This Day in History: Hulon Whittington's Medal of Honor
- tara
- 19 hours ago
- 3 min read
On this day in 1944, a soldier engages in an action that would earn him the Medal of Honor. Hulon “Rocky” Whittington is the only Medal recipient from the small lumbering town of Bogalusa, Louisiana.
He’d volunteered for the Army, even before the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor. He was soon serving with the 41st Armored Infantry Regiment, 2nd Armored Division. That division fought from North Africa to Sicily and Normandy, even earning a nickname: Hell on Wheels!
Whittington was there every step of the way.
One action in Sicily had him and another soldier fending off a stunningly large enemy force. Whittington even took out a cannon with a grenade!
“[H]e was taken back to the scene with the battalion commander,” Whittington’s relative Bob Ann Breland explains, “and the action which had taken place was reviewed. Amazement was expressed as to how it could have been possible for the two men and their squad to accomplish the difficult task . . . . It did not seem possible without the aid of artillery support.”
The young soldier received a Silver Star, but the action also left him injured and hospitalized. Breland relates that Whittington was undeterred, sneaking out of the hospital five days later to rejoin the fighting.
Sergeant Whittington’s Medal action came a year later near Grimesnil, France, during the night of July 28-29.
Our men had come under attack by a large German force just after midnight. The onslaught left both the platoon leader and platoon sergeant missing in action, but Whittington didn’t falter. He took charge, crawling from gun position to gun position in the midst of heavy enemy fire, determined to reorganize the defensive perimeter.
But his most daring action was perhaps yet to come.
A German tank approached, working to penetrate an American roadblock. The young sergeant was unfazed, leaping atop one of the American tanks. What a scene that must have been! Enemy fire fell all around, but Whittington simply yelled down through the turret, directing the tank into position. When he was close enough, he ordered point-blank fire at the leading German tank.
“The destruction of this vehicle blocked all movement of the remaining enemy column,” his Medal of Honor citation concludes, “consisting of over 100 vehicles of a Panzer unit. The blocked vehicles were then destroyed by hand grenades, bazooka, tank, and artillery fire, and large numbers of enemy personnel were wiped out by a bold and resolute bayonet charge inspired by Sgt. Whittington.”
Amazingly, Whittington survived all these actions without significant injury, but Breland reports that he was sent home about a week later when he was badly wounded in a separate incident.
He was sent to Brooke General Hospital in San Antonio, where he received the Medal of Honor in April 1945. He’d been invited to the White House for the ceremony, but he was too badly injured to make the trip.
“[B]esides, he didn’t know who Truman was,” Breland writes.
Whittington continued to serve in the Army, retiring only after a heart attack sidelined him in 1963. By then, he was a Major and serving as an ordnance advisor in Vietnam.
“I never had the honor to meet him, but I wish I had,” former U.S. Army Ordnance Museum director Dr. William F. Atwater stated at a ceremony honoring Whittington several years ago. “That way, I could have said I met a man who embodied all of the Army values…. If he were here, I would say thank you for your service, deeds and the example you have set.”
Rest in peace, Sir.
A note for those who are interested: Some of you might know I am running an experimentin history reels. If you are so inclined, check out my YouTube channel and/orsubscribe to those HERE. Happy Wednesday!
Primary Sources:
Bob Ann Breland, Bogalusa’s Medal-Winning U.S. Soldier (Daily News; Feb. 27, 2021) (p. 1B)
Bob Ann Breland, Remembering Our Own Heroes (Daily News; May 28, 2000) (p. 1B)
Building Memorializes Bogalusa’s Forgotten Hero (Daily News; Feb. 4, 1981) (p. 3)
Congressional Medal of Honor Presented Son of Local Man (Natchitoches Enterprise; Apr 26, 1945) (p. 1)
Infantryman Will Receive Medal of Honor Saturday (News; Apr. 20, 1945) (p. A8)
Maj Hulon Brooke Whittington: World War II (U.S. Army)
Medal of Honor citation (Hulon Brocke Whittington; WWII)
Pablo Villa, This Month In NCO History: July 29, 1944—Taking Command At Grimesnil, France (NCO Journal; July 9, 2015)
Sharon Mulligan, Medal of Honor recipient honored during 200th Ordnance Corps anniversary celebration (U.S. Army; May 21, 2012)