The Plattsburg idea of military training was inaugurated in 1915, when Maj. Gen. Leonard Wood organized a special training camp for civilians. The purpose of the camp was to offer four weeks of intensive training under the direct supervision of officers of the United States Army, and it was intended that this should be of such thoroughness that the men receiving it would be able to serve as officers in an emergency, as was afterwards done by a large number of Plattsburg men who served under General Pershing in the course of the trouble with Mexico.
Colored men were not given an opportunity to attend the Plattsburg camps. There was, consequently, no way in which any considerable number of them could secure the training necessary to enable them, in an emergency, to serve as officers. In order to meet this exigency, many Negroes and their friends endeavored to secure the establishment of a training camp for colored officers, although at first the idea of a separate camp was not popular. In the winter of 1917, however, Major General Wood agreed to organize the camp if two hundred colored men would signify their intention of attending; and in this period of uncertainty and anxiety, friends of the movement started a campaign with the hope of creating sufficient interest to warrant the establishment of the camp.
Dr. Joel E. Spingarn, one of the principal officers of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and a true friend of the Negro, who was the strongest advocate of the training camp, in May, 1917, sent out a circular letter calling for colored men to enter the volunteer service of the United States Army in order that the number of men necessary for the establishment of the camp might be secured. There was strong protest on the part of the Negro press and of many individuals against a “segregated camp,” the criticisms coming from all parts of the country. Dr. Spingarn, in reply, gave among other reasons for the establishment of the camp the following: “The army officials want the camp to fail. The last thing they want is to help colored men to become commissioned officers. The camp is intended to fight segregation, not to encourage it. Colored men in a camp by themselves would all get a fair chance for promotion. Opposition on the part of Negroes is helping the South, which does not want the Negroes to have any kind of military training. If there is a war, there will doubtless be conscription of all able-bodied men. The choice will be no longer between volunteering or not volunteering, but between conscription and rebellion. If conscription comes, will the leaders of the race help their Southern enemies by preaching treason and rebellion, or will they face facts right now and prepare themselves to go as leaders and not as privates?” As the notes passed between the American and German Governments, people more and more realized that the trend of events would inevitably lead to war; this realization gave impetus to the movement, and finally a concerted effort was made to secure the training camp, even the opponents of the separate camp idea becoming its supporters.
With the actual declaration of war with Germany came the imperative need of this opportunity for Negroes to train as officers, as it was certain that thousands would be called to the colors. Conferences were held with the War Department officials, and Dr. Spingarn meanwhile worked untiringly. Dr. Stephen M. Newman, president of Howard University, Washington, D. C., together with a joint committee of teachers and students and a citizens’ committee composed of representative Negroes of Washington, also held conferences with officials and labored in behalf of the camp.
There was misgiving on the part of many concerning the training of Negroes as officers. Among the objections made to the establishment of the camp was that “a separate camp could not be established because all garrisons and forts were required for white men”; and it was further said that “Negroes could not make officers, and if trained, Negro soldiers would not follow them.” Many army men did not believe that the camp would be a success because they did not feel that the Negro had the ability to do the required work; and President Newman was even asked by department officials if he honestly felt that colored people had the intelligence and the grit to undergo such training as was given in the preparation camps and come out as capable officers.
When the War Department was finally convinced that colored men should at least have the opportunity to attend an officers’ training camp, and all arrangements were made, news of the authorization of the same was sent broadcast over the country; and few announcements have ever been made that were received with more enthusiasm than the special dispatch which was sent out from Washington on May 19, 1917, by Adjutant General H. P. McCain to the chiefs of staff of the various departments of the army:
“Training camps for colored citizens will be established at Fort Des Moines, Iowa, under section 4, National Defense Act, and regulations prescribed for present training camps, except as modified herein and after. Total attendance 1250, of whom 250 will be non-commissioned officers, colored regiments, regular army, to be sent on detached service status, and 1000 citizens, either enlisted under section 4, National Defense Act, for three months, beginning June 18, with agreement to accept appointment tendered, or Members of National Guard, whose status will be as in case of National Guardsmen now in training camps. Secure ... co-operation of colored citizens of wide acquaintance and high standing. Training camps will be ready to receive non-commissioned officers, regular army, June 5, and all others June 15. Course begins June 18.”
