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General:

The Separate Companies A and B of the Indiana Volunteer Infantry, sometimes listed as the “First Indiana Volunteer Infantry, Companies A and B (Colored)” served their period of enlistment within the continental United States.

Unit History:

Company A was commanded by Captain Jacob M. Porter, while company B was commanded by Capt. John J. Buckner. Capt. Porter’s involvement was not finalized until the day of mustering in. As he had suspected may occur, he did not pass the medical exam. Indiana Governor Mount intervened on his behalf because of his outstanding qualifications otherwise, as he promised he would in advance. Porter  had served as the captain of Company A of the Indiana National Guard for eight years after serving as a 1st lieutenant for two years in the same company. He was employed as a messenger by the Indiana National Bank. Capt. Buckner had experience serving in the American Civil War and also had served in the Indiana National Guard as a private, corporal, and sergeant before becoming a 2nd lieutenant in 1889. The following year he was promoted to 1st lieutenant and then to captain in 1892.

The two companies remained in Indianapolis as the war progressed. Of course, Santiago had fallen before the two companies were mustered in.  On August 12 the war’s fighting ended when Spain and the United States agreed to an armistice while the two separate companies remained in Indianapolis. On September 2 the two separate companies received orders to leave Indianapolis to proceed to to Fort Thomas in Kentucky, arriving there a day later. After only a little over a month at Fort Thomas, the two separate companies were ordered to Camp Thomas, located on the former Civil War battlefield of Chickamauga, Georgia, arriving on October 9. By this time Camp Thomas was a mere shadow of the huge training camp it had been earlier in the war. It had grown to a city in excess of fifty thousand men, but deaths from disease from poor sanitation and from having men from all over the country brought together, exposing them to illness strains with which they had little immunity had skyrocketed over the summer months. As a result, the regiments stationed there were removed to other locations, and the camp was mainly abandoned, with the two Separate Companies and the 8th U.S. Volunteer Infantry being the only inhabitants of the ghost town of a camp.

The Indiana men of the took pride in their military bearing and proficiency on the parade ground, calling themselves the ‘Indiana Invincibles’.  To break the monotony of camp life, they took part in organized sports and musical activities, as well as a reading room and a law class organized by an attorney member of the 8th U.S. Volunteer Infantry.  The men continued to believe they would ultimately be sent to Cuba as part of the Army of Occupation. Unfortunately, the presence of the Black soldiers aroused hostility from the White population in nearby Chattanooga, Tennessee, particularly as the Black volunteers who, like the Regular Army units before them, refused to abide by the segregation rules in town or on the railroad between camp and town. In October, Colonel Maus, an inspection officer, reported that the Indiana companies had a ‘good appearance’ and declared both companies ‘appear to be as well drilled as those of the Eighth [U.S. Volunteer] Infantry”.  Despite such compliments, he recommended both companies be mustered out, claiming the officers were insufficiently educated. 

The two separate companies remained at Camp Thomas until they were mustered out on January 20, 1899.

At the time mustering out, the regiment consisted of six officers and 198 enlisted men. During its time in service the Separate companies suffered no casualties but had eleven enlisted men desert.

The Separate Companies' return to Indiana was celebrated at home, and, although most of the volunteers returned to civilian life, a number of the veterans of the Separate Companies enlisted in the U.S. Army and prepared for the campaign in the Philippines. Later James H. Thomas and James F. Powell, Lieutenants in Company A, received Commissions into the 48th and 49th U.S. Volunteer Infantry regiments, two Black regiments recruited specifically for service in the Philippines.

Capt. Jacob Porter continued as a prominent member of the community, passing away in August of 1923. Capt. John Bucker passed away on August 24, 1939.

The Roster of the Two Separate Companies, Indiana Volunteer Infantry. The data includes the town/city from which they enlisted and their periods of service.

Company A

Officers:

Sergeants:

Corporals:

Musician:

Artificer:

Johnson, Samuel E., Indianapolis  (June 29 – January 20, 1899)

Privates:

Recruits:

Anderson, James,  Crystal Springs, MS.  (July 25 – Deserted October 26, 1898)
Banks, James,  Carlinville, IL. (July 25 – January 20, 1899)
Morris, Ernest,  Carrollton, IL. (July 25 – January 20, 1899)
Preston, Firman, Louisville, KY. (July 25 – January 20, 1899)
Sanders, Chester A., Indianapolis (June 29 – January 20, 1899)
Simmons, Roy, Indianapolis (July 10 – January 20, 1899)
Simmons, Esau, Indianapolis (June 29 – January 20, 1899)
Talbott, Thaddeus, Evansville (July 12 – January 20, 1899)

Company B

Officers:

Sergeants:

Corporals:

Musician:

Artificer:

Robinson, William C. W.,  McCrutherny (July 12 – January 20, 1899)

Privates:

Recruits:

Davis, William, Flushing, OH  (July 23 – January 20, 1899)
Ferguson, Bert M., Wabash (July 26 – January 20, 1899)
Jefferson, Thomas, Indianapolis (July 23 – January 20, 1899)
Monroe, Osia, Indianapolis (July 23 – January 20, 1899)
Roberts, William A., Milwaukee, WI (July 23 – Deserted December 17, 1898)
Rodgers, Martin, Wabash (July 25 – January 20, 1899)
Sanders, Herman, Indianapolis (July 23 – January 20, 1899)
Shepperd, Charles
Wagner, David L., Indianapolis (July 26 – January 20, 1899)

Bibliography:

“Camp Notes,” The Indianapolis Journal. July 15, 1898, 3.