Heroes
HONORING OUR FATHERS
AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIAL
FINALLY
Top: Hardin’s 30th Division medal,
Old Hickory, presented to the
soldiers of the 30th from the City
of Greenville, South Carolina, the
mother city of the Division, in
September, 1919. Above: Tanks were
used in warfare for the first time at
the Battle of Somme in 1916. They
were invented as a trench buster
and to rip out barbed wire. Right:
Gunners of 119 American Infantry
Regiment, 60th Brigade, 30th Divi-sion,
in a trench in the Watou, West
Flanders, Belgium, firing a Lewis
machine gun July 9, 1918.
THE UNITED STATES ARMY is awarding the
Presidential Unit Citation to the 30th Infantry Di-vision,
nicknamed “Old Hickory.” After World War
II, just eight units within the 30th Infantry Division
were recognized with the Presidential Unit Citation. On March
17, 2020, President Donald Trump directed the Army to honor
the remainder of the division and attached units for their heroic
stand at the Battle of Mortain, France, where they repelled a
German counteroffensive after the Normandy landing.
“This action rightfully recognizes our veterans who
triumphed against incredible odds, as well as those who died
during a critical battle that helped ensure the Allied victory
in Europe,” President Trump said.
The Presidential Unit Citation will be presented to sur-viving
veterans of “Old Hickory” at the unit’s 74th annual
reunion, currently scheduled for July.
Wrightsville Beach Magazine published a beautifully
illustrated two-part story at the end of last year on one heroic
member of the 30th Infantry Division, Edward Hardin, who
served during World War I (“A Soldier’s Story,” November
and December 2019). Hardin’s story came to light when
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WBM april 2020