Landsman John Preston was a sailor in the U.S. Navy who received the Medal of Honor for his actions on August 5, 1864 at Fort Morgan, Mobile Bay, Alabama during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with U.S.S. Oneida. Preston was about 23 years old.
97 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day.
Preston was born in 1841 in Ireland — one of 258 recipients born in Ireland. His Medal of Honor is credited to Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts. Preston died on May 26, 1885, at the age of about 44. He is buried at Togus National Cemetery in Togus, Maine.
Preston is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 265 credited to Massachusetts.
Official Medal of Honor citation
Served on board the U.S.S. Oneida in the engagement at Mobile Bay, 5 August 1864. Severely wounded, Preston remained at his gun throughout the engagement which resulted in the capture of the rebel ram Tennessee and the damaging of Fort Morgan, carrying on until obliged to go to the surgeon to whom he reported himself as "only slightly injured." He then assisted in taking care of the wounded below and wanted to be allowed to return to his battle station on deck. Upon close examination it was found that he was wounded quite severely in both eyes.
Citation text: U.S. Government, public domain.
Wounds and injuries
What the citation records about his wounds:
Upon close examination it was found that he was wounded quite severely in both eyes.
- Age at death: about 44
- Resting place: Togus National Cemetery
Battles and campaigns
Also served in: American Civil War.
Places
Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in Massachusetts →
Timeline
- 1841Born in Ireland
- August 5, 1864Act of valor — Fort Morgan, Mobile Bay, AlabamaAge about 23. U.S.S. Oneida
- May 26, 1885DiedAge about 44.
- Resting placeTogus National CemeteryTogus, Maine
Biography
John Preston (1841 – 26 May 1885) 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. Preston was born in 1841 in Ireland. He joined the US Navy from Boston in February 1862, and served during the Civil War as a landsman on the USS Oneida. At the Battle of Mobile Bay on August 5, 1864, he was severely wounded in the eyes but continued at his post manning an artillery gun and later helped care for other wounded sailors. For this action, he was awarded the Medal of Honor four months later, on December 31, 1864.
From the Wikipedia article “John Preston (Medal of Honor)”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →
