USCT The United States Colored Troops

USCT The United States Colored Troops. in Giles County during the Civil War. , During the Civil War, many African-American men escaped slavery to become soldiers in the U.S. Army., Here in Giles County, the U.S. Army organized the 110th and 111th Regiment U.S. Colored Troops (U.S.C.T.) in late 1863 and early 1864. Most of the soldiers who joined these units had lived their entire lives in slavery. Most of them lived in Giles County, though some came from neighboring Tennessee counties or the northern counties of Alabama and Mississippi., The U.S. Army controlled Giles County for most of the Civil War, and the 110th and 111th U.S.C.T. was a critical part of the United States forces being successful here. Their most important job was to protect the Nashville Decatur Railroad and the Columbia Turnpike (present-day Highway 31) in Pulaski and Giles County. These local U.S. Colored Troops didn't work alone. Other U.S.C.T. regiments and white U.S. Army units from across the country were sent to Giles County to help defend against Confederate forces. Many of these U.S. soldiers were stationed at the encampment on Fort Hill in North Pulaski commanded by Colonel Eli Lilly on the 9th Indian Calvary., After military losses in battles at Athens and Sulphur Creek Trestle, Alabama in late 1864, these units helped defend Pulaski against Nathan B. Forrest's Confederate forces. Elements of these regiments served with distinction a the Battle of Nashville and in U.S. General William T. Sherman's campaign in Georgia. Some soldiers on the 110th and 111th suffered and died in Confederate captivity, especially as prisoners of war in Mobile, Alabama., After the Civil War's official end in April 1865, many of these U.S.C.T. soldiers continued to serve the United States here while Tennessee transitioned back into the United States of America. Later, many of these U.S. Army veterans remained in Pulaski and Giles County. Some became prominent African-American community members, church leaders, and educators who helped make Giles County the community it is today., Visit the Giles County Historical Society to learn more about the United States Colored Troops in the Civil War , Giles County Public Library-Giles County Historical Society (gilescountylibrary.org)