Three spent cases from Sergeant Cornelius H. Charlton's funeral volley
date: label: Date
content: 1989
name: label: Manufactured by
content: Lake City Army Ammunition Plant, American, founded 1941
label: Subject of
content: Sergeant Cornelius H. Charlton, American, 1929 - 1951
label: Received by
content: Fairy Mae Penn Papadopoulus, American, died 2010
label: Used by
content: United States Army, American, founded 1775
notes: label: Caption
content: These shell casings held bullets fired during the burial ceremony of Medal of Honor recipient Sgt. Cornelius Charlton. Military personnel are honored with a three-volley salute during burial services. The salutes are linked to early battlefield customs that called for a cease-fire to care for the dead and wounded. Sergeant Charlton served in C Company, 24th Infantry Regiment, during the Korean War. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for actions on June 2, 1951, near Chipo-ri, Korea. After his wounded platoon leader was evacuated during an attack to capture Hill 543, Charlton "rallied the men" and led them on three separate assaults. During the first assault, he eliminated two enemy positions, killing six. Although seriously wounded in the next two assaults, Charlton conducted a fourth assault alone. He was wounded again by a grenade but silenced the enemy guns before he died. Sergeant Charlton was originally buried at Pocahontas Cemetery in Pocahontas, Virginia, before he was re-interred at the American Legion Cemetery in Beckley, West Virginia, in 1990. On November 12, 2008, he was re-interred at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.
label: Description
content: Three spent cases from a three-volley salute at Sergeant Cornelius H. Charlton's reburial service. Bottom, flat surface, has indented hole in center, surrounded by indented circle. The headstamp reads [LC / 89]. Top of shell casing has been shaped similarly to a dulled 5-point star.
place: label: Place used
content: Beckley, Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States, North and Central America
topic: label: Topic
content: African American
label: Topic
content: Funeral customs and rites
label: Topic
content: Korean War, 1950-1953
label: Topic
content: Military
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
label: Collection title
content: Sergeant Cornelius H. Charlton Collection
label: Classification
content: Sacred and Ceremonial Objects
label: Classification
content: Weapons and Ammunition
label: Exhibition
content: Double Victory: The African American Military Experience
label: On View
content: NMAAHC (1400 Constitution Ave NW), National Mall Location, Community/Third Floor, 3 053
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Gift of George "Everett" Penn, Jr.
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of African American History and Culture
identifier: label: Object number
content: 2015.193.2.1-.3
objectType: label: Type
content: cases (ammunition components)
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: No Known Copyright Restrictions
label: Restrictions & Rights
content: Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: metal
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D (2015.193.2.1): 2 5/8 × 7/16 × 7/16 in. (6.7 × 1.1 × 1.1 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D (2015.193.2.2): 2 9/16 × 7/16 × 7/16 in. (6.5 × 1.1 × 1.1 cm)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D (2015.193.2.3): 2 9/16 × 7/16 × 7/16 in. (6.5 × 1.1 × 1.1 cm)