American history is a paradox of stories.
The history of the Black Soldier in the West is such a story. Americans for the most part have received their historical education through newspapers, radio, television and the movies. Ask Americans what role Blacks played in the settling of the West and you may get a blank stare. There is much more knowledge in historical research as to what roles the diverse cultures contributed in the settlement of America's Western Territories and trouble areas. Common sense would tell us that following the Civil War there was a great flood of Black immigration Westward.