Juneteenth, Philadelphia, and the Civil War US Colored Infantry at Camp William Penn By Joe Certaine, USCTLHA
The United States Colored Infantry Regiments formed at Camp William Penn and the dates they were formed and mustered out of service.
The Regiments formed at Camp William Penn have a proud history of service. The 6th, 8th, 22nd and 43rd Regiments saw the most fighting of the William Penn Regiments. The 6th and 8th Regiments are listed in W.F. Fox's Regimental Losses of the Civil War among the 300 hardest fighting Regiments in the War. Also The 43rd Regiment was the first Black Unit to be in a Presidential Inaugural Parade when President Lincoln was sworn in for the second time. The22nd Regiment took part in President Lincoln's Funeral procession. About the 3rd USCI and the first attempt to parade through Philadelphia
The Christian Recorder noted the 3rd Regiment's great anger about not being able to parade shortly before it departed. "[N]ot only were the friends of the regiment disappointed, but when the intelligence reached the encampment it caused a great commotion amongst the men, amounting, as we have been told, almost to a state of mutiny, which had been the consequences of so frequently disappointing the men on this account," the Recorder report said. "What right any man has to interfere with colored, more than with white troops, we cannot conceive. Does the government want to get them up in some dark corner, and prepare them to do just what white men are prepared to do in the dark? It should be remembered, that these men are human beings, and have their five senses, and feel just as well as the whites do. They are not ignorant of the manner in which they are treated; and of course they know what they are, and the kind of treatment they deserve. And the men who would interfere with, or molest them in any way, deserve the severest punishment. We, therefore, hope that both the Government and Philadelphia will redeem themselves from last week's doings." The disappointed 3rd Regiment, under Colonel Benjamin C. Tilghman, eventually marched off to war, participating in the siege of South Carolina's Fort Wagner and in several important Florida battles. Camp commander Wagner supported his black troops, despite frequent public pressure. Local newspapers wrote several accounts of a black soldier guarding the post who shot a belligerent white man intent on entering the camp without permission. Although the white community became enraged and demanded the black soldier be brought to trial in nearby Norristown, the Montgomery County seat, Wagner refused to hand him over. Wagner also insisted that his black soldiers ignore segregationist policies and ride beside him on local trains. Braving opposition, he also paraded the next regiment to leave the camp for battle, the 6th USCT, right down Philadelphia's main thoroughfare, Broad Street, and past the Union League's front steps filled with dignitaries and top military brass. [There will be additional information about Camp William Penn at the USCT encampment at Historic Johnson House on Saturday, June 17.--Ed.] Back to About Juneteenth>> Juneteenth, Philadelphia, and the Civil War |
Camp William Penn in Cheltenham was the largest encampment for USCT in the Civil War, producing 11 regiments of colored infantry. The Camp was commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Louis Wagner who had been wounded at the second Battle of Bull Run and was detached from the 88th Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. The Camp was closed August 14, 1865. 
It was not long before the black men standing at arms before Douglass would prove themselves quite worthy of carrying the U.S. flag into battle. But they still had to face trouble at home first. In fact, before leaving the Philadelphia area on September 18, 1863, the 3rd Regiment would endure further humiliation. Because of continuing racism, the regiment was not allowed to parade in the city. The August 8, 1863, edition of the Christian Recorder, a black newspaper published in Philadelphia by the African Methodist Episcopal Church, explained the situation: "At the latter part of last week several of our daily papers published the gratifying intelligence that the Third Regiment of Philadelphia Colored troops would come into the city from Camp William Penn, to go through the evolutions of a street parade. The day came, but with it also came the postponement of the promised treat indefinitely. This has been a source of grievous disappointment to a great many, both colored and white."