The Opportunity Is At Hand: Oneida County, New York, Colored Soldiers in the Civil War - Softcover

Donald M. Wisnoski

9781889246208: The Opportunity Is At Hand: Oneida County, New York, Colored Soldiers in the Civil War

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1889246204 ISBN 13: 9781889246208

Publisher: Schroeder Publications, 2003

"The Opportunity is at Hand" is a new form of study concerning United States Colored Troops. There have been other studies on famous units such at the 54th and 55th Massachusetts and the 14th Rhode Island Heavy Artillery, and on the contributions of Black soldiers as a whole. Yet, a concentrated study of colored soldiers from one geographical area, of men who served in various units, has not been delved into until now. Mr. Wisnoski has researched over 60 colored service men and women from Oneida County, New York, who served in twenty different units and organizations. Many were in the ranks of the 26th and 31st USCT, the 54th Massachusetts Infantry, the 14th Rhode Island Heavy Artillery, and other units, as well as several veterans of the US Navy. These men fought in the battles of Fort Wagner, Olustee, Johns Island, James Island, Honey Hill, Petersburg, Chaffins’ Farm, and Appomattox. The book reveals the eagerness of colored citizens to take part in the great struggle. The earliest man to enlist was John E. Lippins who joined the Navy on November 4, 1861. Several men served with the 16th New York Heavy Artillery as cooks until transferring to the United States Colored Regiments. A colored washerwoman went into the field with the 2nd New York Heavy Artillery. There were three brothers who served, as well as a father and son in the 31st USCT. There was William "Uncle Bill" Smith of the 14th Rhode Island Heavy Artillery (later the 11th US Colored Heavy Artillery) who lived to be 113 years old. There was William Henry who weighed 397 pounds, and was turned down by the army because of his bulk. Unwilling to be denied his right to serve, Henry joined the navy and was stationed aboard the Hornet. There was Arlington Denike, who served on the U. S. S. Vermont and the Preston, and attained the rank of 1st class petty officer. Then there were less stellar men like John Green, of the 1st and 40th USCT. Though wounded in battle in 1863, Green was later characterized as "utterly worthless as a soldier and a confirmed malingerer."

Though most black men from Oneida County were born free, there were those such as Eli Baylis, an escaped slave, who served in the 1st Mississippi Cavalry (later known as the 3rd US Colored Cavalry), and Robert "Uncle Bob" Wilson who was liberated from servitude from a plantation near Culpeper, VA, and who attached himself as a ‘contraband’ to Major Rufus Daggett of the 117th NY Infantry. Milton Frank was drafted in the summer of 1863, served bravely, and was twice wounded—the first time at the Battle of Olustee, then at Chaffin’s Farm, a wound that proved mortal. One highlight of the book is a half-dozen letters written by William Labiel of the 14th RI Heavy Artillery. Sadly, Labiel did not survive the war.

The book includes three appendices. One lists the known burial sites for the African-American soldiers from Oneida County, another lists the 24 white USCT officers who came from the county, and the last is General Daniel Butterfield’s analysis of the use of black soldiers entitled "Memoranda With Regard to Colored Troops." The book contains 30 photos and sketches. Index. 136 pages.

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Review:

Long over-due tribute to those brave men of color who served so heroically in our nation's bloodiest conflict. --Brian C. Pohanka, May, 2003

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