John W. Mcafee
Distinguished Service Cross
U.S. Army
World War I
General Orders No. 37, W.D., 1919
The Distinguished Service Cross is presented to John W. McAfee, Corporal, U.S. Army, for extraordinary heroism in action near Pouilly, France, November 8, 1918. While a member of a patrol sent out to reconnoiter the banks of the Meuse River, and when all means of crossing the river had been destroyed, Corporal McAfee, with another soldier, volunteered to swim across, though the other side was held in force by the enemy. Before reaching the opposite bank, he was seized with a cramp, caused by the extremely low temperature of the water, and was drowned.