Joseph E. Vantine

Infobox Military Person
name=Joseph E. Vantine
born= March 1835
died= death date|1904|5|4
placeofbirth=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
placeofdeath=
placeofburial=


caption=Fireman Joseph Vantine
nickname=
allegiance=United States of America
branch=United States Navy
serviceyears=
rank=Second Class Fireman
commands=
unit=USS "Richmond"
battles=American Civil War
awards=Medal of Honor
relations=
laterwork=

Joseph E. Vantine (March 1835 – May 4, 1904) was a United States Navy sailor and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in the American Civil War.

Biography

Joseph Vantine was born in March 1835 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

During the Civil War, Vantine served as a First Class Fireman aboard the steamship USS "Richmond". As a fireman, Vantine's duties were to tend to the ship's steam boilers.

In the prelude to the siege of Port Hudson, Louisiana, Rear Admiral David Farragut attempted to move a flotilla of ships, including the "Richmond", up the Mississippi River past the town of Port Hudson. On March 14, 1863, the flotilla reached the town and came under heavy fire from Confederate artillery batteries. The enemy guns inflicted severe damage on the Union flotilla, forcing most of the ships to turn back.

During the battle, the "Richmond"'s fireroom, which housed its boilers, was damaged by an enemy shell and began to fill with hot steam. Vantine entered the room and "hauled the fires", or put out the furnaces, to prevent further danger. For his actions he was awarded the Medal of Honor four months later, on July 10, 1863.

Vantine reached the rank of Second Class Fireman before leaving the Navy. He died at age 69 and was buried at Glebe Cemetery in New Castle, Delaware.

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: First Class Fireman, U.S. Navy. Born: 1835, Philadelphia, Pa. Accredited to: Pennsylvania. G.O. No.: 17, July 10, 1863.

Citation:

:Serving on board the U.S.S. Richmond in the attack on Port Hudson, March 14, 1863. Damaged by a 6_inch solid rifle shot which shattered the starboard safety_valve chamber and also damaged the port safety valve, the fireroom of the Richmond immediately filled with steam to place it in an extremely critical condition. Acting courageously in this crisis, Vantine persisted in penetrating the steam_filled room in order to haul the hot fires of the furnaces and continued this action until the gravity of the situation had been lessened.

ee also

*List of Medal of Honor recipients
*

References

:NHC
*findagrave|7122533 Retrieved on 2007-05-16
*cite web
publisher = Naval Historical Center
title = US People - Vantine, Joseph E., First-Class Fireman
work = Online Library
date = March 2, 2006
url = http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/pers-us/uspers-v/j-vantne.htm
accessdate = 2007-05-16
*cite web
publisher = U.S. Army Center of Military History
title = Civil War Medal of Honor Recipients (M-Z)
work = Medal of Honor Citations
date = September 1, 2004
url = http://www.army.mil/cmh/html/moh/civwarmz.html
accessdate = 2007-05-16

Persondata
NAME= Vantine, Joseph E.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION= Navy Medal of Honor recipient
DATE OF BIRTH=
PLACE OF BIRTH=
DATE OF DEATH=
PLACE OF DEATH=