James Elliott โWillyโ Williams should have been famous.
He enlisted in the U.S. Navy at just 16 years old using a fake birth certificate. Born in 1930 and of Cherokee heritage, Williams wanted war, not permission. He would serve nearly 20 years, fight in two wars, and become the most decorated enlisted sailor in U.S. Navy history.
During the Korean War, Williams ran small boat raids off the North Korean coast. In Vietnam, with retirement only a year away, he volunteered again. He was assigned to the River Patrol Force in the Mekong Delta, commanding Patrol Boat 105. The mission was deadly. Stop enemy troops and weapons moving through narrow jungle waterways.
Williams excelled immediately.
In July 1966, he led patrols that captured enemy boats under fire. Then came the night of
October 31. Williams and another patrol boat chased enemy sampans into a canal so narrow they could not
turn around. At full speed, they burst into a massive enemy staging area. Dozens of boats packed with North Vietnamese troops and ammunition filled the waterway.
Williams did not retreat.
He drove straight at them.
At nearly 35 knots, he rammed enemy boats, splitting them in half. His guns fired nonstop. Enemy troops fell into the water. He smashed through not one, but two major enemy formations, calling in helicopter gunships while maneuvering through overwhelming fire. After three hours of combat, his crews suffered only two wounded. Williams himself was hit by shrapnel.
For that night alone, he earned the Medal of Honor.
It was not the only time. Williams later dove into a sinking dredge to save a trapped sailor. Days later, he led another patrol against hundreds of enemy fighters and was wounded again. By the end of his career, he held the Medal of Honor, Navy Cross, Silver Star, multiple Bronze Stars, Purple Hearts, and rescue medals.
Only seven men in Navy history have been awarded all three top valor awards. Williams was the only enlisted man.
Then he went home.
No fame. No spotlight. He became a U.S. Marshal and lived quietly. When he died in 1999, seven Medal of Honor recipients attended his funeral.
James โWillyโ Williams fought harder than almost anyone in Navy history.
Most Americans never knew his name.
-History Files.