AMERICA'S
Most Decorated

It is not unusual to hear local historians ascribe "more" and "most" attributes to their local heroes. My hometown of Pueblo calls itself the "Home Of Heroes" for until 2000 it was the only city in America with four living MOH recipients. Sometimes this gets revised to say "most per capita", when it fact, the small town of Noonan, GA (population little more than 1,000) produced two Medal of Honor Recipients during the Vietnam War: Joe Jackson and Stephen Pless. Then again, the small town of Leeds, Alabama, has lain its own claim to fame for being the hometown of Bill Lawley, Alford McLaughlin, and Henry Erwin.

Even more subject to arguable claims is the "most" factor. Audie Murphy is often remembered as the "most decorated soldier of WWII," yet Holland, MI, hometown of Matt Urban is quick to claim when Urban received a belated Medal of Honor from President Carter, this hometown hero became the most decorated.

Recently I did the following comparison when someone emailed me on this issue:

In terms of sheer numbers, Audie Murphy had 29 combat awards and unit citations, Matt Urban had 28. Also, Audie Murphy received the DSC, second only to the MOH, Matt Urban did not. Both men received two Silver Stars and the Legion of Merit. Matt received 3 Bronze Stars to Murphy's 2, and 7 Purple Hearts to Murphy's 3. So Matt Urban in terms of sheer numbers, exceeded Murphy's count of these awards by 4 Purple Hearts and 1 Bronze Star. Audie Murphy could lay claim to all four of the Army's top awards for valor, Matt Urban to only 3 of those four.  Below is a comparison of the two men's awards, minus the marksmanship badges.

All of that aside, the issue can become far more complicated. There is a vast difference between "MOST decorated" and "MOST HIGHLY decorated." A good soldier who has never seen combat but completed many tours of duty over a career might acquire a goodly number of decorations. On the other hand, a soldier such at Arkansas' Maurice Britt who only earned a few awards, ranks among the "Most Highly Decorated" due the fact that he received EVERY ONE of the Army's top awards for Valor including the Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, and Bronze Star.

Any record, no matter how impressive, would be hard to match up against the array of awards amassed by Vietnam War Special Forces hero Colonel Robert L. Howard who earned EVERY award for valor in the Army's Pyramid of Honor including the Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star, 3 Legion of Merit, 4 Bronze Stars, and a record EIGHT Purple Hearts, the latter matched only by fellow MOH recipient Ronnie Joe Hooper, David Hackworth (who also earned 2 DSCs and a record 10 Silver Stars), Robert Frederick, and Richard Buck.

Frankly, I'm not upset or offended by any community that tends to present the facts in such a way that they highlight hometown heroes. I'm thankful that those hometowns are justly proud of their local heroes. So, to throw a little more confusion on the "Most Highly Decorated" puzzle, below are some interesting examples of America's GREATEST WARRIORS.