1925 vintage AUTOGRAPH PHOTO GENERAL NELSON A MILES MEDAL OF HONOR U.S. ARMY

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1925 vintage AUTOGRAPH PHOTO GENERAL NELSON A MILES MEDAL OF HONOR U.S. ARMY :
$203.72

i bought a nice collection of autograph photos from a old dallas estate. the family was originally from washington d.c. and were well known in political and military circles. the photos are in their original frames. this photo dates to early 1925, personally signed by U.S. ARMY GENERAL NELSON A MILES WHO WAS AWARDED THE MEDAL OF HONOR AT CHANCELLORSVILLE DURING THE CIVIL WAR. the photo and frame measure 8X9.5 inches. the typed note attached to back of photo describes the circumstances in which the autograph was acquired. in part it reads as follows \" i first met this genial gentleman when a youngster about age 15 when grandpa took me to the monthly meetings of the district of columbia commandery of the military order of the loyal legion of the united states. by the time i had grown up somewhat and was a working person, i had begun to collect autographed photographs of the few important persons i had met and he was one of them. i wrote and asked for the photograph. one day he decided to take his two grandchildren to the circus then featured in washington and, having ordered the photo and autographed it at my request, he took it to my grandpa\'s office. as it happened the general took a taxi, went to the circus and had hardly arrived there when he suffered a fatal stroke and died almost immediately. the signature on my photograph was the last time he ever signed his name\". a interesting story. a fine addition to your collection. 10.00 SHIPPING. I combine shipping. PAYPAL. good luck. mike

Nelson Appleton Miles(August 8, 1839 – May 15, 1925) was a United States soldier who served in theAmerican Civil War,Indian Wars, and theSpanish–American War.

Contents[hide]

1Early life
2Civil War
3Indian Wars
4Spanish–American War and later life
5Military awards
- 5.1Medal of Honor citation
6Memberships
7Legacy
8Dates of rank
9See also
10Notes
11References
12Further reading
13External links

Early life

Miles was born inWestminster, Massachusetts, on his family\'s farm. He worked inBoston, read military history, and mastered military principles and techniques, including battle drills.

Civil War

Miles was working as a crockery store clerk in Boston when the Civil War began. He entered theUnion Armyon September 9, 1861, as a volunteer and fought in many crucial battles.

Miles during Civil War

He became a lieutenant in the22nd Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, and was commissionedlieutenant colonelof the61st New York Volunteer Infantry Regimenton May 31, 1862. He was promoted tocolonelafter theBattle of Antietam. Other battles he participated in includeFredericksburg,Chancellorsville, and theAppomattox Campaign. Wounded four times in battle (he was shot in the neck and abdomen at Chancellorsville), on March 2, 1867 he wasbrevettedabrigadier generalin theregular armyin recognition of his actions at Chancellorsville. He was again brevetted, this time to the rank ofmajor generalfor his actions atSpotsylvania Court House. He received theMedal of Honor(on July 23, 1892) for his gallantry at Chancellorsville. He was appointed brigadier general of volunteers as of May 12, 1864, for the Battles ofthe WildernessandSpotsylvania Court House. On October 21, 1865, he was appointed major general of volunteers at age 26.[1]After the war, he was commandant ofFort Monroe, Virginia, where former Confederate PresidentJefferson Daviswas held prisoner. During his tenure at Fort Monroe, Miles was forced to defend himself against charges that Davis was being mistreated.

Indian WarsGeneral Nelson Miles and other soldiers on horseback in Puerto Rico in 1898.

In July 1866, Miles was appointed a colonel in the Regular Army. In March 1869, he became commander of the5th U.S. Infantry Regiment. On June 30, 1868, he married Mary Hoyt Sherman (daughter ofCharles Taylor Sherman, niece ofWilliam T. ShermanandJohn Sherman, and granddaughter ofCharles R. Sherman).[2]

Miles played a leading role in nearly all of the U.S. Army\'s campaigns against theAmerican Indiantribes of the Great Plains. In 1874–1875, he was a field commander in the force that defeated theKiowa,Comanche, and the Southern Cheyenne along the Red River. Between 1876 and 1877, he participated in the campaign that scoured the Northern Plains after Lt. Col.George Armstrong Custer\'s defeat at theBattle of Little Big Horn, and forced theLakotaand their allies ontoreservations. In the winter of 1877, he drove his troops on a forced march acrossMontanaand intercepted theNez Percéband led byChief Joseph. For the rest of Miles\' career, he would quarrel with GeneralOliver O. Howardover credit for Joseph\'s capture. While on theYellowstone, he developed expertise with theheliographfor sending communications signals, establishing a 140-mile-long (230km) line of heliographs connecting Fort Keogh and Fort Custer, Montana in 1878.[3][4]The heliographs were supplied by Brig. Gen.Albert J. Myerof theSignal Corps.[5]

In December 1880, he was promoted to brigadier general in the Regular Army. He was then assigned to command theDepartment of the Columbia(1881–85) and theDepartment of Missouri(1885–86)

