Voices of the Buffalo Soldier: Records, Reports, and Recollections of Military Life and Service in the West

by Frank N. Schubert

Overview

The Buffalo Soldiers were African Americans who served in the Regular Army between the Civil War and World War I and fought in some of the most difficult wars against western Indians. Examining their military service, their social lives, and their interactions with western civilian communities, it uses the words of the soldiers themselves and of contemporary observers, some friendly and some not.

Voices of the Buffalo Soldier draws on a wide variety of periodicals, military records, and letters. It covers such key topics as the legislative origin of the inclusion of black soldiers in the army, the campaigns in which the Buffalo Soldiers fought, their daily lives and interactions with white communities, the few black chaplains and line officers who were permitted to serve, and the bravery of some Buffalo Soldier heroes. All students of the frontier army as well as aficionados with a special interest in the Buffalo Soldiers will find this an invaluable publication.

"The first work that presents the correspondence and their primary documents pertaining to black soldiers' lives in the West."—Quintard Taylor, University of Washington

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780826323101
Publisher:	University of New Mexico Press
Publication date:	01/16/2009
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	296
Sales rank:	722,015
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Frank N. Schubert is a graduate of Howard University. He has been researching and writing on the black military experience in the West for more than thirty years. Schubert retired as a historian in the Office of the Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff. He divides his time between Mount Vernon, Virginia, and Gyor, Hungary.

Table of Contents

ContentsIllustrations
Maps
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1: A new kind of soldier for the post-Civil War Regular Army
Chapter 2: First skirmishes with Plains tribes
Chapter 3: The 10th Cavalry in the summer of 1867: first battles and first casualty
Chapter 4: Sergeant Shelvin Shropshire's observations on service in Kansas
Chapter 5: The battle at Beecher Island, September 1878
Chapter 6: The 9th Cavalry in Texas: mutiny at San Pedro Springs, Texas, April 1867
Chapter 7: William Cathay/Cathay Williams: a woman in the 38th Infantry
Chapter 8: Sergeant Emanuel Stance and the Medal of Honor
Chapter 9: Recollections of active service in Texas, by Sergeant Jacob Wilks, 9th Cavalry
Chapter 10: The earliest known documented use of the name "Buffalo Soldiers"
Chapter 11: Two old soldiers recall their youth and service in the 25th Infantry, 1870-1880
Chapter 12: Captain J. Lee Humfreville's court-martial conviction, 1874
Chapter 13: A resolution of mourning
Chapter 14: Perry Hayman's recollections of service with the 10th Cavalry
Chapter 15: Lieutenant John Lapham Bullis's report on the heroic behavior of four Seminole-Negro scouts
Chapter 16: Sergeant John Marshall of the 10th Cavalry reports on a scout from Fort Concho, Texas
Chapter 17: Destroying Indian villages
Chapter 18: Borderland operations: cattle thieves and civil authorities
Chapter 19: Borderland operations: depredations and refuge
Chapter 20: A chaplain's report: discipline, morals, and education
Chapter 21: Lieutenant Henry Flipper's competence, character, and treatment by other officers
Chapter 22: Complaint about discrimination in selection of sergeants to noncommissioned staff positions
Chapter 23: Colonel George F. Hamilton's chronology of the 9th Cavalry during the campaign against Victorio
Chapter 24: Lieutenant George R. Burnett's account of a firefight between the 9th Cavalry and Nana's band in August 1881
Chapter 25: The 10th Cavalry in the campaign against Victorio
Chapter 26: Colonel George Andrews pleads for a change of station for the 25th Infantry
Chapter 27: A borderland love triangle: white officer, black soldier, and Latino woman
Chapter 28: Encounter with racism: the 10th Cavalry at San Angelo, Texas
Chapter 29: A soldier's love letters
Chapter 30: John Howerton's escape from slavery
Chapter 31: Moses Green's court-martial, Fort Reno, Indian Territory, 1883
Chapter 32: Statement by Private Edward Hamilton, Troop C, 9th Cavalry
Chapter 33: Lieutenant Powhattan H. Clarke and the rescue of Corporal Edward Scott
Chapter 34: Fifteen hard years: Sergeant John Casey's service in the 10th Cavalry
Chapter 35: 24th Infantry soldiers censure some of their own
Chapter 36: Don Rickey's notes on interviews with Simpson Mann
Chapter 37: Protecting the payroll
Chapter 38: William Wilson, courage under fire, and desertion
Chapter 39: The poetry of Private W. H. Prather of I Troop, 9th Cavalry
Chapter 40: Chaplain Theophilus G. Steward on his relationship with the regimental commander
Chapter 41: The Suggs affray, June 1892
Chapter 42: Chaplain Henry V. Plummer on life at Fort Robinson and his religious and educational duties
Chapter 43: Sergeant Barney McKay and "500 Soldiers with the Bullet or Torch"
Chapter 44: Recollections of a recruit
Chapter 45: A 24th Infantry masquerade ball
Chapter 46: The death of Lieutenant John Hanks Alexander
Chapter 47: A matter of complexion
Chapter 48: Chaplain Allen Allensworth and the post school
Chapter 49: A "glorious calling"
Chapter 50: Chaplain George Prioleau on a segregated railroad car through Texas
Chapter 51: Benjamin O. Davis qualifies for a commission in the Army
Chapter 52: Differing views of garrison life at the turn of the century
Chapter 53: The names of a soldier
Chapter 54: Mary Church Terrell, "A Sketch of Mingo Saunders"
Chapter 55: The racial climate in Brownsville, Texas, after the shooting incident
Chapter 56: Charles Young and African American heritage
Chapter 57: Violet Cragg's pension request
Chapter 58: Enduring patriotism
Chapter 59: An Army widow's lot
Chapter 60: From Buffalo Soldiers to clergymen
Notes
Index

