10/13/2022
It is a true honor for us here at Backroads of Appalachia to present this new trail route to the public for a true American and Appalachian Hero. Lance Corporal Joe C Paul, USMC, Vietnam, Medal of Honor Recipient.
Joe C. Paul Medal of Honor Trail
This 13.3-mile trail route is our only route dedicated to a Medal Of Honor Recipient. Lance Corporal Joe Calvin Paul was born on April 23, 1946, in Williamsburg, Kentucky. He grew up in the Nevisdale/Gatliff coal community that this trail route takes you through were he graduated from grammar school and spent most of his life. After attending high school for one year, he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps on April 26, 1963, in Dayton, Ohio, shortly after his seventeenth birthday. On August 18, 1965, while serving as a fire team leader with Company H 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines, 3rd Marine Division. LCpl Paul placed himself between his wounded comrades and the enemy. He delivered effective suppressive fire to divert the Viet Cong long enough to allow the casualties to be evacuated. He fought in this exposed position until he was mortally wounded. He succumbed to his wounds the next day, August 19, 1965. Lance Corporal Joe Calvin Paul was awarded the Medal of Honor on February 7, 1967, and a Navy ship is named in his honor, The USS Paul FF-1080. A portion of Kentucky 92 is also named in his honor and a historical marker located on the grounds of the old Whitley County Courthouse on Main Street in Williamsburg, Kentucky. Join us in honoring one of Eastern Kentucky and Appalachia's True American Heroes, Lance Corporal Joe C. Paul.
