Widely known as the Congressional Medal of Honor, the medal of honor was instituted during the Civil War as the nation`s highest military award. The first recipient took part in the famous locomotive chase through the South that was the subject of Buster Keaton`s 1927 silent film The General.
The medal of honor was given out generously during the Indian Wars, but for the most part has been a singular honor given only for outstanding gallantry in combat.