“On March 1 great throngs of men, women, and children in Seoul, the national capital, a city of 300,000 inhabitants, and in other parts of the country, paraded the streets.”

「Atlantian tells how Koreans are seeking liberty」, 『The Atlanta Journal』, 1919

The journalist who wrote this article is William Alderman Linton(1891~1960) from the United States.

William Alderman Linton was born in Thomasville, Georgia in February 1891.

He graduated from Georgia Institute of Technology in 1912 and came to Korea as a 21-year-old missionary to teach students at the Gunsan Yeongmyeong School.

In 1917, he became the principal of the Yeongmyeong School.

The March 1st Movement that began in Seoul on March 1st, 1919, had spread all over the country. The movement reached Gunsan on March 5th with the Yeongmyeong School as the key role.

The independence movement in Gunsan was planned when Kim Byung-soo, an alumnus of Yeongmyeong School, brought the Declaration of Independence from Seoul and met with teachers and students. Unfortunately, the plan was preemptively discovered. On March 5th, Japanese police raided Yeongmyeong School to confiscate the Declaration of Independence and arrest teachers and students involved in the movement.

Teachers and students who witnessed this raid initiated the movement on the same day.

The Japanese military and police fired upon nonviolent protesters and brutally tortured those who were arrested. A total of 28 movements were initiated in Gunsan until May with 53 dead, 72 missing, and 195 injured. People who led the movement were sentenced to prison and incarcerated.

William Alderman Linton, who was the principal of Yeongmyeong School, deliberately overlooked and supported the preparation of the movement. He also witnessed how Japan brutally suppressed the movement and tortured teachers and students.

William Alderman Linton returned to the United States in May 1919 to have a sabbatical. He attended the Layman Conference and testified about Japan’s brutal colonization and resistance of Koreans.

He further spread the news of the Korean Independence Movement and the March 1st Movement to the world by contributing ‘Atlantian tells how Koreans are seeking liberty’ in the Atlantic Journal.

In 1921, William Alderman Linton returned to Korea to assist in educational work. However, the refusal toward Japan’s coercion to visit shrines led to two schools under his charge to close down and him leaving Korea in 1940.

After the liberation, he returned to Korea and devoted his life to missionary work and education. In1956, he founded Daejeon University (currently Hannam University) and served as the first dean.

In 2010, the Korean government conferred posthumous honors of the Order of Merit for National Foundation for William Alderman Linton’s deeds.

His love for Korea is passed down to his descendants who continue their special relationship with Korea today.

– William’s son, Hugh MacIntyre Linton. Born in 1926 at Gunsan, Jeollabuk-do. Fought in Incheon Landing Operation. Worked as a missionary and medical volunteer with his wife, (Lois Elizabeth Flowers Linton.

–William’s son, Thomas Dwight Linton. Born in Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do. Worked as a missionary and medical volunteer. Served as the dean of the Honam Theological University and Seminary.

–William’s grandson, Stephen Winn Linton. Served as head of Eugene Bell Foundation, of North Korea support foundation.

–William’s grandson, John Linton. Born at Gunsan, Jeollabuk-do. Served as a head of Severance Hospital International Clinic Center. Planned the design of a Korean ambulance.

William Alderman Linton, who supported and spread the news of the Korean Independence Movement and walked alongside Koreans, is the true ‘Friend of Korea’!

Let’s carry on the dream of William Alderman Linton by promoting Korea to the world and changing the global society.