Though many listed birthplaces in the South, that does not necessarily equate to being born enslaved. It is difficult to ascertain just how many of the 54 th had been born enslaved. Redkey stated: 'After the war, with slavery ended and the Fugitive Slave Law just a harsh memory, the men could talk more freely about their slave origins.' He argues that since more than 300 men in the regiment had been born in the South, it 'seems reasonable to assume that perhaps half of these Southern men, at least 160, had been born into slavery and had somehow made their way north to freedom.' Emilio, in his regimental history A Brave Black Regiment, 'Only a small portion had been slaves.' However, Emilio may not have considered that many of the recruits hid their formerly enslaved status given the uncertainty of the war and the Fugitive Slave Law. Estimates as high as 80% of these soldiers came from the northern states and had not experience slavery firsthand. More than twelve hundred men ultimately comprised the regiment over its two year history. Jackson, who had escaped slavery and settled in Pittsfield received 'a commission to recruit for the 54 th Regiment, has been indefatigable and very successful ever since.' Outside of Massachusetts, Frederick Douglass, himself a prominent freedom seeker and Underground Railroad operative, also provided crucial support as a recruiter for the 54 th regiment. For example, in western Massachusetts, Henry S. Other freedom seekers and their allies also supported and recruited for the regiment. Hayden became an ardent supporter and recruiter for the regiment from its earliest days. Hayden and his wife Harriet, who had both escaped slavery on the Underground Railroad, sheltered scores of freedom seekers in their Boston safe house. The governor was forcibly struck by the answer. Hayden, what in your opinion is the course the National Government ought to pursue to bring this terrible war to a successful termination.' 'Put colored troops in the field, sir,' was Mr. Lewis Hayden, Boston's most prominent Underground Railroad operative, is often credited with giving Andrew the idea to form a Black regiment, though as historian Stephen Kantrowitz states, 'this was too widespread a notion to belong to any one man.' According to one account, Andrew asked Hayden: 'Mr. Prior to his election as Governor, Andrew served in several Vigilance Committees that assisted freedom seekers in Boston. In 1863, Governor John Andrew secured permission to organize the 54 th Massachusetts Regiment. Recruitment poster for the Massachusetts 54th Regiment.

Running away by robert andrew powell