William F. Dean | |
|---|---|
 Dean in 1950 | |
| Birth name | William Frishe Dean |
| Born | (1899-08-01)August 1, 1899 Carlyle, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | August 24, 1981(1981-08-24) (aged 82) San Francisco,California, U.S. |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance | United States |
| Branch | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1921–1955 |
| Rank | Major general |
| Commands | 44th Infantry Division 7th Infantry Division 24th Infantry Division |
| Battles / wars | |
| Awards | Medal of Honor Distinguished Service Cross Distinguished Service Medal Legion of Merit Bronze Star Taegeuk Order of Military Merit |
| Signature |  |
William Frishe Dean Sr. (August 1, 1899 – August 24, 1981) was aUnited States Armymajor general duringWorld War II and theKorean War. He received theMedal of Honor for his actions on July 20 and 21, 1950 during theBattle of Daejon (Taejon) inSouth Korea. Dean also became the highest ranking American officercaptured by an enemy force since the 18 American Army generals captured byImperial Japan after thefall of the Philippines when he was captured byNorth Korea during the Korean War.
Dean attended theUniversity of California at Berkeley before graduating with acommission in theUS Army through theReserve Officer's Training Corps (ROTC) in 1921. Slowly rising up the ranks in the inter-war years, Dean worked a desk job inWashington, D.C., for much of World War II before being transferred to the44th Infantry Division which he commanded during the final days of the war, and was awarded aDistinguished Service Cross.
Dean commanded the24th Infantry Division at the outbreak of the Korean War. Dean led the division for several weeks in successive delaying battles against the North Koreans before he led his division in making a last stand atDaejon. During the confused retreat from that city, Dean was separated from his soldiers and badly injured, and was eventually captured by the North Koreans. He remained in North Korean custody nearPyongyang for the remainder of the war. After the end of the conflict, Dean returned to theUnited States to a hero's welcome. He retired from the Army soon after and lived a quiet life until his death.
Dean was born on August 1, 1899, inCarlyle, Illinois,[1] to Charles Watts Dean, who worked as adentist, and Elizabeth Frishe Dean, who was ofGerman descent.[2] William Dean had two siblings, a brother named David and a sister named Elizabeth.[3] Dean states in his biography his interest in the military began at a very young age, upon seeing theUnited States Military Academy cadets in the 1904Saint Louis Exposition performing militaryfoot drill. During his childhood, Dean was interested inphysical fitness, and beganweightlifting and running, activities he would continue throughout much of his life. His first jobs included selling magazines for spending money. Growing up in Carlyle, Dean was the town's mainpaperboy forThe Saturday Evening Post.[2]
After graduating from high school, Dean applied to the US Military Academy, but was rejected. He then tried to enlist in theUnited States Army duringWorld War I, but he was too young to do so without his parents' permission, and his mother refused. Dean instead attendedUniversity of California at Berkeley studyingpre-law. During this time, he also took a variety of side jobs, including astevedore at theSan Francisco docks, amotorman, and briefly as a patrolman for theBerkeley Police Department, where he worked underpolice chiefAugust Vollmer. Dean originally sought to attain aDoctor of Law degree but only completed aBachelor of Arts degree from Berkeley in 1922 before joining the Army.[3]
Dean, who had been a member of Berkeley'sROTC, was commissioned as asecond lieutenant in theCalifornia Army National Guard in 1921, before being given anactive duty commission in theinfantry on October 13, 1923.[1] His first assignment was to theUS 38th Infantry Regiment,3rd Infantry Division atFort Douglas, Utah.[3] During this posting, Dean took an interest inpolo ponies, owning and training several of his own.[4]
Dean was moved to thePanama Canal Zone in 1926, coachingboxing andbasketball teams though not competing himself. Dean returned to Fort Douglas in 1929 before attending theUnited States Army Infantry School atFort Benning, Georgia and then serving with a tank battalion before taking a course at the tank school. In 1932, Dean was assigned to theUS 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division on theUS West Coast. During this time, Dean also served in theCivilian Conservation Corps (CCC) as commander ofCamp Hackamore in northernCalifornia. Dean was then moved to the CCC headquarters inRedding, California.[5]
