Joseph A. Cable (January 1, 1848 – October 15, 1877) was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, 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 th ...

soldier during the

American Indian Wars The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, was a conflict initially fought by European colonization of the Americas, European colonial empires, the United States, and briefly the Confederate States o ...

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 his actions at Cedar Creek, Montana and other campaigns.

Life

Joseph A. Cable was born on January 1, 1848, in

Cape Girardeau, Missouri Cape Girardeau ( , ; colloquially referred to as "Cape") is a city in Cape Girardeau County, Missouri, Cape Girardeau and Scott County, Missouri, Scott Counties in the U.S. state of Missouri. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the ...

. Later, his official residence was listed as

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the List of municipalities in Wisconsin by population, second-most populous city in the state, with a population of 269,840 at the 2020 Uni ...

. Cable enlisted into the United States Army, and was assigned as a Private to Company I, of the 5th United States Infantry Regiment. While serving in that organization, he won the

for his actions in the

Battle of Cedar Creek The Battle of Cedar Creek, or Battle of Belle Grove, was fought on October 19, 1864, during the American Civil War. The fighting took place in the Shenandoah Valley of Northern Virginia, near Cedar Creek, Middletown, and the Valley Pike. D ...

Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

on October 21, 1876. He was promoted to

Corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...

, then mortally wounded at the

Battle of Bear Paw The Battle of Bear Paw (also sometimes called Battle of the Bears Paw or Battle of the Bears Paw Mountains) was the final engagement of the Nez Perce War of 1877. Following a running fight from North Central Idaho, north central Idaho Territor ...

, Montana, and died of wounds on October 15, 1877. Some have claimed that he was interred in the Custer National Cemetery, in

Crow Agency, Montana Crow Agency () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Big Horn County, Montana, United States and is near the actual location for the Little Bighorn National Monument and re-enactment produced by the Real Bird family known as Battle of the Lit ...

, although the cemetery has no burial record for him.

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Private, Company I, 5th United States Infantry Regiment. Place and date: At Cedar Creek,

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 ...

, October 21, 1876. Entered service at:

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. Born: January 1, 1848,

. Date of issue: 1877 Citation:

For gallantry in engagements at Cedar Creek, Montana and other campaigns during the period 21 October 1876 to 8 January 1877, while serving with Company I,
5th U.S. Infantry The 5th Infantry Regiment (nicknamed the "Bobcats") is an infantry regiment of the United States Army that traces its origins to 1808. Origins: War of 1812 The 5th Infantry Regiment was created by an Act of United States Congress, Congress of ...
.

References

General : Inline 1848 births 1877 deaths People from Cape Girardeau, Missouri Military personnel from Madison, Wisconsin United States Army Medal of Honor recipients United States Army soldiers American Indian Wars recipients of the Medal of Honor {{US-army-bio-stub

Life

Medal of Honor citation

See also

References