Clyde Aristide Thomason

Leading Marine Raiders in the assault on Makin

Clyde Aristide Thomason earned the Medal of Honor during the Marine Raider expedition to Makin Island on August 17 and 18, 1942. A sergeant in Company A, 2nd Marine Raider Battalion, he led the advance element of the assault force against Japanese defenses.

Thomason directed his men and personally entered a house to overcome a concealed sniper. He was killed during the Makin Island raid of 17–18 August 1942 while leading an attack on another enemy position.

Born in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 23, 1914, Thomason received the medal posthumously. It was presented to his stepmother on January 20, 1943. His remains were recovered in 1999 and buried at Arlington National Cemetery in August 2001.

Medal of Honor citation

For conspicuous heroism and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty during the Marine Raider Expedition against the Japanese-held island of Makin on 17-18 August 1942. Leading the advance element of the assault echelon, Sgt. Thomason disposed his men with keen judgment and discrimination and, by his exemplary leadership and great personal valor, exhorted them to like fearless efforts. On one occasion, he dauntlessly walked up to a house which concealed an enemy Japanese sniper, forced in the door, and shot the man before he could resist. Later in the action, while leading an assault on an enemy position, he gallantly gave his life in the service of his country. His courage and loyal devotion to duty in the face of grave peril were in keeping with the finest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.