John H. James (c. 1835 – August 3, 1914) was a Union Navy sailor in the American Civil War and a recipient of the U.S. military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions at the Battle of Mobile Bay.
At the Battle of Mobile Bay on August 5, 1864, he "fought his gun with skill and courage" despite heavy fire.
[1][2] James's official Medal of Honor citation reads: As captain of a gun on board the U.S.S.
Richmond during action against rebel forts and gunboats and with the ram Tennessee in Mobile Bay, 5 August 1864.
Despite damage to his ship and the loss of several men on board as enemy fire raked her decks, James fought his gun with skill and courage throughout a furious 2-hour battle which resulted in the surrender of the rebel ram Tennessee and in the damaging and destruction of batteries at Fort Morgan.