Newspapers throughout the country commented on the fact that at last Negroes would have a real opportunity to serve not only as privates but as officers. Southern papers, while opposed on general principles to military training for Negroes, spoke favorably of the plan, always making clear, however, that Southern traditions must be upheld; thus the Charleston Post said, “Officers as high as majors may be turned out, but will positively be used to command only Negroes.” But as circumstances each day forced our countrymen to change some sacred, traditional idea, and as the seemingly impossible came into being, as it were, overnight, then the white citizens of each Southern state were proud that it had its quota of Negroes “with a college training or its equivalent” to send; and many Southern men gladly gave letters of endorsement to representative Negroes who were setting forth upon their great mission. Then in each of the six departments into which the United States is divided by the War Department, Negroes presented themselves for examination. Many traveled hundreds of miles to be present on the appointed day. Some men, in their eagerness to serve, appeared before the recruiting officers possessing the physical and age qualifications, but lacking other preparation; and sometimes friends, in their desire to reward loyal service, sent butlers and other helpers for examination, only to have them disappointed. When it became evident that Negroes would be called in large numbers, as the training of officers indicated, many objections were made throughout the country to having Negro soldiers stationed in certain camps. In an interview Col. H. T. Ferguson especially assured the anxious citizens of Des Moines that they would never regret the fact that their city had been designated for the training of the first contingent of Negro officers ever commissioned by the United States.
As June 15 approached and officer candidates were notified of their acceptance, colored America felt as never before that it was entering upon a new era and into the larger citizenship to which it had always aspired. Joy reigned among the army sergeants at the thought not only of trying for commissions themselves, but also of helping others of their race to do likewise; and the civilians went forth with the knowledge that all eyes were on them and that the prayers and hopes of a race went with them. No knight ever started on a nobler quest than did these Negro men from all walks of life, and the crowds that went to the stations to bid them good-by and that watched the trains until they were out of sight went home with a new feeling of confidence and of hope.
On the arrival of the candidates at Des Moines, civilian customs, thoughts, and habits soon gave way for the iron discipline involved in making officers. Men who had thought of the camp as the place for a summer vacation soon were undeceived. Colonel C. C. Ballou and his staff of officers put them through a daily program beginning at 5.30 a. m. with reveille and flag-raising and ending with taps at 9.45 p. m. From 7.30 to 8.30 a. m. there was infantry drill without arms, from 8.30 to 9 manual or physical training, from 9.15 to 10.15 infantry drill, from 10.45 to 11.45 a practice hike without arms; then dinner; from 1.30 to 2.30 p. m. musketry arms, from 2.30 to 3 semaphore signaling, from 3 to 4.30 conferences on care of equipment, and from 7 to 8 evening study on the organization of the regiment. As progress was made other work was taken up, including bayonet drill, trench-digging, manoeuvering, map-making and target practice, and lectures were also given showing the relation of the camp to the great national army. It was fully realized that success or failure in the crucial test carried with it far-reaching results. Colonel Ballou, in speaking to the men on one occasion, said: “This is a momentous hour, and the establishment of this camp is an epochal and unprecedented event in the history of the colored race. Your race will be on trial with you as its representatives, during the existence of this camp, and to succeed there will be required of you strong bodies, keen intelligence, absolute obedience to orders, unflagging industry, exemplary conduct, and character of the highest order.” With such incentive the men worked away at the most strenuous business in which they were ever engaged. And yet there were some good times—recreation in the form of baseball and other athletic contests and the privilege of visiting in the city of Des Moines on Saturday and Sunday. The Y. M. C. A. furnished motion pictures and programs on Saturday and Sunday evenings, and through its efforts some of the leading speakers of the country appeared. Of special inspiration in this connection was the presence in camp of one of the secretaries, the “grand old man,” Dr. George W. Cabiniss, who gave up a lucrative practice in Washington to be with the “boys,” and who spent himself unstintingly in their behalf.
