Korean War

The Korean War began with a divided Korea and ended with a divided Korea. At the conclusion of World War II, Soviet Russia occupied Korea north of the 38th parallel, and the United States military administration controlled Korea south of the 38th parallel. After some time, the two portions became separate states called North Korea and South Korea, respectively. North Korea formed a Communist government, and its neighboring state South Korea formed a Capitalist government. While some battles took place along the 38th parallel, it was on June 25, 1950, that war took hold of the two states when North Korean armed forces invaded South Korea in an effort to reunify the states. More than 40,000 American soldiers, including more than 700 service members from Wisconsin, were killed during active duty in this war that left Korea divided even today.