THE JOURNEY HOME
This will be a horseback trip originating in Phoenix, Arizona, crossing New Mexico and Texas and culminating in the city of New Orleans, Louisana. Three members will do the actual ride plus a wrangler and assistant with pack animals and ten horses. Five of these horses, at any time, will be in support vehicles.
The reason for this ride are many. When the 9th U.S. Cavalry was formed in 1866, it was primarily a government experiment to see if blacks could be trained and used as REGULAR Army troopers. This was met with stiff opposition in Congress and Senate but wiser heads prevailed.
Although there were five other all black regiments formed at the same time, our organization concentrates on the 9th, They were given the worst part of the country to patrol - the Big Bend country of West Texas. The government thought it would not be acceptable to station black troops east of the Mississippi, especially since they were "just freed slaves." So for the next twenty-six years they performed the hardest service of ANY Regular Army regiment in existence; and they got little or no recognition for this. These men did the job regardless of the predjudice and open hatred of the people they were protecting.
No less than twelve Troopers of the 9th U.S. Cavalry were awarded the Medal Of Honor.
During the Spanish / American war the 9th was one of the first Regiments to be called for service in Cuba and later the Philippines. So from the Indian Wars to World War II these men have willingly fought, bled and died for our Nation. You will find little written in our history books about them and it is as if they never existed. Our organization, the 9th Memorial Cavalry, has detemined that these men will be known, their deeds and sacrifices recognized and their highly honorable record placed in our history books, which is their rightful place as willing defenders of our Nation. This ride to New Orleans will be one of the ways to achieve this goal, since the origlnal 9th U.S. Cavalry was formed there, and we have not heard of another Cavalry unit going back to its "home."
We will do this for the 9th. We will carry a replica of the Regimental Flag and a list of the first members to be presented to the city. This will be an historical event going back over some of the country in which they served so long ago.
It was recently said to one of our members, "People aren't paying attention to Indian and Spanish/American wars anymore and the interest is dying out." This is EXACTLY WHY the 9th Memorial Cavalry was formed. The movies have "glorified' the Indian Wars, with the Indian being the "bad guy," with almost no mention of the Spanish / American war. Yet, you hear of the Civil War almost on a daily basis. No wonder this person made that statement. Members of the 9th Memorial Cavalry know and understand the importance of remembering and teaching the history of these wars. After all .... we are "Living Historians!"
The Old West is brimming with history both good and bad and we don't "bite our tongues" on the bad parts. We, as Americans, can no longer be selective in the telling and teaching of our history especially when it comes to race. These men of the all-black Army regiments played major roles in settling the West and helping the United States to become recognized as a world power. We of the 9th Memorial Cavalry WILL NOT let this history die. If our endeavor sounds like something you would like to be a part of, you would be most welcome to participate.
Further information will be posted soon!
