The Bureau of Colored Troops was created by the United States War Department on May 22, 1863, under General Order No. 143, during the Civil War, to handle "all matters relating to the organization of colored troops." Major Charles Warren Foster was chief of the Bureau, which reported to Adjutant General Lorenzo Thomas. The designation United States Colored Troops replaced the varied state titles that had been given to the African-American soldiers. [1] [2]
The first official authorization to employ African Americans in federal service was the Second Confiscation and Militia Act of July 17, 1862. This act allowed President Abraham Lincoln to receive into the military service persons of African descent and gave permission to use them for any purpose "he may judge best for the public welfare." However, the President did not authorize use of African Americans in combat until issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863: "And I further declare and make known, that such persons of suitable condition, will be received into the armed service of the United States to garrison forts, positions, stations, and other places, and to man vessels of all sorts in said service." With these words the Union army changed. [3]
During the American Civil War, in mid-1863, the administrative load became so burdensome that the War Department decided to create a single entity under the umbrella of the Adjutant General's Office, called the Bureau of Colored Troops, to manage its affairs. Headed by Major Charles Warren Foster, the bureau was to systematize the process of raising black units and securing officers for them. It also served as a clearinghouse of information on these units. Over the course of the next year, the War Department began to change the names of black commands. Instead of state designations, they became United States Colored Troops, and the various units became United States Colored Infantry, Artillery, or Cavalry. [4]
The Bureau of Colored Troops brought efficiency to the USCT regiments, but not always equitable treatment. Despite objections from black leaders, the Bureau insisted on assigning only white men to commissioned officer positions. Although a small number of black soldiers received commissions by the end of the war—including the Virginia-born Martin R. Delany—and many served as non commissioned officers, the USCT remained primarily an organization led by whites. Officials in the army and in the government also initially assumed that black regiments would rarely, if ever, be used in combat. As a result, black soldiers endured a disproportionate share of labor duty. Also the assumption that black soldiers were workers, not fighters, led to inequities in pay. It was initially indicated that black soldiers would be paid $13 per month, which was the wage that white soldiers received. But in the Militia Act of 1862, Congress set the pay for black soldiers at $10 per month, $3 of which could be in clothing, which was the rate for military laborers. Black soldiers were also often denied recruitment bounties routinely offered to white soldiers, and were rarely eligible to collect aid for dependents, a benefit that state legislation often made available to white men serving in the ranks. [5]
After the Emancipation Proclamation was announced, black recruitment was pursued in earnest. Volunteers from South Carolina, Tennessee, and Massachusetts filled the first authorized black regiments. However recruitment was slow until the support of prominent figures of African American cultures such as Frederick Douglass and Martin Delany. Martin Delany was commissioned as a major, the first African-American field officer in the United States Army during the American Civil War and was active in recruiting blacks for the United States Colored Troops. Frederick Douglass, on the other hand, encouraged black men to become soldiers to ensure eventual full citizenship. Volunteers began to respond, and in May 1863 the Government established the Bureau of Colored Troops to manage the burgeoning numbers of black soldiers. [6]
| Predecessors |  | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Original units | |||||||||||
| Medal of Honor recipients (1866–1918) |
| ||||||||||
| Notable battles (1866–1918) |
| ||||||||||
| See also | |||||||||||
The 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that saw extensive service in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The unit was the second African-American regiment, following the 1st Kansas Colored Volunteer Infantry Regiment, organized in the Northern states during the Civil War. Authorized by the Emancipation Proclamation, the regiment consisted of African-American enlisted men commanded by white officers. The 54th Massachusetts was a major force in the pioneering of African American civil war regiments, with 150 all black regiments being raised after the raising of the 54th Massachusetts.
United States Colored Troops (USCT) were Union Army regiments during the American Civil War that primarily comprised African Americans, with soldiers from other ethnic groups also serving in USCT units. Established in response to a demand for more units from Union Army commanders, USCT regiments, which numbered 175 in total by the end of the war in 1865, constituted about one-tenth of the manpower of the army, according to historian Kelly Mezurek, author of For Their Own Cause: The 27th United States Colored Troops. "They served in infantry, artillery, and cavalry." Approximately 20 percent of USCT soldiers were killed in action or died of disease and other causes, a rate about 35 percent higher than that of white Union troops. Numerous USCT soldiers fought with distinction, with 16 receiving the Medal of Honor. The USCT regiments were precursors to the Buffalo Soldier units which fought in the American Indian Wars.
The African American Civil War Memorial Museum, in the U Street district of Washington, D.C., recognizes the contributions of the 209,145 members of the United States Colored Troops (USCT). The eponymous memorial, dedicated in July 1998 by the African American Civil War Memorial Freedom Foundation, commemorates the service of 209,145 African-American soldiers and about 7,000 white and 2,145 Hispanic soldiers, together with the approximate 20,000 unsegregated Navy sailors, who fought for the Union in the American Civil War, mostly among the 175 regiments of United States Colored Troops.
The 1st South Carolina Volunteer Infantry Regiment (Colored) was a Union Army regiment during the American Civil War, formed by General Rufus Saxton. It was composed of Gullah Geechee recruits and escaped slaves from South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. The 1st SC Volunteer Infantry black regiment was formed in 1862 and became the 33rd United States Colored Troops Regiment in February of 1864. It has the distinction of being the first black regiment to fight in the Civil War at the Skirmish at Spaulding's on the Sapelo River GA. It was one of the first black regiments in the Union Army.
