PHOTOS: Robert Penn Medal of Honor Monument unveiled in Hopewell

Apr 19, 2025 - 17:25

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PHOTOS: Robert Penn Medal of Honor Monument unveiled in Hopewell

HOPEWELL, Va. (WRIC) -- The Robert Penn Medal of Honor was dedicated and unveiled in Hopewell on Saturday and honors the heroism of a soldier who fought in the Spanish-American War.

The City of Hopewell joined forces with the Veterans Memorial Circle Improvement Committee to dedicate the monument on Saturday, April 19 at the Jacob J. Pearson Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 637 banquet room in Hopewell.

The monument was then unveiled at the Veterans Memorial Circle on 15th Avenue, which also holds Virginia's first World War I monument that was dedicated back in 1921.

According to the city, Penn was an African American born in Hopewell -- what was then called City Point -- in 1872. After enlisting in the U.S. Navy in 1895, he received the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions whilst serving on the U.S.S. IOWA in 1889 off the cost of Cuba.

8News spoke with Herbert H. Bragg, Director of Intergovernmental & Public Affairs for the City of Hopewell, about the importance of the event.

"It's a historic event, long overdue, for a great American patriot and a soldier who sacrificed so much for his country, and this honor is a long time coming," Bragg said.

Continue scrolling to see photos from the unveiling: