with "Aa" through "Az" who died during the World War II era.  Segment "R-4" would contain files for personnel surnamed "Ra" through "Rz" who died within the years spanning the Korean War.  Again, this part of the series pertains to servicemen classified as fatalities, whether or not their remains were recovered.

The second part of this series, incorporating case files ("X" files) for recovered but unidentified remains, is arranged by location of cemetery or mausoleum and thereunder by remains ("X") file number.  Each cemetery or mausoleum maintained its own "X" numbers, which usually (but not always) begin with the number 1.

The main focus of the series is American servicemen who died during World War II and the Korean War.  A typical file includes various forms, field reports, and correspondence that document the temporary interment, disinterment, and permanent remains disposition of a specific individual, including name, rank, serial number, next of kin, place of death, and cause of death.  A few files pertaining to individuals whose remains were recovered also include identification processing documents (dental charts, skeletal charts, lists of recovered personal effects), and correspondence with next of kin pertaining to disposition of remains and personal effects.

Requests for access to information in the individual deceased personnel files, 1939-54 (WNRC Accession 092-70A-0001), should be addressed to the U.S. Total Army Personnel Command at:

CDR, PERSCOM
ATTN: TAPC-ALP-A
Alexandria, VA 22332-0405


APPENDIX G

MICROFILMED RECORDS CITED

CONTRACT MICROFILM PUBLICATIONS

This section lists NARA holdings of contractor-produced microfilm publications cited in the reference information paper for NARA-assigned contractor microfilm publication number; NARA records series title, file number, and file title (if applicable); roll numbers; and name of contractor/publisher.  Specific roll numbers pertaining to particular records or files are cited in the narrative description of this paper.  Researchers can purchase individual rolls of contract microfilm from the contractor/publishers whose addresses are listed below.  Roll lists can be obtained from the contractors or from the Textual Reference Branch of the National Archives at College Park.

C-0015(UPA)
Department of State decimal file, 1945-63, File 611.61 (1955-59): SOVIET UNION-U.S. Relations with.  Rolls 11-15.  University Publications of America [II.16]

C-0018 (SR)
Department of State decimal file, 1945-63, File 611.95 (1955-59): KOREA-U.S. Relations with.  Rolls 1-3.  Scholarly Resources [II.16]

C-0042(UPA)
"Black Book on cease-fire, December 12, 1950-December 25, 1952 (Lot File 55D128) [Contractor Title: Japan Lot Files].  Rolls 1-7.  University Publications of America [II.24]

C-0042(UPA)
Alpha-numeric file on Korea, 1952-57 (Lot Files 58D643 and 59D407).  Rolls 7-11.  University Publications of America [II.27]

UNIVERSITY PUBLICATIONS OF AMERICA
4520 EAST-WEST HIGHWAY
BETHESDA, MD 20814-3389
1-800-692-6300

SCHOLARLY RESOURCES
104 GREENHILL AVENUE
WILMINGTON, DE 19805-1897
1-800-772-8937

NARA MICROFILM PUBLICATIONS

M1191
Cross-Reference Sheets to the Correspondence of the Office of the Secretary of the Army, 1947-64.  485 rolls (35mm.) [II.97]

P2264
Microfilm Copies of Press Releases and Other Records Relating to Korean War Casualties, [August 28,] 1950-[September 13,] 1953.  21 rolls (35 mm) [II.83]

T1010
Cross-Reference Sheets to Army Intelligence Project Decimal File, 1941-45.  179 rolls, numbered 213-391 (16 mm) [II.61]

T1152
United Nations Command Korean Armistice Negotiations, 1951-53.  11 rolls (35 mm) [II.86]

Most NARA microfilm publications are listed in National Archives Microfilm Resources for Research: A Comprehensive Catalog (Washington, DC, 1996).  Copies of numbered National Archives microfilm publications are available for sale from the Publication Sales Section (NWPS), National Archives and Records Administration, Room G-7, 700 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20408-0001, 1-800-234-8861.

Other microfilmed records are cited at paragraphs II.61, II.86, and II.137.


INDEX

This index covers parts I-V (but not the appendixes) of the reference information paper.  Numbers following an index entry, e.g., "Army Attaches," refer to part and paragraph number(s), e.g., V.18 or IV.13-IV.15, in the body of the text.  Record group title entries are in boldface type.

