Congressional Silver Medal

[2] In 1780, Congress directed that silver medals be struck for John Paulding, David Williams, and Isaac Van Wart for capturing a British spy.

During the War of 1812, if a ship's captain was awarded a gold medal, sometimes his officers would receive silver duplicates.

[6] In 1930, Congress directed that gold, silver, and bronze medals be made for the officers and men of the Byrd Antarctic expedition.

In 1945, Congress directed that gold, silver, and bronze medals be made for the members of the United States Antarctic Expedition of 1939-1941 (Public Law 79-185, 59 Stat.

[11] In 1976, President Gerald Ford presented, on behalf of Congress, a silver medal "equivalent to a noncombat Medal of Honor" to Brigadier General Charles "Chuck" Yeager, "for contributing immeasurably to aerospace science by risking his life in piloting the XS-1 research airplane faster than the speed of sound on October 14, 1947.