The Fight for Freedom: The 54th and 55th Massachusetts Volunteers pt. 1

Following the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, a call to arms was held for any free man of color to fight to liberate those still in bondage. Entire regiments of volunteer soldiers were gathered to take up arms and fight in the later years of the American Civil War (1861–1865). Many are familiar with the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment from their depiction in the film Glory. The film displays not only the heroism of the soldiers, but also some of the discrimination they faced, and their ultimate fates when they were commanded to march on a fortified position at Fort Wagner in Charleston, South Carolina.¹

On the evening of July 18, 1863, Colonel Robert Gould Shaw (1837–1863) and the men of the 54th were tasked with an assault on Ft. Wagner, a defensive structure guarding the southern part of Charleston Harbor. The approach consisted of a narrow stretch of beach that would prove difficult to traverse under fire. When the men of the 54th neared the fortification, they suffered heavy fire by the defenders with cannon and muskets. As fighting continued, they reached the parapet of the fort and engaged the Confederate forces in hand-to-hand combat before ultimately being driven back. Tragically, the 54th would suffer heavy losses at Fort Wagner with an estimated 270 of their initial 600 killed, wounded, or captured, with another 52 missing in action.² Colonel Shaw, who led them, understood the significance of their actions and sacrifice. Their efforts would be seen and spoken of for years to come; Shaw would tell his men of “how the eyes of thousands would look upon the night’s work.”³

The Men of the 54th had to endure difficult terrain trudging through the shallows as they approached Fort Wagner. The New York Public Library. “The attack on Fort Wagner – the stormers advancing under fire” New York Public Library Digital Collections. Accessed February 28, 2024. https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/510d47e0-fa1d-a3d9-e040-e00a18064a99

Fort Wagner was not the end of the war for the 54th, however. In the months that followed, they continued their service fighting in the Southeast: Today they are memorialized in several ways throughout the United States, and visitors to Telfair Museums will be able to see some of these works as a part of the exhibition Emancipation: The Unfinished Project of Liberation. If you’d like to know more about the 54th Massachusetts Volunteers, you can find it here. Stay tuned for a follow-up discussion on the 54th’s companion regiment, the 55th Massachusetts Regiment.

This study depicting a soldier from the 54th would be used in part on the monument dedicated to them in Boston, MA. U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service, Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park, Cornish, NH