It was not one courageous action, but two on the same day that earned Hector A. Cafferata, Jr. the Medal of Honor during the Korean War.
Born in New York the son of Hector and Helen Cafferata, Hector was raised in Montville, New Jersey. His father was Peruvian immigrant and his grandfather, Pedro Cafferata-Baltilama was consul of Italy in Juarez from 1890 to 1900.
A graduate of Boonton High School where he played football and after graduation also played semi pro, Cafferata had a job at 14 at Sun Dial Corp. in Caldwell and grew up in the Lake Hiawatha area. He enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserves in 1948 and was called for active duty in September 1950, going to Korea weeks later after more training in California.
After the post-midnight battle in which he hurled numerous grenades away from his fellow Marines while standing in socks and a light jacket in frigid temperatures, later that day the Marine also tossed more grenades with his right hand to save injured Marines in a nearby trench, receiving injuries to his hand and arm. He was evacuated to Japan, and later treated at St. Albans Naval Hospital in New York.
When President Harry S. Truman presented the Marine with the Medal of Honor in the Rose Garden at the White House, Cafferata later said he was so frightened he could not remember what the President said during the ceremony. And when a photographer asked him to smile for photos, the Marine answered, I am sorry, I can’t smile.”
Cafferata later petitioned the government to also award a Medal of Honor to Kenneth Benson, who earned a Silver Star.
Forever silent on his own bravery, Cafferata said, when asked about that day, “I did my duty, I protected by fellow Marines, I’m prouder of that than that the government gave me the Medal of Honor.”
Following his service in the Marine Corps, Cafferata sold hunting and fishing equipment, worked for the NJ Fish and Wildlife Service and ran the Clifford Tavern in Alpha retiring to Florida
The portion of State Highway 287 between milepost 30.17 and 53.89 is the PFC Hector A. Cafferata, Jr. highway, and an elementary school in Cape Coral, Fla, was named in his honor, the first school in Florida to be named for a living Medal of Honor recipient at the time.
Cafferata was married to his wife, Doris for more than 50 years, had four children, six grandchildren and three great grandchildren at the time of his death in Venice, Fla. In December 2016.
He is buried at the Quantico National Cemetery at Triangle, Virginia.
His Medal of Honor reads:
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a rifleman with Company F, in action against enemy aggressor forces.
When all the other members of his fire team became casualties, creating a gap in the lines, during the initial phase of a vicious attack launched by a fanatical enemy of regimental strength against his company’s hill position, Pvt. Cafferata waged a lone battle with grenades and rifle fire as the attack gained momentum and the enemy threatened penetration through the gap and endangered the integrity of the entire defensive perimeter.
Making a target of himself under the devastating fire from automatic weapons, rifles, grenades, and mortars, he maneuvered up and down the line and delivered accurate and effective fire against the onrushing force, killing 15, wounding many more, and forcing the others to withdraw so that reinforcements could move up and consolidate the position.
Again fighting desperately against a renewed onslaught later that same morning when a hostile grenade landed in a shallow entrenchment occupied by wounded marines, Pvt. Cafferata rushed into the gully under heavy fire, seized the deadly missile in his right hand and hurled it free of his comrades before it detonated, severing part of one finger and seriously wounding him in the right hand and arm. Courageously ignoring the intense pain, he staunchly fought on until he was struck by a sniper’s bullet and forced to submit to evacuation for medical treatment.
Stouthearted and indomitable, Pvt. Cafferata, by his fortitude, great personal valor, and dauntless perseverance in the face of almost certain death, saved the lives of several of his fellow marines and contributed essentially to the success achieved by his company in maintaining its defensive position against tremendous odds. His extraordinary heroism throughout was in keeping with the highest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service.
Additional Stories of Medal of Honor Recipients from New Jersey HERE
