Black Lives History Timeline: 1864 - The Fort Pillow Massacre

Though this title makes this look like several previous posts, you will see as you read, that it is very different. Especially because of when it took place: during the Civil War. 

1864: The Fort Pillow Massacre

Fort Pillow was on the banks of the Mississippi in Henning, Tennessee. It was originally built by the Confederate forces, but used by both sides during the war. In 1864, the fort was held by the Union Army. The garrison was 600 men almost evenly divided between Black and white troops. The Black troops consisted of the 6th U.S. Regiment Colored Heavy Artillery and a small selection of men from the 2nd Colored Light Artillery. They had been at the fort only a few weeks when the Confederates attacked. They quickly gained control of several barracks on the outside of the fort, and used these as a command to attack the Union forces. By 3:30, the head of the Confederate forces demanded surrender, stating that, "The conduct of the officers and men garrisoning Fort Pillow has been such as to entitle them to being treated as prisoners of war. I demand the unconditional surrender of the entire garrison, promising that you shall be treated as prisoners of war." However, Black soldiers were certain they would be seen by Confederate troops as contraband, and returned to slave ownership. Their commander refused to surrender. Later, survivors of the massacre would state that even when their fellows dropped their guns and surrendered, they were shot or bayonetted where they stood, and that the Confederate forces called out "No surrender!" as they killed the opposing forces. Of the 600 Union soldiers, nearly half were killed during the action. Confederate losses were not even half of the Union losses. Black Union soldiers lost about 60% of their number, compared to white Union soldiers' loss of about 30%. Lincoln and his cabinet discussed what should be done in this matter, and it was decided that should any officer from the Confederate Army be captured, that they should be turned over for trial for the Massacre. Despite this, none of them were ever held to account for what happened that day.

Sources:

• Wikipedia: Battle of Fort Pillow
• The New York Times: The Fort Pillow Massacre
• The Washington Post: The Civil War Battle That Left Nearly 200 Black Soldiers Murdered
• Britannica: Fort Pillow Massacre
• History: Fort Pillow Massacre
• History: Hundreds of Union soldiers killed in Fort Pillow Massacre
• What Happened at Fort Pillow?
• Union Soldiers Massacred at Fort Pillow
• The Battle of Fort Pillow
• The Fort Pillow Massacre

Understand that this isn't just another tragic battle of the war. Regardless of where this battle was located, the Black troops would always have suffered the highest injuries, casualties, and imprisonment by the Confederate troops. And they were never treated as fellow soldiers (who were never the less treated quite poorly). They were treated as stolen property and turned over to slave owners. Probably even those who had never been slaves before the war. Even now, there is great debate over the labeling of this battle, as well as debate over what happened to those who were fighting for the Union that day.