website bigpigeon.us, webpage WWII Roster > Roster Notes > Awards for Valor - © 2022 by Robert A. Christiansen, updated 31 Mar 2022.
Top United States Military Awards for Valor
The Congressional Medal of Honor is the highest military award. There were 473 awards for WWII service, some retroactive. I know of no one currently in my roster who received this award.
If I am ever able to add the dead from Audubon County, just east of Shelby County, Dale Christensen of Gray won the Congressional Medal of Honor.
Next in order are the Distinguished Service Cross (awarded by the Army) and the Navy Cross (awarded by the Navy/Marine Corps). In WWII, according to homeofheroes.com, the War Department gave out over 5,000 Distinguished Service Cross awards with the recipients distributed thusly:
Roster members known to have received a Distinguished Service Cross. All are posthumous.
Next is the Silver Star, awarded in WWII by all services. The US Army alone awarded nearly 100,000 Silver Stars during WWII. There is no known list of recipients, although homeofheroes.com has a partial list.
My very incomplete list of roster members known to have received a Silver Star: None survived WWII.
Sources for the Awards for Valor webpage:
The Congressional Medal of Honor is the highest military award. There were 473 awards for WWII service, some retroactive. I know of no one currently in my roster who received this award.
If I am ever able to add the dead from Audubon County, just east of Shelby County, Dale Christensen of Gray won the Congressional Medal of Honor.
Next in order are the Distinguished Service Cross (awarded by the Army) and the Navy Cross (awarded by the Navy/Marine Corps). In WWII, according to homeofheroes.com, the War Department gave out over 5,000 Distinguished Service Cross awards with the recipients distributed thusly:
- 3,984 Army
- 762 Army Air Corps
- 31 Marine Corps
- 21 Navy
- 258 Foreign Service Members
- 3 Civilian
- Navy - 2,889
- Marine Corps - 1,030
- Coast Guard - 6
- Army - 4
- Air Force - 10
- Civilian - 1
- Foreign Nationals - 19
Roster members known to have received a Distinguished Service Cross. All are posthumous.
- Deffenbaugh, Lyle Joseph, Council Bluffs (Italy - CO, 1st Bn., 6th Armored Inf. Regt., 1st Armored Div.)
- Lee, Delbert Donald, Anita, Cass Co. (Luxembourg - Co. A, 610th Tank Destroyer Bn., attached to 80th Inf. Div.)
- Maassen, Dale George, Avoca, Pott. Co. (New Georgia, Solomon Is. - 4th Marine Raider Bn.)
- Wilson, Joseph Francis, Council Bluffs (Alsace, France - Co. M, 30th Inf. Regt., 3rd Inf. Div.)
Next is the Silver Star, awarded in WWII by all services. The US Army alone awarded nearly 100,000 Silver Stars during WWII. There is no known list of recipients, although homeofheroes.com has a partial list.
My very incomplete list of roster members known to have received a Silver Star: None survived WWII.
- Deffenbaugh, Lyle Joseph, Council Bluffs (Tunisia, KIA later in Italy - CO, 1st Bn., 6th Armored Inf. Regt., 1st Armored Div.)
- Frahm, Leonard Carl, Shelby Co. (Rhineland at Boppard, S of Coblenz, Germany - 347th Inf. Regt., 87th Inf. Div.)
- Herrell, George Walter, Omaha (Fritzlar, Germany - 60th Armored Inf. Bn., 9th Armored Div.)
- Hiley, Dean Anderson, Glenwood, Mills Co. (Rapido River, Lazio, Italy - 141st Inf. Regt., 36th Inf. Div.)
- Jensen, Charles Eugene, Council Bluffs (Saipan, Mariana Is. - Co. C, 2nd Amphibian Tractor Bn, 2nd Marine Div.)
- Pagh, Amos Christian, Council Bluffs & Omaha (Alsace, France - 397th Inf. Regt., 100th Inf. Div.)
- Plagge, Harold W., Lake Co., IL - wife from Oakland, Pott. Co. (near Ste.-Mere Eglise, Normandy, France - Co. C, 746th Tank Bn., attached to 82nd Airborne Div.)
- Shadden, Everett Wilbur, Los Angeles, CA (Normandy, France - Det. 7, 166th Signal Photo Co.)
Sources for the Awards for Valor webpage:
- https://homeofheroes.com - useful information on major military awards.