Kentucky USCT
"Willis Daughterty's New Grave Marker." Credit: MCHE
Though technically a "border state" in the American Civil War, meaning Kentucky provided troops to both sides of the conflict, the Commonwealth was key to United States Colored Troops. In fact, per National Kentucky African Americans Database, or NKAA, from 1863 (the Emancipation Proclamation) to 1865 (the surrender at Appomattox), twenty-three volunteer regiments would be formed in Kentucky.
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The state of Kentucky had over 24,000 African Americans serve in the military during the Civil War, a representation of "nearly one-third of the total number of Union soldiers from the state" (Talbott, n.d.). Besides Louisiana, Kentucky alone provided more USCT than any other state (Talbott, n.d.). NKAA notes that, of the USCT who enlisted, 13% were from the Commonwealth. Tim Talbott of the Kentucky Historical Society points out that the number of USCT enlistments from the state—already large—could have been even more staggering if Black males were able to enlist sooner. What is more, since Kentucky's "38,645 slaveholders outnumbered those of Maryland and Missouri combined," there were more enslaved Black men to bear arms for the Union than most states had (Dobak, 2011).
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Another reason why USCT enlistments were so high in Kentucky? Camp Nelson. The camp, located in Jessamine County, "had an important role in supplying the U.S. Army, caring for the sick and wounded and acting as an enlistment station for African-American soldiers" (Veterans Affairs, 2019). Established in 1863, Camp Nelson was useful for its shops that allowed blacksmith work and wagon construction to continue, as well as because supplies and even artillery equipment could be stored at the camp (Veterans Affairs, 2019). Per Veterans Affairs, "Camp Nelson included barracks, headquarters buildings and a 700-bed hospital. There were three types of medical facilities on the post: a hospital for military prisoners; an acute general hospital; and the rehabilitation unit."
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Arguably Camp Nelson's most important work, though, is that it was a recruitment center for USCT. Having a space dedicated largely to the recruitment of Black troops probably encouraged enlistments among African American males, resulting in high Black enlistment rates in Kentucky. In fact, "Almost half of the United States Colored Troops (USCT) who enlisted from Kentucky were recruited, trained, and placed in infantry, artillery, and cavalry units at Camp Nelson..." (Talbott, n.d.).
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USCT who enlisted at Camp Nelson would go on to see action at vital engagements or participate in important campaigns during the Civil War. Talbott notes, "Many of those who trained at Camp Nelson saw combat at Saltville, Virginia, the 1864 Nashville Campaign, the Petersburg/Richmond Campaign, and the Wilmington, North Carolina Campaign." Even after the war ended, Camp Nelson would go on to help African Americans, some of whom could have enlisted at Camp Nelson or knew of someone who did. Per Veterans Affairs, "After the war, the base was designated an official refugee camp by the federal government and placed under the direction of the Freedmen’s Bureau."
"Camp Nelson National Monument." Credit: Visit Jessamine
Portion of a "Recruitment Broadside." Credit: National Archives
Unfortunately, after enlisting in the military, USCT did not receive the protection that the recruitment broadside (left) promised they would. USCT were especially susceptible to fraud, as "officers schemed to separate men from their enlistment bonuses or their pay by promising to bank the money or invest it in government bonds" (Dobak, 2011). Dobak goes on to note that these frauds were "especially prevalent in the Kentucky regiments, which were among the last to be raised" (Dobak, 2011).
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Additionally, while USCT did receive pay for their service, they made a few dollars less, per month, than their White counterparts. Considering African American troops were doing the same duty as White soldiers, it is unjust that their pay was reduced based on their race. Even among these racial disparities, however, USCT were determined to fight and were willing to die so that they, and their families, could be free.
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Kentucky USCT soldiers are important to study, as they made up such a large number of African American combatants during the Civil War. The African Americans from Kentucky who fought for the Union were not only ensuring that subsequent generations could be free, but they were also showing their former masters the resilience, fortitude, and bravery of Black individuals. They were fighting—and dying—so that the recruitment broadside proclaiming, "TO COLORED MEN! FREEDOM..." would become more than a long-elusive dream.