George Loyd (1843 – December 17, 1892), whose last name was occasionally spelled "Lloyd," was a

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 ...

soldier. He fought in the

Battle of the Little Big Horn 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, Nort ...

and in the Battle of Wounded Knee, now called the Wounded Knee Massacre, receiving 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 his actions in the latter.

Biography

George Loyd was born in

County Tyrone County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional Counties of Ireland, counties of Ireland. It is no longer used as an admini ...

, Ireland in 1843. He immigrated to the U.S. Loyd first enlisted in the U.S. Army (

7th 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 March 17, 1866, in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

. He was discharged as a

corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non ...

Canton, Texas Canton is a city in and the county seat of Van Zandt County in East Texas, United States. It is located about 40 miles west of Tyler. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 4,229. The city sustained severe damage on April 29, ...

, when his term of service expired on March 20, 1869."United States Registers of Enlistments in the U.S. Army, 1798-1914," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJD5-B2TY : 24 May 2014), George Loyd, 17 Mar 1866; citing p. 152, volume 062, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, NARA microfilm publication M233 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 31; FHL microfilm 350,337. He re-enlisted on March 21, 1869, at Canton in the

6th Cavalry Regiment The 6th Cavalry ("Fighting Sixth'") is a regiment of the United States Army that began as a regiment of cavalry in the American Civil War. It currently is organized into aviation squadrons that are assigned to several different combat aviation ...

; he was discharged as a

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 ...

on March 21, 1874, at

Camp Supply Fort Supply (originally Camp Supply) was a United States Army post established on November 18, 1868, in Indian Territory to protect the Southern Plains. It was located just east of present-day Fort Supply, Oklahoma, in what was then the Cherokee Ou ...

Indian Territory The Indian Territory and the Indian Territories are terms that generally described an evolving land area set aside by the Federal government of the United States, United States Government for the relocation of Native Americans in the United St ...

upon the expiration of his term of service."United States Registers of Enlistments in the U.S. Army, 1798-1914," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJDR-9WM6 : 24 May 2014), George Loyd, 21 Mar 1869; citing p. 144, volume 069, Canton, , Texas, United States, NARA microfilm publication M233 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 36; FHL microfilm 350,342. Loyd's third enlistment was into Company G, 7th Cavalry on April 13, 1874, at St. Louis, Missouri."United States Registers of Enlistments in the U.S. Army, 1798-1914," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJDR-SH64 : 24 May 2014), George Loyd, 13 Apr 1874; citing p. 308, volume 074, Saint Louis, , Missouri, United States, NARA microfilm publication M233 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 39; FHL microfilm 350,345. Loyd was a survivor of the

on June 25–26, 1876; he was promoted to

on June 25, 1876. He was discharged as a

sergeant Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...

on April 12, 1879, at

Fort Abraham Lincoln Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park is a North Dakota state park located south of Mandan, North Dakota, United States. The park is home to the replica Mandan On-A-Slant Indian Village and reconstructed military buildings including the Custer House. ...

Dakota Territory The Territory of Dakota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until November 2, 1889, when the final extent of the reduced territory was split and admitted to the Union as the states of No ...

when his term of service was completed. Loyd immediately re-enlisted at Fort Abraham Lincoln and served until his five-year enlistment expired on April 12, 1884, at Fort Totten, Dakota Territory."United States Registers of Enlistments in the U.S. Army, 1798-1914," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJDR-QVDY : 24 May 2014), George Loyd, 13 Apr 1879; citing p. 270, volume 080, Fort Abraham Lincoln, , Dakota Territory, United States, NARA microfilm publication M233 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 42; FHL microfilm 350,348. He re-enlisted on April 15, 1884, at Fort Totten and served until discharged as a sergeant on April 14, 1889

Fort Riley, Kansas Fort Riley is a United States Army installation located in North Central Kansas, on the Kansas River, also known as the Kaw, between Junction City and Manhattan. The Fort Riley Military Reservation covers 101,733 acres (41,170 ha) in Gear ...

."United States Registers of Enlistments in the U.S. Army, 1798-1914," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJDR-Q22L : 24 May 2014), George Loyd, 15 Apr 1884; citing p. 321, volume 080, Fort Totten, , Dakota Territory, United States, NARA microfilm publication M233 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 42; FHL microfilm 350,348. "Geo" Loyd re-enlisted on April 15, 1889, at Fort Riley."United States Registers of Enlistments in the U.S. Army, 1798-1914," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJD5-LW9T : 24 May 2014), Geo Loyd, 15 Apr 1889; citing p. 42, volume 086, Fort Riley, , Kansas, United States, NARA microfilm publication M233 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 45; FHL microfilm 1,319,378. He was among the

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

men ordered to capture Chief Big Foot. On December 29, 1890, troopers surrounded the Sioux camp on

Wounded Knee Creek Wounded Knee Creek is a tributary of the White River, approximately 100 miles (160 km) long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 30, 2011 in Oglala Lakota County, ...

with the intention of arresting the Sioux chieftain and disarming his followers. Loyd, a sergeant on the day of the battle, was commended for bravery, especially after suffering a wound to his lung; On April 16, 1891, Loyd was awarded the

. On December 17, 1892, slightly less than two years after the battle, First Sergeant Loyd, then one of the oldest soldiers at

, died by suicide and was buried at the Fort Riley post cemetery.

Medal of Honor Citation

The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Sergeant George Lloyd, United States Army, for bravery, especially after having been severely wounded through the lung on 29 December 1890, while serving with Company I, 7th U.S. Cavalry, in action at Wounded Knee Creek, South Dakota.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Loyd, George 1843 births 1892 deaths People from County Tyrone Irish emigrants to the United States (before 1923) United States Army Medal of Honor recipients United States Army soldiers Battle of the Little Bighorn American Indian Wars recipients of the Medal of Honor Pine Ridge Campaign Suicides by firearm in Kansas

Biography

Medal of Honor Citation

See also

References