1st Cavalry Division IV.6
3d Bomb Group II.139
5th Air Force II.137, II.38, II.39
8th Army II.86, II.114, II.116, II.118, II.144, II.157
8th Fighter-Bomber Squadron II.139
9th Fighter-Bomber Squadron II.139
17th Bomb Group II.139
18th Fighter Bomber Wing II.139
22d U.S. Army Prisoner of War/Civilian Internee Information Center II.125-II.126
24th Infantry Division IV.6
38th parallel map II.85
121st Army Evacuation Hospital IV.8
509th Replacement Center IV.8
6147th Tactical Air Control Group II.139
8059th Army Unit II.113
8167th Army Unit II.113
8167th Army Unit Hospital II.110, IV.8
8204th Army Unit II.31a, II.115
8238th Army Unit II.118
ABC Radio collection IV.29
access restrictions I.25-I.27
Ad Hoc Board for Review of Sentences in RECAP-K Cases II.41
Ad Hoc Committee on Prisoners of War (Defense Department) II.59
Adjutant General (Army) II.146-II.157, III.19-III.25
     recordkeeping practices I.17
     repatriate lists II.115
     repatriation procedures II.144
Adjutant General Section (Army Forces, Far East) II.103-II.118
Adjutant General Section (Far East Command) II.99-II.102
Adjutant General Section (U.N. Command) II.90-II.91
Adjutant General's Office, 1917- , Records of the (RG 407) II.146-II.157, III.19-III.25
Administrative and Management Division (Naval Personnel Bureau) II.1
Advisory Committee on Prisoners of War (Defense Department) II.94, II.127
aerial photographs
     Korean War casualties V.13
     North Korean POW camps II.27, II.39
aerial photography
     surveillance flights II.45-II.47
African American POWs II.27
agenda item 4 (Military Armistice Conference) I.10, II.71, II.72, II.86
Air Force (Air Staff), Records of Headquarters of U.S. (RG 341) II.130-II.137
Air Force Commands, Activities, and Organizations, Records of U.S. (RG 342)
  II.138-II.140, IV.23, V.14-V.15
Air Force Europe, U.S. II.137
Air Force personnel
     aircraft "shoot downs" II.20,II.94, II.127-II.128, II.131, II.135, II.136, II.158
          photographs V.7, V.16, V.17
     Korean War casualties II.82, III.14-III.17
     Korean War MIAs II.26, II.32, II.127
          declarations of death II.128, II.136
     Korean War mission reports II.139-II.140
     Korean War POWs I.7, II.32, II.127
          compensation II.135
          deaths in captivity II.109, II.136
          film footage IV.18, IV.27a
          misconduct inquiries, prosecutions II.127, II.128, II.132, II.135
          repatriates II.128
               interrogations I.13, II.134
               statistical lists II.123
Air Force, Records of the Office of the Secretary of the (RG 340) II.127-II.129
Air Force Still Picture Collection, U.S. V.14-V.15
aircraft (photographs) V.2, V.3, V.14
aircraft "shoot downs"
     Air Force records II.127-II.128, II.131, II.135
     congressional inquiries II.77a
     crew fate I.2, I.7, I.9
          Army role in repatriation II.94
          compensation II.135
          declarations of death II.128
          Defense Secretary's correspondence II.77a
          "noncombat" deaths II.136
          photographs V.1, V.16, V.17
          Red Cross aid II.158
     JCS records II.46
     list II.20
     Navy records II.2, II.3
     photographs V.16
     State Department records II.16, II.19-II.20
American Red Cross II.158-II.160, IV.30
Armed Forces Radio and Television Service IV.21
Armenia II.20
Army attaches II.56, II.57, II.65
Army Board on Prisoner of War Collaboration II.44
Army Center for Military History, U.S. II.80
Army Chief of Staff, II.49-II.52
Army Command Information Unit IV.21
Army Commands, 1942- , Records of U.S. (RG 338) II.99-II.126
Army, Department of the
     air crew repatriation II.94
     casualty data file III.19
     Casualty Division radio messages II.116
     declarations of death II.114
     interrogation instructions II.100
     Korean War armistice talks II.24, II.25
          agreement documents II.85
          post-armistice POWs II.90, II.91
          POW/MIA issues II.46
     misconduct prosecutions II.43, II.44, II.103
     POW conduct training II.149d
     POW status reporting instructions II.117
     Secretary's correspondence II.77a, II.92-II.98
     Senate POW/MIA investigations II.II
     voluntary nonrepatriates II.94, II.149d
Army Forces, Far East, U.S. II.86, II.103-II.122, II.149d, II.157
Army Forces Strike Command, U.S. II.125-II.126
Army hospitals II.110, II.157, IV.8
Army Hours IV.21-IV.22
Army intelligence staff II.54, II.63, II.65, II.118, II.122
Army, Pacific, U.S. II.123-II.124
Army personnel.  See Also United Nations
     Command personnel
          Cold War detainees II.54, II.59, II.63, II.65, II.118, II.122
          Korean War casualties
               casualty reports II.59, II.68, II.149d
               data files III.14-III.17, III.19-III.25
               investigation reports II.149a, II.149d
               photographs V.13
               press releases II.82
               remaining recovery II.29-II.32
               reporting policies II.93, II.149a, II.154, II.155
          Korean War MIAs
               Adjutant General's correspondence II.146
               Army Secretary's correspondence II.93
               casualty investigation reports II.149a, II.149d
               casualty reports II.59, II.68, II.154
               declaration of death II.114, II.155
               intelligence staff documentation II.54
               lists and rosters II.51, II.59
               pay, benefits II.155
               remains recovery II.29-II.32, II.149d
               State Department case files II.26
          Korean War POWs I.7
               case files II.6
               casualty reports II.59, II.68
                    data file III.19-III.25
                deaths in captivity II.149d
                     executions (film) IV.6
                intelligence staff documentation II.54, II.59, II.118
                lists and rosters
                      Chief of Staff II.49, II.51
                      G-2 II.59, II.65
                pay, promotion II.53
                post-armistice POWs II.96, II.149b
                Quartermaster General's records II.29, II.32
                repatriates
                       espionage fears II.149c, II.149e
                       interrogation I.11, II.6, II.39, II.40, II.59
                       interviews (film, recordings) IV.6, IV.21
                       misconduct prosecutions II.34-II.44, II.67
                       photographs V.4, V.5, V.6, V.7
                       statistical totals II.123
                       VA study III.1-III.11

                status reporting instructions II.117
                voluntary non-repatriates II.42, II.59, II.90, II.94, II.149b
                        sound recording IV.20
     POW conduct training II.59
Army, Records of the Office of the Secretary of the (RG 335) II.92-II.98, IV.21-IV.22
Army Security Center II.27
Army Signal Corps V.3-V.7
Army Staff, Records of the (RG 319) II.49-II.73, III.12-III.13, V.12-V.13
Army studies of POWs II.27, II.33, II.66, II.68, II.86, II.123, II.125, II.142, II.149b
     repatriation operations II.124, II.125
Army, U.S.
     Cold War detainees
          definitions II.65
          public relations II.146, II.149a
          repatriation instructions II.149e
     congressional correspondence II.59, II.149a
     Geneva Convention revision II.155
     Korean War casualty statistics
          data files III.20, III.22
          reporting policies II.92, II.117, II.149a, II.154, II.155
     Korean War POWs
          deindoctrination II.149c, II.149e
          misconduct prosecutions II.34-II.44, II.66, II.67, II.96, II.103, II.149a, II.149b, II.149d, II.155
          negotiations II.59, II.65, II.94, II.96, II.149a
          pay, promotion policy II.53
          repatriation instructions II.96, II.144
          repatriation operations II.125
          voluntary nonrepatriates II.59, II.90, II.149a, II.149b, II.149e, II.155
     photographs V.5, V.12
     policy precedent files II.155
     POW conduct training II.59, II.63, II.95, II.103, II.123
     war crimes investigations II.122
Arnold, John K., Jr.  II.20, II.77a, II.94, II.128, II.131, II.134a, II.135, II.158, V.7
atrocities.  See war crimes
audio recordings
     "brainwashing" IV.19
     radio broadcasts IV.17, IV.21-IIV.22, IV.29, IV.30
     Senate POW/MIA investigations IV.3
     voluntary nonrepatriates IV.20
autopsy findings II.19, II.136

B-29 aircraft "shoot down," 1953  II.20, II.77a, II.94, II.128, II.131, II.134a, II.135, II.158, V.7
bacteriological warfare.  See biological warfare
Baltic Sea II.3
Barents Sea aircraft "shoot down," 1960 II.20, II.46
"Battle Casualties of the Army" II.68
Bay of Pigs-invasion POWs
     Red Cross aid II.158
     release to U.S. II.17
          film footage IV.23
          photographs V.1, V.10
behavior.  See conduct of POWs
Bering Sea II.20
Bern, Switzerland II.28
Big Switch.  See Operation Big Switch
biological warfare I.9, II.27, II.132, IV.27a
"Black Book" II.23-II.25
Bonn, Germany II.28
"brainwashing."  See indoctrination
British POWs II.144
broadcast messages.  See radio broadcasts
Brubeck, William II.17
Bucher, Lloyd M. IV.5, IV.8, IV.24, IV.25
burials
     Air Force reports II.136
     Army Adjutant General's records II.149a
     Army quartermaster records II.30, II.31a, II.31b
     cemeteries (photographs) V.19

