Adolphus Greely

Adolphus Washington Greely was a highly distinguished United States Army officer and polar explorer who rose from the rank of enlisted private during the American Civil War to major general. Born in 1844, he enlisted in the Union Army in 1861 and served throughout the Civil War, during which he was wounded at both the Battle of Glendale and the Battle of Antietam. His decades of dedicated military service culminated in his promotion to major general in 1906, followed by retirement upon reaching his 64th birthday.

In 1935, Greely was awarded the Medal of Honor by act of Congress for his lifetime of splendid public service, becoming only the second person in United States history to receive the nation's highest military decoration for lifetime achievement rather than for a specific act of physical courage in combat. When the Purple Heart was established in 1932, his wartime sacrifices were officially recognized with the award of the medal and an oak leaf cluster for his multiple combat wounds.

Beyond his military achievements, Greely was a renowned polar explorer, leading the Lady Franklin Bay Expedition. His scientific contributions and leadership in the Arctic earned him prestigious international civilian honors, including the Royal Geographical Society's Founder's Medal and the American Geographical Society's Charles P. Daly Medal. He passed away in 1935 and is memorialized by several military installations, including Fort Greely in Alaska, and the transport ship USS General A. W. Greely.