After the initial response from ex-slaves in eastern North Carolina, the number of recruits dwindled. Competition between departments in North Carolina to hire laborers was one reason for fewer recruits. Maj. Gen. John Peck, the new commander of the Army and District of North Carolina, complained about the high wages that the quartermasters, commissaries, engineers, and other departments offered black employees. Laborers and helpers received ten dollars or more a month while stevedores and teamsters were paid fifteen to twenty dollars per month. Experienced tradesmen such as carpenters, blacksmiths, masons, and mechanics earned from $1.50 to $3.00 a day. The pay for Wild's African Brigade at ten dollars a month, minus three dollars for clothing allowance, was not much of an incentive for fugitives whose lives might be at stake. ⁴¹ "While such prices are paid in N.C. it will be impossible to make much headway with recruiting," Peck asserted. A total of 1,524 blacks were employed in the various departments within North Carolina. ⁴²

General Wild often raided North Carolina's interior, using newly organized black troops in hopes of soliciting more slaves. Lt. Col. George Lewis led one raid to destroy part of the Wilmington & Weldon Railroad line at Warsaw. Capt. H. W. Wilson, an engineer, reported that twenty pioneers of the 1st NCCV successfully and efficiently rebuilt the bridge at Mill Creek along with several other small bridges for the raiding party to cross. On July 5, 1863, the Federals arrived in Warsaw and unloaded implements to destroy the railroad lines. ⁴³ According to the Wilmington Journal nearly two hundred slaves left with the Federals. Subsequent raids also successfully drew hundreds of contraband into Union lines. ⁴⁴

These expeditions fostered much concern among the citizens of eastern North Carolina. Rumors of wanton destruction committed by Union black soldiers spread rapidly throughout towns and cities. North Carolina Governor Zebulon B. Vance charged that "such men as this Wild are a disgrace to the manhood of the age; not being able to capture soldiers, they war upon defenseless women. Great God! What an outrage. There is no reason why these men are entitled to be treated as prisoners of war." Vance ended by calling the Yankee soldiers barbarians. ⁴⁵ Maj. Gen. Benjamin F. Butler of Fortress Monroe assured Secretary of War Stanton that "the negro soldiers made no unauthorized interferences with property or persons, and conducted themselves with propriety." ⁴⁶

Another method that Wild used to generate recruits was to travel to various places in the department. On several occasions he paid his own expenses. ⁴⁷ During one excursion to Hatteras Island, Wild was successful in recruiting about 150 men, 60 of whom formed the majority of one company. ⁴⁸

Before the regiment was completed, Wild set up camp on the south bank of the Neuse River, outside of New Bern. ⁴⁹ Col. Beecher conducted drills and marches to train the men. Later, Beecher wrote of his regiment, "I do not know of a commanding officer whose relations with his men are more intimate and to whom his men go with more unrestrained freedom." ⁵⁰ Unable at first to obtain a chaplain for the regiment, Beecher provided spiritual guidance for his men. During one Sunday dress parade, Beecher formed the regiment and began singing a hymn. To his surprise, six to seven hundred "good pleasant voices came in grandly." He wrote to Frances Perkins, his new fiance:

I felt like preaching. I told them of this common ground where we all met. They had known themselves as slaves-contrabands and what not. They should look on themselves as God's blessed-God's begotten and, purifying themselves bodily and spiritually, commence their new manhood. . . . Then I prayed with them. All knelt in the ranks with uncovered heads, and then we rose saying, "Praise God from whom all blessings flow." ⁵¹

Beecher expressed that he was happier than he had been for years. He knew this was his duty, and he was serving to the best of his ability. Beecher felt a sense of pride in commanding the regiment. On June 15 he wrote to Frances from headquarters in New Bern:

I am amazed at the promptitude of these men to learn military drill and in less than three weeks I shall have a battalion which any man might be proud of. There is an amount of muscle which no regiment in the service can boast of. . . . I think the government can't frown at a regiment-enlisted, organized-uniformed-armed-equipped and handsomely encamped in six weeks. . . . I wish doubtful people at home could see my three week's regiment. They would talk less nonsense about negro inferiority. ⁵²

