The year was 1864, the United States was mired
in a costly and bloody civil war that had split the country
over many issues, namely slavery.
The union was gaining traction on its momentum
after the recent victory at Gettysburg in 1863,
and as General William Tecumseh Sherman began
his march to the sea.
One year earlier President Abraham Lincoln
provoked both sides the country with his
announcement of emancipation freeing all
slaves in Confederate lands.
However, slavery continue to thrive on the
Confederacy side of the split country
despite the paper proclamation
from the great Emancipator.
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Tucked away in the small Kentucky farming town
of Mays Lick, a child was born
to an indentured couple in a small cabin.
Charles Young entered the world on March 12, 1864.
Despite being born to enslaved parents,
which also made the infant Charles a slave himself,
he would never have to experience the stifling
degradation of being a slave as he and his parents
would make the short trek across the Ohio river
into Ohio just a few short years after his birth.
Charles Young's childhood began in the
Ohio River town of Ripley.
Raised by loving parents who valued and knew
the importance of education, he would excel
in academics and vault to the top of his class
by the time he graduated from the integrated
high school in 1881 at age 17.
Shortly after the conclusion of his secondary education
education he was admitted to the U.S. Military Academy
at West Point in 1884
As only the ninth African American to enter
the academy at that time, he would endure
five long years of constant shunning and
open discrimination from
fellow students and faculty.
Despite losing a year to a poor performance
during his freshman or Plebe year,
he would overcome the obstacles and regain
his academic composure to become only the third
African American at the time to earn his
diploma and commission 1889.
Five years later in 1894, after serving with the
with the Buffalo Soldiers of the 9th Cavalry
on the western plains in Nebraska and Utah,
Young received a detached service assignment
to report to Wilberforce University in
Wilberforce, Ohio.
Once there, he would teach the university's
military science and tactics course
which prepared young African-American men
for future service in the military, and in life as well.
He quickly acclimated to the social and
intellectual scene as he befriended many
including fellow teaching colleague W.E.B. DuBois,
and notable black poet of the era,
Paul Laurence Dunbar.
The three of them would forge a friendship which
lasted the rest of their lives
After the death of Young's father, Gabriel, in 1894,
his mother would relocate to Wilberforce
to live with her son as he began
his teaching at Wilberforce University.
Together, in 1907, they would purchase a house
just west of the Wilberforce campus
which he would affectionately nickname "Youngsholm"
The house would become the hub of social events
around the university and the Young's
always welcome friends, family, and strangers alike.
Despite his absences, "Youngsholm" would remain
the social hub of the university area
area and Young's permanent residents for
the rest of his life.
It was also the place where he could escape the
harsh reality of the world by losing himself
in his music and his collection of
books from around the world
Among the highlights of his stoic military career,
he would lead troops heroically in the Philippines
during the Philippine-American War and years later
in Mexico during the punitive expedition.
In 1903 he would become the first
African-American Superintendent of a national park
when he and his troopers of the 9th Cavalry
managed the lands of Sequoia and General Grant
National Parks in Northern California.
The work that he and his men achieved that summer
exceeded the total amount of work accomplished
by the last three summer details of
Army troops combined.
Many of the roads and trails that he and his men
constructed proved so sound
that they are still in use today.
In addition to be decorated combat soldier,
Young was also one of the first soldiers
to be assigned as a military attache in Haiti and Liberia.
Building on the knowledge and construction experience
from his days as a national park superintendent,
he led workers in Liberia to develop and improve the
nation's infrastructure.
For his impressive and dedicated work in Liberia,
Charles Young was awarded the NAACP
Spingarn Medal in 1916 which is presented to
an African American who demonstrates
exceptional achievement and contributions in their field.
Young would go on to serve the country
with honor and distinction the rest of his life.
Although being medically retired in 1917 for
questionable medical reasons he did not accept
the decision and would go on to fight to be put back
into active service.
Late in 1918 after the war, he was placed
back into active duty and then sent back to Liberia
to resume his duties as attache.
While on a field assignment that sent him into Nigeria,
he took gravely ill
and would succumb to a devastating kidney infection,
dying on January 8, 1922.
At the urging of his wife and
other notable figures in society,
Young's body was repatriated to the U.S. in 1923.
He received a full military funeral,
which included public street processions,
culminating in a rare memorial service
in the Arlington Memorial Amphitheater.
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Afterwards, Young would be buried in
Arlington National Cemetery, alongside
the thousands of other heroes
who share the solemn lands.
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In spite of the overt and egregious racism
he would have to deal with throughout his life,
Charles Young ascended through the military ranks
to become one of the most respected leaders
of his time.
A well-rounded man,
with a steadfast devotion to duty,
he led by example and inspired generations
of new leaders.
Then...
and now.
The legacy of Colonel Charles Young lives on.
Learn more about Colonel Charles Young and
and the famed Buffalo Soldiers when you visit
park's web site at www.nps.gov/chyo
and also on the park social media web pages.
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