Black Brigade of Cincinnati
Encyclopedia
The Black Brigade of Cincinnati was a military unit that was organized during the Civil War
when the city of Cincinnati, Ohio
was in danger of being attacked by Confederates
. The men that were a part of the Black Brigade were among the first of their race to be employed by the military of the North.
Cincinnati did not allow black males to join their volunteer militia
. On September 2, 1862, many blacks were rounded up by the local police and impressed into service to help construct emergency fortifications around the city. Labor was hard, and the police guards at times oppressed the workers by force. Soon after, Federal officer Colonel William M. Dickson was placed in charge, and he treated the men fairly. These black men worked on the fortifications until September 20. The Brigade had 1 fatality: Joseph Johns killed in an accident 17 September 1862
The Black Brigade was later recognized as the first formal organization of Northern Colored People for military reasons.
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
when the city of Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...
was in danger of being attacked by Confederates
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
. The men that were a part of the Black Brigade were among the first of their race to be employed by the military of the North.
Cincinnati did not allow black males to join their volunteer militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
. On September 2, 1862, many blacks were rounded up by the local police and impressed into service to help construct emergency fortifications around the city. Labor was hard, and the police guards at times oppressed the workers by force. Soon after, Federal officer Colonel William M. Dickson was placed in charge, and he treated the men fairly. These black men worked on the fortifications until September 20. The Brigade had 1 fatality: Joseph Johns killed in an accident 17 September 1862
The Black Brigade was later recognized as the first formal organization of Northern Colored People for military reasons.
Further reading
- Peter H. ClarkPeter H. ClarkPeter Humphries Clark was one of Ohio’s most effective black abolitionist writers and speakers. He became the first teacher engaged by the Cincinnati black public schools in 1849, and the founder and principal of Ohio’s first public high school for black students in 1866...
, Black Brigade of Cincinnati: Being a Report of Its Labors and a Muster-Roll of Its Members etc., 1864, accessed at Ohio Historical Society http://dbs.ohiohistory.org/africanam/det.cfm?ID=2487 Jan 22, 2007