“I'm just a Buffalo Soldier
In the heart of America
Stolen from Africa, brought to America
Said he was fighting on arrival
Fighting for survival
Said he was a Buffalo Soldier
Win the war for America”
Many of us know the words to the Bob Marley song, Buffalo Soldier, but how many know the history behind the words?
African Americans have served in every American war and have included former slaves, freemen, and Civil War veterans. The origins of Buffalo Soldiers begin with African Americans serving in the U.S. military beginning in the Civil War. Buffalo Soldiers also participated in: The Spanish American War, The Philippine Insurrection, The Mexican Expedition, World War I, World War II, and the Korean War. Over time, the Buffalo Soldiers would include the first black graduate of West Point, 23 Medal of Honor recipients, and one woman disguised as a man. It was not the low pay of $13 a month that attracted recruits but the possibility that they would be treated with more dignity in a uniform.
Non-commissioned officers from Troop L of the 9th Cavalry, or “Buffalo Soldiers,” are shown at Ft. Wingate, N.M., in 1899. Photo by Imperial Photo Gallery, courtesy of the Palace of the Governors Photo Archives, Neg. No. 098373.
Congress originally established six all-Black regiments for the rebuilding effort after the Civil War to participate in the “Indian Wars” on the Western frontier. The 10th Cavalry from this group was given the nickname of “Buffalo Soldier” given to them by the native Americans who allegedly thought the African American hair resembled the coat of a buffalo. The white man interpreted the revere of the buffalo by the Native Americans as being the same level of respect they had for the soldiers because of the fiercenessand fighting ability. The latter explanation is most likely myth. There is no evidence to date that the soldiers used the name to refer to themselves in Black newspapers, pension files, letters, or other places. The 10th Cavalry’s crest did prominently display a bison, but it was designed and adopted in 1911 so it does not necessarily indicate acceptance of the name by the Black soldiers of the Indian-war period.
There has been controversy around the name “Buffalo Soldiers” from contemporary Native American leaders, including the issue of a U.S. Buffalo-Soldier postage stamp in 1994. The Native Americans have taken issue with the idea there was any respect or bond between their ancestors and the soldiers. An article appearing in Indian Country Today, stated that the Plains Indians only applied the term Buffalo Soldier to “these marauding murderous cavalry units” because of “their dark skin and texture of their hair.” On the flipside, there was not great respect for the Native Americans by the African American soldiers who used derogatory words, drew racists caricatures, and referred to them as “savages,” just as white people did. This should not be surprising since the two were pitted against each other in battle, each fighting for their own survival.
The Buffalo Soldiers were involved in blazing hazardous trails in the Westward expansion and were tasked with escorting settlers, cattle herds, and railroad crews. They were also utilized to fight and eliminate Native Americans from Montana to Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. The Buffalo Soldiers constituted about 20% of the battalions used during the “Indian Wars” and participated in over 177 engagements. Buffalo Soldiers participated in Native American battles including with the Cheyenne in Kansas after the Civil War, the brutal ten-year Apache war from the late 1870s to early 1880s, and the last major campaign on the Pine Ridge in South Dakota during 1890-1891. The Buffalo Soldiers received 18 Medals of Honor during their Western Campaigns.
Buffalo soldiers of the 25th Infantry at Fort Keogh, Montana, 1890. - Gladstone Collection/Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. (Digital File Number: cph 3g06161)
During the Civil War, more than 180,000 African Americans fought for the Union Army, 30,000 served in the Navy and 200,000 served as workers on labor, engineering, hospital, and other military support projects. More than 33,000 Buffalo soldiers made the ultimate sacrifice in the name of freedom and for their country. After the Civil War, soldiers who had served their country expected to be compensated with respect and freedom but, that didn’t happen.
After the Civil War with its mass casualties, the American military needed to replenish their troops. On July 28, 1866, the Army Reorganization Act authorized the formation of 30 new battalions including two cavalry and four infantry regiments with plans to fill these new positions with African Americans. About half of the Civil War veterans signed up for the new positions thinking they were now going to be considered “regular” troops and receive equal treatment to their white “peers”.
