Medal of Honor: Anthony T. Kahoʻohanohano, Korean War, September 1, 1951

Name: Anthony T. Kahoʻohanohano

War: Korean War
Date of Action: September 1, 1951
Branch/Unit: U.S. Army, Company H, 17th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division
Born: 1930, Hawaii

Summary of Action

The battle for the rugged ridgelines near Chupa-ri in the late summer of 1951 saw American and United Nations troops fighting desperately to blunt a powerful enemy offensive. Kahoʻohanohano, a machine-gun squad leader, faced overwhelming enemy numbers as waves of troops pressed against his position.

When his company was forced to pull back under immense pressure, he ordered his squad to assume more defensible positions and cover the withdrawal. Though already wounded in the shoulder during the first enemy assault, Kahoʻohanohano refused to retreat. Arming himself with grenades and ammunition, he returned alone to his original emplacement.

From there, he fought with relentless courage. He poured accurate fire into the advancing ranks, cutting down enemy soldiers even as they closed in on his position. When his ammunition finally ran dry, he did not surrender. Instead, he engaged the enemy in brutal hand-to-hand combat until he was killed.

So fierce was his stand that when American troops counterattacked, they found eleven enemy dead in front of his position and two more inside—killed by Kahoʻohanohano himself in close combat. His extraordinary valor inspired his comrades to rally and launch a successful counterattack that repelled the enemy and secured the line.

Medal of Honor Citation

Citation:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty Private First Class Anthony T. Kahoʻohanohano, Company H, 17th Infantry Regiment, 7th Infantry Division, distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in action against the enemy in the vicinity of Chupa-ri, Korea, on 1 September 1951. On that date, Private First Class Kahoʻohanohano was in charge of a machine-gun squad supporting the defensive positioning of Company F when a numerically superior enemy force launched a fierce attack. Because of the enemy’s overwhelming numbers, friendly troops were forced to execute a limited withdrawal. As the men fell back, Private First Class Kahoʻohanohano ordered his squad to take up more defensible positions and provide covering fire for the withdrawing friendly force. Although having been wounded in the shoulder during the initial enemy assault, Private First Class Kahoʻohanohano gathered a supply of grenades and ammunition and returned to his original position to face the enemy alone. As the hostile troops concentrated their strength against his emplacement in an effort to overrun it, Private First Class Kahoʻohanohano fought fiercely and courageously, delivering deadly accurate fire into the ranks of the onrushing enemy. When his ammunition was depleted, he engaged the enemy in hand-to-hand combat until he was killed. Private First Class Kahoʻohanohano’s heroic stand so inspired his comrades that they launched a counterattack that completely repulsed the enemy. Upon reaching Private First Class Kahoʻohanohano’s emplacement, friendly troops discovered 11 enemy soldiers lying dead in front of the emplacement and two inside it, killed in hand-to-hand combat. Private First Class Kahoʻohanohano’s extraordinary heroism and selfless devotion to duty are in keeping with the finest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, the 7th Infantry Division, and the United States Army.