Henry Clay (b. circa 1841 - d. 1865)
MSA SC 3520-5354
USCT Soldier, Talbot County, Maryland
Biography:
Henry Clay was born a slave in Oxford Neck, Talbot County, Maryland around 1841.1 As a slave, he was a owned by William B. Willis, a property owner in the Trappe district of Talbot County.2 In 1852, Willis owned a total of 10 slaves that were a combined value of $1,900.3 Of those 10 slaves, there were two men named Henry, but both were in their mid-twenties in 1852.4 Henry Clay was listed at 22 years old when he enlisted in the United States Colored Troops in 1863. On the 1852 assessment record, Willis also owned a boy named "Clay" who was 10 years old.5 It's possible this could have been Henry Clay as the name and age seem to closely match. The assessment record notes that Clay was valued at $75.00.6
By 1863, the Civil War had been under way for two years before slaves would get the chance to fight for their freedom. On January 1, 1863, Abraham Lincoln enacted the Emancipation Proclamation calling for African American volunteers to join the Union army.7 Henry Clay, along with Moses Maxfield, were two of Willis's slaves to join the U.S. Colored Troops. On October 15, 1863, Henry Clay enlisted in Company H of the 7th U.S. Colored Troops regiment.8 Colonel William Birney had enlisted Clay to serve a three year term and was mustered in on November 5, 1863.9 He was mustered in as a 1st sergeant at Camp Stanton in Benedict, Charles County, Maryland.10 At the time of his enlistment, Clay was 5 feet 31/8 inches with a black complexion, black eyes, and black hair.11 With Clay's enlistment in the Union army, Willis was eligible to receive a bounty payment of $100.00 on September 12, 1865 as compensation for the loss of his slave.12
During his service time, he was reduced from the ranking of 1st sergeant to private on January 27, 1864 for "absence from camp without leave."13 The 7th U.S. Colored Troops fought in numerous skirmishes and battles, which included Baldwin, Florida, Jacksonville, Florida, White Point, South Carolina, Petersburg, Virginia, and Appomattox Court House in Virginia.14 From April 1865 until October 1866, the 7th regiment fulfilled their three year terms by acting as a garrison in Texas.15 While in Indianola, Texas, Henry Clay died in a hospital from "inflammation of bowels" on October 15, 1865.16 On October 20, 1865, the final statement for Henry Clay read that "having served honestly and faithfully with his Company to the present date, is now entitled to a discharge by reason of death - disease."17 After the surviving the Civil War, Henry Clay passed away five months later while completing his three year term acting as a garrison in Texas.
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