John James (1838 May 23, 1902) was a British-born American soldier 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

5th U.S. Cavalry The 5th Cavalry Regiment ("Black Knights") is a historical unit of the United States Army that began its service on August 3, 1861, when an act of Congress enacted "that the two regiments of dragoons, the regiment of mounted riflemen, and the t ...

during the

Texas–Indian Wars The Texas–Indian wars were a series of conflicts between settlers in Texas and the Southern Plains Indians during the 19th-century. Conflict between the Plains Indians and the Spanish began before other European and Anglo-American settlers wer ...

. He was one of seven men who 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 by defending the "Lyman Train" against a war party of

Kiowa Kiowa () people are a Native American tribe and an indigenous people of the Great Plains of the United States. They migrated southward from western Montana into the Rocky Mountains in Colorado in the 17th and 18th centuries,Pritzker 326 and eve ...

and

Comanche The Comanche or Nʉmʉnʉʉ ( com, Nʉmʉnʉʉ, "the people") are a Native American tribe from the Southern Plains of the present-day United States. Comanche people today belong to the federally recognized Comanche Nation, headquartered in La ...

at the Upper Washita River in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

on September 9–11, 1874.

Biography

John James was born near

Manchester, England Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, in 1838. After emigrating to the United States, he enlisted in the

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...

. He became a member of the

and participated in campaigns against the

Plains Indians Plains Indians or Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies are the Native American tribes and First Nation band governments who have historically lived on the Interior Plains (the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies) of N ...

during the early-1870s.

Lyman train defense

On the morning of September 9, 1874, James was assigned to a small cavalry escort escorting a supply train to General

Nelson Miles Nelson Appleton Miles (August 8, 1839 – May 15, 1925) was an American military general who served in the American Civil War, the American Indian Wars, and the Spanish–American War. From 1895 to 1903, Miles served as the last Commanding Gen ...

expedition force camped at

Battle Creek Battle Creek is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan, in northwest Calhoun County, at the confluence of the Kalamazoo and Battle Creek rivers. It is the principal city of the Battle Creek, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which en ...

. This train consisted of 36 wagons and was called ''Lyman train'' after Captain Lyman, the man heading the cavalry escort protecting the train. As the supply train emerged from a canyon on the Upper Washita River, they were set upon by a large Indian war party of Kiowa and Comanche. Despite the overwhelming numbers, the cavalry troopers fiercely resisted the hostiles. Although a battalion from the 8th U.S. Cavalry arrived on the second day, the defenders endured continuous gunfire and two major Indian assaults numbering over 400 warriors. With temperatures as high as 100 degrees, water became scarce and efforts to reach a nearby watering hole were made impossible while surrounded by the enemy. The Lyman Train defenders held out for almost a week before help arrived on September 14, 1874.Beyer, Walter F. and Oscar Frederick Keydel, ed. ''Deeds of Valor: From Records in the Archives of the United States Government; how American Heroes Won the Medal of Honor; History of Our Recent Wars and Explorations, from Personal Reminiscences and Records of Officers and Enlisted Men who Were Rewarded by Congress for Most Conspicuous Acts of Bravery on the Battle-field, on the High Seas and in Arctic Explorations''. Vol. 2. Detroit: Perrien-Keydel Company, 1906. (pg. 186) James was one of seven soldiers cited for "gallantry in action" during the three-day battle and received the

on April 23, 1875.Hannings, Bud. ''A Portrait of the Stars and Stripes''. Glenside, Pennsylvania: Seniram Publishing, 1988. (pg. 397) He died in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, on May 23, 1902,Cruse, J. Brett. ''Battles of the Red River War: Archeological Perspectives on the Indian campaign of 1874''. College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 2008. (pg. 161) and is interred at the

United States Soldiers' and Airmen's Home National Cemetery United States Soldiers' and Airmen's Home National Cemetery, in Washington, D.C., is located next to the U.S. Soldiers' and Airmen's Home. It is one of only two national cemeteries administered by the Department of the Army, the other being Arlin ...

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Corporal, 5th U.S. Infantry. Place and date: At Upper Wichita, Tex., 9–11 September 1874. Entered service at: ------. Birth: England. Date of issue: 23 April 1875. Citation:

Gallantry in action.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:James, John 1838 births 1902 deaths American military personnel of the Indian Wars United States Army Medal of Honor recipients Military personnel from Manchester United States Army soldiers English-born Medal of Honor recipients English emigrants to the United States Burials at United States Soldiers' and Airmen's Home National Cemetery American Indian Wars recipients of the Medal of Honor

Biography

Lyman train defense

Medal of Honor citation

See also

References

Further reading

External links