MERRELL, JOSEPH F. - Medal of Honor Recipient
Rank and organization: Private, U.S. Army, Company I, 15th Infantry,
3d Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Lohe, Germany, 18 April 1945.
Entered service at: Staten Island, N.Y. Birth: Staten Island, N.Y. G.O.
No.: 21, 26 February 1946. Citation: He made a gallant, 1-man attack against
vastly superior enemy forces near Lohe, Germany. His unit, attempting a
quick conquest of hostile hill positions that would open the route to Nuremberg
before the enemy could organize his defense of that city, was pinned down
by brutal fire from rifles, machine pistols, and 2 heavy machineguns. Entirely
on his own initiative, Pvt. Merrell began a single-handed assault. He ran
100 yards through concentrated fire, barely escaping death at each stride,
and at pointblank range engaged 4 German machine pistolmen with his rifle,
killing all of them while their bullets ripped his uniform. As he started
forward again, his rifle was smashed by a sniper's bullet, leaving him
armed only with 3 grenades. But he did not hesitate. He zigzagged 200 yards
through a hail of bullets to within 10 yards of the first machinegun, where
he hurled 2 grenades and then rushed the position ready to fight with his
bare hands if necessary. In the emplacement he seized a Luger pistol and
killed what Germans had survived the grenade blast. Rearmed, he crawled
toward the second machinegun located 30 yards away, killing 4 Germans in
camouflaged foxholes on the way, but himself receiving a critical wound
in the abdomen. And yet he went on, staggering, bleeding, disregarding
bullets which tore through the folds of his clothing and glanced off his
helmet. He threw his last grenade into the machinegun nest and stumbled
on to wipe out the crew. He had completed this self-appointed task when
a machine pistol burst killed him instantly. In his spectacular 1-man attack
Pvt. Merrell killed 6 Germans in the first machinegun emplacement, 7 in
the next, and an additional 10 infantrymen who were astride his path to
the weapons which would have decimated his unit had he not assumed the
burden of the assault and stormed the enemy positions with utter fearlessness,
intrepidity of the highest order, and a willingness to sacrifice his own
life so that his comrades could go on to victory.
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