Frederick C . Anderson Frederick C . Anderson ( March 24 , 1842 – October 6 , 1882 ) was a Union Army soldier in the American Civil War who received the United States military ' s highest decoration , the Medal of Honor . Born in Boston , Massachusetts , and orphaned at a young age , Anderson was adopted by a farming family in rural Raynham . He enlisted in the Union Army shortly after the start of the war and , as a private in the 18th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry , participated in several major battles , including Antietam , Fredericksburg , Chancellorsville , and Gettysburg . He was awarded the Medal of Honor for capturing a Confederate battle flag during the Battle of Globe Tavern on August 21 , 1864 . Transferred to the 32nd Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry and wounded in the Siege of Petersburg , he returned to the field in time to witness the Confederate surrender at Appomattox Court House . After the war , he returned to Massachusetts , working and raising a family until his sudden death at age 40 . Early life . Anderson was born on March 24 , 1842 , in Boston , Massachusetts , to Frederick C . and Elizabeth Anderson . By age eight he was living in a South Boston workhouse called the House of Industry . The facility was later described as " [ a ] n asylum for the insane and refuge for the deserted and the most destitute children of the city " . It is unclear what happened to Anderson ' s parents , although their complete disappearance from public records suggests that they were deceased . At age 14 , Anderson was sent on the Orphan Train , which transported orphaned , abandoned , and homeless children from large East Coast cities to rural areas , where they were taken in by families and put to work . When the train reached Raynham , Massachusetts , Anderson was selected by Stilman Wilber , a local farmer . He lived and worked on the Wilber farm until his enlistment in the military . Civil War service . Four months after the start of the Civil War , on August 24 , 1861 , Anderson was mustered into the Union Army at Camp Brigham in Dedham , Massachusetts . A 19 - year - old private , he joined Company A of the 18th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry . In regimental records , he was described as " 5 foot 3 inches in height , with a light complexion , blue eyes and sandy hair " . In late August 1862 , one year after enlisting , Anderson participated in his first engagement , the Second Battle of Bull Run , where the 18th Massachusetts sustained its heaviest casualties of the war . A few weeks later they took part in the Battle of Antietam , and on December 13 the unit saw heavy action at the Battle of Fredericksburg . At Fredericksburg , the 18th Massachusetts advanced across open ground on a frontal assault against Confederate positions on Marye ' s Heights . Although the attack was repulsed under intense fire , the regiment ' s advance was among the most successful , having come closer to the Confederate lines than most other Union units . The next year , Anderson took part in the Battle of Chancellorsville in late April and early May and the Battle of Gettysburg on July 2 , where his unit fought in the Wheatfield as part of the V Corps . In August 1864 , the second month of the Siege of Petersburg , Union forces , including Anderson ' s regiment , cut the Weldon Railroad which supplied Petersburg and the Confederate capital of Richmond . On the morning of August 21 , the Confederates attacked in an attempt to regain control of the railway . The 18th Massachusetts lead a counterattack against the smaller Confederate force , and during this action , which came to be known as the Battle of Globe Tavern , Anderson captured the 27th South Carolina Infantry Regiment ' s flag and flag bearer . Regimental flags were an important means of communication and identification during the war ; the loss of a flag was a great blow to a regiment ' s morale , and the capture of an enemy flag was seen as a sign of bravery in close - quarters fighting . For his actions at Globe Tavern , Anderson was awarded the Medal of Honor during a ceremony on September 13 , 1864 . With the captured Confederate flags on display , Anderson and several other men of the V Corps were decorated by General George Meade , commander of the Army of the Potomac . His official citation reads : " Capture of battle flag of 27th South Carolina ( C . S . A . ) and the color bearer . " The 18th Massachusetts was disbanded on September 2 , 1864 , after three years of service . Soldiers who chose to reenlist for another three - year term , such as Anderson , and those who still had time left on their original enlistment were merged into the 32nd Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry . When the 32nd engaged in the ongoing Siege of Petersburg in early December , Anderson was wounded in the left foot . He was sent to the V Corps hospital in City Point , Virginia , and after two and a half weeks was transferred to Jarvis Hospital in Baltimore , Maryland , arriving there on December 26 . A month later , on January 31 , 1865 , he rejoined his regiment . As a reward for reenlisting , he was granted a 45 - day furlough , which he took in February and March . He returned in time to watch the surrender of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia on April 9 at Appomattox Court House , effectively ending the war . Anderson and the other soldiers of the 32nd Massachusetts were mustered out of service on June 29 , 1865 , in Boston . Later life . After the war , Anderson stayed in Massachusetts and settled in the town of Somerset . On May 20 , 1866 , he married Sarah E . Francis in Taunton . The couple had three children : Carrie M . , born in 1872 , Herbert Newell , born in 1875 , and Cecilia Ann , born in 1878 . Anderson died suddenly of " apoplexy " at age 40 while working at the Worcester Railroad freight yard in Providence , Rhode Island . He was reportedly buried at the Anderson Family Cemetery in Somerset , however no record of this cemetery ' s existence has been found .