Charles Edward Phelps (May 1, 1833 – December 27, 1908)

Charles Edward Phelps (May 1, 1833 – December 27, 1908) rose to the rank of Brigadier General in the U.S. Army in the Civil War, served as a city councilman, a U.S. Congressman from the third district of Maryland, and received the Medal of Honor.

Phelps was born in Guilford, Vermont, on May 1, 1833. His father was John Phelps, a lawyer and Senator in the Vermont State government. At the age of 5, he moved with his parents to Pennsylvania, and at the age of 8 to Maryland, when his mother, Almira Hart Lincoln Phelps,(sister of Emma Willard), became principal of the Patapsco Female Seminary in Ellicott City. He matriculated at Princeton University, where he was admitted to the Zeta Psi fraternity, graduating in 1852. He then studied at Harvard University Law School, graduating in 1853. He joined the Maryland bar in 1855. He was admitted to practice in the Supreme Court of the United States in 1859. In 1860, he was elected to the Baltimore city council.

In 1861, he was commissioned a major of the Maryland Guard, and, in 1862, he was raised to lieutenant colonel of the Seventh Maryland Volunteers, fighting for the Union. He became colonel in 1863. His horse was killed under him at the battle of the Wilderness in 1864. While leading a charge on the “crater” at Spotsylvania (VA), he was wounded and taken prisoner. However, he was later rescued by General Sheridan’s Calvary. He was honorably discharged on account of wounds in 1864, and was shortly thereafter elected as congressman from the 3rd district of Maryland to the Thirty-Ninth Congress, and was reelected to the Fortieth Congress. He was subsequently given commission as brevet Brigadier General, and received the Medal of Honor for valor at the Battle of Spotsylvania.

In 1868, he married Martha Woodward of Baltimore. He was professor of equity at Maryland University Law School, and served for many years as Judge of the Supreme Bench of Baltimore. In 1901, he published the book "Falstaff and Equity," relating legal arguments to Shakespeare. In 1907 he received an honorary Doctor of Laws from Princeton University. died in 1908 at age 75

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and Organization: Colonel, 7th Maryland Infantry. Place and date: At Laurel Hill, Va., May 8, 1864. Entered service at: Baltimore, Md. Born: May 1, 1833, Guilford, Vt. Date of issue: March 30, 1898.

Citation: The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Colonel Charles Edwards Phelps, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism on 8 May 1864, while serving with 7th Maryland Infantry, in action at Laurel Hill, Virginia. Colonel Phelps rode to the head of the assaulting column, then much broken by severe losses and faltering under the close fire of artillery, placed himself conspicuously in front of the troops, and gallantly rallied and led them to within a few feet of the enemy's works, where he was severely wounded and captured.

Richard Gerrish Stout (1836 – 1896)

Richard Stout (1836 – August 6, 1896) was a Union Navy sailor during the American Civil War and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Stono River.
On January 30, 1863, Stout was serving as a Landsman on the USS Isaac Smith when his ship was ambushed and captured by Confederate forces while operating on the Stono River in South Carolina. For his conduct during this action, in which he was badly wounded, Stout was awarded the Medal of Honor on April 16, 1864.
Stout died at age 59 or 60 and was buried in Evergreen Cemetery, Owego, New York


Union Sailor Lost His Right Arm and Won the Medal of Honor Landsman Richard Stout was honored for his sacrifice and service. by Berry Craig in O&P BUSINESS NEWS November 1, 2010

Confederate artillerymen did more than disable the gunboat U.S.S Isaac Smith. They shot off sailor Richard Stout’s right arm.

It looked like Stout would bleed to death. But he ignored an order to seek medical aid.

“He managed with the assistance of a comrade to stop the rapid discharge of blood from his wound, and with the crippled arm stayed at his post and fought until the Smith surrendered,” according to Deeds of Valor: How America’s Heroes Won the Medal of Honor, a book published in 1902.

Firsthand account

Landsman Stout lost his limb, but not his life, on Jan. 30, 1863, in an artillery ambush on the Stono River near Charleston, S.C. The Smith had been sent upriver to scout for the enemy.
The Smith was part of a Union fleet that was blockading the Carolina coast around Charleston. She and another gunboat, the U.S.S. McDonough, were based in Stono Inlet.

The Smith was a 450-ton, cannon- bristling, converted Hudson River pleasure steamer. She was shot up and captured just upriver from the town of Legareville, S.C., Deeds of Valor read.

“Arriving in this locality late in the afternoon, the vessel was suddenly and unexpectedly attacked by several batteries of siege and field guns hidden in the woods bordering the river banks,” the narrative explained. “The Isaac Smith had just anchored opposite Grimball’s plantation, when the rebels opened fire.”

The Smith had a lookout atop her mast but he failed to see the camouflaged gun emplacements. The Smith’s captain, Acting Lieutenant F.S. Conover, “…engaged the enemy at once,” the book read. “As the Federal vessel’s battery was inadequate to silence the hostile batteries, she tried to escape down the river, being exposed to the guns of two batteries for the distance of a mile and a half.

“When abreast of one of the batteries, some 200 yards off, a shot disabled her engine, and the vessel grounded. Eight men had been killed and 17 wounded, some of them mortally.”

Under fire

In an official report of the battle, Conover reported that he “saw immediately that we were trapped, and that my only course was to get the vessels below the batteries if possible, and fight them with a more even chance of success. For upward of a mile, on account of a bend in the river, we were obliged to receive the raking fire of between 20 and 30 guns without being able to reply, except occasionally with our pivot.”

The “pivot” was a large rifled cannon mounted on a carriage that swiveled. The vessel also carried eight smaller smooth bore guns.

“As soon as our broadside could be brought to bear, we opened upon the enemy with shell and grape, from 200 to 400 yards distant,” Conover added. “At one time I had hopes of getting by without any very serious loss, but a shot in our steam chimney effectually stopped the engine, and with no wind, little tide, and boats riddled with shot, we were left entirely at the mercy of the enemy. Under these circumstances, with the fire of some 30 guns, according to their own account … and a large body of riflemen concentrated upon us, with the shot tearing through the vessel in every direction, and with no hope of being able to silence such a fire, I deemed it my duty to surrender. Had it not been for the wounded men, with whom the berth deck was covered, I might have blown up or sunk the ship, letting the crew take their chance of getting on shore by swimming, but under the circumstances I had no alternative left me. I need hardly say ... that the order to haul down the colors was the most difficult and heartrending one I ever gave. We had 8 men killed and 17 wounded, one of whom…died soon after being removed from the vessel.”
Meanwhile, the McDonough rushed to the aid of her stricken sister. She arrived too late; the Smith was surrendering.

“Three heavy field batteries were firing upon the McDonough, and she had to retire,” Deeds of Valor read. “So the Isaac Smith fell into the enemy’s hand, and all her survivors became prisoners of war.”

Reward for service

Also in his report, Conover praised Stout as one his “men who behaved particularly well” under fire. He noted that the sailor “lost [his] right arm.”
The Navy awarded Stout the Medal of Honor on April 16, 1864. The citation reads: “Serving on board the U.S.S. Isaac Smith, Stono River, 30 January 1863. While reconnoitering on the Stono River on this date the U.S.S. Isaac Smith became trapped in a rebel ambush. Fired on from two sides, she fought her guns until disabled. Suffering heavy casualties and at the mercy of the enemy who was delivering a raking fire from every side, she struck her colors out of regard for the wounded aboard, and all aboard were taken prisoners. Carrying out his duties bravely through this action, Stout was severely wounded and lost his right arm while returning the rebel fire.”

Long life

The Rebels repaired the Smith and renamed her, the Stono.
In June 1863, the steamer, loaded with cotton, crashed into a Charleston harbor breakwater trying to run the Union blockade. Apparently, the Confederates burned the ship when they abandoned Charleston shortly before the war ended in 1865.
In the 1870s and 1880s, Smith returned to the water as a steamboat pilot transporting tourists to and from Hiawatha Island in the Susquehanna River between Owego and Apalachin, N.Y. The island was a popular holiday destination.
Stout steered the steamer Owego on its first trip to the island – June 16, 1874, according to Karen Bernardo, an Owego librarian.

