Buffalo Soldiers in the 1890s

With the American West declared “closed” in the 1890s, the Buffalo Soldiers’ duties changed. While they remained at their frontier posts, their focus shifted to quelling labor disputes and maintaining social order among citizens.

In 1898, however, the outbreak of the Spanish-American War spurred the Buffalo Soldiers’ remobilization. Many people in government and the press blamed the deaths on the Spanish government, which was fighting to keep its overseas empire alive. The United States declared war on Spain on April 25, 1898. Americans rallied to the cause of liberating Cuba from Spain with the slogan, “Remember the Maine!”