Skip to main content
Support

In December of 1950, the crew of the SS Meredith Victory, a modestly-sized Merchant Marine ship, performed what the Guinness Book of World Records refers to as “the greatest rescue operation ever by a single ship.” The crew of the “Ship of Miracles,” as it came to be known, evacuated 14,000 refugees using a vessel designed and equipped to carry a tiny fraction of that number. One of the last surviving members of the crew, Admiral J. Robert Lunney, recounts the unlikely and amazing journey that began in Hungnam Harbor on December 23, and ended on December 26, when 14,000 refugees, and 5 babies born during the voyage, safely arrived on the island of Koje Do. That’s the focus of this special edition of Wilson Center NOW.


Hosted By

History and Public Policy Program

The History and Public Policy Program makes public the primary source record of 20th and 21st century international history from repositories around the world, facilitates scholarship based on those records, and uses these materials to provide context for classroom, public, and policy debates on global affairs.  Read more

Cold War International History Project

The Cold War International History Project supports the full and prompt release of historical materials by governments on all sides of the Cold War. Through an award winning Digital Archive, the Project allows scholars, journalists, students, and the interested public to reassess the Cold War and its many contemporary legacies. It is part of the Wilson Center's History and Public Policy Program.  Read more

North Korea International Documentation Project

The North Korea International Documentation Project serves as an informational clearinghouse on North Korea for the scholarly and policymaking communities, disseminating documents on the DPRK from its former communist allies that provide valuable insight into the actions and nature of the North Korean state. It is part of the Wilson Center's History and Public Policy Program.  Read more

Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policy

The Center for Korean History and Public Policy was established in 2015 with the generous support of the Hyundai Motor Company and the Korea Foundation to provide a coherent, long-term platform for improving historical understanding of Korea and informing the public policy debate on the Korean peninsula in the United States and beyond.  Read more