The United States Congress established six African-American regiments of about 1,000 soldiers in 1866 to help rebuild and protect the country after the Civil War. The name "Buffalo Soldiers" refers to the mounted regiments of the 9th and 10th Cavalries. According to legend, the name Buffalo Soldiers came from Kiowa Native Americans who came in contact with the African-American cavalry. Monuments across America pay tribute to these men who helped settle the American West, and represent the continuing challenge of paying homage to forgotten soldiers.
On July 25, 1992, General Colin Powell helped dedicate the Fort Leavenworth Buffalo Soldier monument. The monument honors the 9th and 10th Cavalry regiments, which had soldiers at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Artists Lee W. Brubaker and Eddie Dixon developed the monument's concept. An exhibition in Washington, D.C. located within the Pentagon, features a smaller version of the original Buffalo Soldier monument in Fort Leavenworth, Kansas; it was dedicated in 1992 and rededicated in 2009.
Completed in 2000, the Buffalo Soldier Park and Memorial celebrates the the 9th and 10th Cavalry regiments stationed at Fort Riley and Junction City, Kansas. The site is located near the remains of housing used by the Buffalo Soldiers and their families during the 1940s. The memorial features a native limestone wall as the backdrop for a 9-foot bronze statue of a soldier leading his horse toward the west.
In 2009 the city of Huntsville, Alabama, unlocked this bronze statue of the Buffalo Soldier Memorial Monument from behind glass in the Academy for Academics and Arts and put it on public display in a historical park. It rests proudly upon a 10-ft granite base in front of the Academy, anchoring the Cavalry Hill Community. The Buffalo Soldier Ad Hoc Committee worked to make the statue a memorial to soldiers as opposed to a stored treasure. Dr. John Cashin conceived the memorial; artist Casey Downing served as its sculptor.
For the past ten years, members of the Members of the Bexar County Buffalo Soldiers Association gather in San Antonio, Texas, to recognize the 281 Buffalo Soldiers interred in the San Antonio National Cemetery. The Members dress in period costume and salute the fallen soldiers. The Association is dedicated to educating the public about the history of the Buffalo Soldiers and Black Indian Scouts. The organization's website includes a calendar of the group's events.
A 9-foot statue entitled "Answering the Call" was unveiled on September 21, 2010 to pay tribute to the Buffalo Soldiers' American exploration. Lawton sculptor Dr. Gary Gardner created the piece, which depicts a soldier preparing to saddle up and ride westward. The statue stands at 2nd Street and Gore Boulevard in downtown Lawton in the Buffalo Soldiers Heritage Plaza.
