George Lewis Gillespie , Jr . George Gillespie , Jr . , ( October 7 , 1841 – September 27 , 1913 ) was an American soldier who received the highest military decoration that the United States bestows to members of the military , the Medal of Honor , for his actions during the American Civil War . Biography . George Lewis Gillespie was born October 7 , 1841 , in Kingston , Tennessee . He graduated second in the Class of 1862 at the United States Military Academy and was commissioned a 2nd lieutenant in the Corps of Engineers on June 17 , 1862 . A Southerner who remained loyal to the Union , Gillespie joined the Army of the Potomac in September 1862 . He commanded two companies of the engineer battalion which built fortifications and ponton bridges throughout the Virginia campaigns until General Robert E . Lee ' s Surrender at Appomattox in April 1865 . On October 27 , 1897 , Gillespie received the Medal of Honor for carrying dispatches through enemy lines under withering fire to Major General Philip Sheridan at the Battle of Cold Harbor , Virginia on May 31 , 1864 . He was later Sheridan ' s Chief Engineer in the Army of the Shenandoah and the Military Division of the Gulf . At the end of the war , Gillespie held the Regular Army rank of captain and a brevet ( honorary promotion ) to the rank of lieutenant colonel . After the Civil War , Gillespie successively supervised the improvement of harbors at Cleveland , Ohio , Chicago , Boston , and New York City . He initiated construction of the canal at the Cascades of the Columbia River and built the famous Tillamook Rock Light house off the Oregon coast . Gillespie also served on the Board of Engineers and for six years as president of the Mississippi River Commission . He was promoted to major on September 5 , 1871 , lieutenant colonel on October 12 , 1886 and colonel on October 2 , 1895 . With the outbreak of the Spanish - American War , Gillespie was promoted to brigadier general of Volunteers on May 27 , 1898 . He commanded the Army ' s Department of the East until October 31 , 1898 when he was discharged from the Volunteers and reverted to his Regular Army rank of colonel . Gillespie was apponted as Chief of Engineers on May 3 , 1901 and promoted to brigadier general the same day . He was acting U . S . Secretary of War in August 1901 . He had charge of ceremonies at President William McKinley ' s funeral and at the laying of the cornerstone of the Army War College Building in 1903 . Gillespie ' s final assignment was as Assistant Chief of Staff of the United States Army from 1904 to 1905 with the rank of major general . Gillespie was a member of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States ( MOLLUS ) and was assigned MOLLUS insignia number 4061 . Major General Gillespie retired from the Army on June 15 , 1905 , having reached the madatory retirement age of 64 . He died on September 27 , 1913 , in Saratoga Springs , New York . Medal of Honor citation . Rank and organization : First Lieutenant , Corps of Engineers , U . S . Army . Place and date : Near Bethesda Church , Va . , 31 May 1864 . Entered service at : Chattanooga , Tenn . Birth : Kingston , Tenn . Date of issue : 27 October 1897 . Citation : Exposed himself to great danger by voluntarily making his way through the enemy ' s lines to communicate with Gen . Sheridan . While rendering this service he was captured , but escaped ; again came in contact with the enemy , was again ordered to surrender , but escaped by dashing away under fire . References . " This article contains public domain text from "