James L. Hull

He fought dangerous boiler fires inside a steam-filled ship.

James Lott Hull earned the Medal of Honor for his response to a boiler emergency during the Spanish-American War. Born in Patoka, Illinois, on November 27, 1873, he served as a fireman first class aboard USS Concord.

On May 21, 1898, off Cavite in Manila Bay, a lower manhole plate joint failed on one of the ship’s boilers. Hull helped remove the fires in the intensely hot, vapor-filled fireroom. Conditions were severe enough that water had to be played into the room from a hose. His official citation recognized his service in that hazardous machinery-space emergency.

The Navy’s named roll of USS Concord records Hull among the recipients of the Dewey Medal for the Battle of Manila Bay on 1 May 1898. His wartime naval service also qualified him for the Spanish Campaign Medal under the expanded award criteria.

Hull received the Medal of Honor during his lifetime. He died in Olney, Illinois, on July 25, 1928, and was buried in Haven Hill Cemetery. His award commemorates courage in dangerous work below decks.

Official Medal of Honor citation

On board the U.S.S. Concord off Cavite, Manila Bay, P.I., 21 May 1898. Following the blowing-out of a lower manhole plate joint on boiler B of that vessel, Hull assisted in hauling the fires in the hot, vapor-filled atmosphere, which necessitated the playing of water into the fireroom from a hose.