Oscar G. Johnson (363°). His Courage on Monticelli Awarded with the Medal of Honor

The article by Tara Ross: *This Day in History: Oscar G. Johnson’s Bravery in Italy*

on: https://www.taraross.com/post/tdih-oscar-johnson-moh

On this day in 1944, a hero begins a multi-day action that would earn him the Medal of Honor. Oscar Godfrey Johnson, Jr. singlehandedly held off the enemy for two days and two nights—and he lived to tell the story. His heroism came during the Allied effort to break through the Gothic Line, a chain of defense fortifications in Italy. “With the defensive positions etched directly into the mountains,” a National WWII Museum publication explains, “the Allies had no choice but to maneuver their way through a virtual labyrinth of German strongpoints. . . . The fighting was slow, grinding, and bloody throughout.”

Johnson was with the 91st Infantry Division during one of these assaults at Monticelli Ridge and Il Giogo Pass on September 16. “The Germans were firmly entrenched at the crest of Monticelli Ridge,” Johnson later remembered. “They laid a heavy mortar barrage against our positions at the base of the hill and then threw many grenades. Our casualties were heavy.”

Johnson had been tasked with leading a squad of seven men forward: He was to establish a position with his men, and the squad would cover their company’s left flank. It would not be an easy task. The German attacks were unrelenting, and all the soldiers in Johnson’s squad were soon killed or wounded. Johnson was the only one left to hold the line and protect his company’s exposed left flank. He stayed awake all night, doing exactly that. “Collecting weapons and ammunition from his fallen comrades,” Johnson’s Medal citation describes, “in the face of hostile fire, he held his exposed position and inflicted heavy casualties upon the enemy, who several times came close enough to throw hand grenades. . . . In spite of mortar fire which crashed about him and machine-gun bullets which whipped the crest of his shallow trench, Sgt. Johnson stood erect and repulsed the attack . . . .”

The next day, two men were sent to reinforce Johnson, but they hadn’t made it very far before they, too, were wounded. “They had taken nearly a direct hit from an anti-tank shell,” Johnson later explained, “which all but buried them under the debris.” He crawled over to help, fending off the enemy until a medic could reach them. In the end, Johnson held his position, covering the left flank of his company for two days and two nights. He is officially credited with killing 20 Germans and obtaining the surrender of 25 others, but his fellow soldiers think that number is too low. Two hundred German bodies were ultimately found on the field, and they think he is largely responsible for that. “By his heroic stand and utter disregard for personal safety,” his Medal citation concludes, “Sgt. Johnson was in a large measure responsible for defeating the enemy's attempts to turn the exposed left flank.”

Johnson received a Medal of Honor for his bravery, but all he really wanted was to return home to his life as a farmer. Where would we be but for men such as these? Regular Americans, stepping up and performing heroically, just because their country needs them.

Primary sources

House of Representatives to Honor Our Nation Fallen Heroes on Medal of Honor Day (Morris News; Aug. 9, 2007) (p. 5) | Italy: 1944 (The National WWII Museum) | Medal of Honor citation (Oscar Godfrey Johnson, Jr.; WWII) | Michigan War Hero Joins National Guard (Lansing State Journal; Mar. 10, 1950) (p. 4) | North Apennines: 1944-1945 (U.S. Army Center of Military History) | Peter Collier et al., Medal of Honor: Portraits of Honor beyond the Call of Duty (3d ed. 2011) | Sgt. Oscar Johnson, War Hero, Returns to Farm at Foster City (Escanaba Daily Press; July 17, 1945) (p. 5) | Starr Sinton & Robert Hargis, World War II Medal of Honor Recipients (2) Army & Air Corps (2003) | Twelve Wisconsin Men Join Company of Warriors Winning Highest Honors (Two Rivers Reporter; Aug 15, 1945) (p. 7)

His résumé

First and foremost, it should be noted that Oscar Johnson was a Private First Class (PFC) rifleman of the 363rd Infantry Battalion of the 91st Division “Powder River – Pine Tree.” He was among the hundreds of soldiers, as previously mentioned, who attacked from Omomorto the heights of Monticelli, west of the Giogo Pass near Scarperia, on September 13, 1944. It was a massacre. Here is the profile of the newly promoted Sergeant Oscar Godfrey Johnson, Congressional Medal of Honor recipient:

