Hershel 'Woody' Williams, who was America's oldest Medal of Honor recipient, dies at 98

Hershel "Woody" Williams, who was the oldest living recipient of the Medal of Honor, died early Wednesday at the age of 98 in Charleston, West Virginia.

Williams was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Harry Truman on Oct. 5, 1945, just three days after his 22nd birthday, for his heroic acts of bravery in the World War II Battle of Iwo Jima. He was a part of  the 21st Marines, 3d Marine Division. He was the last living WWII Marine to wear the medal. 

In a Q&A with Knox News in September, Williams said he joined the Marines because he was taken with the dress blues he saw on Marines who came home. He said he preferred those over the "old, brown woolen uniform," those in the Army wore. 

Williams said he tried to enlist before he was 18 years old, but was turned away because he was underage. After turning 18, he tried to enlist, but was rejected because he was too short. At 5-foot-6-inches, he didn't meet the 5-foot-8-inch height requirement. 

The height requirement was abolished in 1943 after the U.S. suffered a lot of casualties, and Williams enlisted. 

Williams served 20 years in the Marine Corps before retiring, according to the Woody Williams Foundation Website. 

nWilliams received many honors throughout his lifetime, including having a mobile sea vessel named after him. The Huntington VA Medical Center, where he died Wednesday morning, bore his name. The $32 million Hershel “Woody” Williams Armed Forces Reserve Center in Fairmont, West Virginia is the only National Guard facility in the country named after a Marine.

Williams will be honored during the flag-raising ceremony at the 2022 Medal of Honor Ceremony, which will be held in Knoxville from Sept. 6-10.