John H. Haight

Wounded and Captured, He Still Went Back for the Wounded

John H. Haight was born on July 1, 1841, in Westfield, New York. When the American Civil War divided the nation, he left his home in Chautauqua County and entered Union service, beginning a military career that would place him in some of the hardest fighting of 1862. Serving with Company G of the 72nd New York Infantry, Haight became known not for a single moment of courage, but for a series of actions in which he repeatedly exposed himself to danger for his fellow soldiers.

Haight entered service at Westfield in 1861 and joined the 72nd New York Infantry as a private. The regiment formed part of the celebrated Excelsior Brigade and was eventually assigned to the Army of the Potomac. As Union forces prepared for operations against Richmond, Haight and his comrades moved into Virginia and became involved in the Peninsula Campaign.

His first Medal of Honor action occurred at Williamsburg, Virginia, on May 5, 1862. The battle developed as Confederate forces withdrew toward Richmond and Union troops pressed their pursuit. Heavy fighting erupted around defensive positions near Williamsburg, producing severe casualties on both sides.

During the battle, Haight saw a badly wounded comrade lying on the field in an exposed position. Rather than leave the injured soldier behind, he voluntarily went forward and carried him away while facing a substantial enemy force.

The rescue nearly cost Haight his own life and freedom. While bringing the wounded soldier from the battlefield, Haight was himself severely wounded and captured by Confederate troops. His willingness to risk himself for another soldier became the first of the actions later recognized by the Medal of Honor.

Haight eventually returned to Union lines, but the effects of his wounds did not end his combat service. By July 1862 he had risen to the rank of Sergeant, placing him in a position of greater responsibility within Company G.

Only a few months after Williamsburg, Haight again demonstrated unusual determination.

On August 27, 1862, during fighting at Bristol Station, Virginia, he was still suffering from a serious physical disability. Despite his condition, he went into the fight with his regiment. The official account of his Medal of Honor actions specifically emphasized that he entered combat although severely disabled.

His conduct was remarkable not simply because he returned to duty after being wounded, but because he repeatedly chose to place himself near the fighting when his injuries gave him legitimate reason to remain away from the battle line.

Two days later, during the fighting around Manassas on August 29 and 30, Haight's concern for wounded soldiers again placed him in danger.

As Union formations were forced to maneuver and withdraw under pressure, wounded men were left scattered across wooded and contested ground. Volunteers were needed to search for soldiers who might otherwise remain helpless or fall into Confederate hands.

Haight volunteered.

He entered the woods to search for wounded men despite the danger of enemy fire and the uncertainty of the battlefield. The act closely echoed his conduct at Williamsburg. Once again, his response to the suffering of fellow soldiers was to move toward danger rather than away from it.

These three episodes—Williamsburg, Bristol Station, and Manassas—formed the basis of Haight's Medal of Honor recognition. Together they reveal a consistent pattern. He carried a severely wounded comrade from the battlefield, suffered serious wounds and capture while doing so, returned to combat while still disabled, and later volunteered to search dangerous ground for additional wounded soldiers.

His Civil War service was eventually brought to an end by the physical consequences of campaigning and wounds. Haight was honorably discharged in March 1863 on a surgeon's certificate of disability. His active military career had been relatively short, but it had included combat, serious injury, captivity, promotion to Sergeant, and repeated acts of voluntary service under fire.

For many years after the war, however, there was no Medal of Honor hanging beside his name.

Recognition finally came more than a quarter of a century after his acts of courage. On June 8, 1888, Sergeant John H. Haight was presented with the Medal of Honor for his extraordinary conduct during the 1862 fighting in Virginia.

The award recognized all three episodes rather than reducing his military legacy to one isolated act. His citation preserved the essential facts: the rescue of a severely wounded comrade at Williamsburg, his own wounding and capture, his decision to enter the fighting at Bristol Station despite severe disability, and his voluntary search for the wounded at Manassas.

No clasp, bar, star, or other device accompanied his Medal of Honor.

Haight's Union Army service also placed him within the historical entitlement represented by the Army Civil War Campaign Medal. Established decades after the conflict, the campaign medal recognized qualifying service by soldiers who had served the United States Army during the Civil War. Haight survived well into the twentieth century and lived to see the generation of Civil War veterans formally commemorated through this later recognition.

After leaving the Army, Haight returned to Westfield, New York. He resumed civilian life and worked as a tinsmith. He married Louisa Pike, and the couple built their postwar life in the same community from which he had entered military service.

Unlike many veterans whose wartime stories faded from public attention, Haight lived long enough to see his battlefield actions officially recognized and preserved as part of the national record. The Medal of Honor awarded in 1888 connected the older civilian veteran directly with the young Union soldier who had repeatedly risked his life in Virginia in 1862.

John H. Haight died in Westfield on April 8, 1917, at the age of seventy-five. He was buried at East Ripley Cemetery in Ripley, New York.

His Medal of Honor story is unusual because it does not depend upon the capture of a flag, the seizure of an enemy position, or the destruction of an opposing force. Its central theme is rescue.

At Williamsburg, Haight went into danger for a wounded comrade and was himself wounded and captured. At Bristol Station, he entered battle despite continuing physical disability. At Manassas, he again volunteered to search dangerous ground for wounded soldiers.

Across three separate actions, his courage was expressed through a repeated willingness to place the lives of others before his own safety. That record earned Sergeant John H. Haight the Medal of Honor and secured his place among the Union soldiers whose bravery was measured not only by how they fought the enemy, but by what they were willing to endure for the men beside them.