Wheeler went on to have a 32-year Navy career, being temporarily promoted to lieutenant during World War I and achieving the permanent rank of chief warrant officer before his retirement.

[3] For their actions during the incident, Wheeler and another man, Boatswain's Mate William Henry Gowan, were awarded the Medal of Honor two months later, on March 19.

[1] Wheeler's official Medal of Honor citation reads: For bravery and extraordinary heroism displayed by him during a conflagration in Coquimbo, Chile, 20 January 1909.

In October 1920, nearly two years after the end of the war, Wheeler reverted to the warrant rank of chief carpenter and was later ordered to the Coco Solo Naval Submarine Base in the Panama Canal Zone.

Early December 1928, Wheeler began duty on board the light cruiser USS Concord (CL-10), which was followed by a shore assignment at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in Pennsylvania.