Three soldiers received the congressional Medal of Honor for their actions on Omaha Beach during D-Day. Two of them were awarded this distinction posthumously (Lieutenant Jimmy Monteith and Corporal John Pinder). Private Carlton W. Barrett was the third and only one who survived that day. He was enlisted in the 18th Infantry, 1st Infantry Division. Here is the citation.
“For gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty on 6 June 1944, in the vicinity of St. Laurent-sur-Mer, France. On the morning of D-day, Pvt. Barrett, landing in the face of extremely heavy enemy fire, was forced to wade ashore through neck-deep water. Disregarding the personal danger, he returned to the surf again and again to assist his floundering comrades and save them from drowning. Refusing to remain pinned down by the intense barrage of small-arms and mortar fire poured at the landing points, Pvt. Barrett, working with fierce determination, saved many lives by carrying casualties to an evacuation boat lying offshore. In addition to his assigned mission as guide, he carried dispatches the length of the fire-swept beach; he assisted the wounded; he calmed the shocked; he arose as a leader in the stress of the occasion. His coolness and his dauntless daring courage while constantly risking his life during a period of many hours had an inestimable effect on his comrades and is in keeping with the highest traditions of the U.S. Army.”
Barrett died March 3, 1986 in Yountville, California and was buried at Napa Valley Memorial Gardens, Napa, California.
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