HARDING, THOMAS
Rank and Organization: Captain of the Forecastle, U.S. Navy. Born: 1837,
Middletown, Conn. Accredited To: Connecticut. G.O. No.: 45, 31 December
1864.
Citation:
Served as captain of the forecastle on board the U.S.S. Dacotah on the occasion of the
destruction of the blockade runner Pevensey, near Beauford, N.C., 9 June 1864.
"Learning that one of the officers in the boat, which was in danger of being, and
subsequently was, swamped, could not swim, Harding remarked to him: 'If we are swamped,
sir, I shall carry you to the beach or I will never go there myself.' He did not succeed
in carrying out his promise, but made desperate efforts to do so, while others thought
only of themselves. Such conduct is worthy of appreciation and admiration--a sailor
risking his own life to save that of an officer."
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