Editorial - July 2003

Honoring Admiral Rufus Johnston

Published July 25, 2003

Lincoln County residents are long-accustomed to documenting the history of the region and recording those important footnotes for posterity. It is in that tradition that some local veterans headed by Dale Punch of the American Legion have decided that Lincoln County native Rufus Z. Johnston, a Congressional Medal of Honor winner, should be formally recognized in the town where he was born.

Johnson was born in Lincolnton in 1874, the son of a long-time Presbyterian minister and schools superintendent Robert Johnston. He left Lincoln in 1891 to enter the U.S. Naval Academy and embarked on a highly successful military career, achieving the rank of rear Admiral before his death in 1959. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Johnston’s heroism is linked to one of the smaller war time theaters, the occupation of Vera Cruz in Mexico in 1914 when he was an executive officer on the New Hampshire and had to intercept the delivery of arms to a dictator. He was cited for: distinguished conduct in battle, engagement of Vera Cruz, 22 April 1914; was regimental adjutant, and eminent and conspicuous in his conduct. He exhibited courage and skill in leading his men through the action of the 22nd and in the final occupation of the city.

Punch also plans to honor a better-known Congressional Medal of Honor winner, Jerry Crump, whose heroics at age 18 during the Korean War have been widely publicized over the years. Crump is recognized with a marker, and a street bears his name in front of Lincoln’s VFW building.

 The veterans plan to bring other Medal of Honor winners to Lincoln County to help observe the occasion. This celebration is still being developed by Punch and other veterans in the area. He is looking for corporate sponsors as well as the interest and participation on the part of citizens of Lincoln County. We wish him well.

© 2001 Lincoln Times-News  

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