MAJ. HENRY R. TILTON,
Surgeon, U.S. Army
Bear Paw Mountain, Mont.
30 September 1877
Tilton saw service in the American Civil and Indian Wars, then served as an officer with the 7th U.S. Cavalry during the Nez Perce War.
Tilton, a Surgeon not a combat soldier showed exceptional courage as he was administering aid to wounded soldiers at the Battle of Bear Paw Mountain. In between amputations and various life-saving acts in surgery, Maj. Tilton took to recovering his won patients from the battlefield.
He would run out into the melee and bring a wounded soldier to safety taking Them directly to the operating table – the going out for another as soon as he was finished.
After serving at federal hospitals across the South during the Civil War, Maj. Henry Tilton was posted to the trans-Mississippi frontier where he accompanied several Indian campaigns, including the 1873 Yellowstone Expedition. Following Tilton’s frontier duty, he joined the 5th Infantry and 7th Calvary in a fierce battle with the Nez Perce at Bear Paw Mountain, Mont.
Tilton was promoted to deputy surgeon general in 1893, and retired from the service a year later.
Citation: Fearlessly risked his life and displayed great gallantry in rescuing and protecting the wounded men.
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