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Honoring American TroopsMedal of Honor Archive

Private · U.S. Army

John William Mostoller

Private John William Mostoller, Army, received the Medal of Honor for actions on June 18, 1864 in Lynchburg, Virginia during the Civil War.

U.S. Civil War June 18, 1864

Private John William Mostoller, a soldier in the U.S. Army, received the Medal of Honor for gallantry on June 18, 1864 in Lynchburg, Virginia during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with Company B, 54th Pennsylvania Infantry. Mostoller was 21 years old.

3 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on December 27, 1894, 30 years after the action.

Mostoller was born on January 14, 1843 in Stoystown, Somerset County, Pennsylvania. Mostoller died on December 5, 1925 in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, at the age of 82. He is buried at I.O.O.F. Cemetery in Stoystown, Pennsylvania. His medal is held by Somerset County Courthouse Annex, Somerset, PA.

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

Official Medal of Honor citation

Voluntarily led a charge on a Confederate battery (the officers of the company being disabled) and compelled its hasty removal.

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

Timeline

  1. January 14, 1843
    Born in Stoystown, Somerset County, Pennsylvania
  2. June 18, 1864
    Act of valor — Lynchburg, Virginia
    Age 21. Company B, 54th Pennsylvania Infantry
  3. December 27, 1894
    Medal of Honor presented
  4. December 5, 1925
    Died in Somerset County, Pennsylvania
    Age 82.
  5. Resting place
    I.O.O.F. Cemetery
    Stoystown, Pennsylvania

Further reading

Also honored for actions on June 18, 1864

JC James G. Clark Private · Army Civil War · 1864 EL Edwin Leonard Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 CL Carl Ludwig Private · Army Civil War · 1864

More Civil War recipients from Pennsylvania

LS Louis Jeanottelle Sacriste First Lieutenant · Army Civil War · 1863 EB Eugene Beauharnais Beaumont Major and Assistant Adjutant General · Army Civil War · 1865 JT James B. Thompson Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1863 JL John Lafferty Fireman · Navy Civil War · 1864 Francis Morrison Private · Army Civil War · 1864 RC Robert Teleford Clifford Master-at-Arms · Navy Civil War · 1863
Sources. Service and award details compiled from the recipient record of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society. The narrative summary is generated from these records. Spotted an error? Send a correction.