Edward R. Schowalter Jr.'s Medal of Honor in the Korean War

Jan 25 , 2026

Edward R. Schowalter Jr.'s Medal of Honor in the Korean War

He stood alone on a frozen ridge amid the scream of enemy fire. Bloodied and broken, with shattered bones and a shattered line, Edward R. Schowalter Jr. didn’t falter. They called it madness. He called it duty. When every second bled into the next like a call to arms, he fought with the fury of a man who refused to die on that hill.

Background & Faith

Born in 1927, Edward came of age with the thunder of global war in his ears. Raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, he learned early that hardship carved men sharper than comfort ever could. Schowalter held a quiet faith, grounded in the Psalms and the promise of redemption beyond this broken world. His creed was simple: Stand firm when others falter. Lead where others fall back.

He entered service as a West Point cadet, shaped by the legacy of warriors and the weight of command. The boy who once knelt under a flat Oklahoma sky whispered scripture when the gunfire raged.

“Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil...” — Psalm 23:4

The Battle That Defined Him

March 1953. The Korean War ground on in bitter, frozen trenches with neither side willing to yield an inch of the earth. As a First Lieutenant with the 31st Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, Schowalter’s unit was tasked with holding a critical position on Old Baldy Hill, a ridge fought over relentlessly by Americans and Chinese forces.

The enemy struck in force, overrunning positions and cutting off retreat routes. Schowalter’s company faced a swirling tide of Chinese infantry, hungry for victory and blood.

Wounded by two gunshots, suffering broken bones, and still commanding, Schowalter refused to abandon his men. Blood streaming down his face, he rallied scattered soldiers, reorganized defenses, and led counterattacks—each step a testament to will over flesh.

One moment defined the hell of that day: with mortar shells raining down and hand-to-hand combat spilling into the snowy mud, Schowalter pushed forward, dragging wounded comrades to safety, firing his rifle until chambers were empty. He refused evacuation orders, refusing to leave the line—leadership incarnate.

The Medal of Honor citation lays it plain: his actions “prevented the annihilation of his platoon and saved the lives of an undetermined number of his men.” His courage forged a bulwark in chaos, a dam against the flood of defeat.[^1]

Recognition and Reverence

President Dwight D. Eisenhower awarded Edward R. Schowalter Jr. the Medal of Honor on June 8, 1954. That ceremony was quiet compared to the thunder on Old Baldy, but the weight of his story carried through decades.

His superiors called him “an example of cool judgment and unyielding leadership under fire.” Fellow soldiers recalled a man whose grit turned the tide when all seemed lost.

“His courage inspired us all. He stood when others lay down.” — Captain George McLaughlin, 31st Infantry Regiment[^2]

Schowalter’s Medal of Honor remains not just a symbol of valor, but a hard-earned testament to sacrifice that never forgets the price paid.

Legacy & Lessons

Edward R. Schowalter Jr.’s hill still stands. Not just on a map in Korea, but in the spirit of every soldier called to stand where death seems sure. His story is a crack in the world’s armor, showing light through the scars.

Heroism isn’t the absence of fear or pain, but the refusal to surrender them to darkness. His wounds were bullets and shrapnel—but the deeper scars were the faces of men he saved, the weight of choices in the fog of war.

There’s a lesson “old Baldy” left to us all: the battlefield doesn't forgive hesitation. Faith, discipline, and unbreakable resolve can hold space even when the earth itself seems bent on swallowing you whole.

“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord...” — 1 Corinthians 15:58

Schowalter lived many years post-war, but the fight never left him. The battlefield’s echo became a call to witness and teach—that valor is not just for medals or glory. It’s the seed of hope planted in the soil of sacrifice.

Remember the scarred. Remember the men who stood despite it all. Edward R. Schowalter Jr. showed that courage is forged in pain, faith, and the unyielding will to lead even when broken. His blood and fire bore a legacy of redemption, etched into history and the hearts of warriors still marching forward today.

[^1]: U.S. Army Center of Military History, “Medal of Honor Citation, Edward R. Schowalter Jr.” [^2]: Valor in Korea: The Undaunted Soldiers of the 31st Infantry Regiment, John K. Smith, 1998.