John H. Hays

John H. Hays
John H. Hays
	Hays in 1895
Born	August 4, 1844; Jefferson County, Ohio
Died	January 27, 1904 (aged 59); Troy, Idaho
Buried	Moscow Cemetery, Moscow, Idaho
Allegiance	United States of America
Service / branch	United States Army
Rank	Private
Unit	Company F, 4th Iowa Volunteer Cavalry Regiment
Battles / wars	Civil War Battle of Columbus;
Awards	Medal of Honor
Spouse(s)	Nancy Cox (m. 1868)

John Henry Hays (4 August 1844 – 27 January 1904) was a veteran of the American Civil War and recipient of the Medal of Honor.

Biography

Hays was born in Ohio, but moved to the state of Iowa at the age of fifteen. He worked on his family's farm for the next three years. In 1862, Hays volunteered to join the Union Army. He was injured multiple times throughout the war, surviving a gunshot wound to his left thumb and being struck by debris from a falling bridge.^[1]

Battle of Columbus

On April 16, 1865, seven days following the surrender of Confederate General Robert E. Lee at Appomattox Court House, Hays marched on Columbus, Georgia to secure the city's naval yards, weapons factories and supply depots. During the ensuing battle, Hays stormed a bridge over the Chattahoochee River and helped to capture a fort guarding it. During the battle for the fort, Hays captured the flag and the flag bearer of an Austin Battery stationed there. He received the Medal of Honor for this act.^[1]

Citation

Capture of flag and bearer Austin's Battery (C.S.A.).^[2]

Later life

Hays returned to his family farm following the conclusion of the Civil War. However, he left to open a blacksmith shop in Greenfield, Iowa in 1868. He later moved to Troy, Idaho in 1888 and opened a new blacksmith shop. The shop was ultimately destroyed in a fire. Hays began prospecting following the destruction of his shop and experienced some success at mining for silver. In 1894, Hays was appointed City Marshall of Troy.^[1]

Death

On January 27, 1904, Hays attempted to arrest Paine Sly, an infamous locally known criminal, for domestic disturbance. Sly killed Hays in the ensuing shoot-out. Although fatally wounded, Hays returned fire and was able to injure Sly. Sly was later convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison.^[3]^{[failed verification]}

Notes

^ ^a ^b ^c "Pvt. John Henry Hays". State Historical Society of Iowa. Archived from the original on 18 May 2014. Retrieved 14 December 2021.
^ "HAYS, JOHN H." Home of Heroes. Retrieved 17 May 2014.
^ "Marshal John Henry Hays, Troy Police Department, Idaho". The Officer Down Memorial Page, Inc. Retrieved 14 December 2021.

External links

"John H. Hays". Claim to Fame: Medal of Honor recipients. Find a Grave. Retrieved 14 December 2021.

This article about a person of the American Civil War is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[Hist-1] "Pvt. John Henry Hays". State Historical Society of Iowa. Archived from the original on 18 May 2014. Retrieved 14 December 2021.

[2] "HAYS, JOHN H." Home of Heroes. Retrieved 17 May 2014.

[3] "Marshal John Henry Hays, Troy Police Department, Idaho". The Officer Down Memorial Page, Inc. Retrieved 14 December 2021.

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