The Washington Post, September 30th, 1997
It should be noted that the Civil War's celebrated Massachusetts 54th Regiment was not the first African American infantry unit in the Union Army {Style, Sept. 17}. The 54th was not fully organized until May 13, 1863, and was pre-dated by other bodies of black troops raised independently during the spring, summer and fall of 1862 in Kansas and in the federally occupied areas of South Carolina and Louisiana. Although black soldiers had performed well in earlier skirmishes, it was the valorous performance of the Louisiana Native Guards at Port Hudson, La., on May 27, 1863, that opened the eyes o...
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