Story #9
Charles J. Bayes
The first Adams County soldier released from a Korean prisoner of war camp and one of the first repatriates to return to Southern Ohio was Charles J. Bayes, the son of Charles and Eva Pearl Bayes of Peebles, Ohio.
Bayes was born in Peebles on January 16, 1931, and a day after turning eighteen, he reported to the recruiting office in Portsmouth to enlist in the U.S. Army. He left the states on July 7, 1950, and over the course of his enlistment served with the 9th and later the 19th Infantry Regiments of the 24th Army Division. Bayes was part of the first coordinated attacks by both sides of the Korean War at several strategic points along the 38th Parallel. He was soon listed by the Defense Department as a casualty and was missing in action. However, his parents said they had regularly received letters from “Junior” up until October. The last one, dated October 11, 1950, told of being in Kaesong and preparing to cross the 38th Parallel. The United Nations forces initiated that action later that month. It was during the combat activity on November 5, 1950, considered the first clear battle of the Cold War, that Bayes was taken prisoner. He had been listed as missing for more than a year before his name was released by the Communists as a prisoner of war.
Bayes was one of thousands of names that were catalogued. Restricted information told that those who were captured during the fighting, and then considered fit enough, were forced to march north to 'specialized interrogation camps.' The march took approximately a month to complete, traveling through dangerous territory where Communist and Chinese soldiers were fiercely battling the Allied Troops. Bayes was assigned to Camp 5 at Pyok-Dong, the main headquarters camp operated by the Chinese Army. It was located fifty miles northeast of Sinuiju in North Korea on the south bank of the Yalu River directly across from China.
An account of the experiences at the camp, written by another POW, tells of bitterly cold winters and steamy summers without proper clothing, episodes of frostbite, dysentery, jaundice, starvation and mental breakdowns. In Bayes' letters home he said he was getting along fine and was in good health. There was no mention of the treatment of other prisoners. In a 1951 Christmas Eve letter to his parents, delivered by United Nations officials, he commented on having fried chicken and pork for Christmas dinner, a Christmas play and gifts. “It's pretty cold here, but we have good clothes and warm rooms,” he added.
After three years, the conflict was considered a stalemate. An armistice was agreed to and signed on July 27, 1953 at Panmunjom. It ended the fighting and redrew the line that would continue to keep the country divided into north and south regions. Millions of Korean soldiers and civilians and hundreds of thousands of Chinese soldiers had been killed. The 2022 list on the Wall of Remembrance at the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. now lists 36,574 servicemen and women and more than 7,200 members of the Korean Augmentation to the United States Army who gave their lives defending the people of South Korea. There are still over 7,000 personnel unaccounted for. The Korean War Identification Project continues.
Withdrawal of American troops was quickly begun and carried out in stages; a few thousand at a time were identified, released and processed, then transported back to the United States. Bayes was freed by the Communists and left Korea on August 22, 1953. He was transported to San Francisco, then flew to Cincinnati, then boarded a bus that brought him to Peebles, arriving home Sunday evening, August 30th.
Once the removal of American troops began, radio and TV stations set aside specific times of their schedules to broadcast the names of those who had been released. It was usually done alphabetically, first letter of the last name and only a few letters at a time. It took considerable time to read and display all the names. Patience paid off. A neighbor of the Bayes family, Mrs. Milt Frost, saw Charles's name on TV and was quick to notify Mrs. Bayes. Mr. Bayes was at work in West Virginia for the N & W Railroad. The railroad agent at Peebles was asked to pass along the good news. A welcome home party was organized and included a community dinner, a parade and gifts. Adams County Common Pleas Judge James Lang presented a plaque on behalf of the American Legion. Charlie Thompson provided a wrist watch, an electric shaver and $100 from the citizens of Peebles.
At the end of a thirty day furlough, Army 'Cpl.' Charles J. Bayes reported to an Army installation for processing and separation from the service.
According to his newspaper obituary, after Mr. Bayes was discharged from the Army, he married, moved to Springfield, had two children and worked at Wright Patterson Air Force Base as an Electronic Technician until his retirement. He was a life member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars #1031 and Disabled American Veterans. He died February 26, 2003, following a lengthy illness. He is buried at the Rose Hill Cemetery near Springfield, Ohio.
