John Lincoln Clem (nicknamed Johnny Shiloh; August 13, 1851 â May 13, 1937) was an American general officer who served as a drummer boy in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He gained fame for his bravery on the battlefield, becoming the youngest noncommissioned officer in the history of the United States Army. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1871, major in 1895, colonel in 1903 and brigadier general in 1915
He retired from the Army in 1915, having attained the rank of brigadier general in the Quartermaster Corps; he was at that time the last veteran of the American Civil War still on duty in the United States Armed Forces.
By special act of Congress on August 29, 1916, he was promoted to major general one year after his retirement.
Clem served as a drummer boy for the 22nd Michigan at the Battle of Chickamauga. He is said to have ridden an artillery caisson to the front and wielded a musket trimmed to his size. In the course of a Union retreat, he shot a Confederate colonel who had demanded his surrender. After the battle, the “Drummer Boy of Chickamauga” was promoted to sergeant, the youngest soldier ever to be a noncommissioned officer in the United States Army.
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