Boatswain's Mate William Phinney, a sailor in the U.S. Navy, received the Medal of Honor for gallantry on August 5, 1864 at Fort Morgan, Mobile Bay, Alabama during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with U.S.S. Lackawanna. Phinney was about 40 years old.
97 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day.
Phinney was born in 1824 in Norway — one of 22 recipients born in Norway. His Medal of Honor is credited to New York, New York.
Phinney 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
On board the U.S.S. Lackawanna during successful attacks against Fort Morgan, rebel gunboats, and the rebel ram Tennessee in Mobile Bay, 5 August 1864. Serving as gun captain, Phinney showed much presence of mind in managing the gun and gave much needed encouragement to the crew during the engagement, which resulted in the capture of the prize rebel ram Tennessee and in the damaging and destruction of Fort Morgan.
Citation text: U.S. Government, public domain.
Battles and campaigns
Also served in: American Civil War.
Places
- Born: Norway — map
Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in New York →
Timeline
- 1824Born in Norway
- August 5, 1864Act of valor — Fort Morgan, Mobile Bay, AlabamaAge about 40. U.S.S. Lackawanna
Biography
William Phinney (born c. 1824, 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.
From the Wikipedia article “William Phinney”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →
