William Henry Singleton facts for kids

William Henry Singleton (born August 10, 1843 – died September 7, 1938) was a brave man who gained his freedom in North Carolina. He served as a sergeant in the United States Colored Troops during the American Civil War. After the war ended and slavery was abolished, he moved North to New Haven, Connecticut. There, he learned to read and write and became a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (AME Zion Church). He also served in Maine and New York.

William Henry Singleton was born into slavery near New Bern, North Carolina. As a child, he was sold away from his family but managed to find his way back home, traveling over 400 miles! During the Civil War, he was a sergeant in the 35th United States Colored Troops. He also helped recruit men for the First North Carolina Colored Volunteers. After being hurt in the Battle of Olustee, Florida, in February 1864, he was given duties in South Carolina.

After the war, Singleton moved to New Haven, Connecticut. He was very proud of his military service. He marched in parades with other veterans from the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), even in 1937 and 1938 when he was 95 years old. He had a heart attack during the 1938 event and passed away.

While living in Peekskill, New York, he wrote and published his life story in 1922. This book told about his journey from slavery, his time in the military, and his later life. It was first printed in a local newspaper. In 1999, the state of North Carolina published a special version of his book with extra notes from historians. His gravestone in New Haven mentions his service in the US Colored Troops. Singleton is also honored in New Bern with a special plaque that tells about his life and achievements.

Early Life and His Journey to Freedom

William Henry Singleton wrote in his memoir that he was born into slavery on August 10, 1835, in Craven County, North Carolina, near New Bern. (Historians now believe he was born around 1843.) He said his mother, Lettis Singleton, was an enslaved woman of mixed race. His father was a white man, who William believed was the younger brother of his master, John Singleton. The Singleton family owned a very large farm with many enslaved people.

William wrote that his presence on the farm reminded the white family of something they wanted to forget. He said the brothers argued about him. When William was only four years old, his master sold him to a trader. The trader took him to a woman in Atlanta, Georgia, who trained enslaved people for jobs like house servants or skilled workers, then sold them for a profit.

When William was seven, he bravely ran away to find his mother. He was very clever and found kind white people who helped him along the way. He traveled 400 miles by stagecoach and walked many more miles to get back to New Bern. His mother hid him for three years in her cabin, often under the floorboards where she kept potatoes.

After William was discovered, his master sold him again. William was with a kind woman named Mrs. Wheeler for a while. But when he heard she planned to sell him, he escaped again to New Bern. He worked for a short time as a bellhop at the Moore Hotel. Finally, he returned to the Singleton farm. His master agreed to let him stay and work in the fields. William's courage and determination to be with his mother stayed with him his whole life.

Serving in the Civil War

When the Civil War began, William was about 26 years old. He got permission to practice drilling with a group called the First North Carolina Cavalry. He wanted to learn military skills. This group was in New Bern until March 14, 1862. Then, Union generals Ambrose Burnside and John G. Foster captured New Bern, forcing the Confederate soldiers to retreat.

With the Confederate group in chaos, Singleton escaped and went to New Bern, where he became free with the Union troops. He offered to guide Union soldiers and give them information, hoping to fight with them. However, Black soldiers were not allowed to fight until 1863.

About ten thousand enslaved people came to New Bern after the Union took control. The Union Army set up a camp called the Trent River contraband camp to house them and their families. A minister named Horace James was put in charge of "Negro Affairs" for the area. He ran the camp, started classes for formerly enslaved people, and organized work for adults.

Many men wanted to fight for the Union. Singleton helped gather 1,000 freed enslaved men in New Bern. He even started training them as soldiers, using cornstalks as pretend rifles! When President Abraham Lincoln finally allowed Black men to fight in 1863, Singleton's recruits became part of the First North Carolina Colored Volunteers, also known as the 35th United States Colored Troops (USCT). This group also included freedmen who had escaped from Virginia. Singleton was promoted to sergeant. When it was time for battle, white officers were assigned to lead all Black units. The U.S. Army trained and armed the men, then sent the regiment to South Carolina to fight in the siege of Charleston.

