Yanghwajin Foreign Missionary Cemetery: History
During the late 19th and early 20th century, about 1,500 missionaries came to Korea. In 1890, Joseon King Gojong designated Yanghwajin Cemetery a site for these foreign visitors. Currently there are about 145 missionaries buried in the cemetery.
Originally members of the Kyungsung European-American Cemetery Association maintained the 14,000 square meter (150,000 square foot) grounds. However, a 1961 decree by President Park Chung-hee stating that foreigners were not allowed to own land turned the park into a no-man's land, and it wasn't until Seoul designated the cemetery a public park in 1965 it regained an owner.
The South Korean government passed a 1968 law requiring foreigners to register all land, yet the cemetery was never officially booked. In 1985 a committee called the Council for the 100th Anniversary of the Korean Church was asked to register the cemetery on behalf of the Seoul Union Church, with the understanding the Seoul Union Church would be the unofficial caretakers. The committee agreed and a year later they built a joint-use chapel nearby called the Memorial Chapel.
In 2005, the predominantly foreign congregation of the Seoul Union Church began sharing the Memorial Chapel with a Korean congregation composed of the former 100th Anniversary Memorial Church Committee. The two congregations coexisted amicably until 2004, when the two congregations began to disagree about proper caretaking responsibilities as well as who officially took care of the grounds. On August 5, 2007, the Seoul Union Church was officially removed from the grounds, including the chapel. The church, cemetery, and adjacent museum are since the property of the Memorial Church.
Since the Yanghwajin Foreign Missionary Cemetery holds so many people with fascinating histories, I've broken down my pictures into smaller categories to make the viewing easier.
Ehwa Hakdang (women's college)
There had been fresh flowers placed on all the graves of people who performed memorable feats for this school.
No matter how far I travel, I always seem to find mention of Iowa.
Here is a sampling of the other important people laid to rest here.
Not all the graves had plaques describing the people buried there, but some of the headstones themselves said a lot.
Our group spent the night at the Han River, a well-known hangout spot for the younger crowd. I took a standard 40-minute cruise down the river on one of the tour boats and sang some opera at the outdoor karaoke stage.