ALL MEN ARE BROTHERS

Copyright 1995. LWF Publications. Posted from the April, 1995 edition of the historical quarterly, Lest We Forget.

The history of Afro-British North Americans and Afro-Others Who Fought in the United States Colored Troops for the Freedom of Afro-Americans During the War of the Rebellion - - Co-Researched by Edward Milligan and Tom Brooks.

An estimated 180,000 soldiers, a combination of ‘free men of colour’ and men of color formerly not free, served in the armies of the United States of American during the Civil War.

Though the overwhelming majority of the men were American born, such was not the case with all of them. Some of these volunteers, a few hundred perhaps, maybe as many as a thousand or more, were ‘free men of colour’ born outside the United States of America. The largest source of foreign born ‘free men of color’ came from the six British North American colonies.

Men of colour were segregated into units separate from their comrades in arms of European background. There were six regiments of cavalry designated 1st through 6th United States Colour Cavalry, plus a seventh unit, the 5th Massachusetts Cavalry.

United States Coloured Troops, as the infantry arm was called, numbered regiments 1st through 138th, plus the 29th and 30th Connecticut Infantry, the 54th and 55th Massachusetts Infantry, and the 6th and 7th Louisiana Infantry.

The Unites States Coloured Heavy Artillery numbered fourteen regiments designated 1st through 14th.

There was only one regiment of United States Coloured Light Artillery. It consisted of nine batteries. It was known as the 2nd USCLA. In addition, there was one independent battery of light artillery.

At the first formation of coloured regiments, the units were given state designations similar to that borne by the other regiments with the word ‘coloured’ however, specifically added to the name to distinguish them from the rest. These state designations eventually gave way to the universal designation of USCC (cavalry), USCT (infantry), and USCHA (heavy artillery), a designation devoid of state association.

The 14th Rhode Island Heavy Artillery for instance was redesignated the 11th USCHA. The 1st Michigan Coloured Infantry was re-named the 102nd USCT. The name of the 1st South Carolina Coloured Infantry was changed to the 33rd USCT. The 2nd North Carolina Coloured Infantry became the 36th USCT. The 1st Regiment of Cavalry, Corps d’Afrique, from Louisiana, was subsequently called the 4th USCC. The 1st Kansas Coloured Volunteers, the first coloured regiment raised in a northern state, though most of it’s recruits were escaped slaves from a southern state, Missouri, became the 79th USCT. And so it went.

Only the New England states of Connecticut and Massachusetts, with their 5th Massachusetts Cavalry, the 29th and 30th Connecticut Infantry, and the 54th and 55th Massachusetts Infantry, apparently eschewed this practice of segregation by designation and allowed all men, regardless of colour or lack of, to be state proud.

The coloured population of the six British North American colonies in 1860 has been estimated at about 40,000 individuals, with the majority of these people residing in Canada West, present day Ontario.

Much of this population were recent fugitive slaves, that is, recent within the last decade or two before the outbreak of the Civil War, and therefore were American born. There was a portion within this population, however, that was British North American born, particularly so in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Canada East. This was a segment that had not personally known slavery.

The most famous of the coloured regiments was probably the 54th Massachusetts Infantry. Formed in May 1863, it being the second coloured regiment raised in a northern state, the regiment actively recruited in Canada West. Certainly, a number of former slaves went south from British North America to enlist in this regiment, but they were American born born and count as such. With them, however, went at least 18 ‘free men of colour’ who were indeed British North American born.

Three of the 18, Hammel Gilyer, Samuel Hazzard, and Thomas Page, were born in Nova Scotia. All three were sailors by trade. Three of the men, John W. Amich, Abraham Brown, and William Silvers, gave as there place of birth, Toronto, Canada West. Two were waiters and one was a sailor. Charles Holmes, a waiter, and Benjamin Morey, a farmer, gave as their place of birth, Hamilton, Canada West. John Weeks claimed Catham, Canada West as his birth place, Jerimiah Thomas, London, Canada West, and Moses Jackson, Galt and Roy Johnson, Woodstock, Canada West. Their occupations included cook, waiter, barber, and labourer.

