Saturday, January 25, 2025, 8:28PM |  35°
MENU
Advertisement

Let's Learn From the Past: U.S. Colored Troops

Let's Learn From the Past: U.S. Colored Troops

As next year's 150th anniversary of the Civil War approaches, a new focus is being placed on African-American soldiers during the Civil War, a group who not only fought for their country, but also to defeat slavery.

African-Americans were prohibited from serving in the U.S. military for the first two years of the Civil War, but the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863 called for them to be enlisted to fight for the Union Army. With that order, more than 180,000 free African-Americans and runaway slaves, including 8,000 from Pennsylvania, formed a force known as the U.S. Colored Troops.

One of the USCT's most respected soldiers was Pittsburgh native Martin Delany, an Abolitionist and the first African-American field officer in the U.S. Army. He attended Jefferson College (now Washington & Jefferson) and was a doctor, a journalist and an outspoken voice against slavery before joining the army.

Advertisement

With leaders like him, the USCT became a critical force for the Union's efforts, comprising 10 percent of the entire Union Army by the time the Civil War ended.

After the Union Army defeated the Confederates in 1865, thousands of these soldiers marched proudly in uniform down the streets of Harrisburg, in what would be known as the Pennsylvania Grand Review. The celebration was held in spite of the more famous Grand Review of Armies in Washington, D.C., which did not allow the USCT to participate.

Nearly 150 years later, the Pennsylvania Grand Review was re-enacted in Harrisburg last weekend, kicking off a series of commemoration events to mark the anniversary of the Civil War in Pennsylvania.

This Veterans Day weekend, Pittsburghers can join the History Center in honoring more than 200 of Western Pennsylvania's USCT buried at Allegheny Cemetery, as part of a wreath-laying ceremony at 1:30 p.m. Sunday in Lawrenceville.

Advertisement

More information is available at www.heinzhistorycenter.org.

First Published: November 12, 2010, 5:00 a.m.

RELATED
Comments Disabled For This Story
Partners
Advertisement
Around 450,000 Pennsylvanians enrolled in Affordable Care Act health insurance plans this year, but credits expire at the end of 2025, which will mean dramatic premium hikes in 2026 unless Congress votes for an extension.
1
business
Crunch time: 450K Pennsylvanians with Obamacare could see dramatic spikes in health care costs
Bill Sunseri, president of Pennsylvania Macaroni Co., stands in his family’s store on Jan. 6 in the Strip District.
2
life
Pennsylvania Macaroni Co. has a new full owner at the helm
Pittsburgh Penguins' Owen Pickering celebrates as he returns to the bench after scoring during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024, in Pittsburgh.
3
sports
Penguins send defenseman Owen Pickering back to AHL and promote forward Boko Imama
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, middle, sits between assistant secondary coach Anthony Midget, left, and secondary coach Grady Brown, right, before taking on the Eagles Dec. 15, 2024, at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
4
sports
How does Steelers coaching staff compare to NFL's best? Lean, broadly defined and working double time
Texas A&M's Shemar Stewart (4) runs off the field during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Auburn, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024, in Auburn, Ala.
5
sports
Ray Fittipaldo's first 7-round Steelers mock draft: Deep DL class too enticing?
Advertisement
LATEST life
Advertisement
TOP
Email a Story