Medal of honor Presentation Ceremony Has A Bayham Connection
On April 12, 1862, during the height of the American Civil War, a military raid that would come to be known as the Andrews Raid and the Great Locomotive Chase took place in Northern Georgia. Volunteers from the Union Army, led by civilian scout James J. Andrews, commandeered a train, The General, and took it northward toward Chattanooga, Tennessee, doing as much damage as possible to the vital Western and Atlantic Railroad (W&A) line from Atlanta to Chattanooga as they went. They were pursued by Confederate forces at first on foot, and later on a succession of locomotives, including The Texas, for 87 miles (140 km).
Confederates eventually captured the raiders and quickly executed some as spies, including Andrews; some others were able to flee. The surviving raiders, who were members of the Union Army, were the first to be awarded the newly created Medal of Honor by the US Congress for their actions.
In 2008, the House of Representatives passed a bill which would retroactively award the Medal of Honor to two of the three remaining raiders, Charles Perry Shadrack and George Davenport Wilson. On July 3, 2024, President Joe Biden posthumously presented the medal to descendants of both Shadrack and Wilson. All the Medals of Honor presented to the Andrews Raiders used identical text.
Citation:
One of the 19 of 22 men (including 2 civilians) who, by direction of Gen. Mitchell (or Buell) penetrated nearly 200 miles south into enemy territory and captured a railroad train at Big Shanty, Ga., in an attempt to destroy the bridges and tracks between Chattanooga and Atlanta.
Accepting the Medal of Honor from President Biden on behalf of Private Shadrack's descendants was Gerald Taylor of Straffordville. Mr. Taylor is the Great-Grandnephew of Private Shadrack and his oldest living descendant. Mr. Taylor was accompanied at the ceremony by his daughter, Penny Clarke of Straffordville, and his grandsons, Nathan Clarke of Richmond and Andrew Clarke of Port Burwell.
To watch the entire ceremony, follow the link below.
