Melvin Mayfield (March 24, 1919 – June 19, 1990) was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

soldier and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

—for his actions in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Mayfield's actions, on July 29, 1945, were the last to earn a Medal of Honor prior to the August 15, 1945, end of hostilities in World War II—though some honorees may have been cited for their Medal after Mayfield's recognition on May 31, 1946.

Biography

Mayfield joined the Army from

Nashport, Ohio Nashport is an unincorporated community in western Licking Township, Muskingum County, Ohio, United States. It has a post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters an ...

in February 1941,WWII Army Enlistment Records
/ref> and by July 29, 1945, was serving as a

Corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non ...

in Company D, 20th Infantry Regiment,

6th Infantry Division 6th Division may refer to: Infantry divisions * 6th Division (Australia) * 6th Division (Austria) *6th (United Kingdom) Division * Finnish 6th Division (Winter War) *Finnish 6th Division (Continuation War) * 6th Division (Reichswehr) * 6th Divisi ...

. On that day, in the Cordillera Mountains,

Luzon Luzon (; ) is the largest and most populous island in the Philippines. Located in the northern portion of the Philippines archipelago, it is the economic and political center of the nation, being home to the country's capital city, Manila, as ...

, the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, he single-handedly attacked four enemy positions. For this action, he was awarded the Medal of Honor ten months later, on May 31, 1946. Mayfield left the Army while still a corporal. He died at age 71 and was buried in Frazeysburg Cemetery,

Frazeysburg, Ohio Frazeysburg is a village in Muskingum County, Ohio, United States, along Wakatomika Creek. The population was 1,354 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Zanesville micropolitan area. Frazeysburg is home to the world's largest apple basket, whic ...

Medal of Honor citation

Corporal Mayfield's official Medal of Honor citation reads:

He displayed conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty while fighting in the Cordillera Mountains of Luzon, Philippine Islands. When 2 Filipino companies were pinned down under a torrent of enemy fire that converged on them from a circular ridge commanding their position, Cpl. Mayfield, in a gallant single-handed effort to aid them, rushed from shell hole to shell hole until he reached 4 enemy caves atop the barren fire-swept hill. With
grenade A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade genera ...
s and his
carbine A carbine ( or ) is a long gun that has a barrel shortened from its original length. Most modern carbines are rifles that are compact versions of a longer rifle or are rifles chambered for less powerful cartridges. The smaller size and lighter ...
, he assaulted each of the caves while enemy fire pounded about him. However, before he annihilated the last hostile redoubt, a machinegun bullet destroyed his weapon and slashed his left hand. Disregarding his wound, he secured more grenades and dauntlessly charged again into the face of pointblank fire to help destroy a hostile
observation post An observation post (commonly abbreviated OP), temporary or fixed, is a position from which soldiers can watch enemy movements, to warn of approaching soldiers (such as in trench warfare), or to direct fire. In strict military terminology, an ...
. By his gallant determination and heroic leadership, Cpl. Mayfield inspired the men to eliminate all remaining pockets of resistance in the area and to press the advance against the enemy.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mayfield, Melvin 1919 births 1990 deaths United States Army personnel of World War II United States Army Medal of Honor recipients People from Muskingum County, Ohio United States Army soldiers People from Salem, West Virginia Military personnel from West Virginia World War II recipients of the Medal of Honor

Biography

Medal of Honor citation

See also

References