DOB/DOD: 1839 or 1840 * (Danbury, CT) – unknown date in 1864 #
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown.
ENLISTMENT: October 1, 1861.
REENLISTMENT: December 24, 1863.
FAMILY: His father is Nathan H. Hickok (1805-?), and his mother is unknown. One brother, Edward E. (1845-?). One sister, Eliza Hickok Wood (1836-1869).
* The exact dates of birth and death are unknown.
# Nathan Hickok’s last known battle was the Second Battle of Fair Oaks in Virginia, October 27-28, 1864. Union records list him as “Captured October 29, 1864, Fair Oaks, Virginia.” There are no Confederate records of him being a prisoner of war.
MEDAL OF HONOR CITATION
AWARDED FOR ACTIONS DURING: Civil War
BRANCH OF SERVICE: Army
UNIT: Company A, 8th Connecticut Infantry
DATE OF ISSUE AND PRESENTATION: April 6, 1865
AGE ON THE DAY OF THE EVENT: 25 or 26 years old
CITATION:
The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Corporal Nathan E. Hickok, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism on 29 September 1864, while serving with Company A, 8th Connecticut Infantry, in action at Chapin’s Farm, Virginia, for capture of flag.
In 1861, Hickok, 22, volunteered to serve in the Union Army. He was assigned as a sharpshooter to Company A in the 8th Connecticut Infantry. In June of 1864, Hickok was transferred to a new unit composed entirely of sharpshooters, who fought with new Sharp rifles that allowed them to fire repeatedly far more often than soldiers with muzzle-loading muskets.
His name is inscribed on a monument and plaque honoring local men in unknown graves – Wooster Cemetery, 20 Ellsworth Avenue, Danbury, Connecticut; Section G. Photos by Jeff DeWitt.
Also honored with a monument in Veterans Walkway of Honor, 1 Memorial Drive, Danbury, Connecticut. Photo by Jeff DeWitt.
END