Buffalo Soldier regiments were stationed at Texas forts stretching from the Panhandle to the Valley. Major General William T. Sherman, commander of the 24th Infantry unit, reported to Congress in 1874 that it was probably a good idea to keep Buffalo Soldier troops in Texas because "that race can better stand the extreme southern climate than our white troops." That same year, the 9th and 10th Cavalries mounted up at Fort Griffin and rode into the now legendary Red River War with the southern Plains Indians (Comanche, Kiowa, southern Cheyenne, southern Arapaho). In 1880, they chased the notorious Apache Chief Victorio from Fort Davis across most of west Texas before forcing him into Mexico. In addition to protecting frontier settlements, all Buffalo Soldiers regiments surveyed and mapped the vast Texas plains, built and repaired dozens of forts, strung thousands of miles of telegraph lines, and escorted countless wagon trains, stagecoaches, railroad trains, and cattle herds across the southwest. (https://www.thestoryoftexas.com/discover/campfire-stories/buffalo-soldier)
Buffalo Soldier regiments charge up San Juan Hill, Cuba on July 1, 1898.
The war with Spain began after February 15, 1891 when over 250 American sailors were killed when their battleship Maine was blown up and sank in Havana Harbor. In April 1898, war was officially declared when Major General William Shafter, a former commander of the 24th Infantry of Buffalo Soldiers led an expeditionary force of over 17,000 men, including nearly 3,000 Black regulars into Cuba. Although the war was fought under the premise of liberating the Caribbean and Philippine islanders from Spanish oppression, it presented a conflict for African Americans who were recognized at home as citizens in name only. There was systemic racism throughout the country with terrorism and murder against Southern Blacks. Additionally, the Army refuse to promote Black soldiers to officers.
Buffalo Soldiers also served as some of the first caretakers of the national parks between 1891 and 1913 while the U.S. Army served as the official administrator of some of the Western National Parks. Their duties included fighting wildfires, preventing wildlife poaching, ending illegal grazing of livestock on federal lands, and constructing roads, trail, and other infrastructure.
1899 Buffalo Soldiers - 24th Infantry. Photographer: Unknown
Although African Americans have served in every U.S. war, the military was not actually integrated until July 26, 1948, with Executive Order 9981 from President Harry Truman. This order created the President’s Committee on Equality of Treatment and Opportunity in the Armed Services and although Truman received plenty of pushback from citizens and politicians, he stood his ground. Truman’s order states, “It is hereby declared to be the policy of the President that there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion or national origin. This policy shall be put into effect as rapidly as possible, having due regard to the time required to effectuate any necessary changes without impairing efficiency or morale.”
The Air Force under W. Stuart Symington, who supported the order fully, was the first military branch to fully integrate. By December 1949, the Air Force reported their integrated units had doubled between June and August of 1949. Ebony magazine reported the action taken by the Air Forces was the “swiftest and most amazing upset of racial policy in the history of the U.S. military.” The Air Force continued to ignore the status quo and Jim Crow laws, and provided integrated housing, schools, stores, and recreation facilities, not just for the airmen but also for their families. Unfortunately, discrimination continued among the ranks with most enlisted Black navy men kept as stewards and messmen. Wesley A. Brown became the first African American in 1949 to graduate from the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland and he became the first Black officer in the Navy.
Buffalo Soldiers in the Korean War (Photo Credit: U.S. Army)
While the Navy embraced the Executive Order 9981, the army and marines resisted. Black Marines were trained in segregated facilities at Montfort Point in North Carolina. In 1947, these soldiers were given the choice of staying enlisted at the steward level or retiring. Integrated training did not begin until 1949 and units did not begin integrating until 1952 when the Marines needed to offset troop reduction from the Korean War.
The Army brass felt that integrated units would lead to a decline in national security. They began integration in March of 1950, but the last segregated army units were not integrated until 1954. There had been a cap on the number of enlisted African American soldiers at 10 percent that was abolished in 1950 under the guise that positions would be filled based on “qualifications and not race.” The reason the Army finally relented was because the U.S. was on the cusp of the Korean War. On October 1, 1951, the Buffalo Soldiers were officially dissolved as their own regiments and were integrated into standard units. For those who don’t know Bob Marley’s song, the lyrics are below and the song can be heard on Youtube at
Cited Resources
https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/myth-buffalo-soldiers/
https://www.buffalosoldierstacoma.org/
https://www.buffalosoldiermuseum.com/who-are-the-buffalo-soldiers/
https://www.nps.gov/search/?affiliate=nps&query=buffalo+soldier&sitelimit=%2F
https://www.thestoryoftexas.com/discover/campfire-stories/buffalo-soldier