James R. Ward

US Navy Medal of Honor recipient (1921–1941)

James Richard Ward (September 10, 1921 – December 7, 1941) was a US Navy sailor who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Ward enlisted in the United States Navy at Cincinnati, Ohio, on November 25, 1940. After basic training, he reported on board the battleship Oklahoma. When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Oklahoma took three torpedoes soon after the attack began. She listed dangerously, and it was soon apparent that she would capsize. The order was given to abandon ship, but Seaman First Class Ward remained in a turret holding a flashlight, thus sacrificing his own life to permit other members of the crew to escape. For his heroism at that time, he posthumously received the Medal of Honor. On August 19, 2021, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency identified the remains of Seaman First Class James Richard Ward. His remains were interred in Arlington National Cemetery on 21 December 2023.

For conspicuous devotion to duty, extraordinary courage and complete disregard of his life, above and beyond the call of duty, during the attack on the Fleet in Pearl Harbor by Japanese forces on 7 December 1941. When it was seen that the U. S. S. Oklahoma was going to capsize and the order was given to abandon ship, Ward remained in a turret holding a flashlight so the remainder of the turret crew could see to escape, thereby sacrificing his own life.

In 1943, the destroyer escort J. Richard Ward, was named in honor of Seaman First Class Ward.