Puerto Ricans Missing in Action in the Korean War
Location of the island of Puerto Rico (green) POW/MIA flag POW/MIA flag The POW/MIA flag is an American flag designed as a symbol of citizen concern about United States military personnel taken as prisoners of war or listed as missing in action ....

This is a list of Puerto Ricans Missing in Action in the Korean War. A total of 61,000 Puerto Ricans served in the military during the Korean War

Korean War

The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...

, most of them volunteers. A total of 121 Puerto Rican

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

 soldiers were among the 8,200 people listed as Missing in Action

Missing in action

Missing in action is a casualty Category assigned under the Status of Missing to armed services personnel who are reported missing during active service. They may have been killed, wounded, become a prisoner of war, or deserted. If deceased, neither their remains nor grave can be positively...

. This total does not include people of Puerto Rican descent who were born in the mainland of the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

Puerto Rico was officially ceded to the United States from Spain

Spain

Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 under the terms of the 1898 Treaty of Paris which concluded the Spanish-American War

Spanish-American War

The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...

. It is a United States territory

United States territory

United States territory is any extent of region under the jurisdiction of the federal government of the United States, including all waters including all U.S. Naval carriers. The United States has traditionally proclaimed the sovereign rights for exploring, exploiting, conserving, and managing its...

 and upon the outbreak of World War I

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

, the U.S. Congress approved the Jones-Shafroth Act

Jones-Shafroth Act

The Jones–Shafroth Act was a 1917 Act of the United States Congress by which Puerto Ricans were collectively made U.S. citizens, the people of Puerto Rico were empowered to have a popularly-elected Senate, established a bill of rights, and authorized the election of a Resident Commissioner to a...

, which granted Puerto Ricans citizenship

Citizenship

Citizenship is the state of being a citizen of a particular social, political, national, or human resource community. Citizenship status, under social contract theory, carries with it both rights and responsibilities...

. As a result Puerto Ricans

Puerto Rican people

A Puerto Rican is a person who was born in Puerto Rico.Puerto Ricans born and raised in the continental United States are also sometimes referred to as Puerto Ricans, although they were not born in Puerto Rico...

 have participated in every major conflict involving the United States from World War I onward.

Thousands of Puerto Ricans participated in these conflicts. Many lived and returned to their homeland, others were less fortunate and either died as a result of a hostile enemy action or have been listed as MIA

Missing in action

Missing in action is a casualty Category assigned under the Status of Missing to armed services personnel who are reported missing during active service. They may have been killed, wounded, become a prisoner of war, or deserted. If deceased, neither their remains nor grave can be positively...

 (Missing In Action). Missing In Action (abbreviated MIA), is a term dating from 1946 referring to a member of the armed services who is reported missing following a combat mission and whose status as to injury, capture, or death is unknown. The missing combatant must not have been otherwise accounted for as either killed in action or a prisoner of war

Prisoner of war

A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...

. The Korean War was one of two major conflicts (The other one was the Vietnam War

Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...

) which accounted for the most Puerto Ricans missing in action.

Korean War

According to "All POW-MIA Korean War Casualties", the total number of Puerto Rican casualties in the Korean War was 732; however, this total may vary slightly since some non-Puerto Ricans, such as Captain James W. Conner, were mistakenly included. Out of the 700 plus casualties suffered in the war, a total of 121 Puerto Rican men were listed as Missing in Action.

It was during the Korean War that Puerto Ricans suffered the most casualties as members of an all-Hispanic

Hispanic

Hispanic is a term that originally denoted a relationship to Hispania, which is to say the Iberian Peninsula: Andorra, Gibraltar, Portugal and Spain. During the Modern Era, Hispanic sometimes takes on a more limited meaning, particularly in the United States, where the term means a person of ...

 volunteer unit, the 65th Infantry Regiment

65th Infantry Regiment (United States)

The 65th Infantry Regiment, nicknamed "The Borinqueneers," was an all-volunteer Puerto Rican regiment of the United States Army. Its motto was Honor et Fidelitas, Latin for Honor and Fidelity. It participated in World War I, World War II, and the Korean War...

. One of the problems the unit faced was the difference in languages: the common foot soldier

Infantry

Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...

 spoke only Spanish

Spanish language

Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...

