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Honoring American TroopsMedal of Honor Archive

First Sergeant · U.S. Army

Leonidas Mahlon Godley

First Sergeant Leonidas Mahlon Godley, 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, 1863

First Sergeant Leonidas Mahlon Godley 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 E, 22d Iowa Infantry. Godley was 26 years old.

99 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on August 3, 1897, 34 years after the action.

Godley was born on June 13, 1836 in Mason County, West Virginia. His Medal of Honor is credited to Ashland, Wapello County, Iowa. Godley died on May 23, 1904 in Ottumwa, Iowa, at the age of 67. He is buried at Ottumwa Cemetery in Ottumwa, Iowa.

Godley is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 55 credited to Iowa.

Official Medal of Honor citation

Led his company in the assault on the enemy's works and gained the parapet, there receiving three very severe wounds. He lay all day in the sun, was taken prisoner, and had his leg amputated without anesthetics.

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

Wounds and injuries

What the citation records about his wounds:

Led his company in the assault on the enemy's works and gained the parapet, there receiving three very severe wounds.
He lay all day in the sun, was taken prisoner, and had his leg amputated without anesthetics.
  • Age at death: 67
  • Resting place: Ottumwa Cemetery

Battles and campaigns

Also served in: American Civil War.

Places

  • Born: Mason County — map
  • Died: Ottumwa — map
  • Buried: Ottumwa Cemetery — map

Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in Iowa →

Timeline

  1. June 13, 1836
    Born in Mason County, West Virginia
  2. May 22, 1863
    Act of valor — Vicksburg, Mississippi
    Age 26. Company E, 22d Iowa Infantry
  3. August 3, 1897
    Medal of Honor presented
  4. May 23, 1904
    Died in Ottumwa, Iowa
    Age 67.
  5. Resting place
    Ottumwa Cemetery
    Ottumwa, Iowa

Biography

Leonidas Mahlon Godley (June 13, 1836 – May 23, 1904) was a Union Army soldier during the American Civil War. He enlisted as 2nd Sergeant of Company E, 22nd Iowa Infantry Regiment on August 6, 1862, and was promoted 1st Sergeant in January 1863. He received the Medal of Honor for gallantry during the Siege of Vicksburg on May 22, 1863.

From the Wikipedia article “Leonidas M. Godley”, 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 Iowa

Nicholas S. Bouquet Private · Army Civil War · 1861 John Henry Hays Private · Army Civil War · 1865 WM William C. May Private · Army Civil War · 1864 Voltare Paine Twombly Corporal · Army Civil War · 1862 Edward James Bebb Private · Army Civil War · 1865 LK Luther Kaltenbach Corporal · Army Civil War · 1864
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.