Date of Award: Unknown
Conflict: World War I
Branch: U.S. Navy
Lt. j.g. Weedon Osborne was serving in the front line first aid party in May of 1918 while waiting for his dental appointment. As Marines advanced on the town of Bouresche, during the Battle of Belleau Wood on June 6, 1918, Osborne threw himself zealously into the work of rescuing the wounded. In his attempt to carry Capt. Donald Duncan to safety, an artillery shell killed both men. Osborne was the first commissioned U.S. Naval Officer killed on land in World War I, and the only Medical Corps officer to die in battle in that war.
Citation: “Extremely courageous in the performance of this perilous task, he was killed while carrying a wounded officer to a place of safety.”
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Last Updated: September 22, 2022