James Haskell and Thomas F. Smith, a stone cutter and labourer respectively, claimed Montreal, Canada East as their place of birth.

Of the remaining four, John Johnson, William W. Hull, William Parritt, and William Davis, no place of birth is given except to say ‘Canada’. Their occupations included those of cook, labourer, glass maker, and waiter.

Of their ages, one man was 18 years of age, two were 19, four were 20, one was 21, two were 23, two were 24, one 28, one 29, two 31, one 39, and the age of one man is not known.

Of the eighteen, all signed their names to their enlistment papers except two, John Amich and John Weeks. The enlistment papers of Amich and Weeks were endorsed with an ‘x’. This would indicate a relatively high degree of literacy among the British North American born recruits to the 54th Massachusetts Infantry. By way of comparison, of the ninety-nine British North American born of European blood in the 57th Massachusetts Infantry, seven were Illiterate.

It is interesting to note that five of the eighteen British North American born recruits in the 54th Massachusetts Infantry were waiters by occupation. In a study of one thousand two hundred other British North American born in a selection of Union regiments, though a great variety of occupations were documented, not one of the one thousand two hundred was a waiter.

John Weeks is listed as ‘missing’ at Fort Wagner, South Carolina, July 18, 1863, and presumed killed in action. If so, he is buried in a mass grave, unidentified.

Five British North American born are listed in the 1st United States Coloured Troops. Eighteen year old Jerry Marks, a farmer from Chatham, Canada West, was reduced to the ranks for drunkenness and insubordination. James Peaks, a 23 year old cook from St. Catherines, Canada West, was sentenced to hard labour by a General Court Martial. James St. Dana, a 27 year old farmer from Canada West, died in hospital at Fort Hatteras, North Carolina on July 10, 1865. He lies buried in the National Cemetery in New Berne, North Carolina in plot number 123, in grave number 14.

John Simmons, 18 years old, and William Thompson, 35 years old, both farmers from Canada, served until their muster out dates in late 1865.

Fourteen British North American born served in the 3rd United States Coloured Troops. Half of these men were hired substitutes for Americans who did not want to serve. Henry Blackwell, John Henry, and Edgar Ranlain were born in Toronto, Canada West. George Hutchinson, William Jones, and Charles Phillips claimed as their place of birth, St. John, New Brunswick. Niagara, Canada West was the place of birth for Andrew Walker. William Pernel was born in Nova Scotia. Theodore Waters, Charles Harrison, John Mosier, Charles Hawkins, and H. Singleton simply listed ‘Canada’ as the place of birth.

Their ages ranged from 18 years to 59 years. Their occupations included four labourers, two waiters, two sailors, two hostlers, a cook, a groom, a harness maker, and an engineer.

There were twelve British North American born in the 6th, 7th, and 8th United States Coloured Troops. John Douglass, Joseph Thompsom, both of the 6th, and Thomas Breslin of the 7th, were born in Montreal, Canada East. John Lewis of the 6th, and William H. Minor of the 8th were born in St. John, New Brunswick. William Chandler was born in London, Charles Gredon in Windsor, and Henton Griffin in St. Catherines, all in Canada West. Thomas Ward and Thomas Martin, both of the 6th, and Thomas Jones and William Boyd, both of the 8th, simply list their place of birth as ‘Canada’.

Their ages ranged from 20 years to 31 years. Four of the twelve were hired substitutes. Their occupations included four labourers, three farmers, three sailors, a carpenter, and one unknown.

The roll of the 12th United States Coloured Troops includes the names of sixteen British North Americans but interestingly enough, all of these names but one coincidentally appear on the roll of the 54th Massachusetts Infantry. As the 54th Massachusetts Infantry mustered out on August 20, 1865, and the 12th United States Coloured Troops not until January 16, 1866, it is possible that these men transferred from one unit to the other to complete their three year enlistment.

The exception to the above in the 12th Unites States Coloured Troops was Henry Allen, a 23 year old tobaconist from ‘Canada’ who enlisted as a substitute for one year.

