Charles Gilbert Gould

He Survived a Bayonet Through His Face at Petersburg

Charles Gilbert Gould was a Union Army officer who received the United States Medal of Honor for extraordinary bravery during the American Civil War. Serving as a captain in Company H of the 5th Vermont Volunteer Infantry, Gould distinguished himself during the breakthrough assault at Petersburg, Virginia, on April 2, 1865. Among the first Union soldiers to reach the Confederate fortifications, he endured a severe bayonet wound to the face and repeated blows from enemy soldiers but continued fighting. His courage during the assault earned him the nation's highest military decoration more than twenty-five years later.

Born on May 5, 1845, in Windham County, Vermont, Gould was the son of James and Judith Gould. His early childhood was marked by a serious accident. At approximately two years of age, he suffered severe burns when a pot of boiling applesauce overturned onto his legs. The injuries were so extensive that he reportedly could not walk again until he was six years old.

When the Civil War began in 1861, Gould was eager to enter military service. Despite his parents' objections, he traveled approximately twenty miles to a recruiting station and enlisted while still a teenager. His military service began with the Vermont volunteers, and he subsequently advanced through the ranks as the conflict continued.

Gould enlisted in Company G of the 11th Vermont Infantry in 1862. During the following years, he gained military experience and received promotion to lieutenant in 1864. In 1865, he transferred to the 5th Vermont Infantry and attained the rank of captain, taking command of Company H.

By the spring of 1865, Union forces had surrounded Petersburg, Virginia, for months. The city's defensive positions protected important transportation routes and the approaches to Richmond, the Confederate capital. Union commanders prepared a major assault intended to break through the Confederate lines and bring the prolonged siege to an end.

On April 2, 1865, the Union VI Corps launched an attack against Confederate fortifications southwest of Petersburg. The 5th Vermont Infantry participated in the assault, with Company H under Gould's command.

As the advancing Union troops approached the Confederate defenses, Gould led his men across difficult ground near Arthur's Swamp. The movement brought them toward a system of earthworks protected by defensive obstacles and enemy troops.

During the advance, much of the attacking formation shifted toward the right. Gould moved left in response to a shouted instruction, leaving his company separated from the main body of advancing soldiers.

Continuing toward the Confederate position, Gould and several of his men approached a battery defended by Confederate infantry. He discovered a narrow opening through the abatis, the barrier of sharpened branches placed in front of the fortifications.

Gould moved through the opening, but its narrow width delayed the soldiers following him. Believing his men remained close behind, he advanced into the ditch at the base of the Confederate works.

He then climbed the parapet with his sword drawn and confronted Confederate soldiers defending the position. His movement placed him among the first Union officers to reach the enemy's fortifications during the assault.

The defenders immediately attacked him. Confederate soldiers struck Gould with clubbed muskets and attempted to drive him back with their bayonets.

During the violent struggle, a Confederate soldier thrust a bayonet into Gould's mouth, driving it through his cheek. Despite the serious wound, Gould continued fighting and killed the soldier who had bayoneted him with his sword.

The struggle did not end with that encounter. Gould received additional injuries, including a saber wound to the side of his head and another bayonet wound to his shoulder. He was also struck repeatedly with the butts of enemy muskets.

Despite these injuries, he continued resisting the Confederate defenders. Corporal Henry Recor of Company A eventually reached the position and helped pull Gould away from the immediate fighting.

Severely wounded, Gould made his way back toward the Union rear. Accounts of the engagement describe him traveling more than a mile to report the situation to his commanders and inform them that reinforcements were urgently needed.

Gould sought medical assistance only after receiving assurances that additional Union troops were advancing toward the Confederate position.

The wider Union assault succeeded in breaking through the Confederate defenses at Petersburg. Federal forces entered Petersburg and Richmond the following day, April 3, 1865. General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia retreated westward before surrendering at Appomattox Court House on April 9.

Gould's actions during the assault became the defining achievement of his military career. His official Medal of Honor citation recognized that he was among the first to mount the enemy's works, suffered a serious bayonet wound to the face, endured repeated blows from clubbed muskets, and continued fighting with his sword despite his injuries.

The distinction of being the very first Union soldier to cross the Confederate works has been examined by historians, with competing claims from other participants. Gould's official recognition establishes that he was among the first to reach the position, without requiring an unsupported claim that he was unquestionably the first.

Gould survived his battlefield injuries and received a brevet promotion to major, the highest rank recorded in his military service. His actions at Petersburg remained a significant part of his personal and military history.

On July 30, 1890, Charles Gilbert Gould received the Medal of Honor for his conduct during the assault of April 2, 1865. The presentation came more than twenty-five years after the battle and formally recognized his courage in the face of severe wounds and determined enemy resistance.

Following the Civil War, Gould remained connected to the community of Union veterans. He became a companion of the Vermont Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, an organization associated with officers who had served the Union during the conflict.

His personal papers and military memorabilia preserve additional evidence of his service and later life. These materials include correspondence and objects associated with his military career, providing a historical connection to his experiences as a Vermont volunteer officer.

Charles Gilbert Gould died on December 5, 1916, in Cavendish, Vermont, at the age of 71. He was buried at Windham Central Cemetery in Windham, Vermont, returning in death to the state where his life and military career had begun.

His bravery at Petersburg remains commemorated through historical interpretation of the battlefield. A marker along the Petersburg Breakthrough Trail identifies the approximate location associated with his actions, while a painting at the battlefield visitor center depicts the moment he climbed the Confederate works.

Charles Gilbert Gould's legacy is defined by his extraordinary courage during the final days of the American Civil War. Although seriously wounded during hand-to-hand combat, he continued resisting Confederate defenders and survived injuries that could easily have proved fatal.

His actions on April 2, 1865, earned him the Medal of Honor and established his place among the Union officers recognized for exceptional bravery. The story of his assault at Petersburg remains a documented example of courage, endurance, and leadership under some of the most dangerous conditions of Civil War combat.