One of the most remarkable photographs depicting child combatants in the US Civil War is that of Boy 1st Class Aspinwall Fuller. Taken in 1865, it shows the lad, fourteen-years-old at the time, standing beside a 100-pound Parrot gun aboard the USS New Hampshire, a 74 gun ship of the line. Fuller served as a powder monkey – children tasked with rushing gunpowder from the ammunition room to the guns during battle. Below are some fascinating facts about the child sailor in that photo.
A US Civil War Powder Monkey
Aspinwall Fuller’s very presence aboard the USS New Hampshire was against US Navy regulations. As happens often in war, though, regulations were often ignored. In 1861, President Lincoln had issued a directive that prohibited the enlistment of underage recruits without their parents’ consent. However, heavy casualties and the war’s insatiable demand for fresh bodies led many recruiters to look the other way if a child tried to enlist. Which explains how Fuller joined the US Navy at age thirteen, without parental consent. He ran away from his home in Baltimore, Maryland, to join the fight when he was thirteen-years-old. It was common: boys bored with the drudgery of work or chores saw the Civil War as an opportunity for adventure and excitement.
To enlist, many children lied about their age – easily done before IDs were a thing, in an era when proving age was difficult. Others, more conscientious and not wanting to lie outright, wrote the number 16 – the minimum age for enlistment at the time – on a piece of paper, and stuck it beneath their shoe. That way, they reasoned, they could truthfully swear on a Bible that they were “over 16”. Whether by lying, resorting to stratagem, or coming across a recruiter who simply did not care, Fuller enlisted in the Union Navy. He served from 1864 to 1867. As an adult, he became a marine engineer, and in 1887, became president of the Marine Engineers Beneficial Association – a position he held until his death the following year.
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Some Sources & Further Reading
History Halls – Young Warriors: John Lincoln Clem, the US Army’s Youngest Sergeant
National Museum of the United States Navy – Powder Monkeys and the American Civil War
United States Navy Memorial – Aspinwall Fuller
