Isaac Sapp
Encyclopedia
Isaac Sapp was a United States Navy
sailor and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor
.
Born in 1844 at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
, Sapp later joined the Navy from that state. By December 15, 1871, he was serving as a seaman
in the engineering department of the . On that day, while the Shenandoah was at Villefranche-sur-Mer
, France
, he jumped overboard and, with Midshipman Miller, rescued Seaman Charles Prince from drowning. For this action, he was awarded the Medal of Honor two months later, on February 8, 1872. His first name was misspelled as "Isacc" on the citation.
Sapp's official Medal of Honor citation reads:
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
sailor and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
.
Born in 1844 at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
, Sapp later joined the Navy from that state. By December 15, 1871, he was serving as a seaman
Seaman
Seaman is one of the lowest ranks in a Navy. In the Commonwealth it is the lowest rank in the Navy, followed by Able Seaman and Leading Seaman, and followed by the Petty Officer ranks....
in the engineering department of the . On that day, while the Shenandoah was at Villefranche-sur-Mer
Villefranche-sur-Mer
Villefranche-sur-Mer is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the French Riviera.-Geography:...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, he jumped overboard and, with Midshipman Miller, rescued Seaman Charles Prince from drowning. For this action, he was awarded the Medal of Honor two months later, on February 8, 1872. His first name was misspelled as "Isacc" on the citation.
Sapp's official Medal of Honor citation reads:
On board the U.S.S. Shenandoah during the rescue of a shipmate at Villefranche, 15 December 1871. Jumping overboard, Sapp gallantly assisted in saving Charles Prince, seaman, from drowning.
See also
- List of Medal of Honor recipients during peacetime