“The steamboat was extremely fancy, with chandeliers, marble tables, and carpeting … Food was served on the island in ‘Hiawatha’s Wigwam’ and a dance band played tunes. Captain Truman, one of the stockholders in the company [that operated the boat] was in charge of the steamboat but Richard Stout manned the wheel,” Bernardo said.
She added that eventually a hotel called the Hiawatha House was built on the island. In 1884, a new steamboat, the Marshland, was built to haul passengers. To help provide more docking space for the new boat, Stout was hired to build a wing dam in the river, according to Hiawatha Island: Jewel of the Susquehanna, a book by Emma Sedore.

Stout died on Aug. 6, 1896, 33 years after losing his arm. He was 59 or 60 years old. Though was born in 1836, his birth day is apparently unknown. The ex-sailor was buried in Owego’s Evergreen Cemetery, where a special Medal of Honor footstone marks his grave.

“Obviously Richard Stout’s disability didn’t disable him at all, and he lived a long and productive life on the river,” Bernardo said.


Medal of Honor Citation

Rank and organization: Landsman, U.S. Navy. Born: 1836, New York. Accredited to: New York. G.O. No.: 32, April 16, 1864. Citation: Serving on board the U.S.S. Isaac Smith, Stono River, 30 January 1863. While reconnoitering on the Stono River on this date the U.S.S. Isaac Smith became trapped in a rebel ambush. Fired on from two sides, she fought her guns until disabled. Suffering heavy casualties and at the mercy of the enemy who was delivering a raking fire from every side, she struck her colors out of regard for the wounded aboard, and all aboard were taken prisoners. Carrying out his duties bravely through this action, Stout was severely wounded and lost his right arm while returning the rebel fire

Brevet Brigadier General William Herbert Withington (1835 – 1903)

Civil War Union Brevet Brigadier General, Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient. When the Civil War began, he enlisted in the 1st Michigan Infantry and was commissioned Captain. Colonel William H. Withington, commanding 17th Michigan Infantry: One of the many Union soldiers captured following the debacle following the First Battle of Bull Run, William Withington, then a captain in the 1st Michigan, was held in a Rebel prison camp until January 1862 when he was finally exchanged. Withington was sent back to Michigan to recruit more men for the war and upon raising the 17th Michigan, he was appointed its Colonel. The 17th Michigan would train at Fort Wayne until late August 1862 when it was sent east to reinforce George B. McClellan's Army of the Potomac and assist in pushing the Confederate army out of Maryland. The regiment would be assigned to the brigade of Colonel Benjamin Christ in the 1st Division, 9th Army Corps. The first battle this regiment would participate in would be at South Mountain. In the afternoon of the 14th, the 17th was deployed on the right of the Old Sharpsburg Road facing west across Wise's North Field. In front of them were the men of 50th and 51st Georgia of Drayton's Brigade and the Jeff Davis Artillery of Captain James Bondurant. Just before the Union attack was to commence, the Confederates themselves attack. The Georgians were pulled out of their position and moved into the road uncovering Bondurant's battery. With orders to advance, Withington pushed his men forward against Bondurant's battery and into the left flank of Drayton's Georgians in the Old Sharpsburg Road. The attack surprised Drayton's men and with the advance of Union units on their left, the 17th Michigan got behind the Georgians trapping them in a 3-sided kill zone. The Georgians returned fire the best they could but it was suicide to attempt to stand. The Michigan men had precipitated a Confederate rout. The regiment killed and wounded dozens of Confederate troops while capturing many more. The loss for the regiment in this fight was 27 killed and 114 wounded out of 500 who were taken into the fight. The regiment earned the "Stonewall Regiment" nickname following its capture and rout of those Confederates behind the stonewall in Wise's North Field despite the regiment receiving less than a months worth of training. Colonel Withington was breveted a Brigadier General for his leadership at South Mountain. He would be either mustered out or he resigned in early 1863. Following the war, he would serve several terms in the Michigan Legislature as both a representative and senator. He would receive the Medal of Honor in the 1890's for his actions in tending and remaining with his superior officer, Colonel Orlando Willcox, after Willcox was wounded and the two came under heavy fire at the Battle of First Bull Run. He would pass away in 1903 at the age of 68.
his obituary WILLIAM HERBERT WITHINGTON, soldier, manufacturer and capitalist, was born at Dorchester, Mass., February 1, 1835, son of William and Elizabeth W. (Ford) Withington. His earliest paternal American ancestor was Henry Withington, who came from England, in 1635, with the company of Rev. Richard Mather (q.v.), the first minister at Dorchester, in whose church Henry Withington was ruling elder. Rev. William Withington, father of the subject, was an eloquent and powerful preacher, and a mathematician and linguist of more than ordinary attainments. The son received his education in the public schools of Boston and at Phillips (Andover) Academy. He then became a salesman in a Boston leather store and later bookkeeper for the North Wayne Scythe Company. In 1857 he entered the employ of Pinney & Lamson, manufacturers of agricultural implements, at Jackson, Mich. He had charge not only of the office, but the shops of an extensive plant employing many workmen and a large corps of traveling salesmen. In 1858 they sold out to the newly organized firm of Sprague, Withington & Company, afterwards the Withington & Cooley Manufacturing Company, manufacturers of farm and garden tools, whose trade extends to Australia, South America and throughout Q Europe. He was also president of the Q Union Bank, Grand River Valley Railroad Q Company, and the Jackson Vehicle Company, Jackson; Withington Handle Company, Fort Wayne and Huntington, Ind.; Withington & Russell Company, Nashville, Tenn.; Geneva (Ohio) Tool Company; Oneida Farm Tool Company, Utica, N. Y.; Webster Wagon Company, Moundsville, W. Va.; National Snath Company, Erie, Pa., and the Steel Goods Association, New York City. Since 1875 he was also a director in the Iowa Farming Tool Company, Fort Madison, Iowa. In 1902, when nearly all the manufacturers of agricultural implements merged, he was chosen president, and thereafter a large part of his time was spent in Cleveland, Ohio. His interest in military affairs was enthusiastic, and he aided in organizing the Jackson Grays, of which he was captain at the outbreak of the civil war. The Grays answered Lincoln's first call for troops, and became Company B, 1st Michigan Volunteer Infantry. He was assigned to the Army of the Potomac and participated in the capture of Alexandria, Va.; was taken prisoner at the first battle of Bull Run, being confined at Richmond, Charleston and Columbia, but was later exchanged and returned to Jackson. He was awarded one of the congressional medals of honor for special service at Bull Run—for "most distinguished gallantry in voluntarily remaining on the field, under heavy fire, to aid and succor your superior officer." Later he was appointed colonel of the 17th Michigan regiment, and was immediately sent into the Maryland campaign under McClellan. At South Mountain he made a splendid charge upon the stone walls behind which the enemy with its batteries was posted, drove confederates down the slope of the mountain, and captured 300 prisoners, but, lost more than a hundred of his own men. Similar valor was displayed at Antietam by his "Stonewall regiment" as it came to be called, and he continued in command until March, 1863, when he resigned his commission. Immediately following was made brevet brigadier-general for "Conspicuous gallantry" at the battle of South Mountain, being one of the youngest men in the Federal army on whom so high an honor was conferred. He became a dominant factor in civic and municipal affairs, as well as in Republican politics. After serving as alderman, he was elected to the Michigan house of representatives in 1873, and was a member also of the special session of 1874. He was the originator of a bill providing for the creation of an effective state militia: became colonel of the first regiment formed in accordance therewith, and when the state troops were organized into a brigade, 1879, he was appointed brigadier-general, resigning in 1883. He was state senator during 1891-1892, and was delegate to the National Republican conventions of 1876 and 1892. For four years he was a member of the Republican state central committee. He was a member of the board of trustees of the Michigan Asylum for the Insane, Kalamazoo, and of the board of managers of the Soldier's Home, Grand Rapids; was president of the Jackson board of trade; an organizer and president of the Young Men's Library Association, and president of the Jackson Public Library. He was past department commander of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion, and a member also of the Grand Army of the Republic, Masonic Fraternity, and the Michigan and Detroit clubs, Jackson. For 42 years he was Vestryman and for 22 years warden of St Paul's Protestant Episcopal parish, and was twice delegate to the triennial general convention of his church. He was sturdy of character, and his success was built on a foundation of intelligence, zeal, integrity, loyalty and comradeship. He was married, June 6 1859 to Julia C., daughter of Joseph E Beebe, a manufacturer of Jackson Michigan.; she survives him with three children Phillip H of Cleveland; Winthrop Jackson, and Kate Winifred, wife of Dr. Flemming Carrow, Traverse City Michigan., June 27, 1906
Medal of Honor Citation
Rank and organization: Captain, Company B, 1st Michigan Infantry. Place and date: At Bull Run, Va., 21 July 1861._ Entered service at: Jackson, Mich. Born: 1 February 1835, Dorchester, Mass. Date of issue: 7 January 1895. Citation: The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Captain (Infantry) William Herbert Withington, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism on 21 July 1861, while serving with Company B, 1st Michigan Infantry, in action at Bull Run, Virginia. Captain Withington remained on the field under heavy fire to succor his superior officer.

