William Harvey Carney
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| William Harvey Carney | |
|---|---|
| February 29, 1840 – December 8 1908 (aged 68) | |
| Image:WilliamCarney.jpeg Sgt. William H. Carney, Civil War Medal of Honor recipient | |
| Place of birth | Norfolk, Virginia |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Service/branch | United States Army |
| Rank | Sergeant |
| Unit | 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry |
| Battles/wars | American Civil War * Battle of Fort Wagner, Morris Island |
| Awards | Medal of Honor |
William Harvey Carney (February 29, 1840 – December 8, 1908) was an American Civil War soldier and the first African American to be awarded the Medal of Honor.
Contents |
[edit] Biography
Carney was born a slave in Norfolk, Virginia, but escaped to Massachusetts like his father through the Underground Railroad. They later bought the rest of the family out of slavery.
Carney served with the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry as a sergeant and took part in the July 18, 1863, assault on Fort Wagner in Charleston, South Carolina. He received his medal for saving the American flag and planting it on the parapet and holding it while the troops charged. He was wounded three times, but recognizing the Federal troops had to retreat under fire, he struggled back across the battlefield, returning the flag to the Union lines. Before turning over the colors he modestly said, "Boys, I only did my duty; the old flag never touched the ground!"
With the primitive communications of that time, the flag was an important visual contact for troops and many Civil War medals were awarded for protecting and displaying the flag under fire, or for capturing enemy flags. Carney was awarded the Medal of Honor May 23, 1900, nearly 40 years later. More than half such awards from the Civil War were presented 20 or more years after the fact.
In later life, Carney was a postal employee and popular speaker at patriotic events. He died in Boston, Massachusetts, and is buried in the family plot at Oak Grove Cemetery New Bedford, Massachusetts . Engraved on his stone monument is a gold image of the Medal of Honor.
[edit] Legacy
The attack on Fort Wagner is depicted in the film Glory. Carney's face is shown on the monument to Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th on the Boston Common designed by Augustus Saint Gaudens.
William Harvey Carney was featured in an episode of the popular TV program Sabrina, the Teenage Witch.
The Sgt. Carney Salute—folding of a flag on a staff in a manner to allow immediate unfurling—was developed by California Scoutmaster J.S. Fox at the 1997 Boy Scout National Scout Jamboree after studying the creases and folds of Civil War Regimental Flags.
A New Bedford, Massachusetts elementary school was named in his honor.
[edit] Medal of Honor
Rank and organization: Sergeant, Company C, 54th Massachusetts Colored Infantry. Place and date: At Fort Wagner, S.C., 18 July 1863. Entered service at: New Bedford, Mass. Birth: Norfolk, Va. Date of issue: 23 May 1900.
Citation:
- When the color sergeant was shot down, this soldier grasped the flag, led the way to the parapet, and planted the colors thereon. When the troops fell back he brought off the flag, under a fierce fire in which he was twice severely wounded.
[edit] See also
| United States Army Portal |
| American Civil War Portal |
- List of Medal of Honor recipients
- List of Medal of Honor recipients: Civil War A-L
- Elder, Daniel K. "Remarkable Sergeants: Ten Vignettes of Noteworthy NCOs," http://ncohistory.com/files/RemarkableSgts.pdf
