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Honoring American TroopsMedal of Honor Archive

Private · U.S. Army

Peter J. Ryan

Private Peter J. Ryan, Army, received the Medal of Honor for actions on September 19, 1864 in Winchester, Virginia during the Civil War.

U.S. Civil War September 19, 1864Born in Ireland

Private Peter J. Ryan, a soldier in the U.S. Army, received the Medal of Honor for gallantry on September 19, 1864 in Winchester, Virginia during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with Company D, 11th Indiana Infantry. Ryan was about 23 years old.

14 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on April 4, 1865.

Ryan was born in 1841 in Tiperrary, County Tiperrary, Ireland — one of 258 recipients born in Ireland. His Medal of Honor is credited to Terre Haute, Vigo County, Indiana. Ryan died on January 8, 1908 in Terre Haute, Indiana, at the age of about 67. He is buried at Calvary Cemetery in Terre Haute, Indiana.

Ryan is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 75 credited to Indiana.

Official Medal of Honor citation

With one companion, captured 14 Confederates in the severest part of the battle.

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

Battles and campaigns

Also served in: American Civil War.

Places

  • Born: Tipperary — map
  • Died: Indiana — map

Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in Indiana →

Timeline

  1. 1841
    Born in Tiperrary, County Tiperrary, Ireland
  2. September 19, 1864
    Act of valor — Winchester, Virginia
    Age about 23. Company D, 11th Indiana Infantry
  3. April 4, 1865
    Medal of Honor presented
  4. January 8, 1908
    Died in Terre Haute, Indiana
    Age about 67.
  5. Resting place
    Calvary Cemetery
    Terre Haute, Indiana

Biography

Peter J. Ryan (1841 – January 8, 1908) was a Union Army soldier during the American Civil War. He received the Medal of Honor for gallantry during the Battle of Opequon more commonly called the Third Battle of Winchester, Virginia on September 19, 1864. Ryan joined the army from Indiana in July 1861, and was mustered out in July 1865.

From the Wikipedia article “Peter J. Ryan”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →

Also honored for actions on September 19, 1864

CB Chester Bennett Bowen Corporal · Army Civil War · 1864 GC Gabriel Cole Corporal · Army Civil War · 1864 HD Henry W. Downs Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 HF Henry M. Fox Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 Andrew Jackson Lorish Commissary Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 Alphonso M. Lunt Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 Joel Huntington Lyman Quartermaster Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 PM Patrick H. McEnroe Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 GM George E. Meach Farrier · Army Civil War · 1864 GR George Reynolds Private · Army Civil War · 1864 CS Conrad Schmidt First Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 James Martinus Schoonmaker Colonel · Army Civil War · 1864

See all 15 recipients for September 19, 1864 →

More Civil War recipients from Indiana

OR Oliver P. Rood Private · Army Civil War · 1863 WC William Campbell Boatswain's Mate · Navy Civil War · 1865 WC William W. Chisman Private · Army Civil War · 1863 James W. Archer First Lieutenant & Adjutant · Army Civil War · 1862 CE Coron D. Evans Private · Army Civil War · 1865 CA Clinton Lycurgus Armstrong Private · Army Civil War · 1863
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.