Guy was pretty damn heroic. Too bad historians don’t know about his post-war life.
Gordon in 1863, just after he reached a Union Army camp in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Gordon escaped in March 1863 from the 3,000-acre (12 km2) plantation of John and Bridget Lyons, who held him and nearly 40 other people in slavery at the time of the 1860 census.[3][4]
To mask his scent from the bloodhounds that were chasing him, Gordon took onions from his plantation, which he carried in his pockets. After crossing each creek or swamp, he rubbed his body with the onions to throw the dogs off his scent. He fled over 40 miles (64 km)[6] over the course of 10 days before reaching Union soldiers of the XIX Corps who were stationed in Baton Rouge.[7]
The third illustration in the Harper's Weekly article, captioned "Gordon in his uniform as a U.S. soldier."
Gordon joined the Union Army as a guide three months after the Emancipation Proclamation allowed for the enrollment of freed slaves into the military forces. On one expedition, he was taken prisoner by the Confederates; they tied him up, beat him, and left him for dead. He survived and once more escaped to Union lines.[7]
Gordon soon afterwards enlisted in a U.S. Colored Troops Civil War unit. He was said by The Liberator to have fought bravely as a sergeant in the Corps d'Afrique during the Siege of Port Hudson in May 1863.[14] It was the first time that African-American soldiers played a leading role in an assault.[8]
Gordon in 1863, just after he reached a Union Army camp in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Gordon escaped in March 1863 from the 3,000-acre (12 km2) plantation of John and Bridget Lyons, who held him and nearly 40 other people in slavery at the time of the 1860 census.[3][4]
To mask his scent from the bloodhounds that were chasing him, Gordon took onions from his plantation, which he carried in his pockets. After crossing each creek or swamp, he rubbed his body with the onions to throw the dogs off his scent. He fled over 40 miles (64 km)[6] over the course of 10 days before reaching Union soldiers of the XIX Corps who were stationed in Baton Rouge.[7]
The third illustration in the Harper's Weekly article, captioned "Gordon in his uniform as a U.S. soldier."
Gordon joined the Union Army as a guide three months after the Emancipation Proclamation allowed for the enrollment of freed slaves into the military forces. On one expedition, he was taken prisoner by the Confederates; they tied him up, beat him, and left him for dead. He survived and once more escaped to Union lines.[7]
Gordon soon afterwards enlisted in a U.S. Colored Troops Civil War unit. He was said by The Liberator to have fought bravely as a sergeant in the Corps d'Afrique during the Siege of Port Hudson in May 1863.[14] It was the first time that African-American soldiers played a leading role in an assault.[8]
