This Memorial Day, as part of our ongoing America @ 250 series, we mourn the soldiers who gave their lives for the United States, taking inspiration from the stories of these five Jewish American fighters who made the ultimate sacrifice in service of our country.
The Revolutionary
A memorial erected in 1960 by the Jewish community of Greenwood, South Carolina honors Francis Salvador (1747–1776), a figure sometimes called the “Jewish Paul Revere.” The inscription commemorates him both as the first Jewish South Carolinian elected to public office and the first Jew to die for American independence.
His life reflects both early Jewish participation in American political life and the broader struggle for liberty during the Revolutionary era.
Born in London to a wealthy Sephardic Jewish family with roots in the Netherlands, Salvador emigrated alone to the colony of South Carolina in 1773, leaving behind his wife and children with plans to reunite later. Settling in Coronaca, he quickly became involved in revolutionary politics.
Just two years later, in January 1775, he was elected as a deputy to South Carolina’s Provincial Congress, and helped shape resistance to British rule. His work included contributing to the formation of a state constitution, drafting a bill of rights, and communicating colonial grievances to the royal governor. Salvador strongly supported independence and worked to maintain unity within the colony as tensions against the British rose.
In 1776, amid escalating conflict, Cherokee forces allied with the British attacked American frontier settlements. Salvador rode approximately thirty miles to warn colonial militia leaders, then joined a force of about 330 men. On July 31, they were ambushed near the Keowee River. Salvador was mortally wounded and died the following day at age 29.
Remembered for his bravery, political leadership, and tragically short life, Salvador symbolizes the Jewish commitment to American independence and our enduring ideals of freedom and faith.
The Immigrant Union Soldier
Marcus Spiegel was born on December 8, 1829, in Abenheim, Germany, into a deeply rooted Jewish family—his father and grandfather were both rabbis. His early life was shaped by the declining conditions for Jews in post-Napoleonic Europe. While most of his family emigrated to the United States in 1846, Spiegel stayed behind briefly and participated in the failed revolutions of 1848 against the Prussian monarchy before joining them in New York in 1849. Like many Jewish immigrants, he built a life from modest beginnings, working as a peddler in Ohio, marrying Caroline Hamlin (a Quaker convert to Judaism), and gradually achieving stability and earning communal respect.
During the American Civil War, Spiegel enlisted in the Union Army in 1861, motivated by both patriotism and economic opportunity. Rising to the rank of colonel, he became known for his leadership and bravery. Initially a Democrat opposed to abolition, his views evolved through direct encounters with slavery in the South.
By early 1864, he had become a committed abolitionist, concluding that slavery was morally indefensible. He wrote to Caroline stating “I am now a strong abolitionist […] Slavery is gone up whether the War ends to day or in a year and there is no use crying over it it has been an awful institution.”
Spiegel was mortally wounded in an ambush along the Red River in Louisiana on May 4, 1864. Like countless other Jews in the United States, Spiegel had fled persecution, sought economic stability, and strove to integrate into American civic life. His sacrifice served the nation’s bloody struggle to maintain national unity and ensure freedom and justice for all Americans.
The Water-Sharing WWI Medal of Honor Recipient
William Sawelson (1895–1918), born in Newark, New Jersey, to Jewish immigrant parents, entered the United States Army following the country’s entry into World War I. He trained at Camp Dix as part of the 78th Division, known as the “Lightning Division,” and rose to the rank of supply sergeant in Company M, 312th Infantry Regiment, responsible for ensuring troops received essential supplies under difficult battlefield conditions.
In June 1918, Sawelson deployed to Europe with the American Expeditionary Forces. After additional training with British forces, his unit joined the front lines and later participated in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive, one of the largest and deadliest American operations of the war.
On October 26, 1918, near Grand-Pré, France, Sawelson demonstrated exceptional heroism. Hearing a wounded soldier calling for water, he left cover and crawled through intense machine-gun fire to reach him, sharing water from his canteen. He then returned to his position to get more water and attempted to go back again to aid the wounded man. During this second attempt, he was killed by enemy fire.
For his selfless actions, Sawelson was awarded the Medal of Honor, presented to his father after the war. He is buried in the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery in France and remembered for his courage and selfless sacrifice.
The Dentist Warrior of WWII
Benjamin Salomon was born on September 1, 1914, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He graduated from the USC School of Dentistry in 1937. In 1940, following the enactment of the Selective Service Act, Salomon was drafted into the U.S. Army as a Private in the 102nd Infantry Regiment. He quickly rose through the ranks, becoming a Sergeant within a year and leading a machine gun section. By May of 1943, he was serving as the regimental dental officer for the 105th Infantry Regiment, part of the 27th Infantry Division.
