Joseph H. Thompson

Guiding a tank forward near Apremont

Joseph Henry Thompson was born on 26 September 1871 in Kilkeel, County Down, Ireland. He served in the United States Army with the 110th Infantry Regiment, 28th Division during the First World War.

On 1 October 1918 near Apremont, France, Major Thompson moved under machine-gun and artillery fire to encourage his battalion during a counterattack. Later, when a machine-gun position blocked the advance and five of six assault tanks were disabled, he went ahead on foot three times to guide the surviving tank toward the position. The tank silenced it, allowing the infantry to move forward.

Thompson received the Medal of Honor and later held the rank of colonel. He died on 1 February 1928 in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, and is buried in Beaver Falls Cemetery and Memorial Park.

Medal of Honor citation

Counterattacked by two regiments of the enemy, Maj. Thompson encouraged his battalion in the front line by constantly braving the hazardous fire of machine guns and artillery. His courage was mainly responsible for the heavy repulse of the enemy. Later in the action, when the advance of his assaulting companies was held up by fire from a hostile machine-gun nest and all but one of the six assaulting tanks were disabled, Maj.

Thompson, with great gallantry and coolness, rushed forward on foot three separate times in advance of the assaulting line, under heavy machine-gun and antitank-gun fire, and led the one remaining tank to within a few yards of the enemy machine-gun nest, which it succeeded in reducing, thereby making it possible for the infantry to advance.