• Born: March 25, 1921, Foster City, Dickinson County, MI, United States
• Accredited to: Foster City, Dickinson County, Michigan
• Rank: Sergeant (rank at time of action: Private First Class)
• Unit: Weapons Platoon, Company B, 1st Battalion, 363d Infantry, 91st Infantry Division
• Medal of Honor Action Date: September 16 – 18, 1944
• Medal of Honor Action Place: near Scarperia, Italy
• Presentation Date & Details: June 25, 1945 Gorizia, Italy, presented by Gen. Mark W. Clark III
• Died: May 13, 1998, Kingsford, MI, United States
• Buried: DeWitt Cemetery (MH) (H-134-1), DeWitt, MI, United States

His act of bravery was covered by the local press, highlighting the young man’s decision to return home to help his family with the harvest and resume fishing, his passions. It's interesting to note how the press of that time intertwined acts of heroism and war with the civilian life before and after, often describing the war events in a colorful and sometimes inaccurate way. Heroic deeds of ordinary men. The texts are taken from: https://genealogytrails.com/mich/dickinson/oscar_johnson_fostercity.htm

WITH THE FIFTH ARMY IN ITALY: After all other members of his squad had become casualties before a powerful German counterattack on the Italian front recently, Private First Class Oscar G. Johnson of Foster City, Michigan, continued to hold the flank of his company until the enemy assault had been repulsed. Johnson, a doughboy in the 363rd Infantry Regiment, 91st "Powder River" Division of Lieutenant General Mark W. Clark's Fifth Army, gathered a variety of abandoned weapons, carbines, Garand rifles, automatic rifles and submachine guns and plenty of ammunition. With this arsenal he inflicted heavy casualties among the enemy during the latter phase of the assault. First Sergeant Frank Drajowski, 306 South Mine Street, Bessemer, reported that a medic who asked Johnson whether he would leave his post during the course of the battle had been told: "Hell no, I'm staying here until the end." Johnson's outfit was able to move into Montecelli soon after repelling the counterattack.

Ironwood Daily Globe, December 14, 1944

3 YANKS WHOSE KILLS OF NAZIS RANGED FROM THREE TO 150 WIN TOP MEDAL: Three American sergeants whose kills of Nazis ranged from three to an estimated 150 to two hundred and who captured a total of 45 enemy troops, Tuesday were awarded Congressinal Medals of Honor. S. Sgt. Paul Wiedorfer, 24, Baltimore, now in a London hospital, killed three Germans and captured 20 last Christmas Day during the Nazi breakthrough into Belgium. His citation said that he cleared the way for the advance of his company by wiping out three German machine guns after voluntarily charing ahead alone without cover. Sgt. Oscar G. Johnson, Jr., formerly a Michigan dairy worker, was awarded the medal for holding off ceaseless attacks by five German paratroop companies for two days and two nights. Segeant Johnson, 24, captured 25 Germans and killed between 150 and two hundred near Scarperia, Italy, last September 16. When heavy enemy fire stopped his squad's advance and wiped out or wonded every one of his buddies, the sergeant stood erect in a shallow trench and repelled the Nazis with grenade and rifle fire. When Sergeant Johnson was relieved, he had accumulated the 25 prisoners who had attempted to sneak up on his solitary position. Sgt. Jose M. Lopez of Brownsville, Tex., received the medal for killing dozens of Germans and enabling his company to withdraw from an apparently hopeless trap in the Ardennes campaign last winter. Sergeant Lopez, a machine gunner, set up his weapon in a shalloy hole and killed 10 Germans almost immediately. Later a German tank started sprayin ghis position with bullets, but he wiped out 25 more Germans follow the tank. Many more Nazis were killed before the sergeant carried his gun to the rear after running out of ammunition.

