William Westerhold (January 21, 1836 – May 12, 1910) was a sergeant 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 ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. He received a

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. ...

, the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government, for his actions at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House on May 12, 1864.

Military service

After emigrating from

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

, Westerhold joined the Army from

New York City 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 ...

in October 1861, and was assigned to the 52nd New York Infantry. He was commissioned as an officer a few days after his MOH action, and mustered out with his regiment in July 1865.Regimental roster
/ref> He was awarded the Medal of Honor for action on May 12, 1864, at

Spotsylvania, Virginia Spotsylvania Courthouse is a census-designated place (CDP) and the county seat of Spotsylvania County, Virginia, located 10 miles (16 km) southwest of Fredericksburg. Recognized by the U.S. Census Bureau as a census designated place (CDP), t ...

. He is credited with risking his life to capture the flag of a Confederate Army regiment, the

23rd Virginia Infantry The 23rd Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia. The 23rd Virginia completed its organ ...

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 First Lieutenant William Westerhold, United States Army, for, Capture of flag of 23d Virginia Infantry (C.S.A.) and its bearer.

References

1836 births 1910 deaths Prussian emigrants to the United States Union Army officers Foreign-born Medal of Honor recipients United States Army Medal of Honor recipients People of New York (state) in the American Civil War American Civil War recipients of the Medal of Honor {{AmericanCivilWar-bio-stub

Military service

Medal of Honor citation

See also

References