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Frank Tolan (May 1854 – 1899) was an American
private
Private or privates may refer to:
Music
* " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation''
* Private (band), a Denmark-based band
* "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...
in the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
who served with the
7th U.S. Cavalry
The 7th Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army cavalry regiment formed in 1866. Its official nickname is "Garryowen", after the Irish air " Garryowen" that was adopted as its march tune.
The regiment participated in some of the largest ba ...
during the
Great Sioux War of 1876–77
Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements
* Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size
* Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent
People
* List of people known as "the Great"
*Artel Great (born ...
. He was one of twenty-two soldiers received the
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...
for gallantry, volunteering to carry water to wounded soldiers on
Reno Hill
The Battle of the Little Bighorn, known to the Lakota and other Plains Indians as the Battle of the Greasy Grass, and also commonly referred to as Custer's Last Stand, was an armed engagement between combined forces of the Lakota Sioux, Nor ...
, at the
Battle of the Little Bighorn
The Battle of the Little Bighorn, known to the Lakota and other Plains Indians as the Battle of the Greasy Grass, and also commonly referred to as Custer's Last Stand, was an armed engagement between combined forces of the Lakota Sioux, Nor ...
on June 25, 1876.
Biography
Tolan was born in
Malone, New York
Malone ( moh, Tekanatà:ronhwe) is a town in Franklin County, New York, United States. The population was 14,545 at the 2010 census. The town contains a village also named Malone. The town is an interior town located in the north-central part ...
in May 1854 and spent much of his early life as a farmer. At age 21, he enlisted in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
in
Boston, Massachusetts as a private with the
7th U.S. Cavalry Regiment
The 7th Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army cavalry regiment formed in 1866. Its official nickname is "Garryowen", after the Ireland, Irish air "Garryowen (air), Garryowen" that was adopted as its march tune.
The regiment participated i ...
on August 31, 1875.
Tolan saw action in the
Montana Territory
The Territory of Montana was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1864, until November 8, 1889, when it was admitted as the 41st state in the Union as the state of Montana.
Original boundaries
T ...
during the
Great Sioux War of 1876–77
Great may refer to: Descriptions or measurements
* Great, a relative measurement in physical space, see Size
* Greatness, being divine, majestic, superior, majestic, or transcendent
People
* List of people known as "the Great"
*Artel Great (born ...
and, on June 25, 1876, was present at the
Battle of the Little Bighorn
The Battle of the Little Bighorn, known to the Lakota and other Plains Indians as the Battle of the Greasy Grass, and also commonly referred to as Custer's Last Stand, was an armed engagement between combined forces of the Lakota Sioux, Nor ...
against Chief
Sitting Bull
Sitting Bull ( lkt, Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake ; December 15, 1890) was a Hunkpapa Lakota leader who led his people during years of resistance against United States government policies. He was killed by Indian agency police on the Standing Rock I ...
and the
Sioux
The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota language, Dakota: Help:IPA, /otʃʰeːtʰi ʃakoːwĩ/) are groups of Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada, First Nations peoples in North America. The ...
. A member of Company D under Captain
Thomas Weir
Major Thomas Weir (1599 – 1670) was a Scottish soldier and presumed occultist, executed for bestiality, incest and adultery.
Weir was a Covenanter who professed a particularly strict form of Presbyterianism. His spoken prayers earned him ...
, he and several other soldiers volunteered to carry water from the
Little Bighorn River to wounded soldiers at the
Reno-Benteen site "under a most galling fire". He and the other Little Bighorn water carriers were among the twenty-two soldiers recommended for the
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...
, Tolan officially receiving his award on October 5, 1878.>
Although disappearing from record soon after his discharge around 1880, the ''
Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' reported in 1887 that its military editor was in possession of Tolan's MOH which "was obtained by a comrade from a
squaw
The English word ''squaw'' is an ethnic and sexual slur, historically used for Indigenous North American women. Contemporary use of the term, especially by non-Natives, is considered derogatory, misogynist, and racist.King, C. Richard,De/Scri ...
".
Medal of Honor citation
Rank and organization: Private, Company D, 7th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Little Big Horn, Mont., 25 June 1876. Entered service at: Boston, Mass. Birth: Malone, N.Y. Date of issue: 5 October 1878.
Citation:
Voluntarily brought water to the wounded under fire.
See also
*
List of Medal of Honor recipients for the Indian Wars
Indian Wars is the name generally used in the United States to describe a series of conflicts between the colonial or federal government and the Native people of North America.
The wars, which ranged from the 17th-century (King Philip's War, Kin ...
References
Further reading
*Carroll, John M., ed. ''They Rode with Custer: A Biographical Directory of the Men That Rode with General George A. Custer''. Mattituck, New York: J.M. Carroll & Company, 1993.
*Williams, Roger L. ''Military Register of Custer's Last Command''. Norman, Oklahoma: Arthur H. Clark Company, 2009.
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tolan, Frank
1854 births
1899 deaths
American military personnel of the Indian Wars
United States Army Medal of Honor recipients
United States Army soldiers
People from Malone, New York
American Indian Wars recipients of the Medal of Honor