Omaha World Herald, Omaha, NE., May 30, 1945

HERO SWELLS PRIDE OF 'GHOST TOWN' - FOSTER CITY, Mich., May 30: Wednesday was a bigger day in Swan Peterson's general store than when he bought Foster City "lock, stock and barrel" from the lumber mill several years ago. The telephone jangled "near off the wall" as neighors of the countryside tried to learn more about that "busy afternoon" Sgt. Oscar G. Johnson Jr. had in Italy last Sept. 16. They'd all heard on party lines or by radio that Johnson, 24, had been awarded the congressional medal of honor. The senior Johnsons have no phone at their farm house three miles out, so Store Clerk Norm Halderson became the exchange for village curiosity. "Yep, that's the story," Halderson told patrons of a rural party line out Johnson's way. "Wrote his ma last fall he'd had a pretty busy afternoon. Said it looked bad for a time, but he came out all right. "Now, derned if he ain't been a hero all this time. Killed 20 German paratroopers, and held off five enemy companies for two days and nights. Sure, biggest medal there is. He's a hero all right." Oscar's achievement gave the little "ghost town" a greater pride than when he came home from the upper peninsula state fair with 4-H calf exhibit honors three summers ago. The 6-foot 2-inch farm youth turned his prize calves over to three younger brothers when his draft came two years ago. He refused deferment then granted essential farm workers. Neighbors recalled that Oscar was an expert rifleman and a good fisherman. "He never talked much, but he did things good," Halderson assured strangers trying to reach the Johnsons by telephone. Johnson is on his way home from overseas.

Salt Lake Tribune, UT, May 31, 1945

EX-DAIRY FARMER HONORED AS HERO - Foster City, Mich., May 31: The war department took several pages to describe the exploits of Sgt. Oscar G. Johnson, Jr., in announcing that he had been awarded the congressional medal of honor yesterday, but the 23-year-old former dairy farm worker needed only a paragraph to tell the story in a letter to his mother. The official citation said that Sgt. Johnson was his company's "toe-hold" in the Gothic line in Italy for two days and two night last September and added that 200 dead Germans were found within 150 yards of his position and that Johnson himself had brought in 24 prisoners. "Things were pretty tough but with God's help I came through without a scratch," Sgt Johnson summed up the experience in writing to his mother. "I put in a busy afternoon a few days ago during a Jerry counter-attack on a hill we had taken," he wrote. "I was in a foxhole on the left flank of our company and I sure had enough guns. Our artillery fir was skimming the hills so close that several times our shells fell short. With Jerry shells falling all around, things were pretty lively. I had a Browning automatic rifle, a pistol, two M1's and a Tommy-gun and I did a little shooting with all of them."

Rockford, Ill., Morning Star, June 1, 1945

MEDAL WINNER'S REPORT IS BRIEF. 'PUT IN A BUSY AFTERNOON,' JOHNSON WRITES MOTHER--WAR DEPARTMENT SAYS HE KILLED 200 GERMANS. Foster City, Mich., May 31: The war department took several pages to describe the exploits of Sgt. Oscar G. Johnson, Jr., in announcing that he had been awarded the congressional medal of honor yesterday, but the 23-year-old former dairy farm worker needed only a paragraph to tell the story in a letter to his mother. The official citation said that Sgt. Johnson was his company's "toe-hold" in the Gothic line in Italy for two days and two night last September and added that 200 dead Germans were found within 150 yards of his position and that Johnson himself had brought in 24 prisoners. "Things were pretty tough but with God's help I came through without a scratch," Sgt Johnson summed up the experience in writing to his mother. "I put in a busy afternoon a few days ago during a Jerry counter-attack on a hill we had taken," he wrote. "I was in a foxhole on the left flank of our company and I sure had enough guns. Our artillery fir was skimming the hills so close that several times our shells fell short. With Jerry shells falling all around, things were pretty lively. I had a Browning automatic rifle, a pistol, two M1's and a Tommy-gun and I did a little shooting with all of them." "Oh, I'm so happy he is safe," Johnson's mother said when she learned he had won the medal of honor, "Of course we are proud of him, but more glad that he is safe and sound."

Springfield Republican, Springfield, MA., June 1, 1945

MICHIGAN SOLDIER WINS HONOR MEDAL; KILLED 20 NAZIS. ROME: The Congressional Medal of Honor was presented today to Sgt. Oscar G. Johnson, 24, Foster City, Mich., for killing 20 Germans, silencing three enemby machine-guns and taking 24 prisoners during the American slice through the Gothic line near Scaperia, Italy, last September. The nation's highest award for valor was presented by Gen. Mark Clark in the presence of Johnson's entire regiment, the 363rd. Infantry of the 91st. (Powder River) Division. Eligible now for immediate discharge from the Army, Johnson said he needed a little time to think it over before deciding whether to return to his parents' dairy farm near Foster City. He was the first man in the division to win the Medal of Honor. Johnson was credited with almost single - handedly protecting the left flank of his company's position in the breakthrough of the Gothic Line last Sept. 16 to 19.

