Member Login | Become a Member | Business Directory
Key West Chamber of Commerce
  • Home
  • Visit Key West
    • Community Calendar
    • Getting Here
    • Map & Places of Interest
    • Places to Stay >
      • Lodging Online Booking
    • Places to Dine
    • Things to Do >
      • The Florida Keys & Key West
    • Weddings
    • Coupons
    • Sunset Times
  • Live, Work & Relocate
    • New Residents Guide
    • Important Telephone Numbers
    • City of Key West >
      • Utilities
      • Disaster Preparedness Resources
    • Monroe County >
      • School/College Registration
      • Auto/Drivers License Info
      • Fishing/Hunting/Boating Licenses Info
    • Latest Community News
    • Job Listings >
      • Job Board
    • Statistics on Tourism
  • The Chamber
    • Why Join the Chamber >
      • Membership Application
      • Referral Roundup
      • Testimonials
      • Member Login
    • Board of Directors
    • Chamber Staff
    • Chamber Calendar >
      • Holiday Decorating Contest
      • Masquerade March
      • Showcase of Key West Businesses
      • Annual Golf Outing
    • Advocacy >
      • Legislative Agenda >
        • Advocacy Request Form
      • Election Information
    • Committees
    • Chamber Resources >
      • 2022 Business Magazine
      • Business Directory
      • Ribbon Cuttings
      • Member Discounts and Affinity Programs
      • Marketing & Advertising Opportunities
    • Awards >
      • Athena Award Nominations
    • Chamber News >
      • Member To Member Emails
      • Cybersecurity and Ransomware
    • Photo Gallery
    • Blog
    • Contact Us
  • Foundation
    • Tom Sawyer Five Star Program
    • Teacher Appreciation
    • Past Scholarship Award Winners
    • Scholarship
  • Economic Development
    • Business Resources >
      • Economic Partners
      • Quick Facts
      • Business Survey
      • Community Survey
      • Workforce Housing Survey
      • Monroe County Score Card

Black History Month:  The Forgotten Soldier

2/10/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
​Despite being the Southernmost city in the United States, during the American Civil War, Key West’s strong Navy and Army presence allowed the area to remain controlled by the Union. This gave the North an advantage in blockading the Gulf of Mexico, and many slave refugees and free Blacks found Key West to be a southern safe haven of freedom.
 
 In 1863, after the Emancipation Proclamation, Colonel James Montgomery of Kansas was sent to Key West to recruit a regiment of only Black soldiers. Black men in the island city between the ages of 15 and 50 deemed to be physically fit were ordered to report for duty in Hilton Head, South Carolina to fight on behalf of the Union in the 2nd South Carolina Regiment.
 
The names of the Black men from Key West who fought - at least 18 of whom were killed in combat - were sadly not well preserved, and many have been lost to time. In February of 2016, on the same date those men were called to duty in 1863, the City of Key West honored these individuals with a statue of a Black Union soldier presented at a ceremony in Bayview Park, poignantly titled “The Forgotten Soldier”. The statue was donated by local businessman Ed Knight, who hoped to bring awareness to the sacrifice of these men so they would no longer be forgotten. 

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Author

    Write something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview.

    Archives

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022

    Categories

    All
    Advocacy
    Awards
    Black History Month
    Board Of Directors
    Business Owners
    City Of Key West
    Complimentary Business
    Customer Satisfaction
    Cybersecurity
    Employees
    Facebook
    Grant Writing
    Help For Business
    History
    Holidays
    Human Resource
    Internships
    Labor Day
    Marketing
    Membership Spotlight
    Mother's Day
    Post Pandemic
    QR Cpdes
    Ribbon Cutting
    Sales/Marketing
    Small Business Season
    Social Media
    Stand Out
    TikTok
    Trends
    Website
    Wellness
    Why Join Chamber
    Women Owned Businesses

    RSS Feed

Thanks to Our Sponsors

Greater Key West Chamber of Commerce.  All Rights Reserved.
510 Greene St., First Floor  |  Key West, FL 33040
info@keywestchamber.org | sitemap
Picture
  • Home
  • Visit Key West
    • Community Calendar
    • Getting Here
    • Map & Places of Interest
    • Places to Stay >
      • Lodging Online Booking
    • Places to Dine
    • Things to Do >
      • The Florida Keys & Key West
    • Weddings
    • Coupons
    • Sunset Times
  • Live, Work & Relocate
    • New Residents Guide
    • Important Telephone Numbers
    • City of Key West >
      • Utilities
      • Disaster Preparedness Resources
    • Monroe County >
      • School/College Registration
      • Auto/Drivers License Info
      • Fishing/Hunting/Boating Licenses Info
    • Latest Community News
    • Job Listings >
      • Job Board
    • Statistics on Tourism
  • The Chamber
    • Why Join the Chamber >
      • Membership Application
      • Referral Roundup
      • Testimonials
      • Member Login
    • Board of Directors
    • Chamber Staff
    • Chamber Calendar >
      • Holiday Decorating Contest
      • Masquerade March
      • Showcase of Key West Businesses
      • Annual Golf Outing
    • Advocacy >
      • Legislative Agenda >
        • Advocacy Request Form
      • Election Information
    • Committees
    • Chamber Resources >
      • 2022 Business Magazine
      • Business Directory
      • Ribbon Cuttings
      • Member Discounts and Affinity Programs
      • Marketing & Advertising Opportunities
    • Awards >
      • Athena Award Nominations
    • Chamber News >
      • Member To Member Emails
      • Cybersecurity and Ransomware
    • Photo Gallery
    • Blog
    • Contact Us
  • Foundation
    • Tom Sawyer Five Star Program
    • Teacher Appreciation
    • Past Scholarship Award Winners
    • Scholarship
  • Economic Development
    • Business Resources >
      • Economic Partners
      • Quick Facts
      • Business Survey
      • Community Survey
      • Workforce Housing Survey
      • Monroe County Score Card