The 28th United States Colored Infantry, also called the 28th Indiana Infantry (Colored),1 was an African American infantry regiment from the state of Indiana that fought in the American Civil War.
Camp William Penn was a Union Army training camp located in Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania from 1863 to 1865 during the American Civil War. The camp was notable for being the first training ground dedicated to African American troops who enlisted in the Union Army during the Civil War. Some 11,000 free blacks and escaped slaves were trained here, including 8,612 from Pennsylvania, the most black troops recruited during the war from any northern state. It was the largest training camp for African American soldiers.
The 38th United States Colored Infantry Regiment was an African American unit of the Union Army during the American Civil War. A part of the United States Colored Troops, the regiment saw action in Virginia during the war and later served on the Texas frontier.
The 9th Louisiana Infantry (African Descent), later reorganized as 1st Mississippi Colored Heavy Artillery and then renamed 5th U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery, was an African-American regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It famously fought in the Battle of Milliken's Bend; one of the earliest Civil War battles with African-American troops involved.
Alonzo Granville Draper was a volunteer officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War who eventually earned the grade of brevet brigadier general. During his early career, Draper was an outspoken advocate of various social causes, particularly worker's rights. As an officer during the Civil War, Draper was best known as the commander of the 36th United States Colored Troops.
Company "A", Pennsylvania (Colored) Infantry was a United States Colored Troops unit briefly formed during the Civil War in the Union Army. The unit was organized at Camp William Penn, Pennsylvania on July 28, 1864 It was named for its commander, Captain Converse Southard. The unit was disbanded November 14, 1864 at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and its remaining members sent to reinforce existing U.S.C.T. regiments.
The 46th United States Colored Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The unit was originally designated as the 1st Arkansas Infantry Regiment. The regiment was composed of African American enlisted men commanded by white officers and was authorized by the Bureau of Colored Troops which was created by the United States War Department on May 22, 1863.
The 54th United States Colored Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The regiment was composed of African American enlisted men commanded by white officers and was authorized by the Bureau of Colored Troops which was created by the United States War Department on May 22, 1863.
The 11th United States Colored Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The regiment was composed of African American enlisted men commanded by white officers and was authorized by the Bureau of Colored Troops which was created by the United States War Department on May 22, 1863.
The 51st United States Colored Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment composed of African-American troops recruited from Mississippi that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Initially formed in the spring of 1863 as the 1st Regiment Mississippi Volunteer Infantry (African Descent), the Regiment took part in fierce fighting at the Battle of Milliken's Bend, served on garrison duty in Louisiana, and then took part in the Battle of Fort Blakely, the last major battle of the war.
The 41st United States Colored Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The regiment was composed almost entirely of African American enlisted men and commanded by white officers. The regiment was authorized by the Bureau of Colored Troops which was created by the United States War Department on May 22, 1863. The regiment engaged in the Siege of Petersburg and Appomattox Campaign and was present at the unconditional surrender of Confederate General Robert E. Lee and the Army of Northern Virginia at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865.
The 55th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment was the sister regiment of the renowned Massachusetts 54th Volunteers during the latter half of the American Civil War. The enactment of the Emancipation Proclamation by United States President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863 opened the way for the enlistment of free men of color and newly liberated slaves to fight for their freedom within the Union Army. As the ranks of the 54th Massachusetts quickly reached its full complement of recruits, an overflow of colored volunteers continued to pour in from several other states outside Massachusetts — many of whom simply had not arrived in time — prompting Governor John Albion Andrew to authorize yet another regiment of colored soldiers sponsored by the Commonwealth. Lieutenant Colonel Norwood P. Hallowell of the 54th Massachusetts was promoted to colonel and appointed commander of the 55th Massachusetts on May 30, 1863. Five companies of the 55th Massachusetts were mustered into service on May 31; two more companies were mustered in on June 15; and the last three on June 22.
William Gould (W.G.) Raymond (1819–1893), a pastor, chaplain and American soldier in the Union Army during the American Civil War, played a prominent role in the initial recruitment of the first federal African American regiments of the Union Army. In the period between the Emancipation Proclamation and the establishment of the Bureau of Colored Troops in 1863, Raymond, along with J.D. Turner, received authorization from President Abraham Lincoln to recruit and command the first federal African-American Union Army troops from the District of Columbia. Prior to this, African-American troops were raised at the state level only, without the direct authorization of Lincoln. The troops recruited by Raymond and Turner would become the 1st United States Colored Infantry Regiment and the first regiment of the United States Colored Troops (U.S.C.T), enduring threats and significant obstacles, but ultimately serving with distinction.
The 52nd United States Colored Infantry was an infantry regiment composed of African-American troops recruited from Mississippi that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. On July 4, 1864, the 52nd Colored Infantry fought a battle at Coleman's Plantation in Jefferson County, Mississippi. This engagement is notable as it is most likely the first time that Black soldiers from Mississippi fought against white Confederates from the same state.
The 58th United States Colored Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Originally organized as the 6th Mississippi Infantry (African Descent) on August 27, 1863, the regiment was redesignated as the 58th USCT Infantry on March 11, 1864. The regiment was composed of African American enlisted men from Mississippi commanded by white officers.
Charles Warren Foster was an American soldier and military officer. He first served as an enlisted engineer and NCO in the United States Army during the Mexican–American War and then as a commissioned officer in the American Civil War. In the latter he notably headed the Bureau of Colored Troops, managing the recruitment and organization of African-American units for the Union Army.