THE 54TH MASSACHUSETTS

We volunteer to take Ft. Wagner, sir!

Their young commander said -

knowing when all was said and done

in sand and dunes, they would lie dead

They'd all prayed the night before

prayed for strength and freedom

something to make worthwhile a War

in which they'd not been treated well

and yet, they fought and went through Hell...

Pick up the banner once it's dropped

don't ever quit til the whole thing's stopped

Quick step, double time, on the run

and they were blasted by a great gun.

When the smoke cleared, they lay where they fell

broken and bleeding, but their faces would tell

of the awesome pride they felt, in each other,

considering themselves as brother and brother

and when they were laid to rest that day

in a grave of sand, by the sound of the waves;

next to a sea that was whipped with weather

white and black, they slept together

Former owners and Former Slaves.

Webmaster: Thurman P. Woodfork