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Peacetime and interim
William Ahern
Watertender · U.S. Navy
U.S. Navy
1 July 1897 · USS Puritan
- Branch
- U.S. Navy
- Era
- Peacetime and other actions
- Home state
- New York
- Action
- USS Puritan
The citation
Official citation
On board the U.S.S. Puritan at the time of the collapse of one of the crown sheets of boiler E of that vessel, 1 July 1897. Wrapped in wet cloths to protect his face and arms, Ahern entered the fireroom, crawled over the tops of the boilers and closed the auxiliary stop valve, disconnecting boiler E and removing the danger of disabling the other boilers.
Sources
- U.S. Army Medal of Honor citation index
- Wikipedia. Linked only. The article text is not copied here.