George Ritter Burnett (1858 - 1908)

Born 23 Apr 1858 in Lower Providence Township, Pennsylvania, United States

Died 1 Nov 1908 at age 50 in Lincoln, Nebraska, United States

Biography

George Burnett was awarded the Medal of Honor.

George Burnett is a Military Veteran.
Served in the United States Army 1880-1891
Lieutenant, 9th Cavalry Regiment, United States Army

Death

George died 1 November 1908 and was buried in Section 3, Arlington National Cemetery.

Military

Colonel Burnett was a Cadet at the Military Academy from 14 June 1876 until he graduated the United States Military Academy at West Point on 12 June 1880. ^{[1] [2]} On this date he was promoted to Second Lieutenant and assigned to the 9th Cavalry, United States Army. ^[1] He served on frontier duty at Camp on White River, Colorado from 30 September 1880 until August 1881. He was at Fort Cameron, Utah until 30 April 1883, Fort Douglas, Utah until 12 June 1883, and Fort Thornburg, Utah until 1 September 1883. ^[1] He then took a leave of absence until 21 October 1883. ^[1] He served at Fort Douglas, Utah until 1 June 1888. ^[1] On 6 June 1886, he was promoted to First Lieutenant. ^[1] He served at Fort Lewis, Colorado until 23 March 1890. ^[1] He was then appointed Regimental Quartermaster on 1 February 1890. ^[1] On 16 August 1881, he was serving as a Second Lieutenant with the 9th Cavalry Regiment, United States Army (Buffalo Soldiers). ^[2] He received the Medal of Honor for helping to rescue stranded soldiers under heavy fire. ^[2] [[Walley-237|Private Augustus Walley] was also awarded the Medal of Honor for this engagement. ^[2] He retired in February 1891 due to injuries, but subsequently served as a Colonel in the Iowa National Guard from 1892 to 1905 and the Missouri National Guard from 1905 to 1908. ^[2] He served the United States Vice Consul and Acting Consul in Kehl, Baden, Germany between September 1905 and March 1907. ^[2] He also worked at many military preparatory schools. ^[2]

Medal of Honor Citation

Rank and Organization: Second Lieutenant, 9th Cavalry, United States Army.

Place and Date: Cuchillo Negro Mountains, New Mexico, 16 August 1881.

Entered Service at: Spring Mills, Pennsylvania.

Birth: Lower Providence Township, Pennsylvania.

Date of Issue: 23 July 1897. ^[3]

Citation:

Saved the life of a dismounted soldier, who was in imminent danger of being cut off, by alone galloping quickly to his assistance under heavy fire and escorting him to a place of safety, his horse being twice shot in this action. ^[3]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7} West Point Biographical Register.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6} General Burnett's page at Wikipedia.
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1} Army Center of Military History.

• Wikipedia contributors. "George Ritter Burnett," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, (last revision12 September 2016 Version ID: 739011847) [online], <https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=George_Ritter_Burnett&oldid=739011847>, accessed 25 December 2017.
• USMA Library, United States Military Academy at West Point. "Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of USMA", Special Collections, Cullum Number: 2876, Volume III, pg. 341.
• U.S. Army Center of Military History. "Indian Wars Period Medal of Honor Recipients"; Last updated 30 July 2013; accessed 16 December 2017.
• Find A Grave: Memorial #23325 retrieved 25 December 2017
• Wikidata: Item Q5543907