Charles Bradley was born in the early 1820s in New Brunswick, Canada. He eventually immigrated to America and settled in Maine.
He enlisted in the Union army, and he mustered in as a private in the 3rd Maine Infantry. Union officials transferred him to the 17th Maine Infantry in September 1863 and then to the 1st Maine Heavy Artillery. He probably mustered out in September 1865.
He returned to Maine after the war. In May 1887, he was admitted to the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers in Togus, Maine. He applied for a federal pension in August 1890 and eventually received one. He died of pulmonary tuberculosis on October 28, 1896.