Frank Nicias Mitchell

What does courage look like when the snow is falling, the wounded cannot move, and withdrawal means leaving Marines behind?

First Lieutenant Frank Nicias Mitchell, United States Marine Corps, was born on 18 August 1921 in Indian Gap, Texas. A 1938 graduate of Roaring Springs High School, he enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1939 and served during World War II aboard USS Enterprise in connection with Wake Island, later serving in the Marshall Islands and on occupation duty in China. He also served with Fleet Marine Force Pacific as a member of its rifle and pistol team. After attending Colorado College under the Navy V-12 program, along with Southwestern University and North Texas Agricultural and Mechanical College, Mitchell was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in 1945.

In Korea, Mitchell served as a rifle platoon leader with Company A, 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division. Before his final action, he had already proven himself under fire, earning the Bronze Star Medal with Combat “V” for heroic achievement between 24 September and 4 October 1950, and the Silver Star for gallantry near Hamhung on 3 November 1950. His verified awards also included the Purple Heart with one Gold Star, the Navy Presidential Unit Citation with two bronze stars, the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal with one bar, the American Defense Service Medal with Fleet Clasp, the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, the American Campaign Medal, the World War II Victory Medal, the China Service Medal, the Korean Service Medal with two bronze stars, and the United Nations Service Medal. On 26 November 1950, near Hansan-ni, Korea, Mitchell led his platoon in the point position during a patrol through thick woods and snow when enemy forces opened fire at point-blank range. With his forward Marines pinned down and casualties mounting, he rushed into the fire, took an automatic rifle from a wounded Marine, and drove back the attackers. When the ammunition was gone, he fought on with grenades, reorganized his platoon despite his own wounds, and helped repel a violent counterattack in close combat.

As darkness closed in, Mitchell called for volunteers to recover the wounded. Though suffering from multiple wounds, he personally led the litter bearers through hostile lines, then fought alone to cover their withdrawal. He was fatally struck by small-arms fire after saving several Marines. For this extraordinary sacrifice, he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

Mitchell was twenty-nine years old when he gave his life. His body could not be recovered, and he remains unaccounted for. Today he is memorialized in the Courts of the Missing at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, and his name is also inscribed on the Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall. His Medal of Honor was presented on 6 August 1952 to his widow and daughter at their home in Atlanta, Georgia.