Carney's Medal of Honor: First Black Hero Recognized
William Carney waited thirty-seven years. He'd grabbed the Union flag as the color bearer fell during the doomed charge on Battery Wagner, took two bullets, then a third. Crawled on his knees through sand and Confederate fire, holding the Stars and Stripes off the ground the entire time. Told his unit: "Boys, I only did my duty; the old flag never touched the ground." But the Medal of Honor didn't arrive until 1900. First Black recipient in American history. The citation took longer to reach him than he'd spent bleeding in that South Carolina sand.
May 23, 1900
126 years ago
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