Overcoming Obstacles: Lt. James Monroe Trotter

 

Learning about the lives of Civil War soldiers before their enlistments, as well as what they accomplished during their time in service, can often be inspiring. Many came from humble beginnings yet still displayed a determination to better themselves and those around them, earning many soldiers well-deserved respect from modern-day history students. That is particularly true with many of the men who served in African American regiments. A good example is James Monroe Trotter. A seldom seen carte de visite photograph of Trotter is among the items held and preserved by Pamplin Historical Park and the National Museum of the Civil War Soldier.

Born in 1842 in Grand Gulf, Mississippi, James Monroe Trotter was the son of an enslaved woman named Letitia and his mother’s owner. Apparently afforded some learning opportunities while still enslaved, Trotter, his mother, and two sisters eventually landed in Cincinnati, Ohio, about a decade before the Civil War. In Cincinnati, Trotter received further education at Gilmore’s School and later began teaching in African American communities in the Ohio River Valley.

However, the Civil War interrupted Trotter’s teaching career. Only 19 years old when the conflict began, Trotter enlisted two years later, after Massachusetts started recruiting primarily Northern free men of color for their 54^th and 55^th Infantry regiments. Trotter made his way to Readville, Massachusetts, where he enlisted in Company K of the 55^th Massachusetts on June 11, 1863, becoming its first sergeant. He officially mustered into service 11 days later. A promotion to sergeant major came on November 19, 1863.

The 55^th Massachusetts still had not left the state at the time that their sister unit, the 54^th, earned their glory at Battery Wagner, South Carolina, on July 18, 1863, but they soon embarked to duty in North and South Carolina. The 55^th also served in Florida, and participated in engagements on James Island, South Carolina, as well as at Honey Hill, South Carolina, in November 1864, where Trotter received a wound.

During his service, Trotter worked diligently to educate the men under his direction, both mentally and politically. He taught soldiers how to read and write, despite a lack of books and other learning materials. He also actively sought equal pay for African American soldiers by getting his comrades to refuse their pay until it met that of white Union soldiers. Trotter’s and others’ efforts produced results when the army finally equalized pay on June 13, 1864.

Trotter’s leadership skills helped him eventually become one of the few African American commissioned officers outside of the army’s medical department. He received a 2^nd lieutenant’s commission in the spring of 1864, but unfortunately the army tabled it until 15 months later, in July 1865. However, once made official, his lieutenant’s pay was retroacted to April 1864.

After the war Trotter returned to Ohio, married, started a family and moved to Boston, where he felt his family had more social and educational opportunities. In Boston, Trotter worked as a clerk in the post office, and in 1878, wrote and published “Music and Some Musical People,” a history of African American music. Tragically, Trotter’s impressive life proved short. He died at age 50 from tuberculosis in 1892.