Buffalo Soldier Buffalo Soldiers originally were members of the U . S . 10th Cavalry Regiment of the United States Army , formed on September 21 , 1866 at Fort Leavenworth , Kansas . This nickname was given to the " Negro Cavalry " by the Native American tribes they fought ; the term eventually became synonymous with all of the African - American regiments formed in 1866 : Although several African - American regiments were raised during the Civil War as part of the Union Army ( including the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry and the many United States Colored Troops Regiments ) , the " Buffalo Soldiers " were established by Congress as the first peacetime all - black regiments in the regular U . S . Army . On September 6 , 2005 , Mark Matthews , who was the oldest living Buffalo Soldier , died at the age of 111 . He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery . Etymology . Sources disagree on how the nickname " Buffalo Soldiers " began . According to the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum , the name originated with the Cheyenne warriors in the winter of 1877 , the actual Cheyenne translation being " Wild Buffalo . " However , writer Walter Hill documented the account of Colonel Benjamin Grierson , who founded the 10th Cavalry regiment , recalling an 1871 campaign against Comanches . Hill attributed the origin of the name to the Comanche due to Grierson ' s assertions . The Apache used the same term , " We called them ' buffalo soldiers , ' because they had curly , kinky hair . . . like bisons . " Some sources assert that the nickname was given out of respect for the fierce fighting ability of the 10th Cavalry . Other sources assert that Native Americans called the black cavalry troops " buffalo soldiers " because of their dark curly hair , which resembled a buffalo ' s coat . Still other sources point to a combination of both legends . The term " Buffalo Soldiers " became a generic term for all African - American soldiers . It is now used for U . S . Army units that trace their direct lineage back to the 9th and 10th Cavalry units whose service earned them an honored place in U . S . history . In September 1867 , Private John Randall of Troop G of the 10th Cavalry Regiment was assigned to escort two civilians on a hunting trip . The hunters suddenly became the hunted when a band of 70 Cheyenne warriors swept down on them . The two civilians quickly fell in the initial attack and Randall ' s horse was shot out from beneath him . Randall managed to scramble to safety behind a washout under the railroad tracks , where he fended off the attack with only his pistol until help from the nearby camp arrived . The Cheyenne beat a hasty retreat , leaving behind 13 fallen warriors . Private Randall suffered a gunshot wound to his shoulder and 11 lance wounds , but recovered . The Cheyenne quickly spread word of this new type of soldier , " who had fought like a cornered buffalo ; who like a buffalo had suffered wound after wound , yet had not died ; and who like a buffalo had a thick and shaggy mane of hair . " Service . During the American Civil War , the U . S . government formed regiments known as the United States Colored Troops , composed of black soldiers . After the war , Congress reorganized the Army and authorized the formation of two regiments of black cavalry with the designations 9th and 10th U . S . Cavalry , and four regiments of black infantry , designated the 38th , 39th , 40th and 41st Infantry Regiments ( Colored ) . The 38th and 41st were reorganized as the 25th Infantry Regiment , with headquarters in Jackson Barracks in New Orleans , Louisiana , in November 1869 . The 39th and 40th were reorganized as the 24th Infantry Regiment , with headquarters at Fort Clark , Texas , in April 1869 . All of these units were composed of black enlisted men commanded by both white and black officers . These included the first commander of the 10th Cavalry Benjamin Grierson , the first commander of the 9th Cavalry Edward Hatch , Medal of Honor recipient Louis H . Carpenter , the unforgettable Nicholas M . Nolan , and the first black graduate of West Point , Henry O . Flipper . History . Indian Wars . From 1866 to the early 1890s , these regiments served at a variety of posts in the Southwestern United States and the Great Plains regions . They participated in most of the military campaigns in these areas and earned a distinguished record . Thirteen enlisted men and six officers from these four regiments earned the Medal of Honor during the Indian Wars . In addition to the military campaigns , the " Buffalo Soldiers " served a variety of roles along the frontier from building roads to escorting the U . S . mail . On April 17 , 1875 , regimental headquarters for the 9th and 10th Cavalries were transferred to Fort Concho , Texas . Companies actually arrived at Fort Concho in May 1873 . At various times from 1873 through 1885 , Fort Concho housed 9th Cavalry companies A – F , K , and M , 10th Cavalry companies A , D – G , I , L , and M , 24th Infantry companies D – G , and K , and 25th Infantry companies G and K . A lesser known action was the 9th Cavalry ' s participation in the fabled Johnson County War , an 1892 land war in Johnson County , Wyoming between small farmers and large , wealthy ranchers . It culminated in a lengthy shootout between local farmers , a band of hired killers , and a sheriff ' s posse . The 6th Cavalry was ordered in by President Benjamin Harrison to quell the violence and capture the band of hired killers . Soon afterward , however , the 9th Cavalry was specifically called on to replace the 6th . The 6th Cavalry was swaying under the local political and social pressures and was unable to keep the peace in the tense environment . The Buffalo Soldiers responded within about two weeks from Nebraska , and moved the men to the rail town of Suggs , Wyoming , creating " Camp Bettens " despite a racist and hostile local population . One soldier was killed and two wounded in gun battles with locals . Nevertheless , the 9th Cavalry remained in Wyoming for nearly a year to quell tensions in the area . 1898 – 1918 . After most of the Indian Wars ended in the 1890s , the regiments continued to serve and participated in the 1898 Spanish - American War ( including the Battle of San Juan Hill ) in Cuba , where five more Medals of Honor were earned . The men of the Buffalo soldiers were only some of the 5 , 000 Black men who served in the Spanish - American war . The regiments took part in the Philippine - American War from 1899 to 1903 and the 1916 Mexican Expedition . In 1918 the 10th Cavalry fought at the Battle of Ambos Nogales during the First World War , where they assisted in forcing the surrender of the federal Mexican and Mexican militia forces . Buffalo soldiers fought in the last engagement of the Indian Wars ; the small Battle of Bear Valley in southern Arizona which occurred in 1918 between U . S . cavalry and Yaqui natives . Park Rangers . Another little - known contribution of the Buffalo Soldiers involved eight troops of the 9th Cavalry Regiment and one company of the 24th Infantry Regiment who served in California ' s Sierra Nevada as some of the first national park rangers . In 1899 , Buffalo Soldiers from Company H , 24th Infantry Regiment briefly served in Yosemite National Park , Sequoia National Park and General Grant ( Kings Canyon ) National Parks . U . S . Army regiments had been serving in these national parks since 1891 , but until 1899 the soldiers serving were white . Beginning in 1899 , and continuing in 1903 and 1904 , African - American regiments served during the summer months in the second and third oldest national parks in the United States ( Sequoia and Yosemite ) . Because these soldiers served before the National Park Service was created ( 1916 ) , they were " park rangers " before the term was coined . A lasting legacy of the soldiers as park rangers is the Ranger Hat ( popularly known as the Smokey Bear Hat ) . Although not officially adopted by the Army until 1911 , the distinctive hat crease , called a Montana Peak , ( or pinch ) can be seen being worn by several of the Buffalo Soldiers in park photographs dating back to 1899 . Soldiers serving in the Spanish American War began to recrease the Stetson hat with a Montana " pinch " to better shed water from the torrential tropical rains . Many retained that distinctive " pinch " upon their return to the U . S . The park photographs , in all likelihood , show Buffalo Soldiers who were veterans from that 1898 war . One particular Buffalo Soldier stands out in history : Captain Charles Young who served with Troop " I " , 9th Cavalry Regiment in Sequoia National Park during the summer of 1903 . Charles Young was the third African American to graduate from the United States Military Academy . At the time of his death , he was the highest ranking African American in the U . S . military . He made history in Sequoia National Park in 1903 by becoming Acting Military Superintendent of Sequoia and General Grant National Parks . Charles Young was also the first African American superintendent of a national park . During Young ' s tenure in the park , he named a Giant Sequoia for Booker T . Washington . Recently , another Giant Sequoia in Giant Forest was named in Captain Young ' s honor . Some of Young ' s descendants were in attendance at the ceremony . In 1903 , 9th Cavalrymen in Sequoia built the first trail to the top of Mount Whitney , the highest mountain in the contiguous United States . They also built the first wagon road into Sequoia ' s Giant Forest , the most famous grove of Giant Sequoia trees in Sequoia National Park . In 1904 , 9th Cavalrymen in Yosemite built an arboretum on the South Fork of the Merced River in the southern section of Yosemite National Park . This arboretum had pathways and benches , and some plants were identified in both English and Latin . Yosemite ' s arboretum is considered to be the first museum in the National Park System . The NPS cites a 1904 report , where Yosemite superintentent ( Lt . Col . ) John Bigelow , Jr . declared the arboretum " To provide a great museum of nature for the general public free of cost . . . " Unfortunately , the forces of developers , miners and greed cut the boundaries of Yosemite in 1905 and the arboretum was nearly destroyed . In the Sierra Nevada , the Buffalo Soldiers regularly endured long days in the saddle , slim rations , racism , and separation from family and friends . As military stewards , the African - American cavalry and infantry regiments