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Alexander R. Skinker

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Alexander Rives Skinker
Medal of Honor recipient
Born(1883-10-13)October 13, 1883
St. Louis, Missouri, US
DiedSeptember 26, 1918(1918-09-26) (aged 34)
Cheppy, France
Place of burial
Allegiance United States
Service / branchMissouri National Guard
US Army
Years of service1903–1908, 1916–1918
RankCaptain
UnitCompany I, 138th Infantry Regiment, 35th Division
Battles / warsArgonne Forest, World War I
Awards Medal of Honor
Alma materWashington University in St. Louis
Signature

Captain Alexander Rives Skinker (October 13, 1883 – September 26, 1918) was a Medal of Honor recipient during World War I. He graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 1905. He served in the Missouri National Guard from 1903 to 1908, and entered the Army as a commissioned officer in 1916. He was awarded the medal for leading an attack on German pillboxes in the Hindenburg Line during the Meuse–Argonne offensive. Skinker was killed in the attack.

Medal of Honor citation

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Rank and organization: Captain, U.S. Army, Company I, 138th Infantry, 35th Division. Place and date: At Cheppy, France; September 26, 1918. Entered service at: St. Louis, Missouri. Birth: October 13, 1883; St. Louis, Missouri. General Orders: War Department, General Orders No. 13 (January 18, 1919).

Citation:

Unwilling to sacrifice his men when his company was held up by terrific machinegun fire from iron pill boxes in the Hindenburg Line, Captain Skinker personally led an automatic rifleman and a carrier in an attack on the machineguns. The carrier was killed instantly, but Captain Skinker seized the ammunition and continued through an opening in the barbed wire, feeding the automatic rifle until he, too, was killed.

Military awards

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Skinker's military decorations and awards include:[1][2]

Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
1st row Medal of Honor
2nd row Mexican Border Service Medal World War I Victory Medal w/three bronze service stars to denote credit for the St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne and Defensive Sector battle clasps. Croce al Merito di Guerra (Italy)

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Centennial History of Missouri (The Center State) - One Hundred Years in the Union 1820-1921. Vol. VI. The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, St. Louis, Missouri and Chicago, Illinois. 1921. pp. 300–304. Retrieved November 24, 2021 – via Internet Archive.
  2. ^ "Gets Italian War Cross – Mrs. Skinker the Recipient of a Tribute to Her Dead Husband". The New York Times. Philadelphia. March 16, 1922. p. 17. Retrieved November 24, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.