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Coal Heaver · U.S. Navy

Richard Hamilton

Coal Heaver Richard Hamilton, Navy, received the Medal of Honor for actions on October 27, 1864 in Plymouth, North Carolina during the Civil War.

U.S. Civil War October 27, 1864

Serving as a sailor in the U.S. Navy, Coal Heaver Richard Hamilton received the Medal of Honor for his actions on October 27, 1864 in Plymouth, North Carolina during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with U.S. Picket Boat No. 1. Hamilton was about 28 years old.

15 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on March 15, 1865.

Hamilton was born in 1836 in Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania. His Medal of Honor is credited to Pennsylvania. Hamilton died on July 6, 1881 in Camden, New Jersey, at the age of about 45. He is buried at Evergreen Cemetery in Camden, New Jersey.

Hamilton is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 380 credited to Pennsylvania.

Official Medal of Honor citation

Hamilton served on board the U.S. Picket Boat No. 1, in action, 27 October 1864, against the Confederate ram, Albemarle, which had resisted repeated attacks by our steamers and had kept a large force of vessels employed in watching her. The picket boat, equipped with a spar torpedo, succeeded in passing the enemy pickets within 20 yards without being discovered and then made for the Albemarle under a full head of steam. Immediately taken under fire by the ram, the small boat plunged on, jumped the log boom which encircled the target and exploded its torpedo under the port bow of the ram. The picket boat was destroyed by enemy fire and almost the entire crew was taken prisoner or lost.

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

Battles and campaigns

Also served in: American Civil War.

Places

  • Born: Philadelphia — map
  • Died: Camden — map
  • Buried: Evergreen Cemetery — map

Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in Pennsylvania →

Timeline

  1. 1836
    Born in Philadelphia, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania
  2. October 27, 1864
    Act of valor — Plymouth, North Carolina
    Age about 28. U.S. Picket Boat No. 1
  3. March 15, 1865
    Medal of Honor presented
  4. July 6, 1881
    Died in Camden, New Jersey
    Age about 45.
  5. Resting place
    Evergreen Cemetery
    Camden, New Jersey

Biography

Richard Hamilton (January 23, 1836 – July 6, 1881), a Union Navy Coal Heaver, received the Medal of Honor for bravery for his participation in the sinking of the CSS Albemarle during the American Civil War.

From the Wikipedia article “Richard Hamilton (Medal of Honor)”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →

Also honored for actions on October 27, 1864

SB Sylvester Bonnaffon Jr. First Lieutenant · Army Civil War · 1864 Jeremiah Z. Brown Captain · Army Civil War · 1864 LD Lorenzo Denning Landsman · Navy Civil War · 1864 AE Andrew Henry Embler Captain · Army Civil War · 1864 Daniel Griffin George Ordinary Seaman · Navy Civil War · 1864 Bernard Harley Ordinary Seaman · Navy Civil War · 1864 EH Edward J. Houghton Ordinary Seaman · Navy Civil War · 1864 Robert Henry King Landsman · Navy Civil War · 1864 DM Daniel J. Murphy Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 CO Charles Alvin Orr Private · Army Civil War · 1864 Alonzo Smith Sergeant · Army Civil War · 1864 Joseph Sewall Smith Lieutenant Colonel · Army Civil War · 1864

See all 16 recipients for October 27, 1864 →

More Civil War recipients from Pennsylvania

Gotlieb Luty Corporal · Army Civil War · 1863 JM James Martin Sergeant · Marine Corps Civil War · 1864 HH Henry Hill Corporal · Army Civil War · 1864 OB Orrin Bennett Private · Army Civil War · 1865 Sylvester Hopkins Martin Lieutenant · Army Civil War · 1864 JD John Henry Denig Sergeant · Marine Corps 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.