54th Regiment, Massachusetts Infantry (Colored)

Brief History
The 54th Regiment, Massachusetts Infantry (Colored) was organized at Readville, It mustered in March 30 - May 13, 1863. They mustered out at Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, August 20, 1865. They discharged at Boston, Massachusetts, September 1, 1865.


 * Records of the Fifty-Fourth Massachusetts Infantry Regiment (Colored), 1863-1865, NARA publication, M1659, 7 rolls This National Archives microfilm publication will include unit correspondence, orders, descriptive lists, muster rolls, reports, and miscellaneous of the regiment.

 Unit Histories 
 * Luis F. Emilio. History of the Fifty-Fourth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, 1863-1865. Boston: The Boston Book Company, 1894
 * Boston. City Council. Exercises at the dedication of the monument to Colonel Robert Gould Shaw and the Fifty-fourth Regiment of Massachusetts Infantry. Boston: Municipal Printing Office, 1897. 248 pp
 * Boston. City Council. Exercises at the dedication of the monument to Colonel Robert Gould Shaw and the Fifty-fourth Regiment of Massachusetts Infantry, May 31, 1897. Boston: Municipal Printing Office, 1897. 82 pp
 * Luis F. Emilio.  The Assault on Fort Wagner, July 18, 1863. The Memorable Charge of the Fifty Four Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers. Written For the Springfield Republication. Boston: Rand Avery Company, 1887.

For more information on the history of the 54th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, see the following:


 * The Wikipedia article, 54th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, (accessed 25 November 2011)
 * The Civil War Archive section, 54th Regiment Infantry (Colored), (accessed 12 July 2012).

Companies in this Regiment with the Counties of Origin
Men often enlisted in a company recruited in the counties where they lived though not always. After many battles, companies might be combined because so many men were killed or wounded. However if you are unsure which company your ancestor was in, try the company recruited in his county first.

The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors database lists 1,673 men on its roster for this unit. Roster.

National Archives Catalog

 * Congressional Medal of Honor File of Sergeant William H. Carney, Company C, 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment (U.S. Colored Troops). NAID 18573820
 * List of the Names of the Enlisted Men of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment Missing After the Assault on Fort Wagner, South Carolina. NAID 300389
 * Disapproved Pension Application File for Alonzo S. Gray, Minor Child of Sergeant William H. W. Gray, Company C, 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment (WO-500756) NAID 138671035
 * Regimental and Company Books of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment (Colored)

Other Sources

 * Beginning United States Civil War Research gives steps for finding information about a Civil War soldier. It covers the major records that should be used. Additional records are described in ‘Massachusetts in the Civil War’ and ‘United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865’ (see below).


 * National Park Service, The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System, is searchable by soldier's name and state. It contains basic facts about soldiers on both sides of the Civil War, a list of regiments, descriptions of significant battles, sources of the information, and suggestions for where to find additional information.


 * Massachusetts in the Civil War describes many Confederate and Union sources, specifically for Massachusetts, and how to find them.. These include compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.


 * United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865 describes and explains United States and Confederate States records, rather than state records, and how to find them. These include veterans’ censuses, compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.


 * Emilio, Luis Fenollosa. A brave black regiment : history of the Fifty-Fourth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, 1863-1865. (New York, New York : Arno Press, 1969) and The assault on Fort Wagner, July 18, 1863 : the memorable charge of the Fifty-fourth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers, written for "The Springfield Republican". (Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c19910,  and History of the Fifty-fourth regiment of Massachusetts volunteer infantry, 1863-1865. (Salt Lake City, Utah : Digitized by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 2006), and (Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c1991),


 * Fox, Charles Barnard.Record of the service of the Fifty-fifth Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. (Freeport, New York : Books for Libraries Press, 1971)


 * United States. National Archives and Records Administration. Records of the Fifty-fourth Massachusetts Infantry Regiment (Colored), 1863-1865 : National Archives microfilm publications pamphlet describing M1659. (Washington [District of Columbia] : National Archives and Records Administration, 1992),.