On This Day In TCXPI History – We Must Never Forget! Buffalo Soldiers and the Brownsville Affair On Aug. 13, 1906, a white woman alleged that a black man in a khaki uniform had grabbed her by the hair although she managed to get away. Threats were allegedly made by the woman’s husband that Negro soldiers would be shot on sight if caught on the streets of Brownsville. Tensions were running high in Brownsville which was only about 400 yards from Ft. Brown. Major Penrose, commanding officer at the fort ordered a curfew and confined the 25th to camp grounds unless on official military business or they had a pass. All soldiers were required to be in the fort by 8 p.m. Around midnight on Aug. 13-14, gunfire erupted in a business section of town. One white man was killed outside of a saloon and a Hispanic police officer was seriously wounded. The townspeople blamed the shooting on the Buffalo Soldiers. They claimed that over a dozen soldiers attacked the town indiscriminately firing between 100 and 200 shots into the buildings aligning the street. The soldiers at the fort aroused by the sound of gunfire began preparing to defend the fort. During an investigation of the alleged incident, Major Penrose said that all soldiers at the fort had been accounted for as well as all the rifles in the armory. The guns had also been checked to see if they had been fired recently with negative results. Penrose said that all the men at the fort had denied involvement or knowing anything about anyone leaving the fort to go into town. The people of Brownsville called out for further investigation by state authorities and letters were sent to President Theodore Roosevelt asking him to look into the matter and remove all the black soldiers from Fort Brown. Captain McDonald of the Texas Rangers was sent to investigate and said that he had 12 suspects including the soldier that had been assaulted on the streets in Brownsville. He turned in his investigation to state officials. The investigation results were submitted to a grand jury but they refused to indict the suspects. McDonald persuaded a judge to issue arrest warrants for his 12 suspects. Major Penrose refused to turn over his men fearing they could possibly be lynched. A federal investigation was ordered by President Roosevelt. All 167 soldiers were questioned, and even though they were threatened with being discharged from the service, they said they were not involved and had no knowledge of anyone leaving the fort to go into town. The report came back stating that there was a “conspiracy of silence” among all the soldiers of the 25th Infantry. President Roosevelt in an unprecedented action ordered all 167 black soldiers dishonorably discharged. Most of these men had been in the army over five years. A number of them had over 15 years of honorable service. Six of the Buffalo Soldiers had been awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest award for valor. A court-martial was ordered for Major Penrose and Captain Macklin, white officers of the 25th for negligence of duty. They were both acquitted. Black leaders and some white congressmen tried to get Roosevelt to change his mind but he refused. He was reminded that the Buffalo Soldiers had fought at his side in Cuba, including the famous charge up San Juan Hill. Some historians believe the Buffalo Soldiers were actually the first troops to charge up the hill and they bore the brunt of the fighting, although Roosevelt and his volunteer “Rough Riders” would get the credit. W.E.B. Dubois, a Civil Rights Activist, Author, and one of the co-founders of the NAACP urged African Americans to register to vote and remember Roosevelt and the Republicans during the next election. Source: copperarea/pages/buffalo-soldiers-and-the-brownsville-affair/
Posted on: Wed, 13 Aug 2014 05:44:16 +0000
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