C-47 aircraft "shoot down," 1951 II.131
C-118 aircraft "shoot down," 1958 II.20
C-130 aircraft "shoot down," 1958 II.20
"captive status" training.  See conduct of POWs
case files I.15
Castro, Fidel V.18
casualties.  See Korean War casualties
Casualty Assistance Branch (Naval Personnel Bureau) II.2-II.3
Casualty Division (Army Forces, Far East) II.106-II.118
CBS IV.29, IV.30
Center for Prisoner of War Studies II.33
Central Intelligence Agency
     FBIS transcripts II.108, IV.17
     indoctrination studies II.77a
     Senate POW/MIA investigations II.11
Central Intelligence Agency, Records of the (RG 263) IV.17
Central Interrogation Center II.118
China, People's Republic of
     aircraft incidents II.2, II.3, II.16, II.19-II.20, II.77a, II.94, II.158
     Cold War detainees
          Air Force records II.131
          Army records II.59, II.149b
          diplomatic records II.16, II.18, II.28
          intelligence reports II.1
          Red Cross aid II.158, II.159
     Korean War
          armistice talks II.71
          military personnel II.6
     Korean War U.S. MIAs II.77a, II.77b
     Korean War U.S. POWs
           armistice talks issue II.46
           Army hour recording IV.21
           Army psychological followup II.142
           diplomatic records II.3, II.16, II.26, II.27, II.28, II.144
           film footage IV.6, IV.27a
           indoctrination II.65, II.77b
           post-armistice accounting II.26, II.27, II.51, II.77a, II.94, II.110, II.127, II.128, II.141
           POW camps II.4
           propaganda use II.77a
           radio broadcasts II.107
           repatriation process II.3, II.112
           treatment II.39
           voluntary nonrepatriates I.8, II.149d, II.149e, II.159
     U.S. intelligence
            photo reconnaissance II.45, II.47
            strategic targets II.138
     World War II Japanese POWs II.77a
Chinese Peace Committee II.108
Chinese People's Volunteers II.71, II.85
Chinese POWs II.4
civilian captives and detainees
     Cold War II.1, II.149b, II.159
          photographs V.18
      Korean War
          diplomatic records II.16, II.27
          lists II.123
          Military Armistice Commission efforts II.72, II.141
       Red Cross aid II.158, II.159
Clark collection II.140
Clark, Mark IV.27a
clothing II.27
Code of Conduct for Members of the Armed Forces of the United States II.27, II.51, II.59, II.67, II.94,
  II.123, II.149c
Cold War detainees.  See also Bay of Pigs-invasion
     POWs; Pueblo incident
             Air Force personnel II.127
                  Arnold crew II.77a, 11.94, II.128, II.131, II.35, II.158
                  photographs V.7, V.15, V.17
                  Powers case II.16, II.20, IV.29
              Army records II.92, II.149, II.149b
                  intelligence I.12, II.54, II.59, II.65
                  policy II.149a
               case files I.15
               congressional inquiries II.12, II.65, II.77a
               Cuban releases (photographs) V.17, V.18
               document index II.80
               Navy personnel II.1, II.4, II.127
               radio broadcasts IV.17
               Red Cross aid II.158, II.159
               Senate investigation II.12
               summary I.2, I.7, I.19
Cold War MIAs I.2, I.7
     Air Force records II.127
     Army records II.92, II.149
          policy II.149a
      declaration of death II.128
      document index II.80
      inquiries in aircraft incidents II.131
      photographs V.15
collaboration charges
     Air Force investigation II.127, II.128
     Army policies II.149d, II.155"
     Army studies II.123
     Far East Command lists II.141
     prosecutions I.8
          Army II.35, II.44, II.96, II.149a, II.149b
          Defense Department policy statements II.77b
          radio program IV.30
          repatriate interrogations I.11
               Army II.11, II.35, II.66, II.68
               naval intelligence case files II.6
Commander in Chief, Far East II.48, II.114
Commander, Naval Forces Far East II.86
Communist China.  See China, People's Republic of
Communist prisoners of war I.3
     interrogations II.51, II.138
     photographs V.10
     UN Command camps II.125, II.158
     war crimes suspects, witnesses II.38
conduct of POWs.  See Also collaboration charges
     Army studies II.66, II.123, II.125
     Code of Conduct development II.27, II.51, II.59, II.67, II.94, II.123, II.125, II.149c
     misconduct prosecutions
          Air Force policy II.127, II.128, II.132, II.135
          Army II.40-II.44, II.51, II.96, II.103, II.149a, II.149b, II.149d, II.155
          Defense Department policy II.46, II.77b
          Marine Corps inquiry II.77a
          sentence review II.41, II.123
          repatriate interrogations
          Army II.40, II.144
          naval intelligence II.5
          training II.46, II.51, II.59, II.67, II.94, II.95, II.123, II.125
               Air Force II.127, II.128
               attitudes survey II.103
"confessions" I.8, II.5, II.27, II.132, IV.5, IV.27a
Congress, U.S.
     Air Force records II.127
     Army correspondence II.146, II.149a, II.149b
          Cold War detainees II.65, II.149b
          Defense Department correspondence II.77a, II.77b
          espionage investigations II.59
          POW misconduct inquiries II.128
          Senate POW/MIA investigations II.8-II.13, IV.2-IV.3
consular records II.28, II.144
Cooley, W.H. II.142
correspondence of POWs
     Army study II.27
     confirmation of POW status II.51, II.118
     Navy case files II.2, II.5
     voluntary nonrepatriates II.90
counterintelligence II.66, II.68
court-martial trials
     Army prosecutions II.40-II.41, II.149a
     review II.123
crimes by POWs.  See also collaboration charges
     Army interrogations II.43, II.144, II.149d
     voluntary nonrepatriates II.42
Cuba.  See also Bay of Pigs-invasion POWs
     American prisoners, 1958 (photographs) V.18
     released "political prisoners" (photographs) V.17
Czechoslovakia
     POW repatriation supervision II.68, II.71

Dean, William Frisbee IV.21
death declaration II.77a, II.114, II.128, II.136, II.149a, II.155, III.14
deaths of POWs in captivity
     Air Force personnel II.136
     Army personnel II.149d, III.14
          intelligence interrogations II.63, II.109, II.110, II.118
     Defense Department list II.83
     Navy casualty case files II.3
     State Department reports II.144
     war crimes investigations II.122
debriefings.  See interrogations of repatriated POWs
decimal files I.19-I.22
defectors II.65, II.138, IV.17
Defense Advisory Committee on Prisoners of War II.94
Defense Department
     casualty press releases II.82-II.83
     JCS dispatches II.48
     Korean War cease-fire negotiations II.23
     MIA statements II.26
     POW/MIA issues II.74-II.80, II.127
          conduct II.27, II.59, II.123, II.128
          deindoctrination II.149c
          discipline for collaboration II.44
          voluntary nonrepatriates II.149e
Defense Department Joint Casualty Resolution Center II.11
Defense Intelligence Agency II.11
Defense Prisoner of War/Missing in Action Office II.79-II.81
Defense, Records of the Office of the Secretary of (RG 330) II.74-II.83, III.15-III.18, IV.19
deindoctrination II.77a, II.149c
Dickenson, Edward V.7
diet of POWs
     Army studies II.27
     malnourished POWs (photographs) V.12
     repatriate interrogations II.4, II.63
diplomatic correspondence 1.15
     foreign posts II.28, II.144
     JCS correspondence II.46, II.48
     State Department central files II.16
dishonorable discharges II.77a
Dowe, Michael IV.21

