William Carney, An Exemplary Soldier

Those customers who came to Dave Smoot's lecture about Civil War Hospitals learned about some of the structures, patients and medical workers. Among the patients was Sergeant William Carney,

formerly of the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Regiment.

Look closely at his chest. What do you see?

Carney received the Congressional Medal of honor due to his "most distinguished gallantry in action" at Fort Wagner, July 18, 1863. He was shot in the thigh, but managed to crawl uphill on his knees, "bearing the Union flag and urging his troops to follow." He was the first African-American soldier to earn the honor. He recuperated from his wound in Beaufort and returned to service.

To learn more about this American hero, his service, and the battle of Fort Wagner, we recommend these materials:


Battery Wagner: The Siege, the Men who Fought, and the Casualties by Timothy Bardshaw (Palmetto Historical Works, 1993).
 
Blue-eyed Child of Fortune: The Civil War Letters of Colonel Robert Gould Shaw edited by Russell Duncan (University of Georgia Press, 1999).

Gate of Hell: Campaign for Charleston Harbor, 1863 by Stephen R. Wise (University of South Carolina Press, 1994).

Swamp Angels: A Biographical Study of the 54th Massachusetts Regiment: True Facts about the Black Defenders of the Civil War by Robert Ewell Greene (BoMark/Greene Publishing Group, 1990).

The Massachusetts 54th Colored Infantry [DVD] by Jacqueline Shearer. (WGBH Boston Video, 2006).

The Assault on Fort Wagner, July 18, 1863: The Memorable Charge of the Fifty-Fourth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers, written for 'The Springfield Republican' by Luis F. Emilio (Rand Avery, 1887).

The National Archives has a web page devoted to more information about "Black Soldiers in the U.S. Military in the Civil War."

The BDC has a pathfinder to "Black Soldiers and Sailors during the Civil War: Selected Links and Materials" posted in our BDC WordPress blog of Links, Lists, and Finding Aids.