History of the Negro Troops in the War of the Rebellion A

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June 29, 2026

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George Washington Williams's A History of the Negro Troops in the War of the Rebellion (1888) was a pioneering work that objectively researched the contributions of Black soldiers in the Civil War. Williams gathered oral histories from veterans and used newspaper accounts, establishing new historiographical methods.1

The Emancipation Proclamation allowed Black men to enlist in the Union Army, with approximately 180,000 serving by the war's end. Despite facing segregation, lower pay initially, and inferior equipment, these soldiers performed admirably in battles such as Milliken's Bend and Fort Wagner. Tragically, disease claimed more Black soldiers than battle wounds, and captured Black troops faced enslavement.2

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George Washington Williams
…research for his next work, A History of the Negro Troops in the War of the Rebellion (1888), involved the gathering of oral histories from black Civil War veterans and the culling of newspaper accounts, both techniques which subsequently became basic resources in American historiography.
Read More
…research for his next work, A History of the Negro Troops in the War of the Rebellion (1888), involved the gathering of oral histories from black Civil War veterans and the culling of newspaper accounts, both techniques which subsequently became basic resources in American historiography.
Read More