Henry H. Bingham

Henry Harrison Bingham (December 4, 1841 – March 22, 1912) was an American politician from Pennsylvania who served as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives for Pennsylvania's 1st congressional district from 1879 to 1912. He was a Union army officer in the American Civil War, fought in some of the key battles of the war and received the United States Military's highest award for valor, the Medal of Honor, for his actions at the Battle of the Wilderness.

Early life Bingham was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on December 4, 1841. He graduated from Jefferson College in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, in 1862,

U.S. Civil War service Bingham enlisted in the Union army and received a commission as a first lieutenant in the 140th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry on August 22, 1862. During the battle he witnessed Pickett's Charge, and was near The Angle where the Confederates reached the high-water mark. He received the personal effects from the wounded Confederate Brigadier General Lewis Armistead and carried the news to General Hancock, Armistead's friend from before the war. Bingham was a Mason (Chartiers Lodge #297, Canonsburg, PA), and the story of how he provided assistance to the dying fellow Mason, General Armistead, was used in Masonic literature, and commemorated with the Friend to Friend Masonic Memorial at Gettysburg National Cemetery. On the other hand, recent scholarship in 2010 by Michael Halleran shows that while Armistead and Bingham were both Masons, Bingham's encounter with Armistead occurred while the mortally wounded Armistead was being carried from the field by several men and happened purely by chance not because of any appeal of Masonic significance. Bingham never claimed otherwise. He was awarded a Medal of Honor on August 26, 1893, for these actions.

Bingham was wounded again at the Battle of Spotsylvania, May 12, 1864. Bingham was captured at Dabney's Mill, Virginia on October 27, 1864 during the Battle of Fair Oaks & Darbytown Road but escaped the same day.

Bingham was mustered out of the service on July 2, 1866 and returned home to Philadelphia.

Career Henry Bingham was appointed postmaster of Philadelphia

Honors and awards

Medal of Honor citation Rank and organization: Captain, Company G, 140th Pennsylvania Infantry. Place and date: At Wilderness, Va., May 6, 1864. Entered service at: Cannonsburg, Pa. Born: December 4, 1841, Philadelphia, Pa. Date of issue: August 31, 1893.

Citation: Rallied and led into action a portion of the troops who had given way under the fierce assaults of the enemy.

Other honors Bingham County, Idaho was named in his honor.