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Honoring American TroopsMedal of Honor Archive

Private · U.S. Army

John O'Dea

Private John O'Dea, 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 Ireland

Private John O'Dea 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 D, 8th Missouri Infantry. O'Dea was about 24 years old.

99 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on July 12, 1894, 31 years after the action.

O'Dea was born in 1839 in Limerick, County Limerick, Ireland — one of 258 recipients born in Ireland. His Medal of Honor is credited to Bloomington, McLean County, Illinois. O'Dea died on July 2, 1905 in Quincy, Illinois, at the age of about 66. He is buried at Sunset Cemetery in Illinois Veterans Home, Illinois.

O'Dea is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 210 credited to Illinois.

Official Medal of Honor citation

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

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

Places

  • Born: Ireland — map
  • Died: Quincy — map

Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in Illinois →

Timeline

  1. 1839
    Born in Limerick, County Limerick, Ireland
  2. May 22, 1863
    Act of valor — Vicksburg, Mississippi
    Age about 24. Company D, 8th Missouri Infantry
  3. July 12, 1894
    Medal of Honor presented
  4. July 2, 1905
    Died in Quincy, Illinois
    Age about 66.
  5. Resting place
    Sunset Cemetery
    Illinois Veterans Home, Illinois

Biography

John O'Dea (c. 1839 – 1905) was a Union Army soldier during the American Civil War. He received the Medal of Honor for gallantry during the Siege of Vicksburg on May 22, 1863.

From the Wikipedia article “John O'Dea”, 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 Illinois

John Shapland Private · Army Civil War · 1863 Andrew Jackson Smith Corporal · Army Civil War · 1864 ✦ TP Thomas H. l Payne First Lieutenant · Army Civil War · 1865 WB William Wallace Burritt Private · Army Civil War · 1863 MN Marcellus J. Newman Private · Army Civil War · 1864 WB William Perkins Black Captain · Army Civil War · 1862
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.