Following these appointments, Dean attended theUS Army Command and General Staff College atFort Leavenworth, Kansas before being assigned to a post onOahu,Hawaii for two years. Following this stint, Dean attended theArmed Forces Industrial College atFort McNair,Washington, D.C., and then the field officer's course at theChemical Warfare school in theUnited States Army War College atCarlisle Barracks. Dean was promoted tocaptain in 1936, andmajor in 1940. Upon this promotion, Dean was assigned to Washington, D.C., on theUnited States Department of War on theGeneral Staff, first as a junior member, then as assistant secretary, then asexecutive officer in the Requirement Division of the Ground Forces Headquarters, a department concerned with the acquisition of new weapons and electronics, and training literature.[5]
Following the United States' entry intoWorld War II, Dean was promoted to thetemporary rank oflieutenant colonel in 1941, andcolonel in 1942.[6] He was promoted tobrigadier general in December of that year and made head of the Requirements Division in 1943.[1] He held this office only briefly, before being assigned as assistant commander of theUS 44th Infantry Division, underMajor Generals James I. Muir andRobert L. Spragins beginning in late 1943.[7] The division was to sail for theEuropean Theater and Dean went with them despite being injured shortly before departure in aflamethrower accident which claimed the lives of two other soldiers.[6][1]
The 44th Infantry Division landed inFrance viaOmaha Beach on September 15, 1944.[6] It trained for a month before entering combat on October 18, 1944, when it relieved theUS 79th Infantry Division in the vicinity ofForet de Parroy, east ofLuneville, to take part in theSeventh United States Army drive to secure several passes in theVosges Mountains. The division was hit by a heavy counterattack by forces ofNazi Germany on October 25–26. The attack was repulsed and the 44th remained in the sector for several weeks. On November 13, 1944, it attacked northeast, advancing through the Vosges Mountains east ofLeintrey toDossenheim, and capturingAvricourt, on November 17. The division then pushed on to liberateStrasbourg with theFrench 2nd Armored Division. After regrouping, the 44th Infantry Division returned to the attack, takingRatzwiller and entering theEnsemble de Bitche along theMaginot Line.[8]
When division commander Major GeneralRobert L. Spragins was injured and relieved of command in December 1944, Dean was promoted to command the division.[6] That month, the division was caught up in theGerman Army offensive in theAlsace, known asOperation Nordwind.Fort Simserhof was captured by the Germans on December 19 and the 44th Infantry Division was forced to retreat to defensive positions east ofSarreguemines. On December 21–23, the 44th threw back three attempts by the Germans to cross theBlies River. An aggressive defense of the Sarreguemines area was continued throughout February and most of March 1945, when Dean was promoted to major general.[8]
The division moved across theRhine River atWorms, Germany on March 26, in the wake of the 3rd Infantry Division. The 44th relieved the 3rd on March 26–27 and crossed theNeckar River to attack and captureMannheim, Germany on March 28–29. Shifting to the west bank of theMain River, the division crossed that river atGrosse Auheim in early April, and engaged in a three-week period of training. Returning to the lines, the division resumed its attack on April 18 in conjunction with theUS 10th Armored Division, the 44th tookEhingen on April 23, crossed theDanube River. It then attacked southeast intoAustria, takingFüssen,Berg, andWertach as part of a drive toImst. Pursuing the disintegrating German forces throughFern Pass and intoInn Valley, the 44th was in Imst by May 4. The city ofLandeck surrendered on May 5. The19th German Army had surrendered atInnsbruck the same day, and the division was involved in processing German prisoners untilV-E Day on May 8.[8] Dean's troops took 30,000prisoners of war in the surrender of the German army. Dean was awarded theDistinguished Service Cross,[1] theLegion of Merit, and theArmy Distinguished Service Medal for his leadership of the division during the war.[9]
After a short period of occupation duty, the 44th Infantry Division returned to the United States in July 1945 where it began training for deployment to thePacific Theater. As part ofOperation Coronet it was intended that Dean would lead the division during the planned invasion ofHonshū, but the war came to an end before this took place and the operation was subsequently cancelled.[8] Dean then oversaw the drawdown of the division until he was relieved of command on November 1, 1945. The 44th Infantry Division was disbanded by the end of that month, and Dean was assigned to Fort Leavenworth again to organize and direct command classes.[10][11]
