BLACK/COLORED CONFEDERATES IN THE 

RACIALLY DIVERSE CONFEDERATE ARMY

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lburnetterinkel

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DOCUMENTED EVIDENCE

BLACK/COLORED CONFEDERATES IN THE RACIALLY DIVERSE 

CONFEDERATE ARMY

The Confederate army was the most diverse, integrated army that existed prior to

the mid-20th century. The Confederate army was integrated 100 years before the 

US military. This is an undisputed, proven, documented fact. But here’s just how 

diverse it was:

It’s estimated there were approximately 10,000 Jewish/Hebrew men in the Confederate army. By “Jewish” or “Hebrew,” I mean those possessing the Middle Eastern DNA of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I believe this estimate too low for many reasons, but first and foremost because not every Jew is a practicing “Jew” as in the religion. The estimates we have are from Jewish genealogical societies and temples across the South. Once a Jewish person comes to Christ, his or her DNA does not change. The person is still Jewish. But often their families would disown and disinherit those ones. As a result their stories would not have been recorded with the historical societies. Regardless, though, the Jewish Confederates are not disputed by our enemies.
The estimates of American Indians in the Confederate army are roughly 20,000. Again I believe this number to be very low. Much of what we know is because of Stand Watie, the Cherokee Confederate General, who was the last Confederate army officer to surrender. His Indian name was De-ga-ta-ga, which is translated “Stand”. He surrendered some 70 days after General Lee surrendered. These Confederates are also not disputed by our enemies.
The estimates of Hispanics who fought for the Confederacy are also at roughly 10,000. Again I believe this number is also very low. I just don’t trust Federal estimates, for several reasons, mostly because they have sought over the years to downgrade the number of casualties of that war. But between Florida, LA, and TX what we know is mostly from the historical societies. I have a list of 172 commissioned Hispanic Confederate officers. These Confederates are also not disputed by our enemies.
There are also Asians who fought for the Confederacy, but that number is indeed relatively low, racially speaking. The most famous of these Confederates are the sons of Barnum and Bailey, conjoined Siamese twins, Chang and Eng Bunker. The twins took the name “Bunker” to Americanize their names. The Asians who fought for the Confederacy are also not disputed by our enemies, though.
Another type of Confederate soldier is the tri-racial Melungeon among eastern TN, NC, KY, VA, and SC. The vast majority of these men were free-born and descended from European, American Indian, and African parentage, dating back to the American Revolution. These men are not spoken of whatsoever. Not at all. These men were “colored”; not black or African perse’. We see the mixture of races very common in TX, LA and into AZ as well. The mixture of races changes somewhat, though to American Indian, Mexican, and African. These men are not taught or spoken about either. They were free-born and fairly well-to-do many times. Both these mixed-race individuals fall into the next category of Confederate soldiers I want to discuss. The only Confederate soldier disputed is the Black/Colored Confederate soldier, mostly African-American, and it is these men I want to speak to y’all about. I don’t want to take a lot of your time, but I’d like to give you a few examples of both freeborn Confederates as well as those in servitude because THESE are the ones who are disbelieved and disputed by outsiders, most of whom didn’t even have family in the country during Lincoln’s war.

 

We will never know how many free Black men lost their lives in the service of the Confederacy. Many of these men were already in the state militias or enlisted as soon as they heard Lincoln was gunning for war. Bear in mind the states were sovereign and had their own currencies and their own militias. These facts are hard to understand and an enormous stumbling block for our enemies, and those of us who don’t know the truth. For example, TN called for the enlistment of free Black men, and there were enough of these men for a recruiting office to open in Memphis in May of 1861. Notifications were printed in the Memphis Avalanche. This fact is well documented in several books written by USCT and Black historians. Some of these are the Memphis Avalanche and Memphis Appeal newspapers, A History of Negro Troops In the War 1861-1865 by George W Williams LLD published 1888, and the Negro Yearbook and Annual Encyclopedia 1921-1922 by Monroe N Work and published by the Negro Yearbook Publishing Company Tuskegee AL. The biggest stumbling block to people understanding the truth of Black Confederates is the issue is the sovereignty of the states. The CSA was operating as the Fed was supposed to. It did not have the right or the authority to call for “slaves” to be enlisted, and enforce that law. “Slaves” were property and as such, private property. That is what hangs people up. But it doesn’t change the fact that free Negroes were volunteering for service in whatever capacity they could be used. Their skills were much needed. Here’s an example with a list of 24 free men from the Savannah Daily Morning News:

A huge problem is that there were no racial notations, outside physical descriptions, in our records, till after Lincoln did the EP, which was unconstitutional and illegal.

