John Henry Balch (January 2, 1896 – October 15, 1980) was a United States Naval Reserve officer. He received the Medal of Honor for his actions in World War I.

Education

Balch enlisted in the Navy in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

under an officers training program. Prior to his enlistment on May 26, 1917, he had been a student at

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public instit ...

. After the training program, he was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment and served in France during World War I.

Military service

Prior to the actions in which he was subsequently awarded the Medal of Honor, Balch was involved in the Battle of Belleau Wood where he was wounded. On October 5, 1918, he showed exceptional bravery by establishing an aid station under intense fire. Acting as a

Pharmacist's Mate A hospital corpsman (HM r corpsman is an enlisted medical specialist of the United States Navy, who may also serve in a U.S. Marine Corps unit. The corresponding rating within the United States Coast Guard is health services technician (HS ...

, he was credited with carrying wounded Marines to safety and thereby saving their lives. On August 19, 1919, Balch received an honorable discharge as a Pharmacist's Mate First Class. One-month later he was presented the Medal of Honor by Rear Admiral F. B. Bassett at the YMCA in Chicago, Illinois. In September 1942, Balch rejoined the Navy as a lieutenant and served stateside as well as

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and the Philippines before eventually retiring on June 1, 1950 from the Naval Reserve with the rank of commander and one of the most decorated sailors in US Navy history. He is buried at Riverside National Cemetery in Riverside, California.

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Pharmacist's Mate First Class, U.S. Navy. Place and date:

Vierzy Vierzy () is a commune in the Aisne department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Population See also *Communes of the Aisne department The following is a list of the 799 Communes of France, communes in the French Departments of Fr ...

, France, and

Somme-Py Sommepy-Tahure () is a commune in the Marne department in north-eastern France. It was formed in 1950 by the merger of the former communes ''Sommepy'' and ''Tahure''. See also *Communes of the Marne department The following is a list of the 613 ...

, France, July 19, and October 5, 1918. Entered service at: Kansas City, Mo. Born: January 2, 1896, Edgerton, Kansas Citation:

For gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty, with the 6th Regiment, U.S. Marines, in action at Vierzy, on 19 July 1918. Balch unhesitatingly and fearlessly exposed himself to terrific machinegun and high-explosive fire to succor the wounded as they fell in the attack, leaving his dressing station voluntarily and keeping up the work all day and late into the night unceasingly for 16 hours. Also in the action at Somme-Py on 5 October 1918, he exhibited exceptional bravery in establishing an advanced dressing station under heavy shellfire.

Other decorations and awards

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) *Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) *Distinguished Service Cross (U ...

(Interservice Award from US Army)

…During the attack in the Bois-de-Belleau, Pharmacist's Mate Balch displayed conspicuous coolness under shell fire in evacuating wounded men. During the action near Vierzy, he worked unceasingly for sixteen hours, giving assistance to the wounded on a field torn by high explosive shells and covered by direct machine-gun fire. Near St. Etienne-aux-Arnes, he again gave proof of excellent judgment and courage in establishing an advance dressing station under violent shell and machine-gun fire, thereby saving many lives which would otherwise have been lost.

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against an e ...

s (Interservice Award from US Army) * Navy Commendation Medal * Purple Heart * World War I Victory Medal * American Campaign Medal * Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal * World War II Victory Medal

Foreign Decorations

*French

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

with Fourragère *Italian War Merit Cross: ''Croce al Merito di Guerra'' *Portuguese War Cross: ''Medalha da Cruz de Guerra''

Legacy

On 21 July 2005, The Naval Health Clinic at Quantico, Virginia was renamed the John H. Balch Clinic. In 2018 John Henry Balch became the subject of the short documentary ''John Henry Balch: Congressional Medal of Honor'' directed by Sreang "C" Hok, in collaboration with El Dorado Films and the Veteran Documentary Corps.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Balch, John Henry 1896 births 1980 deaths Burials at Riverside National Cemetery Military personnel from Kansas People from Johnson County, Kansas Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France) Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States) Recipients of the Silver Star United States Navy corpsmen United States Navy Medal of Honor recipients United States Navy officers United States Navy personnel of World War I United States Navy personnel of World War II World War I recipients of the Medal of Honor