Buffalo Soldiers

A moment of freedom becomes a lifetime of service – and a mystery. From his escape on the Planter with Robert Smalls to a long history of military service, learn Gabriel Turner's story in this article.

Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., was born in Washington, D.C. in 1912. He graduated from West Point in 1936. He was the fourth African American to graduate from West Point. During World War II, he led the renowned Tuskegee Airmen. He attained the rank of four-star general in 1998. He died in 2002 and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Buffalo Soldiers National Museum (BSNM) is the nation’s largest museum dedicated solely to exploring and displaying the stories and contributions of African Americans in the U.S. military and contains the largest private collection of African American military memorabilia.

He entered the Army as an illiterate ex-slave, but Moses Williams took advantage of the opportunities presented to him to become educated and also became a Buffalo Soldier who achieved one of the Army's highest honors during his military service career.

Sgt. Thomas Shaw was one of several Buffalo Soldiers who would wind up receiving the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions during the Indian Wars on the frontier.

Leon Day was born on October 30, 1916, in Alexandria, Virginia. He was one of the greatest pitchers in the Negro Leagues between 1934 and 1943. During World War II, he served with the 818th Amphibian Truck Company and was part of the Red Ball Express. He also played for the first integrated U.S. military baseball team, the OISE All-Stars. Day died on March 13, 1995, in Baltimore, Maryland. He was buried at Arbutus Memorial Park in Arbutus, Maryland.

Some African American Olympians went on to serve in the Army. Ralph Metcalf and John Woodruff competed and won medals as members of the U.S. Olympic Team. They then enlisted in the Army during World War II and were assigned to Buffalo Soldier regiments.

John Youie Woodruff was born on July 15, 1915, in Connellsville, Pennsylvania. Woodruff competed and won gold in the 1936 Olympics. In 1941, he enlisted in the New York National Guard and was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the 369th Coastal Artillery Regiment. He served during World War II and the Korean War. He retired as a Lieutenant Colonel in 1957. He died on October 30, 2007, in Fountain Hills Arizona, and is buried at Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Ralph Harold Metcalfe Sr. was born on May 29, 1910, in Atlanta, Georgia. He competed in the 1932 and 1936 Olympics and won gold, silver, and bronze medals. In 1942, he was appointed as a USO club director and later commissioned as a lieutenant in the U.S. Army Transportation Corps in Plauche, Louisiana. From 1970 to 1978, he served as a U.S. congressman. On October 10, 1978, Metcalfe died in Chicago, Illinois, and was buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Alsip, Illinois.

Waverly Bernard Woodson, Jr., was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1922. Woodson studied pre-med at Lincoln University before becoming a medic in the 320th Barrage Balloon Battalion. He landed on Omaha Beach in one of the first waves of soldiers on D-Day during World War II. He treated wounded and dying soldiers on the beach for more than 30 hours. He died in 2005 and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.