Col. Robert Gould Shaw (1837-1863)

He was born into a Boston Brahmin family who were prominent and outspoken abolitionists. During the Civil War, he accepted command of the first all-black regiment (the 54th Massachusetts) in the Union Army. In support of the equal treatment that was promised to his troops, he encouraged his men to refuse their pay until it was equal to that of white troops' wages. He led his regiment at the Second Battle of Fort Wagner in July, 1863. They attacked a beachhead near Charleston, South Carolina, and Shaw was shot and killed while leading his men to the parapet. Although the regiment was overwhelmed by gunfire and driven back, suffering many casualties, Shaw's leadership and the regiment became legendary. They inspired thousands more African-Americans to enlist with the Union Army, helping to turn the tide of the war to its ultimate victory. Shaw's efforts and that of the 54th Massachusetts regiment were dramatized in the 1989 Oscar-winning film Glory. He married but died without children.