In October 1947, Dean was appointed the commander of military forces inSouth Korea, deputy toLieutenant GeneralJohn R. Hodge, commander of theUnited States Army Military Government in Korea (USAMGIK). This job was temporary as the US forces transitioned the South Koreans to independence. Headquartered inSeoul, Dean maintained political control of the country until August 15, 1948, when the new South Korean government was elected and the occupation ended. Dean was then made commander of theUS 7th Infantry Division, overseeing its movement from South Korea to bases inJapan as part of theOccupation of Japan. By January 1949, Dean and his division were inSapporo, Japan on the island ofHokkaido.[12][13] He was moved toYokohama in May 1949 to serve aschief of staff to theEighth United States Army under Lieutenant GeneralWalton Walker. In October 1949 Dean returned to division command when he took command of theUS 24th Infantry Division inKokura,Kyushu.[1][14]
Through his role in the USAMGIK, Dean oversaw the violent suppression of theJeju uprising, a prolonged armed uprising which broke out on April 3, 1948, largely in protest to theDivision of Korea and moves to establish a separate government in the South. TheWorkers' Party of South Korea and its supporters launched theinsurgency by attacking the police.Northwest Youth League members stationed on Jeju mobilized to violently suppress the uprising. In less than a month after the uprising began, a peace agreement had been reached between resistance leaderKim Dal-sam and Jeju constabulary commanderKim Ik-ryeol. However this agreement was rejected by Dean who soon after fired Kim Ik-ryeol and replaced him with the more compliant Pak Chin-gyŏng.[15] Dean subsequently ordered a purge of suspected sympathizers of the Workers' Party of South Korea from the Korean Constabulary culminating in thesummary execution of three sergeants. TheFirst Republic of Korea under PresidentSyngman Rhee escalated the suppression of the uprising from August 1948, declaringmartial law in November and beginning an "eradication campaign" against rebel forces in therural areas of Jeju in March 1949, defeating them within two months. 30,000 people were killed in total during the uprising including at least 14,373 civilians.[16]
When you get toPusan, head forTaejon. We want to stop the North Koreans as far from Pusan as we can. Block the main road as far north as possible. Make contact withGeneral Church. If you can't find him, go to Taejon and beyond if you can. Sorry I can't give you more information—that's all I've got. Good luck, and God bless you and your men!
At the outbreak of theKorean War on June 25, 1950, Dean's division was the closest US ground unit to theKorean Peninsula.General of the ArmyDouglas MacArthur ordered Walker to deploy the division to South Korea as quickly as possible to resist the advancing forces ofNorth Korea. Dean was ordered to send an advancebattalion from his division by air to South Korea with a mission to advance and resist leading elements of theNorth Korean People's Army in an effort to delay them as much as possible while the remainder of the division followed by sea. Dean was given command of all US forces in Korea, and his division numbered 15,965 men and 4,773 vehicles at the time.[18] On July 1, Dean organized the 406-manTask Force Smith from components of theUS 21st Infantry Regiment and ordered it into Korea, as the advance force.[19] As Task Force Smith advanced, Dean himself landed inDaejon on July 3 and set up his command post with Brigadier GeneralJohn H. Church, the Assistant Division Commander, and Brigadier GeneralGeorge B. Barth, theDivision Artillery commander, as his deputies.[20] Dean ordered Barth forward to act as his forward commander for Task Force Smith, which began digging in atOsan to resist North Korean troops advancing after the capture ofSeoul.[21] Task Force Smith was subsequently defeated by North Koreans at theBattle of Osan the next day, and pushed back.[22]
With the defeat of Task Force Smith, Dean ordered theUS 34th Infantry Regiment and other elements of the division to conduct delaying actions south of Osan, but he was disappointed and frustrated by the result.[23] The 34th Infantry was badly defeated in theBattle of Pyongtaek where it only briefly resisted the North Koreans before retreating in disarray. Dean was angered by the poor performance of the 34th Infantry Regiment during the battle.[24][25] He allegedly was upset that the regiment retreated so quickly without attempting to further delay the North Koreans. He considered ordering the regiment back north immediately but did not do so fearing the unit would be ambushed.[26] Dean replaced the commander of the 34th Infantry, Colonel Jay B. Lovless, and ordered the 3rd Battalion back north, but when it encountered North Korean resistance it immediately became disorganized and was forced to withdraw.[27][28] The North Koreans outnumbered Dean's troops, and the US forces had no weapons heavy enough to destroy the North KoreanT-34 tanks.[29]
