The Stories They Keep is an exhibition of oral history featuring over 20 interviews and personal photographs collected between April 2024 and April 2025 from American and Korean veterans who served during and after the Korean War.
2025 marks the 75th anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War. The exhibit tells the personal stories of veterans—many now nearing 100 years of age-whose experiences the public has largely overlooked and whose memories they have rarely shared. These South Korean and US veterans paint a picture of a fearsome struggle which took the lives of many around them. They also discuss the ways in which they coped with the hardships of the bitter cold, which was a constant companion in the first year of the war. The South Korean veterans speak movingly about the enduring legacy of America’s participation in the war. The heroism and sacrifice of American youth that served on the Korean peninsula produced a thriving democracy, an economic powerhouse, and key geopolitical alliance that has survived seven decades. This exhibition honors the enduring legacy and sacrifices of the many men and women that served their countries both during the conflict and in the years thereafter.Â
