Serving as a soldier in the U.S. Army, Wagoner John P. Schnitzer received the Medal of Honor for his actions on April 23, 1882 at Horseshoe Canyon, New Mexico during the Indian Campaigns. At the time he was serving with Troop G, 4th U.S. Cavalry. Schnitzer was about 28 years old.
One other service member also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on August 17, 1896, 14 years after the action.
Schnitzer was born in 1854 in Kempten, Bavaria, Germany — one of 130 recipients born in Germany. His Medal of Honor is credited to New York, New York. Schnitzer died on October 26, 1904 in Fort Bayard, New Mexico, at the age of about 50. He is buried at Fort Bayard Post Cemetery in Fort Bayard, New Mexico. His medal is held by National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC.
Schnitzer is one of 426 Medal of Honor recipients from the Indian Campaigns and one of 678 credited to New York.
Official Medal of Honor citation
Assisted, under a heavy fire, in rescuing a wounded comrade.
Citation text: U.S. Government, public domain.
Battles and campaigns
Also served in: Apache Wars, American Indian Wars.
Places
Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in New York →
Timeline
- 1854Born in Kempten, Bavaria, Germany
- April 23, 1882Act of valor — Horseshoe Canyon, New MexicoAge about 28. Troop G, 4th U.S. Cavalry
- August 17, 1896Medal of Honor presented
- October 26, 1904Died in Fort Bayard, New MexicoAge about 50.
- Resting placeFort Bayard Post CemeteryFort Bayard, New Mexico
Biography
Sergeant John P. Schnitzer (1854 – October 26, 1904) was an American soldier and wagoner in the U.S. Army who served with both the 23rd U.S. Infantry and 6th U.S. Cavalry in the New Mexico Territory during the Apache Wars. He was awarded the Medal of Honor, along with First Lieutenant Wilber Wilder, for rescuing a fellow soldier under heavy fire while fighting the Apache at Horseshoe Canyon on April 23, 1882, which he received fourteen years later.
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