Charles Young

Born enslaved on March 12, 1864, Charles Young became the highest-ranking African American line officer for most of his career. He was the third Black graduate of West Point in 1889 and the last until 1936. Young served with the 9th and 10th Calvary "Buffalo Soldiers" and as Professor of Military Science at Wilberforce University. During the Spanish American War he commanded the 9th Battalion Ohio Volunteer (Colored) Infantry and later led 9th Calvary troops in combat in the Philippines. As the first African American national park superintendent, he supervised the building of roads for public access to Sequoia and General Grant national parks and protected their natural wonders. As the first Black military attache, he served in Haiti and Liberia, where the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People awarded him the Spingarn Medal for his accomplishments. Young later commanded troops in the Mexican Punitive Expedition and was recommended for promotion and a command in Europe during World War I, but he was involuntarily retired because President Wilson believed some White officers would refuse to serve under a Black commander. He was classified unfit for medical reasons though Army doctors recommended that he be permitted to serve. To prove his fitness, Young rode horseback from Wilberforce to Washington, but he was reinstated too late to be promoted the first Black general or to command troops in Europe. Sent back to Africa, he died in Nigeria on January 8, 1922, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. American Legion posts across the country were named in his honor, he mentored men including Benjamin O. Davis, Sr., the first Black general, and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity purchased and rehabilitated his home.

Xenia, Ohio · United States