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Honoring American TroopsMedal of Honor Archive

Private · U.S. Army

Jacob Swegheimer

Private Jacob Swegheimer, Army, received the Medal of Honor for actions on May 22, 1863 in Vicksburg, Mississippi during the Civil War.

U.S. Civil War May 22, 1863Born in Germany

Private Jacob Swegheimer was a soldier in the U.S. Army who received the Medal of Honor for his actions on May 22, 1863 in Vicksburg, Mississippi during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with Company I, 54th Ohio Infantry. Swegheimer was 20 years old.

99 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on July 14, 1894, 31 years after the action.

Swegheimer was born on February 25, 1843 in Oldtown, Baden, Germany — one of 130 recipients born in Germany. His Medal of Honor is credited to Paducah, McCracken County, Kentucky. Swegheimer died on March 15, 1917 in Delaware, Ohio, at the age of 74. He is buried at Oak Grove Cemetery in Delaware, Ohio. Records also list him as Swickheimer, John Jacob.

Swegheimer is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 44 credited to Kentucky.

Official Medal of Honor citation

Gallantry in the charge of the "volunteer storming party."

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

Places

  • Buried: Oak Grove Cemetery — map

Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in Kentucky →

Timeline

  1. February 25, 1843
    Born in Oldtown, Baden, Germany
  2. May 22, 1863
    Act of valor — Vicksburg, Mississippi
    Age 20. Company I, 54th Ohio Infantry
  3. July 14, 1894
    Medal of Honor presented
  4. March 15, 1917
    Died in Delaware, Ohio
    Age 74.
  5. Resting place
    Oak Grove Cemetery
    Delaware, Ohio

Biography

Jacob Swegheimer (also listed as John Swegheimer, 25 February 1843 - 15 March 1917) was a private in the United States Army who was awarded the Medal of Honor for gallantry during the American Civil War. He was awarded the medal on 14 July 1894 for actions performed on 22 May 1863 during the Battle of Vicksburg.

From the Wikipedia article “Jacob Swegheimer”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →

Also honored for actions on May 22, 1863

CA Christian Albert Private · Army Civil War · 1863 WA William J. Archinal Corporal · Army Civil War · 1863 CA Clinton Lycurgus Armstrong Private · Army Civil War · 1863 DA David Ayers Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1863 JA John G. k Ayers Private · Army Civil War · 1863 WB William H. Barringer Private · Army Civil War · 1863 MB Matthew Bickford Corporal · Army Civil War · 1863 TB Thomas A. Blasdel Private · Army Civil War · 1863 EB Emmer Bowen Private · Army Civil War · 1863 UB Uriah H. Brown Private · Army Civil War · 1863 WB William P. Brownell Coxswain · Navy Civil War · 1863 JB John C. Buckley Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1863

See all 100 recipients for May 22, 1863 →

More Civil War recipients from Kentucky

Mary Edwards Walker Contract Surgeon · Army Civil War · 1861 Walter Thorn Second Lieutenant · Army Civil War · 1865 HM Henry B. Mattingly Private · Army Civil War · 1864 John Francis Weston Major · Army Civil War · 1865 OH Oliver Hughes Corporal · Army Civil War · 1865
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.