| Louis Renninger | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | August 25, 1841 Liverpool, Ohio |
| Died | November 17, 1908 (aged 67) Oregon |
| Place of burial | Eugene Pioneer Cemetery |
| Allegiance | United States of America Union |
| Service/ | Union Army |
| Rank | Corporal |
| Unit | Company H, 37th Ohio Infantry |
| Battles/wars | American Civil War *Battle of Vicksburg |
| Awards | Medal of Honor |
Louis Renninger (August 25, 1841 - November 17, 1908) was a Union soldier who received the Medal of Honor for gallantry in the American Civil War.
The Medal of Honor is the United States of America's highest and most prestigious personal military decoration that may be awarded to recognize U.S. military service members who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. The medal is normally awarded by the President of the United States in the name of the U.S. Congress. Because the medal is presented "in the name of Congress", it is often referred to informally as the "Congressional Medal of Honor". However, the official name of the current award is "Medal of Honor." Within the United States Code the medal is referred to as the "Medal of Honor", and less frequently as "Congressional Medal of Honor". U.S. awards, including the Medal of Honor, do not have post-nominal titles, and while there is no official abbreviation, the most common abbreviations are "MOH" and "MH".
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States from 1861 to 1865, between the North and the South. The Civil War is the most studied and written about episode in U.S. history. Primarily as a result of the long-standing controversy over the enslavement of black people, war broke out in April 1861 when secessionist forces attacked Fort Sumter in South Carolina shortly after Abraham Lincoln had been inaugurated as the President of the United States. The loyalists of the Union in the North proclaimed support for the Constitution. They faced secessionists of the Confederate States in the South, who advocated for states' rights to uphold slavery.
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On May 22, 1863, Renninger was one of 150 Union soldiers who volunteered to lead an assault on the Confederate heights at the Battle of Vicksburg, Mississippi. The plan was for the volunteer storming party to build a bridge across a moat and plant scaling ladders against the enemy embankment in advance of the main attack.
Mississippi is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. Mississippi is the 32nd most extensive and 34th most populous of the 50 United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico and Louisiana to the south, and Arkansas and Louisiana to the west. The state's western boundary is largely defined by the Mississippi River. Jackson, with a population of approximately 167,000 people, is both the state's capital and largest city.
The volunteers knew the odds were against survival and the mission was called a "forlorn hope" in nineteenth century vernacular. Only single men were accepted as volunteers and even then, twice as many men as needed came forward and were turned away. The assault began in the early morning following a naval bombardment and it was a failure.
A forlorn hope is a band of soldiers or other combatants chosen to take the leading part in a military operation, such as an assault on a defended position, where the risk of casualties is high.
The Union soldiers came under enemy fire immediately and were pinned down in the ditch they were to cross. Despite repeated attacks by the main Union body under the command of General Grant, the men of the forlorn hope were unable to retreat until nightfall. Of the 150 men in the storming party, two-thirds were killed. Corporal Louis Renninger of Company H, 37th Ohio Volunteer Infantry was one of the survivors and for his gallantry, he was awarded the Medal of Honor in 1894. As a result of his injuries, he was transferred to the Veteran Reserve Corps, and discharged in October 1864.
The Veteran Reserve Corps was a military reserve organization created within the Union Army during the American Civil War to allow partially disabled or otherwise infirm soldiers to perform light duty, freeing able-bodied soldiers to serve on the front lines. It existed from 1863 to 1869.
Heading to Oregon after the war, Renninger and his wife Elizabeth had a family farm in the Mohawk Valley of Lane County, Oregon. He is buried in the Eugene Pioneer Cemetery.
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region on the West Coast of the United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idaho. The parallel 42° north delineates the southern boundary with California and Nevada. Oregon is one of only three states of the contiguous United States to have a coastline on the Pacific Ocean.
The Mohawk River is the largest tributary of the McKenzie River, approximately 30 miles (48 km) long, in west central Oregon in the United States. It drains part of the foothills of the Cascade Range on the southeast end of the Willamette Valley northeast of Springfield.
Lane County is a county in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 census, the population was 351,715, making it the fourth-most populous county in Oregon. The county seat is Eugene. It is named in honor of Joseph Lane, Oregon's first territorial governor.