Beecher and Wild carefully selected the men for the first regiment of the brigade in hopes that the 1st NCCV would become a model regiment. Because most of the enlistees were fugitive slaves with no opportunity for education, nearly all of the black recruits were illiterate. This proved to be difficult for Beecher when he needed an orderly sergeant or noncommissioned officer to help with paper work and requisitions. ⁵³ James and Frances spent much of their time teaching the men to read and write. Frances, who later married Beecher while he was stationed in Florida, recalled how she received many grateful letters from the men thanking her for their education. ⁵⁴

The majority of the men comprising the 1st NCCV lived in eastern North Carolina, and most enlisted for a three year term beginning in the summer of 1863. ⁵⁵ Hundreds enlisted at recruiting posts in New Bern, Washington, Beaufort and other coastal towns. Most of the men reported to recruiting officers Capt. James N. Croft and Capt. C. White of the 1st NCCV. Others who maintained recruiting offices were: First Lt. Holland N. Batcheller, commander of Company H; Second Lt. William E. Shaw; Capt. William Emerson, commander of Company D; and Capt. Charles A. Jones, later killed in action at the Battle of Olustee. The men who enlisted were instructed that their pay would be set in accordance with the War Department policy-ten dollars a month minus three dollars clothing allowance. ⁵⁶ There is no evidence that they participated in the pay strike initiated by the 54th Massachusetts Regiment.

The highest percentage of soldiers came from Beaufort in Carteret County. This is interesting since New Bern was described as the "Mecca" of black fugitives by one soldier. Other principal places of origin were Washington and Elizabeth City, and Hyde, Martin, Pasquotank, and Pitt counties (See Figure 1). Two of the men came from Guilford and Richmond counties in the piedmont. Pvt. Nicholas Simmons from Richmond, located in Forsyth County, qualifies as the North Carolina soldier in the 1st NCCV originating farthest west of New Bern.

Several recruits came from places outside of North Carolina. One private came from Fluvanna County, Virginia, where the Fork Union Military Academy is presently located. Several were from Norfolk and Richmond, and a few came from Culpepper, Isle of Wright, Jefferson, Suffolk, and Vance Hill, all in Virginia. Late in the war, as many as one hundred fugitives from South Carolina signed up with the 1st NCCV. Seventy-eight were from Charleston and twelve came from Sumter County. Three soldiers were listed as coming from Maryland, and one each from New York, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Savannah, Georgia. Most of these men were recruited as replacement troops in 1865 for a one-year term.

Of the noncommissioned officers, three were from North Carolina, five were from New York (three of whom were transferred out of the 112th New York Regiment), and one was from Scotland. Furney Bryant, who was one of the North Carolina noncommissioned officers, came to New Bern as a refugee dressed in rags. Unable to read and write, he joined Superintendent Colyer's night classes. Bryant was rewarded for his diligence in school when he was selected to serve as one of General Burnside's spies. He later enlisted in the 1st NCCV and was promoted to first sergeant for his "display of intelligence and leadership." ⁵⁷

The men of the 1st NCCV originated in over forty counties in North Carolina. This was an unusual statistic for a Civil War regiment but not for black troops. White regiments were commonly recruited in concentrated areas where family members and friends enlisted together, providing cohesion to the regiment. ⁵⁸ This was not the case with the 1st NCCV because households had been torn apart by slavery and by the displacement of communities when Federal forces occupied southern territory. When blacks enlisted, usually they were unfamiliar with other recruits in their companies. The movie "Glory," directed by Ed Zwick, accurately depicted this case when soldiers of the 54th Massachusetts Regiment were stationed at Camp Reidville, Maryland. Four men who were assigned to the same tent were complete strangers. One was a freeman from Boston and the others were fugitives from Tennessee and South Carolina.

Most of the men who enlisted in the 1st NCCV were between the ages of eighteen and twenty-five. Only seventeen soldiers were seventeen years old, six were sixteen, and four were fifteen, making a combined total of 3 percent of the total number of men (See Figure 2). Those older than 25 made up only 28.7 percent of the total. Pvt. William Moultri of Company J, at age sixty-seven, was the oldest recruit. He was rejected, however, by the mustering officer on June 30, 1863. Pvt. John Gaskill of Company C ranked next at age fifty-four. Gaskill, originally from Beaufort, was recruited in Washington, North Carolina, on June 9, 1863, by Capt. Josiah C. White.

Regimental records made no distinction between former slaves and free blacks regarding the occupations of the men. Farmers and laborers made up almost 90 percent of the regiment. Few were trained as carpenters, masons, blacksmiths, and shoemakers. Several were listed as sailors, drivers, and teamsters, and a few were listed as butlers, cooks, butchers, distillers, painters, caulkers, and waiters. Three of the companies listed no occupations at all, and the clerks for Companies B and K simply listed all the enlistees as laborers. One interesting feature of the descriptive books is the category of skin tone. Of the men listed, 92 percent were "dark," "brown," or "black," while only about 7 percent were described as having a "light" complexion. Of the noncommissioned officers, 66 percent were listed as either light or fair-skinned which provokes speculation that they were chosen according to their complexion rather than merit. In one case, however, the ability to read and write was probably the determining factor. Pvt. John Monroe of Company A was literate when he was mustered into service in 1863. He was promoted to sergeant, replacing Second Lt. George Geurrier in the witnessing of the clothing issue. ⁵⁹

After the regiment was complete, the black women of New Bern presented a flag of regimental colors to the 1st NCCV. Harriet Beecher Stowe assisted in the handiwork of the dark blue silk, gold fringed flag complete with a goddess of liberty trampling on a serpent on one side and a golden sun with the word LIBERTY on the other. On the staff appeared a silver flashing engraved, "From the Colored Women of New Bern to the 1st N.C.C. Vols." ⁶⁰ The men of the 1st NCCV proudly bore their flag as they marched out of New Bern on July 30, 1863, on their way to Charleston, South Carolina.

The 1st NCCV became part of the Third Brigade in Maj. Gen. Israel Vodge's division. For the time being, it remained part of Wild's African Brigade. Stationed on Folly Island during its assignment in South Carolina, Beecher's regiment took part in operations against Fort Wagner but did not participate in the famous assault of the 54th Massachusetts. This frustrated Beecher, who had hoped that South Carolina would be the test for his soldiers. Because doubts remained about blacks' ability to fight, black troops were forced to prove themselves in battle. No amount of marching or fatigue duty would convince northerners of their value.

Beecher and his men encountered a few bright moments while stationed on Folly Island. In a letter to Frances, he recalled early morning maneuvers on the beach with his men:

There is to me something peculiar in military movements by moonlight. . . . There is something almost solemn in such a line of battle, so dark and silent, and then as I order fix bayonets, bright sparklings flash along the line with the peculiar rattle which always sends a kind of thrill of satisfaction over me - and at shoulder arms my long low cloud becomes silver edged in the bright moonlight. . . . The white, marble flooring, the rippling of the sea, the stillness of night and the quiet, solemn old moon looking down as much as to say "Do it well and soberly, boys, I'm watching you." 61

Hardship and misfortune were the order of the day, however. Beecher's officers complained that they were not receiving proper issues or that their equipment was substandard. Maj. Archibald Bogle notified Lt. Thomas J. Robinson, Assistant Adjutant General, that "The Arms (Springfield, Enfield and Swivel Bore) being mostly second hand and many of them more or less imperfect are hardly suitable for Field Service-many of the equipments are very poor-principally second hand." 62 Beecher also protested that his men were not receiving proper food or transportation. He sent word to Lt. Robinson that a detachment of men at Fort Green were not receiving adequate meat or bread rations. 63

