U.S. Army Sgt. Alonzo H. Pickle received the Medal of Honor “for extraordinary heroism on Aug. 14, 1864, while serving with Company B, Minnesota Infantry, in action at Deep Bottom, Va.

“At the risk of his life, Sergeant Pickle voluntarily went to the assistance of a wounded officer lying close to the enemy’s lines and, under fire carried him to a place of safety,” according to the Medal of Honor commendation in a story compiled by Lorraine Hall Keith of the Rochester Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.

Born in Farnham, Quebec, Canada on July 2, 1843, Pickle was working on the family farm at age 19 when he enlisted in the Union Army at age 19. He was sent to service with Company K, First Minnesota Regiment on Aug. 14, 1862, six days before Chief Little Crow and about 400 Dakota warriors launched a surprise, five-hour attack on Fort Ridgely.

Pickle turned age 20 at the battle of Gettysburg and described what it was like, according to Keith’s account.

Staff photo by Fritz Busch Battle of Gettysburg survivor Alonzo H. Pickle of Sleepy Eye received the Medal of Honor for gallantry in the Civil War. He died in Sleepy Eye on May 24, 1925 at the age of 81 and was buried in Home Cemetery, Sleepy Eye.

“We went down into the woods with our 262 men. After we did what we were ordered to do, we rallied around our flag — 47 of us were left. The other 215 lay wounded and dead,” he said.

A half century later, Pickle attend the “Blue and Gray Reunion” on the battlefield — where the Minnesota Monument at Gettysburg honors the legendary 1st Minnesota Volunteer Infantry Regiment.

The monument located on Cemetery Ridge, features a bronze statue of a charging infantryman. It marks the spot of the regiment’s defining action on July 2, 1863, during the Battle of Gettysburg.

According to his biographical sketch in the “History of Brown County, Minnesota,” Pickle saw action at many places from Oct. 30, 1862 to April 7, 1865. The list includes Loudoun Valley, Fredericksburg, Hay Market, Gettysburg, Bristow Station, Mine Run, Petersburg, Jerusalem Plank Road, Deep Bottom, Reams Station, Hatchers Run, Farmhill and High Bridge.

He was promoted to first sergeant before leaving military service.

After working as a horse dealer, brick hauler and farmer in Olmsted County for more than a decade, Pickle oversaw a large ranch near Tracy.

In the fall of 1888, he and his wife Rhoda Jane Smith of Burlington, Iowa moved to land he earlier purchased near Golden Gate, several miles north of Sleepy Eye.

The town had two general stores, a blacksmith shop, grist mill, post office and a few houses. The community slowly vanished after the railroad passed it in the early 1870s.

The Pickles moved to Sleepy Eye in 1892. Alonzo became active in the real estate and insurance business. He died in Sleepy Eye May 24, 1925 at age 81 and was buried in Home Cemetery. The funeral was such a large event, the mayor of Sleepy Eye ordered all businesses in town closed from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. so people could attend the funeral, according to an account created by Pickle’s great-great grandson, Lee Skold.

In his obituary in the Brown County Journal, Pickle was described as “that grand old veteran who answered to (President) Lincoln’s call for volunteers.”

Alonzo Pickle’s wife Rhoda died Aug. 31, 1923.

Skold, of Minneapolis, said Pickle’s family created a fund with the Minnesota Historical Society (MHS), the Alonzo Pickle Speaker Series, that features historical topics the MHS features at Fort Snelling State Park.