Soldiers were often invited to the churches as well as the homes in the city, and here they occasionally rendered musical programs. By this means the anxiety of the earlier days of the summer gave way to an interest and friendship between the citizens and the candidates that will live for decades. The first event which won general esteem for the officer candidates was an exhibition drill in the Drake University stadium, which was followed by musical numbers. Here ten thousand people gathered and marveled at what their eyes beheld. The last big event was the program given at White Sparrows, where hundreds of people were turned away. Here the men sang the old plantation melodies with the sweetness and plaintiveness possible only to the Negro, and arias and recitatives from the great oratorios as well. The audience stood in eagerness until the last note was sung; then as a tribute, at the close of the concert, Rev. Dr. Medbury said of the candidates, “It is not enough to say that by their demeanor while among us, their conduct on the streets, in the theatres and business houses, they have brought honor to their race; they are, rather, an honor to the race of men.”
Thus the spirit of the men themselves was the biggest factor in the success of Fort Des Moines. They began their training knowing that there were questions in the minds of many, and they spent hours of toil in the effort to prove that they could make good. The attitude of each one was to help somebody else. One man might be seen explaining to a comrade some problem in mathematics, another helping in the study of topography, and still another with some squad trying to perfect it in the handling of arms. A precious jewel is not more carefully guarded than was the good name of the camp. Like a sentinel on duty each candidate watched lest some untoward act might work harm. One day an apple orchard belonging to a neighboring farmer was invaded. The farmer notified Colonel Ballou that some of the soldiers had stolen his apples. When the men concerned found that the camp was accused, on their own initiative they reported to headquarters and offered to pay all damages. The commanding officer, in commenting on the incident, said, “Something has happened to-day that has made me feel fine and that is new in my army experience.”
The candidates were proud of their martial bearing. Their cleanliness made a favorable impression everywhere they went. Soon after they went to Des Moines some of the café and restaurant owners thought it unwise to serve them, and when a number of the men entered a chop suey “palace,” the Chinese proprietor rushed up to them waving his arms wildly and shouting, “No servee black men; me lose all bliziness.” When some other proprietors showed a disposition to act with similar policy, Colonel George W. Ball of the 1st Iowa Infantry ordered that all men, regardless of color, must be fed, saying, “This is Government business and there can be no refusal to serve these men”; and drastic action was threatened against all restaurant keepers who persisted in drawing the color line. Naturally Utopian conditions did not always prevail at the camp and there were many disappointments. Many an ambitious “rookie” was sent home because of some defect or peculiarity that prevented his making an officer, and even after some had served the allotted time it was found that they were not suitable material. In the process of elimination there were those who thought that they were unjustly marked, and it is true that at Des Moines only five civilian captains were made and that there the outcome was just the reverse of that in the training camps for white men, which was that the men with the superior training most frequently received the higher commissions. Because of the policy followed one colonel said that “A great harm was done not only the colored officer but the colored race as well,” for in many cases the standard for officers was lowered by the commissioning as captains of men with a sixth or eighth grade education and as second lieutenants many college graduates. Through it all, however, there was hope, because the candidates believed in themselves and others believed in them, chief among whom was Secretary Baker, who said in one of the darkest hours, “I am depending on you and the Fort Des Moines colored officers’ training school. It should not be surpassed by any of the other camps which are training officers, and the promotions are not to be limited to lieutenants and captains, but to what you are capable of making.”
