An apparently unknown black Bermudian hero has been discovered and brought to the attention of the Bermuda Maritime Museum by Edgar Wilkinson.

The man, a John Smith, born at Bermuda in 1854, received the Medal of Honor from the President of the United States in 1884.

The Medal of Honor is the highest military award given by the US Government and is conferred on an individual by the Congress through the President for outstanding acts of gallantry under enemy fire and also in peacetime circumstances.

"Bermudian John Smith jumped overboard from his ship, USS Shenandoah, at Rio de Janeiro in 1880, and saved a shipmate from drowning. At a time when many seamen did not know how to swim, we reckon that John Smith probably learned his life-saving and medal-earning skills in the warm waters of St. George's Harbour," said Dr. Edward Harris, executive director of the Maritime Museum.

"It may be that John Smith is the only Bermudian ever to have won the Medal of Honor."

Heritage Matters: See Page 12.