Larry Leonard Maxam

He manned an exposed machine gun to defend his fellow troops

Larry Leonard Maxam was born in Glendale, California, on 9 January 1948. He attended school in Burbank before enlisting in the Marine Corps in March 1965. After recruit and infantry training, he served at Jacksonville, Camp Lejeune and other East Coast stations, with temporary duties in Virginia and Puerto Rico.

He reached Vietnam in July 1967 and served as a rifleman, radioman and squad leader in Company D, 1st Battalion, 4th Marines. Promoted corporal that October, he took part in Operation Kentucky in Quang Tri Province.

On 2 February 1968, a heavy bombardment damaged the defensive perimeter at Cam Lo District Headquarters. Seeing enemy troops preparing to exploit the opening, Maxam put another Marine in charge of his fire team and ran to an abandoned machine gun.

Fragmentation wounds struck him before he reached it. He nevertheless brought the gun into action and held the threatened sector. Repeatedly wounded, he continued firing until the attacking force withdrew, then collapsed beside the weapon. His resistance allowed the surviving defenders to reorganise and helped prevent the compound from being overrun.

He died from his wounds. His mother received his posthumous Medal of Honor at the White House ceremony led by Vice President Spiro Agnew on 20 April 1970. He was buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu.

Official Medal of Honor citation

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a fire team leader with Company D. The Cam Lo District Headquarters came under extremely heavy rocket, artillery, mortar, and recoilless-rifle fire from a numerically superior enemy force destroying a portion of the defense perimeter. Cpl. Maxam observing the enemy massing for an assault into the compound across the remaining defensive wire, instructed his assistant fire team leader to take charge of the fire team, and unhesitatingly proceeded to the weakened section of the perimeter. Completely exposed to the concentrated enemy fire, he sustained multiple fragmentation wounds from exploding grenades as he ran to an abandoned machine-gun position. Reaching the emplacement, he grasped the machine gun and commenced to deliver effective fire on the advancing enemy. As the enemy directed maximum firepower against the determined marine, Cpl. Maxam's position received a direct hit from a rocket-propelled grenade, knocking him backwards and inflicting severe fragmentation wounds to his face and right eye. Although momentarily stunned and in intense pain, Cpl. Maxam courageously assumed his firing position and subsequently was struck again by small-arms fire. With resolute determination, he gallantly continued to deliver intense machine-gun fire, causing the enemy to retreat through the defensive wire to positions of cover. In a desperate attempt to silence his weapon, the North Vietnamese threw hand grenades and directed recoilless-rifle fire against him inflicting two additional wounds. Too weak to reload his machine gun, Cpl. Maxam fell to a prone position and valiantly continued to deliver effective fire with his rifle. After 1 and one half hours, during which he was hit repeatedly by fragments from exploding grenades and concentrated small-arms fire, he succumbed to his wounds, having successfully defended nearly half of the perimeter singlehandedly. Cpl. Maxam's aggressive fighting spirit, inspiring valor and selfless devotion to duty, reflected great credit upon himself and the Marine Corps and upheld the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.