Robert Reid (Medal of Honor)

Robert Alexander Reid
Robert Alexander Reid
	Reid c. 1880
Born	January 22, 1842; Raploch, Stirling, Scotland
Died	April 25, 1929 (aged 87)
Buried	Pottsville, Pennsylvania
Allegiance	United States
Service/branch	United States Army
Rank	Private
Unit	Company G, 48th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment
Battles/wars	American Civil War; • Second Battle of Petersburg
Awards	Medal of Honor

Robert Alexander Reid (January 22, 1842 – April 25, 1929) was a Union Army soldier in the American Civil War who received the U.S. military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions at the Second Battle of Petersburg.

Born on January 22, 1842, in the Raploch district of Stirling, Scotland, Reid joined the Army from Pottsville, Pennsylvania. He served during the Civil War as a private in Company G of the 48th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment.[1][2]

At the Second Battle of Petersburg on June 17, 1864, Reid's division, under Brigadier General Robert Brown Potter, launched a stealthy pre-dawn attack on a Confederate-held farmhouse known as the Shand House. The Confederates were caught totally by surprise and were either captured or fled from their positions. Reid himself captured a dozen men and then took the battle flag of the 44th Tennessee Infantry Regiment.[3] For this action, he was awarded the Medal of Honor five months later on December 1, 1864. One of his fellow soldiers from the 48th Pennsylvania, Corporal Patrick Monaghan, also received the Medal of Honor for his part in the same attack.[1][2]

Reid's official Medal of Honor citation reads:

Capture of flag of 44th Tennessee Infantry (C.S.A.).[2]

Reid died on April 25, 1929, at age 87 and was buried in Pottsville, Pennsylvania.[1]

References

"Robert Alexander Reid". Hall of Valor. Military Times. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
"Medal of Honor Recipients: Civil War (M–R)". United States Army Center of Military History. August 13, 2013. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
Corrigan, Jim (April 25, 2012). The 48th Pennsylvania in the Battle of the Crater. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. pp. 30–31. ISBN 978-0786469109.

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[hallofvalor-1] "Robert Alexander Reid". Hall of Valor. Military Times. Retrieved March 20, 2016.

[citation-2] "Medal of Honor Recipients: Civil War (M–R)". United States Army Center of Military History. August 13, 2013. Retrieved March 20, 2016.

[corrigan-3] Corrigan, Jim (April 25, 2012). The 48th Pennsylvania in the Battle of the Crater. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company. pp. 30–31. ISBN 978-0786469109.