Editorial Reviews

"Voices of the Buffalo Soldier," is a result of painstaking efforts to uncover firsthand accounts of black troops serving in the West. Ranging from court-martial records to a love letter, Schubert's selections push aside shadows to reveal a complex, personal and diverse picture. . . . Schubert once more deserves accolades for expanding the historiography of African Americans in the U.S. Armed Forces."

"Voices of the Buffalo Soldier" is a superb collection of documents that not only illuminates the lives of these soldiers, but also helps us to understand the obstacles they faced and the challenges they met. It is a valuable reference and well worth the read."

"Voices of the Buffalo Soldier" will certainly be a welcome addition to the libraries of those who are interested in the history of the black regulars. Other history aficionados may also find the documents well worth a look, because, as Dr. Schubert so accurately points out: 'These are not just black voices; they are American voices.'"

"[Schubert's] well-written introductions are informative, yet succinct. With "Voices of the Buffalo Soldier," Schubert has made another worthy contribution to the subject."

"Although military historians will certainly appreciate this book, it will also appeal to a wider audience in search of authentic western experiences. It is a welcome addition."

"Honest, detailed letters of black infantry soldiers and line officers show these men served their country with extreme courage in an often racist atmosphere. From the court-martial of Lt. Henry Flipper to the murder of Private Hiram Pinder, the men served with dignity, not to mention great restraint. Schubert has possibly written the finest work on the history of the buffalo soldiers."

"Meticulously researched and documented, this book is a gem of first-hand information that draws the reader into the time and place."

"No one has contributed more to knowledge of the buffalo soldier and his role in the frontier army than Frank Schubert. Gathering nearly one hundred telling documents in this volume, the author offers readers a peek into the daily lives and career of these ordinary individuals who performed extraordinary service for their country."

"Schubert, an established authority on the black military experience on the plains frontier, enhances his reputation and contributes to the literature with this anthology of documents covering every aspect of the Buffalo Soldiers' military service, their daily lives, and their interaction with white military and civilian communities."

"Well organized and expertly annotated, Schubert's collection of documents belongs on the shelf of every western and military historian, and, most especially, students of African American history. It provides scholars and western buffs with carefully selected documents for further research and reflection."

From the Publisher