Following the retreat fromPyongtaek, the scattered 1st Battalion, 34th Infantry retreated to Chonan, where the rest of the 34th Infantry Regiment was located.[30] L Company of the 3rd Battalion, 34th Infantry was ordered to probe north of the city and meet the advancing elements of theNorth Korean 4th Infantry Division which was advancing following its two victories.[31] Dean telegraphed the command from Taejon, ordering the rest of 3rd Battalion, 34th Infantry to move up behind L Company.[32] Former regimental commander Lovless moved north to join L Company, along with newly arrived Colonel Robert R. Martin, a friend of Dean's.[27] Around 18:00, Dean ordered Martin to take command of the 34th Infantry Regiment from Lovless.[32] The next morning, July 8, Dean and Walker arrived to see the outcome of theBattle of Chonan which had begun in the night. They discovered Martin had been killed and the regiment again defeated and fleeing in disarray.[33][34] He ordered it back to theKum River.[35] Dean ordered the rest of the 21st Infantry to conduct one final delaying action, and in theBattle of Chochiwon from July 10–12 it delayed the North Koreans before being defeated and forced back to the Kum River.[36][37]
On July 12, Dean ordered the division's three regiments—theUS 19th, 21st and 34th Infantry Regiments—to cross the Kum River, destroying all bridges behind them, and to establish defensive positions around Daejon. Dean formed a line with the 34th Infantry and 19th Infantry facing east, and held the heavily battered 21st Infantry in reserve to the southeast.[38] Daejon stood as a major transportation hub between Seoul andDaegu, giving it great strategic value for both sides.[39] The division was attempting to make a stand at Daejon, the last place it could conduct a delaying action before the North Korean forces could converge on the unfinishedBusan Perimeter (Pusan Perimeter).[40]
The 24th Infantry Division's three infantry regiments, which had a wartime strength of 3,000 each, were already below strength on their deployment, and heavy losses in the preceding two weeks had reduced their numbers further. The 21st Infantry had 1,100 men left, having suffered 1,433 casualties.[38] The 34th Infantry had only 2,020 and the 19th had 2,276 men. There were another 2,007 men in the 24th Infantry Division artillery formations.[41] Thus the division's total strength was 11,400.[42] This was severely reduced from the 15,965 men and 4,773 vehicles that had arrived in Korea at the beginning of the month.[18]
The 19th and 34th Regiments engaged the North Korean3rd Division and 4th Division at the Kum River, just west of Daejon.[43] Between July 13 and July 16, the two regiments suffered 650 casualties among the 3,401 men committed there.[42][44] On July 18, Walker ordered Dean to hold Daejon until July 20 so that theUS 1st Cavalry Division andUS 25th Infantry Division could establish defensive lines along theNaktong River, forming the Pusan Perimeter.[45][46]
The North Koreans then moved against Daejon.[47] On July 19, North Korean forces entered Daejon, the site of the 24th Infantry Division's headquarters.[48] Dean personally led the division in its stand at Daejon.[49][50] The North Koreans quickly surrounded the city and moved in from the west, north and south.[51]
For two days, the 34th Infantry fought the advancing North Koreans in bitter house-to-house fighting. North Korean soldiers continued to infiltrate the city, often disguised as farmers. The remaining elements of the 24th Infantry Division were pushed back block by block.[52] Without radios, and unable to communicate with the remaining elements of the division, Dean joined the men on the front lines, hunting the T-34 tanks with the help of the new shaped-charge, armor-piercing3.5 inch "Super Bazookas", which had only been put into production two weeks before the war.[53] At one point, Dean personally attacked a tank with ahand grenade, destroying it.[54] He also repeatedly directed the fire of US armor in the city while being exposed to North Korean fire.[13] American forces pulled back gradually after suffering heavy losses, allowing the North Korean 3rd and 4th Divisions to move on the city freely from the north, south, and west roads.[52] The 24th Infantry Division repeatedly attempted to establish its defensive lines, but was repeatedly pushed back by the numerically superior enemy.[42][50]