Men in Beecher's regiment were often overworked and many became ill. Beecher told Frances that all he wanted was to "get my boys out of this accursed man trap before they are all worked to death." He bragged that if he were left in the middle of North Carolina unsupported that he would "lose fewer men and engage the enemy more" with his regiment than the whole fleet and army combined at Charleston. 64

Some of Beecher's soldiers experienced blatant discrimination while stationed at Folly Island. Beecher discovered that detachments of his men were being used to set up camp for a white regiment. This kind of abuse was common among black soldiers. Most commanders of white regiments assumed that blacks were only suited for menial, degrading tasks. Beecher bitterly protested such practices to General Wild:

They have been slaves and are just learning to be men. It is a drawback that they are regarded as, and called 'd---d Niggers' [sic] by so-called 'gentleman' in uniform of U.S. Officers, but when they are set to menial work doing for white regiments what those Regiments are entitled to do for themselves, it simply throws them back where they were before and reduces them to the position of slaves again. 65

Wild forwarded the letter to General Vodge who in turn sent it to General Gillmore. Gillmore quickly took action and ordered that officers were not to employ black soldiers to "perform menial duties for white troops." A month later, however, he found the same thing occurring and reiterated his order to the white officers in command. 66

Beecher expressed his own afflictions in his letters to Frances. "I sleep clothed and half wakeful to work," he wrote. "I work by day and watch by night. Hardest of all is [sic] give up hope of usefulness to the government and the country." 67 Beecher's cynicism towards the commanding officers in the Department of the South was almost comical. He told Frances how the Siege of Charleston was a farce:

Gen. Gillmore sat down to glorify and tell about Charleston being at the mercy of his artillery, which was a little falsehood, and then the poor government must make him a major general. Meanwhile the enemy laugh at our stupidity, build works while he writes dispatches and mounts guns while the President gives thanks. And good honest home people read all about it in papers whose correspondents deserve hanging, and give thanks too. 68

Beecher believed that the "taking of Charleston" could only happen if the government sent troops to make an assault west of the city by land. He later told Frances, "Really, among such stupid strategists I shall soon begin to think I know something. Didn't I write you sometime ago that while Gen. Gillmore and others were glorifying our imaginary triumph, the enemy were quietly replacing damages in Sumpter and mounting guns?" 69

The army broke up the North Carolina African Brigade in December 1863, when the 2d and 3d North Carolina Colored Regiments were transferred to Fortress Monroe under Maj. Gen. Butler. White brigades were seldom separated on either side in the war because commanders acknowledged a common bond among white soldiers. In the case of black troops, however, officials saw a natural entity only in that the soldiers were black. General Wild himself said that he would fill the ranks "by picking up recruits by the wayside" during expeditions and raids. 70 This could explain why black regiments were renamed in 1864 and issued a number and why white regiments retained their state designations throughout the war.

Colonel Beecher heard rumors that his regiment might be sent south into Florida where it could see action, but he was not optimistic. "It is reported that we are soon to have marching orders for Florida, on the gulf coast," wrote Beecher, "but I fear there is no such good fortune in store for us. . . . I wish I may prove a false prophet, but I am right so often that when I see a hole in a grindstone, I'm becoming quite sure there really is one." 71

Beecher was mistaken, however. The siege of Charleston was coming to an end and most of the regiments were being transferred. On February 7, 1864, Beecher received orders to report to Maj. Gen. Truman Seymour at Hilton Head as soon as transports were available. 72 Many in the 1st NCCV who were sick with smallpox and exposed to "contagion" were retained at Hilton Head with two officers, one of whom was a surgeon. The remainder of the regiment was ordered to participate in Seymour's expedition in Florida. The 1st NCCV left Vodge's Division on Folly Island, District of Hilton Head, on February 14. 73 The regiment boarded the transports complete with gear and equipment. The men of the 1st NCCV were moving closer to battle, but the question still remained as to their ability and willingness to fight.

