Captain Alexander Rives Skinker (October 13, 1883 – September 26, 1918) was a
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor ...
recipient during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
. He graduated from
Washington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University i ...
in 1905. He served in the
Missouri National Guard
The Missouri National Guard (MONG), commonly known as the Missouri Guard, is a component of the Army National Guard and Missouri State Department of the National Guard. It is composed of Army and Air National Guard units. The Department office is ...
from 1903 to 1908, and entered the Army as a commissioned officer in 1916. He was awarded the medal for leading an attack on German pillboxes in the
Hindenburg Line
The Hindenburg Line (German: , Siegfried Position) was a German defensive position built during the winter of 1916–1917 on the Western Front during the First World War. The line ran from Arras to Laffaux, near Soissons on the Aisne. In 191 ...
during the
Meuse–Argonne offensive
The Meuse–Argonne offensive (also known as the Meuse River–Argonne Forest offensive, the Battles of the Meuse–Argonne, and the Meuse–Argonne campaign) was a major part of the final Allied offensive of World War I that stretched along t ...
. Skinker was killed in the attack.
Medal of Honor citation
Rank and organization: Captain, U.S. Army, Company I, 138th Infantry, 35th Division. Place and date: At Cheppy, France; September 26, 1918. Entered service at: St. Louis, Missouri. Birth: October 13, 1883; St. Louis, Missouri. General Orders: War Department, General Orders No. 13 (January 18, 1919).
Citation:
Unwilling to sacrifice his men when his company was held up by terrific machinegun fire from iron pill boxes in the Hindenburg Line, Captain Skinker personally led an automatic rifleman and a carrier in an attack on the machineguns. The carrier was killed instantly, but Captain Skinker seized the ammunition and continued through an opening in the barbed wire, feeding the automatic rifle until he, too, was killed.
Military awards
Skinker's military decorations and awards include:
See also
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List of Medal of Honor recipients
The Medal of Honor was created during the American Civil War and is the highest military decoration presented by the United States government to a member of its armed forces. The recipient must have distinguished themselves at the risk of their ...
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List of Medal of Honor recipients for World War I
World War I (also known as the First World War and the Great War) was a global military conflict that embroiled most of the world's great powers, assembled in two opposing alliances: the Allies of World War I, Entente and the Central Powers. The ...
References
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1883 births
1918 deaths
United States Army Medal of Honor recipients
United States Army officers
American military personnel killed in World War I
World War I recipients of the Medal of Honor
Military personnel from Missouri
Burials in Missouri
Washington University in St. Louis alumni
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