East Asian Affairs, Office of (State Department) II.26
East Germany
     Cold War detainees II.65, II.158
Eastern Europe
     U.S. intelligence II.137
electronic records III.1-III.25
embassy records II.28, II.144
Engineering Division (Air Force Materiel Command) II.138, II.140
Ervin, Sam II.17
"escape and evasion" tactics
     Army study II.27
     repatriate interrogations I.11, II.63
     training II.59, II.95, II.131
escapes and attempted escapes II.1, II.6, II.118, II.138
espionage
     "brainwashing" fears II.59, II.65, II.149c, II.149e
     captured Americans (radio broadcasts) IV.17
     charges against Americans I.9
          Arnold trial II.77a
exchange of prisoners.  See repatriation of POWs
"exchange processing orders" II.110
executions of POWs II.122, IV.6, V.6
eyewitness reports.  See live-sighting reports

families of POWs/MIAs
     Air Force remains recovery II.136
     information requests II.119
     motion pictures IV.27a, IV.30
     Navy casualty files II.2
     POW correspondence II.5, II.118
     propaganda use II.77a
     Red Cross aid II.158, IV.30
     Senate investigations II.8-II.9
     visits to voluntary nonrepatriates II.90, II.149d
Far East Air Force, U.S. II.137, II.138
Far East Command
     armistice POW issues II.123, II.144
     Army Forces, Far East II.114, II.116, II.119
          POW rosters II.121
     command reports II.157
     HQ/AG Section records II.99-II.102
     Intelligence Division records II.141
     J-2 interrogations II.5, II.91
     JCS messages II.48
     Operation Little Switch report II.68
     radio broadcast transcriptions II.108
     repatriation study II.124
Far Eastern Affairs Bureau (State Department) II.22-II.27
Fey, Hewett H.  II.149b
fingerprint analysis II.149a, II.149d
firsthand accounts of POWs I.15
fliers.  See Air Force personnel; Navy aviators
Florida
     Bay of Pigs POW release IV.23, V.10, V.17
food.  See diet of POWs
"forced repatriation" II.77a, II.77b
Foreign Broadcast Information Service [Bureau] II.11, II.108, IV.17
Foreign Claims Settlement Commission II.127, II.135
Foreign Relations Committee, Senate II.11
Foreign Service Posts of the Department of State, Records of the (RG 84) II.28
Fort DeRussy, HI IV.8
Fort Mason, CA IV.8
"Freedom Village" II.157, IV.8, IV.11

G-1 (Personnel), Assistant Chief of Staff for (Army) II.53
G-2 (Intelligence), Assistant Chief of Staff for (Army) II.44, II.54-II.66
G-2 interrogations (8th Army) II.118
G-2 staff (Army Forces, Far East) II.86
G-3 (Operations), Assistant Chief of Staff for (Army) II.67-II.73
Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War II.6, II.59, II.125, II.155
George Washington University II.68, II.123
germ warfare.  See biological warfare
Germany.  See also East Germany
     U.S. Embassy records II.28
Goldin collection IV.30
Graves Registration Service II.31b, II.115
Great Britain
     Korean War POWs II.144
group burials II.136

Haneda Airport IV.27a
USHS Haven IV.8
Hawaii
     repatriation facilities IV.8
Headquarters, Far East Command II.99-II.102, II.157
Headquarters, United Nations Command (Advance) II.86
Headquarters U.S. Air Force (Air Staff), Records of (RG 341) II.130.II.137
Headquarters, U.S. Army Forces, Far East II.103-II.122
health of POWs.  See also diet of POWs
     captivity conditions II.77b
        Army studies II.27, II.33
        camp sanitation II.4, II.63, II.122
        involuntary medical experiments II.122
        Red Cross reports II.158
        repatriate interrogations II.39, II.66, II.107
     evaluation for court-martial appeals II.41
     medical care during repatriation II.113, II.157
        film footage IV.6, IV.27a
        See also Operation Little Switch
Hickam Air Force Base [Field], HI IV.8, IV.27a
Hokkaido, Japan II.20
Homestead Air Force Base, FL V.10, V.17
Hong Kong IV.27a
Honolulu, HI IV.27a
hospital corpsmen II.2
hospitals.  See Army hospitals
Human Resources Research Office (George Washington University( II.68, II.123
Hungary
     Cold War detentions II.131

Inchon, Korea IV.8
India II.68
indoctrination practices
     Defense Department records II.77a, II.149c, II.149e
     deindoctrination II.77a, II.149c
     espionage fears II.6, II.59, II.65, II.149c, II.149e
     repatriate interrogations I.8, I.11
        Air Force personnel II.138
        Army personnel II.59, II.63
        naval intelligence II.4, II.5
        war crimes investigations II.122
      resistance training
         Air Force II.127, II.28
         Army II.95, II.123, II.125, II.155
      sound recordings IV.19, IV.30
      studies and reports
          Air Force II.135
          Army II.27, II.66, II.67, II.68, II.125, II.149b
          CIA II.77a
Information Agency, Records of the U.S. (RG 306) IV.18, V.19-V.11
Information, Operations, and Reports Directorate (Defense Department) III.15
Intelligence (G-2), Assistant Chief of Staff for (Army) II.44, II.54-II.66
Intelligence (G-2) interviewers (8th Army) II.118
intelligence-gathering activities.  See also interrogations of repatriated POWs by U.S.
     counterintelligence II.66, II.68
     diplomatic records II.16, II.24, II.28
     naval intelligence II.4-II.6
     POW movements II.144
     repatriate interrogations I.11
          Air Force Project Winger II.137
          Cold War detainees II.1
          World War II POWs II.138
     surveillance flights I.7, II.19-II.20, II.45-II.47
Intelligence (J-2), Assistant Chief of Staff for (FAR East Command) II.5, II.68, II.91, II.108, II.121,
  II.124
Intelligence (J-2) Division (Far East Command) II.140
Intelligence Section (Naval Forces Far East) II.86
International Affairs Division (Army Judge Advocate General) II.35-II.39
International Committee of the Red Cross II.90, II.121, II.144
International Court of Justice II.19
International Military Agencies, Records of the (RG 333) II.84-II.91
interrogation of Communist POWs II.51, II.138
interrogation of POWs by Communists
     Air Force studies II.135
     Army intelligence records II.50, II.63, II.66
     Army studies II.27, II.125, II.149b
     Army training II.95
     film footage IV.27a
     naval intelligence II.4, II.5, II.6
     radio program IV.30
     war crimes investigations II.122
interrogation of repatriated POWs by U.S.
     Air Force personnel I.13, II.134, II.134a, II.137
     Army programs
          AFFE summaries II.118, II.120
          Far East Command analysis II.91, II.141
          instructions II.100
          intelligence records II.59
          procedures II.149c, II.149d
          RECAP-K II.40-II.44, II.63-II.64, III.12-III.13
     casualty status investigations II.51, II.109, II.118, II.120
     Cold War detainees II.54
          RECAP-WW I.12, II.59, II.62, II.149e
          Wringer I.13, II.137
     diplomatic records II.28
     film footage IV.8, IV.11, IV.27a
     foreign nationals II.4
           World War II Japanese II.28, II.77a, II.138
     misconduct allegations II.4, II.5, II.6, II.86
     Operation Big Switch reports II.39
     Operation Little Switch reports II.110
     sound recordings IV.6
     summary I.11, I.18
     war crimes investigations II.34, II.39, II.103, II.122
Investigations, Senate Permanent Committee on II.65
Iran hostage crisis III.2