As the end of the training period drew near an extra month was added. This action raised doubts, not only in the minds of the candidates but with the colored people throughout the country. It was a trying season everywhere, for the extension of time came close upon the riots at Houston. A general from the War Department came to the camp and spoke in a most discouraging manner of the future of the candidates. He questioned the advisability of continuing the camp and raised doubts as to whether the candidates would ever be commissioned. A few days after his visit it was announced that all who wanted to leave might do so. Some of the more faint-hearted left, but most of the men continued their studies and gained further knowledge of the essentials of warfare. Gradually the clouds cleared away and those who remained looked forward to the time when they would be real officers in the Army of the United States.
Then came the day of days, October 15, 1917, when 625 colored men were commissioned in the United States Army. As they came forward to receive their commissions they were deeply moved, and even the commanding officer showed visible signs of emotion as he gave to them words of farewell and impressed upon them the seriousness of the task before them. Dr. Emmett J. Scott, Special Assistant to the Secretary of War, said to them: “I know you will bear in mind that in a very real sense you and those who serve with you have in your keeping the good name of a proud, expectant, and confident people”; and each man went away with the feeling of responsibility that comes when life is dedicated to a great cause. Thus a new chapter was begun in the history of the Negro on this continent and the first skirmish to prove that Negro men could absorb the training required of officers was won with honors.
After a brief vacation of fifteen days, the new officers reported to the various camps and were assigned to their duties. While they had successfully completed the course of study at Fort Des Moines, the real test of making officers was still before them. This task was made more difficult by the assignments to duty which some of them received. Some were sent to the artillery and engineering corps and given tasks for which they had had no preparation. Having already absorbed army discipline, however, they went about their tasks with the hope of mastering them, though with opinion against them.
The organization of the 92nd Division, composed entirely of Negroes drafted into the National Army, made it necessary to train officers and men in other branches than infantry and cavalry, with which Negroes had formerly served and for which they had been trained. Therefore engineer, artillery, and machine-gun regiments were formed along with the other branches required in the full organization of a division. While divisions were usually trained in one camp, the regiments of the 92nd were distributed in several groups.
The engineers were trained at Camp Sherman. Draftees with a knowledge of the building trades were especially desirable for this branch of service, and volunteers from well known industrial schools entered this regiment. Colored infantry officers from Des Moines, captains and lieutenants, who were without training in engineering, were put in command. After seven months of training prior to their embarkation for France, the captains were sent to infantry outfits, being relieved by white engineer officers. This action on the part of the War Department affected somewhat the morale of the regiment. After nearly three months in France the colored lieutenants were also transferred. There remained, however, five colored officers with the outfit—two tram officers, two physicians, and a dentist. When these also were not retained they and the soldiers felt that there was discrimination. It is true that they were not trained as engineers, but the ultimate trouble would seem rather to lie in withholding engineer training from them while they were in the officers’ training school in Des Moines.
Negro soldiers had long been distinguished in the infantry and cavalry, but they had never been placed in the artillery branch of service. It was said that they could not learn the principles of artillery warfare, and, as for their being officers, it was doubtful if they could measure up to the requirements. Nevertheless at Camp Dix the 349th and 350th artillery regiments were formed with colored men, and officers who had graduated at Des Moines were put in command. Since it had been said that Negro men could not be trained as artillerymen, it is interesting that it should be thought that they could make artillery officers without any training at all. A week before the recruits appeared at the camp, some classes in artillery subjects were held for the officers, and during the training of the regiment the officers were many times taught subjects just the night before they were to teach them to the men, school being held from one to two hours. Even under these conditions a surprisingly efficient organization was developed. After nearly seven months, however, the colored artillery officers were declared inefficient. It was then decided that they would have to go to the artillery school at Fort Sill, Okla. Twenty-four men were sent, these being largely regular army men. Many of the well educated infantry officers from other regiments applied for the artillery work, but it was claimed that they could not be spared from their organizations, and in some cases officers with low rating were sent to Fort Sill against their desires. Is it surprising that many of these failed to pass the entrance examination and that about half of them asked to be returned to Camp Dix after the first week?
While the artillery school at Fort Sill gave the men every chance, after the first two weeks the camp began returning the colored officers to their outfits, until at the end of ten weeks only six remained. These six were given artillery commissions. During their training period they had separate barracks and a separate mess, though the camp commander, Colonel Fleming, demanded that they receive the courtesy due officers.
