Allexander Hand

When enemy fire raked the Union steamer Ceres near Hamilton, North Carolina, Quartermaster Allexander Hand did not leave his station. He returned the fire with what his commanding officer called good conduct and cool bravery.

Hand was born about 1836 and lived in Delaware before the Civil War. He entered the United States Navy and served as a quartermaster aboard USS Ceres, a small Union vessel operating on the Roanoke River and supporting Federal operations in eastern North Carolina.

During an engagement near Hamilton, Confederate forces fired small arms at Ceres. Hand's conduct under that fire was specifically commended by his commanding officer. The Navy's Medal of Honor records preserve the episode as an example of courage in a comparatively little-known river action.

Hand received the Medal of Honor for his Civil War service. The surviving public record contains few details of his later life, and no reliable postwar career has been established in the sources consulted. His story nevertheless illustrates how naval warfare extended beyond the major fleet battles. On inland waters, small steamers and their crews faced sudden fire at close range, and men such as Hand had to keep their stations when escape was impossible.

Sources: U.S. Navy Medal of Honor records, 1862–1923 Congressional Medal of Honor Society recipient database Naval History and Heritage Command ship-history resources