Samuel Slavens
{{Short description|American soldier and recipient of the Medal of Honor (c. 1830–1862)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2021}}
Samuel Slavens ({{Circa|1830}} – June 18, 1862) was a participant in the Andrew's Raid and a recipient of the Medal of Honor.
Biography
Slavens' birth is often disputed, with most sources listing it as 1830 or 1831. He was born in Pike County, Ohio.{{Cite web|title=Samuel Slavens {{!}} U.S. Civil War {{!}} U.S. Army {{!}} Medal of Honor Recipient|url=https://www.cmohs.org/recipients/samuel-slavens|access-date=2021-09-15|website=Congressional Medal of Honor Society|language=en}} He served as a private in Company E of the 33rd Ohio Infantry. In April 1862, he was one of 22 Union soldiers who took part in the Great Locomotive Chase in Georgia under the direction of civilian scout James J. Andrews.{{Cite web|title=Slavens, Samuel|url=https://mohmuseum.org/medal_of_honor/slavens-samuel/|access-date=2021-09-15|website=The National Medal of Honor Museum|language=en-US}} Slavens was one of eight raiders including Andrews to be executed for spying. Samuel Slavens was hanged on June 18, 1862, in Atlanta, Georgia.{{Cite journal|last=G. Kurtz, Sr.|first=Wilbur|date=April 1962|title=The Andrews Raid|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/i40139679|journal=Railway & Locomotive Historical Society (R&LHS)|volume=106|page=15|JSTOR=i49139679}} He was buried in Atlanta and was later reburied in Chattanooga National Cemetery.{{Cite web|title=Samuel Slavens – victoriacross|url=http://vconline.org.uk/samuel-slavens/4594269628|access-date=2021-09-15|website=vconline.org.uk}}
Medal of Honor citation
On July 28, 1883,{{Cite web|title=Samuel Slavens – Recipient |url=http://valor.militarytimes.com/hero/2840|access-date=2021-09-15|website=valor.militarytimes.com|language=en}} Slavens was posthumously issued the Medal of Honor for being one of 22 men (including two civilians) who, by direction of General Mitchell (or Buell), penetrated nearly 200 miles south into enemy territory and captured a railroad train at Big Shanty, Georgia, in an attempt to destroy the bridges and track between Chattanooga and Atlanta.
References
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Category:American Civil War recipients of the Medal of Honor
Category:People from Pike County, Ohio
Category:United States Army personnel who were court-martialed
Category:Union military personnel killed in the American Civil War
Category:People executed by the Confederate States of America by hanging
Category:Executed military personnel
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