McGunigal, Patrick
Patrick McGunigal was born on 30 May 1876 in Hubbard, Ohio. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy from that state and, during the first part of World War I served as a Ship's Fitter First Class on board the armored cruiser Huntington. On 17 September 1917, while the ship was steaming in the war zone, Lieutenant (Junior Grade) Henry W. Hoyt was aloft in a kite balloon when it suddenly dropped into the sea due to bad weather. McGunigal went over the ship's side and rescued the officer, who was trapped underwater in the balloon's rigging. For his "extraordinary heroism" on this occasion, he was awarded the Medal of Honor. In July 1918, McGunigal was promoted to the warrant rank of Carpenter, and was subsequently assigned to the Naval Air Stations at Montauk and Rockaway Beach, New York. Patrick McGunigal resigned as a warrant officer in December 1920. He died on 19 January 1936 and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia.
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