![William Belpitt, n.d.](/uploads/obituaries/32244/thumbs/belpitt_246x550.jpg)
William Henry Belpitt (1860-1912) served in the United States Navy. By 7 October 7 1884 he was captain of the Afterguard on the USS Monocacy. On that morning, while Monocacy was at Fuzhou, China, he jumped overboard and rescued a Chinese man whose canoe had capsized. For that action, he was awarded the Medal of Honor, the United States military's highest decoration. The citation reads:
On board the U.S.S. Monocacy, Foochow, China, 7 October 1884. Jumping overboard from that vessel on the morning of this date, Belpitt sustained, until picked up, a Chinaman who had been thrown into the water by the capsizing of a canoe.
Belpitt later returned to Australia. He married Minnie Gould on 20 January 1889; they had one child.
Belpitt died on 29 November 1912 at Rookwood, New South Wales, and was buried at Rookwood Catholic Cemeteries and Crematoria on 2 December 1912.
'Belpitt, William Henry (1860–1912)', People Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://peopleaustralia.anu.edu.au/biography/belpitt-william-henry-32244/text39893, accessed 1 September 2024.
William Belpitt, n.d.
3 May,
1860
Ryde, Sydney,
New South Wales,
Australia
29 November,
1912
(aged 52)
Granville, Sydney,
New South Wales,
Australia
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