Joseph S Keen (1843 - 1926)

Joseph S Keen was born July 24, 1843 at Stanford-in-the-Vale, England. Joseph was a farmer by occupation and an officer of the Detroit Oak Belting Company.

Keen enlisted as a private, for three years, in Company D, 13th Michigan Infantry at Detroit on February 1, 1862. He was mustered in on February 27th. Joseph was twice promoted: to Corporal, August 31, 1862, and Sergeant on April 1, 1863.

Joseph was wounded and taken prisoner at Chickamauga, Georgia on September 20, 1863. He was confined in the Confederate prisons at Richmond, Danville and Andersonville. He escaped on September 10, 1864 at Macon, Georgia. Following the escape and during the period of his attempt to return to Union lines Keen observed the movement of General Hood’s forces (40,000 Confederate soldiers) crossing the Chatahoochee River to flank Sherman’s army in the rear. Keen boldly walked through the Confederate marching columns, camps and pickets. He reached Union lines near Atlanta on October 1, and reported to General Kirkpatrick.

Keen was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor on July 31, 1899 for carrying and reporting information on enemy troop movements near the Chatahoochie River.

Joseph S. Keen died of heart disease on December 6, 1926.
Medal of Honor Citation



Rank and organization: Sergeant, Company D, 13th Michigan Infantry. Place and date: Near Chattahoochee River, Ga., 1 October 1864. Entered service at: Detroit, Mich. Born: 24 July 1843, England. Date of issue: 4 August 1899. Citation: While an escaped prisoner of war within the enemy's lines witnessed an important movement of the enemy, and at great personal risk made his way through the enemy's lines and brought news of the movement to Sherman's army.

Abraham Jay Buckles (1846 - 1915)

Birth: Aug. 2, 1846, USA Death: Jan. 9, 1915, US Army Civil War Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient. When war broke out in 1861, he joined Company E, 19th Indiana Volunteer Infantry, which became a part the “Iron Brigade” First Division, First Army Corps, Army of the Potomac. He was wounded numerous times in several notorious Civil War battles - at the second Bull Run battle he was shot through the right thigh and taken prisoner, but escaped soon after. Prior to the Gettysburg campaign he had been detailed, at his own request, as one of the color guard, and during the Gettysburg battle he rescued the flag of his regiment, but was soon after struck in the right shoulder. He was so disabled that he could never after carry a knapsack. When he was sufficiently recovered, although the wound was not healed, he returned to his regiment, and was at once made the color-bearer. At the battle of the Wilderness, while carrying the flag he was shot through the body, and when carried to the rear was informed by the surgeon that he must die, as his wound was a fatal one. So certain were all that he would not recover the report went forth “Killed in the Wilderness.” For this action he was awarded the Medal of Honor on December 4, 1893. His citation, issued to Abram J. Buckle reads: “Though suffering from an open wound, carried the regimental colors until again wounded.” However, being of a strong constitution and possessed of an iron will he recovered sufficiently to return to the front where he found his regiment so depleted in numbers that it had been consolidated with the Twentieth Indiana, and in this regiment he was given a commission as Second Lieutenant, dated February 27, 1865. Buckles’ right leg was amputated after being shot through the knee at the Hatchin Run on March 25, 1865. In 1886 he recovered a small Bible, carried by him in that battle and lost there, which on the fly-leaf bore the words “Killed in the Wilderness.” After his discharge as a 2nd Lieutenant, he became a teacher. He was admitted to the Indiana Bar in 1875 and moved to Dixon, California. In 1879, he was elected District Attorney of Solano County and retained that position until 1884, when he became Judge of the Superior Court of Solano County. Governor Pardee named Buckles to the newly created Court of Appeal, Third Appellate District, in April 1905 and served until 1907. He returned to practice in Fairfield, and in 1908 returned to the bench of the Superior Court of Solano County, where he served for the remainder of his life. He died 11 days after an operation in Ramona Hospital in San Bernardino County in 1915.

Medal of Honor Citation
Rank and organization: Sergeant, Company E, 19th Indiana Infantry. Place and date: At Wilderness, Va., 5 May 1864. Entered service at: Muncie, Ind. Birth: Delaware County, Ind. Date of issue: 4 December 1893. Citation: Though suffering from an open wound, carried the regimental colors until again wounded.

Zenas Randall Bliss (1835 – 1900)

Zenas Randall Bliss (April 17, 1835 – January 2, 1900) was an officer and general in the United States Army and a recipient of the Medal of Honor. He formed the first unit of Seminole-Negro Indian Scouts, and his detailed memoirs chronicled life on the Texas frontier.
Bliss was a native of Rhode Island and graduated from West Point in 1854. He served most of his thirty-seven year career on the Texas frontier, and served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. During the Civil War he was captured by Confederate forces and held as a prisoner of war. Bliss received the Medal of Honor for his actions while leading his regiment at the Battle of Fredericksburg.
Bliss was born April 17, 1835 in Johnston, Rhode Island to an upper-middle class family. His parents were Zenas and Phebe Waterman Randall Bliss. He received an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, in July 1850 when he was only fifteen years old. He graduated from West Point in 1854 and served the next six years in Texas. He was stationed at Fort Davis and Fort Quitman, but his first assignment was as a brevet second lieutenant in the 1st U.S. Infantry regiment. He was promoted to the full rank of second lieutenant in the 8th U.S. Infantry on March 3, 1855 and subsequently promoted to first lieutenant on October 17, 1860. He was promoted to captain on May 14, 1861.
When the American Civil War began on April 12, 1861 Bliss immediately saw action. He was captured by Confederate forces and spent eleven months as a prisoner of war, first in San Antonio, Texas, and later in Richmond, Virginia. He was finally exchanged and sent back to Union lines where he subsequently took command of the Tenth Rhode Island Infantry. He received a commission in the volunteer army as a colonel in May 1862. Bliss assumed command of the Seventh Rhode Island Infantry on August 21, 1862. In October 1862 the Seventh Rhode Island joined the First Brigade, Second Division, Ninth Corps, Army of the Potomac. The regiment saw action in December 1862 at the Battle of Fredericksburg, during which Bliss performed actions that earned him the Medal of Honor several decades later. When IX Corps was sent West, it participated in the Siege of Vicksburg. The Seventh served under Major General William T. Sherman in the capture of Jackson, Mississippi. In April 1864 the Seventh rejoined the Army of the Potomac. Bliss became commander of the First Brigade, Second Division, Ninth Corps. His brigade fought in the Battle of the Wilderness. Bliss was badly injured by a horse at Spotsylvania, but he returned to lead his brigade in the Siege of Petersburg and the Battle of the Crater. The court of inquiry following the fiasco at the Crater censured Bliss, but he remained on duty. During the Civil War, Bliss received a brevet (honorary promotion) to major dated December 13, 1862, for "gallantry and meritorious service" in the Battle of Fredericksburg. He was later breveted to lieutenant colonel on May 7, 1864, for "gallantry and meritorious service" in the Battle of the Wilderness. He was awarded the Medal of Honor on December 3, 1898, for valor during the Battle of Fredericksburg.
Bliss remained in the Regular Army after the Civil War and was promoted to major of the 39th Infantry Regiment (a unit with black soldiers and white officers) on August 6, 1867. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel of the 19th Infantry on March 4, 1879, and to colonel of the 24th Infantry on April 20, 1886. Bliss was promoted to brigadier general in the Regular Army April 24, 1895, and to major general on May 14, 1897. He retired from the Army eight days later on May 22. Including his four years at West Point, Bliss had served 46 years, 10 months and 22 days in uniform when he retired.
Zenas Bliss died in Washington, D.C. January 2, 1900, at age 64. He is buried alongside his wife at Arlington National Cemetery at Arlington, Virginia. His grave can be found in section 1, lot 8-B. The Bliss family had four children, two of whom lived to adulthood.

