Boatswain's Mate Patrick Murphy 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. Metacomet. Murphy was about 41 years old.
97 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. He later rose to the rank of Chief Boatswain's Mate.
Murphy was born in 1823 in Ireland — one of 258 recipients born in Ireland. His Medal of Honor is credited to New York, New York. Murphy died on December 1, 1895 in Erie, Pennsylvania, at the age of about 72. He is buried at Trinity Cemetery in Erie, Pennsylvania.
Murphy 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
Served as boatswain's mate on board the U.S.S. Metacomet during action against rebel forts and gunboats and with the ram Tennessee in Mobile Bay, 5 August 1864. Despite damage to his ship and the loss of several men on board as enemy fire raked her decks, Murphy performed his duties with skill and courage throughout a furious two-hour battle, which resulted in the surrender of the 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
- 1823Born in Ireland
- August 5, 1864Act of valor — Mobile Bay, AlabamaAge about 41. U.S.S. Metacomet
- December 1, 1895Died in Erie, PennsylvaniaAge about 72.
- Resting placeTrinity CemeteryErie, Pennsylvania
Biography
Patrick Murphy (January 15, 1823 – December 1, 1896) 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. A native of Ireland, Murphy began his seafaring career as a teenager aboard merchant ships in the North Atlantic and served for two years in the Royal Navy. He joined the U.S. Navy after settling in Erie, Pennsylvania, and sailed the Great Lakes as a petty officer on USS Michigan. During the American Civil War, he served aboard USS Metacomet and distinguished himself in the action at Mobile Bay.
From the Wikipedia article “Patrick Murphy (Medal of Honor)”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →
