Lieutenant General Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller

Lewis Burwell "Chesty" Puller (June 26, 1898 – October 11, 1971) was a United States Marine Corps lieutenant general and one of the most decorated members of the Marine Corps. Puller is the only Marine and one of two US servicemen to ever be awarded five Navy Crosses. He fought guerrillas in Haiti and Nicaragua, and participated in battles of World War II and the Korean War. Puller retired from the Marine Corps with 37 years service in 1955 and spent the remainder of his life living in Virginia.

Puller received the second highest U.S. military award six times: five Navy Crosses and one U.S. Army Distinguished Service Cross. He was the second of two US servicemen to ever receive five Navy Crosses; US Navy submarine commander Roy Milton Davenport was the first to receive five Navy Crosses.

Puller's military awards include:

1st row	Navy Cross w/ four 5/16 inch gold stars		Distinguished Service Cross		Silver Star Medal
2nd row	Legion of Merit w/ Combat "V" w/ one 5/16 inch gold star	Bronze Star Medal w/ Combat "V"		Air Medal w/ two 5/16 inch gold stars		Purple Heart Medal
3rd row	Presidential Unit Citation w/ four 3/16 inch bronze service stars	Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal w/ one 3/16 inch bronze service star		Marine Corps Expeditionary Medal w/ one 3/16 inch bronze service star		World War I Victory Medal w/ West Indies clasp
4th row	Haitian Campaign Medal (1921)	Nicaraguan Campaign Medal (1933)		China Service Medal		American Defense Service Medal w/ Base clasp
5th row	American Campaign Medal	Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal w/ four 3/16 inch bronze service stars		World War II Victory Medal		National Defense Service Medal
6th row	Korean Service Medal w/ one 3/16 inch silver service star	Haitian Médaille militaire		Nicaraguan Presidential Medal of Merit w/ Diploma		Nicaraguan Cross of Valor with Diploma
7th row	Korean Order of Military Merit, Eulji Cordon Medal	Order of the Cloud and Banner with Special Cravat^[15]		Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation		United Nations Service Medal for Korea

Lt. Gen. "Chesty" Puller was a native of the Middle Peninsula having been born in West Point and lived in Saluda. He was also a parishioner of Christ Church Parish and is buried in our historic cemetery next to his wife Virginia Montague Evans.

Every year, on or around the Marine Corp birthday (November 10th), Marines from Fort Lee and the Naval Weapons Station York Town run in relays from Fort Lee and from Gloucester Point to Christ Church Parish to honor Lt. Gen. Chesty Puller and to celebrate the Marine Corp birthday. Below are YouTube videos of two these runs:

Lieutenant General Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller

November 9, 2013

Bravo FAST Company

Naval Weapons Station, York Town, Virginia

October 24, 3014

Marines from Fort Lee Virginia

October 14, 2017