James Sweeney (Medal of Honor) explained
James Sweeney (September 24, 1845 – June 26, 1931) was a Union Army soldier during the American Civil War. He received the Medal of Honor for gallantry during the Battle of Cedar Creek fought near Middletown, Virginia on October 19, 1864. The battle was the decisive engagement of Major General Philip Sheridan's Valley Campaigns of 1864 and was the largest battle fought in the Shenandoah Valley.
Military career
Sweeney enlisted in the 1st Vermont Cavalry and was sworn into federal service on Tuesday, November 19, 1861. He saw service with regiment in the eastern theater. He was at the Battle of Winchester, the Battle of Gettysburg, the Third Battle of Winchester, and the Battle of Cedar Creek. A private in Company A, he captured a regimental color, an ambulance, and three officers including the mortally wounded Maj. Gen. Stephen Ramseur at Cedar Creek for which he was awarded the Medal of Honor.
Medal of Honor citation
Rank and organization: Private, Company A, 1st Vermont Cavalry. Place and date: At Cedar Creek, Virginia, October 19, 1864. Entered service at: Burlington, Vermont. Born: September 24, 1845, Manchester, England. Date of issue: November 26, 1864.
Citation:
The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Corporal Frederick A. Lyon, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism on 19 October 1864, while serving with Company A, 1st Vermont Cavalry, in action at Cedar Creek, Virginia. With one companion, Corporal Lyon captured the flag of a Confederate regiment, three officers, and an ambulance with its mules and driver.
The companion mentioned in his citation was corporal Frederick A. Lyon, who also received the Medal of Honor. Sweeney was sent to Washington, D.C., with the captured Confederate battle flag. He was personally introduced to Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton by General George Custer. Stanton personally presented the Medal of Honor to Sweeney, who was also promoted to corporal.
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References
Notes
Citations
Sources
- Book: Benedict, George Grenville . George Grenville Benedict . Vermont in the Civil War: A History of the Part Taken by the Vermont Soldiers and Sailors in the War for the Union, 1861-5 . The First Cavalry Regiment . Free Press Association . Burlington, VT . II . 1886 . 669–670 . en . https://archive.org/details/vermontincivilwa02bene/page/533/mode/1up . September 25, 2015 . 02015600 . 301252961 . pdf.
- Book: Beyer . Walter F. . Keydel . Oscar F. . 1901 . Deeds of Valor: how America's Heroes Won the Medal of Honor: A History of Our Country's Recent Wars in 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 Exploration . I . Perrien-Keydel Co. . Detroit, MI . 447 . 557990533 . tmp96003978 . 1st . en . pdf . May 13, 2024 .
- Book: Dyer, Frederick Henry. Frederick H. Dyer. A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion. Dyer Pub. Co.. Des Moines, IA. 1908. B01BUFJ76Q. PDF. August 8, 2015. 4, 45, 233, 274, 301, 309, 326, 351, 378, 409, 1647-1648.
- Book: Federal Publishing Company. Military Affairs and Regimental Histories of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, And Delaware. Federal Publishing Company. The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal States, 1861–65 – Records of the Regiments in the Union army – Cyclopedia of battles – Memoirs of Commanders and Soldiers.. I. 1908 . . 694018100 . PDF . 128–129.
- Book: Lewis, Thomas A. . 1991 . 1988 . The Guns of Cedar Creek . Dell . New York, NY . 141–142 . 978-0-440-50414-6 . 24338344 . 87046153 . Dell Paperback 1991 . en . pdf . May 13, 2024 . registration .
- Book: Peck, Theodore Safford . Theodore S. Peck . 1892 . Revised Roster of Vermont Volunteers and lists of Vermonters Who Served in the Army and Navy of the United States During the War of the Rebellion, 1861-66 . Press of the Watchman Publishing Co. . Montpelier, VT . 225, 741 . 2027/coo1.ark:/13960/t9p27g94k?urlappend=%3Bseq=241 . 02016124 . en . pdf . November 25, 2015 . }
- Web site: 2016 . 1st Vermont Volunteer Cavalry Regiment . May 13, 2024 . The Civil War in the East . .
- Web site: Battle Unit Details, 1st Regiment, Vermont Cavalry . nps.gov . January 19, 2007 . . May 13, 2024 . .
- Web site: 1st Vermont Cavalry . May 13, 2024 . vermontcivilwar.org . 2004 . Vermont in the Civil War . https://web.archive.org/web/20220706221202/http://www.vermontcivilwar.org/units/ca/ . July 6, 2022 . .
- Web site: Frederick A. Lyon . www.mohconvention.com . November 20, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181120015732/http://www.mohconvention.com/tn-recipient/93/frederick-a-lyon/ . November 20, 2018 . unfit . . May 13, 2024.
- Web site: Medal of Honor Recipients – Civil War (M-Z) . U.S. Army Center of Military History . history.army.mil . December 14, 2007 . May 13, 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20071214025428/http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/civwarmz.html . December 14, 2007 . dead . .
- Web site: Medal of Honor Recipient . Congressional Medal of Honor Society . November 26, 2014 . . May 13, 2024.
- Web site: Sightline Media Group . 2020 . Hall of Valor: The Military Medals Database . The Hall of Valor Project . May 13, 2024 . .
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