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Sampson Virgil

Name:
Virgil Sampson
Rank:
Private First Class
Serial Number:
834281
Unit:
3rd Marine Regiment
Date of Death:
1944-07-23
State:
Missouri
Cemetery:
Memorial Park Cemetery, Sioux City, Woodbury County, Iowa, USA
Plot:
Acacia
Row:
Grave:
Decoration:
Presidential Citation, Silver Star, Purple Heart
Comments:

Virgil Sampson was born on August 15, 1924, in Clinton, Henry County, Missouri. He was the son of Virgil Carl Sampson Sr. and Margaret Helen Lee Sampson.

He served in Company I, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division as a Private First Class during World War II. He died from his wounds received in battle on July 23, 1944, during the Battle for Guam.

Silver Star Citation:
The President of the United States of America takes pride in presenting the Silver Star (Posthumously) to Private First Class Virgil Sampson (MCSN: 834281), United States Marine Corps, for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity while serving with the Third Battalion, Third Marines, THIRD Marine Division, in action against enemy Japanese force in the Asan Adeluo Beachhead Area, Guam, Marianas Islands, 23 July 1944. When intense enemy machine-dun fire inflicted heavy casualties and pinned down his platoon during an advance to the crest of a ridge, Private First Class Sampson voluntarily and without hesitation crawled forward through open terrain a distance of fifty yards under severe hostile fire and, courageously making his way to an advantageous position, attacked the Japanese emplacement from the flank with an automatic rifle, killing three of the crew before he himself was fatally wounded. By his splendid initiative and indomitable fighting spirit in the face of grave peril. Private First Class Sampson enabled his platoon to occupy a strategic ridge, and his self sacrificing devotion to duty was in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.

Source of information: www.findagrave.com