Edwin L. Elwood (1847 – September 13, 1907) was an American soldier in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

who served with the 8th U.S. Cavalry during the

Indian Wars The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, was a conflict initially fought by European colonial empires, the United States, and briefly the Confederate States of America and Republic of Texas agains ...

. He took part in campaigns against

Cochise Cochise ( ; Apache: or , ; later or , ; June 8, 1874) was the leader of the Chiricahui local group of the Chokonen and principal nantan of the Chokonen band of a Chiricahua Apache. A key war leader during the Apache Wars, he led an upri ...

and the

Apache Indians The Apache ( ) are several Southern Athabaskan language-speaking peoples of the Southwestern United States, Southwest, the Southern Plains and Northern Mexico. They are linguistically related to the Navajo. They migrated from the Athabascan ho ...

in the

Arizona Territory The Territory of Arizona, commonly known as the Arizona Territory, was a territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863, until February 14, 1912, when the remaining extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the ...

in the late-1860s and was one of thirty-two men who received the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

for gallantry during the fighting in the

Chiricahua Mountains The Chiricahua Mountains massif is a large mountain range in southeastern Arizona which is part of the Basin and Range province of the west and southwestern United States and northwest Mexico; the range is part of the Coronado National Forest. T ...

, known as the "Campaign of the Rocky Mesa", on October 20, 1869.

Biography

Edwin L. Elwood was born in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

, in 1847.Melzer, Richard. ''Buried Treasures: Famous and Unusual Gravesites in New Mexico History''. Santa Fe: Sunstone Press, 2007. (pg. 282) He later moved to

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

, where he enlisted in the

. He was sent to the

for frontier duty with the 8th U.S. Cavalry and took part in the

Apache Wars The Apache Wars were a series of armed conflicts between the United States Army and various Apache tribal confederations fought in the Southwestern United States, southwest between 1849 and 1886, though minor hostilities continued until as l ...

. Elwood was among the soldiers under Lieutenant William H. Winters who pursued

and the

following the massacre of stage coach passengers en route to Tucson, and an attack on a group of cowboys in the Sulphur Springs Valley, on October 5, 1868. The cavalrymen finally confronted Cochise at his stronghold in the

, in what would become known as the "Campaign of the Rocky Mesa", on October 20, 1869. Elwood was shot in the right side of his chest while battling the Apaches but recovered from his injuries. He was cited for "gallantry in action" in this engagement and was among the 32 members of the 1st and 8th U.S. Cavalry who received the

on February 14, 1870.Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs. ''Medal of Honor recipients, 1863-1973, 93rd Cong., 1st sess''. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office, 1973. (pg. 288)Nunnally, Michael L. ''American Indian Wars: A Chronology of Confrontations Between Native Peoples and Settlers and the United States Military, 1500s-1901''. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland, 2007. (pg. ) Elwood died in

Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , literal translation, lit. "Holy Faith") is the capital city, capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Santa Fe County. With over 89,000 residents, Santa Fe is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, fourt ...

, on September 13, 1907, at the age of 60. He was interred at the

Santa Fe National Cemetery Santa Fe National Cemetery is a United States National Cemetery in the city of Santa Fe, in Santa Fe County, New Mexico. It encompasses , and as of 2021, had 68,000 interments. Administered by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, i ...

.Nava, Margaret M. ''Remembering: A Guide to New Mexico Cemeteries, Monuments and Memorials''. Santa Fe: Sunstone Press, 2006. (pg. 110)

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Private, Company G, 8th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Chiricahua Mountains, Ariz., October 20, 1869. Entered service at: California. Birth: St. Louis, Mo. Date of issue: February 14, 1870. Citation:

Gallantry in action.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Elwood, Edwin L. 1847 births 1907 deaths United States Army Medal of Honor recipients Military personnel from St. Louis People from Santa Fe, New Mexico United States Army soldiers American Indian Wars recipients of the Medal of Honor Burials at Santa Fe National Cemetery

Biography

Medal of Honor citation

See also

References

Further reading

External links