Explore how enslaved and free African American men and women contributed to the United States Civil War and the official end to legal enslavement in the United States. Topics may include:
Image Source: Wood, Thomas Waterman. A Bit of War History: The Recruit. 1866. Oil on canvas. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
Topics 2.23–2.24
LO 2.23.A
Describe enslaved and free African American men’s and women’s contributions during the United States Civil War.
LO 2.23.B
Describe African American soldiers’ motivations for enlisting during the United States Civil War and the inequities they faced.
LO 2.23.C
Explain how Black soldiers’ service affected Black communities during and after the United States Civil War.
You will need to understand and be able to use these materials for the AP exam.
This ambrotype features a woman believed to be a washerwoman for Union troops near Richmond, Virginia.
Frederick Douglass’s youngest son served in the 54th Massachusetts Infantry.
This poem, featured in Dunbar's collection Majors and Minors, recalls the impact of Black service in the Civil War.
You can further develop your knowledge of this topic with primary and secondary sources.
Explore the rhetoric used to recruit Black soldiers for the war effort.
Explore the history of the Massachusetts 54th Volunteer Infantry.
Learn more about free and enslaved Africans’ contributions to the Union war effort.
This timeline traces Abraham Lincoln’s evolution from antislavery advocate to emancipator in the context of international events.
Explore the discrimination and hardships Black soldiers encountered during the Civil War.
Watch a discussion of how the Secession Ordinance led directly to the Civil War.
An introduction to Mary Ellen Pleasant, an abolitionist and businesswoman who flourished on the East and West Coasts.
Get some key facts on Black service during the Civil War.
Explore the history of Freedman’s Village at Arlington National Cemetery.
Explore different points of view of Black soldiers in a postwar photograph.
Explore the role of military service during the Civil War on emancipation and abolition.
Learn more about the men, women, and children who contributed to the war effort through various means.
These videos from Black History in Two Minutes (or So) feature condensed, engaging, and fact-packed stories.
Take a closer look at the experience of African Americans during the Civil War.
Gain an understanding of how service in the Civil War is but one facet of the story of Black military service.
Learn more about Robert Smalls's daring mission during the Civil War and political career during Reconstruction.
You will need to understand and be able to use these materials for the AP exam.
Read the General Order announcing emancipation in Texas, giving birth to Juneteenth.
African American communities have a long history of commemorating local Freedom Days, including Juneteenth. Over 150 years after its first celebration in Galveston, Texas, in 1865, Juneteenth National Independence Day was named a national holiday in 2021 by an act of Congress. The following photographs come from the celebration of Juneteenth in 2021 in the city of Greenville, North Carolina.
Juneteenth celebration and march through Uptown Greenville, North Carolina, June 19, 2021 (City of Greenville, North Carolina / Flickr)
Juneteenth celebration and march through Uptown Greenville, North Carolina, June 19, 2021 (City of Greenville, North Carolina / Flickr)
Juneteenth celebration and march through Uptown Greenville, North Carolina, June 19, 2021 (City of Greenville, North Carolina / Flickr)
You can further develop your knowledge of this topic with primary and secondary sources.
Explore the history and commemoration of Juneteenth.
Examine the story of Juneteenth, celebrating the end of slavery in the US, specifically in Texas–June 19, 1865.
Take a deep dive into the first Juneteenth celebrations where it all began, in Galveston, Texas.
Explore this elaborately decorated copy of the Emancipation Proclamation signed by Lincoln himself.
Learn more about the origins of Juneteenth through this print.
Explore a lithograph commemorating the ratification of the Fifteenth Amendment.
Explore Douglass's belief in the importance of the Emancipation Proclamation on Reconstruction.
We have teamed up with New American History on interactive resources exploring America’s past and harnessing the power of digital media, curiosity, and inquiry.
Read an article exploring the roots of this celebration of emancipation.
Discover an argument for establishing Reconstruction monuments.