The President of the United States
in the name of The Congress
takes pleasure in presenting the
Medal of Honor
to
*SHOUP, CURTIS F.
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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