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Honoring American TroopsMedal of Honor Archive

Private · U.S. Army

Robert A. Lower

Private Robert A. Lower, 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 Robert A. Lower, 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 K, 55th Illinois Infantry. Lower was about 19 years old.

99 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on September 2, 1893, 30 years after the action.

Lower was born in 1844 in Illinois. His Medal of Honor is credited to Elmwood, Peoria County, Illinois. Lower died in 1918 in Yates City, Illinois, at the age of about 74. He is buried at Yates City Cemetery in Yates City, Illinois.

Lower is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 210 credited to Illinois.

Official Medal of Honor citation

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

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

Battles and campaigns

Also served in: American Civil War.

Places

  • Born: Mattoon — map
  • Died: Yates City — map
  • Buried: Yates City — map

Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in Illinois →

Timeline

  1. 1844
    Born in Illinois
  2. May 22, 1863
    Act of valor — Vicksburg, Mississippi
    Age about 19. Company K, 55th Illinois Infantry
  3. September 2, 1893
    Medal of Honor presented
  4. 1918
    Died in Yates City, Illinois
    Age about 74.
  5. Resting place
    Yates City Cemetery
    Yates City, Illinois

Biography

Robert Alison Lower (April 11, 1844 – January 31, 1918) was a private in the Union Army and a Medal of Honor recipient for his actions in the American Civil War. Lower joined the 55th Illinois Infantry in October 1861, and was mustered out in October 1864.

From the Wikipedia article “Robert A. Lower”, 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 Illinois

Henry Fox Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1862 JM John Wade McDonald Private · Army Civil War · 1862 SH Samuel Hymer Captain · Army Civil War · 1864 John S. Darrough Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 JC John Henry Cook Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 Nineveh S. McKeen First Lieutenant · 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.