This sword was directly custom ordered for Major Strong from C. Roby & Co., the manufacturer, as is clearly shown by the inclusion of Strong's name among the distinct original etching. It has "C. Roby & Co/W. Chelmsford/Mass" and "Maj. Geo. C. Strong" among the patriotic and floral designs etched on the left side of the 31 1/4 inch lightly curved blade, "USA" among the etching on the right, a gilt brass hilt with "US" on the pierced guard along with floral patterns, a wire wrapped rayskin grip, a gilt sword knot fitted to the knuckle guard, and a steel scabbard with gilt brass fittings and "C. ROBY & CO./W. CHELMSFORD MASS." marking at the throat. Major General George Crockett Strong (1833-1863) was born in Vermont and lost his father when he was just 8 and was cared for by his uncle Alfred Strong. He was a member of the Class of 1857 at West Point where he was first captain of the cadets for three years. He is believed to be the author of "Cadet Life at West Point by an Officer of the United States Army." The majority of his class later fought for the Confederacy. After graduating 5th in his class, he was placed in command of the Bridesburg Arsenal and then transferred to Fortress Monroe, then Mount Vernon, Alabama, and finally Watervliet Arsenal before the outbreak of the Civil War. The sword would have been presented between October 1, 1861, when he was promoted to major and November 11, 1862, when he was promoted to Brigadier General. He requested active service after the firing on Fort Sumter and served on General McDowell's staff during the First Battle of Bull Run. He then served on General McClellan's staff briefly before being reassigned as an ordnance officer in the Department of the Gulf. He commanded expeditions against Biloxi and Ponchatoula. He was promoted to brigadier general of volunteers in November 1862. On July 10, 1863, he led the assault during the First Battle of Fort Wagner in Charleston Harbor, and his men secured the batteries and moved within three miles of the fort. He stripped his boots off during the battle when they filled with water and led the charge in his socks. He is report described the battle as follows: "The two columns now moved forward, under a lively discharge of shell, grape, and canister, converging toward the works nearest the southern extremity of the island, and thence along its commanding ridge and eastern coast, capturing successively the eight batteries, of one heavy gun each, occupying the commanding points of that ridge, besides two batteries, mounting, together, three 10-inch seacoast mortars." The next day, they launched another attack at dawn but were repulsed. Union forces suffered 339 casualties. For the Second Battle of Fort Wagner just one week later, he was again in command of an assault force and was gravely wounded in the thigh by cannister shot while leading his men and subsequently died from tetanus infection on July 30, 1863, in New York City. He was posthumously commissioned as a major general with rank dated from July 18, 1863. His son, Wilson Budd Strong, also went on to be a military officer. Strong is featured in the popular Civil War film "Glory" (1989) about Colonel Robert Gould Shaw and the 54th Massachusetts Colored Regiment. Shaw and many of his men also famously gave their lives at Fort Wagner as did acting Brigadier General Haldimand S. Putnam who graduated with Strong in the Class of 1857. Union forces suffered 1,515 casualties that day as a result of the battle and failed to secure the fort which was then shelled for sixty days until the Confederates finally abandoned the position on September 7, 1863.