Christian Abraham Fleetwood was born on July 21, 1840 in Baltimore and graduated from Ashman Institute (now Lincoln University) in Oxford, Pennsylvania in 1863 after spending time in Liberia and Sierra Leone.
He enlisted in the U.S. Colored Infantry in 1863 with the rank of sergeant due to his education, and was promoted to sergeant major three days later. He saw action in North Carolina and Virginia, and was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for bravery at the Battle of Chaffin's Farm on September 29, 1864 near Richmond. Of the nearly 200,000 African American men who served in the Union forces, he was one of 25 receiving this medal.
Fleetwood kept a pocket diary with daily entries during the year 1864. It can be seen at the Library of Congress website. His Medal of Honor is on display at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.
After the war, officers in his regiment petitioned for Fleetwood to receive a commission, which Secretary of War Edwin Stanton declined. Fleetwood worked for two years in Ohio before returning to Washington DC to work for the Freedmen's Bank and the War Department. He helped to organize a National Guard battalion for the area, and was appointed its commanding officer in 1887 with the rank of major. Along with Major Charles B Fisher he also formed the DC Colored High School Cadet Corps and served as its first instructor.
Although deafened during his Army service, Fleetwood was choirmaster of four Washington churches. He died on September 28, 1914 at the age of 74.
Fleetwood kept a pocket diary with daily entries during the year 1864. It can be seen at the Library of Congress website. His Medal of Honor is on display at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.
After the war, officers in his regiment petitioned for Fleetwood to receive a commission, which Secretary of War Edwin Stanton declined. Fleetwood worked for two years in Ohio before returning to Washington DC to work for the Freedmen's Bank and the War Department. He helped to organize a National Guard battalion for the area, and was appointed its commanding officer in 1887 with the rank of major. Along with Major Charles B Fisher he also formed the DC Colored High School Cadet Corps and served as its first instructor.
Although deafened during his Army service, Fleetwood was choirmaster of four Washington churches. He died on September 28, 1914 at the age of 74.
No comments:
Post a Comment