b. 09/04/1873 Casey County, Illinois. d. 22/01/1963 Kokomo, Indiana.
DATE OF MOH ACTION: 13/05/1899 San Miguel de Mayumo, Philippines.
William Simon Harris was born in Casey, Illinois, on April 7, 1873, to Samuel and Mary Harris. He enlisted in the Army as Simon Harris in Seattle, Washington, on May 21, 1898, and was assigned to Company G of the 4th U.S. Cavalry.
Harris became a member of and served with Young’s Scouts, an elite advance fighting unit in the Philippines under General Henry W. Lawton. He was discharged on August 16, 1899, in Manila, Philippine Islands. On August 15, 1899, he reenlisted and joined Company K of the 11th Cavalry, U.S. Volunteers.
He was promoted to Sergeant in September 1899 and appointed first sergeant on November 12, 1899. He held that rank until he was relieved from it on February 7, 1900.
On January 8, 1906, Harris and nine others were awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions on May 13, 1899, at San Miguel de Mayumo, Luzon, Philippine Islands. Unfortunately, the letter the Army sent Harris informing him of the award was undeliverable as they had the wrong address. As a result, Harris never learned of the award, and it would be another 119 years before the award was presented to his descendants.
Harris married Mary Fralich on January 10, 1906. They had two children, daughter Ruth born circa 1910 and son F. Joseph born circa 1915. Harris’ occupations included connections with the Nickel Plate railroad, a Kokomo brass works, and the Kingston Products.
Harris applied for and began receiving a veteran’s pension in July 1921. Harris died from pneumonia in Kokomo, Indiana, on January 22, 1963, and was buried in Kokomo Memorial Park Cemetery. His widow, Mary, died the following year and joined William at Kokomo Memorial Park Cemetery.
In 2022, it was learned that Harris had been awarded the Medal of Honor but had never received it, and efforts began to correct this egregious error. Finally, on January 15, 2025, Secretary of the Army Christine Wormuth notified Harris’s family that the award would be delivered to them. Secretary Wormuth signed Harris’s Medal of Honor Certificate the next day. On January 28, 2025, Indiana Governor Mike Braun, in his office at the Indiana Statehouse, presented the Medal of Honor to Harris’s descendants.
MOH CITATION:
Private William S. Harris distinguished himself by acts of gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty on May 13, 1899, while serving as a member of Troop G, 4th United States Cavalry at San Miguel de Mayumo, Luzon, Philippine Islands. On this occasion about 300 of the enemy were drawn up in line in an advantageous position requiring a frontal attack. Without waiting for the supporting battalion to reinforce them, or to get into a position to do so, Private Harris and 11 other Scouts charged the line of the enemy, about 150 yards distant, and completely routed them. Private Harris’ conspicuous gallantry, extraordinary heroism, and intrepidity at the risk of his life, above and beyond the call of duty, are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect great credit upon himself, his unit, and the United States Army.
BURIAL LOCATION: KOKOMO MEMORIAL PARK CEMETERY, KOKOMO, ILLINOIS.
GRACELAND-NORTH 2 GROVE, LOT 418.
LOCATION OF MEDAL: FAMILY.