J-2 (Intelligence), Assistant Chief of Staff for (Far East command) II.5, II.91, II.108, II.121, II.124
J-2 (Intelligence) Division (Far East Command) II.141
Japan
     aircraft incidents II.20
        photographs V.16
     U.S. Embassy records II.28
     U.S. POW repatriation process II.113
        film footage IV.6, IV.8
Japan, Office of the U.S. Political Advisor for II.28
Japanese Liaison Section (Far East Command) II.108
Japanese POWs (World War II) II.28, II.77a, II.138
Joint Casualty Resolution Center II.11
Joint Chiefs of Staff
     captivity training II.149d
     Defense Secretary's correspondence II.77a
     Senate POW/MIA investigations II.11
Joint Chiefs of Staff, Records of the U.S. (RG 218) II.45-II.48
Joint Classification Board II.68, II.91
Joint Commands, Records of (RG 349) II.141
Joint Commission Support Directorate II.81
Joint Service SERE Agency II.11
Judge Advocate General (Army), Records of the Office of the (RG 153) II.34-II.44
Judge Advocate Section (Army Forces, Far East) II.122
Judge Advocate Section (Korean Communications Zone) II.36
Justice Department, U.S. II.149e

K-16 Air Base, Korea IV.23
Kaesong, Korea I.8
Klaus, Sam II.19-II.20
Korea.  See also North Korea; South Korea
     American POWs II.144
     U.S. photo reconnaissance II.45, II.47
Korean Communications Zone II.36, II.157
Korean People's Army II.71, II.85
Korean POWs II.4
Korean War armistice talks
     agreement documents II.85, II.125, II.144
     Army proposals II.65, II.123
     diplomatic records I.15, II.23-II.26, II.28
     film footage IV.27a
     implementation II.84, II.89
     Military Armistice Conference records II.71-II.72, II.86-II.87, II.90
     photographs V.19
     provisions II.141
Korean War casualties
     Air Force personnel II.136
     Army personnel II.29-II.32, II.59, II.68
        data files III.19-III.25
        investigation reports II.149a, II.149d
        reporting policies II.92, II.149a, II.154, II.155
     case files I.15
     Defense Department press releases II.82-II.83
     interservice data file III.14-III.17
     Navy personnel II.2-II.3
     repatriate survey II.115
     U.N. Command personnel II.111, II.119
Korean War combat descriptions
     Air Force mission reports II.139-II.140
     Army command reports II.101, II.157
     circumstances of capture II.101, II.104
     film footage IV.23
     photographs V.2, V.3, V.8, V.9, V.19
Korean War Joint Red Cross Team Operation II.158
Korean War MIAs
     Air Force personnel II.26, II.32, II.127-II.128, II.136
     armistice talks issue
          diplomatic records II.25, II.26
          JCS correspondence II.46, II.48
          Military Armistice Conference II.72, II.90
     Army personnel
          Adjutant General's records II.149, II.149a, II.149d
          AFFE records II.104, II.116
          casualty data file III.19-III.21
          casualty investigations II.149a, II.149d
          intelligence records II.59
          lists II.51
          remains recovery II.31a, II.31b
          Secretary's correspondence II.92, II.93, II.96
     case files I.15
     casualty press releases II.82-II.83
     congressional inquiries II.77a, II.149a
           Senate investigations II.13
     declarations of death II.77a, II.114, II.128, II.136, III.14
     Defense Department policies II.75-II.78
     definition and classification II.103, II.119, II.154, II.155
     diplomatic records II.28
     document index II.80
     Far East Command II.100, II.101, II.141
     Marine Corps personnel II.3
     Navy personnel II.2, II.3
     post-armistice list II.91
     totals I.7
     U.N. Command personnel II.103, II.106, II.111-II.112, II.125
     war crimes victims (photographs) V.6, V.13

labor of POWs II.4, II.5
Legal Advisor (State Department) II.19-II.21
Legislative and Precedent Branch (Adjutant General) II.155-II.156
Legislative and Public Affairs Office (Defense Department) II.77a
Legislative Liaison, Office of (Defense Department) II.77a
LeGro, William E. II.13
"lessons learned" II.67, II.95, II.125
letters.  See correspondence of POWs
Library of Congress II.80
Life magazine II.66
lists and rosters of Cold War detainees II.59, II.65
lists and rosters of MIAs (Korean War) I.15
     armistice talks II.26, II.72
     Army Forces, Far East II.103, II.111-II.112
     Army Korean War Casualty File III.19-III.21
     Army operations II.67
     Defense replies to Congress II.77a
     Far East Command II.101
     Korean Conflict Casualty File III.14-III.17
     Navy casualty case files II.2, II.3
     post-armistice suspected POWs II.59, II.91
     UN Command personnel II.103, II.111-II.112, II.125
lists and rosters of POWs (Korean War) I.15
     armistice talks II.26, II.72
     Army Chief of Staff II.49, II.51
     Army Forces, Far East II.103, II.107, II.111-II.112
     Army intelligence II.59, II.65
     Army Korean War Casualty File III.19-III.21
     Army operations II.67, II.68
     Army Provost Marshal General II.144
     deaths II.83, II.109
     Far East Command II.101, II.121
     naval intelligence II.5
     Navy case files II.2, II.3, II.6-II.7
     post-armistice lists II.59, II.91, II.124, II.141
     Red Cross lists II.144
     repatriates II.64, II.115
     security investigations II.149e
     sick and wounded repatriates II.83
     Operation Little Switch interrogations II.110
     UN Command personnel II.103, II.111-II.113, II.118, II.125
     VA benefits study III.2-III.10
     voluntary nonrepatriates II.149e
     war crimes victims II.118, II.122
Little Switch.  See Operation Little Switch
live-sighting reports
     Air Force interrogations II.134, II.138
     armistice talks II.26
     Army records II.51, II.54, II.59, II.118, II.149a
     Defense replies to Congress II.77a
     diplomatic records II.16, II.28, II.144
     Far East Command summaries II.141
     Navy records II.2, II.4
     post-armistice accounting II.91
     POW lists II.103
     repatriate interrogations I.11
living conditions in POW camps
     Air Force interrogations, studies II.134, II.138
     Army studies II.27, II.68
     Defense Secretarry's correspondence II.77b
     naval intelligence II.4, II.5
     Red Cross reports II.158
Logistics and Liaison Division (UNCMAC) II.88

malnutrition.  See diet of POWs
Manchuria
     aircraft incidents II.20, II.94, II.131
     American POWs II.65, II.144
     strategic targets II.138
maps
     aircraft incidents II.19
     armistice agreement II.85
     Munsan-ni compound II.157
     POW camps II.4, II.27, II.39, II.123, II.144
     remains recovery II.136
Marine Corps personnel
     air combat mission reports II.140
     Korean War casualties II.82, III.14-III.17
     Korean War POWs/MIAs
          case files II.3, II.6-II.7
          deaths in captivity II.109
          intelligence interrogations II.86
          misconduct inquiry II.77a
          repatriates (film) IV.11
          repatriates (photographs) V.2, V.8, V.9
          statistical lists of repatriates II.123
          totals I.7
Marine Corps, Records of the U.S. (RG 127) IV.11-IV.13, V.8-V.9
Materiel Command (Air Force), II.138, II.140
Materiel, Deputy Chief of Staff for (Air Force) II.136
medical care.  See health of POWs
Mercator aircraft "shoot down," 1956 II.20
Milatoni, Pat IV.21
Military Armistice Commission
     armistice talks II.71-II.72, II.86
           repatriation issues I.10, II.68
      POW accounting II.144
      records II.86, II.90
Military History Office (U.S. Army, Pacific) II.123-II.124
Military Personnel Directorate (Air Force) II.135
military reconnaissance.  See surveillance flights
military training.  See training under conduct of POWs
Missing Persons Act II.77a, II.136, II.149a, II.155
Mortuary and Graves Registration Branch (Air Force Personnel) II.136
Moscow, Russia
     U.S. Embassy records II.28
     U.S. military attache II.65
motion pictures
     Air Force activities IV.23
     Army activities IV.6-IV.10
     Marine Corps activities IV.11-IV.13
     Navy activities IV.24-IV.26
     newsreels IV.27-IV.28
     North Korean films IV.14-IV.16
     Pueblo incident IV.4-IV.5
     Red Cross report IV.30
     USIA items IV.18
Movietone News IV.27b
Munsan-ni, Korea, repatriation facilities II.157
     film footage IV.8, IV.11, IV.23, IV.24, IV.27a
     map II.157
     photographs II.157, V.2
Munsan-ni, Provisional Command II.157
murder of POWs II.122, IV.27a
Murrow, Edward R. IV.30
Mutual Broadcasting System IV.21, IV.30

