Jump to content

Medal of Merit - Dr. William Frederick Durand


Dave
 Share

Recommended Posts

With that introduction...what you came here for...

 

Here is his certificate for the Medal of Merit. Before I bought this, I had never seen one before. With only 145 total awards, these rank as one of the rarest medals of the United States. 

durand_medal_of_merit_certificate.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The award was presented by General Spaatz. In Durand's biography, this is the only decoration he mentions - he was by far most proud of this award. 

durand_medal_of_merit_award_ceremony.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

And finally, his Medal of Merit. 

 

Thank you for reading through this thread and remembering the contributions of this great man!

durand medal_0002_sm.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A most interesting thread. I once asked Jeff Floyd if he knew of any documented Medals for Merit that included the award citation, and he was aware of only one. I have seen photographs of only a few other citation documents, which I believe are in library or museum collections.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 minutes ago, Will said:

A most interesting thread. I once asked Jeff Floyd if he knew of any documented Medals of Merit that included the award citation, and he was aware of only one. I have seen photographs of only a few other citation documents, which I believe are in library or museum collections.

 

Coincidentally, this one came from Jeff. :) When I saw him offering it, I jumped on it as I knew I'd never see another "in the wild". At the time, I had no idea of the historical importance of the recipient...as well as the other documents that came with the group that really make it one of a kind. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here is the medal being offered for $4,500 with the signed Truman citation on White House stationary, but without the formal award document (If someone knows how to copy the photos from the offering and save them to this thread, that would certainly be helpful).

 

http://www.shafrancollectibles.com/shop/presidents/harry-s-truman-document-signed-as-president-awarding-the-medal-for-merit-with-the-actual-medal/#

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is nothing short of amazing. In my 30+ years of collecting, I'd never seen an award certificate for the Medal of Merit. That, plus all of the documentation makes this one of the most fascinating and unique groupings I've ever seen. Can't wait to read through all of it after work today. Thanks for sharing, Dave!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

28 minutes ago, Will said:

Here is the medal being offered for $4,500 with the signed Truman citation on White House stationary, but without the formal award document (If someone knows how to copy the photos from the offering and save them to this thread, that would certainly be helpful).

 

http://www.shafrancollectibles.com/shop/presidents/harry-s-truman-document-signed-as-president-awarding-the-medal-for-merit-with-the-actual-medal/#

 

It's interesting that they say 401 awards were made. I got the 145 number from Ron Fischer's article in The Medal Collector: 

 

http://themedalcollector.com/uploads/THE_PRESIDENTIAL_MEDAL_OF_FREEDOM.pdf

 

Here are screenshots of the Shafran Collectible's listing: 

Screenshot_2.jpg

Screenshot_3.jpg

Screenshot_4.jpg

Screenshot_48.jpg

Screenshot_1.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What's interesting is that Linus Pauling's certificate doesn't refer to him as a "DR" though he earned a PhD in 1925 (and had 47 honorary doctorates...) 

 

I think whoever created the certificates did an incredible job of matching the pre-printed font on the certificate with the hand-written name and dates. 

 

Also interesting to note that the wording on the certificate indicates that this medal was a direct descendant of Washington's Medal of Merit...similar wording as for the Purple Heart. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't know how the forum software will treat this image with it's automatic compression, but it's a closeup of the handwriting on the certificate. Really beautiful. 

Screenshot_7.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just when you think you've done research on the award...I discovered the OMSA Monograph on the medal. :D I just ordered one. That will solve the number of them awarded. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 minutes ago, Dave said:

Just when you think you've done research on the award...I discovered the OMSA Monograph on the medal. :D I just ordered one. That will solve the number of them awarded. 

Hopefully the monograph will have the information and that it will be capable of being verified if anyone in inclined to do that. Ron's article states the "Medal for Merit which was awarded some 145 times to prominent Americans, but was never used after World War II." But of course most of the awards were made after World War II. According to the 1985 edition of the Code of Federal Regulations (Volume 32, Section 578.15(b)), no awards were made after 1952. Presumably, though, the medal is still "on the books". I'm not aware that it has ever been declared obsolete or rescinded, although maybe that has happened. Regardless, though, any sets of the medal, the award document, and the typed citation are next to non existent outside of institutions.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Dave, thanks for the insight in this rare medal and it's documents. If the awarded number is 145 or 405 or somewhere in between, it's still rare and real eye-candy for us to see.

 

Regards 

Herman 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 11 months later...

Amazing I worked at General Electric in Lynn, Ma. for 30 years from 1972 to 2002 we developed many other engines that are today used for multiple purposes not just on planes. They are also used in power  generation, oil pipelines, and ships engines and other uses. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

Dave,
A fantastic grouping to a very accomplished and patriotic American. Thank you for taking the time to provide all the background on this man.
Best regards,
John

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...