Robert Goldthwaite Carter (October 29, 1845 – January 4, 1936) was a

US Cavalry The United States Cavalry, or U.S. Cavalry, was the designation of the mounted force of the United States Army by an act of Congress on 3 August 1861.Price (1883) p. 103, 104 This act converted the U.S. Army's two regiments of dragoons, one r ...

officer who participated in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

and the

Indian Wars The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, were fought by European governments and colonists in North America, and later by the United States and Canadian governments and American and Canadian settle ...

, most notably against the Comanche during which he received the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valo ...

for his role against a Comanche raiding party at Brazos River in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

on October 10, 1871. He became a successful author in his later years writing several books based on his military career, including ''On the Border with Mackenzie'' (1935), as well as a series of booklets detailing his years as an Indian fighter on the Texas frontier. Only 100 of these were published for private distribution and are considered extremely rare surviving only in selected excerpts included in ''On the Border with Mackenzie''.

Biography

Born in Bridgton, Maine, Carter moved to

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

with his family in 1847, and again in 1857, to

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

. He was preparing to enter Phillips Academy when Carter enlisted as a private in the 22nd Massachusetts Infantry at the start of the

and remained with the

Army of the Potomac The Army of the Potomac was the principal Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the surrender of the Confede ...

from August 5, 1862, until October 4, 1864. During the war, he took part in the Battle of Antietam, Gettysburg, the Wilderness and the

Siege of Petersburg The Richmond–Petersburg campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War. Although it is more popularly known as the Siege of Petersburg, it was not a cla ...

as well as other minor engagements. In July 1865, he began attending

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

and was eventually commissioned a second lieutenant and assigned to the 4th U.S. Cavalry on June 15, 1870. During the next several years, Carter would participate in a number of expeditions against the Comanche and other tribes in the

-area. It was during one of these campaigns that he was brevetted first lieutenant and awarded the Medal of Honor for his ''"most distinguished gallantry"'' against the Comanche in Blanco Canyon on a tributary of the Brazos River on October 10, 1871. Carter would suffer a severe injury during the battle, his left leg being shattered as his horse fell against a rock, which would eventually result in his early retirement. He would officially receive the medal on January 23, 1900. Returning to active duty, he joined Colonel

Ranald Mackenzie Ranald Slidell Mackenzie, also called Bad Hand, (July 27, 1840 – January 19, 1889) was a career United States Army officer and general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was described by General Ulysses S. Grant as its ...

in several campaigns including against the Kickapoo of northern Mexico in May 1873 and awarded a brevet to captain. He did win promotion to first lieutenant on February 21, 1875, although his leg injury disqualified him from active field duty and forced him to retire on June 28, 1876. Although he eventually recovered from his leg injury after proper treatment, his requests to return to active service were denied by the US Army; instead he was promoted to captain on the retired list in 1904.https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/America/United_States/Army/USMA/Cullums_Register/2349*.html/ He taught school and later headed the

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

-bureau of the Public Service Publishing Company in New York City. He would also write a number of booklets and books including ''Four Brothers in Blue'' (1913) and ''The Old Sergeant's Story'' (1926). However, the most successful was his memoir ''On the Border With Mackenzie'' (1935) which was published as the age of 90. He died at Washington, D.C. on January 4, 1936, and buried in

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

. Captain Carter was a Companion of the

Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS), or simply the Loyal Legion is a United States patriotic order, organized April 15, 1865, by three veteran officers of the Army. The original membership was composed of members ...

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Second Lieutenant, 4th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: On Brazos, River, Tex., October 10, 1871. Entered service at: Bradford, Mass. Birth: Bridgeport, Maine. Date of issue: February 27, 1900. Citation: : Held the left of the line with a few men during the charge of a large body of Indians, after the right of the line had retreated, and by delivering a rapid fire succeeded in checking the enemy until other troops came to the rescue.

Bibliography

Books

*''The Boy Soldier at Gettysburg'' (1877) *''Four Brothers in Blue'' (1913) *''The Old Sergeant's Story'' (1926) *''On the Border With Mackenzie'' (1935)

Pamphlets

*''Record of the Military Service of First Lieutenant and Brevet Captain Robert Goldthwaite Carter, U.S. Army''. (1904) *''Tragedies of Canon Blanco: A Story of the Texas Panhandle'' (1919) *''The Mackenzie Raid into Mexico'' (1919) *''Massacre of Salt Creek Prairie and the Cowboys' Verdict''. (1919) *''On the Trail of Deserters: a Phenomenal Capture by Captain Robert Goldthwaite Carter''. (1920) *''Pursuit of Kicking Bird: a Campaign in Texas 'Bad Lands. (1920)

References

: *Greene, Jerome A. ''Battles and Skirmishes of the Great Sioux War, 1876–1877: The Military View''. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1993. *Thrapp, Dan L. ''Encyclopedia of Frontier Biography: In Three Volumes, Volume I (A–F)''. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1988.

External links

* * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Carter, Robert G. 1845 births 1936 deaths United States Army Medal of Honor recipients People of the Great Sioux War of 1876 People from Bridgton, Maine Union Army soldiers Union Army officers United States Army officers American people of the Indian Wars Burials at Arlington National Cemetery American Indian Wars recipients of the Medal of Honor