John Smith

He Kept His Gun Firing Through the Battle

John Smith was born in Albany, New York, in 1826. His early life is only sparsely documented, but by the American Civil War he had become an experienced sailor in the United States Navy. His wartime service would carry him through some of the most dangerous naval operations of the conflict and ultimately earn him the Medal of Honor.

Smith served at sea during a period when the Union Navy was expanding rapidly and attempting to break the Confederacy’s control of major rivers, ports, and coastal strongholds. Naval warfare during the Civil War placed sailors in close combat with shore batteries, enemy gunboats, ironclads, underwater mines, and fortified waterways.

Before the action for which he became famous, Smith had already experienced serious combat.

He served aboard USS Varuna during the Union Navy’s campaign against New Orleans in 1862. Varuna was part of the fleet that fought its way past Forts Jackson and St. Philip on the Mississippi River. During the operation, the ship became heavily engaged with Confederate vessels and was ultimately sunk after fierce fighting.

Smith survived that dangerous campaign and continued his naval service.

He later served aboard USS Brooklyn during operations against Confederate defenses around Vicksburg. These experiences placed him in the middle of major Union naval operations long before his Medal of Honor action.

By September 1863, Smith had joined USS Richmond, a steam sloop-of-war that had already established an extensive combat record during the Civil War.

Aboard Richmond, Smith served as Second Captain of the Top. In the organization of a nineteenth-century warship, sailors assigned to the tops worked aloft among the masts, rigging, and sails, but they could also perform other combat duties when the ship went into action. During the battle that defined Smith’s career, he served as captain of one of Richmond’s guns.

That battle came on August 5, 1864, at Mobile Bay, Alabama.

Mobile was one of the Confederacy’s most important remaining Gulf ports. The entrance to Mobile Bay was defended by powerful coastal fortifications, including Fort Morgan, as well as Confederate naval forces and fields of underwater mines then commonly called torpedoes.

Union Rear Admiral David G. Farragut assembled a powerful fleet to force its way into the bay and destroy or neutralize the Confederate defenses.

USS Richmond formed part of that attacking fleet.

As the Union ships advanced into Mobile Bay, they came under intense fire from Confederate forts and vessels. The battle became even more dangerous when the Union monitor USS Tecumseh struck a mine and sank rapidly, taking many members of her crew with her.

Despite the disaster and the heavy enemy fire, the Union fleet continued forward.

Aboard Richmond, John Smith remained at his gun.

The ship exchanged fire with the Confederate defenses while maneuvering through the narrow and dangerous entrance to the bay. Enemy shells struck around the crew as the sailors worked their guns under conditions in which a single direct hit could kill or wound an entire gun crew.

Smith continued serving his weapon with determination.

His Medal of Honor citation recognized his courage and skill while serving as captain of a gun throughout the prolonged engagement. Even as Confederate fire swept the ship and casualties occurred around him, he remained at his station and helped maintain Richmond’s fire against the enemy.

The battle continued as Union warships entered the bay and confronted the Confederate ironclad CSS Tennessee.

Tennessee was heavily armored and presented a formidable threat. Union vessels attacked the ironclad with gunfire and repeated attempts to ram her. Surrounded and damaged, Tennessee eventually surrendered.

The Union victory at Mobile Bay was strategically significant. Although the city of Mobile itself remained in Confederate hands for several more months, the battle effectively closed the bay to blockade-running traffic and eliminated one of the Confederacy’s most important remaining naval outlets on the Gulf Coast.

For John Smith, August 5, 1864, became the defining day of his military service.

His courage aboard USS Richmond was formally recognized later that year.

On December 31, 1864, John Smith was awarded the Medal of Honor under General Order No. 45.

The Navy Medal of Honor had been authorized during the Civil War as the nation’s highest recognition for extraordinary conduct by sailors and Marines. Smith received the decoration for remaining steadfast at his gun and performing his duties with exceptional courage during one of the most important naval battles of the war.

No additional clasp, star, or device accompanied his Medal of Honor.

Smith’s broader wartime service was later represented by the Navy Civil War Campaign Medal. Established after the Civil War generation had begun to pass away, the campaign medal commemorated qualifying service by United States Navy personnel during the conflict.

For Smith, the campaign medal represented a naval career that extended far beyond a single engagement. His wartime experience included the operations against New Orleans aboard USS Varuna, service connected with the Vicksburg campaign aboard USS Brooklyn, and finally the fierce Battle of Mobile Bay aboard USS Richmond.

The Medal of Honor, however, remained specifically connected to his conduct at Mobile Bay.

Smith survived the Civil War and lived for more than four decades after the conflict ended.

By the time he reached old age, the wooden warships, coastal forts, and close-range naval battles of his generation belonged to an earlier era. The United States Navy had transformed into a modern steel fleet, while Civil War veterans increasingly became living links to one of the most consequential periods in American history.

John Smith died on December 31, 1907.

He was buried in the Naval Plot at Mount Moriah Cemetery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

His name presents an unusual challenge in Medal of Honor history because another sailor named John Smith also received the Medal of Honor for actions at Mobile Bay on the same day. The two men served aboard different ships and performed different acts of courage.

The John Smith remembered here was the Second Captain of the Top aboard USS Richmond.

On August 5, 1864, as his ship passed through the defenses of Mobile Bay and fought amid heavy Confederate fire, he remained at his gun.

Around him was one of the Civil War’s most dangerous naval battles.

Ahead were forts, enemy warships, and underwater mines.

Smith continued fighting.

For his skill, steadiness, and courage at his battle station aboard USS Richmond, John Smith received the Medal of Honor and secured his place in the history of the United States Navy.