Buffalo Soldier
African-American regiments were sanctioned following the Civil War by the Army Reorganization Act. This year marks the 150th since their formation.
John Randall, a black soldier in the 10th Cavalry, went on a routine mission in 1867 that turned into a disaster. Despite debate over the veracity of the story, it would forever leave a legacy for African Americans in the United States military. The private was sent out to escort two civilian hunters. Cheyenne warriors attacked, killing the hunters and Randall’s horse. Alone, he defended himself bravely. Despite suffering severe wounds, Randall killed 13 of his attackers and survived until another patrol arrived, sending the remaining Cheyenne fighters fleeing. The Cheyenne reportedly described battling Randall as like fighting a cornered buffalo that had suffered wound after wound and still lived. They also pointed to Randall’s thick and curly black hair, comparing it to the mane of a buffalo. From then on, black soldiers in the military were known as “Buffalo Soldiers.”
Though they are no longer official units, the legacy of the Buffalo Soldiers lives on in the many memorials across the nation. Some of the best are here in Texas. The Buffalo Soldiers National Museum in Houston is home to artifacts from the Civil War, World War II and other eras of the captivating history of the Buffalo Soldiers. From July 25-30, the museum and the Greater Houston Chapter of the 9th and 10th (Horse) Cavalry Association will be celebrating the 150th anniversary of the first Buffalo Soldiers. The week of events includes history lessons, events for kids, and a theatrical production and will be capped off with a Saturday parade and banquet.
LEFT Sancho Mazique served at Fort Concho. RIGHT Buffalo Soldier looking across the Concho River.
The week commemorates the passage of the Army Reorganization Act on July 28, 1866. This act authorized the formation of regiments “to be composed of colored men.” Two cavalry and four infantry regiments were added to the U.S. Army, and black men were offered an opportunity for social and economic advancement. Those who enlisted earned $13 per month and were provided food, clothing and shelter. Chaplains taught the men how to read and write. Although recruits came from a variety of backgrounds, and many were Civil War veterans, the black regiments served only west of the Mississippi and were commanded by white officers.
Prior to the Civil War, whether as slaves or freedmen, African Americans served in the military during conflicts, but they couldn’t serve as soldiers in peacetime. There were fears that training and arming blacks would result in uprisings. A 1715 letter written by a group of North Carolinian merchants warned that “there must be a great caution used lest our slaves might become our masters.”
The Civil War and its aftermath erased the peacetime limitations on black troops. The Union forces recruited black soldiers, especially from the South. Any southern slave who made his way to the North would be given a uniform and a rifle. Frederick Douglass wrote that if the U.S. would let any black man “get an eagle on his button, and a musket on his shoulder and bullets in his pocket, there is no power on Earth that can deny that he has earned the right to citizenship.” The United States Colored Troops, regiments composed primarily of black soldiers, was created during the Civil War. By the end of the war, 10 percent of the Union Army was African American; 180,000 volunteered. Once the war ended, though, the military downsized and the USCT was disbanded. The Army Reorganization Act established the Buffalo Soldier regiments that replaced it.
New generations visit with Buffalo Soldiers at living history events. Photos courtesy Fort Concho National Historic Landmark.
TPWD BUFFALO SOLDIERS CELEBRATE 20 YEARS
Twenty years ago, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department established a Buffalo Soldier program so that volunteers could help share this piece of Texas history. These Buffalo Soldiers are a group of reenactors who represent the original soldiers, performing in Texas state parks and encouraging outdoor skills and recreation. They conduct hands-on interpretive activities that center around the daily lives of soldiers and civilians on the Texas Frontier during the late 1800s. Activities typically include animal tracking lessons, cane pole fishing, a frontier baseball game, Buffalo Soldier and Native American history lessons, a cooking camp and more.
Among the Buffalo Soldiers was an infantryman who went by the name William Cathay and was otherwise unremarkable but for one thing: Cathay was actually Cathay Williams, a black woman from Missouri. She posed as a man to enlist in the 38th Infantry and served for over two years before being discovered by a surgeon and subsequently discharged. Her bold action made her the first African-American woman to enlist in the United States military.
Buffalo Soldiers played a major role in the taming of the frontier and the development of Texas and the American West. Their job was to maintain law and order by guarding travel routes and escorting cattle herds, surveying parties and railroad crews. They were called upon to deal with cattle rustlers, horse thieves and outlaws. As they explored, the Buffalo Soldiers mapped huge areas of previously unknown territory. Along the way, they built roads and strung telephone lines.
This work was often deadly. The 9th Cavalry were the first black soldiers to experience combat in the West. In December 1867, as Sergeant Jacob Wilks led 12 men on a mail run, they were attacked by over 100 Apaches. “We were on an open plain without any protection,” Wilks recalled. One of the men was killed. When night fell, Wilks led his remaining men away, praying they wouldn’t be ambushed. They encountered a mule train full of army supplies, led by a man named Naile. Wilks warned him that Apaches were still nearby, but before they could leave the area, the Apaches returned. After the attack was successfully repelled, Naile turned to Wilks and said, “Sergeant, you just saved my train.”
Wilks’ battle was just the first of many. Not all had such fortunate outcomes. From 1866 to the early 1890s, Buffalo Soldier units served at a variety of posts in Texas, the Southwest and the Great Plains. Records indicate that approximately 5,000 black soldiers, comprising 10 percent of the U.S. Army, served on America’s frontier from 1866 to 1891. Gaps in the Army’s records make determination of the number of casualties impossible.
Following the Indian War era, Buffalo Soldiers served in the Spanish-American War, Philippine Insurrection, Mexican Punitive Expedition, World War I, World War II and the Korean War. In the mid-1950s, the last of the African-American units was finally desegregated. President Harry S. Truman issued an executive order on July 26, 1948, that declared “there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion or national origin.” The last segregated regiment to engage in combat was the 24th Infantry Regiment during the Korean War. It was disbanded in October 1951. The 27th and 28th Cavalry Regiments — considered the last Buffalo Soldier units — were disbanded on December 12, 1951.
