Others beyond the golden dead (Medal of Honor winners have their names inscribed in gold at cemeteries administered by the American Battlefields and Monuments Commission (ABMC)) earned medals for valor. Their headstones are inscribed with their awards, as well, here at Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery, just not in gold. You have to look a little harder.

This is the second of a series looking at some of the men and women lying buried at America’s largest cemetery in Europe, Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery in Romagne, France. Here, we look at the award given out on the second rung of heroism in the pantheon of awards for heroism in the American military system – the Distinguished Service Cross.

EARLY MEDALS OF HONOR

The Medal of Honor represents the apogee of American military heroism.  Forty percent of the awards awarded went to Civil War veterans, basically, the only award given out at the time.  Many of those awards came years after the war in the 1890’s as a result of political influence.  Of those medals, many earned for “saving the flag”. For example, young Arthur MacArthur, an eighteen-year-old, rallying his fellow Badgers behind the flag he gathered up from a downed color bearer as they charged successfully up Missionary Ridge above Chattanooga.

During the second invasion of the North by General Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia, men of the 27^th Maine were helping to guard Washington while the main Army of the Potomac marched north for the confrontation at Gettysburg.  The 27^th was a nine-month volunteer unit with their time up 10 June 1863.  Because of the emergency, the Secretary of War asked for volunteers to stay beyond their time to help defend the capital.  The 25^th Maine refused and marched home. 312 men of the 27^th, however, stayed. 

With the Union victory on 4 July, they were released and back in Portland, Maine on 6 July.  The 312 men staying won the Medal of Honor. But the list of those volunteering and those who leaving early was inconclusive.  As a result, the entire regiment gained a Medal of Honor, though the regimental colonel only handed out medals to those who actually stayed, keeping the rest in his barn.

REVISIONISM

Finally, in 1916 a board headed by the forty-plus year veteran, retired Major General Nelson Miles – who won a Medal of Honor for his actions at Chancellorsville – was established to ascertain whether all medals were earned or not.  By 1916, 2,625 Medals had been issued – 1,520 to Civil War veterans, 443 Indian Wars and 662 from the Spanish-American – and the board eventually rescinded 911 names.

The whole story can be found here.  The affair ended up doing the Army no good, public relation-wise, though it did restore some of the credibility of the honor.  Some of the names were eventually restored posthumously by families with the political power – Buffalo Bill Cody, Dr. Mary Walker and four other civilians who had their awards stripped.

A NEW LEVEL OF HEROISM

The Distinguished Service Cross was established 2 January 1918 by President Woodrow Wilson on the recommendation of General John Pershing.  The medal was to be given for actions of bravery in the face of the enemy not quite deserving of a Medal of Honor.  As a second-rank award and new for World War One, there were well over 6,000 awards issued during the conflict as opposed to a little over 5,000 issued for World War Two, a much longer conflict.

Looking at the citations for both Medals of Honor and Distinguished Service Crosses, there a lot of similarities.  In one case, charging a machine gun post – and possibly dying – could be awarded with one medal versus the other.  As always, it depended upon who was recommending whom.  Sometimes, the events are obvious.  Alvin York’s actions on 8 October 1918 are obvious.  Capturing 132, killing at least 25 of the enemy and taking one or more machine guns is a Medal of Honor benchmark.

Several Medal of Honor winners continued to lead their men after suffering wounds, some dying as a result.  The same can be said of many men awarded the DSC instead of the Medal of Honor.

MEDAL OF HONOR OR DSC?

Another result of the Medal of Honor board affair was some field grade officers were left with a sour opinion of the Medal of Honor altogether.  An example is Brigadier General Charles Crawford, commander of the 6^th Brigade, 3^rd Division along the Marne during the last German offensive – 17-18 July 1918 – and the ensuing Battle of the Second Marne. 

Colonel Ulysses McAlexander’s name – McAlexander played a significant role in how the division earned its moniker “Rock of the Marne” – was put forward for a Medal of Honor for actions on 22 July where he reconnoitered with rifle in hand, within 50 yards of enemy machine gun nests. Wounded, he kept his regiment holding an advanced position. 

