William David Halyburton, Jr. of Canton, North Carolina, a U.S. Navy hospital corpsman, was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for heroic action on May 10, 1945, during the Battle of Okinawa.
Halyburton enlisted in the U.S. Naval Reserve in August 1943. He then attended the U.S. Navy Hospital Corps School and, by August 1944, was a pharmacist’s mate second class. In December of that year, he departed for the Pacific Theater of Operations with the 2nd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division.
On April 1, 1945, Halyburton landed with the 5th Marines on Okinawa. On May 10, 1945, Halyburton was serving with a Marine rifle company when they suffered numerous casualties after advancing into Awacha Draw. Exposed to enemy fire, he rushed to aid a fallen Marine. Shielding the man with his own body while administering aid, Halyburton was mortally wounded. For this action, he was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. He was just 20 years old.
Halyburton is buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaii.