William O'Neill (c. 1848 – unknown) was an 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

4th U.S. Cavalry The 4th Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army cavalry regiment, whose lineage is traced back to the mid-19th century. It was one of the most effective units of the Army against American Indians on the Texas frontier. Today, the regiment exi ...

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 ...

. He was one of several 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 while fighting the

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 ...

Red River of the South The Red River, or sometimes the Red River of the South, is a major river in the Southern United States. It was named for its reddish water color from passing through red-bed country in its watershed. It is one of several rivers with that name ...

on September 29, 1872.

Biography

William O'Neill was born in

Tariffville, Connecticut Tariffville is a neighborhood and census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Simsbury in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 1,324 at the 2010 census. It is a popular location for whitewater paddlers who use the Farmin ...

in about 1848. He later moved to

New York City, New York New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

where he enlisted in the

. O'Neill was assigned to frontier duty with Company I of the

and later took part in the

Red River War The Red River War was a military campaign launched by the United States Army in 1874 to displace the Comanche, Kiowa, Southern Cheyenne, and Arapaho Native American tribes from the Southern Plains, and forcibly relocate the tribes to reservatio ...

. In late-September 1872, O'Neill was among the cavalry troopers who followed Colonel Ranald Slidell Mackenzie in an expedition over the

Staked Plains The Llano Estacado (), sometimes translated into English as the Staked Plains, is a region in the Southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas. One of the largest mesas or tablelands on the North A ...

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 ...

. After a one-day march to reach the North Fork of the Red River, his regiment encountered large encampment of 280

warriors on September 29. Although the cavalrymen attempted to take the enemy by surprise, the Indians' ponies stampeded at the soldiers approach alerting the camp. Engaged in fierce combat with the Comanche, O'Neill and his company led the advance and were able to secure the camp with the loss of only one trooper killed and three others wounded. The Mow-wi tribe of Comanche, who lost 23 braves in the battle, were humbled by this victory and surrendered at

Fort Sill Fort Sill is a United States Army post north of Lawton, Oklahoma, about 85 miles (136.8 km) southwest of Oklahoma City. It covers almost . The fort was first built during the Indian Wars. It is designated as a National Historic Landmark ...

ending 17 years of continuous warfare. On November 19, 1872, O'Neill was among the soldiers who received the

for "bravery in action".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. 167-168) A memorial marker was also erected in his memory at Fort Concho National Historic Landmark in

San Angelo, Texas San Angelo ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Tom Green County, Texas, United States. Its location is in the Concho Valley, a region of West Texas between the Permian Basin to the northwest, Chihuahuan Desert to the southwest, Osage Plai ...

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Corporal, Company I, 4th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Red River, Tex., 29 September 1872. Entered service at: ------. Birth: Tariffville, Conn. Date of issue: 19 November 1872. Citation:

Bravery in action.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oneill, William 1840s births Year of death missing American military personnel of the Indian Wars United States Army Medal of Honor recipients United States Army soldiers People from Simsbury, Connecticut American Indian Wars recipients of the Medal of Honor Military personnel from Connecticut

Biography

Medal of Honor citation

See also

References

Further reading

External links