Medal of Honor Citation
Rank and organization: Colonel, 7th Rhode Island Infantry. Place and date: At Fredericksburg, Va., 13 December 1862. Entered service at: Johnston, Maine. Birth: Johnston, Maine. Date of issue: 30 December 1898. Citation: This officer, to encourage his regimen; which had never before been in action, and which had been ordered to lie down to protect itself from the enemy's fire, arose to his feet, advanced in front of the line, and himself fired several shots at the enemy at short range, being fully exposed to their fire at the time.

USS Merrimac

USS Merrimac was a steamship in the United States Navy during the Spanish-American War.
Merrimac was built by Swan & Hunter shipyard as SS Solveig in Wallsend, England, in November 1894. She was purchased by the US Navy in April 1898. Rear Admiral William T. Sampson ordered her to be sunk as a blockship at the entrance of Santiago Harbor, Cuba, in an attempt to trap the Spanish fleet in the harbor. On the night of 2-3 June 1898, eight volunteers attempted to execute this mission, but Merrimac's steering gear was disabled by the fire of Spanish land-based howitzers. The American steamer was later sunk by the combined gunfire and the torpedoes of the protected cruiser Vizcaya, the unprotected cruiser Reina Mercedes, and the destroyer Pluton without obstructing the harbor entrance. Her crewmen were rescued by the Spanish and made prisoners-of-war. After the Battle of Santiago de Cuba destroyed the Spanish fleet a month later, the men were released. All eight were awarded Medals of Honor for their part in the mission.
The eight volunteer crewman of the Merrimac were:
Lieutenant Richmond P. Hobson
Coxswain Claus K. R. Clausen
Coxswain Osborn W. Deignan
Coxswain John E. Murphy
Chief Master-At-Arms Daniel Montague
Gunner's Mate First Class George Charette
Machinist First Class George F. Phillips
Watertender Francis Kelly

Machinist Mate 1st Class George F. Phillips, USN, (1862-1904)

Chief Machinist (?) George F. Phillips, USN, (1862-1904)
George Frederick Phillips was born on 8 March 1862 in St. John, New Brunswick, Canada. He enlisted in the US Navy from Galveston, Texas and served as a Machinist First Class in the collier Merrimac during the Spanish-American War. Phillips remained with her as one of eight volunteer crew members when Rear Admiral William T. Sampson ordered Merrimac sunk to block the entrance of Santiago Harbor, Cuba. On the night of 2-3 June 1898, during the courageous attempt to execute this mission, Merrimac's steering gear was disabled by enemy gunfire, and she sank without obstructing navigation. Her crewmen were rescued by the Spanish and made prisoners-of-war. After the Battle of Santiago de Cuba destroyed the Spanish fleet a month later, Phillips and his shipmates were released. For his "extraordinary heroism" during this operation, he was awarded the Medal of Honor.
George F. Phillips may have remained in the Navy after the Spanish-American War, since one published source on the Medal of Honor states that his highest rank was Chief Machinist (a warrant officer rank). However, no mention of him could be located in any Navy Register or Navy Reserve Register from 1899 to 1957. The same source reports that he died on 4 June 1904 in Cambridge, Massachusetts and is buried at Fernhill Cemetery, St. John, New Brunswick.

Medal o Honor Citation

Rank and organization: Machinist First Class, U.S. Navy. Born: 9 March 1864, Boston, Mass. Accredited to: New York. G.O. No.: 529, 2 November 1899. Citation: In connection with the sinking of the U.S.S. Merrimac at the entrance to the harbor of Santiago de Cuba 2 June 1898. Despite heavy fire from the Spanish shore batteries, Phillips displayed extraordinary heroism throughout this operation.

Coxswain John Edward Murphy (1869 – 1941)

John Edward Murphy (May 3, 1869 – April 9, 1941) was a United States Navy sailor and a recipient of America's highest military decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in the Spanish-American War.
Murphy enlisted in the U.S. Navy from New York and served in the battleship USS Iowa (BB-4) as a coxswain during the Spanish-American War. Coxswain Murphy was one of eight volunteer crew members of the collier USS Merrimac (1898), which Rear Admiral William T. Sampson ordered sunk to block the entrance of Santiago Harbor, Cuba. On the night of June 2/3, 1898, during the attempt to execute this mission, Merrimac's steering gear was disabled by enemy gunfire, and she sank without obstructing navigation. Her crewmen were rescued by the Spanish and made prisoners-of-war. After the Battle of Santiago de Cuba destroyed the Spanish fleet a month later, Murphy and his shipmates were released. For their part in this operation, all eight men were awarded Medals of Honor.
On June 15, 1898, while he was still in Spanish custody, Murphy was promoted to the warrant officer rank of Boatswain. In October 1898, Murphy was assigned to the battleship USS Oregon (BB-3), which soon went to the Asiatic Station. He reported for training duty on board USS Pensacola (1859) in September 1901 and several months later began similar service in USS Constellation (1854). In the Summer of 1903 he was assigned to the armored cruiser USS New York (ACR-2) in the Pacific Squadron. Murphy was promoted to Chief Boatswain on June 15, 1904. For his last tour, he served in USS Buffalo (1892), also in the Pacific, and was placed on the retired list on August 1, 1905.
Chief Boatswain John Edward Murphy died at age 71 and was buried at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery, San Diego, California. His grave can be found in the officer's section, grave 363 GPS (lat/lon): 32.41418, -117.14673.
Medal of Honor citation
Coxswain Murphy's official Medal of Honor citation reads: In connection with the sinking of the U.S.S. Merrimac at the entrance to the harbor of Santiago de Cuba, 2 June 1898. Despite heavy fire from the Spanish shore batteries, Murphy displayed extraordinary heroism throughout this operation.

Chief Master-At-Arms Daniel Montague (1867 – 1912)

Daniel Montague (October 22, 1866 or 1867 – February 4, 1912) was a United States Navy sailor and a recipient of America's highest military decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in the Spanish-American War.
Daniel Montague enlisted in the Navy during the mid-1890s and served in USS New York (ACR-2) during the Spanish-American War as a Chief Master-at-Arms. He was one of eight volunteer crew members of the collier USS Merrimac, which Rear Admiral William T. Sampson ordered sunk to block the entrance of Santiago Harbor, Cuba. On the night of 2-June 3, 1898, during the attempt to execute this mission, Merrimac's steering gear was disabled by enemy gunfire, and she sank without obstructing navigation. Her crewmen were rescued by the Spanish and made prisoners-of-war. After the Battle of Santiago de Cuba destroyed the Spanish fleet a month later, Montague and his shipmates were released. For their actions during this operation, all eight men were awarded the Medal of Honor.
Montague was promoted to the warrant officer rank of Boatswain on June 15, 1898, while he was still in Spanish custody. His initial post-war assignment, to the training ship Lancaster, lasted from August 1898 to late in 1901. He then reported for duty at the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland. In June 1903 Boatswain Montague reported on board the battleship USS Wisconsin, serving as Asiatic Station flagship. Montague was promoted to Chief Boatswain in June 1904 and late in that year began service in the old steam sloop USS Mohican station ship at Olongapo, Philippines. In the summer of 1906 he was assigned duty at Naval Station, Pensacola, Florida, remaining there until the fall of 1909 when he was transferred to the Philadelphia Naval Yard, Pennsylvania. His last active assignment, in 1911-1912, was to the cruiser USS Olympia at Norfolk, Virginia, where she was being prepared for use as a barracks ship.
Daniel Montague died at age 44 or 45 and was buried at the U.S. Naval Academy Cemetery, Annapolis, Maryland.
Medal of Honor citation
Rank and organization: Chief Master-at-Arms, U.S. Navy. Born: October 22, 1867, Wicklow, Ireland. G.O. No.: 529, November 2, 1899.
Citation: In connection with the sinking of the U.S.S. Merrimac at the entrance to the harbor of Santiago de Cuba, June 2, 1898. Despite heavy fire from the Spanish batteries, Montague displayed extraordinary heroism throughout this operation.

