George Washington Healey

U.S. Army
Medal Of Honor, Civil War

 Photo Courtesy of HomeOfHeroes.com

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Surrounded by the enemy in a battle near Newnan, Georgia, on July 29, 1864, Private George Healey, assisted by Private Oscar Martin, captured a Confederate soldier. In the act ion that followed, he later recalled his heroic capture of four additional rebel soldiers. "As we were about to resume our march, we heard men talking. We got behind a tree and the next minute four Confederates came, trailing in Indian fashion, towards us. Martin and I stepped from behind the trees and covered them. I ordered: 'Halt! Drop those guns!' but had to repeat the command before they obeyed. I then marched them some fifty feet, halted them, and ordered one man to advance at a time, when Martin and I relieved them of their revolvers, holsters and belts. Next, while Martin kept guard, I went back, removed the cartridges from the rifles they had dropped and returned the empty guns to them. We moved toward our lines and reached them without further interruption, where we turned our five prisoners over to General McCook who paid us a high compliment. For his actions, Private Healey was awarded the Medal of Honor. Private Martin was later killed, and never did receive the same award.

Later captured and taken prisoner himself, George Healey was paroled from the Andersonville prison and returned to his regiment in September 1864. After the war he operated a hardware and feed store in Dubuque. In 1877 he established the pioneer hardware firm of George Washington Healey and Son.

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