JGalt
Diamond Member
- Mar 9, 2011
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I made an interesting observation while parking next to a space reserved only for veterans who won the Purple Heart. As everyone knows, the Purple Heart has the image of our first US President. Except for one thing: George Washington was never wounded in battle.
From 1942 to 1997, civilians were eligible to receive the Purple Heart for being killed or wounded, whether in peacetime or during armed conflicts.
"From 1942 to 1997, non-military personnel serving or closely affiliated with the armed forces (as government employees, Red Cross workers, war correspondents, and the like) were eligible to receive the Purple Heart whether in peacetime or armed conflicts. Among the earliest to receive the award were nine Honolulu Fire Department firefighters killed or wounded in peacetime while fighting fires at Hickam Field during the attack on Pearl Harbor. About 100 men and women received the award, the most famous being newspaperman Ernie Pyle, who was awarded a Purple Heart posthumously by the Army after being killed by Japanese machine gun fire in the Pacific Theater, near the end of World War II. Before his death, Pyle had seen and experienced combat in the European Theater, while accompanying and writing about infantrymen for the folks back home. Those serving in the Merchant Marine are not eligible for the award. During World War II, members of this service who met the Purple Heart criteria received a Merchant Marine Mariner’s Medal instead.
The most recent Purple Hearts presented to non-military personnel occurred after the terrorist attacks at Khobar Towers, Saudi Arabia, in 1996. For their injuries, about 40 U.S. civil service employees received the award.
However, in 1997, at the urging of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, Congress passed legislation prohibiting future awards of the Purple Heart to non-military personnel. Civilian employees of the U.S. Department of Defense who are killed or wounded as a result of hostile action may receive the new Defense of Freedom Medal. This award was created shortly after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001."
Civilians were once eligible for Purple Heart - Delaware Gazette
From 1942 to 1997, civilians were eligible to receive the Purple Heart for being killed or wounded, whether in peacetime or during armed conflicts.
"From 1942 to 1997, non-military personnel serving or closely affiliated with the armed forces (as government employees, Red Cross workers, war correspondents, and the like) were eligible to receive the Purple Heart whether in peacetime or armed conflicts. Among the earliest to receive the award were nine Honolulu Fire Department firefighters killed or wounded in peacetime while fighting fires at Hickam Field during the attack on Pearl Harbor. About 100 men and women received the award, the most famous being newspaperman Ernie Pyle, who was awarded a Purple Heart posthumously by the Army after being killed by Japanese machine gun fire in the Pacific Theater, near the end of World War II. Before his death, Pyle had seen and experienced combat in the European Theater, while accompanying and writing about infantrymen for the folks back home. Those serving in the Merchant Marine are not eligible for the award. During World War II, members of this service who met the Purple Heart criteria received a Merchant Marine Mariner’s Medal instead.
The most recent Purple Hearts presented to non-military personnel occurred after the terrorist attacks at Khobar Towers, Saudi Arabia, in 1996. For their injuries, about 40 U.S. civil service employees received the award.
However, in 1997, at the urging of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, Congress passed legislation prohibiting future awards of the Purple Heart to non-military personnel. Civilian employees of the U.S. Department of Defense who are killed or wounded as a result of hostile action may receive the new Defense of Freedom Medal. This award was created shortly after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001."
Civilians were once eligible for Purple Heart - Delaware Gazette
