Colored Americans in the Wars of 1776 and 1812

In Short

This historical compilation documents the military service, sacrifices, and civil contributions of African Americans during the American Revolution and the War of 1812. Composed of contemporaneous records, diaries, speeches, and newspaper clippings, the book brings together forgotten facts that standard historical works have largely omitted or marginalized. It records the active participation of Black soldiers and laborers on land and sea, highlights individual acts of heroism, and exposes the racial hypocrisy of a nation that fought for liberty while maintaining slavery. The book has lasted as an essential archive of early African American patriotism and an enduring indictment of historical erasure.

The Story

The text begins by setting forth the patriotic status of Black Americans through contemporaneous records and introductions by editors and abolitionists. It establishes that men of color bore their full proportion of the trials and hardships of the American Revolution. The narrative moves through individual state contributions, detailing how Black individuals and regiments fought in major engagements. In Massachusetts, Crispus Attucks falls as the first martyr of the Boston Massacre, while veterans like Seymour Burr and Primus Hall endure the freezing campaigns and share quarters with General Washington. In Rhode Island, an entire regiment of former slaves achieves renown for their valor at the defense of Red Bank and protects their mortally wounded commander, Colonel Greene, with their own bodies. In Connecticut, names of Black soldiers are preserved from pay rolls, and men like Sambo Latham and Jordan Freeman fight bravely at Fort Griswold, where Freeman kills Major Montgomery. Vermont accounts describe a unique prisoner escort, while New York and Pennsylvania records highlight both the contributions of Black soldiers on Long Island and the selfless nursing provided by Black citizens during the yellow fever epidemic. Moving to the Southern states, the volume notes the labor of Black pioneers and builders on fortifications, as well as General Andrew Jackson’s proclamations praising the valor and endurance of free men of color during the defense of New Orleans in the War of 1812. Finally, the collection records tributes from European allies like Lafayette and Kosciusko, alongside post-war processions, memorials, and the ongoing struggle for equal rights and recognition.

How It Unfolds

The foundational record The book opens with introductory statements and prefaces by editors and poets establishing the neglected history of Black soldiers in 1776 and 1812. It argues that these foundational contributions must be preserved against deliberate oversight and fading archives.

The dawn of conflict The narrative recounts the Boston Massacre and the role of Crispus Attucks, positioning him at the forefront of the resistance against British troops. It details the initial sacrifices made by Black men who took up arms despite systemic denial of equal citizenship.

Campaigns and regiments Accounts from Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New Jersey trace the active service of Black soldiers through major military engagements, including Red Bank, Saratoga, and Yorktown. These sections document both unit formations and individual muster rolls that rescue names from oblivion.

Acts of endurance and devotion Personal anecdotes emerge of soldiers enduring extreme cold, sharing blankets with General Washington, and fiercely protecting their commanding officers on the battlefield. These stories emphasize the personal fidelity and resilience of men who fought for a country that enslaved them.

The defense of the South Turning to the War of 1812, the text details the construction of fortifications and General Andrew Jackson's official proclamations celebrating the discipline and courage of free men of color at Mobile and New Orleans.

Post-war reflection and public memory The volume concludes by examining public processions, monuments, and the stark contrast between the military valor of Black veterans and the persistent racial prejudices of the American state and church.

The People

Crispus Attucks is a central figure who leads the populace during the Boston Massacre, confronts British soldiers, and becomes the first martyr of the Revolution, though his memory faces legislative resistance and denial. Seymour Burr, an enslaved man in Connecticut, seeks freedom and earns his emancipation by serving faithfully in the American army through severe suffering. Primus Hall, a Boston native and revolutionary soldier, interacts closely with General Washington, sharing anecdotes of camp life and military privation. Jordan Freeman fights at Fort Griswold and slays a British major, yet finds his name listed at the very bottom of the monument's tablet with a deliberate blank space separating him from white soldiers. General Andrew Jackson commands forces in the War of 1812, issues formal proclamations praising the formidable qualities, fortitude, and noble enthusiasm of free men of color, and enlists them to defend the nation. Oliver Cromwell serves in the New Jersey Regiment through multiple major battles, surviving to recount his revolutionary experiences at one hundred years of age. Lafayette and Kosciusko express deep regret that their military efforts in America inadvertently helped found a nation of slavery, actively inquiring after the Black soldiers who fought alongside them.

In Its Own Voice

"Not a few of our fathers suffered and bled to purchase its independence; we ask only to be treated as well as those who fought against it."

Wendell Phillips notes the profound injustice of denying equal privileges to the native descendants of those who fought for American independence.

"The glory of the defence of Red Bank, which has been pronounced one of the most heroic actions of the war, belongs in reality to black men; yet who now hears them spoken of in connection with it?"

The text highlights how the heroic defense executed by an entire regiment of Black soldiers has been systematically erased from popular historical memory.

"The same shot with promiscuous slaughter had mowed down Africans and Americans. But in the grave they must be divided."

The narrative laments the persistent racial prejudice that sought to segregate even the remains of fallen soldiers who had fought side by side under the same banner.

What It's Really About

The book addresses the central paradox of American liberty: the foundational involvement of African Americans in securing national independence contrasted against their persistent denial of basic citizenship and human rights. It argues that Black Americans earned an unassailable claim to nation-builder status through blood, labor, and military fidelity. The text interrogates the mechanisms of historical omission, examining how standard histories, legislative bodies, and social institutions systematically sidelined the contributions of people of color. Beyond a simple roll call of veterans, the work presents an urgent defense of racial dignity, using incontrovertible documentary evidence to dismantle the false narrative that African Americans played no substantive role in the creation and defense of the United States.

Why Read It Today

Reading this work offers a direct encounter with primary source history, free from modern varnish or romanticized simplification. It feels like stepping into a nineteenth-century archive, surrounded by petitions, legislative debates, newspaper clippings, and the weathered voices of veterans recalling the freezing nights of the Revolution. Readers interested in early American history, military records, and the genealogy of civil rights will find immense value in its pages. However, modern readers must navigate the stark realities of nineteenth-century racial attitudes, the raw grief of historical injustice, and the heavy sorrow embedded in accounts of cemeteries desecrated and veterans ignored. What stays with the reader long after finishing is the striking dignity of men who fought for a country that routinely betrayed them, and the stark reminder of how easily history forgets those it chooses not to see.