Edward A. Gisburne
Encyclopedia
Edward Allen "Eddie" Gisburne (June 14, 1892 – August 29, 1955) was a United States Navy
officer and a recipient of the U.S. military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor
, for his role in the battle which began the U.S. occupation of Veracruz, Mexico. He earned the medal as an enlisted man for ignoring heavy fire and his own severe injuries to drag a wounded marine
to safety. Although he lost his left leg in the fight, he went on to complete two more terms of service with the Navy, one as a radio operator during World War I
and another as a 50-year-old commissioned officer in World War II
.
, Gisburne attended school in Quincy, Massachusetts
. He came from a family with a tradition of naval service, with six generations having served in the Navy since the American Civil War
. An only child, Gisburne's father died when he was 5, and his mother died months later. He eventually moved in with his paternal grandparents in Washington, D.C.
, where he lived for the next ten years. In 1910, he graduated from Washington's McKinley Manual Training School. He held a childhood interest in electricity and later wireless telegraphy
which led to a career in radio
technology.
After his graduation, Gisburne worked for an electrical company in Boston
for a few months before finding work at the Boston Navy Yard
. While there, he and a group of friends decided on a whim to join the Navy; Gisburne enlisted for a four-year term of service on August 30, 1910. He was first stationed as a signaler on the battleship and then on the supply ship .
third class
, was transferred to the and became the battleship's chief radio operator. On April 21, 1914, in the midst of the ongoing Mexican Revolution
, Florida was one of three U.S. Navy ships which landed a combined Navy and Marine Corps
force at Veracruz, Mexico
, in response to the Tampico Affair
. The landings began a three day battle which ended with U.S. occupation of the city.
Accompanying Floridas landing party, Gisburne and others made their way to the roof of Veracruz's Terminal Hotel in order to establish a communications station. When the position came under fire, a Marine Corps rifle squad was sent to provide protection. The first marine to reach the roof, Private Daniel A. Haggerty of Cambridge, Massachusetts
, was almost immediately shot in the stomach and fell such that he was partially hanging off the roof. Gisburne himself was severely wounded in the legs, leaving him unable to walk. Despite this, he crawled through the continuous heavy fire to reach the unconscious Haggerty, pulled him fully onto the roof, and then dragged him to a place of shelter before falling unconscious himself. The two were found still sitting on the roof, with Haggerty dead in Gisburne's arms. Gisburne eventually recovered from his injuries, but his left leg had to be amputated at mid-thigh. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions at Veracruz two months after the battle, on June 15, and was discharged from the Navy after a further two months, on August 17.
Gisburne's official Medal of Honor citation reads:
On April 5, 1917, exactly one day before the U.S. entered World War I
by declaring war on Germany, Gisburne rejoined the Navy at the warrant officer
rank of gunner (radio). Due to his missing leg, he had to get a waiver from the Secretary of the Navy
, Josephus Daniels
, before he could rejoin. He was promoted to the commissioned officer rank of ensign
on January 12, 1918, and to lieutenant (junior grade) on December 5 of that year (retroactive to November 20). A radio operator, Gisburne handled communications for all cruisers and transports operating in the Atlantic Ocean
during the war. He was serving on the transport when it carried President Woodrow Wilson
to Europe for the Paris Peace Conference
in 1919. Gisburne was given a medical retirement on August 9, 1920, two years after the end of the war.
, where he would live for 35 years. He married Ena Frye of Boston and the couple had two sons, Edward Jr. and John. He held a number of jobs, including as a teacher of classes about radio at Boston College
, a reporter for The Patriot Ledger
in Quincy, and a district manager for the Boston Edison Company. He began a broadcasting career with the radio station WEEI
as an editor and, from 1928 through the 1930s, as an announcer. Gisburne was an avid golfer with the Wollaston Golf Club and participated in the Engineers Club of Boston. He was also active in civic affairs, becoming a member of the Milton Town Club and twice being elected to the Milton School Committee, in 1935 and 1938.
. He served as a lieutenant
at Naval Air Station Quonset Point
in Rhode Island. Both of his sons also served in the war. The older son, Edward Jr., fought in the Pacific theater with the 40th Bombardment Group and earned the Air Medal
for his actions in aerial combat with the Japanese; he was killed in action at age 29 on May 26, 1945, when his B-29 Superfortress went down.
Gisburne and his wife moved to Duxbury, Massachusetts, in 1950. He died at age 63 on August 29, 1955, at Chelsea Naval Hospital
in Chelsea, Massachusetts
. He was interred in a family plot at Milton Cemetery
which also includes the grave of his wife Ena and a memorial marker for his son Edward Jr. He is one of two Medal of Honor recipients buried in the cemetery, the other being Indian Wars
soldier Paul H. Weinert
.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
officer and a recipient of the U.S. military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
, for his role in the battle which began the U.S. occupation of Veracruz, Mexico. He earned the medal as an enlisted man for ignoring heavy fire and his own severe injuries to drag a wounded marine
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
to safety. Although he lost his left leg in the fight, he went on to complete two more terms of service with the Navy, one as a radio operator during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and another as a 50-year-old commissioned officer in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
Early life and career
Born on June 14, 1892, in Providence, Rhode IslandProvidence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
, Gisburne attended school in Quincy, Massachusetts
Quincy, Massachusetts
Quincy is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Its nicknames are "City of Presidents", "City of Legends", and "Birthplace of the American Dream". As a major part of Metropolitan Boston, Quincy is a member of Boston's Inner Core Committee for the Metropolitan Area Planning Council...
. He came from a family with a tradition of naval service, with six generations having served in the Navy since the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. An only child, Gisburne's father died when he was 5, and his mother died months later. He eventually moved in with his paternal grandparents in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, where he lived for the next ten years. In 1910, he graduated from Washington's McKinley Manual Training School. He held a childhood interest in electricity and later wireless telegraphy
Wireless telegraphy
Wireless telegraphy is a historical term used today to apply to early radio telegraph communications techniques and practices, particularly those used during the first three decades of radio before the term radio came into use....
which led to a career in radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
technology.
After his graduation, Gisburne worked for an electrical company in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
for a few months before finding work at the Boston Navy Yard
Boston Navy Yard
The Boston Navy Yard, originally called the Charlestown Navy Yard and later Boston Naval Shipyard, was one of the oldest shipbuilding facilities in the United States Navy. Established in 1801, it was officially closed as an active naval installation on July 1, 1974, and the property was...
. While there, he and a group of friends decided on a whim to join the Navy; Gisburne enlisted for a four-year term of service on August 30, 1910. He was first stationed as a signaler on the battleship and then on the supply ship .
Veracruz and World War I
In early 1914, Gisburne, by then an electricianElectrician's Mate
Electrician's Mate is a United States Navy and United States Coast Guard occupational rating.Electrician's Mates stand watch on generators, switchboards, control equipment and electrical equipment; operate and perform organizational and intermediate maintenance on power and lighting circuits,...
third class
Petty Officer Third Class
U.S. NavyGood conductvariationU.S. NavyPetty officerthird classinsigniaPetty officer third class is the fourth enlisted rank in the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard, just above seaman and below petty officer second class, and is the lowest rank of non-commissioned officer, equivalent to a corporal in...
, was transferred to the and became the battleship's chief radio operator. On April 21, 1914, in the midst of the ongoing Mexican Revolution
Mexican Revolution
The Mexican Revolution was a major armed struggle that started in 1910, with an uprising led by Francisco I. Madero against longtime autocrat Porfirio Díaz. The Revolution was characterized by several socialist, liberal, anarchist, populist, and agrarianist movements. Over time the Revolution...
, Florida was one of three U.S. Navy ships which landed a combined Navy and Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
force at Veracruz, Mexico
Veracruz, Veracruz
Veracruz, officially known as Heroica Veracruz, is a major port city and municipality on the Gulf of Mexico in the Mexican state of Veracruz. The city is located in the central part of the state. It is located along Federal Highway 140 from the state capital Xalapa, and is the state's most...
, in response to the Tampico Affair
Tampico Affair
The Tampico Affair started off as a minor incident involving U.S. sailors and Mexican land forces loyal to General Victoriano Huerta during the guerra de las facciones phase of the Mexican Revolution...
. The landings began a three day battle which ended with U.S. occupation of the city.
Accompanying Floridas landing party, Gisburne and others made their way to the roof of Veracruz's Terminal Hotel in order to establish a communications station. When the position came under fire, a Marine Corps rifle squad was sent to provide protection. The first marine to reach the roof, Private Daniel A. Haggerty of Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
, was almost immediately shot in the stomach and fell such that he was partially hanging off the roof. Gisburne himself was severely wounded in the legs, leaving him unable to walk. Despite this, he crawled through the continuous heavy fire to reach the unconscious Haggerty, pulled him fully onto the roof, and then dragged him to a place of shelter before falling unconscious himself. The two were found still sitting on the roof, with Haggerty dead in Gisburne's arms. Gisburne eventually recovered from his injuries, but his left leg had to be amputated at mid-thigh. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions at Veracruz two months after the battle, on June 15, and was discharged from the Navy after a further two months, on August 17.
Gisburne's official Medal of Honor citation reads:
On board the U.S.S. Florida during the seizure of Vera Cruz, Mexico, 21 and 22 April 1914, and for extraordinary heroism in the line of his profession during this action.
On April 5, 1917, exactly one day before the U.S. entered World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
by declaring war on Germany, Gisburne rejoined the Navy at the warrant officer
Warrant Officer
A warrant officer is an officer in a military organization who is designated an officer by a warrant, as distinguished from a commissioned officer who is designated an officer by a commission, or from non-commissioned officer who is designated an officer by virtue of seniority.The rank was first...
rank of gunner (radio). Due to his missing leg, he had to get a waiver from the Secretary of the Navy
United States Secretary of the Navy
The Secretary of the Navy of the United States of America is the head of the Department of the Navy, a component organization of the Department of Defense...
, Josephus Daniels
Josephus Daniels
Josephus Daniels was a newspaper editor and publisher from North Carolina who was appointed by United States President Woodrow Wilson to serve as Secretary of the Navy during World War I...
