William J. Crawford's Medal of Honor Heroism at Bastogne

Dec 30 , 2025

William J. Crawford's Medal of Honor Heroism at Bastogne

Blood Seeps Deeper Than Soil

A bullet tore through his flesh, burning cold with every heartbeat. Yet, Sergeant William J. Crawford did not fall. Not then. Not when the enemy swarmed the hill, screaming death. He crawled through the mud, dragging those left behind to safety, his hands stained red and raw. This was no ordinary fight. This was a testament to unyielding resolve.

The Making of a Warrior

Born in Pueblo, Colorado, in 1918, William J. Crawford was the son of hard-scrabble beginnings. Raised on the grit of honest labor and the scripture of faith, he carried more than a rifle into war—he carried a code. Faith as steady as the desert stars, a belief that sacrifice means something beyond the battlefield.

The Bible weighed on him heavier than his gear. He often clung to Psalm 18:2:

“The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge.”

His was a faith forged in the furnace of poverty and humility, preparing him for the crucible ahead—not for glory, but for the duty owed to his brothers in arms.

Hill 104: Defiance Amid Chaos

October 13, 1944. Bastogne—no, more precisely, Hill 104, somewhere in the dense woods of Bastogne. The German offensive was relentless, clawing for every inch of ground. S/Sgt Crawford’s unit, the 28th Infantry Division, was pinned down by crushing artillery and a swarm of enemy infantry.

A shell exploded near Crawford, shredding flesh from his arm and sending shards of steel into his shoulder. Blood blurred his vision. But retreat was not in his ledger. Instead, he stood amidst the storm and opened fire on the enemy with a .30 caliber machine gun, buying precious time for his comrades. The ammunition ran low, but Crawford fought on, drawing from a well of stubborn grit no wound could dry.

When grenades rained down and the Germans closed in, Crawford hurled himself toward the advancing enemy, pulling a wounded soldier behind a ridge in the process. He refused evacuation, crawling back to deliver crucial messages under sniper fire. His actions stopped the enemy advance and saved lives that day.

Honoring the Unyielding

For this fearless valor, William J. Crawford received the Medal of Honor. The citation reads:

"Although painfully wounded, he refused to be evacuated or to abandon his machine gun position, defending his company against overwhelming odds."[1]

General Courtney Hodges called his bravery “a pillar of fortitude,” while comrades recalled a man who never flinched under fire. One fellow soldier said, “Crawford didn’t just fight for the mission; he lived for the men around him.”[2]

His Medal of Honor was awarded by President Harry S. Truman at the White House in 1945, a solemn recognition of blood and sacrifice, not ceremony.

The Legacy of Scars and Spirit

William Crawford’s story is more than a tale of bullet wounds and bravery. It is a chronicle of what it means to carry others through hell when your own soul bleeds dry. His wounds never fully healed, but neither did his commitment to serve. In the years after the war, he worked tirelessly to support veterans, carrying the invisible weight many bear in silence.

Crawford’s life testifies to an eternal truth—courage is not the absence of fear, but the mastery of faith in the face of it. Redemption was never handed freely; it was earned on scorched earth and soaked uniforms. “Greater love hath no man than this,” he once quoted, echoing John 15:13, “that he lay down his life for his friends.”

His story whispers to every soldier, every citizen—our battles are not always witnessed but always remembered. His blood still calls out from the soil of Bastogne, a solemn vow etched in sacrifice.

Sources

[1] U.S. Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Recipients: World War II [2] Steven Trout, Bastogne: The First Eight Days (Westholme Publishing, 2010)