Samuel S. Triplett (December 18, 1869 – August 26, 1957) was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

sailor and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

—for his actions in the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

Biography

Triplett entered the Navy from the state of

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

and, during the Spanish–American War, served as an

Ordinary Seaman __NOTOC__ An ordinary seaman (OS) is a member of the deck department of a ship. The position is an apprenticeship to become an able seaman, and has been for centuries. In modern times, an OS is required to work on a ship for a specific amount ...

on the . On July 26, and July 27, 1898, he took part in a

demining Demining or mine clearance is the process of removing land mines from an area. In military operations, the object is to rapidly clear a path through a minefield, and this is often done with devices such as mine plows and blast waves. By cont ...

operation in Guantanamo Bay,

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

. He was awarded the Medal of Honor five months later, on December 14, 1898, for his actions during the operation. Triplett reached the rank of Chief Boatswain's Mate before leaving the Navy. He was a member of the

American Legion The American Legion, commonly known as the Legion, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States, U.S. war veterans headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana. It comprises U.S. state, state, Territories of the United States, U.S. terr ...

and the

Veterans of Foreign Wars The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), formally the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, is an Voluntary association, organization of United States Armed Forces, United States war veterans who fought in wars, Military campaign, campaig ...

. He died at age 87 and is buried in North Edna Cemetery,

Edna, Kansas Edna is a city in Labette County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 388. History The first store in Edna opened in 1876. The first post office in Edna was established in April 1878. The town of Ed ...

Awards

* Good Conduct Medal *

Sampson Medal The Sampson Medal was a U.S. Navy campaign medal. The medal was authorized by an Act of Congress in 1901. The medal was awarded to those personnel who served on ships in the fleet of Rear Admiral William T. Sampson during combat operations in t ...

Spanish Campaign Medal The Spanish Campaign Medal was a military award of the United States Armed Forces which recognized those men of the U.S. military who had served in the Spanish–American War. Although a single decoration, there were two versions of the Spanish ...

* World War I Victory Medal

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Ordinary Seaman, U.S. Navy. Born: December 18, 1869, Chenokeeke, Kans. Accredited to: New York. G.O. No.: 500, December 14, 1898. Citation:

''On board the U.S.S. Marblehead at the approaches to Caimanera, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, 26 and 27 July 1898. Displaying heroism, Triplett took part in the perilous work of sweeping for and disabling 27 contact mines during this period.''

Notes

References

: : * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Triplett, Samuel 1869 births 1957 deaths United States Navy Medal of Honor recipients People from Cherokee, Kansas United States Navy sailors Spanish–American War recipients of the Medal of Honor Military personnel from Kansas

Biography

Awards

Medal of Honor citation

See also

Notes

References