There were a great many free Black men who enlisted in the Confederate army and navy in various positions. They were the engineer corps, signal corps, scouts, ambulance, medical and hospital, communication, name it. The jobs they performed are as necessary now as in 1860, but they were called something else back then. Just because the job is called something else doesn’t mean it isn’t important. An army moves on its stomach. So what if a body servant or cook who was in servitude joined with their “master?? My USMC husband has assured me that even though “sharpshooter” may not be the job of a military cook, that cook is trained and armed. We have a very rough time proving the service of free, black men because nobody has told their stories, and our records were at the mercy of copyists for the US government. In one of my granddaddy’s own files is a free black man with the same name. It’s NOT the same man.
Think of a forager or cook. How do you think they got meat? Did they go to the grocery store? NO, they hunted for it when they could. The copyists only included what they deemed important, and the rest was thrown away, not written down, misfiled, hidden, or suppressed. Now, sometimes they did it because it didn’t matter to them, and they just didn’t care. But sometimes they knew exactly what they were doing and they hid and destroyed things on purpose.

About the time our records were being transcribed and written on the neat little cards you see on Fold 3, the US began teaching that the war was over slavery, both out of ignorance of newcomers, and to cover its backside. It stands to reason the immigrants coming into the country looking for a paycheck were not interested in complete records of ‘rebel’ soldiers much less Negro ones. There’s also human error, common laziness, and some things were just thrown away. What we know for sure has been found by mistake, written in regimental histories and published, or hidden in newspaper archives and scrapbooks that are now being digitized and placed online. Even the ones who entered the Confederate army as a “slave” or body servant of someone could have been killed at any time. While some did desert, most did not. There were plenty of white men who deserted as well, so that dog doesn’t hunt either. There are records of these men taking the bodies of their dead masters home and then returning to their units. We know precious little about them. Who tells their stories?
I will.
I’d like to introduce you to several black men who served in the Confederate army. These men were both free and bond.

 

Preston Roberts
Preston Roberts entered the Confederate army in the Collierville, TN area with his “master”, a man named FS Thomas. But through circumstances, Preston wound up being a quartermaster for General Forrest. Being quartermaster meant he had a lot of authority. He was in charge of some 75 cooks and handled money to purchase supplies. Preston’s master was court-martialed, but he stayed with the unit when he could have run away. Preston was awarded the Southern Cross of Honor by the TN Division United Daughters of the Confederacy in 1905. Technically, Preston was a free man after the court-martial of his master. His staying with the unit is huge. As y’all know, the UDC only awarded those crosses to soldiers. His g-granddaughter, Gia, is working on her membership. We did find a service record on Fold 3, but there are only 2 pages in it, and no notation of race on the record.

 

Holt Collier
Mississippi’s own Holt Collier was a free young man when he joined the Confederate army with the 9th Texas Cavalry. Holt was born into servitude on the plantation of the Howell Hinds family near Washington County, MS. When Holt was ten years old, he displayed unparalleled marksmanship skills among his peers. The Hinds boys took Holt hunting with them and traveled around the country with Holt as a member of their family. Mr. Hinds even sent Holt to school with his own boys, but Holt didn’t want to sit inside a classroom. Holt wanted to be outside. As a result, by the time he was fourteen years old, he was the best bear hunter in five counties in the state. When the war came, the Hinds boys joined up, and Holt wanted to go with them. But he was told he was too young to serve and possibly be killed or maimed. Refusing to take “no” for an answer, Holt stowed away on a riverboat bound for Texas and joined the Hinds boys with the 9th TX Cavalry. They realized there was no stopping him, and nobody could hold a candle to Holt with his shooting skills. As a result, Holt was a sharpshooter for the unit. Holt served the entire war as a free teenager. After the war, Holt led hunting parties for the rich and famous. Among his patrons was President Theodore Roosevelt. There’s an SCV Camp named for Holt. It’s Camp #2018. There is a monument in the works for Holt to be erected in Rolling Fork, MS.

 

Silas Chandler
Silas Chandler joined the 44th MS with his young master, Andrew. The boys had grown up together, and Silas was not to be stopped when Andrew enlisted. They hunted and fished together, and they were fast friends. Most people cannot understand this type of relationship that existed, by and large, in the antebellum South among “slaveholders” and “slaves”. But it is a fact that our army was not segregated because of the relationship that existed among the races at the time. A few years ago, on the History Channel, the descendants of Andrew and Silas were featured. The story both families have is the same one with just a couple of differences. It goes something like this: Andrew was wounded, and the surgeon decided he would have to amputate his leg. Silas was not going to allow that, so he stole Andrew away, they hopped on a train, and Silas nursed and took care of Andrew himself. Andrew recovered and was not maimed due to Silas.

