Back to the outline
One of the most heralded black regiments during the Civil war was the 54th Massachusetts All-Colored Volunteer Infantry. In April 1863 Governer Andrew established the new regiment and placed Colonel Robert Gould Shaw as their commanding officer. At first the black soldiers were assigned heavy labor and fatigue duty. This was to enable white troops to be free to fight on the front lines. The soldiers did not complain about their labor, but they did write letters about it to their families back home. A hardship that the Fifty-fourth Massachusetts and other black regiments had to face was the struggle for equal pay. When it was known that the black soldiers were earning less than a white soldier, the Fifty-fourth refused to accept any pay. They were protesting the principle of unequal treatment, until Washington abolished the distinction between black and white troops. On June 15, 1864, Congress finally passed legislation granting equal pay to black soldiers. the law was made retroactive to January 1, 1864, for all black soldiers, and retroactive to the time of enlistment for those blacks who had been free on April 18, 1861.
The next obstacle to overcome was to be allowed to fight in battle. On James Island, the black regiment received its first taste of battle. They were attacked by a nine hundred man Rebel force. With te combined efforts of white and black regiments and riverboat artillery fire, the Union troops were able to repel the Confederates. High praise was awarded by the generals present at the battle for the courage of the black regiment. In this battle they sustained a loss of seventeen wounded, fourteen killed, and thirteen missing. Next they marched to Morris Island were they were going to attack Fort Wagner. Colonel Robert Gould Shaw volunteered his regiment to lead the assault on Fort Wagner. On July 18, 1863, at 6 p.m. the Fifty-fourth Regiment started to traverse the beach. Through heavy artillery fire from Fort Sumter, Cumming's Point, and Fort Wagner, they strove to reach the embankments. Throughout the whole ordeal they were couragous and brave. Colonel Robert Gould Shaw was killed by Confederate gunfire at the head of his regiment. Rallied by this act of bravery, the men pushed their way into the Confederate works, but the Confederates were too numerous and they overpowered the regiment.
Over forty percent of the men in the 54th Regiment were casualties in the assault on Fort Wagner. Witnesses to the assault later wrote about it and General Ripley exalted the Fifty-fourth Regiment to the Governor of Massachusetts. Despite the heavy losses, the determination shown on that day will forever be in the minds of all.
Back to the outline