Charles A. MacGillivary-Arlington, VA
Posted by: Groundspeak Regular Member Don.Morfe
N 38° 52.644 W 077° 04.290
18S E 320307 N 4305211
World War II Medal of Honor Recipient for action near Woelfling, France on January 1, 1945. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery in Section 48, Site 568.
Waymark Code: WMX30Y
Location: Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 11/19/2017
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member NW_history_buff
Views: 1

He was born on January 7, 1917 in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada and
died on June 24, 2000 in Brockton, MA. His Medal of Honor information and citation is:
MacGlLLlVARY, CHARLES A.
• Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company I, 71st Infantry, 44th Infantry Division
• Place and date: Near Woelfling, France, 1 January 1945
• Entered service at: Boston, Mass.
• G.O. No.: 77, 10 September 1945
Citation: He led a squad when his unit moved forward in darkness to meet the threat of a breakthrough by elements of the 17th German Panzer Grenadier Division. Assigned to protect the left flank, he discovered hostile troops digging in. As he reported this information, several German machineguns opened fire, stopping the American advance. Knowing the position of the enemy, Sgt. MacGillivary volunteered to knock out 1 of the guns while another company closed in from the right to assault the remaining strong points. He circled from the left through woods and snow, carefully worked his way to the emplacement and shot the 2 camouflaged gunners at a range of 3 feet as other enemy forces withdrew. Early in the afternoon of the same day, Sgt. MacGillivary was dispatched on reconnaissance and found that Company I was being opposed by about 6 machineguns reinforcing a company of fanatically fighting Germans. His unit began an attack but was pinned down by furious automatic and small arms fire. With a clear idea of where the enemy guns were placed, he voluntarily embarked on a lone combat patrol. Skillfully taking advantage of all available cover, he stalked the enemy, reached a hostile machinegun and blasted its crew with a grenade. He picked up a submachine gun from the battlefield and pressed on to within 10 yards of another machinegun, where the enemy crew discovered him and feverishly tried to swing their weapon into line to cut him down. He charged ahead, jumped into the midst of the Germans and killed them with several bursts. Without hesitation, he moved on to still another machinegun, creeping, crawling, and rushing from tree to tree, until close enough to toss a grenade into the emplacement and close with its defenders. He dispatched this crew also, but was himself seriously wounded. Through his indomitable fighting spirit, great initiative, and utter disregard for personal safety in the face of powerful enemy resistance, Sgt. MacGillivary destroyed four hostile machineguns and immeasurably helped his company to continue on its mission with minimum casualties.
Armed Service: Army

Visit Instructions:
To properly log your find, post a photograph of the medal recipient's grave marker. Do not place anything on the grave when taking the photo. If you have more information about the recipient please include it in your log.

Search for...
Geocaching.com Google Map
Google Maps
MapQuest
Bing Maps
Nearest Waymarks
Nearest Medal Of Honor Resting Places
Nearest Geocaches
Create a scavenger hunt using this waymark as the center point
Recent Visits/Logs:
Date Logged Log User Rating  
Babushka_Qc visited Charles A. MacGillivary-Arlington, VA 11/06/2022 Babushka_Qc visited it
Don.Morfe visited Charles A. MacGillivary-Arlington, VA 12/19/2021 Don.Morfe visited it

View all visits/logs