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Rank and organization: Technical Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company H, 313th
Infantry, 79th Infantry Division. Place and date: Siegfried Line near Berg,
Germany, 19 December 1944. Entered service at: Chicago, Ill. Birth: 6 August
1915, Chicago, Ill. G.O. No.: 75, 5 September 1945. Citation: On 19 December
1944 he was ordered with his heavy machinegun squad to the support of an
infantry company attacking the outer defense of the Siegfried Line near
Berg, Germany. For 8 hours he maintained a position made almost untenable
by the density of artillery and mortar fire concentrated upon it and the
proximity of enemy troops who threw hand grenades into the emplacement.
While all other members of his squad became casualties, he remained at
his gun. When he ran out of ammunition, he fearlessly dashed across bullet-swept,
open terrain to secure a new supply from a disabled friendly tank. A fierce
barrage pierced the water jacket of his gun, but he continued to fire until
the weapon overheated and jammed. Instead of withdrawing, he crawled 50
yards across coverless ground to another of his company's machineguns which
had been silenced when its entire crew was killed. He continued to man
this gun, giving support vitally needed by the infantry. At one time he
came under direct fire from a hostile tank, which shot the glove from his
hand with an armor-piercing shell but could not drive him from his position
or stop his shooting. W hen the American forces were ordered to retire
to their original positions, he remained at his gun, giving the only covering
fire. Finally withdrawing, he cradled the heavy weapon in his left arm,
slung a belt of ammunition over his shoulder, and walked to the rear, loosing
small bursts at the enemy as he went. One hundred yards from safety, he
was struck in the leg by a mortar shell; but, with a supreme effort, he
crawled the remaining distance, dragging along the gun which had served
him and his comrades so well. By his remarkable perseverance, indomitable
courage, and heroic devotion to his task in the face of devastating fire,
T/Sgt. Gerstung gave his fellow soldiers powerful support in their encounter
with formidable enemy forces.
This data was extracted from the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, U.S. Senate, Medal of Honor Recipients: 1863-1973 (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1973)
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