Civil War Vet to Get Medal of Honor

Just over a century and a half after his death at the Battle of Gettysburg, Union Army 1st Lt. Alonzo H. Cushing will be awarded the Medal of Honor for holding off thousands of Confederate troops with just 110 men. The White House made the announcement Tuesday, after a decades-long push by his descendants as well as Civil War aficionados. Recommendations for the award have to be made within two years of the act of heroism, and the medal awarded within three, but Congress passed a special exemption back in December for Cushing. Two other veterans from the Vietnam War, Sgt. Maj. Bennie G. Adkins and Army Spc. Donald P. Sloat, will also receive the award.