Fort Concho Buffalo Soldiers Finally Get Fitting Memorial

Buffalo Soldiers were a vital part of the taming of the West. The countless selfless contributions of soldiers of color, who fought and died for a country that didn't always treat them very well, can never be fully measured.

Here in San Angelo, a monument to these men is being erected. On Tuesday, December 13th,beginning 15 minutes after the City Council meeting, the San Angelo NAACP is conducting a groundbreaking ceremony at El Paseo de Santa Angelo for the new memorial to those soldiers who served.

The ceremony will be on Oakes Street across from the Fort Concho parade grounds and the memorial will be located on Avenue D across from Old Fort Concho.

In the words of San Angelo NAACP President Sherley L. Spears:

"As the city of San Angelo began to take shape, Black men of the renowned Buffalo Soldiers were some of the first soldiers to be assigned to Fort Concho and carry out duties to settle the western territories of Texas, It is time to honor these men and say thank you for the work and service they performed."

Buffalo soldiers was the name given by the Plains Indians to four regiments of African American and more particularly to the two cavalry regimens that served out of Fort Concho, arriving at the Fort in 1866.

When Congress reorganized the peacetime US Army in 1866, they recognized the military efforts of Black soldiers by authorizing two regiments of Black cavalry, the Ninth United States Cavalry and the Tenth United States Cavalry and six regiments of Black Infantry.

From the 1860's until the 1890's, the buffalo soldiers served in a variety of posts. As they fought for their country, they often had to fight prejudice from within the army and the frontier communities they were stationed in.

These soldiers conducted themselves with distinction and worked alongside fellow countrymen on a variety of difficult civil and military tasks They distinguished themselves with valor in action against the Cheyenne, Kiowa, Comanche, Apache, Sioux and Arapaho.

Photo: Fort Concho

The monument that is being erected is a culmination of many years of fund raising and community education by many dedicated people and organizations in San Angelo. The monument will truly be a testament to a community's sincere efforts to remember and commemorate Buffalo Soldiers.

You can subscribe to a YouTube channel that will tell the stories of Buffalo Soldiers who served with honor and distinction. You can find the channel below.

When Abraham Lincoln dedicated the cemetery at Gettysburg in his Gettysburg Address, he mentioned that it was altogether fitting and proper that a portion of the battlefield in that war be set aside as a memorial to those gave "their last full measure of devotion"

Tomorrow, we have the opportunity to participate in remembering those Buffalo Soldiers, who worked to fight, not only for their country, but for equality, freedom and fairness.

This incredible monument will be a place where we can all come together to remember that the struggle for freedom is never over and the call to serve is a privileges we all must share together.