Truman O. Olson

Sergeant, U.S. Army

Medal of Honor Recipient

World War II

Sergeant Truman O. Olson (13 October 1917 - 31 January 1944) was a U.S. Army soldier who was posthumously awarded the U.S. military's highest award for valor, the Medal of Honor, for his heroic actions during World War II.

Truman O. Olson was born on 13 October 1917, in Christiana, WI, and enlisted in the Army from nearby Cambridge. He was sent to Europe in 1943 and on 30 January 1944 he was serving in Italy as a Sergeant in Company B of the 7th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division.

Near Cisterna di Littoria that day, he participated in the Battle of Cisterna. After a day of fighting which resulted in heavy casualties, what remained of his company dug in for the night, with Olson and his gun crew manning a light machine gun in defense of their position. During the night, his entire gun crew was killed or wounded and Olson himself was wounded in the arm. Despite this, he remained at his post and manned the gun alone for the rest of the night. At daybreak on 31 January, the German forces launched an intense assault on the company's position and Olson was severely wounded. Knowing that his machine gun was Company B's only effective defense, he refused evacuation and continued to fire on the attacking soldiers for an hour and a half until succumbing to his wounds. For these actions, he was awarded the Medal of Honor.

Medal of Honor

Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company B, 7th Infantry, 3d Infantry Division.

Place and date: Near Cisterna di Littoria, Italy, 30-31 January 1944.

Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty. Sgt. Olson, a light machine gunner, elected to sacrifice his life to save his company from annihilation. On the night of 30 January 1944, after a 16-hour assault on entrenched enemy positions in the course of which over one-third of Company B became casualties, the survivors dug in behind a horseshoe elevation, placing Sgt. Olson and his crew, with the 1 available machinegun, forward of their lines and in an exposed position to bear the brunt of the expected German counterattack. Although he had been fighting without respite, Sgt. Olson stuck grimly to his post all night while his guncrew was cut down, 1 by 1, by accurate and overwhelming enemy fire. Weary from over 24 hours of continuous battle and suffering from an arm wound, received during the night engagement, Sgt. Olson manned his gun alone, meeting the full force of an all-out enemy assault by approximately 200 men supported by mortar and machinegun fire which the Germans launched at daybreak on the morning of 31 January. After 30 minutes of fighting, Sgt. Olson was mortally wounded, yet, knowing that only his weapons stood between his company and complete destruction, he refused evacuation. For an hour and a half after receiving his second and fatal wound he continued to fire his machinegun, killing at least 20 of the enemy, wounding many more, and forcing the assaulting German elements to withdraw.

Death and Burial

Sergeant Truman O. Olson was killed in action on 31 January 1944. He is buried at West Koshkonong Lutheran Church Cemetery in Stoughton, WI.