b. 12/01/1867 Kingston-upon-Hull, Yorkshire, England. d. 04/10/1918 near Mont Blanc, France.
DATE OF MOH ACTION: 01/04/1899 Samoa.
Henry L Hulbert MOH
Henry Lewis Hulbert was born in Kingston upon Hull, East Yorkshire, England on January 12, 1867. He was the first born into a prosperous family. He attended Felsted School in Essex, and entered the British Colonial Civil Service, with his first appointment in Malaya. While in Malaya, he married Anne Rose Hewitt. A subsequent personal scandal and divorce resulted in Hulbert leaving Malaysia and arriving in the United States.
At age 31, he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps on March 28, 1898. He completed his boot camp training at Mare Island, California. His first military action was the British and American expedition of intervention in Samoa. He was part of a 200-man force of Americans, Britons and Samoans which was defeated at the Second Battle of Vailele in 1899 during the Second Samoan Civil War.
By early 1917, Hulbert had reached the highest enlisted rank of sergeant major and was on the staff of Major General George Barnett, Commandant of the Marine Corps. The United States entered World War I in April 1917. Upon the formation of the Fifth Regiment for service in France, Hulbert immediately volunteered for foreign service. Hulbert was recognized for multiple acts of bravery during the Battle of Belleau Wood. For one such action, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. He was recommended by General John J. Pershing for immediate commission as a captain.
He distinguished himself at Soisson, was commissioned second lieutenant, and received an immediate promotion to first lieutenant. He was killed in action at Blanc Mont Ridge in France on October 4, 1918. At the time of his death, his promotion to captain had been approved by the Secretary of the Navy. He was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross and the French Croix de Guerre with palm.
MOH CITATION:
For distinguished conduct in the presence of the enemy at Samoa, 1 April 1899.
BURIAL LOCATION: ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY, ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA.
SECTION 3, GRAVE 4309.
LOCATION OF MEDAL: FAMILY.
