The Black Civil War Soldiers of Illinois: The Story of the Twenty-ninth U.S. Colored Infantry

by Edward A. Miller Jr.

Overview

Chronicles the Civil War experience of a representative African American regiment

The Black Civil War Soldiers of Illinois tells the story of the Twenty-ninth United States Colored Infantry, one of almost 150 African American regiments to fight in the Civil War and the only such unit assembled by the state of Illinois. The Twenty-ninth took part in the famous Battle of the Crater at Petersburg, joined Grant's forces in the siege of Richmond, and stood on the battlefield when Lee surrendered at Appomattox. In this comprehensive examination of the unit's composition, contribution, and postwar fate, Edward A. Miller, Jr., demonstrates the value of the Twenty-ninth as a means of understanding the Civil War experience of African American soldiers, including the prejudice that shaped their service.

Miller details the formation of the Twenty-ninth, its commendable performance but incompetent leadership during the Petersburg battle, and the refilling of its ranks, mostly by black enlistees who served as substitutes for drafted white men. He recounts the unit's role in the final campaign against the Army of Northern Virginia; its final, needless mission to the Texas border; the tragic postwar fate of most of its officers; and the continued discrimination and economic hardship endured after the war by the soldiers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781643362410
Publisher:	University of South Carolina Press
Publication date:	08/24/2021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	298
Sales rank:	698,145
File size:	4 MB
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Edward A. Miller, Jr. received his B.A. in history from the Virginia Military Institute and his M.A. and Ph.D. in American history from the University of Denver. He taught military, modern Far East, and American history at the Air Force Academy.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations vii

Preface ix

Chapter 1 Finding a Place 1

Illinois Acts 5

The Race Issue in Illinois 7

Recruiting in Illinois 11

The "Chicago Companies" 21

Three More Companies 28

To the Theater of War 36

Chapter 2 Campaigns in Virginia 42

With the Army of the Potomac 46

On the Line before Petersburg 52

Chapter 3 Test of Battle 59

The Crater Battle 66

Mopping Up 73

Counting the Cost 79

Fixing the Blame 100

Chapter 4 Further War Service 106

New Recruits 115

More Reorganization and Support Duty 125

Completing the Regiment 135

Chapter 5 War's End and Final Service 145

Postwar Events 150

Mission to Texas 152

Heading Home 166

Chapter 6 The Later Years 174

Crimes, Frauds, and Confusion 176

Identity and Family Problems 185

Doctors and Peacetime Soldiers 194

Successful and Unsuccessful Veterans 198

An Incomplete Story 205

Appendix: Some Statistics 208

Notes 212

Bibliography 244

Index 255

What People are Saying About This

Gregory J. W. Urwin

Miller has given us a fuller look at the men who made up a typical black regiment with the Army of the Potomac. Miller's book is a study in regimental demographics—where the men came from, whether they were free blacks or escaped slaves, their educational backgrounds, their service records, and their postwar fates.

Editorial Reviews

Miller explores the appalling levels of racial antipathy in Illinois that formed the backdrop for the unit's creation and ugly opportunism that underpinned state support for a black regiment.

Civil War History