Machinist's Mate 2 Class Francis Kelly (1860 – 1938)

Francis Kelly (July 5, 1860 – May 19, 1938) was a United States Navy sailor and a recipient of America's highest military decoration — the Medal of Honor — for his actions in the Spanish-American War.
Francis Kelly enlisted in the US Navy from his birth state, Massachusetts, and served as a watertender in the collier USS Merrimac during the Spanish-American War. Kelly was one of eight volunteer crew members when Rear Admiral William T. Sampson ordered Merrimac sunk to block the entrance of Santiago Harbor, Cuba. On the night of 2-June 3, 1898, during the attempt to execute this mission, Merrimac's steering gear was disabled by enemy gunfire, and she sank without obstructing navigation. Her crewmen were rescued by the Spanish and made prisoners-of-war. After the Battle of Santiago de Cuba destroyed the Spanish fleet a month later, Kelly and his shipmates were released. For his actions during this operation, he was awarded the Medal of Honor.
Francis Kelly remained in the Navy after the Spanish-American War, ultimately obtaining the rank of chief machinist's mate. He is buried at Sandymount Cemetery, Glasgow, Scotland.
Medal of Honor citation
Kelly's official Medal of Honor citation reads: In connection with the sinking of the U.S.S. Merrimac at the entrance to the harbor of Santiago de Cuba, June 2, 1898. Despite heavy fire from the Spanish batteries, KELLY displayed extraordinary heroism throughout this operation.

Lieutenant Richmond Pearson Hobson (1870 – 1937)

Richmond Pearson Hobson (August 17, 1870 – March 16, 1937) was a United States Navy Rear Admiral who served from 1907-1915 as a U.S. Representative from Alabama. A veteran of the Spanish-American War, he received the Medal of Honor years later for his part in that conflict.
He was born at Magnolia Grove in Greensboro in Hale County in the western Black Belt of Alabama. He graduated from the Naval Academy in 1889. He was ostracized by his fellow midshipmen for his total abstinence from alcohol and tobacco. He maintained a superb academic record graduating first in his class and became the highest ranking midshipman: Cadet Battalion Commander (today's Brigade Commander). After duty in Chicago, he underwent additional training and was appointed Assistant Naval Constructor in 1891. Hobson then served at various Navy Yards and facilities, including a tour of duty as instructor at the Naval Academy.
In the early days of Spanish-American War, he was with Admiral William T. Sampson in New York, and arrived off Santiago June 1, 1898. In order to bottle up the Spanish squadron of Admiral Pascual Cervera y Topete, Hobson took temporary command of collier Merrimac, which he would attempt to sink as an obstruction in the channel. The attempt was made early June 3, under heavy Spanish fire, which disabled the steering gear of the collier. Hobson did sink the Merrimac, but was unable to place her in the shallowest part of the channel. With his intrepid crew of six, he was picked up by Admiral Cervera himself, and treated quite chivalrously for his gallant expedition.
Hobson became a hero of the American press while he was a prisoner of war in Cuba. His portrait appeared in hundreds of newspapers with embellished stories of his bravery in volunteering for what was perceived as a suicide mission. A fund was raised to aid his parents in avoiding foreclosure of their mortgage. When Hobson was released during a prisoner exchange on 6 July 1898, hundreds of American troops snapped to attention, then burst into cheers as he passed. He was deluged with speaking invitations when he returned to the United States. After dining with President William McKinley, Hobson traveled west by train en route to San Francisco and the Philippines. Crowds greeted his train at many stations, and his enthusiasm for kissing admiring young women made him a sex symbol of the Victorian age.
Hobson was advanced ten numbers in grade after the war and later, in 1933, awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic attempt to block the channel. After the Spanish-American War he worked on the repairing and refitting of captured Spanish cruisers at Cavite and at various shore stations of the Navy.
One of his close friends was American genius and inventor Nikola Tesla. In later years, Hobson was the only person who was able to persuade Tesla to interrupt his intellectual pursuits for a movie gathering.
Hobson was the author of a book about the events surrounding the sinking of collier Merrimac in which he participated as the leader of a volunteer squad.
After resigning from active duty in 1903, Hobson remained a staunch supporter of the Navy and during his subsequent career as a Democratic U.S. Representative from Alabama, 1905–1915, was a firm advocate of naval expansion. He was denied renomination in the 1914 Democratic primary. In 1934, by special act of the United States Congress, he was advanced to Naval Constructor with a rank of Rear Admiral, and placed on the retired list. Rear Admiral Hobson died March 16, 1937 in New York City. He is interred in Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
The destroyer USS Hobson (DD-464) was named in his honor. A small town in south Texas was renamed from Castine to Hobson after Capt. Richmond Pearson Hobson spoke there on a railroad tour.
Medal of Honor citation
Rank and organization: Lieutenant, U.S. Navy. Born: 17 August 1870, Greensboro, Ala. Accredited to: New York. (Medal presented by President, 29 April 1933.)
Citation: In connection with the sinking of the U.S.S. Merrimac at the entrance to the fortified harbor of Santiago de Cuba, 3 June 1898. Despite persistent fire from the enemy fleet and fortifications on shore, Lt. Hobson distinguished himself by extraordinary courage and carried out this operation at the risk of his own personal safety.

Coxswain Claus Kristian Randolph Clausen (1869 – 1958)

Claus Kristian Randolph Clausen (December 9, 1869 – December 23, 1958) was an enlisted man and later an officer in the United States Navy. He received America's highest military decoration - the Medal of Honor - for actions in the Spanish-American War.
Claus Kristian Randolph Clausen was born on December 9, 1869 in Denmark. Later enlisting in the Navy from the state of New York, he served on the USS New York during the Spanish American War as a Coxswain. He was one of eight volunteer crew members of the collier USS Merrimac, which Rear Admiral William T. Sampson ordered sunk to block the entrance of Santiago Harbor, Cuba. On the night of 2-June 3, 1898, during the attempt to execute this mission, Merrimac's steering gear was disabled by enemy gunfire, and she sank without obstructing navigation. Her crewmen were rescued by the Spanish and made prisoners-of-war. After the Battle of Santiago de Cuba destroyed the Spanish fleet a month later, Clausen and his shipmates were released. For his "extraordinary heroism" during this operation, he was awarded the Medal of Honor.
Clausen was promoted to the Warrant Officer rank of Boatswain on July 30, 1903. As an officer, his initial assignment was on the cruiser USS Detroit, operating in the Caribbean. Following this sea duty, he served two years on the New York Navy Yard's receiving ship USS Hancock. Boatswain Clausen's next time at sea was on the battleship USS Mississippi from 1908 to 1911. On July 30, 1909, while on Mississippi, he was promoted to Chief Boatswain. After another tour at the New York Navy Yard, from 1911 to 1914, Chief Boatswain Clausen obtained the special qualification of a "Master's License under Steamboat-Inspection Service" before reporting on board battleship USS New Jersey. He served in her during World War I and received a temporary promotion to Lieutenant, Junior Grade in May 1917.
After the war, Clausen transferred back to the New York Navy Yard and, in 1920, reverted to Chief Boatswain. His next shipboard assignment was as an officer of USS Florida. In November 1922, he transferred to the Naval Torpedo Station, Newport, Rhode Island and three months later reported on board the receiving ship USS Colorado (ACR-7) at New York. Chief Boatswain Clausen was placed on the retired list on November 15, 1925. Though retired, he was promoted to Lieutenant in June 1930, but again reverted to Chief Warrant Officer 4 in the early 1950s. He lived his later years in Massapequa Park, New York, and at his death was the last surviving Medal of Honor recipient from the Spanish American War. Claus K. R. Clausen died on December 23, 1958 at St. Albans, New York and is interred in the U.S. Columbarium, Middle Village, New York.
Medal of Honor citation
Rank and organization: Coxswain, U.S. Navy. Born: December 9, 1869, Denmark. Accredited to: New York. G.O. No.: 529, November 2, 1899.
Citation: In connection with the sinking of the U.S.S. Merrimac at the entrance to the harbor of Santiago de Cuba, 2 June 1898. Despite heavy fire from the Spanish batteries, Clausen displayed extraordinary heroism throughout this operation.

GM1 George Charrette (1867 - 1938)

George Charrette (June 6, 1867 – February 7, 1938) was an enlisted man and later officer in the United States Navy who received the Medal of Honor for his heroism during the Spanish-American War.
Charrette was born in Lowell, Massachusetts on June 6, 1867. He enlisted in the United States Navy September 24, 1884. As a Gunner's Mate third class, on June 2, 1898, he volunteered with seven others to sink USS Merrimac under heavy Spanish fire across the entrance to the harbor of Santiago, Cuba, thus bottling up the enemy fleet. Taken prisoner by the Spanish, Charrette was exchanged July 6, 1898. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for extraordinary heroism, although his name was misspelled as George Charette on the citation. Charrette was commissioned lieutenant on August 3, 1920, and retired from the Navy in 1925. He died February 7, 1938 in Lowell, Massachusetts and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington County, Virginia.

