Photo By Pfc. Danielle Sargent | The Arizona Chapter of the Buffalo Soldiers Motorcycle Riders Club, and The 9th...... read more read more
Subscribe
PHOENIX, Ariz. - The 9th Memorial U.S. Cavalry Unit and the Arizona Chapter of the Buffalo Soldiers Motorcycle Riders Club traveled to visit the Arizona Military Museum, here, in order to spread the history of the Buffalo Soldiers and the contributions they have made to our military and to our country.
The memorial Buffalo Soldiers were put together to remember and teach the public about the Buffalo Soldiers and their legacy so their contributions are never forgotten.
“What we’re doing now is carrying on the legacy of the Buffalo Soldiers, letting the younger kids know about the Buffalo Soldiers, so they can have pride with what they have done for this country,” said Charles C. Jackson, president of Arizona Chapter of the BSMRC. “We’ve gone to 17 schools and four colleges in the past two years.”
The AZ Chapter of the BSMRC ride motorcycles to represent the horses that the Buffalo Soldiers rode.
“We ride motorcycles, I prefer to ride motorcycles, but I can ride a horse also,” said Jackson.
The Buffalo Soldiers were the 9th and 10th Cavalry regiments and the 24th and the 25th infantry regiments which were founded in 1866 by an act of U.S. Congress to go out west and support the westward expansion.
“In 1866, congress passed the act and oh my God, history started,” said William McCurtis, a member of the Arizona Chapter of the BSMRC.
The Buffalo Soldiers were assigned to the roughest forts and outposts in the west and fought in military campaigns such as San Juan Hill, El Caney, El Pozo, and the Philippine Insurrection.
They were of all ethnic groups, said Jackson. Most of the officers were white. The scouts were mostly half black and half Seminole Indian; the scouts were considered to be the best trackers in the world.
“When you say Buffalo Soldier, you have to include the officers; even though they were white,” McCurtis said. “Once you put on the uniform you have one purpose, you have one flag.”
When the Buffalo Soldiers came out west, most of the Indians had never seen African-American soldiers before. Cheyenne Indians were the ones who nicknamed them Buffalo Soldiers because they wore buffalo skins on their backs and fought back like the buffalos did.
“When you corner a wounded buffalo he fights back,” said Jackson. “Because the Buffalo Soldiers never ran and they never lost a battle, the Indians started calling them Buffalo Soldiers. After a while it became a proud name for the Buffalo Soldiers.”
Buffalo Soldiers helped pave the way for African-American Soldiers in the military today.“The Buffalo Soldiers have given African Americans today pride, serious, serious pride,” McCurtis said. “They impacted the entire black community and gave me an opportunity for military service.”
“These guys thought about the same things I thought about when I was on duty, which you think about now. Good clothing, weapons and shelter. The common soldier never changes; we were and are no different.”
The Buffalo Soldiers had 19 Medal of Honor recipients between 1866 and 1900. A lot of them didn’t get their medals until 10 or 20 years later.
The Arizona Chapter of the BSMRC helped one Buffalo Soldier, Cpl. Isaiah Mayes, get his Medal of Honor for his heroism during the Wham Paymaster Robbery and buried him in Arlington Cemetery, 84 years after his death in Phoenix.
In 1890 Mayes was a corporal in the 25th Infantry Regiment and was escorting a payroll worth $30,000 between Fort McDowell and Fort Apache.
“Outlaws decided to ambush this payroll,” Jackson said. “The Buffalo Soldiers had to run for cover, but Isaiah Mayes stayed in the road, protected the payroll, and held off the outlaws.”
After being wounded in both legs he crawled two miles in order to save all the other wounded Buffalo Soldiers. For his heroism he was awarded the Medal of Honor.
The Arizona Chapter of the BSMRC also includes a women rider.
“Biker clubs don’t normally include women,” said Sheila Neal, the executive secretary of the Arizona Chapter of the BSMRC. “But I’m in this club to recognize a woman Buffalo Soldier, Pvt. Kathay Williams, who posed as a man in order to fight.”
Williams grew up as a slave working for a military family and gained a lot of experience with the military lifestyle.
“She, at one point, witnessed a black cavalry group come through and found out it was the Buffalo Soldiers,” Neal said. “She decided she wanted to make a living in the military, she said to herself, I’d like to fight, I’d like to be in the military, and I’d like to join the Buffalo Soldiers.”
Kathay Williams found the Buffalo Soldiers after she was freed from slavery and changed her name to Williams Kathay, posing as a man.
“She was 5’9, which was tall for a female in that era,” Neal said. “They didn’t do a full exam and she was able to pass as a man.”
William Kathy fought gallantly alongside the male Buffalo Soldiers for two years until she fell ill and was given an honorable discharge.
| Date Taken: | 02.12.2012 |
| Date Posted: | 02.18.2012 01:06 |
| Story ID: | 84041 |
| Location: | PHOENIX, ARIZONA, US |
| Web Views: | 723 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, The 9th Memorial U.S. Cavalry Unit and the Arizona Chapter of the Buffalo Soldiers Motorcycle Riders Club traveled to visit the Arizona Military Museum, by PFC Danielle Sargent, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
