First to Serve
FORT SCOTT, KS.---- This Saturday, park rangers at the Fort Scott National Historic Site will honor the members of the first Kansas colored volunteer infantry.
On January 13, 1863, the regiment was formed in Fort Scott, and went on to fight in battles in Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas, and what would become Oklahoma.
The regiment was the first black regiment to fight for the Union Army, and was made up of soldiers who mostly came from Missouri.
"Soldiers were recruited here from the hundreds of African American refugees who came here, escaping from slavery in Missouri, Arkansas, and the Indian territory," Arnold Schofield, Historian.
The Fort Scott National Historic Site will host a special presentation this Saturday to mark the 150th anniversary of the muster. The event gets underway at 2 p.m. and is free to the public.
On January 13, 1863, the regiment was formed in Fort Scott, and went on to fight in battles in Missouri, Kansas, Arkansas, and what would become Oklahoma.
The regiment was the first black regiment to fight for the Union Army, and was made up of soldiers who mostly came from Missouri.
"Soldiers were recruited here from the hundreds of African American refugees who came here, escaping from slavery in Missouri, Arkansas, and the Indian territory," Arnold Schofield, Historian.
The Fort Scott National Historic Site will host a special presentation this Saturday to mark the 150th anniversary of the muster. The event gets underway at 2 p.m. and is free to the public.
