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LOUISVILLE, KY. (WDRB) -- A bronze plaque listing the names of Kentucky's 60 Medal of Honor winners will hang in the Capitol Rotunda.  Three of Kentucky's five living Medal of Honor recipients attended the event, along with veterans' groups, Gov. Steve Beshear, and lawmakers. 

Gov. Beshear said. "This symbol of their sacrifice and bravery can now be shared with the thousands of Capitol visitors, who can pay their respects and acknowledge the amazing achievements of these individuals."

The Medal of Honor is the highest award for valor against an enemy that can be awarded to a member of the Armed Forces.

PFC. Ernie West, SSG Don Jenkins, and SGT Dakota Meyer attended the ceremony. SFC Gary Littrell and PVT Wilburn Ross are Kentucky's other two Medal of Honor recipients.

The breakdown of Kentucky's 60 Medal of Honor recipients includes:

  • 17 from the Civil War,
  • 12 from Indian Campaigns,
  • 3 during Peacetime,
  • 3 during Wars of American Expansion (including the Spanish-American War),
  • 1 during World War I,
  • 8 during World War II,
  • 7 during the Korean War,
  • 8 during the Vietnam War, and
  • 1 from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Kentucky Medal of Honor Recipients 

Civil War 1861-1865

CPT William P. Black, USA

PVT John C. Callahan, USA

SGT John S. Darrough, USA,

PVT John Davis, USA

Drummer William H. Horsfall, USA

PVT Aaron Hudson, USA

PVT John P. Hughey, USA

PVT Henry B. Mattingly, USA

SGT Francis M. McMillen, USA

Landsman Daniel Noble, USN

PVT Oliver P. Rood, USA

COL Charles W. Rundle, USA

SGT Andrew J. Smith, USA

PVT William Steinmetz, USA

Dr. Mary E. Walker, USA

MAJ John F. Weston, USA

COL James A. Williamson, USA

 

INDIAN CAMPAIGNS 1870-1891

2Lt Thomas Cruse, USA

1SG William L. Day, USA

CPL John J. Givens, USA

PVT William M. Harris, USA

CPT John B. Kerr, USA

PVT Franklin M. McDonald, USA

PVT George D. Scott, USA

SGT Thomas Shaw, USA

PVT Thomas W. Stivers, USA

PVT Thomas Sullivan, USA

Saddler Otto E. Voit, USA

SGT Brent Woods, USA

 

ACTION IN PEACETIME 1871-1910

Seaman Edward W. Boers, USN

Watertender Edward A. Clary, USN

Quarter Gunner George Holt, USN

 

WARS OF AMERICAN EXPANSION 1897-1902

COL J. Franklin Bell, USA

1Lt Benjamin F. Hardaway, USA

PVT James J. Nash, USA

 

WORLD WAR I 1917-1919

SGT Willie Sandlin, USA

 

World War II 1941 – 1945

Cpl Richard E. Bush, USMC

T/Sgt Morris E. Crain, USA

Pfc Leonard F. Mason, USMC

Pfc Wesley Phelps, USMCR

PVT Wilburn K. Ross, USA

Pfc Luther Skaggs Jr., USMC

SSG Junior J. Spurrier, USA

SGT John C. Squires, USA

 

Korean War 1950 – 1953

Capt William E. Barber, USMC

Pfc William B. Baugh, USMC

CPL John W. Collier, USA

1Lt Carl H. Dodd, USA

2Lt Darwin K. Kyle, USA

Pfc David M. Smith, USA

Pfc Ernest E. West, USA

 

Vietnam War 1961 – 1975

Sgt Charles C. Reek, USA

SSG Don Jenkins, USA

Pfc Billy L. Lauffer, USA

Sfc Gary L. Littrell, USA

2dLt John J. McGinty III, USMC

Pfc David P. Nash, USA

L/Cpl Joe C. Paul, USMC

SSG Jimmy G. Stewart, USA

 

Iraq/Afghanistan Wars 1991-present

SGT Dakota Meyer, USMC

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