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DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY -- NAVAL HISTORICAL CENTER
805 KIDDER BREESE SE -- WASHINGTON NAVY YARD
WASHINGTON DC 20374-5060
Online Library of Selected Images:
-- PEOPLE -- UNITED STATES --
Gunner's Mate First Class Osmond K. Ingram, USN, (1887-1917)
Osmond Kelly Ingram was born on 4 August 1887 in Pratt City,
Alabama. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy from that state as an Apprentice
Seaman in November 1903. In the course of his Naval career, he
advanced to the rank of Gunner's Mate First Class and, during
World War I, served on board the destroyer Cassin. On 15
October 1917, while his ship was operating off the Irish coast,
she was attacked by the German submarine U-61. Gunner's
Mate Ingram spotted an incoming torpedo and, realizing that it
could hit near the depth charges at the ship's stern, he ran aft
in an attempt to release them before the torpedo arrived. However,
the torpedo struck the ship before he could achieve his purpose
and Ingram was killed in the ensuing explosion. For his "extraordinary
heroism" on this occasion, he was posthumously awarded the
Medal of Honor. Also
noteworthy for being the first U.S. Navy enlisted man killed in
action during World War I, Osmond K. Ingram is listed on the Wall
of the Missing at the American Battle Monuments Commission Cemetery,
Brookwood, Surrey, England.
USS Osmond Ingram (DD-255, later AVD-9 and APD-35),
1919-1946, was named in honor of Gunner's Mate First Class Osmond
K. Ingram.
This page features all the views we have concerning Osmond
K. Ingram.
Click on the small photograph to prompt
a larger view of the same image.
Photo #: NH 91637
Gunner's Mate Third Class Osmond K. Ingram, USN
Halftone reproduction of a photograph, copied from the official
publication "Medal of Honor, 1861-1949, The Navy",
page 117.
Osmond K. Ingram was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor
for "extraordinary heroism" during the torpedoing of
USS Cassin (DD-43) on 15 October 1917. He was a Gunner's
Mate First Class at that time.
U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph.
Online Image: 44KB; 590 x 765 pixels |
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Photo #: NH 1876
Gunner's Mate Third Class Osmond K. Ingram, USN
Halftone reproduction of a photograph, copied from an unidentified
publication.
Ingram was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his "extraordinary
heroism" on 15 October 1917, when USS Cassin (DD-43)
was torpedoed by a German submarine. He was a Gunner's Mate First
Class at that time.
U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph.
Online Image: 53KB; 425 x 765 pixels |
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Photo #: NH 458-KN (color)
USS Cassin (DD-43)
Painting by Charles B. Falls, depicting the gallant but futile
effort of Gunner's Mate First Class Osmond K. Ingram, USN, to
release the ship's depth charges just before she was hit by a
torpedo from the German submarine U-61 on 15 October 1917.
Ingram was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroism
on this occasion.
Courtesy of the U.S. Navy Art Collection, Washington, DC.
U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph.
Online Image: 75KB; 740 x 510 pixels |
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Photo #: NH 105319
Gunner's Mate First Class Osmond K. Ingram, USN
Halftone collage entitled, "They, Too, Were Ready."
Above: the stern of USS Cassin (Destroyer # 43) after
she was torpedoed by German submarine U-61 on 15 October
1917.
Inset: Gunner's Mate Osmond K. Ingram, USN, who was posthumously
awarded the Medal of Honor for his "extraordinary heroism"
in attempting to save the Cassin when she was torpedoed.
Below: USS Shaw (Destroyer # 68) after her collision with
the British transport Aquitania on 9 October 1918.
U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph.
Online Image: 85KB; 490 x 765 pixels |
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Medal of Honor citation of Gunner's Mate First Class Osmond
K. Ingram (as printed in the official publication "Medal
of Honor, 1861-1949, The Navy", page 117):
"For extraordinary heroism in the presence of the enemy
on the occasion of the torpedoing of the Cassin, on 15
October 1917. While the Cassin was searching for the submarine,
INGRAM sighted the torpedo coming, and realizing that it might
strike the ship aft in the vicinity of the depth charges, ran
aft with the intention of releasing the depth charges before
the torpedo could reach the Cassin. The torpedo struck
the ship before he could accomplish his purpose and INGRAM was
killed by the explosion. The depth charges exploded immediately
afterward. His life was sacrificed in an attempt to save the
ship and his shipmates, as the damage to the ship would have
been much less if he had been able to release the depth charges." |
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