At the end of the day on July 20, Dean ordered the headquarters of the 34th Infantry to withdraw. Dean remained behind and assisted the US troops in evacuating the city until the last convoy was ready to leave Daejon. As the last convoy of troops moved out of the city and fought through a North Korean roadblock, Dean, with a small force of soldiers, followed them.[55] At the edge of the city, the final elements of the 34th Infantry, leaving the city in 50 vehicles, were ambushed and many of their vehicles were destroyed by machine guns and mortars, forcing the Americans to retreat on foot.[56] In the ensuing fight, Dean'sjeep made a wrong turn and was separated from the rest of the American forces.[57]
Dean's small force eventually made it out of the city past several North Korean roadblocks. Just outside the city Dean stopped his jeep to tend to several wounded US soldiers in a wrecked truck in the ditch. However, as they attempted to escape further they ran into another North Korean roadblock and were forced to continue on foot, crossing the Taejon River and climbing a nearby mountain. In the confusion, Dean was separated from the group.[58]
While he was going after water for a wounded man, Dean fell down a steep slope and was knocked unconscious. When he regained consciousness he found he had a gashed head, a broken shoulder, and many bruises. Alone and attempting to reach friendly forces, he met First Lieutenant Stanley Tabor from19th Infantry Regiment, his division. On July 26, 1950, they were discovered by the enemy who attempted to capture them. Dean escaped by Tabor's devotion and Dean ended up alone again.[59]
For 36 days, Dean wandered alone in the mountains trying to reach safety, going without food and medical treatment. The 6 foot (1.8 m) tall Dean who had weighed 210 pounds (95 kg) before the war was reduced to 130 pounds (59 kg) as he wandered for the next month. On August 25, two South Koreans who pretended to be guiding him toward safety led him into a prearranged ambush of North Korean soldiers at Chinan, 35 miles (56 km) south of Taejon and 65 miles (105 km) west of Taegu. Dean attempted to fight the North Koreans with his sidearm to make them kill him, but they easily took the weakened Dean prisoner.[60]
By July 22, with Dean still missing, the Eighth Army appointed Church commander of the 24th Infantry Division and promoted him to major general.[61] Dean was widely believed to have been killed until October 1950, when US forces captured a North Korean soldier named Lee Kyu-hyun (이규현) nearPyongyang. Lee had been assigned to live with Dean for a month as an interpreter. Lee was interviewed throughout late 1950 but US military leaders still generally thought Dean was dead.[60]
Dean was taken to a local police headquarters and kept in a cage overnight. North Korean troops were initially not aware of his identity.[62] Dean was taken to a prison camp inSuwon where he was given food and medical treatment, but he began suffering fromdiarrhea anddysentery. Dean was then transported to the main North Korean prisoner of war camp in Seoul with other American prisoners. He attempted to keep his identity a secret but he was quickly recognized by a South Korean administrator who had worked under him before the war. Dean was moved to Pyongyang and given a larger living quarters in an underground North Korean facility. He remained sick owing to poorly prepared food.[63]
As UN air raids against the North Koreans intensified, Dean was moved to Sunan, north of Pyongyang, to a hut where he lived with several guards. They began daily interrogations primarily aimed at forcing military intelligence from him or making him sign a written condemnation of the UN intervention in Korea, but Dean adamantly refused to do so. Senior North Korean military leaders continued such interrogations through October 1950 but eventually gave up when Dean would not cooperate and was not intimidated by their threats.[13] Dean continued to suffer from illness related to poor food but he was not given another interpreter and was not interrogated after October 1950. North Korean leaders had threatened to harm Dean if he did not cooperate but he was never actually tortured.[63] Dean took to playingchess with his guards often and he was allowed to exercise daily. He was kept alone, however, and was never with other American prisoners for the remainder of his confinement.[64] Dean later wrote extensively of his capture and imprisonment in his 1954autobiography,General Dean's Story.[65] He claimed the North Koreans considered him awar criminal and had many discussions with him about the problems withcapitalism in the United States.[66]
