Charles Luers Nordsiek

Charles Luers Nordsiek
Grave at Arlington National Cemetery
Born(1896-04-19)April 19, 1896
New York City, US
DiedMarch 9, 1937(1937-03-09) (aged 40)
Bluefield, West Virginia, US
Place of burial
Arlington National Cemetery,
Arlington, Virginia
AllegianceUnited States
Branch
United States Navy
Service years
1913–1921
Rank
Lieutenant
UnitUSS Florida
Conflicts
United States occupation of Veracruz
World War I
AwardsMedal of Honor
Other workmerchant ship captain

Charles Luers Nordsiek (April 19, 1896 – March 9, 1937) was a seaman in the United States Navy and a Medal of Honor recipient for his role in the United States occupation of Veracruz.

Born in New York City, Nordsiek attended high school there until 1911.[1] He enlisted in the U.S. Navy on September 4, 1913.[2]

In 1914, Nordsiek was assigned to the battleship USS Florida. He went ashore at Veracruz as a member of a five-man signal squad led by Ensign Edward O. McDonnell. The other squad members were Charles F. Bishop, Fred J. Schnepel and James A. Walsh. Despite being under constant enemy fire the afternoon of April 21 and morning of April 22, the squad continued to relay signals to and from USS Prairie offshore from an exposed rooftop position. At one point in the engagement, Nordsiek was wounded.[3]

Nordsiek received the Medal of Honor at the age of 18, making him one of the youngest recipients in its history. He later advanced from seaman to quartermaster in the Navy.

Shortly after the United States entered World War I, he was commissioned as an ensign in the Naval Auxiliary Reserve on May 29, 1917. He was subsequently assigned to serve on supply and transport ships operating in trans-Atlantic convoys.

[1] Nordsiek was subsequently promoted to lieutenant and left the Navy on September 30, 1921.[2][4] Granted a license to command ocean-going merchant steamers, he found work as a merchant ship captain.[1]

Nordsiek died on March 9, 1937, in Bluefield, West Virginia,[5] and is buried next to his wife Mary (1898–1966) at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia.[6]

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Ordinary Seaman, U.S. Navy
Born: 19 April 1896, New York, N.Y.
Accredited to: New York
G.O. No.: 101, 15 June 1914.

Citation:

On board the U.S.S. Florida, Nordsiek showed extraordinary heroism in the line of his profession during the seizure of Vera Cruz, Mexico, 21 and 22 April 1914.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Charles Luers Nordsiek". Columbia County in the World War. Albany, New York: J. B. Lyon Company, Printers. 1924. p. 584. Retrieved 2025-08-15.
  2. 1 2 "Interment in the Arlington National Cemetery". U.S. National Archives and Records Administration. U.S. Army Quartermaster Corps. May 6, 1937. Retrieved 2025-08-15.
  3. ↑ Daniels, Josephus (June 15, 1914). "General Order No. 101: Heroism of Enlisted Men.". General Orders of the Navy Department: Series of 1913. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office. Retrieved 2025-08-15.
  4. ↑ Register of Commissioned Officers of the United States Navy. January 1, 1919. pg. 607.
  5. ↑ "Charles L. Nordsiek". West Virginia Deaths Index, 1853–1973. No. 804478.
  6. ↑ Burial Detail: Nordsiek, Charles L (Section 7, Grave 10230) – ANC Explorer
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