Minot in Ward County, North Dakota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
☆ Private First Class Henry Gurke
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 27, 2023
1. ☆ Private First Class Henry Gurke Marker
1922-1943
U.S. Marine Corps
While his platoon was defending a vital roadblock on Bougainville Island on November 9, 1943, Private First Class Gurke, in company with another Marine, was delivering a fierce stream of fire against the main vanguard of the Japanese. When a Japanese grenade dropped into their foxhole, Gurke, mindful that his companion manned an automatic weapon of superior firepower and therefore could provide more effective resistance, thrust him aside and flung his own body over the missile to smother the explosion. With unswerving devotion to duty and superb valor, Gurke sacrificed himself in order that his comrade might live to carry on the fight.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Patriots & Patriotism • War, World II. In addition, it is included in the Medal of Honor Recipients series list. A significant historical date for this entry is November 9, 1943.
Location. 48° 14.015′ N, 101° 16.625′ W. Marker is in Minot, North Dakota, in Ward County. Marker can be reached from the intersection of East Burdick Expressway (Business U.S. 2) and 13th Street Southeast, on the right when traveling west. The marker is located at the North Dakota Medal of Honor Memorial, in Roosevelt Park, on the west side of
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Staff Sergeant Jack J. Pendleton (here, next to this marker); First Lieutenant Orville Emil Bloch (here, next to this marker); Master Sergeant Woodrow Wilson Keeble (here, next to this marker); ☆ Private Nels Wold (here, next to this marker); Specialist Fourth Class Michael John Fitzmaurice (here, next to this marker); ☆ Lieutenant Colonel Fred E. Smith (here, next to this marker); Commander Willis Winter Bradley, Jr. (here, next to this marker); ☆ First Lieutenant Loren D. Hagen (here, next to this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Minot.
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. North Dakota Medal of Honor Memorial
Also see . . .
1. Henry Gurke (Congressional Medal of Honor Society).
World War II - U.S. Marine Corps(Submitted on February 9, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Unit/Command: Company M, 3D Marine Raider Battalion, 2D Marines,1st Marine Amphibious Corps
Medal of Honor Action Date: November 9, 1943
Medal of Honor Action Place: Near Empress Augusta Bay, Bougainville Island, Solomon Islands
Citation: For extraordinary heroism and courageabove and beyond the call of duty while attached to the 3d Marine Raider Battalion during action against enemy Japanese forces in the Solomon Islands area on 9 November 1943... Concluding from the increasing ferocity of grenade barrages that the enemy was determined to annihilate their small, two-man foxhole, he resorted to a bold and desperate measure for holding out despite the torrential hail of shells... With unswerving devotion to duty and superb valor, Pfc. Gurke sacrificed himself in order that his comrade might live to carry on the fight. He gallantly gave his life in the service of his country.Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 27, 20232. ☆ Private First Class Henry Gurke Memorial
Presentation Date & Details: Washington, D.C., The Navy Department, presented to his parents.
2. Henry Gurke (Wikipedia). Excerpt:
Henry Gurke was born in Neche, North Dakota on November 6, 1922, to immigrant parents, Julius Gurke, a German-speaking carpenter from Dubno, a city on the Ikva River in the Rivne Oblast (province) of western Ukraine and his wife, Hulda Fischer Gurke. His parents had first immigrated to Canada from Ukraine and then to the United States from Winnipeg, Manitoba in July 1912. After graduation from high school in 1940, Henry entered the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in July and was stationed in Larimore, North Dakota. He stayed in the CCC until October 1941 and rose to the position of Assistant Leader, then returned to Neche where he drove a two–ton truck until his enlistment in the United States Marine Corps on April 15, 1942. For his unswerving devotion to duty and uncommon valor in the face of the enemy, President Franklin D. Roosevelt posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor to PFC Gurke. The medal was presented to his parents at ceremonies in the Navy Department on May 31, 1944. The Assistant Secretary of the Navy made the presentation in the name of the President. In 1945, PFC Gurke's mother, Mrs. Julius (Hulda) Gurke, sponsored the destroyer USS Gurke (DD-783) that was named in honor of her son.(Submitted on February 9, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
3. Henry Gurke (Find A Grave).
(Union Cemetery, Neche, Pembina County, North Dakota)(Submitted on February 9, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Credits. This page was last revised on February 11, 2024. It was originally submitted on February 9, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 63 times since then. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on February 9, 2024, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
