Last updated: September 21, 2026
Article
Carrying the Flag: African American Soldiers and Freedom in the Civil War
William Morris Smith
During the Civil War, roughly 200,000 soldiers served in the United States Colored Troops (USCT). They eventually made up about 10 percent of the Union Army. They helped defeat the Confederacy and change the meaning of emancipation.
Like White soldiers, the USCT troops came from different backgrounds. Some were volunteers. Some were drafted. Some were substitutes for drafted men. But most Black soldiers who served in the Civil War came from enslavement. Some had escaped slavery. Others seized opportunities created by the war to escape captivity and enlist.
Their stories show that African Americans weren’t merely recipients of freedom. They weren’t just bystanders in the war, only receiving freedom granted by others. They helped claim that freedom themselves.
For America’s 250th birthday, we look to William H. Carney and Christian Fleetwood. Their stories reveal the power of our country's history. They show us why saving the places where it happened is so important.
Like White soldiers, the USCT troops came from different backgrounds. Some were volunteers. Some were drafted. Some were substitutes for drafted men. But most Black soldiers who served in the Civil War came from enslavement. Some had escaped slavery. Others seized opportunities created by the war to escape captivity and enlist.
Their stories show that African Americans weren’t merely recipients of freedom. They weren’t just bystanders in the war, only receiving freedom granted by others. They helped claim that freedom themselves.
For America’s 250th birthday, we look to William H. Carney and Christian Fleetwood. Their stories reveal the power of our country's history. They show us why saving the places where it happened is so important.
William Carney and the Flag at Fort Wagner
William H. Carney was born in Norfolk, Virginia, in 1840. He spent much of his childhood enslaved. He eventually escaped and settled in New Bedford, Massachusetts. In 1863, he enlisted in Company C of the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. It was one of the first African American units in the Civil War.On July 18, 1863, the 54th led a Union assault against Confederate-held Fort Wagner in South Carolina. Under intense fire, the regiment’s color bearer was shot down. The American flag fell. Carney abandoned his musket, seized the colors, and continued forward. When the assault stalled, he protected the flag as he made his way back toward Union lines.
National Museum of African American History and Culture / John Ritchie
"The old flag never touched the ground."
Carney later summed up the moment in words that became inseparable from his legacy. He said, “The old flag never touched the ground.”
Carney was presented with the Quincy A. Gillmore Medal in 1863 in recognition of his service. He was the first African American to be awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions at Fort Wagner. He received the medal in May 9, 1900. But his story is about more than the medals. On that battlefield, Carney was actively claiming a place in the American nation.
Christian Fleetwood and New Market Heights
Little more than a year later, Christian Abraham Fleetwood showed similar courage. Born free in Baltimore in 1840, Fleetwood was literate. He worked as a clerk before enlisting. By August 1863, he had become sergeant major of the 4th United States Colored infantry (USCI).
Ross J. Kelbaugh Collection / Richard Walzl of Baltimore, MD.
The colors were more than symbolic. They served as a visible rallying point amid the smoke and confusion of battle. Carrying them made a soldier an especially conspicuous target.
When the bearers fell, Fleetwood seized the national colors. His Medal of Honor citation sums it up. It states he “seized the colors, after two color bearers had been shot down, and bore them nobly through the fight.”
The colors were more than symbolic. They served as a visible rallying point amid the smoke and confusion of battle. Carrying them made a soldier an especially conspicuous target. Carney and Fleetwood were not simply carrying pieces of cloth. They were carrying symbols of the nation.
Carrying America's Story Forward
The 1989 film Glory introduced the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry to a broad audience. But the film didn’t create these stories. The men, records, photographs, and sacrifices were real.For years, photos and memories of soldiers like Carney and Fleetwood were kept safe. Yet most Americans didn't know their names. Later on, books, movies, and TV shows helped bring the stories of Black Civil War soldiers out into the open.
People in old photos and documents aren't just images and names on a page. They were real people. They made tough choices. They took risks. And they made incredible sacrifices.
National Park Service rangers like Bryan Cheeseboro help us remember these heroes. Cheeseboro, a ranger at Battleground National Cemetery, said, "Every set of eyes means something. Every photograph reminds us that these people once walked the earth just like we're here now.” He described photographs and records as “fragments of memory.”
NPS / Mitchell C. Leverette
Cultural landscapes like Battleground National Cemetery bring history to life. They turn old stories into real places you can visit. The National Park Service protects Civil War sites like these. The national cemetery highlights the bravery of the USCT.
1st USCT Regiment: Formed in Washington, DC. Trained on Mason’s Island (now Roosevelt Island). Fought in Virginia and North Carolina.
2nd USCT Regiment: Started at Camp Casey in Arlington, Virginia. Fought in Florida.
45th USCT Regiment: Defended Washington, DC. About 30 of this regiment's soldiers rest at Arlington National Cemetery. That’s more than any other USCT unit.
These cultural landscapes show that people in old photos and documents aren't just images and names on a page. They were real people. They made tough choices. They took risks. And they made incredible sacrifices.
Carney and Fleetwood didn’t just carry flags. They claimed a place in the nation represented by those flags. They helped shape what America would become. Preserving and sharing their stories carries that history forward.