Raid on Combahee Ferry

Raid on Combahee Ferry
Part of American Civil War

Illustration of the Raid on Combahee River
DateJune 1–2, 1863
Location
Beaufort County, South Carolina
Colleton County, South Carolina
32°39′07″N 80°40′59″W / 32.652°N 80.683°W / 32.652; -80.683
Result Union victory
Approx. 800 slaves freed
Belligerents
United States United States (Union) Confederate States of America CSA (Confederacy)
Commanders and leaders
Col. James Montgomery
Harriet Tubman		 Unknown
Units involved
2nd South Carolina Volunteer Infantry Regiment (Colored)[1]
3rd Rhode Island Heavy Artillery Regiment		 Unknown Confederate forces

The Raid on Combahee Ferry (/kəmˈbiː/ kəm-BEE,[2] also known as the Combahee River Raid) was a military operation during the American Civil War conducted on June 1 and June 2, 1863, by elements of the Union Army along the Combahee River in Beaufort and Colleton counties in the South Carolina Lowcountry.[3]

Harriet Tubman, who had escaped from slavery in 1849 and guided many others to freedom, led an expedition of 150 African American soldiers of the 2nd South Carolina Infantry.[4] The Union ships rescued and transported more than 750 former slaves freed five months earlier by the Emancipation Proclamation, many of whom joined the Union Army.

  1. ^ Linger, Megan (December 10, 2020). "Harriet Tubman and the 54th Massachusetts". Boston African American National Historic Site. National Park Service.
  2. ^ Merriam-Webster's Geographical Dictionary, Third Edition (Merriam-Webster, 1997; ISBN 0877795460)
  3. ^ Official Records, Series 1, Volume 14. p. 306.
  4. ^ "The Combahee Ferry Raid". National Museum of African American History and Culture. May 10, 2017.