OZBOURN, JOSEPH WILLIAM - Medal of Honor Recipient
Rank and organization: Private, U.S. Marine Corps. Birth: 24 October
1919, Herrin, Ill. Accredited to: Illinois. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry
and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty
as a Browning Automatic Rifleman serving with the 1st Battalion, 23d Marines,
4th Marine Division, during the battle for enemy Japanese-held Tinian Island,
Marianas Islands, 30 July 1944. As a member of a platoon assigned the mission
of clearing the remaining Japanese troops from dugouts and pillboxes along
a tree line, Pvt. Ozbourn, flanked by 2 men on either side, was moving
forward to throw an armed handgrenade into a dugout when a terrific blast
from the entrance severely wounded the 4 men and himself. Unable to throw
the grenade into the dugout and with no place to hurl it without endangering
the other men, Pvt. Ozbourn unhesitatingly grasped it close to his body
and fell upon it, sacrificing his own life to absorb the full impact of
the explosion, but saving his comrades. His great personal valor and unwavering
loyalty reflect the highest credit upon Pvt. Ozbourn and the U.S. Naval
Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
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