The enactment of the Emancipation Proclamation by United States President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863 opened the way for the enlistment of free men of color and newly liberated slaves to fight for their freedom within the Union Army.

As the ranks of the 54th Massachusetts quickly reached its full complement of recruits, an overflow of colored volunteers continued to pour in from several other states outside Massachusetts — many of whom simply had not arrived in time — prompting Governor John Albion Andrew to authorize yet another regiment of colored soldiers sponsored by the Commonwealth.

William Monroe Trotter was also a graduate of Harvard University and numbered among the 100 Greatest African Americans as compiled by Molefi Kete Asante, Ph.D.

Although Union forces achieved a victory at the Battle of Antietam in September 1862, two years of war had taken a great toll in men and resources.

Free men of color had remained largely excluded from taking up arms as soldiers in the defense of the Union and their own continued liberty.

In a speech delivered on March 21, 1863, the great abolitionist orator Frederick Douglass recounted how he had "...implored the imperiled nation to unchain against her foes, her powerful black hand."

At the time of formation, the colored troops of Massachusetts were promised a pay rate of $13.00 per month, equal to that of all other active recruits throughout the Union Army.

Instead of retreating in the face of adversity, whether it be the enemy, their fellow officers, or their own government, they continued in their quest to promote freedom and preserve the Union at all costs.