Cecil H . Bolton Cecil Hamilton Bolton ( October 7 , 1908 – January 22 , 1965 ) was a United States Army officer and a recipient of the United States military ' s highest decoration — the Medal of Honor — for his actions in World War II . Biography . Bolton joined the Army from Huntsville , Alabama in July 1942 , and by November 2 , 1944 was serving as a first lieutenant in Company E , 413th Infantry Regiment , 104th Infantry Division . On that day , near the Mark river in North Brabant , the Netherlands , he was seriously wounded in the legs by a German artillery shell . Despite these wounds , he took two men and led them in a successful assault against three German positions which were firing on his company . Wounded a second time , he ordered his two companions to leave him behind and head for the safety of the American lines . He then crawled the rest of the way back to his company . For these actions , he was awarded the Medal of Honor ten months later , on September 1 , 1945 . Bolton reached the rank of colonel before leaving the Army . He died at age 56 and was buried in Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery , San Antonio , Texas . Medal of Honor citation . Bolton ' s official Medal of Honor citation reads : As leader of the weapons platoon of Company E , 413th Infantry , on the night of November 2 , 1944 , he fought gallantly in a pitched battle which followed the crossing of the Mark River in Holland . When 2 machineguns pinned down his company , he tried to eliminate , with mortar fire , their grazing fire which was inflicting serious casualties and preventing the company ' s advance from an area rocked by artillery shelling . In the moonlight it was impossible for him to locate accurately the enemy ' s camouflaged positions ; but he continued to direct fire until wounded severely in the legs and rendered unconscious by a German shell . When he recovered consciousness he instructed his unit and then crawled to the forward rifle platoon positions . Taking a two - man bazooka team on his voluntary mission , he advanced chest deep in chilling water along a canal toward 1 enemy machinegun . While the bazooka team covered him , he approached alone to within 15 yards of the hostile emplacement in a house . He charged the remaining distance and killed the 2 gunners with hand grenade s . Returning to his men he led them through intense fire over open ground to assault the second German machinegun . An enemy sniper who tried to block the way was dispatched , and the trio pressed on . When discovered by the machinegun crew and subjected to direct fire , 1st Lt . Bolton killed 1 of the 3 gunners with carbine fire , and his 2 comrades shot the others . Continuing to disregard his wounds , he led the bazooka team toward an 88 - mm . artillery piece which was having telling effect on the American ranks , and approached once more through icy canal water until he could dimly make out the gun ' s silhouette . Under his fire direction , the two soldiers knocked out the enemy weapon with rockets . On the way back to his own lines he was again wounded . To prevent his men being longer subjected to deadly fire , he refused aid and ordered them back to safety , painfully crawling after them until he reached his lines , where he collapsed . 1st Lt . Bolton ' s heroic assaults in the face of vicious fire , his inspiring leadership , and continued aggressiveness even through suffering from serious wounds , contributed in large measure to overcoming strong enemy resistance and made it possible for his battalion to reach its objective .