U.S. Colored Troops Active at Fort Fisher

Franklin K. Larabee, 1st lieutenant, U.S. Army, was born in 1828 in Ashtabula Ohio. In June of 1861 he enlisted for two years in the 23rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Franklin re‐enlisted in 1863 as a 2nd lieutenant in the 27th United States Colored Troops in Ohio and was in charge of his company at the Battle of the Crater on June 30, 1864. He moved with the 25th Corps to Fort Fisher on January 12, 1865, where the 27th USCT was involved in mop‐up operations during the battle. The 27th USCT moved to Wilmington on February 22, 1865, and participated in the takeover of the city. Franklin was present during the exchange of prisoners at Castle Hayne, then proceeded to Goldsboro and Raleigh, where he was promoted to captain. In late spring of 1865, Franklin was designated Superintendent of Sanitary Operations in Wilmington, a position he held until July of 1865. Franklin mustered out with his company on September 12, 1865, in Smithville, taking the train north to home. After the war, he was a farmer and carpenter. He moved his family to Atlanta, perhaps to find construction work. His daughter, Ruth, married a Southern man, Thomas Wynne. Franklin died in 1907 and is buried in Kansas City.