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Sgt David A. Stutesman
to remember
Marine LtCol Donald Ross Jones.
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Contact Info
Home Town Milwaukee
Last Address Springfield, Virginia
Date of Passing Sep 14, 2003
Location of Interment Arlington National Cemetery (VLM) - Arlington, Virginia
Colonel Jones was awarded the Navy Cross and the Silver Star for action in Korea, the Bronze Star for combat in the Solomon Islands, and the Purple Donald R. Jones, 81, a decorated Marine Corps veteran who served in three foreign wars and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel after 24 years of service, died September 14, 2003, at Manor Care in Arlington, Virginia, of Alzheimer's disease after a month-long coma. Colonel Jones was awarded the Navy Cross and the Silver Star for action in Korea, the Bronze Star for combat in the Solomon Islands, and the Purple Heart for injuries sustained on Okinawa during World War II. He also served in Vietnam. For 25 years after his military service, Colonel Jones was a residential real estate salesman for several large national firms in the Washington area, including Levitt & Sons, Ryland Homes and Centex Homes. He was inducted into the National Association of Home Builders' Institute of Residential Marketing in 1979. He was born in Milwaukee and raised in Oronogo, Missouri. He enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1942. During World War II, he participated in combat operations in the Solomon Islands, New Guinea, Guam and Okinawa and in the occupation of Japan, and was discharged as a Sergeant in 1946. He reenlisted as a Private in order to go to Officer Candidate School, was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant and two years later was deployed to Korea as a Rifle Platoon Leader, where he was in the assault landing at Inchon, the battle for Seoul, the First Marine Division break-out in the Chosin area and the Chinese breakthrough in the spring of 1951. Later duty included Parris Island, South Carolina; Butte, Montana; Camp Pendleton, California; Washington; Hawaii; and Vietnam. He served at sea and retired in 1966 as a technical writer at the Marine Corps School at Quantico. After retirement from his real estate career in 1991, he and his wife divided their time between Daytona Beach, Florida, and Springfield. Survivors include his wife of 53 years, Patricia Roderick Jones of Springfield, a son, Roderick Leland Jones of Chantilly; a daughter, Ceilie Jones McLean of Alexandria; and two granddaughters.
Other Comments:
Navy Cross
The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Second Lieutenant Donald R. Jones (MCSN: 0-49868), United States Marine Corps, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy of the United Nations while serving as Leader of a Rifle Platoon, Company A, First Battalion, First Marines, FIRST Marine Division (Reinforced), in action against enemy aggressor forces near Koto-ri Pass, Korea, on 8 December 1950. Although the approaches to the enemy positions were practically inaccessible and exposed to direct hostile small-arms and machine-gun fire, Second Lieutenant Jones bravely led his platoon up the steep snow-covered precipice to attack and seize a mountain peak defended by well-entrenched, numerically superior hostile forces. Moving fearlessly among the squads, he skillfully maneuvered his men into strategic positions from which they could deliver accurate rifle fire and employ hand grenades more effectively. Spearheading his well-planned assault, he directed his group in hand-to-hand fighting which resulted in the destruction of over seventy-five of the enemy and numerous machine-gun bunkers. When the hostile troops launched an aggressive counterattack while he was reorganizing his platoon immediately following the seizure of the objective, he conducted a successful defense of the newly-won positions, thereby contributing materially to the success of the Battalion in securing enemy-held terrain from which to cover the advance of the Division. His tactical ability, indomitable fighting spirit and courageous devotion to duty in the face of intense hostile opposition reflect the highest credit upon Second Lieutenant Jones and the United States Naval Service.
General Orders: Authority: Board of Awards: Serial 765 (July 23, 1951)
Action Date: 8-Dec-50
Korean War/First UN Counteroffensive (1951)/Operation Ripper
From Month/Year
March / 1951
To Month/Year
April / 1951
Description Operation Ripper, also known as the Fourth Battle of Seoul, was a United Nations military operation conceived by the commander US Eighth Army, General Matthew Ridgway, during the Korean War. The operation was intended to destroy as much as possible of the Chinese communist People's Volunteer Army and North Korean military around Seoul and the towns of Hongch'on, 50 miles (80 km) east of Seoul, and Ch'unch'on, 15 miles (24 km) further south. The operation also aimed to bring UN troops to the 38th parallel. It followed upon the heels of Operation Killer, an eight-day UN offensive that concluded February 28, to push Communist forces north of the Han River. The operation was launched on March 6, 1951 with the US I Corps and IX Corps on the west near Seoul and Hoengsong and US X Corps and ROK III Corps in the east, to reach "Line Idaho", an arc with its apex just south of the 38th Parallel in South Korea.
Operation Ripper was preceded by the largest artillery bombardment of the Korean War. On the middle, the U.S. 25th Infantry Division quickly crossed the Han and established a bridgehead. Further to the east, IX Corps reached its first phase line on 11 March. Three days later the advance proceeded to the next phase line. During the night of March 14–15, elements of the South Korean 1st Infantry Division and the US 3rd Infantry Division liberated Seoul, marking the fourth and last time the capital would have changed hands since June 1950. The Communist forces were compelled to abandon it when the UN approach to the east of the city threatened them with encirclement.
Following the recapture of Seoul the communist forces retreated northward, conducting skillful delaying actions that utilized the rugged, muddy terrain to maximum advantage, particularly in the mountainous US X Corps sector. Despite such obstacles, Operation Ripper pressed on throughout March. In the mountainous central region, the US IX and US X Corps pushed forward methodically, the IX Corps against light opposition and the X Corps against staunch enemy defenses. Hongch'on was taken on the 15th and Ch'unch'on secured on the 22nd. The capture of Ch'unch'on was the last major ground objective of Operation Ripper.
UN forces had advanced north an average of 30 miles (48 km) from their start lines. However, while the US Eighth Army had occupied their principal geographic objectives, the goal of destroying Chinese forces and equipment had again proved elusive. More often than not, the communist forces withdrew before they suffered extensive damage. Ch'unch'on, a major communist supply hub, was empty by the time UN forces finally occupied it. As the U.N. troops ground forward, they were constantly descending sharp slopes or ascending steep heights to attack enemy positions that were sometimes above the clouds. By the end of March, US forces reached the 38th parallel.
