Civil War event to highlight role of Union Army’s Black troops in Manatee County
A local nonprofit will take a step into the past this weekend with a Civil War event, but attendees shouldn’t expect battle re-enactments, shooting demonstrations or history lessons straight out of their high school textbook.
“The Battle for Freedom” will kick off historic preservation group Reflections of Manatee’s season by highlighting the role of the United States Colored Troops in the final battle for South Florida as well as the emancipation of Florida’s enslaved population. The U.S. Colored Troops was the name of a primarily Black regiment of the Union Army during the Civil War.
The organization plans to do this with an event on Saturday, Sept. 9 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 1302 Fourth Ave. E., Bradenton, that will be free and open to the public.
The event will feature a variety of activities, including re-enactments by a Tallahassee-based group, a historical-plant sale, a historical-costume workshop and archaeology exhibit tours.
But while Jean Lammie welcomes you to come and stay for the plant sales or the archaeological ruins, she says most importantly the Civil War exhibit represents the kind of history lesson the state is sorely missing in today’s divisive political climate.
“This is important because we are living in an area of non-education. Our children can’t hear a holistic story at school. They don’t get to hear about the men and women who weren’t white, they only get to hear about white heroes and white heroines,” said Lammie, executive director of Reflections of Manatee.
“And that’s hard when you’re a young black man or woman. The students need to hear this history they’re not getting at school. Our adults apparently need to hear this history, too.”
And shining a light on those heroes, who she said played a pivotal role in the Civil War in this area, is exactly the aim of Saturday’s event.
The 2nd Infantry Regiment of U.S. Colored Troops, a Tallahassee-based re-enactment group, will kick off the “Battle for Freedom” by advancing colors at 9:15 a.m. before re-creating life in camp and answering questions from visitors throughout the day.
Sgt. Maj. Jarvis Rosier, a retired U.S. Army veteran, will read the Emancipation Proclamation. He will also deliver a lecture at 1 p.m. on the formation of the U.S. Colored Troops and their role in the Florida campaign, which Lammie said involved finding hiding blockade runners in the south, emancipating slaves and more.
Lammie said that in 1865 the United States Colored Troops actually occupied the Samuel Curry residence, which is one of the oldest homes in Bradenton to still be in the location where it was built, according to the historical marker database’s website.
The residence, which was built and owned by one of the most prominent names in Manatee County’s early history, is now managed by Reflections of Manatee as part of the group’s historical preservation efforts and serves as a museum.
Instead of re-creating battles, the 2nd Infantry Regiment of U.S. Colored Troops will focus on re-creating camp at the Curry House and answering visitor questions.
As part of the day’s events, there will also be tours of Reflections of Manatee’s Archaeology of Angola exhibit, which comes after a 2020 excavation beneath the Manatee Mineral Springs Park that revealed forgotten details about an early 19th-century settlement along the Manatee River.
Archaeologists with New College and the University of South Florida found a variety of artifacts in an area where nearly 700 escaped slaves found refuge at a settlement called Angola before fleeing south to the Bahamas, according to previous Bradenton Herald reporting.
Lammie said this event has been a long time coming, but she is excited to bring another big event to the community post-COVID-19.
All in all, Lammie said Saturday promises to be a day where “history comes to life.” And she thinks that studying and talking about history may be more important now than ever.
“This is about creating a dialogue and having a conversation. A lack of cross-cultural communication is a significant part of how we got into this era of silence. We have to be willing to be uncomfortable. We have to be willing to have uncomfortable conversations,” Lammie said.
Saturday’s event is free and open to the public.
No food will be served, but Lammie said people are welcome to bring their own food and picnic items.
There is limited parking onsite, she said, but there will be additional parking available in the grass lot at the Methodist Church nearby, and there will be signage to direct visitors.
This story was originally published September 8, 2023 at 5:45 AM.
