Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. This is the engraved Purple Heart Medal of Corporal James Edward Skinnion, Company K, 165th Infantry Regiment, 42nd Division. Skinnion first enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1907, and served through both World Wars along with the interwar period, finally retiring on April 30th, 1942 at the age of 54.

The medal is in good condition with the planchet free of any serious wear. The ribbon shows some fraying in spots but is still solid without any breaks. The brooch is the correct split variation. The medal is numbered 28547 along the rim, an early issue!

The medal comes with several pages of research that show Skinnion was in the 165th, along with some information about his pre-war service.

James Edward Skinnion was born on August 29th, 1888 in New York. Skinnion first enlisted in the U.S. Army on December 13th, 1907 at the age of 19 at Fort Slocum, New York. He served with the 154th Company, Coastal Artillery Corps. When he re-enlisted at the end of his first service period on December 12th, 1910, he was transferred to the 95th Company, CAC. At the end of this service period on November 24th, 1913, he reenlisted and was detailed on general recruiting service. At this point, Skinnion was living in Worcester, Massachusetts. When war broke out, he reenlisted and was sent to the 3rd Company Training Battalion, going overseas on January 12th, 1918. He was used as a replacement for Company K, 165th Infantry Regiment, 42nd Division, which was the “Fighting 69th” of the New York National Guard. While serving with the 165th, he was wounded in action and spent several months in the hospital starting around October 1918. He was transferred to the 337th Infantry after the war ended and traveled back to the US on April 4th, 1919. Skinnion joined the Medical Corps during World War II on October 11th, 1940 and retired as a Sergeant on April 30th, 1942 at the age of 54. He passed away on January 19th, 1957 at the age of 68.

A great and scarce example of a Purple Heart to a member of the “Fighting 69th”! Comes ready for further research and display.