Frederick E. Toy

Captain Frederick Ernest Toy (1866 – August 5, 1933) was an American officer in the U.S. Army who served with the 7th U.S. Cavalry during the Indian Wars. He was one of twenty-three soldiers received the Medal of Honor for gallantry at what was then called the Battle of Wounded Knee, but now commonly called the Wounded Knee Massacre, against the Sioux Indians on December 29, 1890.

Biography
Frederick Ernest Toy was born in Buffalo, New York in 1866. He joined the United States Army in Chicago, Illinois and spent most of his service on the frontier with the 7th U.S. Cavalry Regiment. He took part in a number of campaigns against the Plains Indians and eventually reached the rank of first sergeant by the late-1880s.

Toy was among the cavalrymen ordered to bring in Chief Big Foot and, on December 29, 1890, he and members of the 7th Cavalry surrounded his camp on Wounded Knee Creek with the intention of arresting the Sioux chieftain and disarming his followers. During the disarming process, Toy was one of the officers of Company G under Captain Winfield Scott Edgerly and, officially cited for "conspicuous bravery and coolness in action", he was among the twenty-three members of his regiment to receive the Medal of Honor.

In his later career, Toy served as an orderly to President Theodore Roosevelt and was later appointed an ordnance sergeant. In January 1911, Toy was placed on the retired list after 30-year military service. He returned to New York after his retirement where he died on August 5, 1933, at the age of 67 and buried at Riverdale Cemetery in Lewiston, New York.

Toy's status as an MOH recipient, as well as the others awarded at Wounded Knee, was brought up during a congressional hearing on July 29, 1993, by Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell who suggested their medals be rescinded given the controversial nature of the battle. This sentiment was echoed by the Niagara Falls Reporter in September 2000 criticizing Toy's inclusion in his hometown's war memorial in Epitaph Park.

Medal of Honor citation
Rank and organization: First Sergeant, Company C, 7th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Wounded Knee Creek, S. Dak., 29 December 1890. Entered service at:--. Birth: Buffalo, N.Y. Date of issue: 26 May 1891.

Citation:

Bravery.