David H. Helms

David H. Helms (1838–1921) was a Union Army soldier during the American Civil War. He received the Medal of Honor for gallantry during the Siege of Vicksburg on May 22, 1863.

David H. Helms
Born	(1838-09-21)September 21, 1838 Dearborn County, Indiana
Died	July 7, 1921(1921-07-07) (aged 82) Kansas
Place of burial	Silver Lake Cemetery, Silver Lake, Kansas
Allegiance	United States
Service / branch	United States Army Union Army
Years of service	1862 - 1865
Rank	First Sergeant
Unit	Company B, 83rd Indiana Volunteer Infantry Regiment
Battles / wars	American Civil War  • Siege of Vicksburg
Awards	Medal of Honor

Helms joined the army from Indiana in August 1862, and was discharged in June 1865.

Union assault

On May 22, 1863, General Ulysses S. Grant ordered an assault on the Confederate heights at Vicksburg, Mississippi. The plan called for a storming party of volunteers to build a bridge across a moat and plant scaling ladders against the enemy embankment in advance of the main attack. The volunteers knew the odds were against survival and the mission was called, in nineteenth century vernacular, a "forlorn hope". Only single men were accepted as volunteers and even then, twice as many men as needed came forward and were turned away. The assault began in the early morning following a naval bombardment. The Union soldiers came under enemy fire immediately and were pinned down in the ditch they were to cross. Despite repeated attacks by the main Union body, the men of the forlorn hope were unable to retreat until nightfall. Of the 150 men in the storming party, nearly half were killed. Seventy-nine of the survivors were awarded the Medal of Honor.

Medal of Honor citation

"For gallantry in the charge of the volunteer storming party on 22 May 1863."

See also

• List of American Civil War Medal of Honor recipients: A–F
• Battle of Vicksburg
• 83rd Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry

References

• Dyer, Frederick H (1908). A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion. Des Moines, IA: Dyer Pub. Co. ASIN B01BUFJ76Q.
• Grecian, Joseph (1865). History of the Eighty-Third Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry for Three Years with Sherman: Compiled from the Regimental and Company Books, and Other Sources, as Well as from the Writer's Own Observations and Experience. Cincinnati, OH: John F. Uhlhorn, Printer. p. 163. OCLC 692458250.
• War Department, U.S. (1880). The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. OCLC 857196196.
• "HELMS, DAVID H." Congressional Medal of Honor Society. CMOHS. 2014. Retrieved 19 August 2014.
• "David H Helms". THE COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO THE VICTORIA & GEORGE CROSS. VCOnline. 2020. Retrieved 2 May 2020.

External links

• "David H. Helms". Claim to Fame: Medal of Honor recipients. Find a Grave. Retrieved 11 December 2014.
• A Forlorn Hope
• Vicksburg Medal of Honor Recipients