Medal of Honor Ctation

Rank and organization: Gunner's Mate First Class, U.S. Navy. Entered service at: Lowell, Mass. Born: 6 June 1867, Lowell, Mass. G.O. No.: 529, 2 November 1899. Citation: In connection with the sinking of the U.S.S. Merrimac at the entrance to the harbor of Santiago de Cuba, 2 June 1898. Despite heavy fire from the Spanish batteries, Charette displayed extraordinary heroism throughout this operation.

Seaman Osborn Warren Deignan (1873 – 1916)

Osborn Warren Deignan (February 24, 1873 – April 16, 1916) was an enlisted sailor and later a Warrant Officer in the United States Navy. He received his country's highest military decoration—the Medal of Honor—for actions in the Spanish-American War. Born in Iowa, he joined the Navy in 1894 and participated in the Battle of Santiago de Cuba, the largest naval engagement of the Spanish-American war. Deignan and seven others attempted to block the entrance to Santiago Harbor, Cuba but the Spanish destroyed their ship before they could accomplish their mission, and took them prisoner. The men were later released and Deignan received the Medal of Honor for his actions. He went on to become an officer and served in various posts and ships throughout the Navy until retiring in 1906. He died in Colorado in 1916, and was buried in California.
Deignan was born February 24, 1873 (as per first Navy enlistment record dated December 7, 1894) near Stuart, Iowa to John Deignan and his wife. His father had also been a sailor, serving in the Navy during the American Civil War, and afterwards went to work for the Rock Island Railway as a conductor. When Osborn was five years old, a torndado struck his father's train in Grinnel, Iowa, killing him and leaving Osborn, his mother and his brother to survive on their own. His mother remarried and the family, along with two additional children from his new stepfather, moved to North Tremont Street in Stuart. In 1887 he left school and went to sea, serving on ships in the Atlantic ocean, the Arctic and the Caribbean.
Deignan enlisted in the United States Navy from his home state of Iowa, originally on December 7, 1894 (as per first Navy enlistment record). He served on numerous USN vessels between 1894 and 1896 and, having deserted from the USS Newark on May 6, 1896 (as per naval records maintained by the Military Record Center) then re-enlistment in 1898 (as per naval records maintained by the Military Record Center.) He was assigned as a Coxswain to the USS Merrimac (1898) during the Spanish-American War. The Merrimac had frequent problems with the steering and engines, and Deignan referred to it as "cranky". After a short time on the ship, he garnered a reputation as an able helmsman and was preferred when delivering coal to the other ships in the fleet, a task that could be difficult in a ship that was already hard to control.
When Rear Admiral William T. Sampson requested volunteers for an extremely dangerous mission, there were more than enough volunteers, but he chose Osborn as the helmsman. The mission was to sink Merrimac at the entrance to Santiago Harbor, Cuba in an effort to block it and pen the Spanish Navy in the harbor. Seven other members of the crew were also chosen for the assignment. While the crew was attempting to fulfill its mission, Spanish forces fired on the ship and, in the process, disabled the Merrimac's streering controls before the crew could complete their task. The ship sank without obstructing navigation, but the crew was able to escape the ship before she went under. They were rescued by the Spanish and were taken as prisoners-of-war. A month later the Spanish fleet was destroyed at the Battle of Santiago de Cuba and the crewman were released. For his "extraordinary heroism" during the operation, Deignan was awarded the Medal of Honor.
On April 9, 1900, Deignan was promoted to the Warrant Officer rank of Boatswain. As an officer, his initial assignments were in the Philippines, first at Manila, then at the Naval Station, Cavite. After meeting her at a party in 1898, he married Maud Huntoon on May 14, 1902 and together they had a daughter. In June 1902, he reported for duty on the USS Oregon (BB-3) and later that year transferred to the receiving ship USS Independence (1814), at the Mare Island Naval Shipyard, California. He was stationed at Navy Yard, Pensacola, Florida, from 1903 through 1904, and then was assigned to the receiving ship USS Franklin (1864), at Norfolk, Virginia. He remained there for less than a year before reporting for his last tour of duty on the monitor USS Amphitrite (BM-2) in April 1905. He retired on April 21, 1906 and moved to the Los Angeles, California area.
Deignan died April 16, 1916 in Cannon City, Colorado at the age of 43 (based on birth in 1873) and was buried with full military honors at Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Glendale, California. His grave can be found in the Whispering Pines section, L-1165. Post #1842 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars was named in his honor.
Medal of Honor Citation
Rank and organization: Coxswain, U.S. Navy. Born: 24 February 1873, Sheart, Iowa. Accredited to: Iowa. G.O. No.: 529, 2 November 1899. Citation: In connection with the sinking of the U.S.S. Merrimac at the entrance to the harbor of Santiago de Cuba, 2 June 1898. Despite heavy fire from the Spanish batteries, Deignan displayed extraordinary heroism throughout this operation.

First Lieutenant Willibald C. Bianchi (1915 − 1945)

Willibald C. Bianchi (March 12, 1915 − January 9, 1945) was an officer in the Philippine Scouts who received the Medal of Honor for actions in Bataan, Philippines during that country's capitulation to Japanese forces during World War II. After the action near Bagac in the Bataan Province, Bianchi was among the troops captured by the Japanese at the fall of Bataan,on April 9, 1942. He was part of the Bataan "Death March," and was imprisoned in several Japanese prisoner of war camps, enduring horrible conditions. He was known for his compassion and efforts to better the lot of his fellow prisoners by bartering with their captors for extra food and medicine. On January 9, 1945, while imprisoned in an unmarked Japanese prison ship, Bianchi was killed instantly when an American plane, unaware that the ship contained American prisoners, dropped a 1,000-pound bomb in the cargo hold. Bianchi is one of three members of the Philippine Scouts who were awarded the Medal of Honor.
Medal of Honor Citation:

Bianchi, Willibald C. Rank and organization:First Lieutenant, U.S. Army, 45th Infantry, Philippine Scouts Place and date:Near Bagac, Bataan Province, Philippine Islands, February 3, 1942. Entered service at:New Ulm, Minnesota. Born:New Ulm, Minnesota
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action with the enemy on 3 February 1942, near Bagac, Province of Bataan, Philippine Islands. When the rifle platoon of another company was ordered to wipe out 2 strong enemy machine gun nests, 1st Lt. Bianchi voluntarily and of his own initiative, advanced with the platoon leading part of the men. When wounded early in the action by 2 bullets through the left hand, he did not stop for first aid but discarded his rifle and began firing a pistol. He located a machine gun nest and personally silenced it with grenades. When wounded the second time by 2 machine gun bullets through the chest muscles, 1st Lt. Bianchi climbed to the top of an American tank, manned its antiaircraft machine gun, and fired into strongly held enemy position until knocked completely off the tank by a third severe wound.

Woodrow Wilson Keeble (1917 – 1982)

