The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to First Lieutenant (Infantry) Carlton C. Thornblom (ASN: 0-1311069), United States Army, for gallantry in action while serving with Company C, 1st Battalion, *** Infantry Regiment, 35th Infantry Division, in action in the vicinity of ****, France, on 15 September 1944. The mission of Company C, *** Infantry Regiment, was to take high ground on the far side of a canal. As the 1st platoon of the company approached the canal for the purpose of bridging it, with the aid of an engineer group, by using the water-logged canal boats available, enemy located in a house on the far bank of the canal fired upon the platoon and forced it to withdraw. Lieutenant Thornblom, with three enlisted men, went forward in the face of this fire to attempt to complete the work of bridging the canal. Employing two of the enlisted men to afford protecting fire, Lieutenant Thornblom and one enlisted man prepared to enter the canal to swim to the boats. At this point, the enlisted man with Lieutenant Thornblom was wounded, and the officer swam on alone, worked unsuccessfully for twenty minutes in an endeavor to make a bridge of the boats and although throughout this period he was constantly fired upon by the enemy, he returned to rescue the wounded enlisted man. Lieutenant Thornblom and the two remaining enlisted men with him then formed a base of fire, enabling other riflemen to advance and join with them in firing upon the occupants of the house. Lieutenant Thornblom then gave accurate fire directions to the mortar gunners, enabling them to neutralize the enemy strongpoint and permitting the advance of the riflemen to secure the company objective. Lieutenant Thornblom’s intrepid actions bespeak such gallantry in action as to be in accord with the military traditions of the United States.