Born in 1825 in Wales, William H. Powell emigrated to the U.S. as a child and was working in the iron industry when war erupted. He was commissioned captain of the 2nd (West) Virginia Cavalry at Ironton, OH, and won the Medal of Honor for his actions at Sinking Creek Valley in 1862. He was wounded, captured, and imprisoned in 1863, then released in 1864. Late in the war he was brevetted major general. He died in 1904 and was buried in Chicago.