bearer, moved ahead of his unit during the advance and planted the flag on the Confederate fortifications. When the regiment was forced to pull back, he retrieved the flag and rallied his fellow soldiers for a second attack. In this second assault, the men of the 39th breached the Confederate works and engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the defenders. They captured two hundred prisoners and two flags before being pushed back again and ordered to withdraw. Dorsey was promoted to sergeant on August 1, two days after the battle, and again to first sergeant on January 1, 1865. He was awarded the Medal of Honor on November 8, 1865, for his actions at the Battle of the Crater and was discharged from the Army a month later, on December 4, while in Wilmington, North Carolina. Later life After the war, Dorsey returned to Baltimore, where he married Mannie Christie on January 4, 1866. In January 1868, he was charged by Baltimore police with stealing a wagon. By 1870 Dorsey had moved to New York City with his wife. In late 1870 he was convicted of stealing carpets from his employer and was incarcerated in Sing Sing Prison for three years. After his release, Dorsey moved to Hoboken, New Jersey, where he resided the rest of his life. He worked at various occupations, including cook, sailor, and laborer. Dorsey died in Hoboken on July 11, 1891, at the approximate age of 55. He was buried at Flower Hill Cemetery in North Bergen, New Jersey. Dorsey does not appear to have been survived by any children. Medal of Honor citation Planted his colors on the Confederate works in advance of his regiment, and when the regiment was driven back to the Union works he carried the colors there and bravely rallied the men. See also List of African-American Medal of Honor recipients List of American Civil War Medal of Honor recipients: A–F References External links 1836 births 1891 deaths People from Howard County, Maryland 19th-century American slaves Union Army soldiers African Americans in the American Civil War United States Army Medal of Honor recipients People from Hoboken, New Jersey American Civil War recipients of the Medal of Honor Prisoners and detainees of New York (state) American sailors American people convicted of theft Burials at Flower Hill Cemetery (North Bergen, New Jersey)