This is a great medal group to a sailor who served on the USS Henley as at the time of the Mexican revolution in 1914. Henley joined the fleet off Tampico, Mexico where she protected Americans and also transported refugees and supplies. Smith was on the Henley until 1917 and then was on the USS New Mexico BB-40 that was commissioned in 1918. Smith was probably a plank owner on the New Mexico. His Henley GCM bar is dated 1917, New Mexico bar dated 1919, and his Good Conduct medal is dated Aug. 22, 1913.
The group consists of Smith's Navy Mexico medal, edge numbered 8195, WW1 Victory medal with Atantic Fleet Bar, engraved Navy Good Conduct medal with 2 bars, Vera Cruz commerative medal with bars that read "Service in Mexican Waters" and "Battle of Vera Cruz, Mexico April 21-22, 1914". The reverse of the 2nd bar on the Vera Cruz medal has the maker's name "H.H. Stratton Chattanooga, Tenn. "The reverse of the GCM and the GCM bars each have the inscription "CSC No. 25235" See the pictures for details.
Althougth no biographial information can be found on this man, there is a match on Ancestry that shows EM3C George S. Smith, age 24, on the armored cruiser USS North Dakota ACR-9 in the 1910 census when that ship was based in San Francisco.
