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John William Finn was a sailor who received the Medal of Honor for his actions during the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. He served in the Navy for 29 years, rose to lieutenant, and was the oldest living Medal of Honor recipient at his death in 2010.
Learn about the extraordinary heroism of John William Finn, a U.S. Navy lieutenant who fought off Japanese airplanes at Kaneohe Bay in 1941. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions and later became a living recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society.
May 13, 2021 · John William Finn was a Navy aviator who received the Medal of Honor for his heroism during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. He served in the Navy from 1926 to 1956 and retired as a Lieutenant.
- John Finn’s Enlistment in The Us Navy
- Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor
- John Finn Jumps Into Action
- Awarded The Medal of Honor
- GeneratedCaptionsTabForHeroSec
John William Finn was born on July 24, 1909 in Los Angeles County, California. He dropped out of school following the seventh grade, and enlisted in the US Navy shortly before his 17th birthday. After completing recruit training and serving briefly with a ceremonial guard company, he attended General Aviation Utilities Training, after which he was ...
For John Finn, December 7, 1941 started much like any other day at Naval Air Station Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. In an interview, he remembered hearing gunfire, but, being housed at a military base, this was nothing unusual, so he wasn’t overly concerned. Then, at a little before 8:00 AM, his neighbor hammered on his door. ‘They want you down at the squad...
One of the first men John Finn met was the squadron’s painter. He took the machine gun from the man, knowing he had more experience firing it. He then found a movable tripod that was used as a gunnery training device and fixed the .50-caliber weapon to it. In an 2009 interview with CNN, he said, “I got that gun and I started shooting at [Japanese] ...
John Finn’s actions on December 7, 1941 resulted in him being awarded the first Medal of Honor of the Second World War. The decoration was presented to him aboard the USS Enterprise (CV-6) on September 14, 1942 by Adm. Chester Nimitz. Finn was commissioned in 1942 and eventually rose to the rank of lieutenant while serving aboard the USS Hancock(CV...
John Finn was the first person to receive the Medal of Honor during World War II for his actions on December 7, 1941. He fought off Japanese planes with a machine gun, despite being wounded 21 times, and later served in the Navy for 30 years.
Learn about the life and achievements of John William Finn, the first Medal of Honor recipient in World War II. He fought off Japanese planes with a machine gun at Pearl Harbor, despite being wounded 21 times.
Mar 16, 2018 · John William Finn was a Chief Aviation Ordnanceman who fought off Japanese airplanes with a machine gun at Kaneohe Bay in 1941. He was wounded many times but continued to return fire and supervise the rearming of planes until ordered to seek medical attention.
May 28, 2010 · John W. Finn, the last survivor of the 15 Navy men who received the Medal of Honor for heroism during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, died Thursday at a nursing home in Chula Vista,...
