Blacks have played a far greater role in American Military History than most people could ever imagine.  Perhaps no other unit personifies both the remarkable achievements and significant obstacles that were overcome, than the Buffalo Soldiers.  For a generation following the Civil War, two regiments of Black cavalry, the 9th & 10th served continuously on the Western frontier.  These units were comprised of  Black soldiers who wanted to remain in the U. S. Army after the Civil War. Their service on the Great Plains during these 20 years was as invaluable as it was unrecognized.

Called all sorts of names, most of them insulting, the men of these two regiments were dubbed Buffalo Soldiers by their Indian opponents.  They were proud of this title, and the most prominent feature of the Tenth Cavalry's regimental crest was the figure of a Buffalo.  The long neglected story of their courage and devotion to duty adds a new dimension to American History.  It is a story of significant achievement under tremendous handicaps.

From: The Buffalo Soldiers by William H. Leckie