Charles W. Ray

He led scouts in a stand at a bridge at San Isidro on Luzon.

Sergeant Charles W. Ray served in Company I, 22nd U.S. Infantry, during the Philippine-American War. Born in North Carolina in 1872, he entered the Army at St. Louis, Missouri, and was serving in the Philippines in 1899. His Medal of Honor recognized a concise but consequential feat of small-unit leadership near San Isidro, on Luzon, on October 19 of that year.

Ray commanded a detachment sent to seize a bridge. His soldiers captured the crossing and held it against a numerically superior enemy force. That stand kept the route open long enough for a larger Army force to arrive and cross. The citation does not identify the bridge by name or give the detachment’s size, so those details are best left to the official record. Its emphasis is on the tactical importance of the action: control of a single crossing enabled the advance of the force behind him.

The award described Ray’s conduct as “most distinguished gallantry in action.” He received the Medal of Honor on April 18, 1902. Ray was born August 6, 1872, and died in Oklahoma on March 23, 1959. He was buried at Grandfield Memorial Cemetery.

### Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Sergeant, Company I, 22d U.S. Infantry. Place and date: Near San Isidro, Luzon, Philippine Islands, October 19, 1899. Entered service at: St. Louis, Missouri. Birth: Pensacola, North Carolina. Date of issue: April 18, 1902. Citation: “Most distinguished gallantry in action. Captured a bridge with the detachment he commanded and held it against a superior force of the enemy, thereby enabling an army to come up and cross.”