Sergeant Jefferson Coates, a soldier in the U.S. Army, received the Medal of Honor for gallantry on July 1, 1863 in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with Company H, 7th Wisconsin Infantry. Coates was 19 years old.
9 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on June 29, 1866, 2 years after the action.
Coates was born on August 24, 1843 in Grant County, Wisconsin. His Medal of Honor is credited to Boscobel, Grant County, Wisconsin. Coates died on January 27, 1880 in Dorchester, Nebraska, at the age of 36. He is buried at Dorchester City Cemetery in Dorchester, Nebraska. Records also list him as Coates, Francis Jefferson.
Coates is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 50 credited to Wisconsin.
Official Medal of Honor citation
Unsurpassed courage in battle, where he had both eyes shot out.
Citation text: U.S. Government, public domain.
How he died
- Manner of death: natural causes
- Cause of death: pneumonia
- Age at death: 36
- Resting place: Dorchester City Cemetery
Cause and manner of death: Wikidata.
Battles and campaigns
Also served in: Battle of South Mountain, American Civil War.
Places
Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in Wisconsin →
Timeline
- August 24, 1843Born in Grant County, Wisconsin
- July 1, 1863Act of valor — Gettysburg, PennsylvaniaAge 19. Company H, 7th Wisconsin Infantry
- June 29, 1866Medal of Honor presented
- January 27, 1880Died in Dorchester, NebraskaAge 36.
- Resting placeDorchester City CemeteryDorchester, Nebraska
Biography
Francis Jefferson Coates (August 24, 1843 – January 27, 1880) was a soldier in the Union Army during the American Civil War and one of 64 men who received the Medal of Honor for actions during the Battle of Gettysburg.
From the Wikipedia article “Jefferson Coates”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →
Further reading
- Jefferson Coates: Unsurpassed Couragecmohs.org · 2022