National Air and Space Museum V.14
National Archives II.80
National Archives Collection of Foreign Records Seized (RG 242) IV.14-IV.16
National Public Radio IV.29
National Security Council II.24
naval aircraft
     photographs V.2
     "shoot downs" II.20
Naval Forces Far East II.86
Naval Health Research Center II.38
Naval Intelligence, Office of II.4-II.7
Naval Operations, Records of the Office of the Chief of (RG 38) II.4-II.7
Naval Personnel, Records of the Bureau of (RG 24) II.1-II.3
naval ships (photographs) V.2
Navy aviators II.2, II.127
     air combat mission reports II.140
Navy Department II.11
Navy, General Records of the Department of the, 1798-1947 (RG 80) V.2
Navy, General Records of the Department of the, 1947- (RG 428) IV.24-IV.26, V.18
Navy Hospital, San Diego, CA IV.25
Navy Operational Archives, U.S. II.80
Navy personnel
     aircraft "shoot downs" I.20, II.2, II.3, II.131
     Castro prisoners, 1958 V.18
     Cold War detainees II.127
     Korean War casualties II.82, III.14-III.17
     Korean War POWs/MIAs
          case files II.2-II.3, II.6-II.7
          deaths in captivity II.109
          repatriates
                intelligence interrogations II.86
                photographs V.2
                statistical lists II.123
           State Department central files II.16
           totals I.7
Navy, U.S.
     photographs V.2, V.18
     POW repatriate transport II.158
     Pueblo film IV.4
Neptune aircraft "shoot downs" lII.20
Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission
     duties II.144
     post-armistice repatriates II.124
     reports on operations II.5, II.33, II.68
     reports, records II.89, II.90, II.125
     UN Command interaction II.84
Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission II.71, II.72
newsreels IV.27a, IV.27b, IV.27c, IV.28
nonrepatriates.  See unaccounted for POWs; voluntary nonrepatries
North Korea.  See also North Korean POW camps
     aircraft incidents II.20, II.77a, II.94, II.131
     Cold War detainees II.158
          Pueblo incident II.159, IV.4
     Korean War
          armistice talks II.25, II.46, II.71
          strategic targets II.138
      Korean War U.S. MIAs II.77a, II.77b
      Korean War U.S. POWs
          film footage IV.14-IV.15, IV.23, IV.27a
          lists II.5
          photographs II.118
          post-armistice accounting II.27, II.51, II.77a, II.90, II.91, II.94, II.96, II.110
          propaganda use II.77a
          radio broadcasts II.107
          repatriation process II.112
          sightings II.28
          treatment II.39, II.77b
          voluntary nonrepatriates II.149d
          war crimes investigations II.36, II.38, II.51, II.122
North Korean POW camps
     aerial photographs II.27, II.39
     intelligence from repatriation interrogations II.5, II.6, II.134
     lists II.59, II.123, II.144, II.155
          North Korean reports II.100
          POWs by camp II.68
     maps II.39, II.86, II.123, II.144
     radio broadcasts by POWs II.108
     radio program IV.30
North Korean POWs II.138
nutrition.  See diet of POWs.

O'Brien, Lawrence II.17
"Olympic" games [intercamp event] II.144
Operation Big Switch
     8th Army operations plan II.86
     Army Forces, Far East records II.117
     Army operations reports II.68, II.157
     Army study II.125
     film footage IV.11, IV.23, IV.24
     interrogation reports I.18, II.110, II.118, II.149d
          film footage IV.8
          index III.12
     J-2 report II.91
     naval intelligence reports II.5, II.6
     photographs V.1-V.2, V.4-V.9, V.12
     Red Cross reports II.158
     repatriates list II.64
     summary I.10
     war crimes investigations II.38
Operations (G-3), Assistant Chief of Staff for (Army) II.67-II.73
Operations, Deputy Chief of Staff for (Air Force Intelligence) II.134a, II.137
Operations, Deputy Chief of Staff for (Air Force Plans) II.130-II.134
Operations Division (Far East Command) II.99-II.102
Operations Section (Naval Intelligence Office) II.4-II.5

P2V aircraft "shoot downs" II.20, II.131
P4M aircraft "shoot downs" lII.20
Panmunjom, Korea
     armistice talks II.46, II.59, II.74, II.85
     POW repatriation
          film footage IV.8, IV.18, IV.27a
          photographs V.2
          receiving procedures II.157
Paramount News IV.27a
pay of POWs/MIAs
     Air Force personnel II.127, II.128, II.135
     Army personnel II.53, II.155
     Navy personnel II.2
     VA study III.2
"Peking Intercepts" II.108
People's Republic of China.  See China, People's Republic of
Permanent Committee on Investigations, Senate II.77a
Personnel (G-1), Assistant Chief of Staff for (Army) II.53
Personnel, Deputy Chief of Staff for (Air Force) II.135
Phase I RECAP-K I.11, II.6
Phase II RECAP-K I.11, II.6, II.44, II.51, II.63
Phase III RECAP-K I.11, II.6, II.63
Phase IV RECAP-K I.11, II.51
photographs
     aircraft incidents II.19, V.1, V.16, V.17
     war crimes victims V.13, II.38
photographs of POWs V.1-V.20
     Air Force records II.129
     Army records II.66, II.107, II.118, II.157
     diplomatic records II.26
Planning and Program Evaluation Office (Veterans Administration) III.11
Plans, Director of (Air Force Operations) II.130-II.134
Poland
     POW repatriation supervision II.68, II.71
Political Advisor for Japan, Office of the U.S. II.28
political dissidents IV.17
political prisoners II.127, V.17
Powers, Francis Gary II.16, II.20, IV.29
POW/MIA Affairs, Senate Select Committee on II.8-II.13, IV.2-IV.3
Presidents, U.S.
     Defense Secretary's correspondence II.74, II.77a
Presidio of San Francisco, CA IV.8
Press Branch (Defense Department) II.82
Prisoner of War Camp Number 5 II.144, IV.30
prisoner-of-war camps (Communist)
     aerial photographs II.27, II.39
     Air Force interrogations II.138
     Army intelligence records II.59, II.63, II.134
     Army study II.27
     British prisoners II.144
     lists II.100, II.112, II.155
          POWs by camp II.68
     maps
          diagrams II.27, II.39
          location of camps II.86, II.123, II.144
     naval intelligence II.4, II.5, II.6
     radio broadcasts by POWs II.108
     radio program IV.30
     Red Cross inspections II.158
     repatriate interrogations I.11
     war crimes investigations II.122
prisoner-of-war camps (UN) II.125, II.143, II.158
Prisoner of War/Civilian Internee Information Center (22d Army) II.125-II.126
Prisoner of War Collaboration Board (Army) II.44
Prisoner of War Committee (Defense Department) II.59, II.94, II.123
Prisoner of War Division (Army Forces, Far East) II.120
Prisoner of War Division (Provost Marshal General) II.143-II.145
prisoner-of-war organizations II.27
Project Wringer I.13, II.137
Promotions and Separations Division (Air Force Personnel) II.135
propaganda use of POWs II.5, II.77a, II.107, II.117
Provost Marshal General II.33
Provost Marshal General, 1941- , Records of the Office of the (RG 389) II.142-II.145
Provost Marshal Section (Army Forces, Far East) II.119-II.121
Psychiatry and Neurology Consultant (Surgeon General, Army) II.33
psychological and psychiatric studies of POWs
     Army studies II.33, II.66, II.142
     evaluations in court-martial cases II.41
     Far East Command analysis II.68, II.91
     naval intelligence II.6
psychological manipulation of POWs I.8, II.122
Psychological Strategy Board II.77a
psychological warfare II.68
     See also indoctrination; propaganda use of POWs
Psychological Warfare Research Division (Army) II.68
Public Information Office (Defense Department) II.82-II.83
Public Information Office (UN Command) II.123
public opinion on POW/MIA issues
     Air Force records II.127
     Army records II.147, II.149a, II.149b
     Defense Secretary's correspondence II.77a, II.77b
U.S.S. Pueblo incident
     crew repatriation
          compensation III.2
          film footage IV.4, IV.8, IV.24, IV.25
          negotiations (recording) IV.5
     Navy motion picture IV.4
     radio broadcasts IV.5, IV.17
     Red Cross reports II.159
"Pyeng-yang" prison camp II.144
Pyoktong POW camp (Number 5) II.144, IV.30
Pyongyang, Korea
     film footage IV.6, IV.14

