Edward Dahlgren, 90; WWII Actions Earned Medal of Honor

Edward Dahlgren, who was awarded the Medal of Honor for spearheading the rescue of an Army platoon that was surrounded in a German counterattack during World War II, has died. He was 90.

Dahlgren died Wednesday at the Maine Veterans’ Home in Caribou, Maine. The cause of death was not announced.

A sergeant with the 36th Infantry Division, Dahlgren captured more than 40 enemy soldiers and killed several others during fighting at Oberhoffen, France.

According to his Medal of Honor citation, Dahlgren led his platoon to the rescue of a similar unit facing a German advance.

After spotting a number of enemy troops crossing a field toward the surrounded platoon, he ran into a barn and opened fire with a submachine gun. He killed six German troops, wounded several others and thwarted the advance.

Dahlgren’s platoon then moved forward to join the other GI platoon.

The two units moved through Oberhoffen until they began taking rifle fire from a house held by enemy troops. Dahlgren dodged their fire as he ran toward the house and lobbed a grenade through the front door. The eight German troops inside quickly surrendered after Dahlgren burst into the house, firing his rifle.

Starting for the next house, Dahlgren was driven to take cover by hostile machine-gun fire. He grabbed rifle grenades and launched missiles into the house, destroying the machine-gun position and killing its two operators.

Dahlgren moved to the rear of the house and came under fire from a machine gun in the barn. After tossing a grenade into the structure, he burst in and five Germans surrendered.

But the house was still in enemy hands, and Dahlgren and his unit advanced to clear the dwelling. Entering through a rear window, he trapped several Germans in the basement. He again used a grenade to subdue the enemy forces, wounding several and forcing 10 to surrender.

After securing that block, Dahlgren and a comrade moved on to another street. Hearing German coming from a house, Dahlgren opened fire with rifle grenades, entered and fired several bursts down the cellar stairway. Sixteen Germans surrendered.

President Truman presented Dahlgren with the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest military honor, at a White House ceremony Aug. 23, 1945. The citation that went with the award noted that Dahlgren’s “bold leadership and magnificent courage” repulsed the counterattack and saved the lives of American soldiers.

Friends recalled Dahlgren as a humble man who spoke little of his wartime heroics. He once noted, however, that he “ ... was afraid before it happened and after it happened. But in battle I just acted on the spur of the moment.”

The highly decorated Dahlgren left military service after the war with the rank of second lieutenant. His other medals included the Silver Star, three Bronze Stars, a Purple Heart and the French Croix de Guerre. He was awarded the French Legion of Honor in a ceremony in April.

A native of Woodland, Maine, Dahlgren spent much of his life in the northern Maine community of Blaine, where he worked for the state as a seed potato inspector.

In addition to his wife of 57 years, Pauline, Dahlgren’s survivors include two sons, two daughters and a stepson.