There were 24 British North American born ‘free men of colour’ in the 18th USCT. All but three were in the same company, company ‘E’. All appeared to have been hired substitutes for Americans who did not want to serve. Of the 24, at least three died in service. Three rose to the rank of sergeant, including Jerry Watson who became 1st Sergeant of Company ‘E’. The two other Canadian born sergeants in the company were William Burton, and William Fromman. John Adams, Henry Brown, Edmond Burrell, and John Lewis were promoted to corporal. Six of the seven promoted men were born in Canada West. The exception was William Fromman who was born in Montreal, Canada East.

Henry Thomas, from London, Canada West, succumbed to illness on November 25, 1864 at Benton Barracks near St. Louis, Missouri. He was 18 years of age.

Samuel Washington, age 21, and Smith White, age 19, both died at Bridgeport, Alabama, one on March 21, 1865, and the other on February 16, 1865. Both men were from Canada West.

It is possible that it was Samuel Washington who was buried in grave number 363 in Bridgeport, Alabama and transferred to grave number 553 in the coloured section of the National Cemetery in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and not the British North American born George Washington of the same company and regiment, who is listed on the Chattanooga cemetery roll. George Washington was a hired substitute who deserted on September 16, 1864, a month after his enlistment.

Smith White was likewise buried in the coloured military cemetery at Bridgeport, in grave number 432, and transferred to the coloured section of the National Cemetery at Chattanooga. He now lies in grave number 498 in the latter cemetery.

The third British North American born Washington in Company ‘E’, 18th USCT was August Washington.

The other British North American born soldiers in Company ‘E’ were William Adams, Major Green, William Johnson, John Owens, Pryor Monroe, Henry Taylor, Albert Tomson, and Peter Williams, all from Canada West, and Thomas Hill from Canada East.

Almost half the 24 British North American born soldiers in the 18th USCT were inland water boatmen by occupation. The rest were either common labourers or farmers, except for John Williams from Hamilton, Canada West in Company ‘F’, who was a waiter, and Peter Postent in Company ‘I’, also from Canada West, who was a blacksmith.

Thomas Willis, a native of Canada West, was the sole British North American in Company ‘G’ of the regiment. He was a 26 year old boatman.

From the Buxton, Canada West area, fourteen British North American born ‘free men of colour’, along with several dozen American born ‘free men of colour’ they who were formerly slaves, crossed the St. Clair River at Detroit, and in the fall of 1863, enlisted in the 102nd USCT, a unit otherwise known as the 1st Michigan Coloured Infantry.

At least two of the British North American born, 21 year old Samuel Patterson, a native of Malden, Canada West, and 18 year old James Bailey, also of Canada West, never saw home again. Patterson died of typhoid at Beaufort, South Carolina on October 11, 1864. He is buried in the Union military cemetery, ‘coloured section’, in Beaufort. A blacksmith by trade, he had been the 1st Sergeant of Company ‘B’, 102nd USCT. Bailey of Company ‘A’, died on November 19, 1864 and is likewise buried in the ‘coloured section’ of the military cemetery at Beaufort.

Another of the British North American members of the 102nd USCT was William Thomas. He was a 20 year old farmer. He enlisted in Detroit on September 16, 1864 and was paid a $100.00 bounty. He was discharged, probably on account of disability, on June 16, 1865.

James Henson, another of the British North American volunteers in the 102nd USCT, joined the Union army in Detroit on October 22, 1863. He had the unfortunate circumstance of being sentenced by General Court Martial to forfeit nearly all his pay, $10.00 per month, and to be held in confinement for the term of his service, probably three years.

The other British North American volunteers in the 102nd USCT included John Allen, age 40, James Anderson, age 22, Benjamin Blackburn, age 26, William Bowles, age 30, John Boyer, age 41, Frank Carter, age 19, Elijah Doo, age 19, Charles Hancey, age 19, and John Holland, age 20.

Tom Brooks is a Civil War Historian and Confederate Reenactor (11th Louisiana Infantry). He resides in Gravenhurst, Ontario.

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