Moses A . Luce Moses Augustine Luce ( 1842 – 1933 ) was a Sergeant in the Union Army and a Medal of Honor recipient for his actions in the American Civil War . He went on to become a leading lawyer , Judge and businessman in early San Diego , where he founded the prominent law firm Luce , Forward , Hamilton & Scripps . Background . Born 14 May 1842 in Payson , Illinois to Christopher Sanborn Luce & Sarah Pottle . Though his father he is descended from the Luce family of Rhode Island , making him a distant cousin of Stephen Bleecker Luce and Henry Robinson Luce . He joined the army Hillsdale , Michigan in June 1861 , and was mustered out in June 1864 . Medal of Honor citation . Rank and organization : Sergeant , Company E , 4th Michigan Infantry . Place and date : At Laurel Hill , Va . , May 10 , 1864 . Entered service at : Hillsdale , Mich . Born : May 14 , 1842 , Payson , Adams County , Ill . Date of issue : February 7 , 1895 . Citation : Voluntarily returned in the face of the advancing enemy to the assistance of a wounded and helpless comrade , and carried him , at imminent peril , to a place of safety . Education and Post Civil War Career . After serving with distinction in the Civil War , Moses studied at Hillsdale College and then the Albany Law School , where he graduated LL . B . 1867 . At first He practised at Bushnell , IL , but in 1873 he migrated to San Diego . In San Diego he helped found the leading legal firm of Luce , Forward , Kunzel & Scripps and he went on to become a leading player in business life in the growing city , in particular serving on the boards of several railroads and mining companies . He was instrumental in the founding of the Californian Souther Railroad , connecting San Diego to the Santa Fe Railroad . Moses Luce retired from business in 1922 , at the age of 80 . He helped draft the San Diego city charter and was active in Republican politics , including attending two Republican Party national conventions and a number of Californian state conventions . From 1875 - 80 he was a judge of the County Court of San Diego . For several decades he served as President of the Board of Trustees of the First Unitarian Church of San Diego and was also a prominent Mason . He died April 13 , 1933 and was buried in Greenwood Memorial Park in San Diego . Family . In 1870 , Moses married Adelaide Mantania , daughter of John D . and Olive ( Head ) Mantania , by whom he had six children including of whom three survived to adulthood , Grace , Mary and Edgar A . Luce , Sr . His son Edgar Augustine Luce , Sr ( 1881 – 1958 ) , graduated Sanford University in 1905 and went on to become a senior partner of Luce , Forward , Kunzel & Scripps and judge of the Superior Court of San Diego Co ; he was also a Californian State Senator from 1914 to 1918 . A son of Edgar Sr was Edgar A . Luce , Jr , graduated from Stanford in 1948 and also became a managing partner in Luce , Forward , Kunzel & Scripps . A grandson of Moses Luce was Gordon C . Luce of La Jolla , who became President ( 1969 ) and later Chairman and CEO ( 1979 ) of the San Diego Federal Savings & Loan ( later the Great American First Savings Bank ) , a company Moses Luce had been the attorney for . Gordon Luce served under Ronald Reagan , first as a member of his cabinet when Reagan was Governor of California , and subsequently as a member of the President ' s Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board ( 1988 – 90 ) . Gordon Luce has also had a career as a director or advisor to a number of companies . In 1964 he was a delegate to the Republican National Congress ( alternate ) , and in 1972 served as a presidential elector from California .