A Nevada Army veteran who died without knowing he won the nation’s highest medal of bravery received the honor he’s been owed for nearly 140 years in a ceremony on Monday.
Nevada Rep. Mark Amodei held an event at his Reno office to present a new Medal of Honor to Jerry Reynolds, the 82-year-old grandson and closest surviving relative of the late Private Robert Smith.
Smith fought in a battle against American Indian tribes in the Dakota Territory on Sept. 9, 1876, when he was 29. Then-President Rutherford B. Hayes approved the Medal of Honor for Smith in 1877 for showing “special bravery in endeavoring to dislodge Indians secreted in a ravine,” according to Army records.
But the award never made it to the veteran, who was born in Memphis, Tennessee as Harry Reynolds but used an alias for unknown reasons. His grandson said the medal was delivered to Camp Sheridan in Nebraska Territory, where Smith had previously lived, but someone else signed for the package.
Smith returned to using his birth name after his discharge from the Army, then later moved to Elko, Nevada. While he talked with his family about his experiences in the so-called Indian Wars, he was better known for his skill driving horses as a teamster than he was for his war heroism, and he died in 1930 without knowing he won the award.
In 2011, the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War contacted Jerry Reynolds to let him know about his grandfather’s award. Smith had served as a drummer boy in the Civil War before enlisting in the Army in 1872 under the pseudonym.
“It was a total surprise,” said Reynolds, who’d also never known about the Robert Smith name.
A document in the soldier’s pension file that explains the name discrepancy suggests he used the alias because he didn’t want friends in Philadelphia to know where he went.
Jerry Reynolds contacted Amodei’s office this summer for help in what turned out to be a five-year journey to get a new medal. Congressional staff worked with the Army’s Command Awards and Decorations Branch, which announced on Oct. 14 that it would provide a medal to the family as a symbol of the one that never made it to Smith.
“It’s certainly been a great experience,” Reynolds said. “They’re very protective of the Medal of Honor … rightfully so.”
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
Good to see it finally get into the families hands. More American soldiers should receive the rightful recognition for bravery under fire, duty, and honor that is displayed while members of the Armed Forces. The racist POTUS who has bestowed the Highest Civilian Honors on idiots in this country should be ashamed of himself but of course that is not a word or does it have meaning to himself.
Probably delayed because the trooper was white maybe. No one ‘wins’ the MOH, it is “awarded” just like any other ribbon, rank, medal or accommodation.
Back when I was in the service you received letters from commanders and such. I personally was awarded a stripe for being the highest scoring grade average in a military school. The commanding officer decides what you get. It is some process that is closely kept.
I wonder if the Army was able to provide the family a historical accurate MOH from the time period he won it. Today’s metal looks very different than it did in the 1870’s. I certainly hope they made that “extra” effort. Reynolds certainly made the extra effort to earn it.
A lot of soldiers used fake names after the Civil War was over. Some of the partisan units did a lot of bad things that the relatives of the people that they hurt would be looking for them otherwise and they didn’t want to constantly look over their shoulders.