Robert Kirby was a Military Policeman who served in Korea from 1952 to 1953 with the 8137th Military Police Group. Most of his tour was spent on Koje-do island guarding North Koreans POWs who were committed communists, bent on causing as much trouble for their captors as possible. Kirby remained on Koje-do when the prisoner exchange occurred following the July 1953 armistice.
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Robert Kirby stands beside a shack he built outside of the compound at the Chogu-ri POW camp on Koje-do Island. (Narrator’s photo).Where:
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Robert Kirby patrols the perimeter of the POW enclosure at Chogu-ri. (Narrator’s photo).Where:
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Robert Kirby supervises POWs handling petroleum outside Camp #9 at Pusan. (Narrator’s photo).Where:
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View of the GI barracks from the POW compound at Chogu-ri. (Narrator’s photo).Where:
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Kirby at Chogu-ri. This photo was taken in June, 1953, shortly after ‘friendly’ North Korean POWs had been released in the middle of the night by South Korean President Syngman Rhee. (Narrator’s photo).Where:
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Robert Kirby’s 8th grade graduation photo circa 1945. (Narrator’s photo).Where:
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North Korean cap insignia that Kirby took away from a North Korean prisoner. The prisoners fashioned such items themselves in a UN equipped metal-working shop within the camp. They were fiercely proud of their caps and insignia.Where:
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This is the cover from a pamphlet that Kirby took from a North Korean prisoner, and the first of a series of photos from that pamphlet. It included detailed instructions and intricate drawings of military hardware, tactical maneuvers, etc. Where:
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Remnants of page 7 of the pamphlet that Robert Kirby took from a North Korean prisoner. (This image is considered to be in the public domain. Images of the entire pamphlet are archived in the ALPL Audio-Visual Department.)Where:
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Remnants of page 8 of the pamphlet that Robert Kirby took from a North Korean prisoner. (This image is considered to be in the public domain. Images of the entire pamphlet are archived in the ALPL Audio-Visual Department.)Where:
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Remnants of page 17 of the pamphlet that Robert Kirby took from a North Korean prisoner. (This image is considered to be in the public domain. Images of the entire pamphlet are archived in the ALPL Audio-Visual Department.)Where:
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Remnants of page 18 of the pamphlet that Robert Kirby took from a North Korean prisoner. (This image is considered to be in the public domain. Images of the entire pamphlet are archived in the ALPL Audio-Visual Department.)Where:
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Remnants of page 21 of the pamphlet that Robert Kirby took from a North Korean prisoner. (This image is considered to be in the public domain. Images of the entire pamphlet are archived in the ALPL Audio-Visual Department.)Where:
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Robert Kirby at the time of his high school graduation. (Narrator’s Photo)Where:
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Robert Kirby and a fellow soldier (Jim) at Camp #9 in South Korea. (Narrator’s Photo).Where:
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Robert Kirby pulling gate guard duty at Choguri. Kirby has taken his helmet off for the photo. (Narrator’s Photo).Where:
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Robert Kirby patrols the perimeter of the enclosure at Choguri during headcount, with orders to shoot into the compound if the G.I.s conducting the headcount are assaulted. (Narrator’s Photo).Where:
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POWs sometimes performed menial tasks, such as these POWs working at a POL (petroleum, oils and lubricants) dump, under Kirby’s supervision. (Narrator’s photo).Where:
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Kirby’s last photo taken in Korea. Troops are lined up waiting to board a ship heading home. (Narrator’s photo).Where:
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Troops boarding ship for home. (Narrator’s Photo).
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