Soon after these graduates returned to Camp Dix, all the colored officers were ordered to Camp Meade to attend an artillery school. On their arrival at Meade, orders were issued that they put on enlisted men’s clothes. The impression among the white officers of the 351st Artillery, said to be due to verbal orders, was that senior colored officers would first salute junior white officers and that, as far as white officers were concerned, the colored officers were considered officer candidates. They could wear their uniforms on Sunday, if passes were given them to leave the camp. The War Department was notified of conditions in the school and in four days the men were again returned to their outfit just before it sailed for France.
White officers in the 349th and 350th who had commanded the colored officers, formed a board to examine them. All were declared inefficient, even the six graduates from Fort Sill, and were assigned to the Depot Brigade. The War Department again intervened, and the six graduates were ordered with their outfits again, and accompanied them to France. While the remaining officers did not accompany their regiments to France, they had done some fine work in teaching the men the use of horses and in putting snap in the drill and in the handling of the guns. The record made by these regiments, which continued their training in France, was more than surprising. Accounts of their work will be given elsewhere.
The experience of these officers in attempting to do artillery work without training resulted in many charges and counter-charges with reference to their fitness for this branch of service. Through the office of the Assistant to the Secretary of War conferences were held with department officials in the endeavor to secure for Negro men an opportunity to train as officers. While there was opposition to the undertaking, the plan was finally approved and an honest attempt was made to select Negro men fitted, because of their training, to do work in artillery schools. Ninety-six were gathered at Camp Meade, some having been selected from the Signal Corps Engineers and artillery regiments and some from the camps where infantry regiments of the 92nd Division were stationed. These men remained at Meade for a month, with two white batteries, after which time they were sent to Camp Taylor, Ky., where all artillery schools were centralized. The colored candidates were not expected when they reached the school and no arrangements had been made for them. The first night they spent on the outskirts of the camp, and before they finally got settled they were moved six times, always after spending enough time in one place to get floors scrubbed, windows washed, and barracks thoroughly cleaned. The commander of the school spoke to the battery and gave the impression that it was not wanted. Between the batteries, however, the relationship was good; the Western men were considerate in sharing their knowledge with the colored candidates, who made an excellent impression by their “pep” and snap in drilling and by the aptitude for artillery work which they showed. Those candidates who remained in the school until the end were recommended for firing battery, combat trains, and replacement draft, but at the last the camp commander decided that only those men recommended for firing batteries should receive commissions. Thirty-three of the ninety-six men who started out were graduated. Of the twenty-five hundred graduates of the school, ten were honor men, and six of these were colored. Eleven more colored men were graduated in October. The five students in each battery who were highest at graduation were called out and given diplomas. As the five Negro men came forward, the white candidates led in the cheering. After the first graduation, of those men who remained, ten to fifteen were dropped weekly. The last twelve were transferred to the 814th Pioneer Infantry as sergeants, and accompanied that organization to England and France. After much discussion in the War Department, and effort on the part of the Special Assistant to the Secretary of War, concessions were finally made and the thirty-three artillery officers were sent to Camp Jackson, S. C., where Negro men were being trained as artillerymen. Here there was great interest in them, especially on the part of the Negro population of Columbia. These people stood in admiring groups as the officers passed and sometimes gave vent to their emotions by clapping or cheering. Trouble arose, however, chiefly over the matter of salutes from the other soldiers; riots were feared; and after a week these officers were sent to Newport News, and then on to France.
