The Black Brigade of Cincinnati

The Black Brigade of Cincinnati. . , White Volunteers Enlist to Defend Cincinnati , Thousands of local men report to volunteer to help build and defend fortifications in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. They are joined by twelve thousand volunteer militia from all over the state of Ohio. Asking if they can serve, Cincinnati's African American residents are told they are not welcome to participate in home defense. The word on the street: "Stay away! This is a white man's war.", Black Men are Taken from Their Homes , The locally organized Provost Guard decides to forcibly press black men into service by whatever means necessary. Hundreds of Cincinnati's black residents are dragged from their homes and marched off like felons, but to where and for what, none can tell. Families are left to wait and worry., Hundreds of Black Men Await Their Fate on the Banks of the Ohio , Herded into mule pens, the prisoners seat themselves on the shaded side of the yard on blocks of wood and piled up bricks. William Homer, captain of the conscription squads, orders all to rise, marches them to the Ohio River northern banks, and orders them to squat. He tells the guard, "Shoot the first one who rises.", Cincinnati Daily Gazette , Wednesday Morning, September 3, 1862 , The Press Reports the Abuse of Black Men , Reading about the abuse of black men in the morning paper, Judge William M. Dickson goes to see General Wallace who made at the same moment, "…the order commanding him to take charge of the colored people in Cincinnati, Covington and Newport, directing all officers to obey him accordingly.", The Gazette alone protests these warrantless arrests of free black men, denied the dignity of voluntary service in defense of freedom., Union General Lew Wallace Sends Dickson to Reverse the Action , Colonel Dickson rides directly to Fort Mitchel to organize the black laborers, and brutality gives way to fair treatment. The men are immediately returned to their homes to allay the fears of their families and to prepare themselves for voluntary service. Those who are willing are asked to report at five o'clock the next morning to return to work on the fortifications., Black Men Muster into Service , On Friday morning over seven hundred men report for duty, three hundred more than had been previously abducted by the Provost Guard. Glowing with enthusiasm, they march cheerfully to their duty. Receiving the treatment of men, they are ready for anything., Mothers and Children Anxiously Awaited Return of Their Loved Ones , - Sculpture by Carolyn Manto, Ready for Departure, the Volunteers Are Given a Flag , I have the kind permission of your commandant, Colonel Dickson, to hand you this national flag - to encourage and cheer you on to duty. The duty of the hour is work - hard, severe labor on the fortifications of the city. Let it be cheerfully undertaken. Men of the Black Brigade, rally around your flag! Assert your manhood, be loyal to duty, be obedient, hopeful, patient. Slavery will soon die; There will then be a land of the free - one destiny. , - Captain James Lupton, The Works of the Black Brigade ,

"Their work has been entirely voluntary. Wherever they appear they are cheered by our troops. One of the companies is officered by white captains, the others by black volunteers. The latter proved so decidedly superior that both regiments will hereafter be commanded by officers of their own race." - from a letter in the Cincinnati Herald

, The Best Defense: Be Prepared , Confederate troops arrived at the line of defense on September 11 They discovered the fortifications and 70,000 armed defenders. Deciding not to attack, they withdrew on September 13., This is an interpretation of an 1866 US army map. Today's interstate highways are shown for orientation., Returning Home in Glory ,

The men with happy hearts, with the good will of soldier and citizen, returned to the city and were dismissed to their homes. And thus closed, in joy and happiness, a service that had been commenced with violence, in anxiety and gloom. , - Colonel William Dickson

, Presenting a Sword to Colonel Dickson ,

Sir, the members of the Black Brigade deeply thank you for the great interest you have taken in our welfare, for your collecting all of the working parties into one brigade, for the kindness you have manifested to us in these trying times. As a small expression of the high esteem of the members of the Black Brigade, they all, each and every one, present you with this sword, the emblem of protection, knowing that, whenever it is drawn, it will be drawn in favor of freedom. , - Marshall P.H. Jones

, Colonel William Dickson Receives a Sword from the Black Brigade , - Sculpture by John Hebenstreit, This monument to the Black Brigade of Cincinnati was conceived and realized by the following team : , Sponsors , Honorable Mr. William Mallory Sr., Cincinnati Park Board , Design and Art Team , Jan Brown Checco, Erik Brown, John Hebenstreit, Carolyn Manto, Tyrone Williams and Sasaki Associates , Funding , Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile, Jr. and US Bank Foundation, City of Cincinnati, Cincinnati Parks Foundation, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development,

"Cincinnati educator Peter Clark was commissioned by the Black Brigade to document their story. This made it clear to me that the Brigade wished for future generations to know about their contribution to the Defense of Cincinnati. I am pleased that this monument was created by the Cincinnati Park Board and the Cincinnati Parks Foundation." , - William L. Mallory Sr., Former Majority Floor Leader Ohio House of Representatives

,