Medal of Honor: Private First Class Melvin L. Brown, Korean War, September 4, 1950

Private First Class Melvin L. Brown

War: Korean War
Date of Action: September 4, 1950

On a stone wall overlooking a deadly battlefield, a young soldier from Pennsylvania held back wave after wave of enemy attackers. When his bullets and grenades were gone, he fought on with the only weapon he had left—an entrenching tool—delivering crushing blows until the attack broke.

Summary of Action

Private First Class Melvin L. Brown was born in Mahaffey, Pennsylvania, and entered service from Erie, PA. By 1950, he was serving with Company D, 8th Engineer Combat Battalion during the desperate opening months of the Korean War. His platoon was ordered to seize Hill 755, a key position near the ancient fortress city of Kasan, known as the “Walled City.” The hill, surrounded by difficult terrain and steep approaches, was a critical defensive anchor in the brutal fighting around the Pusan Perimeter.

On September 4, 1950, as Brown and his comrades fought to hold their position, enemy forces counterattacked in ferocious strength. The enemy unleashed heavy machine gun and rifle fire, forcing the Americans into fierce, close-quarters defense.

From atop a 50-foot stone wall, Pfc. Brown poured fire into the attacking force with his rifle, slowing their advance. When his ammunition was exhausted, he refused to retreat. Though wounded, he remained at his position, pulling grenades from his belt and hurling them into the mass of advancing enemy soldiers. Each throw caused devastation and confusion, breaking up wave after wave of assault.

When his grenades ran out, his fellow soldiers threw him more from their foxholes, and Brown repeatedly exposed himself to enemy fire to retrieve them and continue his one-man stand. Eventually, the last grenade was gone, and still the enemy pressed closer.

At that moment, Pfc. Brown reached for his entrenching tool—a simple folding shovel—and turned it into a weapon of survival. As enemy soldiers climbed the wall one by one, Brown waited calmly, striking each with crushing blows to the head. Accounts estimate he felled 10 to 12 enemy soldiers in this savage hand-to-hand combat. His defiance and ferocity inspired his platoon, who rallied to repel the attack and hold the vital position.

The following day, September 5, 1950, Pfc. Melvin L. Brown was reported missing in action and later declared killed in action. His courage, fought out in the most desperate circumstances, became part of the legend of the Korean War.

Medal of Honor Citation

Citation:
Pfc. Brown, Company D distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action against the enemy. While his platoon was securing Hill 755 (the Walled City), the enemy, using heavy automatic weapons and small arms, counterattacked. Taking a position on a 50-foot-high wall he delivered heavy rifle fire on the enemy. His ammunition was soon expended and although wounded, he remained at his post and threw his few grenades into the attackers causing many casualties. When his supply of grenades was exhausted his comrades from nearby foxholes tossed others to him and he left his position, braving a hail of fire, to retrieve and throw them at the enemy. The attackers continued to assault his position and Pfc. Brown, weaponless, drew his entrenching tool from his pack and calmly waited until they 1 by 1 peered over the wall, delivering each a crushing blow upon the head. Knocking 10 or 12 enemy from the wall, his daring action so inspired his platoon that they repelled the attack and held their position. Pfc. Brown’s extraordinary heroism, gallantry, and intrepidity reflect the highest credit upon himself and was in keeping with the honored traditions of the military service. Reportedly missing in action and officially killed in action, September 5, 1950.