Racine Journal Times, June 25, 1945

MICHIGAN SOLDIER WINS HONOR MEDAL; KILLED 20 NAZIS. ROME: The Congressional Medal of Honor was presented today to Sgt. Oscar G. Johnson, 24, Foster City, Mich., for killing 20 Germans, silencing three enemby machine-guns and taking 24 prisoners during the American slice through the Gothic line near Scaperia, Italy, last September. The nation's highest award for valor was presented by Gen. Mark Clark in the presence of Johnson's entire regiment, the 363rd. Infantry of the 91st. (Powder River) Division. Eligible now for immediate discharge from the Army, Johnson said he needed a little time to think it over before deciding whether to return to his parents' dairy farm near Foster City. He was the first man in the division to win the Medal of Honor. Johnson was credited with almost single - handedly protecting the left flank of his company's position in the breakthrough of the Gothic Line last Sept. 16 to 19.

Racine Journal Times, July 12, 1945

DRESS REHEARSAL: Sgt. Oscar G. Johnson, Jr., former farmer near Foster City, Mich., examines his Medal of Honor Thursday at the Fort Sheridan (Ill.) redeployment center before starting a surprise visit to his home. He was not certain if he would accept a discharge, slated to be received Friday, and go back to his father's dairy farm or continue in service. Action in Italy brought him the nation's highest award. When his mortar company officers were killed and the ammunition gone, he seized two rifles, hid on a ledge and picked off eight Germans in a pillbox, accepting the surrender of a dozen more during a 10-minute truce requested by German medical officers.

Morning World-Herald, Omaha, NE., July 13, 1945

'1 MAN ARMY' COMES HOME TO HARVEST HAY AND FISH. FOSTER CITY, Mich: Sgt. Oscar Johnson, the "one-main" Army and holder of the Congressional Medal of Honor, was back at his dad's dairy farm today, anxious to help harvest the hay crop, loaf when there's a chance and maybe try some fishing. The 24-year-old former farm worker who killed 20 German soldiers, silenced three enemy machine guns and captured 24 prisoners on the Gothic line in Italy in September, 1944, was reluctant to talk about his war exploits and the nearest approach he made about the war was to remark that he was "darned afraid of airplanes." Then he laughingly related that he had come from Italy to Ft. Sheridan, Ill., by air. Holds Back Nazis. "He knows 'em all and they all know him," observed one friend as he watched neighbors greet Sgt. Johnson at a typical farm community homecoming at the Mission Church in Foster City. Honorably discharged from service, Johnson said his plans for the future were indefinite. He said he would help with the hay harvest and other farm chores, rest, loaf when the mood struck him and fish. Johnson was a private first class when he receive the nation's highest military honor from Gen. Mark Clark in Italy. Characterized by his superior officers as cool, reliable, and a man who knew no fear, Johnson was officially cited for "climbing out of his foxhole and firing weapons left by killed and wounded comrades until the last Nazi counter-thrust was turned back." In turning back the Nazis at Monticelli Ridge at the El Clogo pass near Scarperia, Italy, the citation said that Johnson "practically single-handed, protected the left flank of his company's position in the offensive to break the Gothic line. "Repeated enemy counter-attacks killed or wounded all his men. In the face of hostile fire he held his position and inflicted heavy casualties upon the enemy, who several times came close enought to throw hand grenades. 25 Nazis Surrender. "On the night of Sept. 26-27 the enemy launched its heaviest attack against the lone defender and in spite of heavy fire Sgt. Johnson stood erect and repulsed the attack. "Twenty-five German soldiers surrendered to him. Two men sent to reinforce him were caught in an artillery barage. With no thought to his own safety Johnson rushed to the shell hole where they lay seriously wounded, covered their position by his fire and assisted a medical corps man in rendering aid. "That night he secured their removal to the rear and remained on watch until his company was relieved. Five companies of a German paratroop regiment had been repeatedly committed to the attack without success.

Racine Journal Times, July 16, 1945

Dedications¹

1. In Oscar G. Johnson VA Medical Center at Iron Mountain, Michigan, a dedication has been made in his honor.
2. A 46-mile stretch of Michigan Highway M-69, which passes through Foster City, has been renamed the Oscar G. Johnson Memorial Highway.
3. On July 15, 2000, the headquarters of the 91st Division Training Support in Dublin, California, was dedicated in his memory.

1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oscar_G._Johnson

Discover the Battle of Monticelli Ridge (click here)