Sgt. Ernst Torgler
(1840-1923)
Civil War Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient
Ernst Torgler was born in Mecklenburg, Germany, and entered military service in Toledo. Sgt. Torgler received the Medal of Honor, our country's highest award for bravery during combat, in 1894. Torgler's medal was won for saving his commanding officer from capture at the Battle of Ezra Church in Georgia, on July 28, 1864. He was honored with the award on May 10, 1894.
His Medal of Honor citation reads: "The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Sergeant Ernest R. Torgler, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism on 28 July 1864, while serving with Company G, 37th Ohio Infantry, in action at Ezra Chapel, Georgia. At great hazard of his life Sergeant Torgler saved his commanding officer, then badly wounded, from capture."