Private Joseph L. Pierce

Private Joseph L. Pierce

Private Joseph L. Pierce was age 21 when he enlisted in the 14th Connecticut Infantry in August 1862. It's unclear how Pierce ended up in the United States. One story has it that his father sold him to Connecticut ship Captain Amos Peck for $6. Another story was that his brother sold him for $60. Still another was that Peck picked Pierce up while he was adrift in the South China Sea. Peck, a lifelong bachelor, turned the 10-year-old he called "Joe" over to his mother in Connecticut. In his youth, Joe went to school with the Peck family children and formally became Joseph Pierce in 1853. He picked up his last name from President Franklin Pierce. Pierce worked as a farmer in New Britain, Connecticut, at the time of his military enlistment. He listed his birthplace as Canton in Kwangtung Province, China.Pierce's regiment participated in the Battle of Antietam, Md. Sept. 17, 1862. He suffered some sickness during his time around Washington and was in the hospital for a time. He was assigned to the Quartermaster Department for a bit and rejoined the 14th in time for the Battle of Chancellorsville, Va. in May 1863. The 14th had a distinguished role in the Gettysburg campaign. It fought on the north part of Cemetery Ridge on July 2 and was one of the units that helped repel Pickett's Charge. The 14th was primarily responsible for turning back Brig. Gen. James Pettigrew's North Carolina division. The 14th's regimental history says that during Pickett's charge, Pierce appeared "pig-tail and all, the only Chinese in the Army of the Potomac," but as history reflects, he wasn't in fact the only Soldier of Chinese descent. Today, you can see the 14th Memorial to the north of the grove of trees marking the high-water mark of the Confederacy.