The Colored Soldiers Monument in

Frankfort, Kentucky Frankfort is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, United States, and the seat of Franklin County. It is a home rule-class city; the population was 28,602 at the 2020 census. Located along the Kentucky River, Frankfort is the prin ...

's Green Hill Cemetery, at the junction of

US 60 U.S. Route 60 is a major east–west United States highway, traveling from southwestern Arizona to the Atlantic Ocean coast in Virginia. The highway's eastern terminus is in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where it is known as Pacific Avenue, in the ...

and

US 421 U.S. Route 421 (also U.S. Highway 421, US 421) is a diagonal northwest–southeast United States Numbered Highway in the states of North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Kentucky, and Indiana. The highway runs for from Fort Fisher, North Caro ...

, is the only

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

monument honoring black soldiers that participated in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, and one of only four in the entire

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Erected by the

Woman's Relief Corps The Woman's Relief Corps (WRC) is a charitable organization in the United States, originally founded as the official women's auxiliary to the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) in 1883. The organization was designed to assist the GAR and p ...

No. 8, an auxiliary of the

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (U.S. Navy), and the Marines who served in the American Civil War. It was founded in 1866 in Decatur, Il ...

, it was unveiled on July 4, 1924. The only other monument built by GAR in Kentucky is the

GAR Monument in Covington The Grand Army of the Republic Monument, in the Linden Grove Cemetery of Covington, Kentucky, was built in 1929 by the O. P. Sine of Garfield Post No. 2 of the Grand Army of the Republic, a group comprising the remaining veterans of the Union ar ...

History

Due to state laws, Kentucky was not allowed to recruit blacks until March 1, 1864. In total, 23,703 blacks from Kentucky would join a total of 23 Union regiments. This would provide the Union Army one-third of its total forces from the state of Kentucky. Those that enlisted were immediately emancipated. Although generally given garrison duty, these soldiers did see combat action, mostly in

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

and

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

. After the war ended, some were sent west to

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

to discourage

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

from conquering

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. Only the state of

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

provided more black troops than Kentucky. The monument, built in 1924, is a simple 10-foot tall 4-sided

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

pillar. Its base is of poured

concrete Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most wi ...

. The front bears the inscription "In Memory of the Colored Soldiers Franklin County, Kentucky Who Fought in the Civil War 1861-1865." Inscribed around the column are the names of 142 black soldiers that hailed from central Kentucky. All that is known of its cost is that it was "several hundred dollars". It was dedicated at 4 p.m. on July 4, 1924. On July 17, 1997, the Colored Soldiers Monument in Frankfort was one of 60 different monuments related to the

Civil War in Kentucky History of Kentucky, Kentucky was a Border states (American Civil War), border state of key importance in the American Civil War. It officially declared its neutrality at the beginning of the war, but after a failed attempt by Confedera ...

placed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

, as part of the Civil War Monuments of Kentucky

Multiple Property Submission The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of Historic districts in the United States, districts, sites, buildings, struc ...

. The

Confederate Monument in Frankfort The Confederate Monument in Frankfort is placed within a circle of the graves of 68 Confederate soldiers in Frankfort Cemetery in Kentucky. The statue depicts a life size Confederate soldier standing ready, carved from white Carrara marble and sta ...

is the only other one in Frankfort; it is in

Frankfort Cemetery The Frankfort Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery located on East Main Street in Frankfort, Kentucky. The cemetery is the burial site of Daniel Boone and contains the graves of other famous Americans including seventeen Kentucky governors and a ...

one mile (1.6 km) to the west.

Gallery

File:Colored Soldiers Monument in Frankfort 2.jpg, West side File:Colored Soldiers Monument in Frankfort 3.jpg, View from cemetery road File:Colored Soldiers Monument in Frankfort 4.jpg, View from US-60 File:Colored Soldiers Monument in Frankfort marker.jpg, Interpretive marker describing the monument

References

External links

{{American Civil War monuments in Kentucky African-American history of Kentucky Civil War Monuments of Kentucky MPS National Register of Historic Places in Frankfort, Kentucky Military history of African Americans in the American Civil War 1924 sculptures Limestone sculptures in Kentucky 1924 establishments in Kentucky African-American military monuments and memorials Grand Army of the Republic buildings and structures Woman's Relief Corps Union (American Civil War) monuments and memorials in Kentucky

History

Gallery

See also

References

External links