hi i'm jim ward of the middle country public library and i'd like to welcome you to episode 37 in our history bytes series today we will discuss the 54th massachusetts regiment the first all-black regiment in the civil war and whose gallant charge on fort wagner south carolina led to the acceptance of black soldiers in the union ranks the 54th massachusetts regiment was raised in the north after the emancipation proclamation went into effect on january 1 1863 on that day the emancipation proclamation decreed that quote such persons that is african-american men of suitable condition will be received into the armed forces of the united states end quote in early february 1863 massachusetts governor john a andrew issued the call for the civil war's first black soldiers and called for men to lead this experimental unit this call produced perhaps more active abolitionists for the 54th and her sister regiment the 55th than any other regiment in the north many in the north had the perception that the war was quote a white man's war end quote and that freed african-americans should not serve in the in any fighting roles whatsoever many also believed that the men would lack discipline and would easily waver in battle in time however these misconceptions would drastically change massachusetts did not have many african-american residents but by the time the 54th infantry regiment headed off to training camp two weeks later more than one thousand men had volunteered many came from other states such as new york indiana and ohio some even came from canada one quarter of the volunteers came from slave states and the caribbean fathers and sons some as young as 16 enlisted together the most famous enlistees were charles and louis douglas two sons of the famous abolitionist frederick douglass the man chosen by governor andrew to lead the 54th massachusetts was a young white officer named robert gould shaw shaw's parents were wealthy and prominent abolitionist activists shaw himself had dropped out of harvard to join the union army and had been injured in the battle of antietam he was just 25 years old shaw and other officers trained the men of the 54th from march until late may 1863 even as they fought to end slavery in the confederacy the african-american soldiers of the 54th were fighting against another injustice as well the us army paid black soldiers ten dollars a week white soldiers got three dollars more to protest against the inequity the entire regiment soldiers and officers alike refused to accept their wages until black and white soldiers earned equal pay for equal work this did not happen until the war was almost over on may 28 1863 the men were ready to depart on their journey the 54th marched through boston with a crowd of 20 000 cheering them on to their departure the 54th loaded on onto the demolay and ventured south colonel shaw and his troops landed at hilton head on june 3rd in south carolina under the command of james montgomery an ohio native that led the second south carolina volunteers a freedman's regiment sean montgomery led a raid on the small town of darien georgia in which montgomery instructed the second carolina and the 54th massachusetts to loot the town and subsequently set fire to the town shaw opposed montgomery but complied with montgomery's orders to avoid risking a court martial colonel shaw was furious his troops had come south to fight for freedom and justice he argued not to destroy undefended towns with no military significance he wrote to general george strong and asked that the 54th might lead the next union charge on the battlefield on july 16 1863 the regiment's first major engagement of the war took place located on james island outside of charleston south carolina the battle of grimball's landing gave a chance for the regiment to prove themselves in battle the 54th successfully stopped a confederate advance meant for the 10th connecticut that was retreating repeatedly the 54th massachusetts repelled confederate advances until the 10th connecticut could withdraw from the area after the smoke settled the 54th had amassed 43 casualties while the confederates were pushed back two days later 5000 us army soldiers began marching in the darkness toward battery wagner on the evening of july 18 which stood eerily quiet in the distance the union high command anticipated a victory as union artillery from shore batteries and aboard rear admiral john a dalgran's fleet had pounded the confederate garrison in preparation for the assault this fort protected the gateway to charleston leading the union attack were the men of the 54th massachusetts regiment under the command of colonel robert gould shaw though many northern states were represented on the field the 54th stood out as one of the first african-american regiments to see major combat during the war ready to demonstrate their bravery and military bearing they pushed on until coming within 100 yards of the confederate line at which point the order was given to charge almost immediately southern guns opened fire tearing through the union ranks with devastating effect temporarily halted by the intense fire shaw gathered his men and led them through the moat and up the slope upon reaching the top confederate soldiers engaged them in hand-to-hand combat at this climatic moment shaw was killed by a confederate volley moments after shouting to his men forward 54th the men of the 54th continued the fight even amid heavy casualties the 54th suffered roughly 42 casualties in a horrific battle against a strongly defended position of 600 men 281 men were killed wounded captured and or missing and presumed dead union troops were able to briefly penetrate into wagner itself but could not exploit their breakthrough due to determined confederate counter-attacks and sweeping artillery fire finally in the early hours of july 19th union troops withdrew and the fierce battle came to an end to show their contempt for the soldiers of the 54th the confederates dumped all their bodies in a single unmarked trench including shaw the southerners expected that this would be such an insult that white officers would no longer be willing to fight with black troops in fact the opposite was true shaw's parents replied that there could be quote no holier place end quote to be buried than surrounded by brave and devoted and devoted soldiers sergeant william h carney born enslaved in virginia settled in new bedford massachusetts after escaping bondage via the underground railroad while serving with the 54th he was severely injured in the assault on wagner and saved the national colors after the color bearer fell as quick as a thought recounted carny years later i threw away my gun seized the colors and made the way to the head of the column carney proclaimed to fellow survivors of the 54th boys i did but my duty the dear old flag never touched the ground on may 23 1900 carney was awarded the congressional medal medal of honor for his valor 37 years earlier becoming the first african american to receive the honor [Music] the 54th lost the battle at fort wagner but they did a great deal of damage there confederate troops abandoned the fort soon afterward for the next two years the regiment participated in a series of successful siege operations in south carolina georgia and florida the 54th massachusetts returned to boston in september 1865. on memorial day 1897 the sculptor augustus saint-gaudens unveiled a memorial to the 54th massachusetts at the same spot on the boston common where the regiment had begun its march to war 34 years before the statue a three-dimensional bronze freeze depicts robert gould shaw and the men of the 54th as they marched heroically off to war above them floats an angel holding an olive branch a symbol of peace and a bouquet of poppies a symbol of remembrance the 54th story found renewed interest when it was the subject of the 1989 movie glory featuring a star-studded cast of denzel washington matthew broderick as shaw and morgan freeman the 54th legacy lives on and their service and sacrifice was summed up by president abraham lincoln when he discussed black soldiers with his close friend james c conkling peace does not appear so distant as it did i hope it will come soon and come to stay and so come as to be worth the keeping in all future time it will then have been proved that among free men there can be no successful appeal from the ballot to the bullet and that they who take such appeal are sure to lose their case and pay the cost and then there will be some black men who can remember that with silent tongue and clenched teeth and steady eye and well-born poised bayonet they have helped mankind on onto this great consummation i'd like to thank you all for joining us for today's episode if you enjoyed it click like and if you watched on youtube hit subscribe thanks so much and we'll see you all next time