38th Parallel -- Matfield Green KTA Service Area, Towanda KS
N 38° 05.669 W 096° 34.802
14S E 712208 N 4219064
A sign at the KTA Matfield Green Service Area near the 38th parallel of Earth, which passes near here, memorializes the Korean War and the Kansas ARNG units that were delpoyed to fight there
Waymark Code: WMX510
Location: Kansas, United States
Date Posted: 11/27/2017
Views: 3
The 38th parallel in Kansas is a LOT quieter and less stressful than the 38th parallel between the two Koreas on the other side of the globe -- in 2017 and in 1950.
This historical marker and memorial at the Kansas Turnpike Authority Service Area at Towanda KS near where the 38th parallel passes through KS reads as follows:
"THE 38TH PARALLEL
Located south of the Matfield Green service area is mile marker 88, which is 38 degrees North latitude. This latitude line became better known as the 38th Parallel at the beginning of the Korean Conflict. Korea was temporarily divided along the 38th parallel in 1945 after Japanese occupation during World War II.
Because of political differences and mutual distrust between United States who supported South Korea, and the Soviet Union, who supported North Korea, the two Koreas were never united. On June 25, 1950 North Korea, a communist industrial region, crossed the 38th parallel and launched a military attack on South Korea, an agricultural region dependent on aid from the United States. The United Nations intervened with the military force. The war that followed resulted in more than 3 million Koreans dead, millions of refugees homeless, about 1 million Chinese dead and 54,246 American casualties. The war ended on July 27, 1953 with an armistice that established the 38th parallel as the permanent border between the separate countries of North and South Korea.
[map of Korea with the 38th parallel superimposed]
[map of the world with the 38th parallel superimposed]
[map of Kansas with the 38th parallel superimposed]
During the Korean conflict, 415 Kansans died or were listed as missing. For Kansas Army National Guard units mobilized during the conflict. These were the 130th Field Artillery Group, the 174th Military Police Battalion, the 195th Field Artillery Battalion, and the 127th Fighter Squadron."
Marker Name: 38th Parallel
Marker Type: Rest Area
Marker text:
see above
Marker Location: Butler
Name of agency setting marker: Kansas Department of Transportation
Year Marker Placed: Not listed
Official Marker Number: Not listed
Marker Web Address: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
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