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Sergeant Benjamin Criswell was one of twenty-four soldiers of the 7th Cavalry to earn the Medal of Honor during the Battle of the Little Big Horn on June 25, 1876, often called "Custer's Last Stand." Nineteen awards went to men for heroism in securing water for the wounded. Sergeant Criswell's Medal of Honor was one of five awards for actions during the battle itself, where he served as part of the escort for the pack train which was savagely attacked as it followed Custer's troops into the valley. Lieutenant Hodgson, an officer of the train, was shot in the leg by a bullet that passed through to kill his horse, dumping the wounded officer into the river. Sergeant Criswell, under heavy fire, grabbed Lieutenant Hodgson and dragged him to a nearby bank. There the officer was mortally wounded by a shot to the head, and Criswell was engaged by several warriors at close range. After organizing his men in their resistance, Sergeant Criswell turned his horse and rode fearlessly back to the river to recover Lieutenant Hodgson's body and returned to his command with it as well as needed ammunition from the saddle bags of the fallen horses along the river bank.
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