Private Neil Bancroft, a soldier in the U.S. Army, received the Medal of Honor for gallantry on June 25, 1876 in Little Big Horn, Montana during the Indian Campaigns. At the time he was serving with Company A, 7th U.S. Cavalry. Bancroft was about 30 years old.
22 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on October 5, 1878, 2 years after the action.
Bancroft was born in 1846 in Oswego, Oswego County, New York. His Medal of Honor is credited to Chicago, Cook County, Illinois. His medal is held by National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC.
Bancroft is one of 426 Medal of Honor recipients from the Indian Campaigns and one of 210 credited to Illinois.
Official Medal of Honor citation
Brought water for the wounded under a most galling fire.
Citation text: U.S. Government, public domain.
Battles and campaigns
Also served in: Great Sioux War of 1876, American Indian Wars.
Places
Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in Illinois →
Timeline
- 1846Born in Oswego, Oswego County, New York
- June 25, 1876Act of valor — Little Big Horn, MontanaAge about 30. Company A, 7th U.S. Cavalry
- October 5, 1878Medal of Honor presented
Biography
Neil Bancroft (1846–1901) was an American soldier in the U.S. Army who served with the 7th U.S. Cavalry during the Black Hills War. In 1878, he was one of 22 soldiers who received the Medal of Honor at the Battle of the Little Bighorn and who carried water "under a most galling fire" from the Little Bighorn River to the wounded soldiers on Reno Hill. Bancroft left military service two months before the men of his regiment were issued the award. His medal was returned to the War Department because of this and, consequently, he remained unaware that he was an MOH recipient. When it was finally decided to locate him years later, it was found that Bancroft had died.
From the Wikipedia article “Neil Bancroft”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →
