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Honoring American TroopsMedal of Honor Archive

First Sergeant · U.S. Army

George Washington Roosevelt

First Sergeant George Washington Roosevelt, Army, received the Medal of Honor for actions on July 2, 1863 at Bull Run & Gettysburg, Virginia & Pennsylvania during the Civil War.

U.S. Civil War July 2, 1863

First Sergeant George Washington Roosevelt, a soldier in the U.S. Army, received the Medal of Honor for gallantry on July 2, 1863 at Bull Run & Gettysburg, Virginia & Pennsylvania during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with Company K, 26th Pennsylvania Infantry. Roosevelt was 19 years old.

27 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on July 2, 1887, 24 years after the action. He later rose to the rank of Brevet Captain.

Roosevelt was born on February 14, 1844 in Chester County, Pennsylvania. Roosevelt died on April 15, 1907 in Brussels, Belgium, at the age of 63. He is buried at Oak Hill Cemetery in Washington, District of Columbia. His medal is held by Congressional Medal of Honor Society, Mt. Pleasant, SC.

Roosevelt is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 380 credited to Pennsylvania.

★ Flags & Colors

Official Medal of Honor citation

At Bull Run, Va., recaptured the colors, which had been seized by the enemy. At Gettysburg captured a Confederate color bearer and colors, in which effort he was severely wounded.

Citation text: U.S. Government, public domain.

Wounds and injuries

What the citation records about his wounds:

At Gettysburg captured a Confederate color bearer and colors, in which effort he was severely wounded.
  • Age at death: 63
  • Resting place: Oak Hill Cemetery

Places

  • Born: Chester County — map
  • Died: Brussels-Capital Region — map
  • Buried: Oak Hill Cemetery — map

Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in Pennsylvania →

Timeline

  1. February 14, 1844
    Born in Chester County, Pennsylvania
  2. July 2, 1863
    Act of valor — Bull Run & Gettysburg, Virginia & Pennsylvania
    Age 19. Company K, 26th Pennsylvania Infantry
  3. July 2, 1887
    Medal of Honor presented
  4. April 15, 1907
    Died in Brussels, Belgium
    Age 63.
  5. Resting place
    Oak Hill Cemetery
    Washington, District of Columbia

Biography

Brevet Captain George Washington Roosevelt (February 14, 1843 – April 14, 1907), received the Medal of Honor for heroism during the American Civil War.

From the Wikipedia article “George W. Roosevelt”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →

Also honored for actions on July 2, 1863

Nathaniel M. Allen Corporal · Army Civil War · 1863 CC Casper R. Carlisle Private · Army Civil War · 1863 Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain Colonel · Army Civil War · 1863 Harrison Clark Corporal · Army Civil War · 1863 John Barclay Fassett Captain · Army Civil War · 1863 Chester S. Furman Corporal · Army Civil War · 1863 RG Richard J. Gage Private · Army Civil War · 1863 JH John William Hart Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1863 LH Lemuel F. Holland Corporal · Army Civil War · 1863 TH Thomas Horan Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1863 GH George L. Houghton Private · Army Civil War · 1863 WJ Wallace W. Johnson Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1863

See all 28 recipients for July 2, 1863 →

More Civil War recipients from Pennsylvania

RW Richard Willis Coxswain · Navy Civil War · 1865 FB Felix Brannigan Private · Army Civil War · 1863 JC James G. Clark Private · Army Civil War · 1864 Martin E. Scheibner Private · Army Civil War · 1863 GS George J. Shopp Private · Army Civil War · 1865 BL Benjamin Lloyd Coal Heaver · Navy Civil War · 1864
Sources. Service and award details compiled from the recipient record of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, Wikidata and Wikipedia. The narrative summary is generated from these records. Spotted an error? Send a correction.