Landsman Robert Henry King was a sailor in the U.S. Navy who 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. King was about 19 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.
King was born in 1845 in New York. King died on April 10, 1865 in Albany, New York, at the age of about 20. He is buried at Albany Rural Cemetery in Albany, New York.
King 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
King 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 taken prisoner or lost.
Citation text: U.S. Government, public domain.
Timeline
- 1845Born in New York
- October 27, 1864Act of valor — Plymouth, North CarolinaAge about 19. U.S. Picket Boat No. 1
- March 15, 1865Medal of Honor presented
- April 10, 1865Died in Albany, New YorkAge about 20.
- Resting placeAlbany Rural CemeteryAlbany, New York
Biography
Robert Henry King (c. 1845 - April 10, 1865) was an American sailor and recipient of the Medal of Honor who earned the award for his actions during the American Civil War.
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