Phil, I think they were looked at as battlefield casualties period. Not black or white, criminal or just. The were in fact in this instance "the enemy" and were buried where they fell as so many were. We've discussed this in the past that once the bullets started flying politics went out the window. Regardless of the illustrious legacy that these first black troops may hold, at the time they were just more men in blue shooting at those men in grey. This was war and there was nothing "civil" about it.

Keith