Charles A. Taggart

The Flag Captured During Lee's Final Retreat

Charles A. Taggart was born on January 17, 1843, in Blandford, Massachusetts. He became a Union Army soldier whose courage during the Battle of Sailor's Creek, Virginia, earned him the Medal of Honor. On April 6, 1865, while serving as a Private in Company B of the 37th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, Taggart captured a Confederate battle flag during the fighting that accompanied General Robert E. Lee's final retreat toward Appomattox.

Taggart spent his early years in western Massachusetts. His family faced difficulties during his childhood, including the death of his father and his mother's declining health. He was living in Otis, Massachusetts, when he entered military service.

On August 11, 1862, at the age of nineteen, Taggart enlisted in the Union Army. He joined Company B of the 37th Massachusetts Infantry, a regiment organized from volunteers recruited in western Massachusetts.

The regiment entered federal service in August 1862 and subsequently joined the Army of the Potomac. Its soldiers became part of the Union VI Corps, serving in several major campaigns of the Civil War's Eastern Theater.

Taggart's military service brought him into some of the war's most demanding engagements.

During the winter of 1862, the 37th Massachusetts participated in the Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia. The regiment subsequently served during the Chancellorsville Campaign and the fighting at Gettysburg in July 1863.

At Gettysburg, the regiment came under Confederate artillery fire while moving toward the Union positions near the Round Tops. Taggart was among the soldiers of Company B wounded during the battle.

He survived his injury and continued his military service.

Following Gettysburg, the 37th Massachusetts participated in further operations with the Army of the Potomac. Its assignments included movements associated with the New York City draft disturbances and subsequent campaigns in Virginia.

In 1864, the regiment took part in Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign against General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

The fighting included the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, and Cold Harbor, where both armies suffered severe casualties during repeated engagements.

Taggart later recalled his participation in the difficult campaigns of 1864, including the fighting around Petersburg and the Union operations in the Shenandoah Valley.

In September 1864, the 37th Massachusetts participated in the Battle of Third Winchester, an important Union victory during Major General Philip Sheridan's campaign against Confederate forces in the Shenandoah Valley.

The regiment eventually returned to operations around Petersburg, where Union forces continued pressuring the Confederate defensive positions protecting Richmond.

By the spring of 1865, the military situation had turned decisively against the Confederacy.

On April 2, Union forces broke through the Confederate lines at Petersburg, forcing Lee to abandon Petersburg and Richmond and retreat westward.

Union cavalry and infantry pursued the withdrawing Confederate army, seeking to prevent it from reaching supplies or joining other Confederate forces farther south.

On April 6, 1865, Union forces engaged retreating Confederate troops near Sailor's Creek, also known as Sayler's Creek, in Virginia.

The battle became one of the final major engagements fought by Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

Union troops attacked Confederate formations attempting to continue their retreat. Elements of the II and VI Corps, supported by Union cavalry, inflicted severe losses and captured thousands of Confederate soldiers.

The 37th Massachusetts Infantry participated in the fighting as part of the Union VI Corps.

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

Amid the fighting, Taggart captured a Confederate battle flag.

A later account associated with his commanding officer described Taggart advancing ahead of the Union line after observing Confederate soldiers defending a position near their colors.

The account stated that Taggart approached the Confederate flag bearer and struggled to seize the flag. Another Union soldier assisted him, but was shot during the encounter.

Taggart succeeded in bringing the captured colors back toward the Union position.

His official Medal of Honor citation summarized the achievement in three words:

"Capture of flag."

Regimental flags held considerable importance during the Civil War. They identified military formations, helped soldiers maintain cohesion during battle, and represented the identity and honor of their units.

Capturing an enemy flag was therefore regarded as a significant military accomplishment, particularly when it occurred during close-range fighting.

Taggart's capture took place while Union forces were overwhelming portions of Lee's retreating army.

The Confederate defeat at Sailor's Creek further weakened Lee's remaining forces.

Three days later, on April 9, 1865, Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia to Grant at Appomattox Court House.

Taggart's battlefield courage received formal recognition shortly afterward.

On May 10, 1865, Charles A. Taggart received the Army Medal of Honor for his actions at Sailor's Creek on April 6.

The decoration recognized his capture of a Confederate battle flag while serving as a Private in Company B of the 37th Massachusetts Infantry.

His award came during his lifetime and only a little more than a month after the engagement.

Taggart continued in military service until June 21, 1865, when he was discharged following the conclusion of the war.

After returning to civilian life, Taggart worked as a farmer in Massachusetts.

He maintained a connection with his wartime experiences and preserved personal possessions associated with his military service, including material connected with the Confederate flag he had captured.

Decades later, these objects became important reminders of his service.

During his later years, Taggart resided at the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers in Dayton, Ohio.

In 1930, he returned to the Springfield, Massachusetts, area to attend a reunion of surviving veterans of the 37th Massachusetts Infantry.

The gathering reflected his continuing association with the regiment in which he had served during the Civil War.

Charles A. Taggart died on April 10, 1938, in Dayton, Ohio, at the age of ninety-five.

He was buried at Dayton National Cemetery in Dayton, Ohio.

His Medal of Honor and several personal military artifacts were eventually preserved by the Blandford Historical Society in his hometown.

The collection includes items associated with his wartime experiences and the Confederate flag captured during his final campaign.

These surviving objects maintain a connection between Taggart's military service and the Massachusetts community where his life began.

His military legacy centers on April 6, 1865, when Union forces engaged Lee's retreating army at Sailor's Creek.

As a Private in the 37th Massachusetts Infantry, Taggart captured a Confederate battle flag during the fighting, demonstrating the courage that earned him the Medal of Honor.

Charles A. Taggart is remembered as a Union Army soldier whose bravery during one of the final major battles of the American Civil War secured his place among the nation's Medal of Honor recipients.