Alexander J . Foley Sergeant Alexander Joseph Foley ( February 19 , 1866 – January 14 , 1910 ) was a member of the United States Marine Corps who was awarded the United States ' highest military decoration , the Medal of Honor , for having distinguished himself during the Boxer Rebellion . Early years . Foley was born in Heckscherville , Pennsylvania to Irish immigrants , Edward and Catherine McDonald Foley . At a young age he decided that he was not going to work the coal mines as his father had done . He joined the United States Marine Corps in 1888 for a period of five years . In 1893 , he re - enlisted and , in 1898 , he was sent to Cuba during the Spanish - American War where he received his first taste of military action . He also participated in the Philippines Campaign . Boxer Rebellion . In 1900 , members of a Chinese nationalist society , known as the Righteous Harmony Society or in contemporary English parlance , " Boxers " , resented the presence of Western foreigners and Chinese Christians on their soil and proceeded to attack them . This became known as the Boxer Rebellion . Hundreds of foreigners were murdered . The British Legation at Peking was under siege for two months and soon after the international settlement at Tientsin was also placed under siege by the Boxers . The small garrison of Marines stationed in Tientsin found themselves under attack and outnumbered by the nationalists , who were determined to " drive the foreign devils " out . A multinational military force from the Eight - Nation Alliance whose members were Austria - Hungary , France , Germany , Italy , Japan , Russia , the United Kingdom , and the United States and consisting of 50 , 000 troops were sent to Tientsin to reinforce the troops already there . On June 21 , 1900 , the Boxers were entrenched on the outskirts of Tientsin . On July 13 , 1900 , a major skirmish occurred between Foley ' s unit , the Ninth U . S . Infantry , and the Boxers . Major James Regan was badly wounded and Foley together with Sergeant Clarence Edwin Sutton and two other Marines , under enemy fire and in total disregard for their own personal safety , rescued the Major . They were able to take Maj Regan to a field hospital three miles away from the location where he was wounded . In the letter which Major Regan wrote recommending the Medal of Honor , he stated the following : After serving in the Boxer Rebellion , Foley was sent to the Marine garrison located in Cavite , in the Philippine Islands . There , on May 11 , 1902 , in the presence of his unit , he was bestowed with the Medal of Honor . Sergeant Sutton and the two other Marines were also awarded the Medal of Honor . Medal of Honor citation . FOLEY , ALEXANDER J . " Rank and organization : " Sergeant , U . S . Marine Corps " Date : " July 19 , 1901 " G . O . Navy Department , No . 55 " Citation : " Puerto Rico . Foley was re - assigned to the Culebra Naval Station located on the island of Culebra , Puerto Rico . On January 14 , 1910 , Sgt . Alexander J . Foley suffered a heart attack and died at the age of 44 . The Department of the Navy did not consider it practical at that time to transfer his body to his hometown , therefore Foley was buried in the municipal cemetery of Culebra , with flags at half mast and with full military honors . Awards and recognitions . Among Alexander J . Foley ' s decorations and medals were the following :