James R. Garrison

James R. Garrison was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, on June 22, 1838. The surviving historical record preserves relatively little about his childhood and early civilian life, but by the time of the American Civil War he had entered the United States Navy. His service eventually placed him aboard USS Hartford, one of the most important Union warships of the conflict and the flagship of Rear Admiral David G. Farragut. Congressional Medal of Honor Society Garrison served aboard Hartford with the rating of Coal Heaver. In the steam Navy of the Civil War, coal heavers performed demanding work connected with the ship’s propulsion system, supplying coal for the fires that produced steam for the engines. It was exhausting and physically difficult labor, but sailors could also be assigned to battle stations elsewhere aboard ship when the vessel went into action. Garrison’s most important wartime duty would ultimately place him at a shell whip, where ammunition was moved for the ship’s guns during combat. USS Hartford had already built a distinguished wartime record before Garrison’s Medal of Honor action. As Farragut’s flagship, the vessel participated in operations that helped open the lower Mississippi River and later took part in the campaign against Vicksburg. By the summer of 1864, Hartford was assigned to Farragut’s fleet preparing to force its way into Mobile Bay, Alabama, one of the Confederacy’s most important remaining Gulf Coast naval positions. Naval History and Heritage Command The entrance to Mobile Bay was defended by Confederate fortifications, most notably Fort Morgan, as well as naval forces operating inside the bay. Among the greatest threats was the Confederate ironclad ram CSS Tennessee. The Union fleet also had to navigate waters containing underwater mines, then commonly called torpedoes. On August 5, 1864, Farragut committed his ships to the attack. Hartford advanced with the Union fleet and came under severe Confederate fire. The engagement developed into one of the defining naval battles of the Civil War as Union vessels passed the defenses, engaged Confederate gunboats, and confronted Tennessee. Hartford itself suffered significant casualties during the battle; the official report recorded numerous members of her crew killed and wounded. James R. Garrison was among those listed as severely wounded. Naval History and Heritage Command During the fighting, Garrison was stationed at a shell whip. The shell whip was part of the ammunition-handling system by which projectiles were moved from protected areas of the ship toward the gun crews. Maintaining the flow of ammunition was essential. A gun could continue firing only if sailors elsewhere aboard the vessel kept powder and projectiles moving despite smoke, noise, casualties, and enemy fire. While Garrison was performing this duty, an enemy shell struck his foot and severed one of his toes. The wound would have been sufficient reason for him to leave his station and seek medical attention, but he did not do so. He crudely bandaged the injury and remained at the shell whip. His decision to continue was particularly significant because the danger around the ammunition stations had not passed. Confederate shells continued striking Hartford. Garrison kept working despite his injured foot and continued performing the duties necessary to sustain the ship’s gunfire. He remained at his station until another enemy shell burst severely wounded him. Only then was his participation in the battle effectively ended. His Medal of Honor recognition would later focus precisely on this sequence of events: the first wound, his decision to bandage himself and remain at his station, and the second severe wound he suffered while continuing his duties. Congressional Medal of Honor Society Garrison’s conduct represents an important form of naval courage that can easily be overlooked when attention is concentrated on commanders and gun crews. He was not directing the fleet from the quarterdeck, nor was his recognized action based on capturing an enemy vessel. His heroism came from continuing an essential and extremely dangerous task inside a ship being struck by enemy fire. The Battle of Mobile Bay ended as a major Union naval victory. Confederate gunboats were defeated or driven off, CSS Tennessee was forced to surrender, and Union naval power inside the bay was greatly strengthened. Fort Morgan remained temporarily in Confederate hands but surrendered later in August. The victory further restricted Confederate access to the Gulf and became one of Farragut’s most celebrated achievements. Hartford’s crew paid heavily for that success. The official casualty report identified twenty-three men killed and many more wounded, with Garrison listed among the severely wounded. His case therefore formed part of a much larger story of sailors who maintained their stations despite the extraordinary violence aboard the flagship. Naval History and Heritage Command For his conduct on August 5, 1864, James R. Garrison received the Medal of Honor. His recognition was recorded under General Order No. 45, dated December 31, 1864, only a few months after the Battle of Mobile Bay. This placed his award directly within the original Civil War-era Navy Medal of Honor system. The Navy Medal of Honor had been authorized by Congress in December 1861, making it the earliest branch version of what developed into the United States’ highest military decoration. During the Civil War, the Navy had no large hierarchy of separate personal valor decorations comparable to those established in later generations. The Medal of Honor therefore served as the principal national recognition for extraordinary gallantry and distinguished conduct by sailors and Marines. Garrison’s award belongs to that original naval tradition. For the VictoriaCross.ca database, his decoration is represented as Medal of Honor 1862–1912 Navy — 1864. No additional clasp, star, bar, or other device has been verified for his Medal of Honor, so it is represented as a single plain award. The connection between Garrison and USS Hartford is especially significant because twelve members of Hartford’s crew ultimately received the Medal of Honor for their conduct at Mobile Bay. Their citations reveal how dangerous the fighting became inside the flagship and how much the ship’s continued effectiveness depended upon sailors remaining at ammunition stations and other critical positions despite casualties around them. Naval History and Heritage Command After the Civil War, the surviving authoritative material becomes much less detailed about Garrison’s civilian life. The available Medal of Honor and naval records preserve his wartime service and his actions at Mobile Bay far more clearly than they document his occupations, family life, or movements during the decades that followed. Those uncertain areas are therefore best left without speculation. What remains firmly established is that Garrison survived both his severe wounds and the war, living for more than four decades after the action that earned his Medal of Honor. His later years eventually brought him to Hampton, Virginia. James R. Garrison died in Hampton on April 19, 1908. He was buried at Hampton National Cemetery, where his burial record continues to identify his connection with USS Hartford and his United States Navy service. Congressional Medal of Honor Society Garrison’s military legacy is centered on a single extraordinary period of endurance during the Battle of Mobile Bay. Serving as a Coal Heaver aboard Rear Admiral Farragut’s flagship, USS Hartford, he was working at the shell whip when enemy fire tore away one of his toes. Instead of leaving his station, he bandaged the wound himself and continued supplying the ship’s fighting effort until a second shell burst severely wounded him. His Medal of Honor 1862–1912 Navy — 1864 permanently records that determination under fire and preserves James R. Garrison’s place among the sailors whose courage helped carry USS Hartford through one of the most important naval battles of the American Civil War.