Winthrop D. Putnam

Winthrop D. Putnam was born (September 18, 1837 – January 15, 1907) in Southbridge, Massachusetts. During the Civil War, he joined the military at Peoria, Illinois and served as a corporal in Company A of the 77th Illinois Infantry Regiment. His unit took part in the Western Theater and assisted in carrying out the campaign directed against Vicksburg, Mississippi.

On May 22, 1863, Union forces launched a major assault on the Vicksburg defenses. Putnam and a number of other soldiers carried a cannon to the enemy's position, placed the cannon at the fortifications and fired it directly through an opening into the Confederate lines.

He was awarded the Medal of Honor on April 4, 1898, as a result of his act during the attack. The official citation which gives reason for the award is as follows:

"Carried, with others, by hand, a cannon up to and fired it through an embrasure of the enemy's works."

Putnam survived the war and later resided at the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers in Wood, Wisconsin; he died on January 15, 1907, and was buried in the Wood National Cemetery in Milwaukee.