 

Moses Dallas
Moses was free and had served on the gunboat CSS Savannah as a pilot. He was praised by Savannah Naval Squadron commander Captain William A. Webb as the best inland pilot on the coast. While serving on the Isondiga, he would be engaged in the most adventurous action of the war. The enemy’s blockading vessel, the USS Waterwitch, was proving to be a tempting target for capture by a boarding party as it steamed up the Little Ogeechee River. On June 3, 1864, seven boats left the Beaulieu Battery on the Vernon River near Savannah with 15 officers and 117 men, including third in command, Pilot Moses Dallas. Do you understand? Moses was 3rd in command.
The night operation allowed the boarding parties to closely approach the Waterwitch’s hull undetected, when a lookout desperately alerted the crew. As the Confederate forces came alongside to scale the hull from both port and starboard sides, enemy small arms fire struck and instantly killed Moses, who had guided the Georgians to the Waterwitch. Minutes later, expedition commander Lieutenant Thomas P. Pelot was first to gain the main deck and was also killed, though in ten minutes the swarming Georgians had secured the enemy vessel for the Confederacy. The action report to Secretary of the Navy Stephen Mallory cited the loss of 5 men killed and 12 wounded during the capture of the enemy craft Waterwitch. Author Robert G. Caroon said:
“Pilot Moses Dallas, CSN, gave his life in a gallant attack on a well-armed enemy vessel and contributed to the victory of the Confederate Naval Forces.” For three years, he had served faithfully and well in the Confederate Navy, and his comrades in arms were not unmindful of his service, nor would they prove themselves ungrateful. On 4 June 1864, the Confederate States Navy ordered a coffin and a hearse for the funeral of Moses Dallas, the expense to be paid by the Navy. Pilot Moses Dallas furnishes us with a fine example of a talented and dedicated man serving in the armed forces of the Confederate States in a position of leadership. His contribution was recognized during his lifetime and after his death in action.

 

Louis Winston
Louis Winston was born in 1844 close to Natchez, MS, the son of a prominent planter. Louis was a free, colored man. Louis enlisted as a bugler and was made a private. That means he was armed. He served the entire war. There is nothing in his military record on Fold 3 that states he was colored. We know that from the Natchez Historical Society and the genealogical records of the county and state. After the war, Louis became a very successful attorney and served as circuit clerk of Adams Co for 20 years. Louis was a pillar in the community. He’s buried in the Natchez City Cemetery.

 

Louis Napoleon Nelson
Louis Napoleon Nelson was a servant and entered the Confederate army with his young masters. When he first went in, he looked after the boys as a body servant. But later on, as the war progressed he wound up under the command of General Forrest, armed and taking his place in the fighting. At Shiloh, many were wounded, including the chaplains. I don’t know if y’all are aware of it or not, but General Forrest always had regular worship services, especially before a battle. The Confederate army needed a chaplain, and they called on Uncle Louis. He couldn’t read or write, but he’d memorized the scriptures from the Bible as he was taught. He served as chaplain for the next four campaigns. He also foraged for food. His grandson, Nelson Winbush, used to attend UCV reunions with his grandfather. Over the years Uncle Louis attended 39 UCV reunions. Mr. Winbush is a retired educator in Kissimmee, FL, and is a member of the SCV, though well into his 90s by now. He is lucid and very angry about what’s going on with the Confederate gravestone/monuments in the South and how his grandfather is dishonored. I spoke with him last September. Mr. Winbush is not the only Black/Colored SCV member, but they are in the minority because our family histories are lost, and truthful history is not taught anymore.

 

Henry Brown
Henry “Dad” Brown was born in 1830 in SC. He served in the Mexican War, the WBS, and the Spanish-American War. He was born free and made his living as a brick mason. He joined the Confederate army in May of 1861 as a drummer in the 8th SC Inf, but wound up in the 21st SC Infantry in July of 1861. He served in that unit through the whole war. He was a member of the UCV and was greatly beloved by the townspeople. They erected a monument to him when he died.

 

Peter Vertrees
Peter Vertrees says he was born in 1846 to a white mother and a mulatto father who was the son of Jacob Vertrees of KY. He was raised by his grandfather (white, wealthy planter), and when Lincoln’s war came he went into the service with his uncle, Dr. John L. Vertrees. But a great many boys went to war with their fathers, brothers, and uncles. So that’s not such a big deal as we would be led to believe. Some of the jobs those boys did were very dangerous, like the “powder monkeys”. Peter’s pension application states he was a servant, but in a book he wrote after the war, he says he was a cook. After the war, he became principal of the South Gallatin School, and for 60 years, he served as pastor of the First Baptist Church. He pastored more than one church, though, and was also president of a couple of benevolent societies that helped pay for medical assistance and burials. He opened schools for Black/Colored children within the churches where he was pastor. He founded the East Fork Missionary Baptist Association with 28 churches in Tennessee. His daughters, Bertha and Lillie, were members of the TN Division UDC®. I’d like to close with his thoughts written in his journal, which was published:
“I never was a soldier on the firing line, but these scenes brought the real activities of war to my view and made me realize what the real combat was. I suffered the same deprivations of warfare that the soldiers felt. Sometimes I was hungry, sometimes cold, sometimes drenched with rain, sometimes tired and footsore from walking, but I stayed at my post until the end.”

TRUTHS OF HISTORY!

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