Isaac Laurens Fasseur (1859 – after 1900) was a

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 a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration, the

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. ...

Biography

Born in 1859 in Flushing, Netherlands to Elisabeth Odem and the sailor Isaac Fasseur. Fasseur was living in

Valparaíso Valparaíso (; ) is a major city, seaport, naval base, and educational centre in the commune of Valparaíso, Chile. "Greater Valparaíso" is the second largest metropolitan area in the country. Valparaíso is located about northwest of Santiago ...

, Chile, when he joined the U.S. Navy. By June 13, 1884, he was serving as an

ordinary seaman __NOTOC__ An ordinary seaman (OS) is a member of the deck department of a ship. The position is an apprenticeship to become an able seaman, and has been for centuries. In modern times, an OS is required to work on a ship for a specific amount o ...

on the . On that day, while ''Lackawanna'' was at

Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and Regions of Peru, region on the Pacific Ocean in the Lima metropolitan area. Callao is Peru's chief seaport and home to its main airport, Jorge Chávez International Airport. Callao municipality consists o ...

, Peru, William Cruise fell overboard and was rescued by Fasseur and another sailor, Captain of the Hold Louis Williams. For this action, both Fasseur and Williams were awarded the Medal of Honor. Fasseur's official Medal of Honor citation reads:

Serving on board the U.S.S. ''Lackawanna'', 13 June 1884, at Callao, Peru, Fasseur rescued William Cruise, who had fallen overboard, from drowning.

Later life

In April 1885, Fasseur was honorably discharged from the Navy as ships tailor. He married in 1889 in

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

with Maria Valke, but the couple divorced in 1897. In the 1900 United States Census, Fasseur was again in the US Navy, aboard the cruiser USS ''Philadelphia'' that was moored in

Bremerton, Washington Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington. The population was 37,729 at the 2010 census and an estimated 41,405 in 2019, making it the largest city on the Kitsap Peninsula. Bremerton is home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Bremerto ...

, giving as his home address the

Mare Island Naval Shipyard The Mare Island Naval Shipyard (MINSY) was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. It is located northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates th ...

Vallejo, California Vallejo ( ; ) is a city in Solano County, California and the second largest city in the North Bay region of the Bay Area. Located on the shores of San Pablo Bay, the city had a population of 126,090 at the 2020 census. Vallejo is home to the ...

.Fasseur, Isaac L.
in the United States Census, 1900 His date of death and place of burial are unknown.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fasseur, Isaac L. 1859 births Year of death missing Foreign-born Medal of Honor recipients United States Navy Medal of Honor recipients People from Vlissingen United States Navy sailors Non-combat recipients of the Medal of Honor Dutch emigrants to the United States

Biography

Later life

See also

References