The first Medals of Honor ever awarded went to a group of volunteers who participated in a daring raid into Southern territory during the U.S. Civil War.

At the time, Chattanooga, Tennessee, was a Southern Confederate hub for moving men and supplies. This meant that the Northern Union troops wanted to capture it. To do so, the Union needed to cut off the city from the South so that it couldn’t be reinforced. A small group of volunteers, lead by spy James J. Andrews, was sent to destroy communication lines and the railway between Chattanooga and Atlanta, Georgia.

The participants were destined to become known as Andrews’ Raiders and their raid would become best known as the Great Locomotive Chase.