41. Col. Beecher to Maj. William S. Stryker, Paymaster, U.S. Army, November 16, 1863, Ibid.

42. Berlin et al., Freedom . . . Black Military Experience, ser.2, 133-34, Maj. Gen. John Peck included a pay scale of the men who worked in various departments for the U.S. Army.

43. Report of Cpt. H.W. Wilson, ORA, ser. 1, 27, pt.2:863.

44. As appears in Reid, "Raising the African Brigade," 288.

45. This letter was in reference to Wild's threat to hang two southern women if two black prisoners of war were hanged by the Rebels. Zebulon B. Vance to Judge Ould, State of North Carolina, Executive Department, Raleigh, December 29, 1863, ORA, ser. 2, 6:776-77.

46. Maj. Gen. Benjamin F. Butler to Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton, Head Quarters, 18th Army Corps, Department of Virginia & North Carolina, Fortress Monroe, December 31, 1863, ORA, ser. 1, 29, pt.2:596.

47. Maj. George L. Stearns to Secretary of War Stanton, August 17, 1863, ORA, ser. 3, 3:684.

48. Alfred S. Roe, The Fifth Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry in Its Three Tours of Duty, 1861, 1862-63, 1864 (Boston: Fifth Regiment Veteran Association, 1911), 244, as quoted in Reid, "Raising the African Brigade," 281.

49. Reid, "Raising the African Brigade," 285.

50. Rugoff, The Beechers, 458.

51. Col. Beecher to Frances Johnson, June 15, 1863, Beecher Family Papers, The Stowe-Day Foundation, Hartford, Connecticut.

52. Ibid.

53. Col. Beecher to Lt. Robinson, November 5, 1863, Order Book, 35th USCT, RG 94, National Archives.

54. Frances Beecher Perkins, "Two Years With A Colored Regiment," New England Magazine, 17 (January, 1898): 543.

55. Descriptive Books, 35th USCT, RG 94, National Archives. Subsequent information concerning the soldiers is also found in the Descriptive Books.

56. General Orders of the War Department, No. 163, sect. VI: "persons of African descent who enlist under the act approved July 17, 1862 (General Orders, 91, Adjutant-General's Office, 1862, p.25), are entitled to 'ten dollars per month and one ration; three dollars of which monthly pay may be in clothing.'" ORA, ser.3, 3:252. Col. Beecher to Maj. Stryker, Paymaster U.S.A., November 16, 1863, Order Book, 35th, RG 94, National Archives.

57. Mobley, James City, 20.

58. Reid, "Raising the African Brigade," 283.

59. Ibid., 285.

60. Rugoff, The Beechers, 535; Col. Beecher to Frances Johnson, July-August, 1863, The Stowe-Day Foundation.

61. Col. Beecher to Frances Johnson, October 3, 1863, The Stowe-Day Foundation.

62. Maj. Bogle to Lt. Robinson, December 30, 1863, Order Book, 35th USCT, RG 94, National Archives.

63. Col. Beecher to Lt. Robinson, November 30, 1863, Ibid.

64. Col. Beecher to Frances Johnson, October 6, 1863, The Stowe-Day Foundation.

65. Col. Beecher to Brig. Gen. Wild, September 13, 1863, Letters Received, 35th USCT, Regimental Books & Papers USCT, RG 94 {G-182} also printed in Berlin et al., The Black Military Experience, ser.2, 493.

66. Berlin et al., The Black Military Experience, ser.2, 494.

67. Col. Beecher to Frances Johnson, October 3, 1863, The Stowe-Day Foundation.

68. Ibid.

69. Ibid.

70. Berlin et al., The Black Military Experience, ser.2, 494.

71. Col. Beecher to Frances Johnson, October 3, 1863, The Stowe-Day Foundation.

72. Adrian Terry, Assistant Adjutant General to Brig. Gen. Alex Schimmelfennig, February 7, 1864, ORA, ser.1, 35, pt.1:469.

73. General Alfred H. Terry to Col. E. W. Smith, February 14, 1864, ORA, ser.1, 35, pt.1:481.

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