Remembering PFC Hector A. Cafferata, Jr.

PFC Hector Cafferata distinguished himself in one of the legendary battles in Marine history, the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir. After American and UN forces had nearly made their way to the Yalu River in the early phase of the Korean War in 1950, they were surprised by a counterattack by 150,000 Chinese forces. Nearly surrounded in the bitter cold of an early Korean winter, the Marines broke through and inflicted heavy casualties on the numerically superior enemy. While many of his comrades had fallen, PFC Cafferata single-handedly held off a regimental-sized force and annihilated two enemy platoons. President Truman presented him with the Medal of Honor at the White House in 1952.