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★Victoria Cross

A comprehensive archive of decorated military heroes from Commonwealth, American, and allied traditions, ranked by the Unified Scoring Matrix (USM-25). Honouring valour through history.

USM-25.2Scoring Standard

Scored under the Unified Scoring Matrix (USM-25)

John Duffey (soldier) — Victoria Cross

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Service Profile

Branch: U.S. Army
Rank: Private
Medals Recorded: 2

John Duffey (soldier)

Private, U.S. Army

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Awards & Decorations

Medal of Honor 1896–1903 Army
Civil War Campaign Medal post-1913 Army

Ribbon Rack

Biography

Rescuing stranded Union soldiers under artillery fire

John Duffey served as a private in Company B, 4th Massachusetts Cavalry. On the Ashepoo River in South Carolina on May 24, 1864, he volunteered for a boat crew sent to rescue Union troops aboard the stranded steamer Boston. Under heavy Confederate artillery fire, he helped transport the soldiers to shore.

That rescue earned Duffey the Medal of Honor, presented on January 21, 1897. Born in New Bedford, Massachusetts, on March 17, 1836, he died on August 21, 1923, and was buried at Oak Grove Cemetery in his hometown.

Medal of Honor citation

Volunteered as a member of a boatcrew which went to the rescue of a large number of Union soldiers on board the stranded steamer Boston, and with great gallantry assisted in conveying them to shore, being exposed the entire time to a heavy fire from a Confederate battery.

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