Combat· American Civil War
Battle of Drewry's Bluff
The action that produced the first Marine Medal of Honor.
As part of McClellan's drive on Richmond, a Union squadron pushed up the James River toward the capital, only to be halted at Drewry's Bluff, eight miles below the city, by Confederate batteries on the heights, sharpshooters in rifle pits along the banks, and underwater obstructions barring the channel. The ironclad Galena bore the brunt of the four-hour fight, taking many hits that pierced her plating and raked her gun deck. When a shell killed or wounded most of the crew at one of her guns, Corporal John Mackie rallied the surviving Marines, cleared away the dead and wounded, and got the piece back into action, firing on the Confederate riflemen until the squadron withdrew. For this Mackie became the first United States Marine to receive the Medal of Honor. The Confederate defense, manned in part by Confederate Marines, held and barred the river to Richmond.
Podcast episodes on American Civil War
Record no. 22