Private First Class John Thomas Sharp

Early Life

John Thomas Sharp was born to Arthur and Nellie Sharp in Maryland in 1931. 

John’s paternal grandparents, Thomas and Francis Sharp, were born into slavery in North Carolina. They eventually owned (mortgaged) their own home and had a farm. They could not read or write. Their son, Arthur, attended school through the fourth grade and could read and write. 

Nellie was also from North Carolina and attended school through the sixth grade. She could also read and write. Arthur and Nellie met, married, and had their first child, William, in 1924. 

In early 1930, the family left North Carolina and moved north. Arthur and Nellie had four children by this time. Nellie and the children temporarily resided at an apartment in New Jersey. Arthur was working somewhere away from the family or traveling, looking for work.  

By 1940, the family was back together and lived on Madison Street. This was one of the small side streets of the original gridiron street pattern, with small row houses. In Baltimore, Maryland. Arthur became a general laborer after leaving North Carolina. He had several different employers and experienced multiple periods of unemployment.  

In 1950, the family lived on Califax Way in Baltimore, Maryland. Arthur and Nellie had 11 children: William, Artina, Edward, Olivia, John, Georgia, Vernon, Florence, Leola, and Arthur. By this time, John had joined the U.S. Army and had left the house.

Homefront

Early Baltimore

Baltimore City has a long and rich history. It began in 1729 as a charter on the Patapsco River known as Baltimore Town. It grew rapidly as a port city when it began opening flour mills and then shipping the flour to Ireland. The city’s economic success attracted an array of immigrants, including Catholics from Nova Scotia, as well as Irish, Scottish, and German settlers.  

In the early 1800s, Baltimore became home to Frederick Douglass and 26,000 other free African Americans. This was the largest African American community in the nation at that time.  

In the early 1900s, many African American families (including the Sharps) migrated to Baltimore. This increased the city’s population and increased competition for housing and jobs. 

Baltimore and Racial Tensions

The Sharp family did not escape racial tensions by moving North. Baltimore City had its own issues of racism and de facto segregation in John’s formative years. 

In 1949, Linwood Matthews, a 19-year-old African American man, was stabbed and killed by a White man in Carroll Park. The golf course at this park was at the center of a bitter racial discrimination lawsuit. In 1948, a federal judge ruled that the city of Baltimore was violating the Fourteenth Amendment by restricting Black golfers to the Carroll Park course. 

Communism Comes to Baltimore

In 1950, the Maryland Bar Association voted “overwhelmingly” in favor of the state’s anti-subversive Ober Law. The law forbade “membership in organizations found to be subversive” and required “public employees, including school teachers, to sign loyalty oaths.”

In 1953, Dr. Richard J. McKinney, head of the philosophy department at Morgan State College, explained that “an increasing number of teachers are becoming afraid to express their true judgements on matters pertaining to Marxism or allying themselves with liberal movements” due to the effects of McCarthyism.

Five Baltimoreans were called before the House Un-American Activities Committee in Washington, D.C. They were questioned regarding Communist activities “in the Baltimore defense area.” All invoked their Fifth Amendment right when asked if they were members of the Communist Party. All appeared to have had ties to labor unions. 

Baltimore in the Korean War

Baltimoreans experienced the Korean War at home and abroad. For Thanksgiving in 1950, Baltimore Catholic churches organized a “Bundles-for-Korea” collection campaign. Clothing, shoes, and bedding were collected to support “thousands of homeless war victims in Korea.” 

 In 1951, a civil defense test aired on the radio simulating a bomb and anti-aircraft gunfire. Despite warnings prior to the test, reports from terrified citizens poured into radio stations and newspapers. One caller phoned to say that “it was too realistic and worse than the Welles show.” In 1953, a test of the new siren system was held during an air-raid drill to “make the public air raid conscious.” 

Also in 1951, the Glenn L. Martin plant in Baltimore began producing materials for the Korean War. They hired an additional 10,700 workers to help with production. Martin produced the Matador, B-61 pilotless bombers, B57-A Canberra jet bombers, and did subcontract work on Grumman aircraft. Engineers at the plant were “engaged in what may be described only as ‘highly secret electronics work’ and research on other missiles.”

One Community, Two Different Lenses

On July 8, 1950, the African American-run Baltimore newspaper, the Afro-American, featured a story about Black troops moving into Korea.  The story in the Afro-American mentioned the 24^th Infantry Regiment of the 25^th Infantry Division. John Sharp’s name was included in the listing of Baltimoreans at the end of the article (although there was an error in his parents’ names).

In contrast, an article ran in the mainstream Baltimore newspaper, The Sun, on August 20, 1950, focused on White missing and wounded servicemen. Personal details from interviews with mothers of the servicemen and photographs were featured in the piece. 

Military Experience

John Sharp entered the U.S.  Army in Maryland. He was a private first class inCompany C, 1^st Battalion, 24^th Infantry Regiment, 25^th Infantry Division. The 24^th Infantry Regiment, composed of all-Black enlistees and mostly White officers, was one of the first units assigned to Korea. 

Upon arrival in Korea, the 24^th Infantry Regiment was deployed to defend the Pusan Perimeter against the North Korean Army. Sharp’s unit faced its first significant fighting at Battle Mountain in August 1950. 

In their push to capture the port city of Masan, the 6^th North Korean Division began an assault on troops positioned to the west of Haman near what became known as “Battle Mountain.” Company C was overrun by North Korean troops and took the brunt of the attack. It was likely during this battle that Sharp received shrapnel injuries to his arm and foot.  He remained in the hospital until October.

By October, the 24^th Infantry Regiment, reinforced with new soldiers, was moving north from Taejon toward Seoul and was charged with collecting weapons and ammunition left behind by the retreating enemy. Morale damaged by segregation and racial prejudice was on the rise because the soldiers believed the war would be over by Christmas. In early November, the 24^th Infantry Regiment moved north by trucks and railroad to Musan-ni, just south of Kaesong, a city on the 38^th parallel. 

On November 10, 1950, after reports of enemy activity, a Task Force was formed to clear the town of Yonch’on. On November 11, as they returned from the mission, the convoy was attacked. In this attack, 42 Americans were killed, 24 were wounded, and eight, including Sharp, were captured during the fighting.

After being captured, Sharp made the long march to a Prisoner of War (POW) camp over 250 miles away. Camp 5 was located at Pyoktong, on the Yalu River dividing North Korea and China. Many prisoners forced to make this march died along the route from starvation and exposure. 

Conditions in Camp 5 were miserable. Prisoners were housed in huts they built themselves of wood and straw with dirt floors. There was a severe lack of food and medical supplies. In 1951, POWs reported they received “a quarter cup of uncooked corn, sorghum, or millet” per day. It is estimated that over a third of U.S. prisoners held by the North Koreans and Chinese died in the camps. Sharp was reported to have passed away in the camp from malnutrition on February 28, 1951.

Commemoration

Details of Sharp’s burial are unknown. His remains have not been recovered.

John Sharp is memorialized at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaiʻi. He was posthumously awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge, Korean Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Prisoner of War Medal, Purple Heart Medal, Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation, Republic of Korea War Service Medal, and the United Nations Service Medal. In 2022, his name was inscribed on the Wall of Remembrance at the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. 

Bibliography

Primary Sources

“4 Maryland GI’s Missing, Six Wounded: 69^th Korean War Casualty List Includes 2 Baltimoreans.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], August 20, 1950. Proquest (54209786). 

Arthur Sharp. World War II Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947. Digital Images. https://ancestryclassroom.com.

“Baltimore Sued on Golf Parks.” Afro-American [Baltimore, Maryland], December 27, 1947. Proquest (531602040). 

“Baltimore’s Place in the Changing Steel Picture.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], January 28, 1950. Proquest (542060523). 

“Bethlehem Steel and Maryland History.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], February 3, 1956. Proquest (541381748). 

“Big Red Withdrawal Hinted on Central Korean Front.”  The Salisbury Times [Salisbury, Maryland], January 25, 1951. Proquest (2378354934). 

“Blight Area Study Planned: Housing Authority to Aid in Survey of Housing.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], May 5, 1949. Proquest (541925382). 

“Boy, 19, Killed in Public Park: Tragedy Climates Tension in Area.” Afro-American [Baltimore, Maryland], October 8, 1949. Proquest (531654109). 

“City Leaders Optimistic on Reconversion: Impending End of War Finds Baltimore in ‘Very Good Condition’ City’s Reaction to Jap Peace Bid.” [Baltimore, Maryland], August 11, 1945. Proquest (537686686). 

“Communism Fight Urged: Perlman Tells Women Attorneys to Take Lead.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], April 12, 1950. Proquest (541988822). 

“Court Rules Negroes May Use Fairways.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], June 19, 1948. Newspapers.com (373601694). 

