John May (1836 - 1886) - Find A Grave Memorial

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John May

Birth:	1836
Death:	Mar. 19, 1886
Indian Wars Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient. Born in Wurttemberg, Germany, he served in the United States Army during the Wars with the Plains Indians as a Sergeant in Company L, 6th United States Cavalry. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for his bravery in action on July 12, 1870 at the Battle of the Little Wichita River, Texas, with his citation for the award reading simply "Gallantry in action." In the action he was part of a force of 57 men from the 6th Cavalry that went in pursuit of 250-strong group of Kiowa Indians led by Chief Kicking Bird. After tracking the Kiowas for five days, the cavalry force met them on the Wichita River in Archer County, Texas. After a short initial fight, the cavalrymen found that they were outnumbered and outgunned, and fought a fierce defensive battle that left 3 United States soldiers and fifteen Kiowas dead. After the Kiowas broke off the engagement in the early evening, the soldiers retreated, eventually making it back to their home base of Fort Richardson near Jacksboro, Texas. Thirteen troopers were awarded the CMOH on August 25, 1870, for their performance and bravery during the battle, Sergeant May being one of them. (bio by: Russ Dodge) Search Amazon for John May

Burial: Fairview Cemetery La Junta Otero County Colorado, USA
Maintained by: Find A Grave Originally Created by: Kent Kooi Record added: Jan 24, 2004 Find A Grave Memorial# 8312300