World War I Double Medal of Honor Recipient. One of only 19 United States servicemen to be awarded two Medals of Honor. Served during World War I in the United States Marine Corps as a Sergeant in the 66th Company, 5th Marine Regiment. He was awarded two Medals of Honor - one from the Army and one from the Navy - for his bravery near Villers-Cotterets, France, on July 18, 1918. His Army Medal citation reads “When his company, advancing through a wood, met with strong resistance from an enemy strong point, Sgt. Cukela crawled out from the flank and made his way toward the German lines in the face of heavy fire, disregarding the warnings of his comrades. He succeeded in getting behind the enemy position and rushed a machinegun emplacement, killing or driving off the crew with his bayonet. With German handgrenades he then bombed out the remaining portion of the strong point, capturing 4 men and 2 damaged machineguns.” His Navy citation reads “Sgt. Cukela advanced alone against an enemy strong point that was holding up his line. Disregarding the warnings of his comrades, he crawled out from the flank in the face of heavy fire and worked his way to the rear of the enemy position. Rushing a machinegun emplacement, he killed or drove off the crew with his bayonet, bombed out the remaining part of the strong point with German handgrenades and captured 2 machineguns and 4 men”. He was one of 6 US servicemen to be awarded both Army and Navy Medals of Honor during World War I, and one of the last. After the War the laws governing the awarding of the CMOH were changed so that no one person can be awarded 2 Medals. He was the last surviving Double Medal of Honor recipient, and is one of four Double recipients interred in Arlington National Cemetery (the others being Army General Frank D. Baldwin, Marine Corporal John Henry Pruitt, and Navy Man John McCoy).