Master Sergeant Woodrow Wilson Keeble (May 16, 1917 - January 28, 1982) was a U.S. Army National Guard veteran of both World War II and the Korean War. He was a full-blooded member of the Sisseton Wahpeton Oyate of the Lake Traverse Reservation, a Sioux Native American tribe.
Following a long campaign by his family and the congressional delegations of both North and South Dakota, on March 3, 2008, President George W. Bush posthumously awarded Keeble the Medal of Honor for his actions in the Korean War. Keeble had previously been awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, the Silver Star, the Bronze Star with V device for Valor, the Bronze Star for merit, and the Combat Infantryman Badge (first and second awards). Although he was wounded at least twice in World War II and three times in Korea, he received only two Purple Hearts.
Woodrow Keeble was born in Waubay, South Dakota to Isaac and Nancy (Shaker) Keeble on May 16, 1917. While still very young, he moved to Wahpeton, North Dakota, where his mother worked at the Wahpeton Indian School (now called Circle of Nations School). Unfortunately, Nancy died when Keeble was still a child. Keeble's father, who was too impoverished to feed his family, permanently enrolled Woodrow and his siblings in the school.
Woodrow excelled in athletics, especially baseball, and pitched the Wahpeton amateur team to ten straight victories. He was being recruited by the Chicago White Sox when his Army National Guard unit was called up to serve in World War II.
In World War II, Keeble served with I Company of the famed North Dakota 164th Infantry Regiment. After initial training in Louisiana, the regiment carried out various orders in several West Coast locations before being deployed to Australia in preparation for operations in the Pacific Theater. Keeble's unit was assigned to the Americal Division.
The 164th landed on Guadalcanal on October 13, 1942 to help the battered First Marine Division, which had suffered heavy losses while clearing the South Pacific island of Japanese. The 164th provided the first replacements for the 1st Marines, and although the new boys were green, the exhausted men heartily welcomed the North Dakotans—and their supplies.
Keeble's regiment of Dakotans was the first United States Army unit to conduct an offensive operation against the enemy in any theater.
Largely because of transport constraints, the Americal Division arrived on Guadalcanal piecemeal, and was fed into combat alongside the battle-hardened Marines. Thus, in contrast to how several US Army divisions were deployed in the Pacific War, the soldiers of the 164th Infantry were able to learn the practical art of jungle warfare against the Japanese without suffering as many casualties as might otherwise have occurred.
The battles on Guadalcanal were some of the most brutal of the war. Japanese troops adopted the Banzai charge, wildly attacking in human waves. Sometimes the hand-to-hand battles would last all through the night.
During these battles, Keeble's reputation for bravery and skill grew. Nearly a head taller than most of his fellow soldiers, he was an expert with the Browning Automatic Rifle (BAR). His other great weapon was his pitching arm, which he used to hurl hand grenades with deadly accuracy. James Fenelon, a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe of North & South Dakota who fought with Keeble on Guadalcanal, once remarked, “The safest place to be was right next to Woody.”
Despite its ad-hoc formation, the Americal Division fought well at Guadalcanal, the 164th taking on a key role in the defeat of a major Japanese offensive in October 1942. Uniquely, the North Dakotans performed so heroically on Guadalcanal in support of the Marines that they received a Navy Presidential Unit Citation.
After the battles on Guadalcanal, Keeble and the rest of the regiment participated in combat campaigns on the islands of Bougainville, Leyte, Cebu, and Mindanao. Following the Japanese surrender, the entire Americal Division landed in Japan and took part in the occupation of the Yokohama region.
After the war, Keeble returned to Wahpeton and worked at the Wahpeton Indian School. On November 14, 1947, Woodrow Wilson Keeble married Nettie Abigail Owen-Robertson (b. March 30, 1917).
Woodrow Keeble on combat
Examining the experience of being in combat for the first time, Keeble explained,
Before I experienced the horror of that attack, I was quick to call coward or yellow anyone who showed fear under any circumstances. Nevermore. I don’t know these things, but they speak truth to one. I am not a psychologist, nor a statistician, and less of a philosopher; but the depth of emotion, the dreads of fear, the referees of horrors, and the concentration of self that led me to make this observation, the fear impulse, or perhaps, better said, the (impulses caused) by fear, are stronger, more demanding than either that of love or hunger...
He also wrote:
Fear in my opinion is a state of drunkenness. And when men are in that state when the fear impulse takes a hold...he loses all reason, sense of values, and is not liable, or at least should not be held accountable for acts perpetrated when thus possessed.
Keeble continued:
During the 13 months (in the) almost continual and sustained combat in which I have ever participated, there were moments, and rare ones, I am sure; but they lose none of their terror or horror for which fear laid a relentless and a powerful hold on me, that the pull of cowardice was almost more than I could ward off. There were terrible moments that encompassed a lifetime, an endlessness, when terror was so strong in me, that I could feel idiocy replace reason. (Yet,) I have never left my position, nor have I shirked hazardous duty. Fear did not make a coward out of me.
The 164th Infantry Regiment was reactivated in 1951 during the Korean War; they trained at Camp Rucker, Alabama. When Keeble's commanding officer, Lt E. Duane Holly, had to select several sergeants for deployment to the front lines, he decided to have his men draw straws. Keeble volunteered instead. Asked why, Keeble said, “Somebody has to teach these kids how to fight.”
Keeble was assigned to George Company, 2nd Battalion, 19th Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division. His combat experience and a genuine gift of leadership brought him a quick series of promotions to the level of master sergeant, leading the 1st Platoon.
The summer and fall of 1951 were particularly deadly for both sides as the war moved into its second year. The 24th Division was in the central area of the Korean peninsula when, on October 13, 1951, the Division was called upon to take a series of steep mountains protecting a major Chinese supply depot in the town of Kumsong.
This push, Operation Nomad-Polar, was to be the last major United Nations offensive of the war.
Keeble, described as a gentle giant by his friends, was a ferocious warrior in battle, as evidenced by his heroic actions over the next six days. Official records confirm Keeble was initially wounded on October 15, and then again on October 17, 18 and 20 - for which he received only one Purple Heart. For his bravery on the 18th, he was awarded a Silver Star. His heroism on the 20th made Keeble a legend - and 57 years later resulted in his posthumous Medal of Honor.
George Company was in its sixth day of round-the-clock fighting. They were facing deeply entrenched Chinese soldiers on Hill 675-770, the last major Chinese stronghold between the UN forces and Kumsong. Keeble had thus far suffered two rifle wounds to his left arm, a grenade to his face that almost removed his nose and a badly twisted knee; on the 19th, doctors reportedly removed 83 pieces of festering shrapnel Keeble had sustained from a concussion grenade the previous day. On the 20th, Medic Dale Selby told Keeble he should stay back because of his wounds, but Keeble refused to let his men go up the mountain without him. That day, Master Sergeant Keeble single-handedly destroyed three enemy machine-gun bunkers and killed an additional seven enemy soldiers in nearby trenches.
His bravery in the face of enemy fire was so remarkable that a recommendation that he receive the Medal of Honor was twice submitted. In both cases, the recommendation was lost. When Keeble's men endeavored to submit the recommendation a third time, officials informed them they were too late; they were told regulations prevented them from submitting another recommendation.
Master Sergeant Keeble returned to North Dakota after the Korean War and again worked at the Wahpeton Indian School. Soon after, he was afflicted with tuberculosis, which required that he undergo long-term treatment in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Surgeons ultimately removed one of his lungs, which triggered a series of strokes that rendered him speechless, partially paralyzed and unable to work for the remainder of his life. Nettie, his wife of 14 years, died the following year, leaving Keeble to raise their young son, Earl, alone.
Keeble fell on hard times and is said to have pawned his medals. Nevertheless, and despite his disabilities, Keeble persevered. In 1967, he married Blossom Iris Crawford-Hawkins (b. July 18, 1926), the first Sioux woman to complete a Doctorate of Education, (including doctoral dissertation).
Woodrow Keeble was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 4324 - Wahpeton, ND.
Woodrow W. Keeble died January 28, 1982, and is buried in Sisseton, South Dakota. On May 17, 2008, his tombstone was replaced with a Medal of Honor headstone.
Medal of Honor campaign
Keeble's family and friends remained dedicated to efforts to get him the Medal of Honor for which he was twice recommended. United States Senators Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.), Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) John Thune (R-S.D.) and Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) long urged that Keeble be posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.
Senator Conrad and North Dakota Adjutant General Michael Haugen presented Keeble's family with a duplicate set of his medals on May 30, 2006, at the Wahpeton Armory. Moments before the event was to begin, word came that Secretary of the Army Francis Harvey was recommending Keeble's Distinguished Service Cross be upgraded to the Medal of Honor. From there, Keeble's case moved up to the level of Secretary of Defense.
In 2007, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, notified the four Dakota Senators that a statute of limitations would prevent the Medal of Honor to be granted. The four Dakota Senators immediately drafted legislation to remove the last barrier to the posthumous awarding of the honor.
In May 2007, the congressional funding bill for Iraq included language to grant a waiver of the statute of limitations for awarding a Medal of Honor to Woodrow W. Keeble, enabling the President to sign off on the recommendation, dependent on the Secretary of Defense's recommendation for the upgrade. President Bush signed the legislation on May 24, 2007.
Senator Thune issued a statement on June 2 that read, in part,
Master Sergeant Woodrow W. Keeble served with bravery and dignity, going beyond the call of duty not for notoriety or recognition-but for the mission he believed in and the country he loved. Keeble's legacy is a great source of pride for his family, his fellow Dakota Sioux, and all Americans. The Secretary of the Army's recommendation is wonderful and long-awaited news. I began working with Master Sergeant Keeble's family and tribal officials on resolving this long overdue issue in the spring of 2002, and I will continue to work with Defense officials to ensure that this legendary soldier receives the final and most distinguished honor he deserves.
Senator Johnson urged Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates to act quickly on the recommendation. “... it is my hope that both you and the President can move forward on Master Sergeant Keeble’s case as expeditiously as possible,” Johnson said in a letter to Gates quoted in the Argus Leader of Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
It would be another year before the President would finally award the Medal of Honor to Keeble. Despite failing health, Blossom Keeble was determined to live long enough to accept the Medal of Honor on her husband's behalf. Unfortunately, she died quite suddenly on June 3, 2007 before the honor became a reality.
In February 2008, the White House announced that Keeble would receive the Medal of Honor posthumously in a ceremony scheduled for March 3. "We are just proud to be a part of this for Woody," Keeble's stepson Russell Hawkins said in a U.S. Army announcement. "He is deserving of this, for what he did in the Armed Services in defense of this country."
Hawkins added that this victory is as important for the Sisseton-Wahpeton tribe and North and South Dakota as it is for Keeble and his family. "We are all extremely proud that Woody is finally receiving this honor. He epitomized our cultural values of humility, compassion, bravery, strength and honor."
Hawkins added that Keeble was the embodiment of woyuonihan ("honor"), always carrying himself in a way so that those who knew him would be proud of him. "He lived a life full of honor and respect."
Hawkins said his feelings about Keeble echo those of all who knew him. "If he was alive today, I would tell him there's no one I respect more, and how he is everything a man should be: brave, kind and generous. I would tell him how proud I am of him, and how I never realized that all this time, I was living with such greatness.”
Medal of Honor citation
The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, March 3, 2008, has awarded in the name of Congress the Medal of Honor to:
Master Sergeant Woodrow W. Keeble United States Army
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty: Master Sergeant Woodrow W. Keeble distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action with an armed enemy near Sangsan-ni, Korea, on October 20, 1951. On that day, Master Sergeant Keeble was an acting platoon leader for the support platoon in Company G, 19th Infantry, in the attack on Hill 765, a steep and rugged position that was well defended by the enemy. Leading the support platoon, Master Sergeant Keeble saw that the attacking elements had become pinned down on the slope by heavy enemy fire from three well-fortified and strategically placed enemy positions. With complete disregard for his personal safety, Master Sergeant Keeble dashed forward and joined the pinned-down platoon. Then, hugging the ground, Master Sergeant Keeble crawled forward alone until he was in close proximity to one of the hostile machine-gun emplacements. Ignoring the heavy fire that the crew trained on him, Master Sergeant Keeble activated a grenade and threw it with great accuracy, successfully destroying the position. Continuing his one-man assault, he moved to the second enemy position and destroyed it with another grenade. Despite the fact that the enemy troops were now directing their firepower against him and unleashing a shower of grenades in a frantic attempt to stop his advance, he moved forward against the third hostile emplacement, and skillfully neutralized the remaining enemy position. As his comrades moved forward to join him, Master Sergeant Keeble continued to direct accurate fire against nearby trenches, inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy. Inspired by his courage, Company G successfully moved forward and seized its important objective. The extraordinary courage, selfless service, and devotion to duty displayed that day by Master Sergeant Keeble was an inspiration to all around him and reflected great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.

