IN MEMORY OF LEE E. BEAHLER WHO PASSED AWAY ON 30 JULY 2008

In early 1949 LT Lee E. Beahler took command of Company D of the 2nd Engineer Combat Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division at Ft. Lewis, Washington. He took command of a newly activated ragtag unit and proceeded to train it into one of the finest combat engineer companies in the army. The company proved its capability under his leadership at the battle of Yongsan, Korea. In late August, 1950, the North Koreans had broken through two battalions of the 9th Infantry Regiment, leaving a five mile gap in the division’s defensive line. Brigadier General Bradley, the assistant division commander, ordered the battalion into a “Stand or Die” mission. A and D companies would be on the south end of the break, with B and C companies supporting the 23rd and 39th Regiments respectively north of the break.

D company was attached to the 9th Regiment under the command of regimental commander, Colonel Hill. He ordered LT Beahler to set up his defensive line in some rice paddies a few hundred yards east of the Naktong River. The platoons moved into a skirmish line in the paddies, as ordered. We found the paddies extended for several hundred yards past our positions on both flanks of our line. There were no terrain features where we could anchor our flanks. LT Beahler immediately saw the futility of the position and ordered the platoons to return to our vehicles by squad, with each squad providing covering fire during the pull back. This was accomplished under enemy small arms fire. The company loaded on our trucks and proceeded to the southern hills above the town of Yongsan. The position also covered the critical crossroad intersection leading to Muryang and south to Pusan.

D Company came under the main North Korean attack at the break of dawn on September 2, 1950. Heavy fog covered the area. The North Koreans knew the location of some of our positions and lobbed grenades and small arms fire into our positions. They attempted to break through our lines by attacking through our lines with tanks and to break through the crossroads and bypassing our positions. In an act of heroism, PFC Leslie Burris of A Company knocked out three of the North Korean tanks with a bazooka. The North Koreans then pulled the rest of their tanks bank.

The fire fight continued until approximately 1400 hours. The engineer companies fought without any outside artillery or air support, except for one quad fifty half track from the 82nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion.

The 1st Marine Provisional Brigade, which had been digging another defensive line about five miles behind us, together with our A Company then counterattacked through our lines and forced the enemy to retreat back to the Naktong River.
D Company lost 12 killed and 18 wounded, including three platoon leaders that morning. Two weeks after the battle, Graves Registration picked up over 250 enemy bodies in front of the 1st and Headquarters Platoon’s positions. We never received any information of the number of enemy dead recovered from the front of the 2nd and 3rd Platoon areas or those in front of the A Company lines.

LT Beahler’s impressive selection of the excellent defensive position and outstanding defense at Yongsan broke the back of the North Korean southern thrust to break through to Pusan. The action enabled the 1st Marine Brigade to rejoin its parent command, the 1st Marine Division, this enabling that division to participate in the successful Inchon invasion. LT Beahler was promoted to captain and awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) for his leadership and command, and outstanding actions in battle.

After the battle, Colonel Hill told BG Bradley he wanted to court martial Captain Beahler for disobeying his orders. BG Bradley said it wouldn’t work because Captain Beahler had just been awarded the DSC for his actions at the Battle of Yongsan.

At the end of September, LT Beahler came down with a case of encephalitis and was evacuated to Japan where he was reassigned on his recovery. The army established a Rest and Recuperation (R&R) program in Japan for the troops in Korea. Each company in the division could send two men on R&R each week. The first troops to go were the remaining original troops that went to Korea with the division in July and August of 1950. All the original D Company troops were the first to go and they all visited Captain Beahler in Japan. We took him with us when we partied, at our expense; however, Lee would have none of that. He insisted on carrying his own weight.

We met again at Fort Belvoir, Virginia a few years later. Lee invited my wife and I to dinner at his quarters. As we walked to the dining room, we passed a Lone Star Texas flag hanging on the wall. As I went by, Lee said with a smile “Salute that flag young soldier” and I did.

We kept in touch over the years by telephone and at the reunions. As the years passed, our friendship grew. In 1995 we organized the 2nd Engineer Combat Battalion Association (2ECBA). CSM E. Larry Streeby (Retired) introduced Lee to the other battalion personnel who did not know him. He also informed them that Lee had been awarded the DSC for the action at Yongsan. Lee quietly stood up and said in a very humble tone “They gave me the medal, but D Company earned it.”

His passing was a great shock to me. I always thought he was indestructible. I miss him terribly as do the rest of the old D Company survivors. He was a great leader and commander; an honest, honorable, and humble man. He never changed his ways and certainly never cow-towed to anyone. I am proud to have served under him and having had him as a great friend.

/Signed/
Eugene S. Piazza
President – 2ECBA