As the Civil War began, the priority was not slavery, but the quelling of the Confederate rebellion. The question of slavery was still in flux along with the outcome of the war. Blacks maintained a widespread inferior social identity, and as such, were not officially recruited to the Union army during the early period of the war. Swept under conventional racism, Lincoln did not believe that blacks would be as capable as whites on the battlefield. While Lincoln would eventually change his mind as the conflict persisted, these initial restrictions did not hinder blacks from joining the Union cause. Many joined volunteer regiments, and though they were not official soldiers, they fought alongside whites against the Confederate army. One of these black men was named William H. Johnson, member of the 2nd and 8th Connecticut Volunteer regiments, where he fought from 1861-1862. In a collection of letters written to the African American newspaper Pine & Palm, Johnson's intentions are clear. Despite imperfect circumstances, Johnson was sure that he was fighting for the equality of his people, even early in the war.
To Johnson, by fighting for the Union army, he was rebelling against racist thought outside of slavery. He is the white-man's equal, and the battlefield gives him the perfect opportunity to showcase this. In a letter detailing his experiences at First Bull Run, Johnson notices slaves fighting for the Confederacy. He describes them as "maneuvering like veterans" and outmatching the Union forces.
In a letter written in November of 1862, he details an "association" created by him and other black members of his regiment while preparing for a siege of coastal North Carolina in Annapolis, Maryland under General Ambrose Burnside. This association's purpose was to hold each member accountable by military standards of "discipline, morality, and literature." According to Johnson, "In forming this association, we have been actuated by the conviction that the time is not far distant when the black man of this country will be summoned to show his hand in this struggle for liberty."
Later on in the collection, Johnson demonstrates that he is cognizant of the Union's release of Mason and Slidell, but that does not deter him from his mission to conquer the South to make it free for all men. He and the Union would prove to be successful in their engagement. During the attack on Roanoke Island, North Carolina on February 7-8th, 1862, the Union easily dismantled the Confederate opposition. "The Burnside Expedition has been gloriously successful," proclaims Johnson at the beginning of a letter written on February 9th.
With morale on high, Johnson and the Union forces advanced. After completing considerable control over the coast, Johnson witnesses a conflict between Burnside and a Southerner. The Southerner requests that the General relinquish to him several slaves that were acquired during the struggle. Burnside aggressively declines, as reported by Johnson, responding "I am not here to bag slaves for their owners... I am here to teach rebels their duty to their Government." Here, the General seems to acknowledge that slaves are the property of someone, but that his one goal to force the rebellion to submit under the Union and not worry about the issue at all. Johnson understands these implications, and he is content with them. This demonstrates Johnson's mentality; knowing that the Union has yet to be concerned with liberation, he still maintains his optimism that the outcome of the war could be only that.
Johnson would later retire from military action due to illness. He would continue to aid the Union cause, recruiting blacks in Albany, New York to the Union army. Of course, Johnson's vision of a liberated black population would come to fruition. Always supporting the advancement of his people, he advocates full emigration to Haiti in order to establish an equal environment for blacks.
Bibliography:
Johnson, William H. "Collected Letters of William H. Johnson During the Civil War." In A Grand Army of Black Men, ed. Edwin S. Redkey, 10-22. Cambridge, New York: Cambridge University Press.
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