James Ward

Wounded, He Refused to Leave the Fight

James Ward was born in 1833 in New York City. During the American Civil War he entered the United States Navy and served aboard USS Lackawanna, a steam-powered sloop of war assigned to the Union naval forces operating against the Confederacy. His service eventually carried him into the Battle of Mobile Bay, one of the most important naval engagements of the war and the action for which he would receive the Medal of Honor.

By August 1864, Ward held the rating of Quarter Gunner aboard Lackawanna. His responsibilities were connected directly with the ship’s weapons and their readiness for combat. The position demanded experience, discipline, and the ability to continue working effectively amid the noise, confusion, and danger of naval battle.

Mobile Bay, Alabama, remained strategically important to the Confederacy because it offered access to the Gulf of Mexico and was protected by formidable coastal defenses. Fort Morgan guarded the main entrance, while mines—then commonly called torpedoes—made the approach even more dangerous. Confederate naval forces inside the bay included the powerful ironclad CSS Tennessee.

On August 5, 1864, Rear Admiral David G. Farragut led his Union fleet into Mobile Bay. USS Lackawanna was among the warships participating in the attack. The fleet had to pass Confederate forts, navigate the mined waters, engage enemy vessels, and eventually confront Tennessee at close range.

During the battle, Ward was wounded. He was directed to go below, where he could receive treatment and be removed from the immediate danger of the fighting. Ward refused to leave his station.

Instead, he continued serving during the engagement. When one of Lackawanna’s gun crews became disabled, Ward went to assist with the weapon. His decision placed him back in the center of the ship’s combat operations despite the wound he had already suffered.

His service during the battle did not end at the gun. Ward later went into the ship’s chains to take soundings, an essential task used to determine the depth of the water beneath the vessel. Performing this duty during combat exposed him to additional danger while Lackawanna maneuvered in the confined and chaotic waters of Mobile Bay.

The battle became especially violent when Union ships closed with CSS Tennessee. Rather than relying only on gunfire, several Federal vessels attempted to ram the Confederate ironclad. Lackawanna became heavily involved in this close-range fighting.

While Ward was carrying out his duties, Lackawanna maneuvered against Tennessee and the two vessels came dangerously close together. Ward was nearly caught between the ships during the collision. The incident demonstrated just how exposed his position had become, yet he remained at his duties through the action.

Ward’s conduct combined several qualities that the Navy considered exceptional: he continued fighting after being wounded, refused to withdraw from the battle, assisted a disabled gun crew, performed hazardous sounding duties, and maintained his composure during the close action with the Confederate ironclad.

The Union fleet ultimately overcame the Confederate naval resistance in Mobile Bay. CSS Tennessee was forced to surrender after a sustained engagement with Farragut’s warships. Although Fort Morgan continued resisting for a time after the naval battle, Union control of the bay effectively closed another important Confederate port and strengthened the Federal blockade along the Gulf Coast.

Ward’s actions aboard USS Lackawanna were formally recognized with the Medal of Honor. His award was recorded under General Order No. 45, dated December 31, 1864. He received the decoration for his courage and devotion to duty during the Battle of Mobile Bay on August 5.

The Medal of Honor citation emphasized that Ward had been wounded but refused to go below. It also recognized his assistance to the disabled gun crew and his continued performance of duty while exposed during the battle. These were not separate incidents occurring over a long military career; they were successive acts of determination during a single intense naval engagement.

At the time of the Medal of Honor action, Ward’s rating was Quarter Gunner. He later attained the rating of Captain of the Forecastle, the highest verified rating associated with his naval service. The distinction is important because his Medal of Honor belongs specifically to the period when he served as Quarter Gunner aboard Lackawanna.

Ward’s story also illustrates the nature of Civil War naval combat. Sailors aboard warships were exposed not only to artillery and small-arms fire but also to explosions, collisions, machinery, and the hazards of maneuvering large vessels in restricted waters. At Mobile Bay, Ward experienced several of those dangers within the same battle.

His courage was demonstrated not through one isolated gesture but through his repeated decision to remain useful to his ship after he had already been wounded. He moved where he was needed, helped keep a gun in action, performed essential sounding duties, and continued working while Lackawanna closed with one of the Confederacy’s most powerful ironclads.

James Ward’s Medal of Honor preserved the Navy’s recognition of that steadfast service. During one of the Civil War’s defining naval battles, a wounded Quarter Gunner refused to leave the fight and continued performing hazardous duties until the Union fleet had overcome its opposition in Mobile Bay.