The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Sergeant William Grafton Austin, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism on 29 December 1890, while serving with Company E, 7th U.S. Cavalry, in action at Wounded Knee Creek, South Dakota. While the Indians were concealed in a ravine, Sergeant Austin assisted men on the skirmish line, directing their fire, etc., and using every effort to dislodge the enemy.