Crawford thought (see page 81) Medals of Honor “appropriate for action involving only the vulgar courage of a soldier”.  Going further, “the Distinguished Service Cross implied skill and military accomplishment of high order and was the more desirable.  Besides the scandal that had attended the issuing of the Medal of Honor cheapened the decoration.” 

ONE MEDAL DESERVES ANOTHER

The Distinguished Service Medal was created at the same time as the DSC – 2 January 1918.  This medal was awarded for “exceptional meritorious service to the Government in a duty of great responsibility in time of war or in connection with military operations against an armed enemy of the United States”.  The medal could also be awarded by the President to members other than the Armed Forces of the US during wartime only.  Several Allied military leaders were issued this award – somewhat similar in fashion to the issuance of the French Croix de guerre and the Italian Croce al Merito di Guerra, but nowhere near the profligacy those medals were handed out. 

More than 2,000 awards were made during World War One.  This was an award usually handed out to field grade officers, men who held important leadership roles.  The DSM was the only decoration for non-combat service in the Army before World War Two.  Both the DSC and the DSM can be awarded multiple times unlike the Medal of Honor (after 1919).

OAK LEAF CLUSTERS

Multiple DSCs was the realm of aviators.  Captain Eddie Rickenbacker earned eight DSCs, though the last was upgraded to a Medal of Honor.  Two flyers were decorated five times, one four times, and three earned three crosses.  Second Lieutenant Frank Luke, Jr. earned two DSCs in addition to his Medal of Honor.  In combining the DSC with the Medal of Honor, Luke was not alone in that realm.  Besides Rickenbacker, several other men earned both medals, though Luke is the only man to have earned both who lies at Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery.

Beyond the flyers, several dozen soldiers, eight marines and two French Army officers received two DSCs.  In total, 6,309 crosses were given to 6,185 awardees – over 13,000 DSCs have been issued in total since the award began.  Several DSC’s were later revoked with medal upgrades to Medals of Honor by later Army review boards.

The DSC was given retroactively for conflicts dating back to the Indian War, Spanish-American War, Philippine Insurrection, the Boxer Rebellion and the Mexican border conflicts.  There were 62 awards during the Russian Civil War interventions.

BRAVERY REMAINS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER

What determines an action’s bravery between a Medal of Honor and a DSC?  It comes down to who pulls for you and an individual’s own personal pull.  The story of Douglas MacArthur comes to fore.    Douglas wanted to replicate his father’s feats.  He may have done so earlier in Veracruz, in 1914, where he had taken on and dispatched several Mexican bandits.  He was leading a party trying to locate locomotives for a possible American push onwards towards Mexico City. 

However, MacArthur launched his mission without the knowledge of the commanding general on the ground. This was the determining factor in denying his award. This was even though the commanding general, Brigadier General Frederick Funston (a Medal of Honor winner in his own right) was in favor of the awarding the medal to MacArthur. MacArthur would have to wait until World War Two for his Medal of Honor – awarded for his leadership in the defense of Bataan. 

For World War One, he was awarded two DSC’s and a Distinguished Service Medal.  One of the DSC’s was in lieu of a recommended Medal of Honor for actions at Côte de Châtillon on 14 October, a role described in Robert Ferrell’s The Question of MacArthur’s Reputation.

THE DISTINGUISHED SERVICE CROSS AT MEUSE-ARGONE ABMC CEMETERY

Nine men earned the Medal of Honor here. Like those men, the DSC recipients here at Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery gained their medals posthumously.  By rough count, there are just under 90 men who earned the DSC buried here.  Frank Luke is the lone man here at Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery to gain both the Medal of Honor and the DSC – in fact, he earned two DSCs. Besides Frank Luke Jr, there are at least three other men here at Meuse-Argonne cemetery who are recipients of two DSCs.

