Robert Gould Shaw

Shaw, Robert Gould (1837–63), Union hero of the U.S. Civil War. Colonel Shaw led the first regiment of black troops (54th Massachusetts volunteers) to be mustered in a free state. He was killed attacking Fort Wagner, S.C. (July 18, 1863). The heroic deeds of Shaw and his men were retold in the motion picture Glory (1990). A statue of Shaw by Augustus Saint-Gaudens stands in his honor in the Boston Commons.

See also: Civil War, U.S.