In 1864, the 35th USCT was sent to Florida. They fought in the Battle of Olustee on February 20, 1864. The Union forces were ambushed by Confederates. The 35th USCT and the 54th Massachusetts, another USCT unit, lost more than 200 men while bravely helping to protect the Union retreat.

After this battle, President Lincoln said:

There have been men who have proposed to me to return to slavery the black warriors of Port Hudson & Olustee to their masters to conciliate the South. I should be damned in time & eternity for doing so.

Singleton was wounded at Olustee. He was then assigned to a 35th USCT base in South Carolina, which was occupied by Union troops for the rest of the war. He was honorably discharged from the army on June 1, 1866.

Life After the War

After the war, Singleton moved North, like many other freed people. He settled in New Haven, Connecticut. He worked for six years as a coachman for Henry Trowbridge. After Henry died, Singleton worked for his brother, Tomas Trowbridge, for 25 years.

During this time, Singleton joined the AME Zion Church in New Haven. This was an independent Black Christian church, one of the first started by free Black people in the United States.

Singleton helped prisoners at the city jail, where he began doing missionary work with the AME Zion Church. He became a deacon and then an elder. Singleton also worked hard to get an education. He studied and saved money to buy books, teaching himself to read and write.

Family Life

Singleton married Maria Wanton in New Haven, and they had a child together. After Maria passed away in 1898, Singleton became a traveling minister in Portland, Maine. After a few years, he moved to New York City, where he married Charlotte Hinman. They later lived in Peekskill, New York. They had children and eventually eight grandchildren.

Ministry and His Book

After his first wife Maria died in 1898, Singleton became a full-time traveling minister and dedicated his life to the church. For three years, he traveled and preached in Portland, Maine.

He then moved to New York City and got married again. In 1906, he and his family moved to Peekskill, New York. He worked for different employers through World War I. Throughout all his years of freedom, Singleton voted in every election. He was very proud to be able to take on the duties of a citizen and a free man.

Singleton wrote his autobiography, Recollections of My Slavery Days, in 1922. Most books written by formerly enslaved people were published in the 1800s. His book was first printed in parts in the local Peekskill newspaper.

He ended his story with great pride:

Now I feel that I am a part of the country, that I have an interest in its welfare and a responsibility to it. Now I am treated as a man.

Because of his military service, Singleton likely joined a local group of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR). Black veterans were treated equally to white veterans in this organization.

He attended a GAR reunion (called an encampment) in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania in 1937. These national events had been held every year since the late 1800s, but fewer and fewer veterans were still alive. The last reunion was held in 1949.

In September 1938, Singleton attended another GAR reunion in Des Moines, Iowa. He marched 15 blocks in the heat with 118 other veterans. He passed away soon after from a heart attack, at the age of 95.

He was buried in New Haven, where he had been living again. His daughter and grandchildren also lived there. His gravestone reads: "Civil War /Sergeant /Henry Singleton /Co. G. 35th U.S. Col. Inf./ Died Sept. 7, 1938".

His Legacy and Honors

His memoir was published in 1999 in a special version with notes from historians David Cecelski and Katherine Mellen Charron. It was released by the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources.

A special marker honoring Singleton has been placed in New Bern by North Carolina Civil War Trails. It is on Queen Street near Johnson Street and St. Peter's Church (which used to be an AME Zion Church). The large plaque is titled William Henry Singleton/ From Slavery to Freedom and tells a long story of his life.

Slave Narratives: Important Stories

Singleton's autobiography is part of a group of writings called slave narratives. These stories are very important for historians to understand the experiences of African Americans during and after slavery. Most were written by people who escaped slavery and are a key part of American literature. Some were written by people who won their freedom through court cases.

In the 1930s, during the Great Depression, a project called the Federal Writers' Project sent writers to interview formerly enslaved people in the South. This important work was published in 1941 as Slave Narratives: A Folk History of Slavery in the United States from Interviews with Former Slaves. It includes over 2,300 stories and 500 photos.