Dave Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share #26 Posted October 17, 2020 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share #27 Posted October 17, 2020 The citation, signed by Harry Truman, for the award... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share #28 Posted October 17, 2020 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share #29 Posted October 17, 2020 And General Spaatz' remarks at the presentation... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share #30 Posted October 17, 2020 And finally, his Medal of Merit. Thank you for reading through this thread and remembering the contributions of this great man! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Posted October 17, 2020 Share #31 Posted October 17, 2020 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 More sharing options...
Dave Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share #32 Posted October 17, 2020 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 More sharing options...
Will Posted October 17, 2020 Share #33 Posted October 17, 2020 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 More sharing options...
Will Posted October 17, 2020 Share #34 Posted October 17, 2020 And the medal and award documents for Dr. Linus Pauling, evidently in an educational institution's collection. Note that the group includes a program for a ceremony at which five Medals for Merit were awarded. http://scarc.library.oregonstate.edu/coll/pauling/awards/1948h.1.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ItemCo16527 Posted October 17, 2020 Share #35 Posted October 17, 2020 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 More sharing options...
Dave Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share #36 Posted October 17, 2020 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: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share #37 Posted October 17, 2020 Here are a couple of shots from Nobel Prize (2x times) recipient Linus Pauling's awards: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share #38 Posted October 17, 2020 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 More sharing options...
Dave Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share #39 Posted October 17, 2020 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share #40 Posted October 17, 2020 Just when you think you've done research on the award...I discovered the OMSA Monograph on the medal. I just ordered one. That will solve the number of them awarded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted October 17, 2020 Author Share #41 Posted October 17, 2020 Here's another certificate and citation, it sold in 2014. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Posted October 17, 2020 Share #42 Posted October 17, 2020 6 minutes ago, Dave said: Just when you think you've done research on the award...I discovered the OMSA Monograph on the medal. 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 More sharing options...
GIKyle Posted October 17, 2020 Share #43 Posted October 17, 2020 Wow! Very cool, Dave. Thanks for showing us this man’s career. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuftStalg1 Posted October 17, 2020 Share #44 Posted October 17, 2020 Wow, wow, wow! Truly museum worthy collection! Thanks for sharing Dave, it's one of my all time favorite medals! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hermanus Posted October 17, 2020 Share #45 Posted October 17, 2020 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 More sharing options...
gunnertwo Posted October 17, 2020 Share #46 Posted October 17, 2020 Wonderful post! Doubt if one could be found that has better documentation. Excellent! G2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joeclown Posted October 6, 2021 Share #47 Posted October 6, 2021 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 More sharing options...
BigJohn#3RD Posted October 30, 2021 Share #48 Posted October 30, 2021 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 More sharing options...
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