American Battle Graves Archive
U.S. Army seal

WWII · Battle Death Record

Leroy Johnson

Sergeant, U.S. Army · Louisiana

Medal of Honor

Personnel File — Core Information

Name
Leroy Johnson
Entered the Service From
Louisiana
Rank
Sergeant
Service
U.S. Army
Unit / Regiment
Company K, 126th Infantry Regiment, 32nd Infantry Division
War
WWII
Date of Death
December 15, 1944
Awards
Medal of Honor, Silver Star, Bronze Star Medal, Purple Heart (2)
Burial / Memorial
Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, Taguig, Metro Manila, Philippines
Grave
Plot C, Row 10, Grave 79

Their story

On December 15, 1944, near Limon, Leyte, Philippines, Sergeant Leroy Johnson was manning a machine gun when two enemy grenades were thrown into his position. He threw himself upon the grenades, smothering the blasts with his body and sacrificing his life to save his comrades. He was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

Compiled from American Battle Monuments Commission (ABMC) and National Archives (NARA) records and public sources.

This record is one of more than 200,000 in our historical archive. Some information may have been corrupted or lost over decades of data conversion. Corrections are welcome — please contact the archive.