Elizabeth MacHardy and Gordon Strachan hold a plaque commemorating Canadians killed in the Korean War. Their brother, Pvt. William Leslie Strachan, was one of the six who died on Hill 467 in the battle for Chail-li Village. (Guy Black)
OSAN AIR BASE, South Korea — A Canadian man who walked nearly 200 miles at home and in South Korea last year to commemorate a battle his countrymen fought in the Korean War has created a more lasting remembrance.
Guy Black walked 186 miles in April, starting in British Columbia, Canada, then completing the trek in South Korea to the battlefield at Kapyong, east of Seoul. His journey coincided with the 72nd anniversary of the fight, in which a brigade of Canadian and Australian troops held off three larger Chinese regiments.
Now Black is planning to erect two plaques at the sites of Kapyong and another battle fought a month later by the 2nd Battalion, Royal Canadian Regiment at Chail-li, a village near Pocheon city.
During his trek to Hill 677 at Kapyong, Black noticed memorials everywhere commemorating the battle but no honor roll with the names of those who died at Chail-li, he told Stars and Stripes in a Feb. 22 video call.
“The idea for my next project began to grow,” he said. “I realized I had found something important I wanted to bring to life.”
The Canadian army regards Kapyong as its “greatest victory” of the war, but Chail-li was a defeat, according to a July 2021 article on the Canadian government website.
The 2nd Battalion launched its attack on May 30, 1951, to capture Chail-li Village, Hills 162 and 269 and the larger Hill 467.
They encountered stiff resistance from the Chinese; dark skies and heavy rain precluded air or artillery support. The Canadians fell back from Hill 467.
A plaque honors six Canadians killed in a Korean War battle to capture Chail-li Village on May 30, 1951. (Guy Black)
“Withdrawal, usually a difficult feat, was successful; Canada’s six casualties and fifty-four wounded soldiers were recovered and rescued from the scene, leaving no soldier behind,” said the account on Canada’s website.
Once Black arrived home in June, he started working on two plaques — one of Pocheon and another for Kapyong — listing the names of each Canadian soldier killed in those battles.
“The most time-consuming part is writing the text for each plaque and making sure there are no errors. It is especially complicated because the text is written in English and Korean,” he said.
For help with translations, Black contacted Sgt. Jonghyeon Jeon of the South Korean army, and David Suh, the international relations officer in Gapyeong county.
A friend, Elizabeth MacHardy, and her family also inspired the project, Black said.
MacHardy’s brother, Pvt. William Leslie Strachan, was one of the six who died on Hill 467 in the battle for Chail-li village.
“The death of their beloved brother has haunted them ever since he was killed,” Black said. “I have tried to do as much as I can to help them heal and receive recognition for how much they lost and have suffered due to the Korean War.”
The Pocheon plaque is with the South Korean Customs Service and will be sent to Jeon to install at the Pocheon battle site. The Kapyong plaque will be sent around April, Black said.
“I believe in service above oneself, and I feel privileged I am actually able to contribute to something so important,” he said.
