Published: June 14, 2009 10:07 pm      

America’s Civil War: Testing of a nation

During the third week of June, celebrations will begin in Texas and all over the world in commemoration of June 19 – commonly referred to as “Juneteenth.”

An examination of the significance of these celebrations extends beyond the borders of time and place. The observances are designed to celebrate the end of slavery in Texas.

Although the rumors of freedom were widespread prior to an official announcement in 1865, actual emancipation did not come to Texas until Gen. Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston and issued General Order No. 3 on June 19, almost two and one half years after Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation in 1862.

The issuance of the proclamation marked the end of a Civil War that grew out of a multitude of factors, all of which created streams of differential perceptions.

From 1861 to 1865, the United States was torn apart by the Civil War. Some historians suggest that the crisis that had been in the making for a sustained period of time and reached its peak in the 1850s.

Although there were other issues such as states’ rights vs. federal power, the economic merits of free labor vs. slave labor, expansionism and modernization and taxes, the central issue was slavery.

It was the dispute over the expansion of slavery into new territories as well as the election of Abraham Lincoln as president on Nov. 6, 1860, that finally led to the secession of seven Southern states.

In his acceptance speech for the Republican State Senatorial nomination June 16, 1858, Lincoln noted: “A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe that this government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free.

“I do not expect the Union to be dissolved – I do not expect the house to fall – but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other…”

It is interesting to note that Lincoln did not propose federal laws making slavery unlawful where it already existed. His concerns about a “divided nation” were at the core of his proposed actions.

South Carolina was the first state to secede from the Union and within two months five other states, including Texas followed. On Feb. 9, 1861, the Confederate States of America was formed with President Jefferson Davis at its helm. Divisions were evident – even among the slaves. Many who had served during the Revolutionary War found themselves divided between the Union and Confederate armies.

In the beginning, most Americans, including Texans, believed that the war would be short-lived, but the North underestimated the determination of the South to remain independent. The battles raged for over four long years, with some three million men fighting for their cause.

An estimated 620,000 lives were lost. Black soldiers were among the casualties. Black soldiers fought on both sides.

They fought for freedom in hostile combat arenas.

After the Emancipation Proclamation in 1862, the Union army began to recruit African- American soldiers. New regiments were created with white officers. They were called the Colored Infantry, the United States Colored Troops, or the infantry of African Descent. Black soldiers were assigned unequally large portions of military labor, called “fatigued duty.” They gave them jobs no one wanted, like burying the dead from the battlefields and hospitals. The army excused this unfairness by saying that they were saving the white soldiers for fighting.

Captured white soldiers were treated as prisoners of war with the possibility of exchange according to papers held at Johns Hopkins University,

After the emancipation of slaves in 1863, the Confederate Congress passed a resolution stating that all white soldiers who led black troops would be considered as inciting slave revolts, and if captured put to death or otherwise punished.” African- Americans fought for the Confederacy.

Under the articles of war, neither black soldiers nor his white officers would be protected. Instead of being prisoners of war, both would be treated as criminals and executed if captured. (The Johns Hopkins University Library).

The 54th Massachusetts Regiment and the 3rd South Carolina Regiment, comprised of ex-slaves, protested the treatment received from Union and Confederate armies.

Corp. James Henry Gooding of the 54th Massachusetts protested to President Lincoln about unequal pay in 1863.

He wrote: “The main question is, Are we soldiers or are we laborers? We have done a soldiers duty, why can’t we have a soldier’s pay?”

It was not until 1864, only months prior to the end of the war, did Congress pass a law equalizing the pay of black and white soldiers. Black soldiers won the longest and most important battles of the Civil War – the fight for equal pay.

In the exhibit, American Odyssey on the Civil War, there are prints and photographs depicting reactions to the Civil War and its aftermath. One of the most important prints, “Freedom’s Eve,” shows African- Americans waiting for the hour (Emancipation) on Dec. 31, 1862, by Heard and Moseley. Some Americans are not aware of the origin of “Watch Night Meetings” – although they practice it today.

On New Year’s Eve, many African-American churches hold prayer and worship services from the late evening until midnight when they welcome the New Year with praise, prayer and confession. These services are called “watch meetings.”

The tradition dates back to the night before the Emancipation Proclamation took effect, freeing all the slaves in the Confederate states. For African-Americans in Texas, freedom was deferred until June 19, 1865. To be sure, the nation was tested but it survived.

NEext week: “Juneteenth: A Traditional Celebration.”





Naomi W. Ledé is a retired Senior Research Scientist, Distinguished Professor and University Administrator. She is President/Chair of the Board of the Samuel Walker Houston Museum and Cultural Center in Huntsville, Texas.