To the aviation school at Fort Sill four colored officers were sent. The first to arrive was supposed to be white and was treated accordingly. In the case of the other three, however, who arrived a few days later, there could be no mistake as to identity. These men were given a separate table and placed in a separate class, with a sergeant instructor who observed no military courtesies. Such treatment continued until the men asked to be returned to their outfit. Because he was constantly seen in the company of the other three men, the officer who was the first to arrive had been asked to move to their table. After the others left, he continued the course, remaining in camp until two days before graduation. To Fort Sill were also sent those officers who were to receive instruction in the use of the machine-gun. It developed that the man in the class who was most efficient was a Negro. At the end of the course there was squad competition in the mechanical manipulation of a machine-gun, and the best of each squad was chosen. Some men objected to being represented by a Negro, but a major intervened and said, “I don’t give a —— if the man is black; everybody knows he is the best.” All who watched the competition marveled at the speed with which this man worked.
While these new officers were working at their task of training men to fight, it became certain that replacements would have to be made after they were in action at the front. Plans were not made on a scale comparable with the demand, but there was some effort to meet the need. A small number of men were selected from the various units of the 92nd Division and sent to the third officers’ training schools held in such camps as Upton, Meade, Sherman, Dodge, Funston, and Travis. Among the thousands who were receiving training they were almost lost, but sometimes they won the highest honors. In all these camps, except at Funston, they attended the same schools as the other candidates and received the treatment due them. Some were assigned to the 92nd Division and sailed to France with it, while others were detained to assist as instructors in the cantonments.
When the fighting units reached France and were receiving final training before moving up to the front line trenches, many of the officers attended various schools. The majority of such men completed the courses with high standing. One of the schools that proved a distinct success was a machine-gun school conducted by colored officers in charge of Lieut. B. A. Mosley, who made out the courses of study. The object was to make machine-gun officers out of infantry officers, giving them the principles of machine gunnery. Nearly two hundred officers and non-commissioned officers were sent from this school, which was approved by the First Corps and put on the standard of the A. E. F. schools. Under date August 27, 1918, Major John P. Bubb said of one of these schools: “In submitting reports of proficiency of captains of the 92nd Division who have recently been under my instruction, I request attention to the following facts. Certain captains, namely, Jones, Saunders, Scott, Stephens, Holland, Hollingsworth, and Granson, have done very well in their work. They are serious, dignified men of excellent caliber and are fully able to maintain the positions of trust and confidence in which they have been placed.... The balance of the class (all captains) are I believe as good as the average student who has passed through the school.”
In the fourth officers’ school, opened on May 15, 1918, at Camp Dodge, there were 280 Negro candidates, which number was soon increased to more than 300. These candidates were selected principally from the units of the 92nd Division, though some came from elsewhere. This school began under the command of Lt. Col. William G. Doane, who was assisted by ten colored men, with Captain M. T. Dean as senior instructor. For the first time in America, Negro officers in large numbers were instructing soldiers in the science of modern warfare, preparing them directly to take their places as officers in the great National Army. These men served for fifteen days, when a telegram was sent from the headquarters of the 92nd calling all the officers to their regiment. Their work, however, had proved a success. The candidates were all picked men, the school was well organized, and the officers showed the greatest confidence and faith in each other.
In the centralization of the officers’ training schools the infantry candidates were sent to Camp Pike, Little Rock, Ark., while the machine-gun candidates were sent to Camp Hancock, Augusta, Ga. Camp Pike had been spoken of in such a way by many Negro soldiers that the officer candidates were not enthusiastic about going there, and certainly this was true of the twenty-four second lieutenants who were assigned as assistant instructors. Truck drivers sent to meet them, on finding that they were colored, drove off, claiming that no provision had been made for Negroes. In the camp they were a source of wonderment. The instructors were white Southern officers and neither officers nor men were cordial. As time passed, however, prejudice in most cases turned to interest.
To Camp Hancock, Augusta, Ga., selected for the machine-gun school, fifty-six Negro men were sent. Forty-three of that number were graduated as second lieutenants. These men had been selected from various outfits in the 92nd because of the knowledge of mathematics and of the mechanical manipulation of the machine-gun which they had acquired in the various camp schools. The presence of a number of Negro officers in Augusta created a new situation, but both camp and city rose to the occasion. The commander decreed that every officer in the camp must r