Henry S. Huidekoper

Henry Shippen Huidekoper (July 17, 1839 – November 9, 1918) was a Union Army lieutenant colonel from Pennsylvania who received the United States military's highest decorations for bravery, the Medal of Honor, for his actions at the Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War. After graduating from Harvard, he accepted a commission as an officer in the Union Army. While fighting at the Battle of Gettysburg, he was wounded twice and had to have his arm amputated due to the wounds. For his actions during the battle, he received the Medal of Honor. He attempted to rejoin the Union Army, but was forced to resign due to his injuries. In 1870, he accepted an appointment as a major general in the Pennsylvania National Guard. In 1877 Huidekoper was sent to help put an end to a severe railroad strike in Pennsylvania. He accepted a job as the postmaster of Philadelphia and worked for a few years in the telephone industry before becoming an overseer at Harvard College. He died in 1918 and is buried in Meadville, Pennsylvania. Family and education Huidekoper was born in Meadville, Pennsylvania on July 17, 1839, the son of Edgar Huidekoper and Frances (Shippen) Huidekoper and the grandson of Harm Jan Huidekoper (the founder of Meadville Theological School). He received his A.B. from Harvard College in 1862, and received his M.A. from the same college in 1872. In 1864, Huidekoper married his cousin, Emma Gertrude Evans, the daughter of Thomas Wallis Evans and Anne De Costa Yard Evans of Germantown, Philadelphia. They had one daughter, Gertrude, born in 1865, who later married Professor Munroe Smith of Columbia University, and one son, Thomas, born in 1870. His great-great-granddaughter is Meg Whitman, former CEO of eBay and candidate for Governor of California.