February is Black History month, and its arrival every year usually prompts a complaint from someone who wonders why there it is necessary to have a month that emphasizes black history when there is no month set aside to specifically honor and commemorate another ethnic group’s history. The answer is simple. For too long in the United States’ rich and glorious history, accounts of blacks and their accomplishments have been swept aside — sometimes purposely.
Black History Month addresses that issue in positive fashion. It does not say the black history is more important than other history; it does say that it is a history that has long been forgotten and ignored and that time and effort is needed to reveal the role and contribution of a large and important group of America’s citizens. In recent years, that movement has gained considerable momentum
John Edwards III, curator of the Mary Walker Historical and Educational Foundation here, is an active and enthusiastic participant in the movement. More than a decade ago, he, and his father, began a project to document the role of black soldiers in the Civil War. It was a suitable topic, given the role the Chattanooga area played in the pivotal war. The project was more easily described than accomplished.
There is a mass of primary and secondary material available about the Civil War and those involved in it. Indeed, some historians say more has been written about it than any other single event in U.S. history. Most of it, however, deals with whites and was written by whites. “Most of the information [about the role of black soldiers in the Civil War] started off with ‘very little is known,'” Mr. Edwards said, “so our position was to help make it known.”
That’s the stuff of history — primary research the reveals information previously unknown or little known to the public. Mr. Edwards’ work continues, but his research is the basis for a temporary exhibit now on display at the Chickamauga and Chattanooga Military Park Visitor Center in Fort Oglethorpe. Displays illuminate the role of black soldiers in the war. Some of the information is startling. Some visitors to the park, officials say, were unaware there were black soldiers in the Union Army. The exhibit should dispel that notion, most notably a photograph of a black Union soldier shaking hands with a Confederate infantryman at the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg.
The current exhibit at the battlefield is another small step in making a portion of black — and U.S. — history known to a far broader segment of the public. “African-American history should be a part of the history books, not a separate issue.” Mr. Edward says. “It should be a part of American history.”
At this moment in time, it still is not. Until that time does come — soon, one can ardently hope — then Black History Month and exhibits like Mr. Edwards’ are an important adjunct to the study of U.S. history.