The Korea Times

Mt. Bukhan in the 1890s: An escape from Seoul’s heat

Seoul is extremely hot and uncomfortable during the summer. In the 1990s, there weren’t as many high-rise apartments as there are now, and a large part of the population lived in neighborhoods of small, closely packed buildings and townhouses. Many of these homes did not have the luxury of air conditioning and depended upon open windows and electric fans for relief. While open windows allowed cooling breezes to enter, they were also open invitations to one of the most annoying pests of the summer — mosquitoes. It was a no-win situation: close the windows and suffer in the stifling heat, or open them and contend with the blood-sucking, buzzing nightmares that even mosquito coils could not keep at bay. And all of it was made worse by the humidity. A century earlier, summers in Seoul may have been even worse. In a letter home in late July 1893, Sallie Swallen, an American missionary, wrote: “The weather has been very warm now for one week almost every day the thermometer has stood at 88 & 90 [Fahrenheit, or about 31 or 32 degrees Celsius] in our sitting room, and of course much warme

Jul 28, 2025By Robert Neff

Mt. Bukhan in the 1890s: An escape from Seoul’s heat

Opinion

Beautiful drudgery: Laundry in old Korea

For many people, laundry is one of the most dreaded household chores. It is often described as a mind-numbing, tedious and neverending task: Load it into the washing machine, then the dryer, then sort and fold everything by hand. But in the past, it was even worse. When I was a boy, I often watched my grandmother do the laundry. I remember when she used a washboard, scrubbing each piece by hand. Later, when times were financially a bit better, my grandfather obtained an ancient wringer washer to ease her labor. The “modern” contraption had a tub where the clothes were agitated, and above it, a hand-cranked wringer through which she fed the clothes before hanging them on the line to dry. For her, laundry was an all-day affair. The same held true for Korea. In the late 1880s, George W. Gilmore, an American teacher, described the daily lives of Korean women in his letters home and his book. He acknowledged that cooking and preserving food for the larder took time, but claimed these tasks “occupied a modicum of the Korean wife’s time. Her most wearing and incessant labor [was] at t

Jun 27, 2025By Robert Neff

Beautiful drudgery: Laundry in old Korea

Opinion

Seoul’s ancient ‘Liberty Bell’

In the summer of 1952, Seoul was a vortex of destruction and rebuilding as the war raged on to the north. Stationed with the American military in Seoul, Lt. Col. John Q. Timbrell was no stranger to the horrors of war. Years earlier, he had served on the military tribunal that tried Nazi war criminals at the infamous Dachau concentration camp in Germany — a place he described as a “murder factory.” In an account published in his hometown newspaper, Timbrell explained that Seoul had once been a walled city with eight gates: four main gates named after the cardinal directions and four smaller gates — also named after the cardinal directions, such as Small North Gate or Small West Gate. But that was in the past. The city wall, no longer serving any use, had long ago disappeared. Only “two of the gates remain intact today as mementoes of the past,” he observed. There was another remnant associated with the gates — the great bell. Timbrell claimed that in 1380, every family in Seoul who could afford it donated a small amount of metal for its construction. The collected metal wa

Jun 8, 2025By Robert Neff

Opinion

The fifth day of the fifth moon: 3 holidays warding off evil

In the first week of June 1889, Korea was awash with festive preparations as three nationalities marked different holidays on the third day of the month (the fifth day of the fifth moon on the lunar calendar). The Chinese observed "Duanwu," honoring the patriotic statesman Qu Yuan, who drowned himself in despair over the corruption surrounding him. The Japanese celebrated "Tango no Sekku," a festival for boys meant to ward off evil spirits and promote strength and good health. Koreans observed "Dano," a day to appease and drive away malevolent spirits. Unfortunately, I have not been able to find any firsthand accounts of the 1889 celebrations, but we can imagine the streets filled with colors — red being the most prominent. All across the city, crude ghostly faces with red mouths and tongues were drawn and pasted to walls to frighten off evil. In the Japanese districts of Seoul, Jemulpo (modern Incheon), Fusan (modern Busan) and Wonsan, bright banners shaped like carp fluttered over the homes of Japanese families with young sons. There were many similarities in these three celebratio

May 31, 2025By Robert Neff

The fifth day of the fifth moon: 3 holidays warding off evil

Opinion

Memories of Andong: 1920s to the present

In the mid-1920s, the ancient city of Andong, North Gyeongsang Province, was undergoing rapid change. The city walls that once guarded it were nearly impossible to find and the south and west gates were gone — casualties of progress. The quiet, twisty and narrow streets — once the domain of pedestrians, oxen, pack ponies, bicycles and the occasional cart — were being straightened and widened. According to one missionary, the streets were becoming heavy with cart traffic and every day, about a dozen public automobiles — hired cars or taxis — provided transportation to nearby cities. The old city jail, with its thick mud walls, was replaced with a much larger modern prison. The old army barracks were converted into a school, and “as if by magic,” rice and grain cleaning establishments had sprung up. Barber shops, the missionary noted, were suddenly very conspicuous, which, given the city’s reputation for conservatism, was somewhat surprising. Only a couple of decades earlier, everyone had long hair and cutting it would have been a shocking defiance of the social order. Som

May 24, 2025By Robert Neff

Memories of Andong: 1920s to the present

Opinion

Before May 5: Korea’s earlier celebrations of children

For children, one of the most popular days in Korea is May 5 — Children’s Day. Showered with gifts from relatives, they become, for a brief period of time, the monarchs of the household, their every wish granted. Bang Jeong-hwan (1899-1931), a champion of children’s rights, believed that if they were spared ridicule and contempt, they would grow up to become respectful citizens. He is credited with the creation of Children’s Day. But according to early foreign accounts, even before the 1900s, there were Korean holidays that celebrated children. In the mid-1890s, Christopher Thomas Gardner, a member of the British Legation in Seoul, wrote: “Early in May the streets are full of toys for the little ones and on the day itself the town is given up to children wearing bright new clothes and enjoying themselves. The sight in the big main street, with its throngs of happy children in their bright clothes, each child with its hands full of toys, accompanied by their fathers and grandfathers in snowy clean white raiment, showing in keen contrast with the somber grey tint of the nearest h

May 4, 2025By Robert Neff

Before May 5: Korea’s earlier celebrations of children

Opinion

Cherry blossoms and memories: Jinhae in 1969

Throughout Korea, some of the most anticipated spring events are the annual cherry blossom festivals held across the country. A quick perusal of the internet reveals countless videos and pictures taken by residents and visitors alike. The celebration of spring’s arrival through blooming cherry blossoms isn’t a recent phenomenon either, as shown by old photographs and postcards of the palace grounds and city parks. Of all these festivals, perhaps the most famous is the one held in Jinhae, now part of Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province. It didn’t start as a festival of flowers, but as a celebration of Korea’s greatest naval hero, Yi Sun-sin. A memorial for Admiral Yi was first held in 1952, but by the early 1960s, the cherry blossoms had become an integral part of the event and attracted not only a large number of Korean citizens from other parts of the country, but also a handful of foreign residents. One of these foreign residents was Frederic Dustin, an American who first came to Korea in 1952 as an American soldier during the Korean War and later returned as an educator, gol

May 3, 2025By Robert Neff

Cherry blossoms and memories: Jinhae in 1969

Opinion

Gojong’s gilded prisons: Russian Legation and Deoksu Palace

On the cold, pale morning of Feb. 10, 1896, Seoul was filled with excitement. A large procession of more than 100 Russian soldiers — armed, fully provisioned and accompanied by 22 ponies and a machine gun — marched through the streets to the Russian Legation. Their sudden presence was a mystery until it was revealed that King Gojong and the crown prince had accepted asylum there — away from the pro-Japanese government. For just over a year, the Korean monarchy — much to the embarrassment of many in the royal court and especially the Japanese Legation — remained guests of the Russian government. According to popular belief, it was during this period that King Gojong became familiar with Western architecture and culture. Some have suggested that while living in the Russian Legation, the king first encountered coffee and developed a taste for it. This is only partially true. While he may have acquired a taste for the drink — with a single cube of sugar — coffee had actually been known in the Korean palaces since the mid-1880s. Gojong was apparently impressed with his new acc

Apr 27, 2025By Robert Neff

Gojong’s gilded prisons: Russian Legation and Deoksu Palace

Opinion

Rain, dragons and Gogu

For many residents in Korea’s large cities, rain is mainly an inconvenience — traffic jams, umbrellas and damp clothes. But for farmers, rain is a blessing. It’s vital for a good harvest. In the past — perhaps more so than now — a lack of rain often led to devastating famines that killed hundreds, even tens of thousands. Rain was so crucial to survival that many people turned to superstition in an effort to explain or summon it. These beliefs could sometimes be wildly contradictory. In the summer of 1901, rain was scarce and the country was gripped with drought. Desperate for relief, people looked to the supernatural. One foreign resident in Seoul wrote: “Great threatening clouds counted as nothing, and morning skies, red as painted thunder, would fade away amid the hot fierce sun come out and blaze till the rice fields were caked hard and the gasping panting earth at last, with the seeds and hopes of harvest in its bosom, lay down to die. All means were resorted to capture, cajole, or win the willful heavens.” The same writer described “sacrifices of raw meat and half-co

Apr 26, 2025By Robert Neff

Opinion

Yoon Suk Yeol and Yi Gwal — The mark of destiny

History has a way of repeating itself. Rarely is it blatantly obvious, but it often manifests through tantalizing coincidences that leave you shaking your head in disbelief. An image of former President Yoon Suk Yeol, taken in 2021 during his presidential campaign, drew significant — and mostly negative — attention. Clearly visible on his hand was the Chinese character 王 (king) which “sparked controversy over his alleged ties to shamanism.” Yet, when I saw the image, shamanism wasn’t what came to mind; instead, I thought of Gen. Yi Gwal and his 1624 coup. Yi Gwal was a fascinating historical figure, shrouded in a mix of legend, facts and political falsehoods. Unfortunately, because I primarily concentrate on Korean history in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, I have a very superficial understanding of the general. What I do know comes from the tidbits gleaned from the early historical accounts published by Westerners and the scattered entries in the Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty. In March 1895, Horace N. Allen — who came to Korea in 1885 as a missionary and

Apr 13, 2025By Robert Neff

Robert Neff

Read more

Mt. Bukhan in the 1890s: An escape from Seoul’s heat

Beautiful drudgery: Laundry in old Korea

Seoul’s ancient ‘Liberty Bell’

The fifth day of the fifth moon: 3 holidays warding off evil

Memories of Andong: 1920s to the present

Before May 5: Korea’s earlier celebrations of children

Cherry blossoms and memories: Jinhae in 1969

Gojong’s gilded prisons: Russian Legation and Deoksu Palace

Rain, dragons and Gogu

Yoon Suk Yeol and Yi Gwal — The mark of destiny

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