Michael J Perkins (1892 - 1918)

Born 17 Aug 1892 in Boston, Suffolk, Massachusetts, United States

Ancestors

Died 28 Oct 1918 at age 26 in Belieu Bois, France

Michael Perkins was awarded the Medal of Honor.

Biography

PFC Michael Perkins was Killed in Action in France during World War I.

PFC Michael Perkins served in the United States Army in World War I
Service started:
Unit(s): 101st Infantry Division
Service ended: 28 Oct 1918

Michael J. Perkins, son of Michael Perkins and Abbie Kerrigan, was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on 17 Aug 1892,^[1] and was baptized there on 21 Aug 1892.^[2] Michael attended Bigelow Grammar School and worked at the Commonwealth Pier before joining the United States Army in 1916.^[3] He was killed in action in Belieu Bois, France on 28 Oct 1918 and is buried at New Calvary Cemetery in Mattapan, Suffolk County, Massachusetts.^[4]

Michael was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his gallant and brave service at Belieu Bois, France, on 27 Oct 1918. His citation reads as follows:

He, voluntarily and alone, crawled to a German "pill box" machine gun emplacement, from which grenades were being thrown at his platoon. Awaiting his opportunity, when the door was again opened and another grenade thrown, he threw a bomb inside, bursting the door open, and then, drawing his trench knife, rushed into the emplacement. In a hand-to-hand struggle he killed or wounded several of the occupants and captured about 25 prisoners, at the same time silencing 7 machine guns.^[5]

On 22 Apr 1919 at Camp Devens, Ayer, Massachusetts, the Medal of Honor was posthumously awarded to PFC Michael J. Perkins for his actions at Belieu Bois, France on 27 Oct 1918. The award was pinned on Michael's father, Michael Perkins Sr., by Major General Harry C. Hale at a ceremony attended by over 170,000 soldiers and civilians.^[6]

Along with the Medal of Honor, he was awarded the French Croix de Guerre with Palm and the Italian Medaille Militaire. When Michael's body was returned to Boston from France two years after this death, he was laid in state for three days at the Michael J. Perkins Post of the American Legion, where over 100,000 people paid their respects. On the day of his funeral, his cortege passed through a crowd of over 75,000 who gathered to pay tribute to the American hero. The Governor of Massachusetts, the Mayor of Boston and many high-ranking military officers were in attendance at the funeral.^[7]

From CaughtInSouthie.com:

Michael J Perkins was a war hero who won the nation’s highest award for bravery, the Congressional Medal of Honor. A South Boston native, he lived on West Seventh Street until he enlisted in the Army in 1916. While stationed in France, Perkins was involved in combat with German Troops in 1918. With a knife in one hand and a grenade in the other, he crawled alone to the area where German soldiers fired machine guns. Perkins single-handedly killed and wounded the enemy, subdued seven machine guns and took 25 prisoners. Suffering an injury to his arm, he was ordered to the infirmary. The ambulance that was taking Perkins to the hospital was struck by a shell and all occupants were killed instantly.

In 1920, as part of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade ceremony, the intersection of Broadway and Dorchester Street was dedicated to Michael J. “Mickey” Perkins.^[8]

Also in South Boston, an elementary school near the old colony housing development was named after him,^[9][10] as well as the Michael J Perkins American Legion Post #67.^[11]

Military Service^[12]

Full Name: Perkins, Michael J

Rank: Private First Class

Military Unit: Company D, 101st Infantry, 26th Division

Branch: Army

Military Conflict: World War I

Place: Belieu Bois, France

Date of Incident: 27 Oct 1918

Enlistment State: Massachusetts

Birth State: Massachusetts

Conflict Period: World War I

Served For: United States of America

Research Notes

Cannot locate any of his family members in the 1910 US Census.

Sources

1. ↑ "Massachusetts Births, 1841-1915," database with images, FamilySearch: 6 Feb 2018, Michael Perkins in entry for Michael Perkins, 17 Aug 1892, Boston, Suffolk, MA; citing ref ID #22, MA Archives, Boston; FHL microfilm 1,651,220.
2. ↑ Image of baptismal record attached to Ancestry.com Tree.
3. ↑ The Boston Globe (Boston, MA) published 2 Oct 1929, page 20. Accessed online at Newspapers.com($).
4. ↑ Find A Grave, database and images: accessed 16 Mar 2019, Michael J. Perkins (1899–28 Oct 1918), Memorial 7862656, citing New Calvary Cemetery, Mattapan, Suffolk Co, MA, USA: headstone photos, MoH citation.
5. ↑ Congressional Medal of Honor Society - Michael J. Perkins.
6. ↑ Hartford Courant (Hartford, Connecticut) published 23 Apr 1919, page 1. Accessed online at Newspapers.com($).
7. ↑ The Boston Globe (Boston, MA), published 12 Oct 1921, page 9. Accessed online at Newspapers.com($).
8. ↑ "Memorial Day" by Maureen Dahill, published 23 May 2018 on CaughtInSouthie.com.
9. ↑ Wikipedia - profile of Michael J. Perkins.
10. ↑ MichaelJPerkinsSchool.org.
11. ↑ Facebook page
12. ↑ Fold3.com - profile of Michael J. Perkins.

See also:

• "United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch: accessed 16 Mar 2019, Michael Perkins, Precinct 4 Boston city Ward 13, Suffolk, MA, US; citing ED 1344, sheet 9A, family 172, NARA microfilm pub T623 (Washington, D.C.: NARA, 1972.); FHL microfilm 1,240,681.