Henry Blanchard Freeman (January 17, 1837 – October 16, 1915) was an American soldier 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 valor during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

Biography

Henry Blanchard Freeman was born in Mount Vernon, Ohio and enlisted in the Army in 1856 at the age of 19. Within a few months of the outbreak of the

, he was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant of the 18th Infantry in October 1861. He served with the 18th Infantry throughout the Civil War. He received the Medal of Honor on February 17, 1894, for his actions at the

Battle of Stones River The Battle of Stones River, also known as the Second Battle of Murfreesboro, was fought from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863, in Middle Tennessee, as the culmination of the Stones River Campaign in the Western Theater of the American Ci ...

in December 1862. He was taken prisoner at the

Battle of Chickamauga The Battle of Chickamauga, fought on September 18–20, 1863, between the United States Army and Confederate States Army, Confederate forces in the American Civil War, marked the end of a U.S. Army offensive, the Chickamauga Campaign, in southe ...

and was held at

Libby Prison Libby Prison was a Confederate States of America, Confederate prison at Richmond, Virginia, during the American Civil War. In 1862 it was designated to hold officer prisoners from the Union Army, taking in numbers from the nearby Seven Days battl ...

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

. He escaped from prison, was re-captured and again escaped. He remained on active duty with the regular Army after the Civil War and served in campaigns against the Sioux tribe and in the Spanish-American War. He was promoted to colonel and became commander of the African-American 24th Infantry on October 4, 1898. He was promoted to brigadier general on January 16, 1901 and was retired the next day, having reached the mandatory retirement age of 64. General Freeman was a Companion of the Kansas Commandery 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 military order organized on April 15, 1865, by three veteran officers of the Union Army. The original membership was consisted ...

. General Freeman is buried in

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Awards

Civil War Campaign Medal The Civil War Campaign Medal is considered the first campaign service medal of the United States Armed Forces. The decoration was awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces who had served in the American Civil War between 1861 and 1865. ...

Indian Campaign Medal The Indian Campaign Medal is a decoration established by War Department General Orders 12, 1907.

Spanish War Service Medal The Spanish War Service Medal was a United States military medal of the U.S. Army which was established by an act of the U.S. Congress on 9 July 1918 (40 Stat. 873). The medal recognizes those members of the Army and of the U.S. Volunteers who per ...

Army of Cuban Occupation Medal The Army of Cuban Occupation Medal was a military award created by the United States War Department in June 1915. The medal recognizes those service members who performed garrison occupation duty in the United States Protectorate over Cuba, foll ...

Philippine Campaign Medal The Philippine Campaign Medal is a medal of the United States Armed Forces which was created to denote service of U.S. military men in the Philippine–American War between the years of 1899 and 1913. Although a single service medal, the Philippin ...

Medal of Honor citation

Citation:

The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to First Lieutenant (Infantry) Henry Blanchard Freeman, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism on 31 December 1862, while serving with 18th U.S. Infantry, in action at Stone River, Tennessee. First Lieutenant Freeman voluntarily went to the front and picked up and carried to a place of safety, under a heavy fire from the enemy, an acting field officer who had been wounded, and was about to fall into enemy hands.Congressional Medal of Honor Society
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Legacy

transport ship A troopship (also troop ship or troop transport or trooper) is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime. Troopships were often drafted from commercial shipping fleets, and were unable to land troops directly on shore, typic ...

, the , was named in his honor.

Dates of rank

*Private, Company G, 10th Infantry - 16 July 1855 to 5 February 1856 *Private and First Sergeant, Company B, 2nd Battalion, 15th Infantry - 8 July to 4 November 1861 *Second Lieutenant - 18th Infantry, 30 October 1861 *First Lieutenant - 30 May 1862 *Brevet Captain - 31 December 1862 for gallant and meritorious service in the

Battle of Murfreesboro The Battle of Stones River, also known as the Second Battle of Murfreesboro, was fought from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863, in Middle Tennessee, as the culmination of the Stones River Campaign in the Western Theater of the American Ci ...

, Tennessee *Brevet Major - 30 September 1863 for gallant and meritorious service in the battle of Chickamauga, Georgia *Captain - 28 July 1866 *Transferred to 27th Infantry - 21 September 1866 *Unassigned - 14 June 1869 *Assigned to 7th Infantry - 7 January 1870 *Major, 16th Infantry - 19 June 1891 *Lieutenant Colonel, 5th Infantry - 30 January 1895 *Colonel, 24th Infantry - 4 October 1898 *Brigadier General - 16 January 1901 *Brigadier General, Retired - 17 January 1901

References

External links

Arlington National CemeteryMilitary Times
{{DEFAULTSORT:Freeman, Henry Blanchard 1837 births 1915 deaths Union army soldiers United States Army Medal of Honor recipients People from Mount Vernon, Ohio People of Ohio in the American Civil War American Civil War recipients of the Medal of Honor Burials at Arlington National Cemetery