World War I Medal of Honor Recipient. He received the award for his actions as a hospital apprentice 1st class attached to the 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Division, American Expeditionary Forces, on September 15, 1918 during the Battle of Saint-Mihiel near Thiaucourt, France during World War I. Born in Florence, Texas, he enlisted in the US Navy following the US entry into World War I in April 1917. After completion of his training at the San Diego Naval Base, California and Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia, he was attached to the 2/6th Marines and sent to the Western Front in France where he saw combat action at the Battle of Saint-Mihiel for which he won the Medal of Honor. Additionally, he was also awarded a Silver Star and the World War I Victory Medal. Following the war, he was promoted to the rank of pharmacist's mate 3rd class and served on the troop transport Princess Matoika until he was discharged in 1920. He then moved to California where he became a US Marshall and died in Fresno at the age of 76. His Medal of Honor citation reads: "The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Hospital Apprentice First Class David Ephraim Hayden, United States Navy, for gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a Corpsman attached to the Second Battalion, Sixth Regiment (Marines), 2d Division, American Expeditionary Forces, in action at Thiaucourt, France, 15 September 1918. During the advance, when Corporal Creed was mortally wounded while crossing an open field swept by machinegun fire, Hospital Apprentice First Class Hayden unhesitatingly ran to his assistance and, finding him so severely wounded as to require immediate attention, disregarded his own personal safety to dress the wound under intense machinegun fire, and then carried the wounded man back to a place of safety."