Bartlett Laffey (1841 – March 22, 1901) was an Irish-born

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

sailor and

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

recipient.

Biography

Born in

County Galway "Righteousness and Justice" , anthem = () , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Galway.svg , map_caption = Location in Ireland , area_footnotes = , area_total_km2 = ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, he enlisted in the

from

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

on March 17, 1862, and was assigned to stern wheel gunboat . On March 5, 1864, the Confederates launched a heavy attack on Union positions at

Yazoo City, Mississippi Yazoo City is a U.S. city in Yazoo County, Mississippi. It was named after the Yazoo River, which, in turn was named by the French explorer Robert La Salle in 1682 as "Rivière des Yazous" in reference to the Yazoo tribe living near the river's m ...

. In the midst of heated battle Laffey landed a 12-pound

howitzer A howitzer () is a long- ranged weapon, falling between a cannon (also known as an artillery gun in the United States), which fires shells at flat trajectories, and a mortar, which fires at high angles of ascent and descent. Howitzers, like ot ...

and her crew. Despite enemy rifle fire which cut up the gun carriage and severed the rammer, Laffey bravely stood by his gun and contributed greatly to turning back the fierce Confederate assault. Seaman Laffey received the

for his actions. Two of his shipmates, Seaman James Stoddard and Seaman William J. Franks, were also awarded the medal for being on the gun crew. He died at

Chelsea, Massachusetts Chelsea is a city in Suffolk County, Massachusetts, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, United States, directly across the Mystic River from the city of Boston. As of the 2020 census, Chelsea had a population of 40,787. With a total area of just 2.46 s ...

, on March 22, 1901.

Namesakes

Two ships in the United States Navy have been given their name in honor of Bartlett Laffey. His granddaughter, Miss Eleanor Fogerty, christened the first , a ''Benson'' class destroyer, in 1941. This ship was lost during the

Naval Battle of Guadalcanal The Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, sometimes referred to as the Third and Fourth Battles of Savo Island, the Battle of the Solomons, the Battle of Friday the 13th, or, in Japanese sources, the , took place from 12 to 15 November 1942, and was t ...

in 1942. The second ship was , an ''Allen M. Sumner'' class destroyer which was built in 1943 and served until 1975. She was laid down less than a year after the loss of the first ''Laffey'' and named for that ship as much as for Seaman Laffey. The second USS ''Laffey'' is now preserved as a museum ship and is registered as a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Seaman, U.S. Navy. Born: 1841, Ireland. Accredited to: Massachusetts. G.O. No.: 32, April 16, 1864. Citation:

Off Yazoo City, Miss., March 5, 1864, embarking from the Marmora with a 12-pound howitzer mounted on a field carriage, Laffey landed with the gun and crew in the midst of heated battle and, bravely standing by his gun despite enemy rifle fire which cut the gun carriage and rammer, contributed to the turning back of the enemy during the fierce engagement.

Notes

References

: * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Laffey, Bartlett People from County Galway Irish-born Medal of Honor recipients 1841 births 1901 deaths 19th-century Irish people Irish emigrants to the United States (before 1923) Union Navy sailors United States Navy Medal of Honor recipients United States Navy sailors Irish sailors in the United States Navy American Civil War recipients of the Medal of Honor

Biography

Namesakes

Medal of Honor citation

See also

Notes

References