, before he could rejoin. He was promoted to the commissioned officer rank of ensign
Ensign (rank)
Ensign is a junior rank of a commissioned officer in the armed forces of some countries, normally in the infantry or navy. As the junior officer in an infantry regiment was traditionally the carrier of the ensign flag, the rank itself acquired the name....
on January 12, 1918, and to lieutenant (junior grade) on December 5 of that year (retroactive to November 20). A radio operator, Gisburne handled communications for all cruisers and transports operating in the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
during the war. He was serving on the transport when it carried President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
to Europe for the Paris Peace Conference
Paris Peace Conference, 1919
The Paris Peace Conference was the meeting of the Allied victors following the end of World War I to set the peace terms for the defeated Central Powers following the armistices of 1918. It took place in Paris in 1919 and involved diplomats from more than 32 countries and nationalities...
in 1919. Gisburne was given a medical retirement on August 9, 1920, two years after the end of the war.
Civilian life
After his first enlistment in the Navy, Gisburne settled in Milton, MassachusettsMilton, Massachusetts
Milton is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States and part of the Greater Boston area. The population was 27,003 at the 2010 census. Milton is the birthplace of former U.S. President George H. W. Bush and architect Buckminster Fuller. Milton also has the highest percentage of...
, where he would live for 35 years. He married Ena Frye of Boston and the couple had two sons, Edward Jr. and John. He held a number of jobs, including as a teacher of classes about radio at Boston College
Boston College
Boston College is a private Jesuit research university located in the village of Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA. The main campus is bisected by the border between the cities of Boston and Newton. It has 9,200 full-time undergraduates and 4,000 graduate students. Its name reflects its early...
, a reporter for The Patriot Ledger
The Patriot Ledger
The Patriot Ledger is a daily afternoon newspaper published in Quincy, Massachusetts and serving the South Shore. Its circulation is 55,000 on weekdays and 63,000 for its Weekend edition which is published on Saturday mornings....
in Quincy, and a district manager for the Boston Edison Company. He began a broadcasting career with the radio station WEEI
WEEI
WEEI is a sports radio station in Boston, Massachusetts, that broadcasts on 850 kHz from a transmitter in Needham, Massachusetts, and is owned by Entercom Communications. The station is one of the top-rated sports talk radio stations in the nation. Studios are located in Brighton, Massachusetts...
as an editor and, from 1928 through the 1930s, as an announcer. Gisburne was an avid golfer with the Wollaston Golf Club and participated in the Engineers Club of Boston. He was also active in civic affairs, becoming a member of the Milton Town Club and twice being elected to the Milton School Committee, in 1935 and 1938.
World War II and later years
Despite being both an amputee and 50 years old, Gisburne began a third stint in the Navy after the 1941 attack on Pearl HarborAttack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
. He served as a lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
at Naval Air Station Quonset Point
Naval Air Station Quonset Point
Naval Air Station Quonset Point was a United States Naval Base in Quonset Point, Rhode Island that was deactivated in 1974. Next to NAS Quonset Point was Camp Endicott at Davisville, home of the Naval Construction Battalions known as the Seabees. Quonset Point also gave its name to the Quonset hut,...
in Rhode Island. Both of his sons also served in the war. The older son, Edward Jr., fought in the Pacific theater with the 40th Bombardment Group and earned the Air Medal
Air Medal
The Air Medal is a military decoration of the United States. The award was created in 1942, and is awarded for meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight.-Criteria:...
for his actions in aerial combat with the Japanese; he was killed in action at age 29 on May 26, 1945, when his B-29 Superfortress went down.
Gisburne and his wife moved to Duxbury, Massachusetts, in 1950. He died at age 63 on August 29, 1955, at Chelsea Naval Hospital
Chelsea Naval Hospital
Chelsea Naval Hospital was a hospital in Chelsea, Massachusetts. With the closure of the nearby Boston Navy Yard, the hospital closed in 1974.-History:...
in Chelsea, Massachusetts
Chelsea, Massachusetts
Chelsea is a city in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States directly across the Mystic River from the city of Boston. It is the smallest city in Massachusetts in land area, and the 26th most densely populated incorporated place in the country.-History:...
. He was interred in a family plot at Milton Cemetery
Milton Cemetery
Milton Cemetery is a historic cemetery at 211 Centre Street in Milton, Massachusetts.It was founded in 1672 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2004. Among those interred in the cemetery are:...
which also includes the grave of his wife Ena and a memorial marker for his son Edward Jr. He is one of two Medal of Honor recipients buried in the cemetery, the other being Indian Wars
Indian Wars
American Indian Wars is the name used in the United States to describe a series of conflicts between American settlers or the federal government and the native peoples of North America before and after the American Revolutionary War. The wars resulted from the arrival of European colonizers who...
soldier Paul H. Weinert
Paul H. Weinert
Sergeant Paul H. Weinert was an American soldier in the U.S. Army who served with the 1st U.S. Artillery during the Indian Wars...
.
See also
- List of Medal of Honor recipients (Veracruz)