Major General William Frishe Dean (1899 - 1981)

William Frishe Dean, Sr. (August 1, 1899–August 24, 1981) was a Major General in the United States Army during World War II and the Korean War. He received the Medal of Honor for his actions on July 20 and 21, 1950. Dean was the highest ranking American officer captured during the Korean War.
A member of ROTC in 1920, commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the California Army National Guard in 1921, Dean graduated from the University of California at Berkeley in 1922. He was tendered a Regular Army commission on October 18, 1923. Promoted to brigadier general in 1942 and then to major general in 1943, Dean served first as assistant division commander and later as division commander of the 44th Infantry Division.
In 1944, while serving in southern Germany and Austria, his troops captured 30,000 prisoners and helped force the surrender of the German 19th Army. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross for his actions.
In October 1947, he became the military governor of South Korea. He took command of the 7th Infantry Division in 1948 and moved it from Korea to Japan. After serving as Eighth U.S. Army chief of staff, he took command of the 24th Infantry Division, then headquartered at Kokura on the southern Japanese island of Kyushu, in October 1949.
When the Korean War began in June 1950, the 24th Infantry Division was the first American ground combat unit to be committed. General Dean arrived in Korea on July 3, 1950. He established his headquarters at Taejon, Korea.
His orders were to fight a delaying action against the advancing North Korean People's Army. Although he planned to withdraw from Taejon, he was asked by General Walton H. Walker, the U.S. Eighth Army Commander, to hold the city until July 20, 1950, in order to buy time to deploy other American units from Japan. His regiments had been decimated in earlier fighting, but Dean personally led tank-killer teams armed with the newly-arrived 3.5-inch rocket launchers to destroy the attacking North Korean T-34 tanks. He gained acclaim by such exploits as attacking and destroying an enemy tank armed with only a hand grenade.
The T-34 tank knocked out by General Dean in the Battle of Taejon in July 1950 was still there in 1977 as a memorial to him and the twenty-five-day battle.
On July 20, as his division fell back from Taejon, General Dean became separated from his men. Alone, he hid in woods during the day and traveled at night for over a month. On August 25, 1950, he was captured. He remained a prisoner of war of the North Koreans until his release on September 4, 1953.
In 1951, Congress voted General Dean the Medal of Honor for his actions during the defense of Taejon. The Medal was presented by President Truman on January 9, 1951 to his wife Mildred Dean, son William Dean Jr. and daughter Marjorie June Dean. Dean himself was still reported missing in action in Korea.
General Dean had no contact with the outside world until he was interviewed on December 18, 1951 by an Australian, Wilfred Burchett, who was a correspondent for Le Soir, a Belgian newspaper. This was the first time anyone had any idea he was still alive.
Dean, the highest ranking prisoner of war in the conflict, later said he had tried to commit suicide because he feared he "might squeal when they started to drive splinters under my fingernails." He had knowledge of the proposed landing at Inchon, and was worried that he might break under interrogation. He was not physically tortured, as he had feared, but was subjected to repeated interrogations that lasted up to 72 hours. He talked about inconsequential matters, later telling a Pentagon committee that, "I was trying to divert them from really starting those oriental tortures." During his third interrogation, he was prevented from committing suicide, and the interrogations stopped.
General Dean was given a hero's welcome upon his return to the United States in 1953 and showered with military and civilian honors. Dean, however, insisted he was no hero but "just a dogface soldier."
Three months after his return from Korea, Major General Dean was assigned as the Deputy Commanding General of the U.S. Sixth Army at the Presidio of San Francisco in California, where he retired. When he retired from active duty on October 31, 1955, he was, inconsistent with U.S. Army regulation, awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge for his front line service in World War II and Korea, an award he particularly cherished.
After his retirement, Dean sponsored chess tournaments in northern California and donated the General William Dean chess trophy to commemorate the general's learning to play chess while a prisoner of war in Korea.
Dean died at age 82 and was buried in San Francisco National Cemetery, San Francisco, California.
Medal of Honor citation
Rank and organization: Major General, U.S. Army, commanding general, 24th Infantry Division. Place and date: Taejon, Korea, 20 and July 21, 1950. Entered service at: California. Born: August 1, 1899, Carlyle, Ill. G.O. No.: 7, February 16, 1951.
Maj. Gen. Dean distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the repeated risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. In command of a unit suddenly relieved from occupation duties in Japan and as yet untried in combat, faced with a ruthless and determined enemy, highly trained and overwhelmingly superior in numbers, he felt it his duty to take action which to a man of his military experience and knowledge was clearly apt to result in his death. He personally and alone attacked an enemy tank while armed only with a hand grenade. He also directed the fire of his tanks from an exposed position with neither cover nor concealment while under observed artillery and small-arms fire. When the town of Taejon was finally overrun he refused to insure his own safety by leaving with the leading elements but remained behind organizing his retreating forces, directing stragglers, and was last seen assisting the wounded to a place of safety. These actions indicate that Maj. Gen. Dean felt it necessary to sustain the courage and resolution of his troops by examples of excessive gallantry committed always at the threatened portions of his frontlines. The magnificent response of his unit to this willing and cheerful sacrifice, made with full knowledge of its certain cost, is history. The success of this phase of the campaign is in large measure due to Maj. Gen. Dean's heroic leadership, courageous and loyal devotion to his men, and his complete disregard for personal safety.