Medal of Honor. Nebraska [RG3524.AM]

HISTORY NEBRASKA MANUSCRIPT FINDING AID

RG3524.AM:  Medal of Honor. Nebraska

Records:  c.1863-2001

Nebraska

Size:  1.0 cu.ft.; 2 boxes

BACKGROUND NOTE

The Medal of Honor, ratified on July 12, 1862, is the first military medal to honor all enlisted soldiers in the United States and is considered the highest of military awards.  Requirements to receive this honor are that:  (1) it must be for a soldier’s distinguished gallantry in action (which may occur during war or peace time), (2) nominations must be written by officers, and (3) the action must be well documented.  As of Dec 8, 2000, 3434 Army Medals of Honor have been handed out. (For more information, see “The Army Medal of Honor – The First Fifty-five Years” article by Mark Mollan within this collection.)  The Nebraska Hall of Fame, created by legislative bill 1212, includes Nebraskans who have received the Medal of Honor (L.B. 1212). To be included as a Nebraska medal winner, the honoree must have served their military duty in Nebraska, was a native or was a resident of Nebraska for at least two years. The Nebraska State Historical Society collected these materials about the honorees using guidelines that the winner must have been born in Nebraska or lived in Nebraska for at least two years.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

This collection is arranged in four Series:  1) General Information, c.1959-1996; 2) Personal Information Files, c.1863-2001; 3) Medal of Honor Ceremonies, c.1959-1974; and 4) Miscellaneous, c.1968-2001.

The bulk of the collection consists of information about Nebraskans who received military Medals of Honor, with other supportive information about Medal of Honor ceremonies and the overall history of the Medal.  The Personal Information Files are arranged alphabetically by last name of the Medal winner. 

INVENTORY

Series 1 – General Information

Box 1

Folder

1. 1. Military Medal of Honor Plaque, 1974, 1980

1. 1. Military Medal of Honor Plaque, Additions, 1959, 1969, 1970, n.d.

1. 1. Nebraska Medal of Honor Research by Potter, James

1. 1. Skirmish at Spring Creek, 17 May 1870 (includes information on Patrick J. Leonard, Thomas Hubbard, Heth Canfield, Michael Himmelsback and George W. Thompson)

Series 2 – Personal Information files

1. 5. Babcock, John B.

1. 6. Baker, Vernon

1. 7. Bates, Delevan

1. 8. Booker, Robert D.

1. 9. Canfield, Heth

1. 10. Coates, Jefferson

1. 11. Cody, William F.

1. 12. Coker, Ronald

1. 13. Denny, John

1. 14. Duncan, Dr. James K.C.

1. 15. Ehle, John Walter

1. 16. Flanagan, Augustin

1. 17. Ford, Patrick (see also: Meredith, James)

1. 18. Fous, James

1. 19. Gomez, Edward

1. 20. Graves, Ora

1. 21. Hagemeister, Charles

1. 22. Hansen, Dale

1. 23. Herron, Leander

1. 24. Hibbs, Robert J.

1. 25. Holderman, Nelson M.

1. 26. Howe, Orion P.

1. 27. Hubbard, Thomas

1. 28. Johnson, Henry

1. 29. Johnston, David

Box 2

Folder

1. 1. Josselyn, Simeon T.

1. 1. Keith, Miguel

1. 1. Kerrey, J. Robert

1. 1. Kouma, Ernest

1. 1. Leonard, Patrick J.

1. 1. Leonard, Patrick T.

1. 1. Lewis, William B.

1. 1. Lohnes, Francis W.

1. 1. McConnel, Samuel

1. 1. Miller, George

1. 1. Mott, John (McMahon, John Mott)

1. 1. Prentice, Joseph

1. 1. Schmidt, Otto D.

1. 1. Shapland, John

1. 1. Traveling Bear (Ca-rux-d-kah-Wadde) [also referred to as ‘Mad Bear’]

1. 1. Traynor, Andrew

1. 1. Vifquain, Victor

1. 1. Volz, Jacob

1. 1. Widick, Andrew

1. 1. Wilson, William O.

1. 1. Williams, William H.

1. 1. Young, Gerald O.

Series 3 – Medal of Honor Ceremonies, ca. 1951-1974

1. 23. Medal of Honor Centennial, 1959, 1963, 1965

1. 24. Medal of Honor Dedication Ceremony, Correspondence, 1969-1970, 1972-1974, n.d.

1. 25. Medal of Honor Dedication Ceremony, Lists, 1969, 1974, n.d.

1. 26. Medal of Honor Grove, 1970, n.d.

1. 27. Design for plaque, blue drawing (see oversize)

Series 4 – Miscellaneous

1. 28. ‘The Army Medal of Honor’ Journal Article, Summer 2001

1. 29. ‘Navajo Code Talkers’ Newspaper Article, 3 June 1998

1. 30. ‘A History of the Medal of Honor’ Journal Article, Nov 1968

 

JP/JES/kfk            10-29-2003

Revised TMM      10-30-2017