Ernest Veuve (March 19, 1843 – June 17, 1916), born George Ernest Veuve, was a Swiss-born soldier in the U.S. Army who fought during 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 state ...

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 ...

as a member of the

16th U.S. Infantry The 16th Infantry Regiment ("Semper Paratus") is a regiment in the United States Army and has traditionally been a part of the 1st Infantry Division. History Formation The 16th Infantry was constituted as the 11th U.S. Infantry on 4 May 186 ...

3rd U.S. Infantry The 3rd United States Infantry Regiment is a regiment of the United States Army. It currently has three active battalions, and is readily identified by its nickname, The Old Guard, as well as Escort to the President. The regimental motto is ' ...

and

4th U.S. Cavalry The 4th Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army cavalry regiment, whose lineage is traced back to the mid-19th century. It was one of the most effective units of the Army against American Indians on the Texas frontier. Today, the regiment ex ...

. He was cited for bravery while battling the

Kiowa Kiowa () people are a Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribe and an indigenous people of the Great Plains of the United States. They migrated southward from western Montana into the Rocky Mountains in Colorado in the 17th a ...

and Comanche in the

Staked Plains The Llano Estacado (), sometimes translated into English as the Staked Plains, is a region in the Southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas. One of the largest mesas or tablelands on the North ...

in November 1874, and fought an Indian in hand-to-hand combat for 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 valor ...

.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. 193)Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs. ''Medal of Honor recipients, 1863-1978, 96th Cong., 1st sess''. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office, 1979. (pg. 1021)Hannings, Bud. ''A Portrait of the Stars and Stripes''. Glenside, Pennsylvania: Seniram Publishing, 1988. (pg. 400) O'Neal, Bill. ''Fighting Men of the Indian Wars: A Biographical Encyclopedia of the Mountain Men, Soldiers, Cowboys, and Pioneers Who Took Up Arms During America's Westward Expansion''. Stillwater, Oklahoma: Barbed Wire Press, 1991. (pg. 29) Neal, Charles M. ''Valor Across the Lone Star: The Congressional Medal of Honor in Frontier Texas''. Austin: Texas State Historical Association, 2003. (pg. 187, 194, 201) Yenne, Bill. ''Indian Wars: The Campaign for the American West''. Yardley, Pennsylvania: Westholme Publishing, 2006. (pg. 168) 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. 126)

Biography

Early life and military career

George Ernest Veuve was born in Cernier, Neuchatel, Switzerland. Although there are conflicting dates of his birth due to discrepancies in his military record, death certificate and obituary, it is generally accepted that his birth occurred on March 19, 1843. He was a

coppersmith A coppersmith, also known as a brazier, is a person who makes artifacts from copper and brass. Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc. The term "redsmith" is used for a tinsmith that uses tinsmithing tools and techniques to make copper items. Hi ...

by trade and spoke

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

, however, little is known of his early life in Switzerland prior to emigrating to the United States in early-1864. In an interview with James McCauley, a grand-nephew of Veuve, the 21-year-old immigrant enlisted in the U.S. Army near the end of the

. According to one story, he agreed to take the place of a wealthy man wanting to avoid the draft. Veuve served in a German-speaking division of volunteer troops and later participated in General William T. Sherman's March to the Sea campaign from April to May 1865. It was during this time that Veuve was attacked by a Confederate cavalryman and sustained a head wound from a sabre. Historians have been unable to verify these claims via the

National Archives and Records Administration The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It i ...

given that the state regiment that Veuve served with is not known.

Service on the frontier

His post-Civil War career, however, was well documented. A year after leaving volunteer service, Veuve enlisted in the

Regular Army A regular army is the official army of a state or country (the official armed forces), contrasting with irregular forces, such as volunteer irregular militias, private armies, mercenaries, etc. A regular army usually has the following: * a standi ...

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state lin ...

and became a member of the 16th U.S. Infantry Regiment. His 3-year enlistment term lasted from October 17, 1866, to 1869, and reenlisted at

Jackson Barracks Jackson Barracks is the headquarters of the Louisiana National Guard. It is located in the Lower 9th Ward of New Orleans, Louisiana. The base was established in 1834 and was originally known as New Orleans Barracks. On July 7, 1866, it was ren ...

