William Lord

William Lord. . , Drummer, CO C, 40th Massachusetts Infantry , Born in Bradford, Yorkshire, England – February 1, 1841 , Enlisted at Lawrence, Massachusetts – August 14, 1862 , Discharged at Readville, Massachusetts – June 16, 1865 , Died at New York, New York – August 4, 1915, On May 16, 1864, during the Battle of Drewry’s Bluff, Virginia, Confederates placed a battery of cannon to bombard Union troops. Men of the 40th Massachusetts Infantry were sent to silence that Confederate battery. Amidst heavy fire, Confederate troops charged the Union soliders who then began a disorganized retreat. William Lord, who had reached the area where he expected to reunite with his brigade, instead discovered that he was caught between two lines of battle under heavy fire. He then heard Union Colonel Eldridge G. Floyd of the 3rd New York Infantry, who had been shot through both legs and was unable to move. William Lord lifted the Colonel, whose own men had deserted him, onto his back and proceeded to carry him through treacherous battle to a field hospital ½ mile away. When that hospital came under fiery attack, Lord, with the help of a companion, put the Colonel on a stretcher and carried him to another hospital several miles to the rear. For his courageous and selfless act, William Lord was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor., Presented Flag Day, June 14, 2004, bu the people and merchants of the City of Lawrence, Honorable Michael J. Sullivan, Mayor; the Lawrence Civil War Memorial Guard; Sons of the Union Veterans of the Civil War Auxiliary #128; Massachusetts Commandery Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States; Merrimack Valley Detachment of the Marine Corps, League; Catherine McCarthy Memorial Trust Fund; Thomas F. Caffrey, Esq. and City Council President Patrick J. Blanchette, in grateful appreciation to a Lawrence, Massachusetts resident who was awarded the Medal of Honor by Congress for exemplary heroism.