b. 11/01/1871 Toledo, Ohio. d. 18/02/1949 Guthrie, Oklahoma.
DATE OF MOH ACTION: 21/07 – 17/08/1900 Peking, China.
Oscar J Upham MOH
Upham was born December 14, 1871, in Toledo, Ohio, enlisted into the Marine Corps in 1896 at the age of 25. He was stationed at Mare Island, California. Within a year he was ordered to sea duty aboard the USS Oregon. While Upham was on duty, the Spanish fleet exited the harbor at Santiago, Cuba, on July 3, 1898. Upham was serving as a powder monkey for one of the six-inch guns on the Oregon’s bridge; he was given the order to shoot, and Upham is credited as shooting the first shot which began the Spanish–American War.
During the Boxer Rebellion in 1900, he and his fellow Marines were erecting barricades in Peking, China, when the Chinese rebels surrounded the group and settled down for a three-month siege. A quotation from his diary, kept during the siege, reads: “We are holding out no hope for rescue and many do not give rescue a second thought.” He was earned the Medal of Honor for this action — one of 33 Marines to earn the award during the rebellion. He received the Medal of Honor for his action in Peking, China from on July 21 – August 17, 1900.
During his enlistment, Upham kept a detailed diary of events. Portions of that diary have been published multiple times. Upham’s parents were in the Oklahoma Land Run of 1889 and after his service he joined them there and made Oklahoma his home. He retired from the US Postal Service, and he died February 14, 1949, in Guthrie, Oklahoma, where many of his family still live today.
MOH CITATION:
In the presence of the enemy at Peking, China, 21 July to 17 August 1900. Although under a heavy fire from the enemy during this period, Upham assisted in the erection of barricades.
BURIAL LOCATION: SUMMIT VIEW CEMETERY, GUTHRIE, OKLAHOMA.
SECTION 1, BLOCK 32, LOT 52.
LOCATION OF MEDAL: FAMILY.
