John A. Humbird
Home Town: Sandpoint, ID
General Orders No. No. 139, W.D., 1918
The Distinguished Service Cross is presented to John A. Humbird, Captain, U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in action a Marcheville, France, September 26, 1918. Captain Humbird displayed indomitable courage and leadership on numerous occasions during this engagement. Leading a small group of men through barbed-wire entanglements in the face of machine-gun fire and hand grenades, he cleaned out a trench, capturing a strong enemy machine-gun emplacement and its entire crew. When the town of Marcheville fell into our hands he organized a machine-gun position under heavy machine-gun fire, locating a position for antiaircraft guns, during which time hostile planes were flying low and firing upon our troops. After the recapture of Marcheville by the enemy, he led his platoon in the counterattack.
