John P . Yount John P . Yount ( March 8 , 1850 – December 11 , 1872 ) was a soldier in the U . S . Army who served with the 3rd U . S . Cavalry during the Apache Wars against Cochise . In 1871 , he was one of five men to receive the Medal of Honor for " gallantry in action " against an Apache raiding party in the Whetstone Mountains . Yount attempted to rescue a wounded civilian Indian scout during the battle , and after the scout was killed , continued to defend the body preventing the enemy from mutilating it afterwards . According to author and Iowa State Senator Dennis H . Black , Yount is one of 11 men from Henry County , Iowa to receive the Medal of Honor . Biography . John P . Yount was born in Henry County , Iowa on March 8 , 1850 . Few details of his early life are known , however he left Iowa for California as a young man and worked as a carpenter prior to enlisting in the U . S . Army in Sacramento around 1871 . He was assigned to Company F of the 3rd U . S . Cavalry , then fighting against the Apache in the Arizona Territory , patrolling the Sonoita and Santa Cruz Valleys in southern Arizona . On his first mission in May 1871 , he accompanied Lieutenant Howard B . Cushing who led a 16 - man unit to search the surrounding Whetstone Mountains for Cochise after an Apache raid against a local settlement . After a week of searching , a young Apache woman was seen by cavalry troopers riding a horse down a nearby mountain trail . Cushing ordered Sergeant John Mott and three other men to follow her . Mott , expecting an ambush , prepared his men and when the attack finally came they were able to hold the Apache at bay until reinforcements could arrive . Indeed , upon hearing the fighting , Cushing ordered his men to rescue Mott and his men despite being heavily outnumbered . When a civilian Indian scout was wounded , Yount attempted to rescue him while under heavy gunfire . After the scout died , Yount and another private continued to remain at his side to protect his body from being mutilated by the Apaches . Cushing , as well as the civilian scout , were killed in the fighting and the battle proved inconclusive . Cochise is believed to have most likely been in Mexico during this time . Yount was given the Medal of Honor for his actions , officially receiving the award on November 13 , 1871 , and transferred to Fort McPherson , Nebraska where he died of typhoid fever the following year . His body was brought back to Iowa by his family and had him buried at Oak Grove Cemetery in Mount Pleasant . In early - 2007 , Yount ' s grave was rediscovered and a special government headstone was placed at the site in May . On September 30 , 2007 , a memorial service was held at his gravesite and given full military honors and a new headstone was added to officially commemorate his army service and status as an MOH recipient . The service was also accompanied by a rifle salute and taps , performed by members of the Henry County Honor Guard , and members of the 3rd Iowa Cavalry re - enactors group appearing in period clothing . Over a hundred people were in attendance including William Johnson of the State Historical Society of Iowa , members of the Medal of Honor Society from Missouri and Idaho and representatives from Henry County veterans groups . Several of Yount ' s descendants were also invited to the service and his great - great grand niece Joyce Hileman Garretson was interviewed by " Mt . Pleasant News " . Also joining the ceremony were Mayor John Freeland , State Representative David Heaton and State Senator Dennis H . Black . Black , who spoke at the ceremony , also authored " Profiles of Valor - Iowa ' s Medal of Honor recipients " and claimed Yount as one of eleven men from Henry County to receive the Medal of Honor . Medal of Honor citation . Rank and organization : Private , Company F , 3d U . S . Cavalry . Place and date : At Whetstone Mountains , Ariz . , 5 May 1871 . Entered service at : - - - - - - . Birth : Putnam County , Ind . Date of issue : 13 November 1871 . Citation : Gallantry in action with Indians .