Quartermaster Corps II.29
Quartermaster General, Records of the Office of the (RG 92) II.29-II.32

radio broadcasts by POWs
     Army study II.27
     lists II.107, II.118, II.144
     Pueblo commander IV.5
     recordings IV.17
     transcripts II.2, II.66, II.108, IV.17
Radio Peking II.66, II.108, II.118
radio programs
     Army Hour IV.21-IV.22
     network news IV.29
Radio Pyongyang II.66, IV.5
RB-29 aircraft "shoot downs" II.20
RB-47 aircraft "shoot downs" II.20, II.46, V.17
RB-50 aircraft "shoot downs" II.20
RECAP-K program
     Adjutant General II.149d
     Army Chief of Staff II.51
     G-2 records II.59, II.62-II.64
     interrogation reports II.63-II.64
          index III.12-III.13
     JAG misconduct investigations II.35, II.40-II.44
     Navy, Marine Corps POWs II.6
     operations procedures II.68
     Phase II final report II.44
     Provost Marshal General II.144
     summary I.11
RECAP-WW program I.12, II.59, II.62, II.149e
reconnaissance.  See surveillance flights
Red Cross.  See American Red Cross, International Committee for the Red Cross
remains recovery and identification I.15
     Air Force personnel II.136
     Army personnel II.29, II.30, II.31a, II.31b, II.149a, II.149d
     Navy, Marine Corps personnel II.3
     Operation Glory I.10, II.31a
     photographs V.13
     UN Command procedures II.141
repatriated Korean War POWs.  See also interrogations of repatriated POWs by US;
  misconduct prosecutions UNDER conduct of POWs; voluntary repatriates
     Army Hour programs IV-21
     Casualty Division radio messages II.116
     compensation II.127
           VA benefits study III.2-III.10
     conduct training survey II.103
     congressional inquiries II.77a
     deindoctrination II.77a, II.149c
     espionage fears II.59, II.65, II.149c, II.149e
           security evaluations II.6
     film footage IV.8, IV.11, IV.23, IV.24, IV.27a
     lists and rosters II.64, II.112, II.113, II.115
          Air Force lists II.128
          public release of names II.77a
          statistical counts II.123
     Navy case files II.2, II.6-II.7
     news interviews IV.6, IV.24
     photographs V.1-V.9, V.12
     postwar adjustment, condition II.33
     Red Cross aid II.158
repatriation of Korean War POWs.  See also Operation Big Switch; Operation Little Switch
     Air Force operations reports II.135
     armistice talks issues I.8
          Army records II.71, II.149a
          Defense Secretary's correspondence II.77a
          diplomatic records II.24-II.26
          JCS records II.48
          Military Armistice Conference II.71-II.72, II.144
     Army operations II.67, II.113
          command reports II.157
          instructions, procedures II.96, II.144
          study II.124
     Defense Department policies II.77a, II.77b
     film footage IV.11, IV.23, IV.24, IV.27a, IV.27b
     "forced repatriation" II.77a, II.77b
     Navy operations II.2
     neutral nations supervision II.5, II.68, II.71, II.90, II.144
     newspaper clippings II.120
     post-armistice accounting II.27, II.28, II.77a, II.88, II.94, II.141
     Senate investigation II.8
     transport II.2, II.123, II.158, IV.27a
     UN Command plans, procedures II.53, II.84, II.86, II.88, II.89, II.144
Repatriation of Prisoners of War, UN Command
     Committee for II.86, II.144
Research and Development Division (Army Surgeon General) II.42
restrictions on access I.25-I.27
Rusk, Dean II.23
Russia.  See also Soviet Union
     POW/MIA resolution commission II.81
Russian POWs II.4

