Abraham DeSomer
Abraham DeSomer | |
---|---|
United States occupation of Veracruz, 1914 | |
Awards | Medal of Honor |
Abraham DeSomer (December 29, 1884 – August 31, 1974) was an enlisted man and later an officer in the
Biography
Abraham DeSomer was born on December 29, 1884, in
From 1907 to 1911, he was assigned to the
In February 1915 DeSomer was promoted to the
DeSomer began two more years of training duty at Great Lakes in the summer of 1925, then was assigned to the
He returned to active duty in the summer of 1940, after the fall of France prompted a massive expansion of America's defenses. Promoted to lieutenant commander on the retired list in February 1942, he remained on active status through the war years.
DeSomer died on August 31, 1974, and is buried at the
Description of Medal of Honor action
In a letter dated 13 June 1914[1] to DeSomer, Josephus Daniels quoted Admiral F. F. Fletcher's summary of DeSomer's actions on 21–22 April 1914:
On the afternoon of April 21st, [DeSomer] was placed in charge of a small squad of men and stationed at the corner of a warehouse to eastward of the custom house. His position was subject to a severe fire from the buildings along Avenida Inadero y Cos, and after several hours of well directed fire he silenced it. On April 22d when a general advance began, he was sent ahead to locate and silence fire from snipers. Being an excellent marksman and notably cool, he was especially selected for this work. Later, when two sections of artillery were sent to join Captain Anderson's command, he performed similar services and was almost continually under direct fire from snipers. His services in this connection were of more value than a whole squad.
—Frank Friday Fletcher
Daniels concluded with:
The Department concurs with the opinion of Rear Admiral Fletcher and highly commends your conspicuous courage, coolness and skill, which were in accord with and added to the best traditions of the naval service. ... In addition a Medal of Honor and a gratuity of One Hundred Dollars has been awarded you.
—Josephus Daniels
Awards
- Medal of Honor
- Good Conduct Medal
- Philippine Campaign Medal
- Mexican Service Medal
- World War I Victory Medal with "ESCORT" clasp
- American Defense Service Medal
- American Campaign Medal
- World War II Victory Medal
Medal of Honor citation
Rank and organization: Lieutenant, United States Navy, U.S.S. Utah. Place and date: Vera Cruz, Mexico, 21 and April 22, 1914. Entered service at: Wisconsin. Birth: Milwaukee, Wis.
Citation:
On board the U.S.S. Utah, for extraordinary heroism in the line of his profession during the seizure of Vera Cruz, Mexico, 21 and April 22, 1914.
See also
References
- Naval History & Heritage Command. 23 January 2008. Archived from the originalon 8 November 2012. Retrieved 18 November 2012.
- This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Naval History and Heritage Command.
- Naval Historical Center (June 13, 2006). "US People - DeSomer, Abraham". Online Library. Archived from the original on April 8, 2010. Retrieved August 8, 2006.
- "Medal of Honor". United States Army Center of Military History. Archived from the original on 15 September 2007. Retrieved August 23, 2007.