Henry Van Ness Boynton was a Union Army officer during the American Civil War and a recipient of America’s highest military decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions at the Battle of Missionary Ridge.

From July 1861 until September 1864, Boynton served as a commissioned officer in the 35th Ohio Infantry. He was elected as the regiment’s first major, but quickly rose up the ranks to become the commanding officer of the regiment and was promoted to lieutenant colonel. He led the 35th in the Battle of Chickamauga and Missionary Ridge, where he earned the Medal of Honor for his actions on November 25, 1863.

After the war he resumed civilian life. He married Helen Augusta Mason in 1871 and became a newspaper correspondent in Washington, D.C. Boynton also became the chairman of the committee that oversaw the development of the Chattanooga National Military Park.

Returning to duty in 1898 during the Spanish-American War, Boynton was promoted to brigadier general.