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Honoring American TroopsMedal of Honor Archive

Seaman · U.S. Navy

Joseph Irlam

Seaman Joseph Irlam, Navy, received the Medal of Honor for actions on August 5, 1864 at Mobile Bay, Alabama during the Civil War.

U.S. Civil War August 5, 1864Born in England

Serving as a sailor in the U.S. Navy, Seaman Joseph Irlam 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. Irlam was about 24 years old.

97 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day.

Irlam was born in 1840 in Liverpool, England — one of 98 recipients born in England. His Medal of Honor is credited to New York, New York. Irlam died on April 20, 1876 in Lost at Sea, at the age of about 36. He was buried at sea.

Irlam 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

Stationed at the wheel 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. When heavy enemy fire struck down several men at their guns and replacements were not available, Irlam voluntarily released two men who were stationed with him and carried on at the wheel with the assistance of only one of the crew throughout the furious battle.

Citation text: U.S. Government, public domain.

Battles and campaigns

Also served in: American Civil War.

Places

  • Born: Liverpool — map

Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in New York →

Timeline

  1. 1840
    Born in Liverpool, England
  2. August 5, 1864
    Act of valor — Mobile Bay, Alabama
    Age about 24. U.S.S. Brooklyn
  3. April 20, 1876
    Died in Lost at Sea
    Age about 36.
  4. Resting place
    Buried at sea

Biography

Joseph Irlam (born 1840, date of death unknown) 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 1840 in Liverpool, England, Irlam 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 seaman on the USS Brooklyn. At the Battle of Mobile Bay on August 5, 1864, he was stationed at the ship's wheel when Brooklyn took heavy fire.

From the Wikipedia article “Joseph Irlam”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →

Also honored for actions on August 5, 1864

TA Thomas E. Atkinson Yeoman · Navy Civil War · 1864 JA James Avery Seaman · Navy Civil War · 1864 CB Charles Baker Quarter Gunner · Navy Civil War · 1864 WB William Blagheen Ship's Cook · Navy Civil War · 1864 JB John Brazell Quartermaster · Navy Civil War · 1864 JB John Brown Captain of the Forecastle · Navy Civil War · 1864 RB Robert Brown Captain of the Top · Navy Civil War · 1864 WB William H. Brown Landsman · Navy Civil War · 1864 WB Wilson Brown Landsman · Navy Civil War · 1864 JB John M. Burns Seaman · Navy Civil War · 1864 WC William M. Carr Master-at-Arms · Navy Civil War · 1864 MC Michael Cassidy Landsman · Navy Civil War · 1864

See all 98 recipients for August 5, 1864 →

Same unit

JB James Buck Quartermaster · Navy Civil War · 1862 HM Harry Lewis MacNeal Private · Marine Corps Spanish-American War · 1898

More Civil War recipients from New York

JY James Marvin Young Private · Army Civil War · 1864 Edward M. Knox Second Lieutenant · Army Civil War · 1863 JL Joseph Lonsway Private · Army Civil War · 1864 WN William Henry Newman Lieutenant · Army Civil War · 1865 RG Richard Gasson Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 ✦ TP Thomas Perry Boatswain's Mate · Navy Civil War · 1864
Sources. Service and award details compiled from the recipient record of the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, Wikidata and Wikipedia. The narrative summary is generated from these records. Spotted an error? Send a correction.