Black History Month

National Archives photo
February 15, 2018 - 3:44 pm

Showcasing African American Army life

“African Americans served in every branch of service in a mandated segregated military. These men and women discharged their duties with great pride in the face of blatant discrimination and humiliation." "The true story and history of their contributions both in combat units and in service units...
Read More
Ensigns George Clinton Cooper, Graham Edward Martin, Jesse Walter Arbor, John Walter Reagan, Reginald Ernest Goodwin. Back row, left to right, Ensigns Phillip George Barnes, Samuel Edward Barnes, Dalton Louis Baugh, James Edward Hare, Frank Ellis Sublett,
February 1944 National Archives photo
February 12, 2018 - 10:16 am

A History of African Americans at sea

It took more than 168 years after the Continental Congress authorized the first ship of a new Navy for the United Colonies on Oct. 13, 1775, before a ship was named for an African American. The first ships were named after kings (Alfred the Great), patriots (John Hancock), heroes (USS Nathanael...
Read More
Photo courtesy of National Archives
February 01, 2018 - 1:56 pm

Honoring African American Women in WWII

Black women were essential in the war effort for the military during World War II. But it wasn't always that way. At the beginning of World War II, the Army only allowed 56 black women to be nurses, but as the need for nurses expanded, the Army's recruiting efforts did as well. In 1943, when the...
Read More

Pages