SHOUP, CURTIS F. - Medal of Honor Recipient
Rank and organization: Staff Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company I, 346th Infantry,
87th Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Tillet, Belgium, 7 January
1945. Entered service at: Buffalo, N.Y. Birth: Napenoch, N.Y. G.0. No.:
60, 25 July 1945. Citation: On 7 January 1945, near Tillet, Belgium, his
company attacked German troops on rising ground. Intense hostile machinegun
fire pinned down and threatened to annihilate the American unit in an exposed
position where frozen ground made it impossible to dig in for protection.
Heavy mortar and artillery fire from enemy batteries was added to the storm
of destruction falling on the Americans. Realizing that the machinegun
must be silenced at all costs, S/Sgt. Shoup, armed with an automatic rifle,
crawled to within 75 yards of the enemy emplacement. He found that his
fire was ineffective from this position, and completely disregarding his
own safety, stood up and grimly strode ahead into the murderous stream
of bullets, firing his low-held weapon as he went. He was hit several times
and finally was knocked to the ground. But he struggled to his feet and
staggered forward until close enough to hurl a grenade, wiping out the
enemy machinegun nest with his dying action. By his heroism, fearless determination,
and supreme sacrifice, S/Sgt. Shoup eliminated a hostile weapon which threatened
to destroy his company and turned a desperate situation into victory.
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