EDWARD WELLS

A graduate of Virginia Military Institute in 1907, Edward Lawrence Wells rejoined the active Army as a Second Lieutenant in the Cavalry but was assigned to the 2^nd Machine Gun Battalion of the 1^st Infantry Brigade 1^st Division.  Wells reached France in the Fall of 1917 being promoted to First Lieutenant 6 September 1918.  Wounded in action near Exermont on 4 October, he died in a hospital a few days later 10 October with the rank of Captain.

First award

His first citation was for heroism near Buzancy 21 July. Here, he was able to silence enemy machine guns with a skillful placement of his own machine guns.  Then reconnoitering the enemy line with another officer, he was able to put another German machine gun out of action with his rifle.  Moving on, he captured a prisoner and discovered a nest of eight enemy machine guns ahead in a trench.  Bringing up his guns, he opened a fire dispersing the enemy and causing many casualties.

Second award

His second citation earned at the action near Exermont where he suffered a mortal wound.  Machine gun fire was holding up an attack 4 October.  Wells volunteered and led an infantry platoon reinforced with four machine guns into the village capturing it along with many of the enemy.  Interrogating his prisoners, he learned the approximate location of enemy machine guns just to the north of the village.  Leading the three remaining men of his command, they got to within 50 yards of those guns. His luck ran out then. Wells was mortally wounded, earning his place here at Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery.  The men did locate the enemy positions, however, by their actions.

CAPTAIN MACON OVERTON USMC

Marine Captain Macon C. Overton Jr. had enlisted into the Marines in 1914 from Union Point, Georgia.  Helped no doubt by a prior stint at the University of Georgia, Overton was a First Lieutenant in the 76^th Company, 1^st Battalion, 6^th Marine Regiment, 2^nd Division on the evening of 8 June 1918.  The battalion had been in reserve on 6 June. They had not suffered the horrible casualties suffered by other Marine units as the Battle for Belleau Wood began.  A mix up in the company’s approach to a new attack on the woods led to the commander’s relief. Overton assumed the role.

Overton led his company on the battalion left as they fought from 10 to 17 June in the dense forest.  He directed his men in destroying the last German positions around Hill 181. This opened the door for the attack of the 2^nd Battalion across ground which cost other Marines dearly on 6 June. 

First awards

Overton would receive two citations for his leadership at Belleau Wood and the follow-up battle near Vierzy during the Second Marne 18 July 1918.  An individual cited in orders by a General Order Number received Citation Stars, an award for “Gallantry in Action” first established 9 July 1918.  The Citation Star became the Silver Star in 1932 with its award authorized retroactively back to the Civil War. 

Overton also earned the Croix de guerre with silver star and palm for the Belleau Wood actions.  The Croix de guerre another award coming when a soldier gained mention in dispatches.  A bronze palm was added for mention at the army level and a silver star for division level mention.

The 2^nd Division helped the French 4^th Army overcome strong German positions at Blanc Mont Ridge in the eastern Champagne plateau between 3 and 9 October.  Overton was a captain at this point in the war.  The battalion pinned down as his company attacked and successfully reduced on machine gun nest.  Going on, he captured an artillery piece that had fired directly into his men.  Wounded the next day, he stayed with his men to lead them throughout the battle.  

Last awards

For his actions, Overton gained both the DSC and the Navy Cross.  He would earn one more DSC 1 November near Landres-et-St. Georges leading his company through heavy artillery fire, silencing five machine gun nest.  While he was personally guiding a tank against the nests, a German sniper mortally wounded him, earning him a grave here at Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery.  He also earned a third Silver Star for service during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive.  All his awards came posthumously.

A further posthumous honor came in 1920 when a Naval destroyer carried his name – USS Overton which served until 1946 in both the Atlantic and Pacific.

