Thank you for asking the question: Are these African American's you speak of, listed as the State of Texas troops, or listed as Confederate?

I have seen and heard the same arguments you reference on other sites and discussion groups and it seems to be a debate on symantics hinging on the word “soldier”.

I googled the definition of “soldier” and got several hits among them http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/soldier
and http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/soldier

The lead definition for Merrriam Webster was 1a : one engaged in military service and especially in the army b : an enlisted man or woman c : a skilled warrior

And for Dictionary Reference . com 1. a person who serves in an army; a person engaged in military service.

No where in those definitions does it say anything about carrying a gun or fighting which it seems you may be alluding.

Apparently, modern Civil War enthusiasts like to equate “soldiers” with “guns”.

In the quote you referenced by Confederate Sec. of War, James A. Seddon...
[NOVEMBER] 24, 1863.
“Our position with the North and before the world will not allow the employment as armed soldiers of negroes.”

In my opinion Seddon is saying he did nor wish to employ negroes as “armed” soldiers while, in fact, the military was using (officially or unofficially) negroes in many other support occupational categories.

As the war trudged along, as you know, more and more people, including Robert E Lee agreed Negroes could be and should be used as “armed” soldiers. It took as late as March 1865 before enough people climbed on the band wagon until they were able to convince Jefferson Davis and enough members of the Confederate Congress to also agree to it. A little late for the cause. But that is history and not a part of my project.

My project as I stated it in my initial post is "I am researching African Americans who lived in Texas before or after the Civil War and participated in the Confederate military as soldiers".

I would like to amend that premise by deleting the words “as soldiers” so as to be clearer about my objective. “I wish to identify by name and discover as much as I can find biographically about any Black (or African American) who may have served in the Confederate military.”

I am working only on those Black Confederates who resided in Texas before, during or after the Civil War. I have some who served from other states but later lived in Texas. So, in my project, the person did not have to serve in a Texas unit. They just had to live in Texas at some point in their life.

To date I have identified about 60 individuals (all males, so far) who were Black (African American) and served in the Confederate military. For the most part these people served as body servants, servants, cooks, herders and other occupational capacities. I also have quite a few who served as laborers on the breastworks along the Texas Gulf coast near Houston, Galveston and Sabine Pass.

Many (but, not all) of these people applied for Confederate pensions from the State of Texas as did other white Confederates. Many of these people (as did many of the whites), had difficulties proving their service as most did not appear on a muster roll. Some of their applications were rejected mainly because there was no muster roll or other written evidence they served. However, a surprising number of them were granted pensions based on testimony of others, white and Black, who testified under oath that they knew the applicant during the War and saw or served with them during that time of service. In several cases a statement was made that the witness had "seen" the applicant “in uniform”. There are, in addition, several instances where the Black testified in favor of a white to get a pension.

Of the nearly 60 African Americans I have so far identified and researched as having served in the Confederate military only one actually said he "did some shootin and git shooted at". His job was taking care of the horses in a cavalry unit. Two men mentioned being wounded by gunshot, the man just mentioned and another. The second did not say he was fighting. He just said he was wounded. In addition, there was another servant/cook who said he periodically would take up a gun and pull picket duty for his master when ordered to do so by the Sgt.

My sources are pension applications where the applicant was the soldier or he might be a former soldier testifying in favor of another and not, himself, an applicant for a pension. There are articles in the Confederate Veteran Magazine, news articles, reports or articles or photos of Confederate reunions, compiled service reports, prisoner of war records, Texas Slave Narratives from the 1930 WPA records, correspondence, books about the Civil War and any other source I might come across.

So, Kevin, I am not trying to show these men were Audy Murphys or John Waynes or even Robert E Lees. I just want to document and honor them for the service they performed.

In my project I try to find their slave owner if they were a slave. I want to know where they were born (state and county if possible), when they came to Texas. I hope to identify their parents, spouse and other family members. I want to know what they did during the War, occupationally, and where they went and anything else I can learn about their experiences during or after the War. I want to know where they lived after the War and did they attend Confederate reunions.

I am not trying to write a book on each person. My goal, however, is to write at least one or possibly a few pages on each individual. When I began the project I had one, then two people. Then it started snowballing. I began with the idea to write an article. Because I have found so many people I now plan to compile a book. I am trying desperately to cut my research off and stop.

This project is an offshoot another project I call the Free People of Color of Texas. Free People of Color were people who were not white but who, also, were not slaves and lived in Texas prior to the Civil War. Texas law prohibited Free People of Color coming to or living in the Republic or, later, the State of Texas.

Recently I wondered if any of those Free People of Color I have so identified might have served in the Civil War. I looked at only a couple people on my list that I know were slave owners and found they did serve in the Confederate military (and are listed on Texas Confederate muster rolls). Some of them lived long enough to apply for and receive Texas Confederate pensions. I have not delved into that list as yet so do not know how deep military service during the Civil War goes for that group of people.

I hope I have answered your question. I am trying to research the facts and not embellish or present the people as something they were not.

MIC