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a U.S. state, state in the Deep South and South Central United States, South Central regions of the United States. It is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 20th-smal ...

on December 17, 1869. During the next five years, Veuve served with the

for frontier duty in the

Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans who held aboriginal title to their land as a sovereign ...

West Texas West Texas is a loosely defined region in the U.S. state of Texas, generally encompassing the arid and semiarid lands west of a line drawn between the cities of Wichita Falls, Abilene, and Del Rio. No consensus exists on the boundary betwe ...

and

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to ...

. He became a skilled scout and learned

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ** Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Ca ...

. He was also appointed a

farrier A farrier is a specialist in equine hoof care, including the trimming and balancing of horses' hooves and the placing of shoes on their hooves, if necessary. A farrier combines some blacksmith's skills (fabricating, adapting, and adj ...

during his time with the 4th Cavalry and was responsible for the shoeing and general care of the regiment's horses. It was at the end of his second tour of duty that took part in campaigns against the

Plains Indians Plains Indians or Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies are the Native American tribes and First Nation band governments who have historically lived on the Interior Plains (the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies) o ...

in the Texas frontier during the early 1870s. On November 3, 1874, Veuve fought against the

and Comanche in the

. In the midst of battle, he became separated from his company and was attacked by an Indian whom he defeated in hand-to-hand combat. Veuve was one of several men cited for bravery in this engagement and, on October 13, 1875, received the

for the "gallant manner in which he faced a desperate Indian".

Retirement and later years

Discharged at the end of the year, Veuve reenlisted for another 5-year term at Jackson Barracks on January 16, 1875, and was assigned to the

3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment The 3rd United States Infantry Regiment is a regiment of the United States Army. It currently has three active battalions, and is readily identified by its nickname, The Old Guard, as well as Escort to the President. The regimental motto is ' ...

. Almost three years later, he had become a sergeant and was among the first soldiers to be stationed at Fort Missoula in the

Montana Territory The Territory of Montana was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1864, until November 8, 1889, when it was admitted as the 41st state in the Union as the state of Montana. Original boundaries ...

arriving by wagon train on November 14, 1875. He served as the fort's

quartermaster Quartermaster is a military term, the meaning of which depends on the country and service. In land armies, a quartermaster is generally a relatively senior soldier who supervises stores or barracks and distributes supplies and provisions. In ...

for several years. On January 22, 1880, he married 34-year-old Anna McCarty a week after leaving military service. The two had met in Missoula while McCarty, originally from County Cork, Ireland, was visiting her sister Margaret. She had previously lived in Washington, D.C. but decided to permanently settle in the area following her marriage. Though retired, Veuve was contracted by the fort's quartermaster department to haul wood to Fort Missoula. He lived with his wife and daughter, Alina Brisbin, at their East Pine Street residence until his death on June 17, 1916, at age 73. Buried at Missoula Cemetery, the arrangements of his funeral were handled by the Marsh Funeral Home and the

Independent Order of Odd Fellows The Independent Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF) is a non-political and non-sectarian international fraternal order of Odd Fellowship. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Wildey in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Evolving from the Order of Odd ...

. In 1957, the US Army Reserve Center in Missoula was named for and dedicated to Veuve. Shortly before

Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who have fought and died while serving in the United States armed forces. It is observed on the last Monda ...

in 2006, a new bronze plaque was placed on his grave replacing the standard government issue headstone and recognized Veuve as an MOH recipient.

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Farrier, Company A, 4th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Staked Plains, Tex., 3 November 1874. Entered service at: ------. Birth: Switzerland. Date of issue: 13 October 1875. Citation:

Gallant manner in which he faced a desperate Indian.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Veuve, Ernest 1843 births 1916 deaths Union Army soldiers American military personnel of the Indian Wars United States Army Medal of Honor recipients People from the canton of Neuchâtel People from Missoula, Montana United States Army soldiers Foreign-born Medal of Honor recipients Swiss emigrants to the United States American Indian Wars recipients of the Medal of Honor