John Ammahaie
John Ammahaie (or Amamahe or Emahe) or Mohammed Kahn/Khan(b. 1823-died May 26, 1891) was an American soldier in the American Civil War, who was enlisted as a private in the 43rd New York Infantry and fought at the Battle of Gettysburg among others.[1] [2] Born in Tehran, Persia (modern Iran) and raised in Afghanistan, Kahn was a Persian. His pension claims confirm this fact. Much of western Afghanistan was of course part of Iran/Persia til roughly 150 years ago. The name Khan is a Turkic in origin honorific but used by various peoples of Central Asia, South Asia, and West Asia, including Persians, while the Persian term of endearment "Jon" could have been the origin of his adopted first name. His papers claim he arrived in the United States a few months before volunteering as a soldier.
Kahn was admitted to the United States in 1861 and resided with his family in Boston, Massachusetts, which included a "brightly looking colored woman" and their children. On August 2, 1861, he enlisted in the Union Army after encouragement from some friends and by his own admission some liquor. After having fought in the Battle of Gettysburg he was separated from his unit as a Union guard arrested him because--as he is described as being dark complexioned with long black hair--did not believe that "Native American" looking Kahn could really be serving in the 43rd Infantry which was a White unit. He was arrested in Hagerstown, Maryland, and sent to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with a group of African Americans who had escaped slavery from the South.
When the Battle of the Wilderness started in May 1864, Kahn found a New York regiment – the 14th New York Infantry – that was taking a train down to the battle. In his desperation, he managed to jump on the train as it was pulling out of Philadelphia, and traveled with the 14th to Washington, D.C. From the capital, he struck out on foot, following other squadrons down to the front in Spotsylvania, Virginia. He arrived on the last day of the battle and was finally able to rejoin his company in battle. Just fifteen minutes after his return, he was shot in the left hand. Despite this injury, Kahn, once healed, spent the rest of the war as a sharpshooter and ultimately served throughout almost the entire Civil War.
Besides his injury at Battle of the Wilderness, he was wounded again at the Battle of Malvern Hill; gain at Spotsylvania Courthouse, Virginia; and yet again at the Battle of Monocacy in Frederick, Virginia. According to official records, he was first admitted to the District of Columbia General Hospital in Washington, D.C. In May of 1864 he was transported to Philadelphia, where he received treatment at the Chestnut Hill Hospital, and in July of that year at nearby Mower General Hospital.
Kahn spent the rest of the war as a sharpshooter, and applied for an army pension which was approved in 1881. He was one of a small number of Muslims who had served in the American Civil War, and is known primarily from his pension application which is housed at the National Archives and Records Administration.[3][4] His pension case made it to the U.S. Congress in 1884.
He died on May 26, 1891 in Manhattan, New York County (Manhattan), New York, and is buried at Cypress Hills National Cemetery, Brooklyn, Kings County (Brooklyn), New York, USA.
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