FOR THE RECORD: PRESIDENTS IN UNIFORM, PART III
his valor at the Battle of Antietam, he was promoted to second lieutenant and assigned to the staff of the regimental commander, Colonel Rutherford B. Hayes. As a first lieutenant, he clashed with Morgan’s Raiders at Buffington’s Island, Ohio, in July 1863, and fought at Clay’s Mountain in May 1864. He was again recognized for bravery at the Battle of Winchester, Virginia, in July 1864. He saw action in the Battles of Opequon, Cedar Creek, and Fisher’s Hill. He served on the staffs of Generals George Crook and Winfield S. Hancock. In March 1865, he was promoted to brevet major. His commanding officer, Rutherford B. Hayes, wrote of him, “Young as he was, we soon found that in the business of a soldier, requiring much executive ability, young McKinley showed unusual and unsurpassed capacity, especially for a boy of his age. When battles were fought or service was to be performed in warlike things, he always filled his place.”
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