Medal of Honor
May 2, 1863
Chancellorsville, Virginia, USA
- Rank at action
- First Lieutenant
- Service
- U.S. Army
- Conflict
- Civil War
- Unit or command
- Company A, 1st New York Cavalry
The Citation
Sources ↓Volunteered to ascertain the character of approaching troops; rode up so closely as to distinguish the features of the enemy, and as he wheeled to return they opened fire with musketry, the Union troops returning same. Under a terrific fire from both sides Lieutenant Thomson rode back unhurt to the Federal lines, averting a disaster to the Army by his heroic act.
Separately preserved current-source wording
Captured from the linked current recipient source; it is not a new comparison with an original General Order.
Volunteered to ascertain the character of approaching troops; rode up so close as to distinguish the features of the enemy, and as he wheeled to return they opened fire with musketry, the Union troops returning same. Under a terrific fire from both sides, Lt. Thompson rode back unhurt to the Federal lines, averting a disaster to the Army by his heroic act.
Sources & record notes
General Order comparison: pending. Current-profile review does not mean that the underlying original order has been examined.
- Clifford Thomson — current Society profile ↗Congressional Medal of Honor Society · Checked 2026-08-28
current identity, service, action metadata, and citation comparison
Transcription, metadata & provenance notes
- Award ID
- MOH-AW-001158
- Transcription status
- Legacy full text · current reference profile matched
- Last source check
- 2026-08-28
- Later or highest recorded rank
- Brevet Major
- Entered service at
- New York, N.Y.
- Archive transcription SHA-256
- e9de147a7bffa7688d78ccdf187ea6015650467ed597cd0b004672b3129c580b
Legacy transcription retained without substantive editing; current rendered profile variants documented in the Phase 10 evidence snapshot.
The current profile heading is Clifford Thomson, while its citation itself renders “Lt. Thompson.” The citation wording is preserved exactly as displayed rather than silently changing the surname inside the source text.