Dean later said he had tried to commitsuicide because he feared he would break under torture and divulge critical intelligence to the North Koreans, such as the plans forOperation Chromite, of which he had been aware.[1] Still he remained defiant during interrogations, refusing to divulge any information and acting unafraid, sometimes laughing off threats.[63] He was given better treatment than most UN prisoners in North Korea, as he was regularly fed and rarely subjected to interrogations after his initial capture. He tried several times to escape but failed in doing so.[1] He may have been moved toManpo when the UN forces took Pyongyang, and returned when theChinesePeople's Volunteer Army entered the war and forced the UN forces back.[67]
Dean had no contact with the outside world until he was interviewed on 21 December 1951, by anAustralianjournalist,Wilfred Burchett, who was awar correspondent forCe soir,[68] aFrench Left-wing newspaper. Burchett's interview with Dean's photograph was published worldwide on 24 December 1951. It was the first time Dean was definitively confirmed alive and as a prisoner to the rest of the world.[1] Dean recounted the incident in his autobiography with the title, "My friend Wilfred Burchett."[69] From Burchett's visit to the end of the war, Dean claimed in his autobiography he was visited by numerous news correspondents.[70] He claimed to have lived the remainder of his time as a prisoner in relative comfort.[71] After the July 27, 1953,Armistice Agreement, Dean remained in North Korea as a prisoner of war for several more weeks while thearmistice was worked out. He was returned to the UN forces atPanmunjom duringOperation Big Switch on September 4, 1953[63]and finally returned to US on September 24, 1953.
When Dean returned to the United States, he received a hero's welcome and was presented with a number of decorations, including the Medal of Honor, which he was unaware he had been awarded. Dean maintained he did not think his own experience was particularly heroic and asserted he did not feel he deserved an award for his actions in Korea.[1] He was given aticker-tape parade inNew York City on his return to the US on October 26, 1953, and he was made theGrand Marshal of theTournament of Roses Parade on January 1, 1954.[72]
Three months after his return from Korea, Dean was assigned as the Deputy Commanding General of theSixth United States Army at thePresidio of San Francisco inCalifornia. Dean held this post for two years until he retired from active duty on the 31st of October in 1955.[13] Upon retirement Dean was awarded theCombat Infantryman Badge for his front line service in World War II and Korea; general officers are not usually eligible, since they are not usually participants in front line combat, and Dean was only the second general to receive the award.[73] Other generals who received the Combat Infantryman Badge wereDouglas MacArthur,Omar Bradley andJoseph Stilwell.
Dean lived a quiet life in San Francisco after retirement. He died on August 24, 1981, aged 82, and was buried inSan Francisco National Cemetery in the Presidio of San Francisco and next to his wife.[1]
Dean met Mildred Dern ofSalt Lake City, Utah, when one of Dern's friends was injured in a fall from one of Dean's polo ponies during his tour between 1923 and 1926 at Fort Douglas. The two were married in 1926.[5] The couple had two children, Majorie June Dean, born in 1927, and William Dean Jr., born 1929. June married Robert Williams, a US Army Captain, while William Jr. attended West Point Academy in 1950.[74] William Dean Jr. served in theUnited States Forces Korea (Air Force,Kunsan Air Base). In 1963, he visited at the house of the farmer, Park Jong-goo who provided shelter to William F. Dean afterBattle of Taejon and conveyed heartiest appreciation to Park Jong-goo.[75][76]
Dean maintained an athletic lifestyle for much of his life, picking up weightlifting and running when he was young, coaching basketball and, in his later years, he playedtennis.[77] He maintained a steady athletic regimen for the majority of his life, even insisting upon it during his imprisonment.[63]
In his later life, Dean maintained a self-deprecating outlook on his actions in Korea and maintained he did not feel he deserved the Medal of Honor. Of his time in Korea, Dean later said, "I wouldn't have awarded myself a wooden star for what I did as a commander."[1] In his autobiography, he opted instead to highlight the command decisions he regretted making and contend, "There were heroes in Korea, but I was not one of them."[78]
Dean was decorated numerous times for his World War II and Korean War service. These awards are now on display at the University of California, Berkeley.[79]
