There’s an amazing piece of Wrangell history I’ve never tackled, but I know might make a great episode. During the peak of the Klondike Gold Rush in 1899, the U.S. Army stationed a detachment of the 24th Infantry in Fort Wrangel to help keep the peace. What is exceptional about these men is that they were all African-American soldiers — dubbed throughout history as “the Buffalo Soldiers.” You may be familiar with the song of the same name by Bob Marley!

To my knowledge, the most complete history of their time in Alaska was published in 2021 by Brian G. Shellum in Buffalo Soldiers of Alaska: Company L, Twenty-Fourth Infantry. The book deals mostly with the detachment in Skagway, but Fort Wrangel gets some good coverage, as well.

The historic record about their time in Fort Wrangel is scarce, at least the last time I checked. One piece we do have is their appearance on the 1900 U.S. Census. I made this chart to better understand it.

Based off this data, we can make some observations:

• The youngest soldier is 19 year-old Private David McIntire.

• The oldest soldier is 58 year-old Sergeant William Hanson, the third highest ranking member of the detachment. Hanson was born in Kentucky in 1851, which means he was likely born into slavery. Hanson is one of six Black men in the detachment born into a slave-state prior to the end of slavery.

• The top four birthplaces of the men were Ohio (6), North Carolina (5), and Pennsylvania (4), and Kentucky (4).

• While none of these men seem to have attended school, they are all marked as being able to read and write.

• Everyone in the Infantry was Black, except for the commander, 33 year-old Isaac C. Jenks. Of the five men in the Post Hospital, all were White, except for one Black man.

• All the men arrived in May 1899, except for four men of the Post Hospital, who arrived in February 1898.

• Only the senior leaders are married. Two of the Privates are widowed. The rest are single.

• One soldier, 29 year old Joseph A. Nash of Ohio, is identified on the Census as a Musician.

My hope is that someday I find enough historical sources to do this story some justice! If you have any information, get in touch!