The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Sergeant Thomas Burk, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism on 6 May 1864, while serving with Company H, 97th New York Infantry, in action during the Wilderness Campaign, Virginia. At the risk of his own life, Sergeant Burk went back while the rebels were still firing and, finding Colonel Wheelock unable to move, alone and unaided, carried him off the field of battle.