From Mendon, Michigan, George enlisted on August 8, 1862 at Sturgis, Michigan, for 3 years service at the age of 18. He was wounded at the battle of Thompson Station, Tennessee, on March 5, 1863, in the left thigh when a musket ball entered two inches above his knee, fractured the femor, advanced upward and lodged near his hip joint. The ball was never removed. He was discharged at Louisville, Ky, on on June 8, 1863.