Theo McLemore, a veteran of the 1st Marines who fought at Inchon and Chosin, recalled that they had to remove every vestige of grease and oil from their Garands in order for them to operate in the extreme cold. Any trace of lubricant would freeze solid and could render the rifle inoperable. As stated by McLemore: “Not having any oil or grease was hard on the weapons, but removing it allowed us to use our M1s even when the temperature got down to 40 below. The M1 was our best weapon, and we really relied on those rifles.”

McLemore’s feelings were mirrored by S.L.A. Marshall: “The issue rifle [M1] has performed adequately in Korea and is regarded by troops with a liking amounting to affection. This is true of all forces, Army and Marines alike. They have found that it stands up ruggedly against the most extreme tests by terrain, weather, and rough handling. … Its record of high serviceability remained unimpaired during the worst storms of winter. Of all weapons carried by the infantry, the M1 appeared to be the least sensitive to heavy frost, extreme cold and icing. Its ‘durability’ is the great reason why it stands in such high favor with the men. They no longer mind the weight of the piece because of its consistent performance.”

Even some 60 years later, most of the Chosin veterans remember the M1 rifle as a dependable arm that could be counted on “when the chips were down” in even the most hostile conditions imaginable. During the “Frozen Chosin” campaign, the M1 once again lived up to its reputation as one of the best service rifles of all time.

U.S. M1918A2 Browning Automatic Rifle
First fielded in the closing days of World War I, the Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR) was the standard squad automatic weapon from the time of its adoption into the late 1950s and early 1960s when it was eventually replaced by the M60 machine gun. Although essentially obsolescent by the time of the Korean War, the latest version of the BAR, the Model 1918A2, was a popular arm with many of the fighting men and BARs saw a great deal of combat action during the Chosin campaign. The BAR, which fed from a 20-round detachable box magazine, fired the same powerful .30-’06 Sprg. cartridge as the M1 Garand but at a full-automatic rate of up to 650 rounds per minute. While many soldiers and Marines groused about the BAR’s weight, the closer they came to a combat zone, the more these complaints subsided. The gun’s firepower and general reliability were important assets that trumped weight considerations. Marshall stated that during the Korean War the BAR was “still considered ‘indispensable’ and the troops shudder at any suggestion that it might ultimately be replaced by some other weapon. They cannot imagine having to get along without it.”

When the Marines were surrounded during the Chosin fighting, the BARs again proved to be one of the more important weapons in the small arms arsenal. As with the other guns employed; however, the brutally cold weather negatively affected the BAR’s performance. It has been reported that many of the BARs employed in the conflict had been arsenal-overhauled after World War II by ordnance personnel in Japan and that some small, but critical, parts such as springs were not always replaced. This led to reports that the refurbished BARs did not perform as well as the examples that had not been previously overhauled.

Regardless of whether a BAR was one of the rebuilt guns or not, the brutal cold of Chosin caused a number of malfunctions. As was the case with the M1 rifle and others, the BARs had to be thoroughly cleaned and all traces of grease and oil removed from the action in order to have any chance of functioning properly. Even so, the BARs often “froze” (literally and figuratively) in combat. Theo McLemore related that some of the Marines had to urinate on the frozen BARs in order to get them back into action. He wryly added that “they dried off pretty quick once we started shooting!” This crude, but effective, “field expedient” of thawing-out frozen BARs has been confirmed in many first-hand accounts of fighting around Chosin. For some reason, this procedure was not included in later field manuals for the BAR.

Despite the problems encountered in various degrees regarding the arms discussed above, the fact that they would function at all in such extreme temperatures was a testament to their design and quality of manufacture. The M1911A1s, Garands, carbines and BARs enabled the intrepid “Chosin Few” to not only battle their way out of an intended deathtrap but also to inflict grievous casualties on the enemy.

The U.S. Marine Corps has a glorious history for valorous service to our country. If the Marines’ Hymn is ever revised, a strong case can be made for adding the “Frozen Chosin” to the Halls of Montezuma and the Shores of Tripoli.