Peter McAdams

A Heroic Rescue Under Fire at Salem Heights

Peter McAdams was an Irish-born Union Army soldier and Medal of Honor recipient whose extraordinary courage during the American Civil War earned him national recognition. Serving as a corporal in Company A of the 98th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, he distinguished himself at the Battle of Salem Heights, Virginia, on May 3, 1863. When a wounded fellow soldier lay helpless between the opposing lines, McAdams advanced approximately 250 yards under Confederate fire, carried the unconscious man back to safety, and returned to his regiment. His remarkable act of bravery earned him the Medal of Honor on April 1, 1898.

McAdams was born on April 21, 1834, in Armagh, Ireland. In 1848, at approximately fourteen years of age, he emigrated to the United States with his sister. They settled in Manayunk, a community in the Philadelphia area of Pennsylvania.

After arriving in America, McAdams began working as a shoemaker. His early civilian life was therefore associated with the trades and communities of Philadelphia, where he would later enter military service.

The outbreak of the American Civil War in April 1861 brought a major change to his life.

Following the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter, McAdams enlisted in the 21st Pennsylvania Infantry, a short-term volunteer regiment formed during the opening months of the conflict. The unit completed its initial period of service before McAdams participated in any documented combat.

He subsequently enlisted in the 98th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, joining several men who had previously served with him in the 21st Pennsylvania.

McAdams entered Company A of the 98th Pennsylvania on August 29, 1861. The regiment was organized under Colonel John F. Ballier and drew many of its recruits from Philadelphia and nearby communities.

The 98th Pennsylvania entered the Union Army's eastern theater and became part of the Army of the Potomac. Its early operations included service during the Peninsula Campaign of 1862.

McAdams participated in the Battle of Williamsburg on May 5, 1862, during the Union advance toward Richmond, Virginia. The regiment also served in operations around the Confederate capital before participating in the Battle of Fredericksburg later that year.

These campaigns exposed McAdams to the dangers of infantry combat and the difficult conditions faced by Union soldiers in Virginia.

By the spring of 1863, the 98th Pennsylvania was serving in the Army of the Potomac's VI Corps, commanded by Major General John Sedgwick.

During the Chancellorsville Campaign, Union forces attempted to maneuver against General Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. While Major General Joseph Hooker's main army operated near Chancellorsville, Sedgwick's corps advanced from Fredericksburg toward the Confederate rear.

On May 3, 1863, Sedgwick's troops captured the Confederate defenses at Marye's Heights and continued westward along the road toward Chancellorsville.

Their advance was eventually confronted by Confederate forces near Salem Church, several miles west of Fredericksburg.

The opposing armies fought across wooded terrain and fields surrounding the church. Confederate defenders occupied positions that allowed them to deliver heavy musket fire against advancing Union infantry.

The Battle of Salem Church became a particularly difficult engagement for Sedgwick's troops as they attempted to continue their movement toward Hooker's army.

The 98th Pennsylvania Infantry participated in the fighting and came under intense Confederate fire.

During the engagement, the regiment was forced to withdraw from an advanced position to a defensive line farther to the rear.

The withdrawal left several wounded Union soldiers lying on the exposed ground between the opposing forces.

Among the wounded was Private Charles Smith, a member of the regiment and a close friend of Peter McAdams.

Smith had been seriously wounded and was unable to return to the Union lines without assistance.

McAdams saw his friend's dangerous situation and approached Captain John W. Beamish, an officer of Company A.

According to McAdams' own account, later published in the historical work *Deeds of Valor*, he requested permission to attempt a rescue.

The captain granted his request.

McAdams immediately advanced from the Union position toward the area where Smith lay wounded.

The distance was approximately 250 yards, and the ground was exposed to Confederate musket fire.

Moving quickly across the battlefield, McAdams reached his injured comrade.

He lifted Smith onto his shoulders and began carrying him back toward the Union lines.

The return journey was especially dangerous because McAdams had to support the weight of an unconscious man while remaining exposed to enemy fire.

