Sergeant Decatur Dorsey was a soldier in the U.S. Army who received the Medal of Honor for his actions on July 30, 1864 in Petersburg, Virginia during the Civil War. At the time he was serving with Company B, 39th U.S. Colored Infantry. Dorsey was about 28 years old.
21 other service members also received the Medal of Honor for actions on the same day. The medal was presented on November 8, 1865. He later rose to the rank of First Sergeant.
Dorsey was born in 1836 in Howard County, Maryland. His Medal of Honor is credited to Baltimore, Baltimore County, Maryland. Dorsey died on July 11, 1891 in Hoboken, New Jersey, at the age of about 55. He is buried at Flower Hill Cemetery in North Bergen, New Jersey.
Dorsey is one of 1,525 Medal of Honor recipients from the Civil War and one of 85 credited to Maryland.
Official Medal of Honor citation
Planted his colors on the Confederate works in advance of his regiment, and when the regiment was driven back to the Union works he carried the colors there and bravely rallied the men.
Citation text: U.S. Government, public domain.
Battles and campaigns
Also served in: American Civil War.
Places
Veteran resources, cemeteries and meeting places in Maryland →
Timeline
- 1836Born in Howard County, Maryland
- July 30, 1864Act of valor — Petersburg, VirginiaAge about 28. Company B, 39th U.S. Colored Infantry
- November 8, 1865Medal of Honor presented
- July 11, 1891Died in Hoboken, New JerseyAge about 55.
- Resting placeFlower Hill CemeteryNorth Bergen, New Jersey
Biography
Decatur Dorsey (c. 1836 – July 11, 1891) was a Union Army soldier in the American Civil War and a recipient of the U.S. military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions at the Battle of the Crater. Born into slavery, Dorsey enlisted in the United States Colored Troops and served through the last year of the war.
From the Wikipedia article “Decatur Dorsey”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the full article →
