Julius Alexis Schou MOH

b. 17/07/1849 Copenhagen, Denmark. d. 19/11/1929 Washington DC.

DATE OF MOH ACTION: 1876 Sioux Campaign.

Julius A Schou MOH

Julius Alexis Schou was born on July 17, 1849, in Copenhagen, Denmark. He later emigrated to the United States and lived in Brooklyn, New York before enlisting in the United States Army in the mid-to late 1870s. Assigned to frontier duty in the Dakota Territory, he saw considerable action with the 22nd U.S. Infantry Regiment during the Sioux Wars. It was during the Great Sioux War of 1876 that the 27-year-old corporal volunteered to deliver dispatches from Brigadier General Elwell Stephen Otis to General William B. Hazen at Fort Buford, a dangerous task which required Schou to ride long distances though wide-open Indian territory, and was cited for distinguished by his superiors. He received an immediate transfer to Troop G of the 4th U.S. Cavalry Regiment and was promoted to the rank of sergeant. He later received the Medal of Honor in recognition of his actions on November 19, 1884; though he won the award in 1876, his MOH citation was incorrectly dated 1870. Prior to his retirement, he served as a recruiting officer in Seattle and, in 1896, was interviewed by The Spokesman-Review. Schou died on November 19, 1929, at the age of 80, and was interred at Arlington National Cemetery with his wife Irma (1864–1937).

 

MOH CITATION:

Carried dispatches to Fort Buford.
BURIAL LOCATION: ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY, ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA.
SECTION 17, GRAVE 21482.
LOCATION OF MEDAL: BELIEVED TO BE FAMILY.