, while the commanding officer

Commanding officer

The commanding officer is the officer in command of a military unit. Typically, the commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitude to run the unit as he sees fit, within the bounds of military law...

s were mostly English-speaking

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 Americans

Americans

The people of the United States, also known as simply Americans or American people, are the inhabitants or citizens of the United States. The United States is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic and national backgrounds...

. In September 1952, the 65th Infantry was holding on to a hill known as "Outpost Kelly" until the People's Volunteer Army

People's Volunteer Army

The Chinese People's Volunteer Army was the armed forces deployed by the People's Republic of China during the Korean War. Although all units in the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army belonged to the People's Liberation Army , the People's Volunteer Army was separately constituted in order to...

 (Chinese officials maintained from the first that the Chinese fighting in Korea were volunteers) which had joined the North Korea

North Korea

The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...

ns, overran the position. This became known as the "Battle for Outpost Kelly". Twice, the 65th Regiment was overwhelmed by Chinese artillery

Artillery

Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...

 and driven off. The Battle of Outpost Kelly accounted for 73 of the men missing in action from the total of 121. Out of the 73 MIAs suffered by the regiment in the month of September, 50 of them occurred on the same day, September 18.

During the Korean War, two Puerto Ricans who were members of the United States Marine Corps

United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

, where awarded the Navy Cross

Navy Cross

The Navy Cross is the highest decoration that may be bestowed by the Department of the Navy and the second highest decoration given for valor. It is normally only awarded to members of the United States Navy, United States Marine Corps and United States Coast Guard, but can be awarded to all...

, the second highest medal, after the Medal of Honor

Medal of Honor

The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...

, that can be awarded by the Department of the Navy. One of the recipients was PFC. Ramón Núñez-Juarez

Ramón Núñez-Juarez

-Postscript:PFC Ramón Núñez-Juárez's remains have never been recovered and a symbolic burial with full military honors was held on October 25, 1970. There is a headstone with his name inscribed above an empty grave in the Puerto Rico National Cemetery, located in Bayamon, Puerto Rico...

 who was listed as MIA and was posthumously awarded the medal. PFC Ramón Núñez-Juarez's remains have never been recovered and a symbolic burial with full military honors

Military funeral

A military funeral is a specially orchestrated funeral given by a country's military for a soldier, sailor, marine or airman who died in battle, a veteran, or other prominent military figures or heads of state. A military funeral may feature guards of honor, the firing of volley shots as a salute,...

 was held on October 25, 1970. There is a headstone

Headstone

A headstone, tombstone, or gravestone is a marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. In most cases they have the deceased's name, date of birth, and date of death inscribed on them, along with a personal message, or prayer.- Use :...

 with his name inscribed above an empty grave in the Puerto Rico National Cemetery

Puerto Rico National Cemetery

Puerto Rico National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery located in the city of Bayamón, in the commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It encompasses of land, and as of the end of 2005, had 44,722 interments. It is the only National Cemetery in Puerto Rico, and the only one outside of the mainland...

, located in Bayamon, Puerto Rico

Bayamón, Puerto Rico

Bayamón is a municipality of Puerto Rico located on the northern coastal valley, north of Aguas Buenas and Comerío; south of Toa Baja and Cataño; west of Guaynabo; and east of Toa Alta and Naranjito. Bayamón is spread over 11 wards and Bayamón Pueblo...

. His name is inscribed in "El Monumento de la Recordación", a monument dedicated to the Puerto Ricans who have fallen in combat, located in San Juan, Puerto Rico

San Juan, Puerto Rico

San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...

.

Puerto Ricans Missing in Action

The following is a list with the names, ranks and the date in which 121 Puerto Ricans were listed as missing in action in the Korean War. All of these men served within the ranks of the United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

