Which Colored Regiment did Goodyear Meet?
A picture of the 4th U.S.C.I. at Fort Lincoln. Courtesy Library of Congress.
It is nearly impossible to determine exactly which Colored
Regiment Charley visited, however I can give an educated guess as to which
one. The most likely candidates are the
4th United States Colored Infantry and the 2nd U.S.C.I. The second was organized in Arlington Virginia
from June 20to November 11 of 1863.
Arlington was also the location of Fort Scott where Charley was
stationed. The 4th was
organized from July of 1863 until early September of the same year in Baltimore
Maryland. In October, the regiment moved
to Fort Monroe in Virginia. It is
possible that they had camped near Charley so that he might have seen them. Company E of the 4th was
permanently stationed as part of the defenses of Washington just as Fort Scott
was.
One last possibility is the 1st U.S.C.I which stayed in Virginia, mostly Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Yorktown, throughout much of 1863.
There are surely other possibilities, however, these present some of the most likely candidates. In truth, the large number of possibilities helps to illustrate the quickly growing numbers of Colored Regiments and the increased importance of them. By the end of the war there would by 138 Colored Infantry Regiments alone, along with a smaller number of calvary and artillery regiments, too.
Charles would eventually end up in the 9th U.S.C.I and Romulus in the 3rd U.S.C.I.
Sources:
http://www.civilwararchive.com/Unreghst/uncolinf1.htm#2
http://www.nps.gov/cwdw/historyculture/the-united-states-colored-troops-and-the-defenses-of-washington.htm
One last possibility is the 1st U.S.C.I which stayed in Virginia, mostly Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Yorktown, throughout much of 1863.
There are surely other possibilities, however, these present some of the most likely candidates. In truth, the large number of possibilities helps to illustrate the quickly growing numbers of Colored Regiments and the increased importance of them. By the end of the war there would by 138 Colored Infantry Regiments alone, along with a smaller number of calvary and artillery regiments, too.
Charles would eventually end up in the 9th U.S.C.I and Romulus in the 3rd U.S.C.I.
Sources:
http://www.civilwararchive.com/Unreghst/uncolinf1.htm#2
http://www.nps.gov/cwdw/historyculture/the-united-states-colored-troops-and-the-defenses-of-washington.htm