World War I Medal of Honor Recipient. Born William Henry Johnson in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, he moved to New York as a teen where he worked a variety of jobs: soda jerk, laborer, chauffeur, and porter at Albany's Union Station. In 1917, he enlisted in the New York National Guard, Company C, 15th New York (Colored) Infantry Regiment, which became the 369th Infantry Regiment, 93rd Division, American Expeditionary Forces, also known as the Harlem Hellfighters, when it was brought into the war. Deployed to France, his unit was brigaded with a French Army colonial unit on the front line on the western edge of the Argonne Forest, where they spent more time on the line than any other unit. On night sentry duty, May15, 1918, Johnson and Private Needham Roberts, came under attack by a German raiding party. According to his Distinguished Service Cross citation: "Private Johnson distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism...attacked by a raiding party of Germans numbering almost twenty...he opened fire, shooting one of them and seriously wounding two more. The Germans continued to advance, and, as they were about to be captured, Private Johnson drew his bolo knife from his belt and attacked the Germans in a hand-to-hand encounter. Even though having sustained three grenade and shotgun wounds, Private Johnson went to the rescue of his fellow soldier who was being taken prisoner by the enemy. He kept on fighting until the Germans were chased away. Private Johnson's personal courage and total disregard for his own life reflect great credit upon himself, the 369th United States Infantry Regiment, the United States Army, and the United States of America." He had sustained 21 wounds and was one of the first Americans to receive the French Coix de Guerre avec Palme, France's highest award for valor. Upon his return to the United States, he was unable to work due to injuries, and fell into alcoholism and destitution before contracting tuberculosis. He succumbed to injuries and illness at age 36. In 1928, in his book, "Rank and File: True Stories of the Great War," Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. stated that Johnson was "one of the five bravest American soldiers in the war." In the 1990s, an effort was made to recognize his actions. A street in Albany, New York, was named for him and a monument dedicated. He was finally presented posthumously with the Purple Heart in 1996, the Distinguished Service Cross in 2002, and the Medal of Honor in 2015.