Jesse Whitfield Covington

Jesse Whitfield Covington (September 16, 1889 – November 21, 1966) was an American sailor serving in the United States Navy during World War I who received the Medal of Honor for bravery.

Jesse W. Covington
Jesse W. Covington
Born(1889-09-16)September 16, 1889
Haywood County, Tennessee
DiedNovember 21, 1966(1966-11-21) (aged 77)
Place of burial
Oak Grove Cemetery, Portsmouth, Virginia
Allegiance United States of America
Service/branchUnited States Navy
Years of service1908 - 1935
RankChief Steward
UnitU.S.S. Stewart
Battles/warsWorld War I
AwardsMedal of Honor

Biography

Covington was born September 16, 1889 in Haywood County, Tennessee and after enlisting in the United States Navy was sent to France to fight in World War I. He retired from the Navy in 1935 as a chief petty officer.

He died November 21, 1966 and is buried in Oak Grove Cemetery, Portsmouth, Virginia.[1]

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Ship's Cook Third Class, U.S. Navy. Place and date: At sea aboard the USS Stewart (DD-13), 17 April 1918. Entered service at: California. Born: 16 September 1889, Haywood, Tenn. G.O. No.: 403, 1918.

Citation:

For extraordinary heroism following internal explosion of the Florence H. The sea in the vicinity of wreckage was covered by a mass of boxes of smokeless powder, which were repeatedly exploding. Jesse W. Covington, of the U.S.S. Stewart, plunged overboard to rescue a survivor who was surrounded by powder boxes and too exhausted to help himself, fully realizing that similar powder boxes in the vicinity were continually exploding and that he was thereby risking his life in saving the life of this man.[2]

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See also

References
Specific
  1. "Jesse Whitfield Covington". Claim to Fame: Medal of Honor recipients. Find a Grave. Retrieved 2009-07-15.
  2. "World War I; Covington, Jesse W. entry". Medal of Honor recipients. United States Army Center of Military History. August 3, 2009. Retrieved 2009-07-19.


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