Orizoba O. Spence (1847 – April 7, 1876), alternatively spelled Orisoba, was a sergeant in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

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 valo ...

for gallantry in action during the

Indian Wars The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, were fought by European governments and colonists in North America, and later by the United States and Canadian governments and American and Canadian settle ...

Biography

Spence was born in 1847 in Tionesta, Pennsylvania, and joined the Army in 1868. He was stationed at

Fort Bowie Fort Bowie was a 19th-century outpost of the United States Army located in southeastern Arizona near the present day town of Willcox, Arizona. The remaining buildings and site are now protected as Fort Bowie National Historic Site. Fort Bowi ...

in the Arizona Territory with Company G of the

8th Cavalry Regiment The 8th Cavalry Regiment is a regiment of the United States Army formed in 1866 during the American Indian Wars. The 8th Cavalry continued to serve under a number of designations, fighting in every other major U.S. conflict since, except Worl ...

. On October 20, 1869, Spence earned a

for gallantry after a battle against a band of Apaches lead by

Cochise Cochise (; Apache: ''Shi-ka-She'' or ''A-da-tli-chi'', lit.: ''having the quality or strength of an oak''; later ''K'uu-ch'ish'' or ''Cheis'', lit. ''oak''; June 8, 1874) was leader of the Chihuicahui local group of the Chokonen and principa ...

.Fort Bowie Cemetery Graves
National Park Service Spence was discharged from the army as a sergeant at

Fort Selden Fort Selden was a United States Army post, occupying the area in what is now Radium Springs, New Mexico. The site was long a campground along the El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro. It was the site of a Confederate Army camp in 1861. The U. S. A ...

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ke ...

in 1873. He married in 1874 and briefly resided in

Grant County, New Mexico Grant County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Mexico. At the 2020 census, the population was 28,185. Its county seat is Silver City. The county was founded in 1868 and named for Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th President of the United St ...

. He went on to work as a cook at the overland mail stage station at Sulphur Springs in the Arizona Territory. On April 7, 1876, the station was raided by a band of Apaches lead by Pionsenay after an argument over whiskey sales. Pionsenay shot and killed Spence and Nicholas Rogers, the station operator.''A historical and biographical record of the territory of Arizona''. (1896). Chicago: McFarland & Poole. The two were initially buried at the station, however, the bodies were later exhumed for interment at Fort Bowie.

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Private, Company G, 8th Cavalry Regiment. Place and date: At Chiricahua Mountains, Ariz., October 20, 1869. Entered service at: Tionesta, Pa. Birth: Forest County, Pa. Date of issue: February 14, 1870. Citation:

Gallantry in action.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spence, Orizoba American people of the Indian Wars United States Army Medal of Honor recipients United States Army soldiers American Indian Wars recipients of the Medal of Honor 1847 births 1876 deaths

Biography

Medal of Honor citation

See also

References