George Cregan

George Cregan
George Cregan
Born	December 11, 1886; New York City, US
Died	June 30, 1969 (aged 82); Manasquan, New Jersey, US
Place of burial	Arlington National Cemetery
Allegiance	United States
Service / branch	United States Navy
Years of service	1907–1947
Rank	Lieutenant commander
Unit	USS Florida (BB-30)
Battles / wars	Border War Battle of Veracruz; World War I; World War II
Awards	Medal of Honor; Navy Cross

George Cregan (December 11, 1885 – June 30, 1969) was a lieutenant commander in the United States Navy. He was a recipient of both the Medal of Honor and the Navy Cross.

Biography

Cregan enlisted in the United States Navy in 1907 and served for 40 years, serving on board over 30 different vessels.

He was a recipient of the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military award for valor, for his role in the United States occupation of Veracruz when he was a coxswain assigned to the battleship USS Florida.

He received the Navy Cross for his participation in the March 1928 salvage operation of the submarine USS S-4 while commanding officer of the tugboat USS Sagamore.

Cregan was promoted to the warrant officer rank of boatswain on March 15, 1920, chief boatswain on February 20, 1924, and to lieutenant on March 1, 1943. He was promoted to lieutenant commander upon his retirement from the Navy on March 1, 1947.

He died June 30, 1969, and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia. His grave can be found in section 46, lot 1066.

Awards

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Coxswain, U.S. Navy. Place and date: On board the U.S.S. Florida, at Vera Cruz, Mexico, 21 April 1914. Entered service at: New York. Born: 11 December 1885, New York, N.Y. G.O. No.: 101, 15 June 1914.

Citation:

On board the U.S.S. Florida, for extraordinary heroism in the line of his profession during the seizure of Vera Cruz, Mexico, 21 April 1914. Cregan was ashore when he volunteered for an assault detail under Ens. George Maus Lowry on the Vera Cruz Customhouse under enemy fire both in the alley between the customhouse and warehouse and the assault over objective's walls. During the move up the alley, he tended a wounded comrade, J. F. Schumaker, holding a compress with one hand and firing with the other.

Navy Cross citation

Rank and organization: Chief Boatswain, U.S. Navy. Action date: December 17, 1927 - March 17, 1928. Company: Submarine and Rescue Salvage Unit. Division: U.S.S. Sagamore.

Citation:

For distinguished service to the Government of the United States in the line of his profession as Commanding Officer of the U.S.S. SAGAMORE throughout the salvage operations of the Submarine S-4, sunk as a result of a collision off Provincetown, Massachusetts, on 17 December 1927. the skillful handling of the SAGAMORE together with the excellent judgment, zeal, efficiency and untiring devotion to duty of her Commanding Officer, was an important factor in the final success of the operations. Chief Boatswain Cregan's actions were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.

References

This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army Center of Military History.

""GEORGE CREGAN" entry". Medal of Honor recipients: Mexican Campaign (Vera Cruz). United States Army Center of Military History. June 8, 2009. Archived from the original on 2010-07-23. Retrieved 2008-05-20.
"Arlington National Cemetery Biography". Retrieved September 29, 2010.