Private Gordon Story (1862)

Enslaved and brutally beaten by his owner on Christmas Day of 1862, and with the preformatted scar tissue still healing on the back, Private Gordon escaped to freedom in March 1863.  He crossed over into the Union Lines and presented himself for induction into the Union Army.  A photo was taken during his physical exam, and subsequently published in Harpers Weekly, revealed the keloid map of whip marks on his back to an outraged nation.  Joining more than 200,000 other former slaves and freedmen bearing arms in the four year Civil War to abolish slavery and bring freedom to all Americans of African descent, Private Gordon and his colored brother bravely and proudly fought.

Written by: National Archives, Washington, DC