Years of service 1862 - 1865 Awards Medal of Honor Rank Private | Name Edward Hanford Died 1890 Unit 2nd Cavalry Regiment | |
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Place of burial Mokelumne Hill Protestant Cemetery, Mokelumne Hill, California Battles/wars American Civil War
• Battle of Tom's Brook Battles and wars American Civil War, Battle of Tom's Brook | ||
Allegiance United States of America Service/branch United States Army | ||
Edward R. Hanford (1845–1890) was a private in the 2nd U.S. Cavalry, Company H, during the American Civil War. Born in Allegany County, New York, in 1845, Hanford captured the battle flag of the 32nd Battalion Virginia Cavalry of the Confederate States of America at the Battle of Tom's Brook, Woodstock, Virginia, on 9 October 1864. The Union charge, led by generals Wesley Merritt and George Armstrong Custer, successfully forced the Confederates to retreat 10 miles (16 km) southward of Woodstock. Hanford received the Medal of Honor on 14 October 1864 for capturing the Confederate battle flag during the charge and for demonstrating "extraordinary heroism". Hanford died in California in 1890 and was buried in the Mokelumne Hill Protestant Cemetery of Mokelumne Hill, Calaveras County.