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 Nelson Braitmeyer was born in
Philadelphia in 1918, and later moved to Oxford, Pennsylvania in the 1930’s.
Nelson enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1935, rising the
rank of Platoon Sergeant. He was awarded the
Navy Cross for his service on Guadalcanal in 1942. The Navy Cross is the 2nd
highest award for Valor in the Navy and Marines, preceded only by the
Congressional Medal of Honor.
His Navy
Cross citation reads:
The
President of the United States of America takes pride in presenting the Navy
Cross (Posthumously) to Platoon Sergeant Nelson Braitmeyer (MCSN: 248057),
United States Marine Corps, for extraordinary heroism and conspicuous
devotion to duty while serving as second in command of the First Platoon of
Battery B, First Special Weapons Battalion, FIRST Marine Division, during
action against enemy Japanese forces on Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, on the
night of 20 - 21 August 1942. When a hostile attack penetrated his gun
positions at several points and imperiled our lines, Platoon Sergeant
Braitmeyer, with grim determination and complete disregard for his own
personal safety, assisted his platoon commander in clearing Japanese gun
positions at the mouth of the Tenaru River until he was killed in action.
The conduct of Platoon Sergeant Braitmeyer throughout this action reflects
great credit upon himself, and was in keeping with the highest traditions of
the United States Naval Service. He gallantly gave up his life in the
service of his country.
Nelson's
actions were also accounted in the book,
Carrier Clash: The Invasion of
Guadalcanal and the Battle of the Eastern Solomons August 1942
, by Eric Hammel.
Platoon Sergeant Nelson Braitmeyer was Killed In Action on
August 21, 1942.
Nelson was buried at the
National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii.
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