 with the sole exception of PFC. Ramón Núñez-Juarez, who served in the Marines. Their names are inscribed in El Monumento de la Recordación (The Wall of Remembrance) located in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Name	Rank	MIA Date
Acevedo, Isaac	E4Corporal	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Alfaro Alfaro, Héctor	E1Private	1952-09-24September 24, 1952
Álvarez, Hugo	E4Corporal	1951-06-05June 5, 1951
Amaro García, Luis	E3Private First Class Private First Class Private First Class is a military rank held by junior enlisted persons.- Singapore :The rank of Private First Class in the Singapore Armed Forces lies between the ranks of Private and Lance-Corporal . It is usually held by conscript soldiers midway through their national service term...	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Andino Fonseca, Lopus	E1Private	1952-09-24September 24, 1952
Berríos Santiago, Jorge	E1Private	1952-09-24September 24, 1952
Bonilla Vega, Julio	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Burset Meléndez, José	E1Private	1952-09-24 September 24, 1952
Caballero Moreno, A	E3Private First Class	1954-04-01April, 1953
Calderón Osorio, Juan	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Calimano Texidor, A	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Caraballo, Benigno	E1Private	1951-12-11December 11, 1951
Caramot Ortiz, Juan	E1Private	1952-09-24September 24, 1952
Cartagena Colón, Miguel	E1Private	UnknownUnknown
Colón Aponte, Manuel	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Colón, Concepción	E1Private	1952-07-31July 31, 1952
Colón Negrón, Luis	E1Private	1952-09-24September 24, 1952
Concepción López, José	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Cordero Cajigas, Zenon	E1Private	1952-09-24September 24, 1952
Cortés Ostolaza, Ángel	E1Private	1952-09-24September 24, 1952
Cosme Báez, Francisco	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Cruz Beltrán, Jesús	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Cruz Carrero, José	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Cruz Espinoza, Roberto	E1Private	1951-06-04June 4, 1951
Cruz Pérez, Nicolás	E4Corporal	1953-06-10June 10, 1953
Cruz Ramos, Jesús	E3Private First Class	1953-06-09June 9, 1953
Cruz Rosas, Pablo	E3Private First Class	1952-11-25November 25, 1952
Cruz Sánchez, Ángel	E3Private First Class	1952-09-10September 10, 1952
Dávila Rivera, Carlos	E1Private	1952-09-14September 14, 1952
Delgado Ubiles, Wenceslao	E1Private	1952-10-19October 19, 1952
Díaz Acevedo, Luis	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Díaz Algarín, Demetrio	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Díaz Colón, Fernando	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Díaz Coto, Rafael	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Droz Cartagena, Saúl	E3Private First Class	1952-12-15December 15, 1952
Feliciano, Carlos D.	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Feliciano Nieves, Julio	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Feliciano Otero, Bienvenido	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Figueroa Barbosa, Luis	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Flores Navarro, Julio	E1Private	1952-10-15October 15, 1952
García Clara, Ismael	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
García Rosado, Cándido	E3Private First Class	1952-09-25September 25, 1952
González Bernard, Manuel	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
González Nazario, Israel	E1Private	1952-07-17July 17, 1952
González Ortiz, Juan E.	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
González Renta, Porfirio	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
González Rosario, Ángel	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
González Saez, Israel	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
González, Santos	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Hernández Dones, Isidro	E4Corporal	1952-09-21September 21, 1952
Hernández Rodríguez, Luis	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Hernández Torres, Benjamín	E3Private First Class	1952-08-12August 12, 1952
Irizarry Gerena, O.	E1Private	1951-12-16December 16, 1951
Jiménez Olivencia, A.	E4Corporal	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Jiménez Tosado, Miguel	E3Private First Class	1953-07-09July 9, 1953
Lacsamana, Maximian	E4Corporal	1950-12-03December 3, 1950
Laugier, Jaime	E4Corporal	1952-02-16February 16, 1952
López Cronoz, Luis	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Malaret Juarbe, Israel	E7Sergeant First Class Sergeant First Class Sergeant First Class is the seventh enlisted rank in the U.S. Army, above Staff Sergeant and below Master Sergeant and First Sergeant, and is the first senior non-commissioned officer rank...	1952-12-10December 10, 1952
Marquez De León, Ramón	E3Private First Class	1952-10-27October 27, 1952
