On July 2, during the attack of Wright's Confederates on the position of the 69th Pa, a rebel bullet hit Murray in the left eye and penetrated deep into the orbit destroying the optic nerve. The soldier would be blinded in both eyes for life by the wound. As the fight ended, he was led by his good friend John Buckley back to the aid station on Taneytown Road. Buckley later wrote about the event "I was in the one position during both charges and the only time I left it was when I led Sergeant Murray to the rear, with both eyes shot out, and begging me to put an end to that existence which he thought would no longer endurable."
Murray would spend the next 12 months in military hospitals before being discharged.
Returning to Philadelphia, Murray was now blind with nerve damage. He met and became engaged to Hannah W. James. On June 15 1867 the couple married and later moved to Cleveland Ohio to live on a farm. Hannah had been raised in the Cleveland area. By 1880 Murray's health was deteriorating and he died December 10, 1884.
In 2005, the men of the 69th Pa in the Cleveland area read about his life story and search for his grave. His final resting place was located and a ceremony was held. Today his gravesite is considered the special providence of the Whiskey Island Dog people.
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