Promoted to Captain in 1944, Salomon was deployed to Saipan in the West Pacific during a major World War II campaign. Because the island was an active combat zone, his role as a dentist became secondary. When a battalion surgeon was wounded in June 1944, Salomon volunteered to take his place, demonstrating his willingness to serve beyond his designated expertise.
On July 7, 1944, Japanese forces launched a massive attack against U.S. positions on Saipan—one of the largest attacks in the Pacific Theater. Salomon established a medical aid station near the front lines and treated numerous wounded soldiers as the battle intensified. When enemy troops breached the perimeter and entered the aid station, Salomon defended his patients, engaging in close combat and killing several attackers. Recognizing the dire situation, he ordered the evacuation of the wounded while he stayed behind to hold off the enemy.
Salomon then took control of a machine gun after its crew was killed and singlehandedly fired on advancing Japanese forces, killing nearly 100 enemy soldiers. He eventually fell, having sustained 24 gunshot wounds. His actions significantly delayed the enemy, allowing many wounded soldiers to escape.
Despite his extraordinary heroism, Salomon was initially denied recognition because, under the Geneva Convention at the time, medical personnel were not permitted to bear arms. Decades later, this restriction was reconsidered following a request in 1998 by Dr. Robert West of the USC School of Dentistry. In 2002, President George W. Bush posthumously awarded Salomon the Medal of Honor, recognizing his exceptional bravery, sacrifice, and devotion to his fellow soldiers.
The Hebrew Hammer of the Iraq War
Daniel Agami grew up in South Florida, and enlisted to the United States military after 9/11, serving in the Army 1/26 Infantry unit. Nicknamed “The Hebrew Hammer” and “G.I. Jew,” by his comrades, Daniel, whose father served in the IDF, would hang the Israeli flag above his bed in the barracks.
The Associated Press reported that, on one of his visits home, Daniel recounted how he faced “bloody battles with insurgents. I go on daily or nightly missions raiding Iraqi homes to find weapons and bombs. The deaths of my friends have been traumatic. I lost six of my closest friends. America fights for freedom and survival for the souls of the entire world.” Tragically, in 2007 Daniel was killed in this fight, at the young age of 23, on the front lines in Iraq during the Global War on Terror.
As the Aleph Institute has documented, Daniel, the only Jew serving in his unit, earned the Army Commendation Medal, and his unit also received the Army Meritorious Unit Citation.
His last visit home was over Passover, where he wore what he coined his “Kombaticah” (Combat + Kippah) military issued kippah. For her bat mitzvah, his sister Shaina created “The Kombaticah Project,” selling military kippahs dedicated in Daniel’s honor to raise money for charity.
Agami’s uniform is on permanent display at the National Museum of American Jewish Military History (NMAJMH) in Washington, DC.
A Torah of Courage and Responsibility
The Mishnah in Pirkei Avot (Ethics of the Fathers) teaches, “In a place where there are no leaders, strive to be a leader” (2:5). In the same chapter, the ancient rabbis remind us "It is not upon us to complete the work, but neither are you at liberty to neglect it" (2:16). From Francis Salvador helping lay the groundwork for a new nation, to Marcus Spiegel’s moral transformation in the face of slavery, to William Sawelson risking his life for a wounded comrade, to Benjamin Salomon giving everything to protect those in his care, to Daniel Agami carrying both his Jewish identity and American duty into battle, these heroic Jews led the unceasing march towards liberty and justice for all.
Just as Moses brought his people to the Promised Land but was not there to complete the journey, so too these mighty fallen heroes have helped our nation progress to our current moment. Though their personal journeys may have ended early, their legacies live on as beacons of Jewish American courage, reflecting our values of service for others and selfless determination in our never-ending attempts to rid evil from this world and create a just society.
As we mark America’s 250th and observe Memorial Day, we remember that for Jews, serving and shaping this country has never been separate from our Torah — it has been an expression of its very essence.
Rabbi Dr. Stuart Halpern serves as the senior advisor to the provost as well as the deputy director and chief strategy officer of the Zahava and Moshael J. Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought at Yeshiva University. He is the editor or author of nineteen books, including Jewish Roots of American Liberty: The Impact of Hebraic Ideas on the American Story and the upcoming Two Nations Under God: How (Biblical) Israel Inspires America, both of which received a National Endowment for the Humanities grants. Among his other books are The Promise of Liberty: A Passover Haggada, Esther in America and Proclaim Liberty Throughout the Land: The Hebrew Bible in the United States.
