Battle of Fort Sumter
After emigrating to the United States from Ireland, Hough enlisted as a private in the U.S. Army, where he was put into Battery D of the 1st United States Artillery Regiment. After reenlistment at Fort Moultrie in 1859, Hough was assigned to Battery E of the same regiment. In January 1861, Battery E was relocated to Fort Sumter in Charleston harbor, where it stayed until the Battle of Fort Sumter.