Lewis A. Horton
{{Short description|American sailor}}
{{Infobox military person
| name = Lewis Augustine Horton
| image = File:Lewis A. Horton.png
| caption =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1846|5|26}}
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1916|06|8|1846|5|26}}
| birth_place = Bristol County, Massachusetts
| death_place = Chelsea, Massachusetts
| placeofburial = Forest Hill Cemetery, Massachusetts
| placeofburial_label = Place of burial
| nickname =
| allegiance = {{flagicon|United States|1861}} United States of America
| branch = {{navy|USA}}
| rank = Seaman
| unit = {{flagicon|United States Navy}} {{USS|Rhode Island|1860|6}}
| awards = {{Flagicon image|Medal of Honor ribbon.svg}} Medal of Honor
| spouse = Francis Ellen Cass Goodwin
| signature = File:Lewis A. Horton's Signature.png
}}
Lewis Augustine Horton (May 26, 1842 — June 8, 1916) was an American sailor in the Union Navy during the American Civil War and recipient of the Medal of Honor.
Biography
Horton was born in Bristol County, Massachusetts on May 26, 1842.{{Cite web|title=Lewis Augustine Horton {{!}} U.S. Civil War {{!}} U.S. Navy {{!}} Medal of Honor Recipient|url=https://www.cmohs.org/recipients/lewis-a-horton|access-date=2021-10-29|website=Congressional Medal of Honor Society|language=en}} He enlisted in May 1861 at the beginning of the Civil War. During the first years of the war, he served as a seaman aboard the USS Massachusetts. In the summer of 1861, Horton along with 10 other sailors were captured by Confederate forces.{{Cite web|last=Museum|first=Old Colony History|date=2019-12-31|title=Seaman Lewis A. Horton, USN|url=https://ochm.medium.com/seaman-lewis-a-horton-usn-74de7bcfdfaa|access-date=2021-10-31|website=Medium|language=en}} Following a winter in Libby Prison, Richmond, Virginia, Horton was paroled in March 1862. Following his reenlistment, Horton was assigned to the USS Rhode Island.{{Cite web|title=about-recipient {{!}} Medal of Honor Convention|url=http://www.mohconvention.com/tn-recipient/196/lewis-a-horton/|access-date=2021-10-31|website=www.mohconvention.com}} He earned his Medal of Honor on December 30, 1862, for helping rescue the crew of the USS Monitor during its sinking. Later on in the war, Horton lost both his arms following a gunnery accident on November 3, 1863.{{Cite web|last=Institute|first=Author Civil War|date=2013-12-11|title="Home Again:" The Contrasting Experiences of Richard D. Dunphy and Lewis A. Horton|url=https://gettysburgcompiler.org/2013/12/11/home-again-the-contrasting-experiences-of-richard-d-dunphy-and-lewis-a-horton/|access-date=2021-10-31|website=The Gettysburg Compiler|language=en}}{{Cite web|title=Medal of Honor Monday: Navy Seaman Lewis Horton|url=https://www.defense.gov/News/Feature-Stories/Story/Article/2046797/medal-of-honor-monday-navy-seaman-lewis-horton/|access-date=2021-10-31|website=U.S. Department of Defense|language=en-US}} After the war, he worked in a U.S. Customs House in Boston. Horton was not aware he had earned the Medal of Honor until 1898.{{Cite news |date=March 7, 1898 |title=HIS BRAVERY REWARDED: Lewis A. Horton, the Armless Veteran, Given a Bronze Medal by Congress |pages=12 |work=The Boston Globe |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/430732589/?terms=lewis%20a%20horton&match=1 |access-date=March 3, 2022}} Horton died in 1916 and is now buried in Forest Hill Cemetery, Massachusetts.
Medal of Honor Citation
Served on board the USS Rhode Island, which was engaged in saving the lives of the officers and crew of the Monitor, 30 December 1862. Participating in the hazardous rescue of the officers and crew of the sinking Monitor, Horton, after rescuing several of the men, became separated in a heavy gale with other members of the cutter that had set out from the Rhode Island, and spent many hours in the small boat at the mercy of the weather and the high seas until finally picked up by a schooner 50 miles east of Cape Hatteras.{{Cite web|title=Lewis Horton - Recipient -|url=http://valor.militarytimes.com/hero/2229|access-date=2021-10-31|website=valor.militarytimes.com|language=en}}
References
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Category:People from Bristol County, Massachusetts
Category:American Civil War recipients of the Medal of Honor