| Civil War
Navy Petty Officer, Hero and Medal of Honor Winner, John Breen
"Laying in an unmarked grave
for over 120 years"
 A
project of Ms. Margaret Berres - a Middle
School teacher and the Curator of the Oak Creek Historical Society, Mr. Tom
Ludka of the American Legion, The Naval Historical Center and the
CWSMMA.
Read about Ms.
Berres cemetery work in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel newspaper by
Nicole Sweeney.
PO John Breen:
Birth: 1827 Death: Dec. 13, 1885
A verified Civil
War Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient. He served as a
Boatswain's Mate in the Union Navy. His citation reads "On board the
USS Commodore Perry in the attack upon Franklin, VA., 3 October 1862.
With enemy fire raking the deck of his ship and blockades thwarting her
progress, Breen remained at his post and performed his duties with skill and
courage as the USS Commodore Perry fought a gallant battle to silence many
rebel batteries as she steamed down the Blackwater River." (by: Don Morfe)
Burial: Calvary Cemetery Milwaukee
Milwaukee County Wisconsin, USA Plot: Block 5, Grave 1930
(UNMARKED)
As listed at the
Navy Memorial Foundation on the Navy Log and at the US Department of the
Navy - Naval
Historical Center
PO John Breen currently has lied in
an unmarked grave, alone to the world and relatively unknown for his
accomplishments. The Veterans Affairs Department has graciously agreed
to now provide a headstone for him. A number of PO Breen's Medal of
Honor pages inaccurately list his accomplishments or could list more.
-
It is our objective to assist in adding to these many
websites
-
We would like to host CW Navy and Marine living
historians (authentically dressed) at the memorial dedication of his
first tombstone in 2004. Please contact Tom Ludka at
tludka@wi.rr.com to attend.
-
We are desirous of more information on this hero and any
photos of him
-
We are trying to find his living descendants so
they can attend the ceremony
-
Additionally, we have
Ellen Breen's pension deposition from 1888. She died in 1892. We are still
trying to determine if the Walter Breen listed on John's 1875 application
is his brother. If so then we will order a headstone for him. There is a
Walter Breen buried next to John. Walter was born in 1829. We believe that
he may have served on the USS Seymour with John at the time of his
accident in Jan 1862. Any information you can provide will be appreciated.
 The
Calvary Cemetery (left) Milwaukee,
Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, USA.
Photo by David M. Habben - click to enlarge and of
the photos on this page.
"As a LIFE member of the
Veterans of Foreign Wars and as a member of the American Legion myself - I
can share with you assembled here today that these are the types of projects
the CWSMMA likes to contribute to"...Martin CJ Mongiello
- May 25, 2004 CWSMMA conference, New Jersey
To comment more on these issues -
please visit our logbooks and help us.
Take a look at
these official documents and transcriptions in .jpg. 56k users
will find them to load slowly while DSL+ users will download them at a much
faster rate. These documents were provided by Tom Ludka, Department of
Wisconsin American Legion Assistant Service Officer.
Read the
latest update
and final story with
headstone dedication in the Fall of 2004.
|
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Shipyard...
