Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography/Adams, Samuel (surgeon)

ADAMS, Samuel, military surgeon, b. in Maine; d. in Galveston, Texas. 9 Sept., 1867. He entered the national army 16 April, 1863, and, after a year spent in the active duties of the permanent hospitals, joined the army of the Potomac and served constantly with it until it was disbanded. During his field service he rose from the rank of regimental surgeon to that of medical inspector of the ninth army corps, receiving also a brevet for " meritorious conduct at the capture of Petersburg." During one of the closing battles of the war, at a time when the brilliant and rapid series of federal successes tended to obscure acts of individual gallantry. Dr. Adams distinguished himself by riding along the advanced line of combatants, and, under the fire of the enemy, dressing the wounds of Gen. Potter, who could not be removed from the spot where he fell, and, but for the action of Surgeon Adams, would have lost his life. At the close of the war Surgeon Adams received an invitation from a wealthy and well-known gentleman to accompany his family on a European tour as his physician; but an application for leave of absence was refused by the war department, on the ground that his services could not be spared. Soon afterward he was ordered to Texas, where yellow fever was epidemic, and his last days were spent among the victims of the disease, of which he died. He was highly esteemed for his Christian character.