Reminiscences of two years with the colored troops Personal Narratives of events in the War of the Rebellion, being papers read before the Rhode Island Soldiers and Sailors Historical Society. No. 7, Second Series

A former artillery officer recounts his uneasy entry into the newly formed colored regiment of Rhode Island in the summer of 1863, when enlistments among white men were waning and the state’s quota still had to be met. He describes the bureaucratic hurdles, the hurried organization of companies, and his own reluctant acceptance of a lieutenant’s commission, offering a candid look at the attitudes and challenges that surrounded the regiment’s birth.

The narrative moves to the regiment’s early days on Dutch Island, where relentless storms and cramped conditions test the men’s resolve. A vivid passage follows their arduous sea journey southward—overcrowded transports, scarce water, and the ever‑present threat of Confederate cruisers—while the officer observes the stark contrast between the hardships of the rank‑and‑file and the relative comforts of his fellow officers. His observations capture both the physical rigors of Civil‑War service and the complex social dynamics of a unit that was breaking new ground in a divided nation.