Senators’ bill will rename Reserve Center in Great Falls
(U.S. SENATE) – Earlier today, the Senate passed Senators Jon Tester and Steve Daines’ legislation to rename the Armed Forces Reserve Center in Great Falls to the “Captain John E. Moran and Captain Willian Wylie Galt Armed Forces Reserve Center.”
Tester and Daines introduced this legislation last year to honor Captain Moran and Captain Galt, the only two Congressional Medal of Honor recipients from Montana.
“Both our state and our nation owe a huge debt of gratitude to Captain Galt and Captain Moran,” Tester said. “Their courage and commitment to the ideals of freedom and democracy will now be forever honored by the name of this great facility.”
“I’m proud that Captain Galt’s and Captain Moran’s legacy will be forever inscribed in our history for all Montanans to see,” Daines stated. “These two great men serve as a tremendous example of Montana’s legacy of service and they deserve our utmost thanks.”
“Honoring these extraordinary service members whose service went above and beyond the call of duty is the right thing to do, and we will be honored to have our facility named after Captains Moran and Galt,” said Major General Matthew Quinn, Adjutant General for the Montana National Guard. “I am very appreciative of Senator Tester and Senator Daines’ recognition of these Montana heroes and their consistent and ongoing support of our women and men who have served and are currently serving.”
Captain John E. Moran was born in Vernon, Vermont on August 23, 1856. He later moved to Montana, where he joined the Army. He became Captain of the 37th Infantry during the Philippine-American War and was deployed overseas. On September 17th, 1900 Captain Moran and his soldiers came under siege, and after beating back their attackers, Captain Moran advanced with a group of troops, through waist-deep water and heavy fire, to stage a counter-attack on the enemy. For his acts of courage and valor, Captain Moran was awarded the Medal of Honor on June 10, 1910. He was later elected County Clerk and Recorder of Cascade County. He passed away in Great Falls on November 7, 1930.
Captain William Wylie Galt was born in Great Falls, Montana on December 19, 1919. He joined the Army and served as a Captain in the 34th Infantry Division during World War II. He was deployed to Italy, where he commanded multiple attacks against German forces. It was during one of these attacks that Captain Galt advanced under heavy fire, manning the machine gun in the turret of a tank destroyer, and killed 40 German soldiers and wounded dozens of others. Left fully exposed in the turret, Captain Galt eventually succumbed to enemy fire and was killed in action that day, May 29, 1944. For his acts of “gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty,” Captain Galt was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in 1945.
The Senate voted unanimously to pass Tester and Daines’ bill. The legislation now moves to the House.
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