Sergeant Reckless: The Marine Corps Horse Who Went to War

October 1952 — $250 and a New Name

Marine Lieutenant Eric Pedersen paid $250 for a chestnut mare near Seoul. She had been a racehorse, built for speed on flat tracks, with a broad blaze down her face and an easy temperament. Her original owner, a Korean boy, had sold her to pay for his sister's education. The Marines renamed her Reckless.

The plan was to use her to carry 75mm recoilless rifle shells up the mountain trails above the Imjin River. Each round weighed 24 pounds. The shells had to be brought from the supply point at the base to the firing site near the summit, a steep climb on rough terrain.

She Learned the Route Herself

After a few trips with handlers walking alongside her, Reckless memorized the path. She would carry a load to the summit, be unloaded, turn around, and walk back down to the supply point on her own. Then stand still to be reloaded and go again. No one led her. No one followed. She just went.

The Marines noticed she would eat almost anything offered: scrambled eggs, beer, candy, potato chips, Coca-Cola. She slept in the men's tents. By the time of the battle, she had been living with the unit for months and knew everyone by scent.

March 26, 1953

The Battle of Outpost Vegas was one of the last major engagements of the Korean War. The ammunition ran out faster than the men could carry it up. So Reckless went.

She made 51 trips that day. Nine thousand pounds of shells. At one point, she was loading and unloading so fast that crews barely had time to prepare the next load before she reappeared at the bottom. She was wounded twice by shrapnel — once in the left flank, once near her forehead. Neither time did she stop.

Staff Sergeant Reckless, USMC

The Marine Corps formally promoted her to the rank of Staff Sergeant. She received two Purple Hearts and the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal. She lived the rest of her life at Camp Pendleton, California, where she had free run of the base.

She died on May 13, 1968. She was buried with full military honors. A life-size bronze statue stands at the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle, Virginia. Her rank is still recognized as official.

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Read more about her in Robin Hutton's biography of Sergeant Reckless. Or browse our horse collection for quality horse care gear.

Sources

• Hutton, Robin. Sergeant Reckless: America's War Horse (Regnery History, 2014).
• United States Marine Corps official records, Battle of Outpost Vegas, March 1953.
• National Museum of the Marine Corps, Triangle, Virginia.

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