Charles Adams Hunter

He Carried the Colors Into Fort Gregg

Charles Adams Hunter was born on August 26, 1843, in Spencer, Massachusetts. He became a Union Army soldier whose courage during the final campaign against Petersburg, Virginia, earned him the Medal of Honor. Serving with Company E of the 34th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, Hunter distinguished himself on April 2, 1865, when he carried his regiment's battle flag during the assault on Fort Gregg and was among the first soldiers to enter the Confederate fortification.

Hunter grew up in Massachusetts during the years leading to the American Civil War. When the conflict began in April 1861, thousands of volunteers joined the Union Army to defend the United States. Hunter entered military service in the summer of 1862 and became a member of the 34th Massachusetts Infantry.

The regiment was organized at Worcester, Massachusetts, and entered federal service in August 1862. Its early assignments included duty in the defenses around Washington, D.C., and operations in the region surrounding Harpers Ferry.

Hunter began his military career as an enlisted soldier. As his service continued, he advanced through the ranks and became associated with the regiment's color guard.

Regimental colors played an important role in Civil War combat. The flag identified a military formation, helped soldiers maintain their position in battle, and served as a rallying point when smoke and confusion made communication difficult.

Carrying the colors was also dangerous. The flag bearer was highly visible, often drawing enemy fire while advancing with the regiment or helping soldiers regroup.

Hunter's responsibilities placed him in a position that required courage and determination during military engagements.

During 1864, the 34th Massachusetts Infantry participated in Union operations in the Shenandoah Valley. The regiment served through campaigns involving Confederate forces attempting to maintain control of the region and threaten Union positions.

Its wartime history included engagements at Piedmont, Third Winchester, Fisher's Hill, and Cedar Creek.

The Shenandoah Valley Campaign placed considerable demands on Union infantrymen. Soldiers endured repeated marches, changing battlefield conditions, and engagements against determined Confederate resistance.

At the Battle of Cedar Creek on October 19, 1864, the 34th Massachusetts served within the Union force commanded by Major General Philip Sheridan. The battle became an important Union victory and helped secure Federal control of the Shenandoah Valley.

Following the campaign, the regiment was transferred to the Petersburg theater in Virginia.

By early 1865, Union forces had maintained pressure on Confederate defenses around Richmond and Petersburg for several months. General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia continued resisting Federal attacks, but its ability to obtain supplies and reinforce its positions had been severely weakened.

Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant directed operations intended to break the Confederate lines and force Lee's army to abandon its defensive positions.

On April 2, 1865, Union forces launched a major assault against the Confederate fortifications surrounding Petersburg.

One of the positions attacked that day was Fort Gregg, a strongly defended Confederate work protecting an approach to the city.

The fort's defenders resisted determinedly as Union infantry advanced across exposed ground. Confederate musketry and artillery fire made the approach dangerous, and attacking soldiers faced additional obstacles when they reached the fort's defensive ditch and earthworks.

The 34th Massachusetts Infantry participated in the assault as Union troops fought to capture the position.

It was during this engagement that Charles Adams Hunter performed the action for which he received the Medal of Honor.

Carrying the regimental flag, Hunter advanced with the attacking Union soldiers toward Fort Gregg.

Despite the danger, he continued forward with the colors as the assault reached the Confederate defenses.

Hunter was among the foremost soldiers to enter the fortification during the fighting.

His official Medal of Honor citation stated:

"In the assault on Fort Gregg, bore the regimental flag bravely and was among the foremost to enter the work."

The citation recognized his courage in carrying the regimental colors during the assault and his position among the leading soldiers who entered the Confederate work.

The capture of Fort Gregg came after fierce fighting. Confederate troops resisted the Union assault until Federal soldiers succeeded in reaching and entering the fort.

The action formed part of the wider Union breakthrough that forced Confederate forces to abandon Petersburg and Richmond.

Later that day, Lee ordered the evacuation of both cities. Confederate troops began retreating westward, pursued by Union forces.

On April 9, 1865, only one week after the assault on Fort Gregg, Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia to Grant at Appomattox Court House.

Hunter's bravery therefore occurred during the closing days of the Civil War, at a time when the Union Army was achieving the victories that brought the conflict in Virginia to its conclusion.

His courage at Fort Gregg received formal recognition shortly after the engagement.

On May 12, 1865, Charles Adams Hunter was issued the Army Medal of Honor for his actions on April 2, 1865.

The decoration recognized his bravery while carrying the regimental flag during the assault and his determination in advancing among the foremost soldiers to enter the Confederate position.

The Medal of Honor had been established during the Civil War to recognize extraordinary military gallantry. Hunter received the decoration during his lifetime, only weeks after the action for which he was honored.

His Medal of Honor record identifies his rank as Sergeant and his unit as Company E of the 34th Massachusetts Infantry.

Hunter remained connected with the regiment through the conclusion of its wartime service in 1865. The 34th Massachusetts was mustered out after the defeat of Confederate forces and the end of major military operations.

Following the war, Hunter returned to civilian life in Massachusetts.

Although surviving accounts provide limited details about his postwar occupation and family life, his military achievements remained formally recorded through the Medal of Honor and the history of the 34th Massachusetts Infantry.

He lived for nearly five decades after the Civil War, witnessing the continued recognition of Union veterans and the preservation of the battlefields where they had served.

Charles Adams Hunter died on December 31, 1912, in Ashland, Massachusetts, at the age of sixty-nine.

He was buried at Pine Grove Cemetery in Spencer, Massachusetts, the community where he had been born and from which he had entered military service.

His military legacy is closely associated with the assault on Fort Gregg and the courage of the soldiers who carried regimental colors during the Civil War.

On April 2, 1865, Hunter advanced toward a strongly defended Confederate fortification while carrying his regiment's flag. He remained among the leading soldiers as Union troops entered the position during the final campaign against Petersburg.

His bravery earned him the Medal of Honor and secured his place among the distinguished soldiers of the 34th Massachusetts Infantry.

Charles Adams Hunter is remembered as a Union Army color bearer whose courage during one of the final major assaults of the American Civil War earned him the nation's highest military decoration for valor.