Buffalo Soldiers in the 1910s

The 1910s were dominated by World War One in Europe. The Buffalo Soldier regiments of the Ninth and Tenth Cavalries, and the Twenty-fourth and Twenty-fifth Infantries did not participate in WW1. They were stationed along the southern border of the United States at such places as Fort Huachuca in Arizona.

Before the United States entered World War One the army, including the Buffalo Soldiers, mobilized for the Punitive Expedition. The expedition was an operation in retaliation against Pancho Villa's incursion into the United States at the initial request of the Mexican Government. This was the first time weapons including airplanes and machine guns were used in a military setting.

When the United States entered World War One on April 6, 1917, African Americans viewed the conflict as an occasion to demonstrate their loyalty to the nation as soldiers and civilians. The War Department authorized the formation of two all-Black volunteer infantry divisions. The 92nd Infantry Division and the 93rd Infantry Division saw combat during the war. Over 350,000 African Americans served in the war.