Thomas Kendrick (Medal of Honor)

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Thomas Kendrick
Born1839
Bath, Maine
AllegianceUnited States
Service/branchUnited States Navy
RankCoxswain
UnitUSS Oneida
Battles/warsAmerican Civil War
 • Battle of Mobile Bay
AwardsMedal of Honor

Thomas Kendrick (born 1839, date of death unknown) was a Union Navy sailor in the American Civil War. He was also a recipient of the U.S. military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor. He received it for his actions at the Battle of Mobile Bay.

Biography[change | change source]

Kendrick was born in 1839 in Bath, Maine. He was still living in that city when he joined the Navy. He served during the Civil War as a coxswain on the USS Bienville. He volunteered to join the USS Oneida for the Battle of Mobile Bay on August 5, 1864. It was there he showed "courageous devotion to duty". For this action, he was presented the Medal of Honor four months later, on December 31, 1864.[1][2]

Kendrick's official Medal of Honor citation reads:

Served as coxswain on board the U.S.S. Oneida in the engagement at Mobile Bay, 5 August 1864. Volunteering for the Mobile Bay action from Bienville, Kendrick displayed courageous devotion to duty, and his excellent conduct throughout the battle which resulted in the capture of the rebel ram Tennessee and in the damaging of Fort Morgan, attracted the attention of the commanding officer and those serving around him.[2]

References[change | change source]

Medal of Honor
  1. "Thomas Kendrick". Hall of Valor. Military Times. Retrieved November 26, 2012.
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Civil War Medal of Honor Recipients (A–L)". Medal of Honor Citations. United States Army Center of Military History. June 26, 2011. Archived from the original on March 10, 2008. Retrieved November 26, 2012.