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Interim Awards Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient
Lieutenant Commander Walter Atlee Edwards, USN
(1886-1928)
Lieutenant Commander Walter Atlee Edwards receives the Medal of Honor from President Calvin Coolidge, in ceremonies on the White House lawn, Washington, D.C., on 2 February 1924. Rear Admiral Andrew T. Long is standing just to the right of President Coolidge. The Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Edward W. Eberle (with beard) is just beyond LCdr. Edwards. Lieutenant T. DeWitt Carr is behind the President, at left. LCdr. Edwards was awarded the medal for heroism in rescuing the survivors of the French transport Vinh-Long when she burned in the Sea of Marmora, Turkey, on 16 December 1922. He was then commanding USS Bainbridge (DD-246).
Walter Atlee Edwards was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on 8 November 1886. He entered the U.S. Naval Academy in 1906, graduated in June 1910 and was commissioned with the rank of Ensign in 1912. During the four years following graduation, Edwards served in the battleship Michigan, cruisers Chester and Des Moines, and destroyers Monaghan and Walke. For most of 1914-1916 he was stationed at Pensacola, Florida, receiving instruction in aviation, but also helped with the outfitting of the new destroyer Ericsson during this time.
Edwards was an officer of the destroyers Jarvis and Cushing from October 1916 until October 1917. He then became Aid for Aviation on the staff of Vice Admiral William S. Sims, Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Operating in European Waters, holding that position for the rest of World War I and into the first months of peace. In April 1919, Lieutenant Commander Edwards began brief duty with the Bureau of Navigation, in Washington, D.C., before taking up his new position as Aide to the Commandant of the Naval War College, in Newport, Rhode Island. For a year, beginning in May 1921, he was Commanding Officer of the destroyers Dahlgren and Paul Jones. Between June 1922 and September 1923, Edwards commanded the destroyer Bainbridge , a tour marked by the 16 December 1922 rescue of nearly five hundred survivors from the burning French transport Vinh-Long. For his heroism on that occasion he was awarded the Medal of Honor, as well as receiving the Legion of Honor from the French Government and the Distinguished Service Order from the King of England.
In 1923-1924, Lieutenant Commander Edwards was stationed at the Bureau of Navigation. He was then Gunnery Officer on the armored cruiser Pittsburgh and, in August 1927, took command of the destroyer Billingsley. Hospitalized in Washington, D.C., in December 1927, Lieutenant Commander Walter A. Edwards died there on 15 January 1928.
The destroyer USS Edwards (DD-619), 1942-1973, was named in honor of Lieutenant Commander Edwards.
CITATION:
Rank and organization: Lieutenant Commander, U.S. Navy. Place and date: Sea of Marmora, Turkey, 16 December 1922. Born: 8 November 1886, Philadelphia, Pa. Accredited to: Pennsylvania. G.O. No.: 123, 4 February 1924. (Medal presented by President Coolidge at the White House on 2 February 1924.) Other Navy award: Navy Cross. Citation: For heroism in rescuing 482 men, women and children from the French military transport Vinh-Long, destroyed by fire in the Sea of Marmora, Turkey, on 16 December 1922. Lt. Comdr. Edwards, commanding the U.S.S. Bainbridge, placed his vessel alongside the bow of the transport and, in spite of several violent explosions which occurred on the burning vessel, maintained his ship in that position until all who were alive were taken on board. Of a total of 495 on board, 482 were rescued by his coolness, judgment and professional skill, which were combined with a degree of heroism that must reflect new glory on the U.S. Navy.
Lieutenant Commander Walter Atlee Edwards receives the Medal of Honor from President Calvin Coolidge, in ceremonies on the White House lawn, Washington, D.C., on 2 February 1924. Also present, standing beside the President, is Secretary of the Navy Edwin Denby. Rear Admiral Andrew T. Long is in left center, behind President Coolidge. LCdr. Edwards was awarded the medal for his actions in rescuing survivors from the burning French transport Vinh-Long in the Sea of Marmora, Turkey, on 16 December 1922. He was then commanding USS Bainbridge (DD-246).
He died on January 15, 1928 and was buried in Section 4 of Arlington National Cemetery.
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