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Document 3959

RUTHERFORD B. HAYES and GEORGE W. McCRARY
Appointment of a white officer in a Black regiment.
Partly Printed DS: "R.B. Hayes" as 19th U.S. President and "Geo. W. McCrary" as Secretary of War, 1p, 15¾x19¼. On vellum. Washington, 1877 November 27. In part: "Know Ye, That reposing special trust and confidence in the patriotism, valor, fidelity, and abilities of John J. Brereton I have nominated, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate do appoint him Second Lieutenant in the Twenty-fourth Regiment of Infantry in the service of the United States: to rank as such from the fifteenth day of June eighteen hundred and seventy-seven...." After the Civil War, in 1866, six Black regular Army regiments were formed. They were the 38th, 39th, 40th and 41st Infantry and the 9th and 10th Cavalry. Three years later, as part of a reduction in the size of the Army, the 38th and 41st were consolidated to form the 24th Infantry, and the 39th and 40th made up the new 25th Infantry. Officered by whites, these regiments went on to justify the belief by Black leaders that men of their race could contribute mightily to the nation's defense. The 24th Infantry Regiment participated in 1875 expeditions against hostile Kiowas and Commanches in the Department of Texas. One of the engagements of this campaign saw Lieutenant John Bullis and three Seminole-Negro Indian scouts attack a 25-man war party on the Pecos River. Sergeant John Ward, Private Pompey Factor and Trumpeter Isaac Payne were rewarded with the Medal of Honor for their exceptional bravery in this encounter. In 1877, JOHN J. BRERETON was commissioned Second Lieutenant of the 24th by this document. GEORGE WASHINGTON McCRARY (1835-1890) served as Republican Congressman from Iowa from 1869-1877 and was not a candidate for re-nomination in 1876. He served as Hayes' Secretary of War from March 12, 1877 to December 11, 1879, when he resigned. McCrary was United States Judge of the Eighth Judicial Circuit from 1880-1884. Folds. Light horizontal fold touches tops of the "R", "B" and "H" in Hayes' signature, vertical fold touches "Cr" in McCrary. Lightly creased. Overall, fine condition.

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