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DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL HISTORICAL CENTER
805 KIDDER BREESE SE -- WASHINGTON NAVY YARD
WASHINGTON DC 20374-5060

Online Library of Selected Images:
-- EVENTS -- The Korean War, 1950-1953 --

The Evacuation of Inchon, December 1950 - January 1951

On 7 December 1950, while the enemy onslaught seemed unstoppable, the evacuation of the port of Inchon, whose capture less than three months earlier had so changed the war, was ordered. This effort was supported by a combined U.S. and British Commonwealth naval force. When the renewed Chinese offensive compelled UN forces and the Republic of Korea Government to leave Seoul early in the New Year, the withdrawal of assets through Inchon was completed. Though most the Eighth Army retired to new defensive lines by land, almost seventy thousand troops, nearly as many refugees, and a large quantity of vehicles and supplies departed by sea through Inchon. The port's facilities were destroyed on 5 January 1951 and its ruins left to the enemy.

This page features pictures of and related to the evacuation of Inchon, 7 December 1950 - 5 January 1951, during the Chinese offensive period of the Korean War.

For visual coverage of other aspects of the November 1950 - January 1951 Chinese offensive in Korea, see:

  • The Chinese Offensive, 25 November 1950 -- 25 January 1951.

    For a precis of our Korean War images, and links to more comprehensive pictorial coverage of that conflict, see:

  • The Korean War, June 1950 - July 1953 -- Introductory Overview and Special Image Selection.


    If you want higher resolution reproductions than the Online Library's digital images, see: How to Obtain Photographic Reproductions.

    Click on the small photograph to prompt a larger view of the same image.

    Photo #: NH 97079

    Inchon, Korea


    U.S. troops prepare to disembark from USS LSU-1317 at "Charley" Pier, near Inchon's Tidal Basin, 29 December 1950.
    Wolmi-Do island is in the background, with Sowolmi-Do island in the left distance.
    Photographer: AF3 F.O. Furuichi.
    Note cold weather clothing worn by these men.

    Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center.

    Online Image: 111KB; 740 x 610 pixels

     
    Photo #: NH 97080

    Inchon, Korea


    U.S. troops disembark from USS LSU-1317 at "Charley" Pier, near Inchon's Tidal Basin, 29 December 1950.
    Wolmi-Do island is in the background, with Sowolmi-Do island in the left distance.
    Photographer: AF3 F.O. Furuichi.
    Note cold weather clothing worn by these men, and steel matting applied to the pier deck.

    Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center.

    Online Image: 135KB; 740 x 605 pixels

     
    Photo #: NH 97014

    Evacuation of Inchon, Korea, December 1950-January 1951


    A launch from HMS Kenya comes alongside USS Eldorado (AGC-11), as a snow storm sweeps through Inchon harbor.
    Eldorado was command ship for the evacuation of United Nations' forces and supplies from Inchon. Kenya provided gunfire support for the operation.
    The original photograph was released by Commander, Naval Forces, Far East, and is dated 22 December 1950.

    Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the "All Hands" collection at the Naval Historical Center.

    Online Image: 150KB; 575 x 765 pixels

     
    Photo #: 80-G-427432

    Apnok

    (Republic of Korea Frigate, 1950-1952)

    Crewmen load a "Hedgehog" anti-submarine mortar, while on duty in Inchon Harbor, South Korea.
    Photo is dated 21 December 1950.
    Apnok, the former USS Rockford (PF-48), had been transferred to the ROK Navy in October 1950.
    Note striped armbands worn by some of these men.

    Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives.

    Online Image: 115KB; 740 x 620 pixels

    Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system.

     
    Photo #: 80-G-425472

    Evacuation of Inchon, December 1950 - January 1951


    Port facilities at Inchon, South Korea, are destroyed as U.N. forces evacuate the city in the face of the Chinese Communist advance.
    Photograph is dated 4 January 1951. The final evacuation of Inchon took place on 5 January.

    Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives.

    Online Image: 67KB; 740 x 615 pixels

    Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system.

     


    For visual coverage of other aspects of the November 1950 - January 1951 Chinese offensive in Korea, see:

  • The Chinese Offensive, 25 November 1950 -- 25 January 1951.

    For a precis of our Korean War images, and links to more comprehensive pictorial coverage of that conflict, see:

  • The Korean War, June 1950 - July 1953 -- Introductory Overview and Special Image Selection.


    If you want higher resolution reproductions than the Online Library's digital images, see: How to Obtain Photographic Reproductions.


    Return to Naval Historical Center home page.

    10 August 2000