Martínez Hernández, Luis	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Martínez Landrón, Ramon	E1Private	1952-09-21September 21, 1952
Martínez, Luis	E1Private	1952-11-06November 6, 1952
Martínez Otero, Pedro	E4Corporal	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Matos González, Francisco	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Meléndez Meléndez, Alberto	E3Private First Class	1952-10-23October 23, 1952
Meléndez Negrón, Marcial	E4Corporal	1952-09-24September 24, 1952
Méndez Hernández, Luis	E4Corporal	1952-07-19July 19, 1952
Mercado Hernández, Salomé	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Miranda Cotto, Carlos	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Molina García, Roberto	E3Private First Class	1952-09-21September 21, 1952
Molina Gerena, Maximino	E4Corporal	1952-02-06February 6, 1952
Montañez Franco, Sixto	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Morales Reyes, Alfredo	E4Corporal	1952-08-14August 14, 1952
Moreno Rosa, Nelson	E4Corporal	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Murga Amador, Ramón	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Napoleón Escudero, José A.	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Negrón Martínez, Jorge	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Negrón Ortiz, José	E4Corporal	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Nieves Larry, Arcadio	E4Corporal	1952-09-24September 24, 1952
Núñez-Juarez, Ramón	E3Private First Class	1952-09-08September 8, 1952
Pacheco, Bartolomé	E1Private	1952-01-08January 8, 1952
Peña Andújar, Juan	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Pérez, Miguel	E3Private First Class	1952-01-08January 8, 1952
Pérez Pérez, Pedro	E3Private First Class	1952-08-12August 12, 1952
Pérez Rodríguez, Efraín	E4Corporal	1952-07-20July 20, 1952
Pérez Villegas, Luis	E1Private	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Pizarro Matos, Nicolás	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Pomales Pomales, Pedro	E1Private	1952-09-21September 21, 1952
Quiñones, Pedro A.	E4Corporal	1952-09-24September 24, 1952
Quirindongo, Marino	E1Private	1951-12-16December 16, 1951
Reyes Rodríguez, Marcos	E1Private	1952-10-27October 27, 1952
Reyes, William	E1Private	1951-06-05June 5, 1951
Rivera Carrillo, Juan	E3Private First Class	1952-10-28October 28, 1952
Rivera Claudio, Roberto	E1Private	1952-10-01October, 1952
Rivera Cruz, Gilberto	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Rivera Galarza, Israel	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Rivera, Luis P.	E3Private First Class	1952-09-26September 26, 1952
Rivera Rodríguez, Raul	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Rivera, Rubén	E1Private	1952-09-24September 24, 1952
Rodríguez, Enrique	E1Private	1953-07-08July 8, 1953
Rodríguez Lozada, Alberto	E7Sergeant First Class	1951-06-04June 4, 1951
Rodríguez, Pedro A.	E3Private First Class	1952-01-11January 11, 1952
Rojas Reyes, Juan	E3Private First Class	1952-09-20September 20, 1952
Roque Peña, Ramón	E3Private First Class	1952-10-16October 16, 1952
Rosado Bravo, José	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Rosario Meléndez, Francisco	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Salgado Torres, Ángel	E1Private	1952-01-08January 8, 1952
Sanabria, Ángel S.	E3Private First Class	1952-01-28January 28, 1952
Sánchez López, Rafael	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Santiago, Angel L.	E1Private	1951-06-03June 3, 1951
Santiago Ortiz, José	E3Private First Class	1952-10-14October 14, 1952
Santiago Rosario, Ramón	E5Sergeant	1952-02-06February 6, 1952
Santos Rivero, Norberto	E4Corporal	1951-06-04June 4, 1951
Santos Rosario, Nicolás	E3Private First Class	1951-12-11December 11, 1951
Torres Cabán, José	O2First Lieutenant First Lieutenant First lieutenant is a military rank and, in some forces, an appointment.The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank...	1950-09-29September 29, 1950
Torres Green, Jorge	E1Private	1952-07-19July 19, 1952
Torres Rodríguez, Samuel	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Vázquez, Jorge L.	E5Sergeant	1952-02-06February 6, 1952
Vélez Montes, Luis	E3Private First Class	1952-09-18September 18, 1952
Vélez Santiago, Miguel	E1Private	1951-12-23December 23, 1951
Zayas, Miguel A.	E3Private First Class	1952-02-06February 6, 1952

See also

• Military history of Puerto Rico
  Military history of Puerto Rico
  The recorded military history of Puerto Rico encompasses the period from the 16th century, when Spanish conquistadores battled native Tainos in the rebellion of 1511, to the present employment of Puerto Ricans in the United States Armed Forces in the military campaigns in Afghanistan and...
  
  
• Puerto Ricans Missing in Action in the Vietnam War
• List of Puerto Rican military personnel