“Decline in U. S. Ships Is Cited: Stanton Calls for Passage of Maritime Bill at Hearing.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], April 25, 1952. Proquest (541762616). 

“Disabled Korean War Veteran Fears Santa’ll Skip His Tots.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], December 13, 1950. Proquest (541949568). 

“Fear of Communism Seen As Threat to Academic Freedom.” Afro-American [Baltimore, Maryland], May 2, 1953. Proquest (531798215). 

“Gifts sought for Koreans: Catholic Church Collecting Clothes for War Victims.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], November 19, 1950. Proquest (541961882). 

“Import Duties Up for Month: November Collections Show Port Headed for Record.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], December 4, 1950. Proquest (539855583). 

“Lane Speaks at Elks Rally: Constitution Won’t Be Cold-War Casualty.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], May 29, 1950. Proquest (542008526). 

“Martin Plant Now Producing New Missiles.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], September 14, 1951. Proquest (541751880). 

Maryland. Baltimore. 1940 U.S. Census. Digital Images. https://ancestryclasroom.com.

Maryland. Baltimore. 1950 U.S. Census. Digital Images. https://ancestryclasroom.com.

“Members of 332^nd Now in Japan Aid in Air Bombardment.” Afro-American [Baltimore, Maryland], July 8, 1950. Proquest (531709367). 

“Merrick Asks Public Housing Program to Clean Up Slums.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], February 18, 1950. Proquest (542086997). 

New Jersey. Essex County. 1930 U.S. Census. Digital Images. https://ancestryclasroom.com.

North Carolina. Camden County. 1920 U.S. Census. Digital Images. https://ancestryclasroom.com.

“One Marylander Killed in Action: One Wounded, Another Missing, According to Reports.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], July 23, 1951. Proquest (541814509). 

“Probers End Hearings on Baltimore: 5 Claim Constitutional Protection for Refusing to Reply.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], July 14, 1951. Proquest (541806001). 

The Pyoktong POW Camp Information Report. 1953. Central Intelligence Agency. https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP80-00810A001400870003-8.pdf. 

“Ridgeway Tries To Speed Up Armistice.” The Salisbury Times [Salisbury, Maryland], July 3, 1950. Proquest (2378569576). 

“Scores Alarmed by City ‘Bombing’: Radio Listeners Find Reports of Stadium ‘Raid’ Realistic.”  The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], July 5, 1951. Proquest (538958501). 

“State Prepared for Air Raid Drill: First Since World War II Set for 2.01 P.M. Tomorrow.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], September 21, 1953. Proquest (542407403). 

“Tan Yanks Land: Units of Famed 24^th Swing into Action.” Afro-American [Baltimore, Maryland], July 8, 1950. Proquest (531709367). 

“This Week: The Cold War Gets Red-Hot.” Afro-American [Baltimore, Maryland], July 8, 1950. Proquest (531707539). 

“Unemployed Report Given: Benefit Payments in 1950 Hit Peak Before Korean War.” The Sun [Baltimore, Maryland], April 23, 1951. Proquest (541805565). 

Secondary Sources

Bowers, William T., et al. Black Soldier, White Army: The 24th Infantry Regiment in Korea. Center of Military History, 1996.

“The History of Baltimore.” City of Baltimore. Accessed December 06, 2025. https://www.baltimorecity.gov/sites/default/files/5_History.pdf.

“John Thomas Sharp.” American Battle Monuments Commission. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://weremember.abmc.gov/s?q=Sharp&type=16&v=G.

“John Thomas Sharp.” Defense Personnel POW/MIA Accounting Agency. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://dpaa-mil.sites.crmforce.mil/dpaaProfile?id=a0Jt000000O4AnhEAF.

“John Thomas Sharp.” Veterans Legacy Memorial, National Cemetery Administration Accessed March 6, 2026. https://www.vlm.cem.va.gov/JohnThomasSharp/19ECC. 

“PFC John Thomas Sharp.” Find a Grave. Updated December 22, 2017. Accessed October 6, 2025. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/118806010/john_thomas-sharp.

Ward, Thomas. “The Army’s Last Segregated Unit: Black Prisoners at Camp 5, North Korea.” The Journal of African American History 107(1): 27-54. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/358989982_The_Army’s_Last_Segregated_Unit_Black_Prisoners_at_Camp_5_North_Korea.

This profile was researched and created through the Researching Silent Heroes program, sponsored by the American Battle Monuments Commission.