KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A section of I-40 has been officially named after a Medal of Honor recipient from Knoxville.
The section will start near Watt Road on I-40, marked by an official sign designating it as the "Troy McGill Medal of Honor Memorial Highway." McGill was born on July 15, 1914, and passed away on March 4, 1944.
State leaders, Medal of Honor recipients and the McGill family gathered on Tuesday at the downtown Knoxville veteran's memorial to unveil the new sign.
"For all, we've known or heard through the family background, he was really a mild-mannered kind of guy," said Steve McGill, his great-nephew. "You wouldn't expect that type of bravery coming from that person. So, extraordinary circumstances bring that out in somebody. He's truly a hero."
In the early morning, Sgt. McGill and a squad of eight men were defending a reventment against around 200 enemy troops. All other troops were killed or wounded except Sgt. McGill and another man, who he ordered to return to the next revetment.
He reportedly fired his gun until it stopped working and when an enemy was around 5 yards away, he charged from his foxhole and clubbed the man with his rifle.