54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment list of casualties, December 20, 1864
54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment list of casualties, December 20, 1864
Item Information
Title:
54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment list of casualties, December 20, 1864
Description:
List of the casualties of Commissioned Officers from the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment reported to the Massachusetts Surgeon General's Office on December 30, 1864 by Major John WM. Appleton. Included in the report is the listing of the death of Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, commander of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, on July 18, 1863 during the assault on Fort Wagner near Charleston, South Carolina. The 54th spearheaded the attack on Fort Wagner. Along with Colonel Shaw, 156 men from the 54th were killed, wounded or captured during the battle. Fort Wagner was not taken during the battle, but the valor shown by the 54th in the battle is widely regarded as the key to the further enlistment and mobilization of African American soldiers.
