Cpl. Clinton Greaves (1855-1906)

Madison County · dedicated 2016 · 2 S. Main St.

Clinton Greaves (or Graves), Medal of Honor recipient, was born in Madison County, very likely into slavery. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1872 and served as a corporal in Co. C, 9th Cavalry. On 24 Jan. 1877 in the Florida Mountains of New Mexico, he was part of a small detachment sent to persuade about 50 Apache Indians to return to a reservation. The Apaches surrounded the cavalrymen until, in hand-to-hand combat, Greaves created a gap through which his companions escaped. On 26 June 1879, Pres. Rutherford B. Hayes awarded him the Medal of Honor for “extraordinary heroism.” A U.S. military base in the Republic of Korea was later named Camp Greaves in his honor.

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

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