Willard Dwight Miller (June 5, 1877 – February 19, 1959) was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

sailor and a recipient of America's highest military 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 valo ...

—for his actions in the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (cloc ...

Biography

Willard Miller was born in

Maitland Maitland is an English and Scottish surname. It arrived in Britain after the Norman conquest of 1066. There are two theories about its source. It is either a nickname reference to "bad temper/disposition" (Old French, ''Maltalent''; Anglo Norm ...

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia ( ; ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. Nova Scotia is Latin for "New Scotland". Most of the population are native Eng ...

on June 5, 1877. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy from the state of

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

and served during the Spanish–American War as a crew member of the gunboat . On May 11, 1898, he took part in a small boat operation that cut the underwater telegraph cable off Cienfuegos,

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

, and received the Medal of Honor for his conduct during the action (the

Battle of Cienfuegos The Battle of Cienfuegos, also known as the Raid on Cienfuegos, was an engagement of the Spanish–American War, intended by the United States Navy to tighten its blockade of Cuba. Background The Spanish were using undersea cables as a means to c ...

). Miller's younger brother,

Harry Herbert Miller Harry Herbert Miller (May 4, 1879 – March 12, 1968) was a United States Navy sailor and a recipient of America's highest military decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in the Spanish–American War. Biography Harry Miller enlisted i ...

, was also awarded the Medal of Honor for the same action, making the two men one of only eight pairs of brothers to be awarded the medal. Miller left the Navy in 1906 and later served in the U.S. Lighthouse Service. He died on February 19, 1959, at age 81 and is buried in

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

Arlington County, Virginia Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the District of Columbia, of which it was once a part. The county ...

.Arlington National Cemetery
/ref> His grave can be found in Section 46, Lot 15.Burial Detail: Miller, Willard D
– ANC Explorer

Medal of Honor citation

Seaman Miller's official Medal of Honor citation reads:

On board the U.S.S. ''Nashville'' during the operation of cutting the cable leading from Cienfuegos, Cuba, May 11, 1898. Facing the heavy fire of the enemy, Miller displayed extraordinary bravery and coolness throughout this action.

Notes

References

: * {{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Willard Dwight 1877 births 1959 deaths American military personnel of the Spanish–American War Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Canadian emigrants to the United States Canadian people of British descent United States Navy Medal of Honor recipients People from Hants County, Nova Scotia United States Navy sailors Canadian-born Medal of Honor recipients Spanish–American War recipients of the Medal of Honor United States Lighthouse Service personnel

Biography

Medal of Honor citation

See also

Notes

References