William J. Crawford held Hill 616 and earned the Medal of Honor

Jan 08 , 2026

William J. Crawford held Hill 616 and earned the Medal of Honor

William J. Crawford bled on the frozen soil of France, a lone sentinel against a nightmarish wave of German soldiers. Wounded, exhausted, yet unyielding, he held the line until reinforcements came. His bloodied hands gripped a machine gun, raining death into the black sky. He did not quit. He could not quit.

A Soldier Forged in Kansas Soil

Born in 1918, William J. Crawford grew up amid dust, sweat, and hard work on a Kansas farm. The son of humble means, he learned early that pain was no excuse to quit and that honor ran deeper than bloodlines. Raised in the Lutheran faith, his quiet belief shaped a man who saw war as a grim test of duty and faith. “The Good Lord gives you strength beyond measure when the night is darkest,” a close friend once recalled from their time together.

Crawford enlisted in the United States Army before the world was fully ablaze. Assigned to the 157th Infantry Regiment, 45th Infantry Division — the famed “Thunderbirds” — he carried the weight of every brother beside him. Sacrifice was never theoretical for William. It was a promise to those who stood and would fall.

The Battle That Defined Him: Hill 616, France — October 1944

The shattered ground near Noroy-le-Bourg was no place for mercy. German forces launched a brutal counterattack against Crawford’s unit in the early fall of 1944. Allied troops were dug in on Hill 616, a key vantage point, when the enemy surged, determined to break the line.

Sergeant Crawford manned a machine gun nest almost alone. The Germans swarmed like shadows, forcing him out of cover. He was wounded in the knee and spine yet stayed at his gun. Crawling and dragging himself, he kept firing, slowing the enemy’s advance and buying precious minutes for his comrades. When ammo ran out, he scavenged more amid the bullets and screams.

“His actions were beyond bravery; they were the substance of legends,” wrote Maj. Gen. Leonard Gerow in Crawford’s Medal of Honor citation.¹

Despite grievous wounds, Crawford refused evacuation and held his ground until reinforcements sealed the breach. Hours became an eternity in the machine gun’s merciless roar.

Medal of Honor: Valor Etched in Blood

For nearly single-handedly holding off a superior enemy force, the United States awarded William J. Crawford the Medal of Honor in 1945. His citation detailed a soldier who “remained with his machine gun until replaced, though seriously wounded.” The medal ceremony was quiet. Crawford deflected praise to his fallen brothers.

Lt. Col. Aubrey S. “Red” Newman, who fought beside him, later said:

“Crawford’s grit under fire was the difference between life and death for our regiment. He showed us what it meant to fight like hell and never let go.”²

This Medal of Honor was not a decoration worn lightly. It bore the marks of a battlefield baptism built on permanent sacrifice.

Beyond the Medal: A Legacy of Sacrifice and Witness

William J. Crawford’s story is not just about a bullet-ridden hillside or a Medal of Honor. It is about the countless shadows behind the medal — the brothers who never left the battle alive, the quiet moments of pain no one saw. It is about faith that carried a man through sulfurous nights and a soul baptized by fire.

Crawford returned home a veteran marked by war but sustained by purpose. His scars were both physical and spiritual. He lived simply, teaching the value of courage, endurance, and grace — lessons carved into his very being on Hill 616.

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” — Joshua 1:9

The story of William J. Crawford is a whisper from the blood-soaked earth — a call to remember what true sacrifice means. It reminds us that valor is forged in pain, that faith can steady the faltering heart, and that legacy is not medals or monuments, but the quiet, brutal endurance of those who stand when all seems lost.

He stood so others could live. He fought not for glory, but because no man could be left behind. In every scar, in every breath, he carried the weight of war — and the hope of redemption for us all.

Sources

1. U.S. Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Recipients: World War II 2. Olson, James S., Thunderbirds at War: The 45th Infantry Division in World War II (University of Oklahoma Press)