San Diego, CA, Navy Hospital IV.25
San Francisco, CA IV.8, IV.24
sanitation of POW camps II.4, II.63, II.122
Schein, Edgar H. II.142
Sea of Japan II.20, V.16
Segal, Julius II.123
Senate, Records of the U.S. (RG 46) II.8-II.13, IV.2-IV.3
Senate, U.S.
     POW/MIA investigations II.8-II.13, II.65, II.77a, IV.2-IV.3
Seoul, Korea
     American POWs
          film footage IV.14
          photograph II.129
     POW repatriation (film) IV.8, IV.27a
     U.S. Embassy records II.28
"Service Chaplains" series IV.20
Siberia II.131
Signal Officer, Records of the Office of the Chief (RG 111) IV.6-IV.10, V.3-V.7
Singer, Margaret T. II.142
Smith, J.V. IV.5
South Korea
     POW repatriation facilities (film) IV.8
     U.S. Embassy records II.28
     war crimes investigations II.36, II.38
South Korean POWs IV.23
Soviet Ministry of Foreign Affairs II.28
Soviet Union.  See also Russia
     aircraft incidents II.3, II.16, II.19-II.20, IV.29
     photographs V.1, V.16, V.17
  Cold War detainees
     Air Force interrogations II.137
     Army intelligence records II.59, II.65
     diplomatic records II.16, II.28
     naval intelligence reports II.1
     JCS correspondence II.46
     Red Cross aid II.158
  Korean War armistice agreement II.85
  Korean War military personnel II.6
  Korean War U.S. MIAs II.96
  Korean War U.S. POWs II.16, II.77a
     espionage recruitment II.65
     POW camps II.4, II.134, II.138
  U.S. Embassy records II.28
  U.S. strategic intelligence I.13
     interrogations II.137, II.138
     photo reconnaissance II.45-II.47
  World War II Japanese POWs II.77a
State Department, U.S.
   Cold War detainees
      aircraft "shoot downs" II.3, II.19-II.21, II.46
      Army intelligence records II.59
      central files II.16-II.18
      foreign post records II.28
      JCS correspondence II.45
   Korean War armistice talks II.23-II.26, II.28
      JCS correspondence II.46, II.48
   Korean War POW issues
       Defense Secretary's correspondence II.74, II.77a
       post-armistice POWs II.3, II.25-II.28
       POW code of conduct II.27
       Provost Marshal records II.144
       repatriation II.24
       Red Cross correspondence II.158
       Senate investigations II.11
State, General Records of the Department of (RG 59) I.22-I.24, II.14-II.27, IV.4-IV.5
Studies and Analysis Service (Veterans Administration) III.11
Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers II.48, II.99-II.102
Surgeon General (Army), Records of the Office of the (RG 112) II.33
Surgeon General, Office of the II.142
surveillance flights
     aircraft "shoot downs" I.7, II.2, II.19-II.20
     JCS correspondence II.46
Sweden II.68, II.71
Switzerland
     POW repatriation supervision II.68, II.71
     U.S. Embassy records II.28
Tachikawa Air Force Base, Japan IV.8, IV.23
TAGCEN file III.22-III.25
TAGOKOR file III.19-III.21
Taiwan
     Cold War aircraft incidents II.2, II.20
Task Force Russia II.81
Taylor, Maxwell IV.27a
Tokyo Army Hospital IV.110, IV.8
Tokyo General Hospital IV.6
Tokyo, Japan
     POW repatriation (film) IV.8, IV.27a
     U.S. Embassy records II.28
torture II.122
training.  See UNDER conduct of POWs
Translator and Interpreter Service (Army) II.118
Travis Air Force Base, CA IV.8, IV.27a
treason II.43, II.144
treatment and mistreatment of POWs
     Air Force studies II.131
     Army studies II.27, II.33, II.63, II.66, II.86, II.123, II.125, II.149b, II.149d
     Defense Secretary's correspondence II.74, II.77a
     Far East Command records II.100
     naval intelligence II.4, II.5
     news interviews (film) IV.27a
     Operation Big Switch reports II.39
     radio program IV.30
     Red Cross reports II.158
     summary I.8
     UNCREG functions II.84
     war crimes investigations II.122
Tripler Army Hospital, HI IV.8

U-2 flights
     JCS policies II.46
     "shoot down," 1960 II.16, II.20, IV.29
U.S.-Russian Joint Commission on POW/MIAs II.81
unaccounted for POWs
     Air Force records II.127
     Army records
          AFFE II.103
          Chief of Staff lists II.51
          intelligence II.59
          repatriation studies II.124, II.125
          Secretary's correspondence II.96
     Defense POW/MIA Office II.79
     Defense Secretary's correspondence II.77a, II.77b
     diplomatic records II.26, II.28
     Far East Command records II.141
     JCS correspondence II.46
     Military Armistice Conference records II.72
     Red Cross lists II.158
     UN Command records II.86, II.90, II.112
UNCMAC.  See United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission
UNCREG.  See United Nations Command Repatriation Group
Uniform Code of Military Justice II.40, II.43
United Arab Republic II.18
United Nations Command.  See also United Nations Command personnel
     armistice talks I.8, II.71, II.86
     agreement documents II.85
     POW/MIA issues II.72, II.90
     command reports II.157
     Defense Secretary correspondence II.74, II.77a, II.77b
     holdings of POWs I.3, II.38
          camp administration II.125, II.158
     JCS correspondence II.46, II.48
     POW/MIA issues II.116
          neutral nations report II.68
          post-armistice accounting II.59, II.90, II.91, II.110, II.141
          repatriation procedures II.53, II.144
     records II.84-II.91, II.99-II.102
United Nations Command Adjutant General Section II.90-II.91
United Nations Command (Advance) II.84-II.86
United Nations Command Committee for Repatriation of Prisoners of War II.86, II.144
United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission (UNCMAC) II.59, II.71, II.84,
  II.88, II.90, II.141
United Nations Command personnel
     Korean War MIAs
          AFFE records II.106
          change of status II.103, II.112, II.119
          lists II.111-II.112, II.125
          repatriate interrogations II.120
     Korean War POWs
          AFFE records II.106
          Army history office II.123
          case files II.6
          deaths in captivity II.110, II.118
          intelligence interrogations II.5, II.110, II.120
          lists II.103, II.111-II.112, II.118, II.121, II.125
          movements II.144
          North Korean camps II.100
          photographs V.19
          post-armistice accounting II.90
          repatriation II.117, II.157
               film footage IV.11, IV.23
               lists II.112
               photographs V.8, V.10
           war crimes victims I.8, II.35, II.51, II.121, II.122
United Nations Command Repatriation Group (UNCREG) II.84
Universal Newsreels IV.27c

Veterans Administration, Records of the (RG 15) III.2-III.11
Veterans' Disability Compensation and Survivors Benefits Act (1978) III.2
videotapes IV.2
Volkogonov, Dimitri II.9
voluntary nonrepatriates
     Army records
          Adjutant General II.149a, II.149b, II.149c, II.155
          Chief of Staff II.51
          intelligence II.59, II.66, II.118
          JAG II.42
          legal, administrative status II.67
     Defense Department policies II.77a, II.77b, II.90
     Defense Department sound recording IV.20
     family visits II.90, II.149d
     Far East Command lists II.141
     letters to newspapers II.90
     naval intelligence lists II.5
     Red Cross aid II.159
     return to U.S. control
          Army contingency instructions II.94
          diplomatic records II.28
          photographs V.7
     State Department central files II.16
     total I.8

war crimes.  See also collaboration
     Army prosecutions I.8, II.34-II.38
     Army reports II.51, II.59
     case files I.15, II.37, II.122
     charges against detained Americans
          Communist I.9, II.128, II.141, IV.29
          U.S. I.8
      evidence from repatriate interrogations I.11
           Air Force reports II.134
           Army investigations I.11, II.34, II.35, II.38, II.103, II.118, II.122
           Navy case files II.6
     film, sound recordings IV.7, IV.9
     lists of POW victims II.118, II.121
     photographs II.38, V.7, V.10, V.13, V.19
War Crimes Branch (Army Forces, Far East) II.122
War Crimes Branch (Army Judge Advocate General) II.35-II.39
War Crimes Division (Korean Communications Zone) II.36-II.38
welfare of POWs.  See treatment of POWs
Wenchow, China II.3
working conditions in POW camps II.4, II.5
World War II POWs
     Japanese repatriates II.28, II.77a, II.138
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, OH II.138, II.140
Wringer.  See Project Wringer

Zama, Japan IV.6

 

 

Close this window
 

© 2002-2016 Korean War Educator. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use of material is prohibited.

- Contact Webmaster with questions or comments related to web site layout.
- Contact Lynnita for Korean War questions or similar informational issues.
- Website address: www.koreanwar-educator.org
 

Hit Counter