In 1886, Miles replaced GeneralGeorge Crookas commander of forces fighting againstGeronimoin theDepartment of Arizona. Crook had relied heavily on Apache scouts in his efforts to capture theChiricahualeader. Instead, Miles relied on white troops, who eventually traveled 3,000 miles (4,800km) without success as they tracked Geronimo through the tortuous Sierra Madre Mountains. Finally, First LieutenantCharles B. Gatewood, who had studied Apache ways, succeeded in negotiating a surrender, under the terms of which Geronimo and his followers, agreed to spend two years in aFloridareservation. Geronimo agreed on these terms, being unaware of the real plot behind the negotiations (that there was no intent to let them go back in their native lands.) The exile included even the Chiricahuas who had worked for the army, in violation of Miles\' agreement with them. Miles denied Gatewood any credit for the negotiations and had him transferred to the Dakota Territory. During this campaign, Miles\'s special signals unit used theheliographextensively, proving its worth in the field.[5]The special signals unit was under the command of Captain W. A. Glassford.[5]In 1888, Miles became the commander of theMilitary Division of the Pacificand theDepartment of California

In April 1890, Miles was promoted to major general in the Regular Army and became the commander of theMilitary Division of the Missouri. That same year, the last major resistance of theSiouxon the Lakota reservations, known as theGhost Dance, brought Miles back into the field. His efforts to subdue the Sioux led toSitting Bull\'s death and the massacre of about 300 Sioux. This included women and children atWounded Kneeon December 29, 1890. Miles was not directly involved at Wounded Knee and was critical of the commanding officer. Just two days after the event, Miles wrote to his wife, describing Wounded Knee as \"The most abominable criminal military blunder and a horrible massacre of women and children\".[6]After his retirement from the army, he fought for compensation payments to the survivors of the massacre. Overall, he believed that the United States should have authority over the Indians, with the Lakota under military control.

Spanish–American War and later lifeMiles\' portrait atUnited States Army Center of Military History

In his capacity of commander of theDepartment of the Eastfrom 1894 to 1895, Miles commanded the troops mobilized to put down thePullman strikeriots. He was namedCommanding General of the United States Armyin 1895, a post he held during the Spanish–American War. Miles commanded forces at Cuban sites such asSiboney.

After the surrender ofSantiago de Cubaby the Spanish, he personally led the invasion ofPuerto Rico, landing inGuánicain what is known as thePuerto Rican Campaign. He served as the first head of the military government established on the island, acting as both head of the army of occupation and administrator of civil affairs.

Upon returning to the United States, Miles was a vocal critic of the Army\'s quartermaster general, Brigadier GeneralCharles P. Eagan, for providing rancid canned meat to the troops in the field during what was known as theArmy beef scandal.

He was promoted to the rank oflieutenant generalin 1900 based on his performance in the war.

Cartoon byBob Satterfieldabout Miles\' retirement in August 1903.

To show that he was still physically able to command, on July 14, 1903 - a month away from his 64th birthday - General Miles rode the 90 miles fromFort SilltoFort Reno, Oklahoma, in 8 hour\'s riding time (10 hrs 20 mins total), in temperatures between 90 and 100°F (32 and 38°C). The distance was covered on a relay of horses stationed at 10-mile intervals; the first 30 miles were covered in 2 hours, 25 minutes. This was the longest horseback ride ever made by a commanding general of the army.[7]

Called a \"brave peacock\" by PresidentTheodore Roosevelt,[citation needed]Miles nevertheless retired from the army in 1903 upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 64. Upon his retirement, the office ofCommanding General of the United States Armywas abolished by an Act of Congress and theArmy Chief of Staffsystem was introduced. A year later, standing as presidential candidate at theDemocratic National Convention, he received a handful of votes.[citation needed]

When the U.S. enteredWorld War Iin 1917, the 77-year-old general offered to serve, but President Wilson turned him down.[citation needed]

Miles died in 1925 at the age of 85 from aheart attackwhile attending a circus in Washington, D.C., with his grandchildren. He was one of the last surviving of those who served as a general officer on either side during the Civil War[8]He is buried atArlington National Cemeteryin theMiles Mausoleum. It is one of only twomausoleumswithin the confines of the cemetery.

George Burroughs Torreypainted his portrait.

Military awards

Medal of Honor
Civil War Campaign Medal
Indian Campaign Medal
Spanish Campaign Medal
Army of Puerto Rican Occupation Medal

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and Organization:

Colonel, 60th New York Infantry. Place and date: At Chancellorsville, Va., May 3, 1863. Entered service at: Roxbury, Mass. Birth: Westminster, Mass. Date of issue: July 23, 1892.

Citation:

Distinguished gallantry while holding with his command an advanced position against repeated assaults by a strong force of the enemy; was severely wounded.[9]Memberships

General Miles was a member of several hereditary and military societies, including theMilitary Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States(MOLLUS)—serving as Commander-in-Chief from 1919 to 1925, theGrand Army of the Republic,Sons of the American Revolutionand theMilitary Order of Foreign Wars. He was also an honorary member of the MassachusettsSociety of the Cincinnati.