George Watson (U.S. Army)

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George Watson
Died March 8, 1943

Place of birth	Birmingham, Alabama
Place of death	near Porloch Harbor, New Guinea
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1942–1943
Rank	Private
Unit	2nd Battalion, 29th Quartermaster Regiment L&B
Battles/wars	World War II
Awards	Medal of Honor Purple Heart

George Watson was a private in the United States Army who was killed in action during World War II. He was one of seven African-American soldiers to be awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions during World War II, and the only one of the seven to earn his medal while serving in the Pacific Theater.

1 Awards and honors
2 See also
3 References
4 External links

A resident of Birmingham, Alabama, He had entered the Army September 1, 1942, and was a member of the 2nd Battalion, 29th Quartermaster Regiment. He was a passenger aboard the Dutch steamer USAT Jacob on March 8, 1943, which was near Porloch Harbor, New Guinea, when the ship was hit by Japanese bombers.

When the ship was abandoned, Watson remained in the water and, instead of trying to save himself, assisted soldiers who could not swim into life rafts.

Weakened by his exertions, he was dragged down by the suction of the sinking ship and drowned. His body was never recovered.

[edit] Awards and honors

Watson's military awards include: Medal of Honor (as of 23 September 1996); Purple Heart; Army Good Conduct Medal; Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal; and World War II Victory Medal.

Watson had no known next of kin, so his medals are displayed in the U.S. Army Quartermaster Museum, Fort Lee, Virginia.

A field at Fort Benning in Georgia is named in his honor.

In 1997, the United States Navy named USNS Watson (T-AKR-310) in Private Watson's honor. Watson is the lead ship of her class of large, medium-speed, roll-on/roll-off (LMSR) ships.