Civil War Medal of Honor Recipient. He served as a Ordinary Seaman in the Union Navy. His citation reads "Houghton served on board the USS Picket Boat No. 1, in action, 27 October 1864, against the Confederate ram, Albemarle, which had resisted repeated attacks by our steamers and had kept a large force of vessels employed in watching her. The picket boat, equipped with a spar torpedo, succeeded in passing the enemy pickets within 20 yards without being discovered and then made for the Albemarle under a full head of steam. Immediately taken under fire by the ram, the small boat plunged on, jumped the log boom which encircled the target, and exploded its torpedo under the port bow of the ram. The picket boat was destroyed by enemy fire and almost the entire crew taken prisoner or lost."
Civil War Medal of Honor Recipient. He served as a Ordinary Seaman in the Union Navy. His citation reads "Houghton served on board the USS Picket Boat No. 1, in action, 27 October 1864, against the Confederate ram, Albemarle, which had resisted repeated attacks by our steamers and had kept a large force of vessels employed in watching her. The picket boat, equipped with a spar torpedo, succeeded in passing the enemy pickets within 20 yards without being discovered and then made for the Albemarle under a full head of steam. Immediately taken under fire by the ram, the small boat plunged on, jumped the log boom which encircled the target, and exploded its torpedo under the port bow of the ram. The picket boat was destroyed by enemy fire and almost the entire crew taken prisoner or lost."
Bio by: Don Morfe
Gravesite Details
In October 1890, Andy Houghton erected a monument to commemorate his father and brother Edward. Edward was re-interred to Holyhood Cemetery in Brookline Massachusetts. The statue is a landmark at Holyhood and is approximately thirty feet tall.
Family Members
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See more Houghton memorials in:
Records on Ancestry
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