38th United States Colored Infantry Regiment
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Active
| January 23, 1864 ? January 25, 1867
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Country
| United States
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Branch
| Army
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Type
| Infantry
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Part of
| 2nd Brigade, 3rd Division,
XVIII Corps
,
Army of the James
(August 1864 – December 1864)
1st Brigade, 3rd Division,
XXV Corps
(December 1864)
1st Brigade, 1st Division, XXV Corps
(December 1864 – January 1866)
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Notable
commanders
| Col. Robert M. Hall
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Military unit
The
38th United States Colored Infantry Regiment
was an
African American
unit of the
Union Army
during the
American Civil War
. A part of the
United States Colored Troops
, the
regiment
saw action in
Virginia
during the war and later served on the
Texas
frontier.
Service
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Virginia engagements
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The 38th United States Colored Infantry Regiment was composed of men from St. Mary's County Maryland (both free Black tenant farmers and men who had escaped slavery) in combination with many Virginia men who had been liberated from slavery by the Union army. These two contingents constituted the 38th United States Colored Troops regiment which was organized in Virginia on January 23, 1864, and then subsequently served first at
Norfolk
and
Portsmouth
in the Department of Virginia and then served in North Carolina until June 1864, after which it was involved in
operations against Petersburg and Richmond
for the remainder of the war.
The regiment participated in engagements at
Chaffin's Farm
on September 29-September 30, Deep Bottom on October 1 and Fair Oaks on October 27-October 28, 1864.
Three Medal of Honor awardees
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Three members of the 38th,
William H. Barnes
,
James H. Harris
, and
Edward Ratcliff
, were awarded the
Medal of Honor
for their actions at Chaffin's Farm. The unit then served in the trenches north of the
James River
until the fall of
Richmond
in April 1865. The 38th occupied Richmond on April 3, 1865, and continued duty in the Department of Virginia through the end of the war and into May.
Texas
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The 38th was moved to Texas between May 24 and June 6, 1865, where it would stay for the rest of its service. The unit saw duty at various points along the
Rio Grande
in the southern portion of the state, including
Brownsville
and
Brazos Santiago
, as well as at
Indianola
and
Galveston
on the
gulf coast
.
Mustering out/total losses
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The 38th was mustered out on January 25, 1867, after three years of existence. The regiment lost a total of 237 men during its service; one officer and 42 enlisted men were killed or mortally wounded and two officers and 192 enlisted men died of disease.
The 38th USCT is not to be confused with the 38th Infantry Regiment which was first established on 28 July 1866, as part of the
Regular Army
, one of six segregated, all-black regiments created following the
Civil War
. It was organized on 1 October of that year at
Jefferson Barracks
,
Missouri
, and was stationed in
New Mexico Territory
and along the
transcontinental railroads
then under construction. On 15 March 1869, the 38th was consolidated with the
41st Infantry Regiment
and redesignated as the
24th Infantry Regiment
.
United States Colored Troops Memorial Statue
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The
United States Colored Troops Memorial Statue
specifically mentions soldiers of the 38th USCT. The memorial is located in
Lexington Park, Maryland
. A group of men from that area also served in the 38th USCT, they had accompanied the Union Army into Virginia, where they were combined with a group of Virginia men who had recently been liberated from slavery.
The men from Maryland included men who had recently escaped slavery as well as a number of free Black tenant farmers from the area. Altogether these Maryland and Virginia recruits were formed into the 38th United States Colored Infantry Regiment.
Two of the medal of honor recipients of the 38th were from the Maryland contingent,
William H. Barnes
and also
James H. Harris
. The informational kiosk at the memorial mentions them specifically.
The memorial also honors all of the approximately 700 African-American men from
St. Mary's County, Maryland
, who served in several different regiments and also on sailing ships of war or transport in the Civil War, as well as the 80 or so White St. Mary's County residents who served on the Union side, one of whom was also a medal of honor recipient.
See also
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References
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