protected the national parks from illegal grazing , poaching , timber thieves , and forest fires . Yosemite Park Ranger Shelton Johnson researched and interpreted the history in an attempt to recover and celebrate the contributions of the Buffalo Soldiers of the Sierra Nevada . In total , 23 " Buffalo Soldiers " received the Medal of Honor during the Indian Wars . West Point . On March 23 , 1907 , the United States Military Academy Detachment of Cavalry was changed to a " colored " unit . This had been a long time coming . It had been proposed in 1897 at the " Cavalry and Light Artillery School " at Fort Riley , Kansas that West Point Cadets learn their riding skills from the black non - commissioned officers who were considered the best . The one hundred man detachment from the 9th Cavalry served to teach future officers at West Point riding instruction , mounted drill and tactics until 1947 . Systemic prejudice . The " Buffalo Soldiers " were often confronted with racial prejudice from other members of the U . S . Army . Civilians in the areas where the soldiers were stationed occasionally reacted to them with violence . Buffalo Soldiers were attacked during racial disturbances in Rio Grande City , Texas in 1899 , Brownsville , Texas in 1906 , and Houston , Texas in 1917 . Pershing . General of the Armies John J . Pershing is a controversial figure regarding the Buffalo Soldiers . He served with the 10th Cavalry from October 1895 to May 1897 . He served again with them for less than six months in Cuba . Because he saw the " Buffalo Soldiers " as good soldiers , he was looked down upon and called " Nigger Jack " by white cadets and officers at West Point . It was only later during the Spanish - American War that the press changed that insulting term to " Black Jack . " The Punitive Expedition , U . S . - Mexico Border , and World War I . The outbreak of the Mexican Revolution in 1910 against the long - time rule of President Porfirio Díaz initiated a decade - long period of high - intensity military conflict along the U . S . - Mexico border as different political / military factions in Mexico fought for power . The access to arms and customs duties from Mexican communities along the U . S . - Mexico boundary made border towns like Matamoros , Tamaulipas , Ojinaga , Chihuahua , and Nogales , Sonora , important strategic assets . As the various belligerents in Mexico vied for power , the U . S . Army , including the Buffalo Soldier units , was dispatched to the border to maintain security . The Buffalo Soldiers played a key role in U . S . - Mexico relations as the maelstrom that followed the ouster of Díaz and the assassination of his successor Francisco Madero intensified . By late 1915 the political faction led by Venustiano Carranza received diplomatic recognition from the U . S . government as the legitimate ruling force in Mexico . Francisco " Pancho " Villa , who had previously courted U . S . recognition and thus felt betrayed , then attacked the rural community of Columbus , New Mexico , directly leading to further border tensions as U . S . President Woodrow Wilson unilaterally dispatched the Punitive Expedition into Chihuahua , Mexico , under General John Pershing to apprehend or kill Villa . The 9th and 10th Cavalries were deployed to Mexico along with the rest of Pershing ' s units . Although the manhunt against Villa was unsuccessful , small - scale confrontations in the communities of Parral and Carrizal nearly brought about a war between Mexico and the United States in the summer of 1916 . Tensions cooled through diplomacy as the captured Buffalo Soldiers from Carrizal were released . Despite the public outrage over Villa ' s Columbus raid , Wilson and his cabinet felt that the U . S . ' s attention ought to be centered on Germany and World War I , not the apprehension of the " Centauro del Norte . " The Punitive Expedition exited Mexico in early 1917 , just before the U . S . declaration of war against Germany in April 1917 . The Buffalo Soldiers did not participate with the American Expeditionary Force ( AEF ) during World War I , but experienced non - commissioned officer s were provided to other segregated Black units for combat service — such as the 317th Engineer Battalion . The Soldiers of the 92nd Infantry Division ( United States ) and the 93rd Infantry Division ( United States ) were the first Americans to fight in France . The four regiments of 93rd fought under French command for the duration of the war . On August 27 , 1918 , the 10th Cavalry supported the 35th Infantry Regiment in a border skirmish in the border towns of Nogales , Arizona , and Nogales , Sonora , between U . S . military forces , Mexican Federal troops and armed Mexican civilians ( militia ) in the Battle of Ambos Nogales . This was the only documented incident in which German military advisors fought along with Mexican soldiers and the only battle during World War I where Germans engaged and died in combat against United States soldiers on North America soil . The 35th Infantry Regiment was stationed at Nogales , Arizona , on August 27 , 1918 , when at about 4 : 10 pm , a gun battle erupted unintentionally when a Mexican civilian attempted to pass through the border , back to Mexico , without being interrogated at the U . S . Customs house . After the initial shooting , reinforcements from both sides rushed to the border . On the Mexican side , the majority of the belligerents were angry civilians upset with the killings of Mexican border crossers by the U . S . Army along the vaguely - define border between the two cities during the previous year ( the U . S . Border Patrol did not exist until 1924 ) . For the Americans , the reinforcements were the 10th Cavalry , off - duty 35th Regimental soldiers and milita . Hostilities quickly escalated and several soldiers were killed and others wounded on both sides , including the mayor of Nogales , Sonora , Felix B . Peñaloza ( killed when waving a white truce flag / handkerchief with his cane ) . A cease fire was arranged later after the US forces took the heights south of Nogales , Arizona . Due in part to the heightened hysteria caused by World War I , allegations surfaced that German agents fomented this violence and died fighting alongside the Mexican troops they led . U . S . newspaper reports in Nogales prior to the August 27 , 1918 battle documented the departure of part of the Mexican garrison in Nogales , Sonora , to points south that August in an attempt to quell armed political rebels . Despite the Battle of Ambos Nogales controversy , the presence of the Buffalo Soldiers in the community left a significant impact on the border town . The famed jazz musician Charles Mingus was born in the Camp Stephen Little military base in Nogales in 1922 , son to a Buffalo Soldier . The African - American population , centered on the stationing of Buffalo Soldiers such as the 25th Infantry in Nogales , was a significant factor in the community , even though they often faced racial discrimination in the binational border community in addition to racial segregation at the elementary school level in Nogales ' s Grand Avenue / Frank Reed School ( a school reserved for Black children ) . The redeployment of the Buffalo Soldiers to other areas and the closure of Camp Little in 1933 initiated the decline of the African - American community in Nogales . World War II . Prior to WW2 , the black 25th Infantry Regt was based at Ft Huachuca Arizona . During the war , Ft Huachuca served as the home base of the Black 92nd and 93rd Infantry Divisions . The 9th and 10th Cavalry Regiments were essentially disbanded and the soldiers were moved into service - oriented units , along with the entire 2nd Cavalry Division . The 92nd Infantry Division , AKA the " Buffalo Division " , served in combat during the Italian Campaign . The 93rd Infantry Division — including the 25th Infantry Regiment — served in the Pacific theater . Separately , independent Black Artillery , Tank and Tank Destroyer Battalions as well as Quartermaster & support battalions served in WW2 . All of these units to a degree carried on the traditions of the " Buffalo Soldiers " . Despite some official resistance and administrative barriers , black airmen were trained and played a part in the air war in Europe , gaining a reputation for skill and bravery ( see Tuskegee Airmen ) . In early 1945 , after the Battle of the Bulge , American forces in Europe experienced a shortage of combat troops so the embargo on using black soldiers in combat units was relaxed . The American Military History says : Faced with a shortage of infantry replacements during the enemy ' s counteroffensive , General Eisenhower offered Negro soldiers in service units an opportunity to volunteer for duty with the infantry . More than 4 , 500 responded , many taking reductions in grade in order to meet specified requirements . The 6th Army Group formed these men into provisional companies , while the 12th Army Group employed them as an additional platoon in existing rifle companies . The excellent record established by these volunteers , particularly those serving as platoons , presaged major postwar changes in the traditional approach to employing Negro troops . Korean War and integration . The 24th Infantry Regiment saw combat during the Korean War and was the last segregated regiment to engage in combat . The 24th was deactivated in 1951 , and its soldiers were integrated into other units in Korea . On December 12 , 1951 , the last Buffalo Soldier units , the 27th Cavalry and the 28th ( Horse ) Cavalry , were disbanded . The 28th Cavalry was inactivated at Assi - Okba , Algeria in April 1944 in North Africa , and marked the end of the regiment . There are monuments to the Buffalo Soldiers in Kansas at Fort Leavenworth and Junction City . Then - Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Colin Powell , who initiated the project to get a statue to honor the Buffalo Soldiers when he was posted as a brigadier general to Fort Leavenworth , was guest speaker for the unveiling of the Fort Leavenworth monument in July 1992 . Controversy . In the last decade , the employment of the Buffalo Soldiers by the United States Army in the Indian Wars has led a few alternate history historians to call for the " critical reappraisal " of the " Negro regiments . " In this viewpoint , shared by a small minority , the Buffalo Soldiers were used as mere shock troops or accessories to the forcefully - expansionist goals of the U . S . government at the expense of the Native Americans and other minorities .