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ADAMS, LUCIAN
Rank and organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S.
Army, 30th Infantry, 3d Infantry Division. Place and date: Near St.
Die, France, 28 October 1944. Entered service at: Port Arthur, Tex.
Birth: Port Arthur, Tex. G.O. No.: 20, 29 March 1945.
Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity
at risk of life above and beyond the call of duty on 28 October 1944,
near St. Die, France. When his company was stopped in its effort to
drive through the Mortagne Forest to reopen the supply line to the isolated
third battalion, S/Sgt. Adams braved the concentrated fire of machineguns
in a lone assault on a force of German troops. Although his company
had progressed less than 10 yards and had lost 3 killed and 6 wounded,
S/Sgt. Adams charged forward dodging from tree to tree firing a borrowed
BAR from the hip. Despite intense machinegun fire which the enemy directed
at him and rifle grenades which struck the trees over his head showering
him with broken twigs and branches, S/Sgt. Adams made his way to within
10 yards of the closest machinegun and killed the gunner with a hand
grenade. An enemy soldier threw hand grenades at him from a position
only 10 yards distant; however, S/Sgt. Adams dispatched him with a single
burst of BAR fire. Charging into the vortex of the enemy fire, he killed
another machinegunner at 15 yards range with a hand grenade and forced
the surrender of 2 supporting infantrymen. Although the remainder of
the German group concentrated the full force of its automatic weapons
fire in a desperate effort to knock him out, he proceeded through the
woods to find and exterminate 5 more of the enemy. Finally, when the
third German machinegun opened up on him at a range of 20 yards, S/Sgt.
Adams killed the gunner with BAR fire. In the course of the action,
he personally killed 9 Germans, eliminated 3 enemy machineguns, vanquished
a specialized force which was armed with automatic weapons and grenade
launchers, cleared the woods of hostile elements, and reopened the severed
supply lines to the assault companies of his battalion.
AGERHOLM, HAROLD CHRIST
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve.
Born: 29 January 1925, Racine, Wis. Accredited to: Wisconsin.
Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity
at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving
with the 4th Battalion, 10th Marines, 2d Marine Division, in action
against enemy Japanese forces on Saipan, Marianas Islands, 7 July 1944.
When the enemy launched a fierce, determined counterattack against our
positions and overran a neighboring artillery battalion, Pfc. Agerholm
immediately volunteered to assist in the efforts to check the hostile
attack and evacuate our wounded. Locating and appropriating an abandoned
ambulance jeep, he repeatedly made extremely perilous trips under heavy
rifle and mortar fire and single-handedly loaded and evacuated approximately
45 casualties, working tirelessly and with utter disregard for his own
safety during a grueling period of more than 3 hours. Despite intense,
persistent enemy fire, he ran out to aid 2 men whom he believed to be
wounded marines but was himself mortally wounded by a Japanese sniper
while carrying out his hazardous mission. Pfc. Agerholm's brilliant
initiative, great personal valor and self-sacrificing efforts in the
face of almost certain death reflect the highest credit upon himself
and the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
ANDERSON, BEAUFORD T.
Rank and organization: Technical Sergeant, U.S. Army, 381st Infantry,
96th Infantry Division. Place and date: Okinawa, 13 April 1945. Entered
service at: Soldiers Grove, Wis. Birth: Eagle, Wis. G.O. No.: 63, 27
June 1946.
Citation: He displayed conspicuous gallantry and
intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty. When a powerfully conducted
predawn Japanese counterattack struck his unit's flank, he ordered his
men to take cover in an old tomb, and then, armed only with a carbine,
faced the onslaught alone. After emptying 1 magazine at pointblank range
into the screaming attackers, he seized an enemy mortar dud and threw
it back among the charging Japs, killing several as it burst. Securing
a box of mortar shells, he extracted the safety pins, banged the bases
upon a rock to arm them and proceeded alternately to hurl shells and
fire his piece among the fanatical foe, finally forcing them to withdraw.
Despite the protests of his comrades, and bleeding profusely from a
severe shrapnel wound, he made his way to his company commander to report
the action. T/Sgt. Anderson's intrepid conduct in the face of overwhelming
odds accounted for 25 enemy killed and several machineguns and knee
mortars destroyed, thus single-handedly removing a serious threat to
the company's flank.
ANDERSON, RICHARD BEATTY
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Marine Corps. Born:
26 June 1921, Tacoma, Wash. Accredited to: Washington.
Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity
at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving
with the 4th Marine Division during action against enemy Japanese forces
on Roi Island, Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands, 1 February 1944. Entering
a shell crater occupied by 3 other marines, Pfc. Anderson was preparing
to throw a grenade at an enemy position when it slipped from his hands
and rolled toward the men at the bottom of the hole. With insufficient
time to retrieve the armed weapon and throw it, Pfc. Anderson fearlessly
chose to sacrifice himself and save his companions by hurling his body
upon the grenade and taking the full impact of the explosion. His personal
valor and exceptional spirit of loyalty in the face of almost certain
death were in keeping with the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval
Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
ANTOLAK, SYLVESTER
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company B, 15th Infantry,
3d Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Cisterna di Littoria, Italy,
24 May 1944. Entered service at: St. Clairsville, Ohio. Birth: St. Clairsville,
Ohio. G.O. No.: 89, 19 October 1945.