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In 1951, Congress voted to award Dean the Medal of Honor for his actions during the defense of Taejon. The Medal was presented by US PresidentHarry S. Truman on 9 January 1951,[80](Department of the Army, General Orders No. 7, February 16 1951)[81] to Dean's wife, son William Dean Jr. and daughter Marjorie June Dean. Dean himself was still reportedmissing in action in Korea and thought to be dead.[54]
Citation:
Maj. Gen. Dean distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the repeated risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. In command of a unit suddenly relieved from occupation duties in Japan and as yet untried in combat, faced with a ruthless and determined enemy, highly trained and overwhelmingly superior in numbers, he felt it his duty to take action which to a man of his military experience and knowledge was clearly apt to result in his death. He personally and alone attacked an enemy tank while armed only with a hand grenade. He also directed the fire of his tanks from an exposed position with neither cover nor concealment while under observed artillery and small-arms fire. When the town ofTaejon was finally overrun he refused to insure his own safety by leaving with the leading elements but remained behind organizing his retreating forces, directing stragglers, and was last seen assisting the wounded to a place of safety. These actions indicate that Maj. Gen. Dean felt it necessary to sustain the courage and resolution of his troops by examples of excessive gallantry committed always at the threatened portions of his frontlines. The magnificent response of his unit to this willing and cheerful sacrifice, made with full knowledge of its certain cost, is history. The success of this phase of the campaign is in large measure due to Maj. Gen. Dean's heroic leadership, courageous and loyal devotion to his men, and his complete disregard for personal safety.[54]
| Insignia | Rank | Component | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Second Lieutenant | Regular Army | July 3, 1923 |
 | First Lieutenant | Regular Army | November 8, 1928 |
 | Captain | Regular Army | August 1, 1935 |
 | Major | Regular Army | July 3, 1940 |
 | Lieutenant Colonel | Army of the United States | December 24, 1941 |
 | Colonel | Army of the United States | August 21, 1942 |
 | Brigadier General | Army of the United States | December 10, 1942 |
 | Major General | Army of the United States | March 19, 1945 |
| Lieutenant Colonel | Regular Army | July 3, 1946 |
| Colonel | Regular Army | June 10, 1948 |
| Brigadier General | Regular Army | October 1, 1949 |
| Major General | Regular Army | May 23, 1952 |
| Major General | Retired List | November 1, 1955 |
Dean was the highest ranking UN prisoner of war of the Korean War. He was also the highest ranking Medal of Honor recipient during the Korean War. His story of capture and imprisonment by the North Koreans was recorded by numerous publications. His initial capture was covered byLife Magazine in July 1950 with a photo essay detailing his life.[77] In December 1951, when he was discovered to be alive,TIME Magazine did an article on his story and imprisonment, featuring an image of him on the magazine's front cover.[84] He subsequently received more attention from the press. Multiple media outlets attempted to interview Dean but the North Koreans rarely allowed it. Few photos and little information on his status was released, mostly that which showed him in good condition.[64] After his release, Dean's story, as well as Lee's, was told inLife Magazine.[63]
Dean was memorialized in several ways for his actions. The T-34 tank Dean knocked out remained where it was destroyed in Taejon until 1977 as a memorial to the fight.[1] When the city of Daejeon built a Battle of Taejon memorial in 1981 they decided to include a statue that depicted Dean when he was firing his bazooka at North Korean tanks.[85] In his hometown of Carlyle, a newly renovated bridge was named theGeneral Dean Suspension Bridge in 1953. It was placed on theNational Register of Historic Places in 1973.[86] After Dean's death, his uniform and personal items were donated to the University of California at Berkeley ROTC program. The ROTC created a memorial for Dean in the Hearst Gym on campus, designating Room 155 "The Dean Room." Dean's uniform and medals, including his Medal of Honor, have been housed there.[79] The university'sCal Alumni Association also selected Dean as their 1953 "Alumnus of the Year."[87]
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| Preceded by | Commanding General 44th Infantry Division January–September 1945 | Succeeded by Post deactivated |
| Preceded by | Commanding General 7th Infantry Division January–June 1951 | Succeeded by |
