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Honoring American TroopsMedal of Honor Archive

Private · U.S. Army

Reuben Smalley

Private Reuben Smalley, 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

Private Reuben Smalley, a soldier in the U.S. Army, received the Medal of Honor for gallantry on May 22, 1863 in Vicksburg, Mississippi during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with Company F, 83d Indiana Infantry. Smalley was 24 years old.

99 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on July 9, 1894, 31 years after the action.

Smalley was born on April 29, 1839 in Washington County, Pennsylvania. His Medal of Honor is credited to Holton, Ripley County, Indiana. Smalley died on July 9, 1926 in Greensburg, Indiana, at the age of 87. He is buried at South Park Cemetery in Greensburg, Illinois.

Smalley 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

Gallantry in the charge of the "volunteer storming party."

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

Places

  • Buried: South Park Cemetery — map

Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in Indiana →

Timeline

  1. April 29, 1839
    Born in Washington County, Pennsylvania
  2. May 22, 1863
    Act of valor — Vicksburg, Mississippi
    Age 24. Company F, 83d Indiana Infantry
  3. July 9, 1894
    Medal of Honor presented
  4. July 9, 1926
    Died in Greensburg, Indiana
    Age 87.
  5. Resting place
    South Park Cemetery
    Greensburg, Illinois

Biography

Reuben Smalley (28 April 1839 - 9 July 1926) was a private in the United States Army who was awarded the Medal of Honor for gallantry in the American Civil War. He was awarded the medal on 9 July 1864 for actions performed at the Siege of Vicksburg in Mississippi in May 1863.

From the Wikipedia article “Reuben Smalley”, 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 Indiana

Thomas J. Box Captain · Army Civil War · 1864 WT William P. Thompson Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 ✦ Frederick W. Fout Second Lieutenant · Army Civil War · 1862 JK Jeremiah Kuder Lieutenant · Army Civil War · 1864 Absalom Jordan Corporal · Army Civil War · 1865 OR Oliver P. Rood 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.