The NC-4 Medal is a military decoration that was authorized by the United States Congress.
On February 9, 1929, Public Law 70-714 (45 Stat. 1157) was approved, which read:
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the President be, and is hereby, authorized to award, in the name of Congress, gold medals of appropriate design to Commander John H. Towers for conceiving, organizing, and commanding the first trans-Atlantic flight; to lieutenant Commander Albert C. Read, United States Navy, commanding officer NC-4; to Lieutenant Elmer F. Stone, United States Coast Guard, pilot; to former Lieutenant Walter Hinton, United States Navy, pilot; to Lieutenant H. C. Rodd, United States Navy, radio operator; to former Lieutenant J. L. Breese, United States Naval Reserve Force, engineer; and to former Machinist's Mate Eugene Rhodes, United States Navy, engineer, for their extraordinary achievement in making the first successful trans-Atlantic flight, in the United States naval flying boat NC-4, in May, 1919.
The NC-4 Medal was presented to the these men by President Herbert Hoover in May, 1930 (sources vary as to the day).
- Commander John H. Towers
- Lieutenant Commander Albert C. Read
- Lieutenant Walter Hinton
- Lieutenant James L. Breese
- Ensign Herbert C. Rodd
- Chief Machinist's Mate Eugene Rhodes
- Lieutenant Elmer Stone
Five years later, Congress passed P.L. 74-43 (49 Stat. 162) which read:
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That authority is hereby granted to personnel of the Navy and Marine Corps to wear in lieu of commemorative or special medals awarded to them a miniature facsimile of such medal and a ribbon symbolic of the award thereof under such regulations as the Secretary of the Navy may prescribe.
It is unclear if the men originally received normal sized Congressional Gold Medals, and then later smaller, military sized versions were made, or they originally received just the smaller version.
Upon the medal was the image of a seagull, flying above ocean waves, with the words "FIRST TRANSATLANTIC FLIGHT UNITED STATES NAVY MAY 1919" inscribed along the outer edges of the medal. On the reverse, in the center, the inscription NC-4. Above this inscription is the word NEWFOUNDLAND, and below it, the word PORTUGAL. In the lower half of the medal, in two arcs, the inscription PRESENTED BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES IN THE NAME OF CONGRESS. In the corresponding position in the top half of the medal, the names of the recipients: J.H. TOWERS / A.C. READ / E.F. STONE / W. HINTON / H.C. RODD / J.L. BREESE / E. RHODES.
It is very rare that a Congressional Gold Medal be made for wear on clothing. Due to the rarity of the NC-4 Medal, there are no known photographs of the medal being worn on a military uniform. One original NC-4 Medal is maintained by the Navy Historical Center at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C.
The NC-4 Medal appeared in older U.S. Navy precedence charts after the Peary Polar Expedition Medal and before the Byrd Antarctic Expedition Medal. Following the various retirements, deaths, and release from military service of the original recipients, the NC-4 Medal became obsolete and does not appear on any current military award precedence charts.