Leonard Chadwick

Gunner's Mate Third Class, U.S. Navy

Medal of Honor Recipient

Spanish-American War

Gunner's Mate Third Class Leonard Chadwick (24 November 1878 - 18 May 1940) was a U.S. Navy sailor who received the U.S. military's highest award for valor, the Medal of Honor, for his heroic actions during the Spanish-American War.

Chadwick was born in Middletown, DE, and enlisted in the U.S. Navy in Philadelphia on 26 October 1895, serving aboard the USS Richmond, Vermont, Constellation, Alliance, Puritan, Brooklyn, Texas and Marblehead.

Chadwick was one of fifty-two men to receive the Medal of Honor for an operation involving locating and cutting oceanic cables to block communication from a cable house off the shore of Cienfuegos, Cuba.

Medal of Honor

Rank and organization: Apprentice First Class, U.S. Navy

Citation: On board the USS Marblehead during the operation of cutting the cable leading from Cienfuegos, Cuba, 11 May 1898. Facing the heavy fire of the enemy, Chadwick set an example of extraordinary bravery and coolness throughout this period.

After his discharge, Chadwick moved to Boston, MA, where he sold insurance and worked in the Morocco leather industry. A 1923 accident left him with a dislocated elbow and knee, and he was declared totally disabled in 1937.

Death and Burial

Gunner's Mate Third Class Leonard Chadwick died at his home of asphyxiation and alcoholism on 18 May 1940. He is buried at Mount Hope Cemetery in West Roxbury, MA.