Rudolph Stauffer

For more than two decades, Swiss-born Rudolph Stauffer served in the United States Army, rising through the ranks of the cavalry to become a first sergeant and ultimately a Medal of Honor recipient . Born in Berne, Switzerland, on November 27, 1836, he emigrated to the United States and became associated with Cincinnati, Ohio, the city to which his Medal of Honor was later accredited. Stauffer entered the Army in 1855 and served with Company K of the 2nd U.S. Cavalry, which was redesignated the 5th U.S. Cavalry in 1861. His long military career eventually carried him to the western frontier, where he earned a reputation as a hardened veteran noncommissioned officer. Years later, 5th Cavalry officer and author Charles King portrayed him in *Tonio, Son of the Sierras* as “grim old Stauffer, the first sergeant.”

Stauffer saw demanding field service in the Arizona Territory during the Apache Wars . On May 19, 1872, he led a detachment of Company K from Camp Hualpai with civilian scouts Ed Clark and Dan O'Leary after raiders who had driven off cattle in Williamson Valley. The pursuit carried the detachment approximately 110 miles before the soldiers overtook and engaged the raiding party. Four of the raiders were killed, two soldiers were wounded, and one cow was recovered. Lieutenant Colonel George Crook formally praised Stauffer and his command in general orders dated May 30, recognizing the first sergeant's conduct and the reputation of Company K and the 5th Cavalry.

Stauffer continued campaigning in Arizona during 1872. Later historical accounts credit him with another engagement near Camp Verde on June 30, after which the position became known as Stauffer's Butte . He also served during Crook's winter operations in the Tonto Basin as Army columns pursued hostile groups through some of Arizona's most difficult terrain. Stauffer's place in American military history rests on the official record of his own gallantry. The United States Army records his Medal of Honor action near Camp Hualpai, Arizona Territory, in 1872 , with the concise citation, “Gallantry on scouts after Indians.” The Medal of Honor was issued to First Sergeant Rudolph Stauffer on July 30, 1875.

Stauffer left the United States Army on December 11, 1878, after approximately twenty-three years of military service, and later lived at the Soldiers' Home in Washington, D.C. He died there on June 9, 1918, at the age of eighty-one. From an immigrant cavalryman to a veteran first sergeant whose name became associated with the hard campaigning of the Arizona frontier, Rudolph Stauffer left a lasting record of service with the 5th U.S. Cavalry . He is buried at the United States Soldiers' and Airmen's Home National Cemetery in Washington, D.C., Section K, Grave 8132.