The buffalo soldiers: Who they were and their contributions to military history

The buffalo soldiers protected travelers in the Old West, rode into Mexico to hunt for Pancho Villa and fought in two world wars.

If you’ve been curious about who the buffalo soldiers were, or if you’ve never heard of them, it’s worth the drive to Fort Huachuca in southern Arizona to learn more.

The museum at Fort Huachuca, an Army base near Sierra Vista (about a three-hour drive southeast of Phoenix), showcases an exhibit about the lives and exploits of the African American troops known as buffalo soldiers. Those soldiers served in the Army from just after the Civil War through World War II.

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Who were the buffalo soldiers?

The U.S. troops commonly called the buffalo soldiers were actually a collection of Army units that came together after the Civil War.

“They were originally formed in 1866,” said Steve Gregory, museum tech with the museums at Fort Huachuca. “It started with six regiments, then that was pared down to the four we’re familiar with by 1868 or 1869.”

The first four units that became known as buffalo soldiers were the 9th Cavalry, 10th Cavalry, 24th Infantry and 25th Infantry. Those groups spent time in locations as varied as Vermont, Kansas and Hawaii. Fort Huachuca bases its claim of being the true home of the buffalo soldiers on the fact that it is the only base that hosted all members of the group.

The first group to be garrisoned at Fort Huachuca were members of the 24th Infantry from 1892 through 1896. The 25th Infantry and 9th Cavalry began arriving after the Spanish-American War in 1891, before departing for the Philippines in 1900. The entire 10th Cavalry came from Vermont starting in late 1913.

“That’s when they expanded the post with more officers’ housing and barracks for the troops,” Gregory said. “The 10th was here to augment the military force on the border.”

During World War II, members of the 92nd and 93rd Infantry divisions also were known as buffalo soldiers.

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What are the buffalo soldiers known for?

Buffalo soldiers performed a variety of tasks that helped shape the West (and the world) during their time at Fort Huachuca.

From their origins until the mid-1890s, they guarded stagecoaches and settlers against attacks and robberies during the period of western expansion.

They fought in the Spanish-American War and in the Philippines.

In 1916 they entered Mexico with Gen. John “Black Jack” Pershing in an attempt to capture (or kill) Francisco “Pancho" Villa.

They took part in the Battle of Ambos Nogales, which was considered to be the only World War I battle fought on American soil. The battle was a conflict between the United States and Mexican forces (believed to be influenced by German instigators) along the border on Aug. 27, 1918.

Buffalo soldiers fought in both world wars before the groups were absorbed by other Army units after World War II.

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How did the buffalo soldiers get their name?

There are several stories about how the buffalo soldiers acquired the name.

One theory was that Native American warriors they fought against reportedly said the curly hair of the African soldiers resembled a buffalo’s coat.

“There are all sorts of debates about the name,” Gregory said. “A lot of time you’ll hear it was because of their heroism. That the Indians honored them, saying they fought like buffaloes. But you’ll find other accounts from the Indians saying, ‘They were just soldiers to us. We hated them as much as we hated the whites.’ ”

Perhaps the earliest mention of the name in print is in a piece called “A Scout With the Buffalo Soldiers," written by Frederic Remington for "The Century" magazine on April 6, 1889. He does not explain the origin of the of the name in the article.

Charles Hancock, president of the Southwest Association of Buffalo Soldiers, a nonprofit group dedicated to spreading the word of the history of the soldiers, mentions the following story as a possible origin of the name.

Hancock speaks of Pvt. John Randall, a soldier with the 10th Cavalry who was charged with escorting a pair of civilians on a hunting party. Randall and company were soon attacked by a band of about 70 Cheyenne warriors. The civilians were killed immediately, as was Randall’s horse.

Using his horse as a shield, Randall held off the warriors, killing 13, until help arrived. He was shot twice and stabbed multiple times but continued to fight.

“The Indians started telling the story about the new breed of soldiers they encountered,” Hancock said. “One who had fought like a wounded buffalo. They said, ‘We shot him and stabbed him and he would not die.’ ”

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What's in the buffalo soldiers museum at Fort Huachuca

The buffalo soldiers museum at Fort Huachuca contains a detailed exhibit about the men and women who served there.

The exhibit contains examples of uniforms worn by the buffalo soldiers from the Texas plains through World War II. It tells the stories of individual soldiers as well as the fabled units through photographs and other memorabilia.

The contributions of Black women who served at Fort Huachuca also are highlighted. Those women served as nurses or in the Women’s Army Corps in the later years of the unit.

There also are mentions of celebrities and entertainers who visited the base to entertain the troops.

In addition to the buffalo soldier exhibit, visitors also can check out the Army Intelligence Museum. It showcases military intelligence from 1775 to the present with exhibits that include a World War II-era German Enigma cipher machine.

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Visiting Fort Huachuca Museums

When: 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays-Saturdays.

Where: 340 S. Grierson Ave., Fort Huachuca. The fort is 29 miles south of Interstate 10 on State Route 90. Visitors must enter through the Van Deman Gate Visitor Control Center.

Background check: Fort Huachuca is an active military base. If you do not have a Department of Defense-issued identification card, be prepared to undergo a background check. Expect to spend 20-30 minutes getting through security. Visitors 18 and older need a government-issued ID such as a driver's license or passport. Those whose ID is not compliant with the Real ID Act of 2005 will need a second form of ID.

Details: 520-533-3638, https://history.army.mil/museums/TRADOC/fortHuachuca/index.html.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Buffalo soldiers: Who they were and what they were known for