HERO BALLOONIST

First Lieutenant Cleo J. Ross had been attending Penn State University in 1917.  With the onset of war, he went through an officers’ training course and sailed for France in December.  Assigned to the 8^th Balloon Company, he was aloft on 26 September during the first day of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive.  Ross’ balloon was shot down by a German balloon buster.  Balloonists, unlike most pilots, did have rudimentary parachutes in case they were shot down.  Ross made sure his observer got out safely before he jumped.  Burning fragments of the balloon burnt his parachute after he jumped and he fell several thousand feet to his death, the only death in the Balloon Corps due to aerial activity. He is also the only balloonist here at the Meuse-Argonne Cemetery.

The Army Balloon School was located at the original site of the Santa Anita racetrack in Arcadia, California.  The grandstand had burnt in 1912 with the ground given to the War Department in 1918.  Hangars built for the balloons and stables converted into barracks for the 3,500 soldiers training at the school.

THE YOUNG COOK

Frederick William Schmelz was only 17 when he died in action 27 October 1918.  He was a cook with the 114^th Regiment 29^th Division.  The men of his company had not had hot food for three days when he volunteered to take food to the front.  An artillery blast mortally wounded him after he covered four kilometers. His action gained Schmelz a DSC posthumously. 

His action recalls another cook in a previous war who performed a similar feat bringing hot food and coffee to the men of his regiment.  Unlike Schmelz, William McKinley – a couple years old at 19 – survived his trip to the front, going on to become the 25^th President. Schmelz earned his place here at Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery, a young man trying to earn his way as a man.

THE MIDDLE AGED VETERAN

From youth to middle age, Captain George Alexander Campbell was 48 years old when he died 4 October 1918.  Born on Prince Edward Island in Canada, Campbell’s family moved to Woburn, Massachusetts around 1880.  As a 20-year-old, he enlisted in the 12^th Infantry Regiment in time to take part in the last of the Indian Wars.  He would serve in the Army for the next 22 years seeing active service in Cuba, the Philippines, in China for the Boxer Rebellion and on the Mexican border in the years just before the World War.

Campbell enjoyed his time in the Philippines, staying there longer than normal by transferring to different companies when those units rotated back to the United States.  By constantly moving from one company to another he also ensured he did not move up in rank.  Finally returning to the US in August 1911, Campbell became a military instructor at Notre Dame University in Indiana.  A year of active duty on the border in 1916, Campbell returned to Notre Dame in 1917.  With war declared with Germany, he applied for active duty – already with 22 active years and another 6 years instructing at Notre Dame. Gaining acceptance, Campbell an officer now.

Off to France

As a captain, Campbell led his company of the 18^th Regiment 1^st Division into the various battles the 1^st Division found itself involved with.  On 12 September, the opening day of the St Mihiel Offensive, he led three other men in front of their battalion capturing three machine guns and 20 prisoners.  This action eventually led to the award of a DSC for Campbell.

The award posthumous, regretfully, for on 4 October Campbell died leading his men through the village of Exermont to the slopes of Hill 240 to the north.  Advancing at the head of his men, machine gun bullets riddled him – six to the head and three to the chest – killing him instantly.

His men buried him on the hill about 200 yards from the village.  The family got a note from the Army in 1921 informing them Campbell’s body discovered.  A year later, they were informed, regretfully, the body was not Campbell’s. Dental records determined the body was Lieutenant Elden S. Betts after the body was brought here to Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery.  George Campbell’s body was never found – possibly he could be one of the unknown graves here at Meuse-Argonne Cemetery. His name listed on the Tablets of the Missing.

ONE OF PATTON’S TANKERS

Captain Matthew Lewis “Math” English. was another man awarded two DSCs.  He was a tanker with the 344^th Tank Battalion.  His commanding officer, one George Patton, had this to say of the young captain, “In my own experience I have never seen, and I have yet to hear of a more heroic exhibition of devotion to duty and scorn of death,”

English came from a small town in Georgia, he enlisted in the Army. He found his way across the country when assigned to Fort Casey on Whidbey Island of Washington State in 1904.  Fort Casey was one of three coastal artillery forts that protected the entrance to the Puget Sound.  He stayed on Whidbey Island until the entrance of the US into World War One working in the mortar crews.

