Two Union Soldiers Posthumously Awarded Medal of Honor for Daring Train Hijacking during the American Civil War

Marietta, Georgia, Georgia, USA United States of America
Both soldiers were captured 18 miles from Chattanooga and executed by hanging for their role in the mission.
Mission involved taking over 'the General' locomotive and destroying Confederate infrastructure such as tracks, switches, bridges, and telegraph wires.
Shadrach and Wilson's families have campaigned for decades to rectify what they saw as an unjust oversight. Biden recognized their gallantry and intrepidity during this daring operation.
The Great Locomotive Chase is considered one of the earliest special operations in US Army history.
Two Union soldiers, Pvt. Philip G. Shadrach and Pvt. George D. Wilson, hijacked a train outside Atlanta in April 1862 and drove it north through Georgia to Tennessee.
Two Union Soldiers Posthumously Awarded Medal of Honor for Daring Train Hijacking during the American Civil War

Two Union soldiers, Pvt. Philip G. Shadrach and Pvt. George D. Wilson, who carried out a daring mission during the American Civil War to hijack a train and sabotage Confederate supply lines were posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by President Joe Biden on July 3, 2024.

The soldiers, members of the Union Army's 2nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment, executed their plan in April 1862. They hijacked a train outside Atlanta and drove it north for over 87 miles through Georgia to the Tennessee line, destroying Confederate infrastructure along the way.

The mission involved taking over a locomotive named 'the General' near Marietta and wreaking havoc on enemy railroad tracks, bridges, and telegraph wires. The soldiers occasionally stopped to tear up track, switches, and bridges to inflict as much damage as possible.

However, the stolen train ran out of fuel 18 miles from Chattanooga. The Union soldiers were captured soon after and both Shadrach and Wilson were executed by hanging for their role in the mission.

The Medal of Honor was first awarded to six survivors of the raid in 1863, but Shadrach and Wilson's families have been campaigning for decades to rectify what they saw as an unjust oversight. Biden recognized their gallantry and intrepidity during this daring operation.

The Great Locomotive Chase is considered one of the earliest special operations in US Army history, with the soldiers dressing as civilians and infiltrating Confederate territory to carry out their mission.

Image Pvt. George D. Wilson.Credit...U.S. Army Image Pvt. Philip G. Shadrach. Credit...U.S. Army



Confidence

100%

No Doubts Found At Time Of Publication

Sources

99%

  • Unique Points
    • Two Civil War soldiers, Pvt. Philip Shadrach and Pvt. George Wilson, were posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by President Joe Biden for their participation in the ‘Great Locomotive Chase’ on April 12, 1862.
    • They were among a group of Union soldiers who took over a locomotive named ‘the General’ near Marietta to cut off Confederate supply lines and destroy railroad tracks, bridges, and telegraph wires.
    • Shadrach, Wilson, and others met in Big Shanty, Georgia, where they planned their operation to deprive the Confederacy of strategic advances by cutting off their ability to move supplies or reinforcements from Atlanta to Chattanooga.
  • Accuracy
    No Contradictions at Time Of Publication
  • Deception (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Fallacies (95%)
    Two informal fallacies are present in the article: Dichotomous Depiction and Appeal to Authority. The author presents a Dichotomous Depiction by suggesting that the Union soldiers were either recognized for their bravery with Medals of Honor or completely overlooked, neglecting any nuanced historical analysis. Additionally, there is an Appeal to Authority when quoting Dr. Shane Makowicki and Brad Quinlin as experts on the historical context surrounding the Medal of Honor recipients. No formal logical fallacies are present in the article.
    • The soldiers are finally set to receive recognition as participants in what is known as the “Great Locomotive Chase.”
    • The plan was straightforward. By sabotaging the Western and Atlantic Railroad, the men would cut off the Confederacy’s ability to move supplies or reinforcements from Atlanta, Georgia, to Chattanooga, Tennessee...
  • Bias (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Author Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication

99%

  • Unique Points
    • In the spring of 1862, a group of Union Army saboteurs came up with a plan to cut off Confederate supply lines near Chattanooga by stealing a train and causing damage to railroad tracks, bridges, and telegraph wires.
    • The stolen train ran out of fuel 18 miles from Chattanooga, leading to the capture of all involved after less than two weeks on the run.
    • Six survivors of the raid were the first American soldiers awarded the Medal of Honor in 1863, but two soldiers who were executed by Confederates soon after were never recognized.
  • Accuracy
    • Two Civil War soldiers, Pvt. Philip Shadrach and Pvt. George Wilson, were posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by President Joe Biden for their participation in the 'Great Locomotive Chase' on April 12, 1862.
    • The soldiers dressed in plain clothes and launched their mission in April, taking over a locomotive named 'the General' near Marietta.
  • Deception (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Fallacies (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Bias (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Author Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication

100%

  • Unique Points
    • Two U.S. soldiers, executed 162 years ago for their role in a daring Civil War mission to hijack a locomotive and sabotage a rail line vital to the Confederacy, were recognized with the nation’s highest military decoration.
    • The event closed a decades-long campaign by the men’s families to rectify what they and many historians came to see as an unjust oversight in recognizing everyone involved in what became known as the Great Locomotive Chase.
    • Pvts. Philip G. Shadrach and George D. Wilson, members of the Union Army’s 2nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment, were among a group of 24 who carried out the brazen plan in April 1862.
    • The mission involved hijacking a train outside Atlanta and blazing an 87-mile path of destruction north through Georgia to the Tennessee line with adversaries in hot pursuit.
    • Nineteen soldiers received the Medal of Honor for their role in the mission including the first ever awarded.
  • Accuracy
    No Contradictions at Time Of Publication
  • Deception (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Fallacies (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Bias (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Author Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication

84%

  • Unique Points
    • Hunter Biden attended a Medal of Honor ceremony at the White House on Wednesday, weeks after his felony gun conviction.
    • Two Civil War soldiers, Pvt. Philip Gephart Shadrach and Pvt. George Davenport Wilson, were posthumously honored during the ceremony.
    • Hunter Biden was convicted in June of making false statements and possession of a gun while being an unlawful user of controlled substances.
  • Accuracy
    No Contradictions at Time Of Publication
  • Deception (30%)
    The article makes selective reporting by focusing on Hunter Biden's attendance at the Medal of Honor ceremony while mentioning his gun conviction only briefly. It also includes emotional manipulation through phrases like 'Hunter Biden arrives for a Medal of Honor Ceremony' and 'President Biden presents the Medal of Honor to Theresa Chandler'. Additionally, there is sensationalism in the title and throughout the article with phrases like 'weeks after federal gun trial conviction' and 'walking national security threat'.
    • The article focuses on Hunter Biden's attendance at the Medal of Honor ceremony while mentioning his gun conviction only briefly.
    • Hunter Biden arrives for a Medal of Honor Ceremony at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, July 3, 2024
    • President Biden presents the Medal of Honor to Theresa Chandler, the great-great-granddaughter of Pvt. George D. Wilson in the East Room at the White House in Washington.
  • Fallacies (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Bias (95%)
    The author, Louis Casiano, demonstrates a clear political bias by repeatedly mentioning Hunter Biden's criminal conviction and his influence within the White House. He also quotes Republican Representative Greg Steube calling Hunter Biden a 'walking national security threat' and 'raked in more than $20 million from foreign entities.' These statements are not neutral reporting, but rather an attempt to paint Hunter Biden in a negative light.
    • Hunter Biden arrived for a Medal of Honor Ceremony at the White House... Seated in the audience was the president’s son, who was convicted in June of making a false statement in the purchase of a gun, making a false statement related to information required to be kept by a federally licensed gun dealer, and possession of a gun by a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to controlled substances.
      • Hunter Biden has long been a target for Republicans because of his checkered past and possible influence within his father’s administration.
        • Rep. Greg Steube called Hunter Biden ‘a walking national security threat.’
        • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
          None Found At Time Of Publication
        • Author Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
          None Found At Time Of Publication

        100%

        • Unique Points
          • Two Union soldiers, Private Philip G. Shadrach and Private George D. Wilson, were posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor by President Joe Biden for their gallantry and intrepidity during a daring mission against the Confederacy in 1862.
          • The soldiers dressed as civilians, infiltrated Confederate territory, hijacked a train in Georgia, and drove it north for 87 miles, destroying enemy infrastructure along the way.
          • During the mission, they occasionally stopped to tear up track, switches, and bridges to inflict as much damage as possible.
          • Shadrach and Wilson were convicted as spies, then executed by hanging.
        • Accuracy
          No Contradictions at Time Of Publication
        • Deception (100%)
          None Found At Time Of Publication
        • Fallacies (100%)
          None Found At Time Of Publication
        • Bias (100%)
          None Found At Time Of Publication
        • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
          None Found At Time Of Publication
        • Author Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
          None Found At Time Of Publication