Samuel Woodfill

Captain, 60th Infantry, 5th Division

Congressional Medal of Honor. General Orders No. 16, War Department, 1919: At Cunel, France, October 12, 1918. When he was leading his company against the enemy, his line came under heavy machine-gun fire, which threatened to hold up the advance. Followed by two soldiers at twenty-five yards, this officer went out ahead of his first line toward a machine-gun nest and worked his way toward its flank, leaving the two soldiers in front. When he got within ten yards of the gun it ceased firing, and four of the enemy appeared, three of whom were shot by Lieutenant Woodfill. The fourth, an officer, rushed at Lieutenant Woodfill, who attempted to club the officer with his rifle. After a hand-to-hand struggle, Lieutenant Woodfill killed the officer with his pistol. His company thereupon continued to advance, until shortly afterwards another machine-gun nest was encountered. Calling on his men to follow, Lieutenant Woodfill rushed ahead of his line in the face of heavy fire from the nest, and when several of the enemy appeared above the nest he shot them, capturing three other members of the crew and silencing the gun. A few minutes later this officer for the third time demonstrated conspicuous daring by charging another machine-gun position, killing five men in one machine-gun pit with his rifle. He then drew his revolver and started to jump into the pit, when two other runners only a few yards away turned their gun on him. Failing to kill them with his revolver, he grabbed a pick lying near by and killed both of them. Inspired by the exceptional courage displayed by this officer, his men pressed on to their objective under severe shell and machine-gun fire.

Legion of Honor, Chevalier (France). By Presidential Decree of May 5, 1919. No specific citation of record.

Croix de Guerre with palm (France). Order No. 16.043 "D", April 13, 1919, General Headquarters, French Armies of the East: An admirably courageous and devoted officer. On October 12, 1918, his company having been stopped by a nest of machine guns, he went forward with a patrol of two men. Arriving alone in front of the machine guns, he killed the four occupants including an officer, thus permitting the resumption of the advance. By his personal action and the example which he gave, he successively silenced two other machine-gun nests which were hindering his company, killing a portion of the occupants and taking the others prisoner.

Croce di Guerra (Italy). Chief of Staff, Italian Army, December 9, 1921. No specific citation of record.

Order of Prince Danilo I, Chevalier (Montenegro).  Royal award of June 14, 1919. No specific citation of record.

Record. Born January 6, 1883, Belleview; son of John Samuel Goode and Christina Haverline Custer Woodfill. Farmer, Bryantsburg. Enlisted March 8, 1901. Served in Philippines, 1901-1904; in Alaska, 1904-1912; on Mexican border, 1914-1917. Training: Gettysburg, Pennsylvania; Camp Greene, North Carolina; Camp Mills, New York; Camp Shelby, Mississippi; Camp Merritt, New Jersey. Assigned to Company A, 9th Infantry; transferred to Company M, 60th Infantry. Second lieutenant, Infantry (temporary), July 11, 1917; first lieutenant, March 3, 1918; captain, February 28, 1919. Overseas April 16, 1918-July 18, 1919. Battles: St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne, Wounded October 12, 1918, at Hadol. Discharged October 31, 1919; re-enlisted. Still in service.

Captain Woodfill represented the Infantry branch of the Army of the United States at the burial of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington Cemetery on Armistice Day, November 11, 1921.

Fort Thomas, Kentucky.