Captain of the Forecastle John Brown was a sailor in the U.S. Navy who received the Medal of Honor for his actions on August 5, 1864 at Mobile Bay, Alabama during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with U.S.S. Brooklyn. Brown was about 38 years old.
97 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day.
Brown was born in 1826 in Glasgow, Scotland — one of 41 recipients born in Scotland. His Medal of Honor is credited to New York, New York. Brown died on November 1, 1883 in Sonoma, California, at the age of about 57. Records also list him as Hayes, Thomas.
Brown is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 678 credited to New York.
Official Medal of Honor citation
On board the U.S.S. Brooklyn during action against rebel forts and gunboats and with the ram Tennessee in Mobile Bay, 5 August 1864. Despite severe damage to his ship and the loss of several men on board as enemy fire raked her decks from stem to stern, Brown fought his gun with skill and courage throughout the furious battle which resulted in the surrender of the prize rebel ram Tennessee and in the damaging and destruction of batteries at Fort Morgan.
Citation text: U.S. Government, public domain.
Battles and campaigns
Also served in: American Civil War.
Places
Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in New York →
Timeline
- 1826Born in Glasgow, Scotland
- August 5, 1864Act of valor — Mobile Bay, AlabamaAge about 38. U.S.S. Brooklyn
- November 1, 1883Died in Sonoma, CaliforniaAge about 57.
Biography
John Brown (c. 1826 – November 1, 1883) was a Union Navy sailor in the American Civil War and a recipient of the U.S. military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions at the Battle of Mobile Bay. Born in 1826 in Glasgow, Scotland, Brown's birth name was Thomas Hayes. He immigrated to the United States and was living in New York when he joined the U.S. Navy. He served during the Civil War as a captain of the forecastle on the USS Brooklyn. At the Battle of Mobile Bay on August 5, 1864, he "fought his gun with skill and courage" despite heavy fire. For this action, he was awarded the Medal of Honor four months later, on December 31, 1864.
From the Wikipedia article “John Brown (sailor)”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →
