John O'Callaghan (Medal of Honor)

Sergeant John O'Callaghan (fl. 1868 – 1870) was an American soldier in the United States Army who served with the 8th U.S. Cavalry Regiment during the Indian Wars. He was among the 34 men received the Medal of Honor for "bravery in scouts and actions" during several engagements against the Apache Indians in the Arizona Territory between August and October 1868.

John O'Callaghan
Born?
New York City, New York, United States
Died?
San Francisco, California
AllegianceUnited States of America
Service/branchUnited States Army
Years of servicec. 1868–1869
RankSergeant
Unit8th U.S. Cavalry
Battles/warsIndian Wars
Apache Wars
AwardsMedal of Honor

Biography

John O'Callaghan was born in New York City, New York, United States. O'Callaghan later moved to San Francisco, California. While living in San Francisco, O'Callaghan enlisted in the United States Army. Assigned to frontier duty with B Company of the Eighth United States Cavalry regiment, O'Callaghan participated in campaigns against the Apache Indians in the Arizona Territory during the late 1860s and eventually rose through the non-commissioned ranks, gaining promotion to the rank of sergeant. Between August and October 1868, O'Callaghan was involved in several engagements with the Apache and was cited for "bravery in scouts and actions against Indians". On July 24, 1869, in one of the U.S. Army's largest award presentations at the time, O'Callaghan and thirty other members, including Private Michael O'Regan, of his regiment received the Medal of Honor, the United States' highest military decoration awarded in cases of "conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her life above and beyond the call of duty while engaged in an action against an enemy of the United States".[1][2][3][4][5][6]

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Sergeant, Company B, 8th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: Arizona, August to October 1868. Entered service at: ------. Birth: New York, N.Y. Date of issue: 24 July 1869.

Citation:

Bravery in scouts and actions against Indians.[7]

See also

References
  1. Beyer, Walter F. and Oscar Frederick Keydel, ed. Deeds of Valor: From Records in the Archives of the United States Government; how American Heroes Won the Medal of Honor; History of Our Recent Wars and Explorations, from Personal Reminiscences and Records of Officers and Enlisted Men who Were Rewarded by Congress for Most Conspicuous Acts of Bravery on the Battle-field, on the High Seas and in Arctic Explorations. Vol. 2. Detroit: Perrien-Keydel Company, 1906. (pg. 145)
  2. Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs. Medal of Honor recipients, 1863-1973, 93rd Cong., 1st sess. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office, 1973.
  3. Manning, Robert, ed. Above and Beyond: A History of the Medal of Honor from the Civil War to Vietnam. Boston: Boston Publishing Company, 1985. ISBN 0-939526-19-0
  4. Yenne, Bill. Indian Wars: The Campaign for the American West. Yardley, Pennsylvania: Westholme Publishing, 2006. (pg. 139) ISBN 1-59416-016-3
  5. Sterner, C. Douglas (1999). "MOH Citation for John O'Callaghan". MOH Recipients: Indian Campaigns. HomeofHeroes.com. Retrieved June 23, 2010.
  6. Army Times Publishing Company. "Military Times Hall of Valor: James Anderson". Awards and Citations: Medal of Honor. MilitaryTimes.com. Retrieved June 23, 2010.
  7. "Medal of Honor recipients". Indian War Campaigns. United States Army Center of Military History. June 8, 2009. Retrieved June 29, 2009.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.