Nevertheless, he continued toward his regiment.

In his published recollection, McAdams described Confederate soldiers observing the rescue from a position behind a fence. He recalled that some of the opposing soldiers cheered when he successfully escaped their fire and reached safety with his wounded companion.

His fellow Union soldiers also welcomed the successful rescue.

McAdams' account provides a rare personal description of the circumstances surrounding a Civil War Medal of Honor action.

The official citation confirms the central facts: he advanced 250 yards toward the enemy under fire and returned to the Union lines carrying a wounded and unconscious comrade.

The courage required for the rescue was exceptional. McAdams had left a comparatively protected position to enter ground already occupied by wounded soldiers and exposed to hostile fire.

Unlike an offensive assault intended to capture an enemy position, his action was undertaken to save the life of another soldier.

The rescue became the defining event of McAdams' military career.

Although Smith's eventual fate is described differently in later accounts, McAdams' successful return with him to the Union lines is established by the official Medal of Honor citation and his own recollection.

The fighting at Salem Church continued into May 4. Confederate counterattacks placed increasing pressure on Sedgwick's troops, and the Union force eventually withdrew across the Rappahannock River near Banks' Ford.

The engagement formed part of the unsuccessful Chancellorsville Campaign, which ended in a Confederate victory.

McAdams' battlefield conduct received recognition within his regiment. Historical accounts identify his promotion to sergeant following the rescue.

He continued serving in the 98th Pennsylvania Infantry through later campaigns of the war.

On June 3, 1864, during the Battle of Cold Harbor, Virginia, McAdams was wounded while serving with his regiment.

The surviving Pennsylvania military roster specifically records his wound at Cold Harbor. His service at this stage preceded his final promotion to a commissioned officer.

Despite the injury, McAdams remained associated with the regiment as it continued its Civil War service.

On June 13, 1865, he was promoted from sergeant to second lieutenant, becoming a commissioned officer near the conclusion of his military career.

The promotion was an important achievement for a soldier who had entered the regiment in 1861 and advanced through its enlisted ranks.

McAdams was mustered out with Company A on June 29, 1865, concluding nearly four years of service with the 98th Pennsylvania Infantry.

Following the Civil War, he returned to civilian life in Pennsylvania.

He married Catherine Gill, and the couple settled in the Philadelphia area. Available biographical accounts indicate that they had no children.

McAdams lived for several decades after the war, during which his service and act of battlefield courage remained part of the history of his regiment.

On April 1, 1898, nearly thirty-five years after the rescue at Salem Heights, Peter McAdams received the Medal of Honor.

The award recognized his voluntary advance under enemy fire to recover a wounded and unconscious fellow soldier.

His decoration also preserved the memory of Private Charles Smith, whose desperate situation had prompted McAdams to risk his own life during the battle.

The Medal of Honor confirmed the significance of an action that had already been remembered by the soldiers who witnessed it.

McAdams lived until the age of ninety-two.

He died on September 29, 1926, in Roxborough, Pennsylvania. Published biographical accounts attribute his death to pleurisy, an inflammation affecting the tissues surrounding the lungs.

He was buried at St. John the Baptist Cemetery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the Manayunk area where he had established his home after emigrating from Ireland.

His burial location is recorded by the Congressional Medal of Honor Society as Section F, Range 2, East, Square XXII.

Peter McAdams' military career extended from his early enlistment in 1861 through the final months of the Civil War. During that service, he participated in major Union campaigns, rescued a wounded comrade at Salem Heights, suffered a wound at Cold Harbor, and ultimately attained the rank of second lieutenant.

His most enduring achievement, however, remained the rescue of Private Charles Smith on May 3, 1863.

By carrying an unconscious soldier approximately 250 yards to safety under Confederate fire, McAdams demonstrated exceptional courage and devotion to a fellow soldier. His Medal of Honor stands as a lasting tribute to that act and to his service in the Union Army during the American Civil War.