Leland C. Poole

The Navy Cross is awarded to Chief Gunner’s Mate Leland C. Poole, U.S. Navy, for distinguished service in the lines of his profession while serving on the U.S. Submarine K-6 during a severe gale off Ponta Delgada, Azores, on February 1st, and 2nd, 1918, when that vessel was disabled and drifting on a lee shore. Another vessel was attempting to pass tow lines to the K-6, the forecastle of which was continuously swept by heavy seas. Lieutenant Poole, at that time a Chief Gunner’s Mate, volunteered for duty and worked for six hours on the forecastle under the most exhausting and hazardous conditions, securing one line after another as they were successively carried away. This work was instrumental in saving the vessel from being wrecked.