Citation: Near Cisterna di Littoria, Italy, he
charged 200 yards over flat, coverless terrain to destroy an enemy machinegun
nest during the second day of the offensive which broke through the
German cordon of steel around the Anzio beachhead. Fully 30 yards in
advance of his squad, he ran into withering enemy machinegun, machine-pistol
and rifle fire. Three times he was struck by bullets and knocked to
the ground, but each time he struggled to his feet to continue his relentless
advance. With one shoulder deeply gashed and his right arm shattered,
he continued to rush directly into the enemy fire concentration with
his submachinegun wedged under his uninjured arm until within 15 yards
of the enemy strong point, where he opened fire at deadly close range,
killing 2 Germans and forcing the remaining 10 to surrender. He reorganized
his men and, refusing to seek medical attention so badly needed, chose
to lead the way toward another strong point 100 yards distant. Utterly
disregarding the hail of bullets concentrated upon him, he had stormed
ahead nearly three-fourths of the space between strong points when he
was instantly killed by hostile enemy fire. Inspired by his example,
his squad went on to overwhelm the enemy troops. By his supreme sacrifice,
superb fighting courage, and heroic devotion to the attack, Sgt. Antolak
was directly responsible for eliminating 20 Germans, capturing an enemy
machinegun, and clearing the path for his company to advance.
ANTRIM, RICHARD NOTT
Rank and organization: Commander, U.S. Navy. Place and date: Makassar,
Celebes, Netherlands East Indies, April 1942. Entered service at: Indiana.
Born: 17 December 1907, Peru, Ind.
Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity
at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while interned
as a prisoner of war of the enemy Japanese in the city of Makassar,
Celebes, Netherlands East Indies, in April 1942. Acting instantly on
behalf of a naval officer who was subjected to a vicious clubbing by
a frenzied Japanese guard venting his insane wrath upon the helpless
prisoner, Comdr. (then Lt.) Antrim boldly intervened, attempting to
quiet the guard and finally persuading him to discuss the charges against
the officer. With the entire Japanese force assembled and making extraordinary
preparations for the threatened beating, and with the tension heightened
by 2,700 Allied prisoners rapidly closing in, Comdr. Antrim courageously
appealed to the fanatic enemy, risking his own life in a desperate effort
to mitigate the punishment. When the other had been beaten unconscious
by 15 blows of a hawser and was repeatedly kicked by 3 soldiers to a
point beyond which he could not survive, Comdr. Antrim gallantly stepped
forward and indicated to the perplexed guards that he would take the
remainder of the punishment, throwing the Japanese completely off balance
in their amazement and eliciting a roar of acclaim from the suddenly
inspired Allied prisoners. By his fearless leadership and valiant concern
for the welfare of another, he not only saved the life of a fellow officer
and stunned the Japanese into sparing his own life but also brought
about a new respect for American officers and men and a great improvement
in camp living conditions. His heroic conduct throughout reflects the
highest credit upon Comdr. Antrim and the U.S. Naval Service.
ATKINS, THOMAS E.
Rank and organization: Private First Class, U.S. Army, Company A, 127th
Infantry, 32d Infantry Division. Place and date: Villa Verde Trail,
Luzon, Philippine Islands, 10 March 1945. Entered service at: Campobello,
S.C. Birth: Campobello, S.C. G.O. No.: 95, 30 October 1945.
Citation: He fought gallantly on the Villa Verde
Trail, Luzon, Philippine Islands. With 2 companions he occupied a position
on a ridge outside the perimeter defense established by the 1st Platoon
on a high hill. At about 3 a.m., 2 companies of Japanese attacked with
rifle and machinegun fire, grenades, TNT charges, and land mines, severely
wounding Pfc. Atkins and killing his 2 companions. Despite the intense
hostile fire and pain from his deep wound, he held his ground and returned
heavy fire. After the attack was repulsed, he remained in his precarious
position to repel any subsequent assaults instead of returning to the
American lines for medical treatment. An enemy machinegun, set up within
20 yards of his foxhole, vainly attempted to drive him off or silence
his gun. The Japanese repeatedly made fierce attacks, but for 4 hours,
Pfc. Atkins determinedly remained in his fox hole, bearing the brunt
of each assault and maintaining steady and accurate fire until each
charge was repulsed. At 7 a.m., 13 enemy dead lay in front of his position;
he had fired 400 rounds, all he and his 2 dead companions possessed,
and had used 3 rifles until each had jammed too badly for further operation.
He withdrew during a lull to secure a rifle and more ammunition, and
was persuaded to remain for medical treatment. While waiting, he saw
a Japanese within the perimeter and, seizing a nearby rifle, killed
him. A few minutes later, while lying on a litter, he discovered an
enemy group moving up behind the platoon's lines. Despite his severe
wound, he sat up, delivered heavy rifle fire against the group and forced
them to withdraw. Pfc. Atkins' superb bravery and his fearless determination
to hold his post against the main force of repeated enemy attacks, even
though painfully wounded, were major factors in enabling his comrades
to maintain their lines against a numerically superior enemy force.
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