Off to war

With the war, English gained a commission as a Second Lieutenant in June 1917.  Sent to Europe he became a member of the newly formed Tank Corps gaining a promotion to Captain serving in the 344^th Tank Battalion under Patton.  At St. Mihiel, he earned a DSC for dismounting from his Renault FT-17 light tank and supervising the cutting of a passage through three enemy trenches, all the while enemy fire was heavy overhead.  A couple weeks later, he died on a reconnaissance during a heavy enemy barrage on 4 October.

English had hope to be a trainer for the future tank corps after the war instead of his place among other heroes here at Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery.  A local Whidbey historian has written a book on Math. 

Patton’s Elegy

The most fascinating piece is the poem Patton wrote about Math English following the war:

 
 The war is over and we pass
 To pleasure after pain,
 Except for few who ne’er shall see
 Their native land again
  
 To one of these my memory turns,
 Noblest of the slain;
 To Captain English of the tanks
 Who never shall return.
  
 Yet should some future war exact
 Of me the final debt,
 My fondest wish would be to tread
 the path which he has set.
  
 For faithful unto God and man
 And to his duty true,
 He died to live forever
 In the hearts of those he knew.
  
 Death found in him no faltering
 But, faithful to the last,
 He smiled in the face of fate
 And mocked him as he passed.
  
 No, death to him was no defeat
 But victory sublime;
 The grave promoted him to be
 A hero for all time. 

THE DSC PILOT WHO ISN’T?

Second Lieutenant Harold Loud had been a student at the University of Michigan when the US entered the war.  For Loud’s entire history, I heartily recommend seeing the several eloquent blog posts – by a retired USAF/English professor, David Vaughn. 

Leaving school to enlist, Loud joined the Air Service. He started with ground school at the University of Illinois at Urbana over the summer. Flight school was next at Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio.  An illness requiring surgery set him back several months. He did not complete his flight training until December down in Texas where the school transferred to because of the frigid Ohio weather. 

With initial flight training completed, Loud gained a commission as a Second Lieutenant. Transferred to Fort Sill in Oklahoma for further training as an observation plane pilot. Fort Sill was the home of the Army artillery school.  Observers were very important in working with artillery to correct and coordinate fire on the battlefield.  After four weeks in Oklahoma, Loud finished his stateside training in Dallas. Here he trained in aerial gunnery until the end of June.  It took July and the early part of August for him to get to France.  Finally, Loud reported to advanced flight training at the flying school at Issoudun 16 August.

In France

Having completed most of his flight training in the US, Loud finished with the training at Issoudoun by the end of August and he received assignment to the 88^th Aero Squadron.  The squadron flew Salmson SA-2 two-seat airplanes for their reconnaissance missions.  Flying out of Souilly about six miles southwest of Verdun, Loud flew his first mission 26 September, the opening day of the Meuse-Argonne Offensive.  He flew again on the next two days observing American movements around Montfaucon.

On his third mission, four German planes attacked his plane.  They managed to set fire to Loud’s plane.  Engulfed in flames, he landed the plane in an open field behind Allied lines.  His observer, Captain Charles Trickey, climbed out of his seat as the plane was burning.  Out on the left wing, he held onto the flying wires as the plane bounced in at 60 miles per hour.  Bounced off the plane he survived without much injury, however. 

Loud’s death

Fire seared Loud’s lungs in the air and the landing flipped the plane on its back.  He was still in the burning wreck as nearby soldiers rushed to pull him free.  His first thoughts when he was free was for his observer, “Is the Captain all right?”  He died the next day.

Initially, a board denied a request for a DSC finding “the services of this young officer did not justify the award …”.  A postwar request for a Medal of Honor also denied, though a citation for gallantry by General Pershing issued 4 October.  The official US Department of Defense list of Military Awards for Valor regarding the DSCs awarded for World War One does not include Long’s name though his headstone at Meuse-Argonne ABMC Cemetery does.