Marguerite Higgins played a major part in the history of the Korean war as an American reporter and war correspondent. Her presence at the war was a national sensation. In the 1950s in a highly male-dominated world, Higgins was forced to prove herself at every step of the difficult path she had chosen. Her struggle against gender bias captured the American public's attention while she was bravely and skillfully carrying out her journalistic duties and winning a Pulitzer Prize for her coverage of Korea.

Eager to become a war correspondent, Higgins persuaded the management of the New York Herald Tribune to send her to Europe in 1944, after working for the paper for two years. After being stationed in London and Paris, she was reassigned to Germany in March 1945.

She witnessed the liberation of the Dachau concentration camp in April 1945 and received a U.S. Army campaign ribbon for her assistance during the surrender by its S.S. guards. Secretary of War Robert P. Patterson honored war correspondents, including Higgins, at an event in Washington, on November 23, 1946.

On September 2, 2010, South Korea posthumously awarded the Order of Diplomatic Service Merit, one of its highest honors, to Marguerite Higgins.

In a ceremony in the capital, her daughter and grandson accepted the Heunginjang, a national medal. The award cites Higgins' courage in publicizing South Korea's struggle for survival in the early 1950s.

In 2016, The South Korean Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs awarded The Korean War's Heroine of May.