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Of the 3,499 service members who have received the Medal of Honor
throughout U.S. history, only 88 have been black ... with the first
being Army Sgt. William H. Carney, who earned the honor for
protecting one of the United States’ greatest symbols during the
Civil War ... the American flag.
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The Medal of Honor was awarded to U.S. Army Sgt. William H. Carney,
Company C, 54th Massachusetts Colored Infantry Regiment, for
Gallantry at Fort Wagner, S.C., July 18, 1863 ... and issued in
1900. (Gelatin
silver print of William Harvey Carney between 1901 and 1908 ...
which is public domain in the U.S. since it was published in the
U.S. before 1923.)
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Carney was born into slavery in Norfolk, Virginia, in 1840. His
family was eventually granted freedom and moved to Massachusetts,
where Carney was eager to learn and secretly got involved in
academics, despite laws and restrictions that banned blacks from
learning to read and write.
Carney had wanted to pursue a
career in the church, but when the Civil War broke out, he decided
the best way he could serve God was by serving in the military to
help free the oppressed.
In March 1863, Carney joined the
Union Army and was attached to Company C, 54th Massachusetts Colored
Infantry Regiment, the first official black unit recruited for the
Union in the north. Forty other black men served with him, including
two of famed abolitionist Frederick Douglass’s sons.
Within a
few months, Carney’s training would be put to the ultimate test
during the unit’s first major combat mission in Charleston, South
Carolina.
On July 18, 1863, the soldiers of Carney’s regiment
led the charge on Fort Wagner. During the battle, the unit’s color
guard was shot. Carney, who was just a few feet away, saw the dying
man stumble, and he scrambled to catch the falling flag.
Despite suffering several serious gunshot wounds himself, Carney
kept the symbol of the Union held high as he crawled up the hill to
the walls of Fort Wagner, urging his fellow troops to follow him. He
planted the flag in the sand at the base of the fort and held it
upright until his near-lifeless body was rescued.
Even then,
though, he didn’t give it up. Many witnesses said Carney refused to
give the flag to his rescuers, holding onto it tighter until, with
assistance, he made it to the Union’s temporary barracks.
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Army Sgt. William H. Carney was the first of the nation’s 88 African-American Medal of Honor recipients, earning the medal during the Union Army’s charge on Fort Wagner during the Civil Warn
and catching the falling American flag. (U.S. Army photo - 1863)
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Carney lost a lot of blood and nearly lost his life, but not once
did the flag touch the ground. His heroics inspired other soldiers
that day and were crucial to the North eventually securing victory
at Fort Wagner later in the campaign. Carney was promoted to the
rank of sergeant for his actions.
For his bravery, Carney was
awarded the Medal of Honor on May 23, 1900.
Carney’s legacy serves as a shining example of the patriotism
that all Americans felt at that time, despite the color of their
skin.
As for the 54th Massachusetts Colored Infantry Regiment
in which Carney served? It was disestablished long ago, but
reactivated in 2008. It now serves as a National Guard ceremonial
unit that renders honorary funerals and state functions. It was even
invited to march in President Barack Obama’s inaugural parade.
By Katie Lange
D0D News
Copyright 2017
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