At the end of the Civil War, the Federal army held a Grand Review of its troops in Washington DC to celebrate the nation’s hard fought triumph over the Confederacy. However, the U.S. War Department did not invite black regiments or soldiers to participate, a painful insult to the nearly 200,000 African American patriots whose contributions during the final two years of the conflict had been vital to the Union’s ultimate victory. Instead, it was left to a dedicated group of civilians, mostly women, from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania to organize an alternative Grand Review for the nation’s black troops. This Pennsylvania Grand Review took place on the streets of the Pennsylvania state capital on Tuesday, November 14, 1865. Today, a broad coalition of state agencies and non-profit organizations have decided to commemorate that powerful story with a series of activities culminating in November 2010. This website supports those efforts and hopes to supplement their outreach by offering descendants and other willing students of history a dynamic forum for sharing their stories and finding out more about the bravery and sacrifice of a generation of African Americans who were sometimes ignored or slighted by the government they helped save.
Producer
House Divided Project at Dickinson College
Matthew Pinsker, Co-Director
PO Box 1773
Carlisle, PA 17013
717-245-1521
hdivided@dickinson.edu or http://housedivided.dickinson.edu
With special thanks to Ryan Burke, Morgan Mintz, Shane Harding, John Osborne and Don Sailer
Sponsor
Pennsylvania Tourism Office
PA Department of Community and Economic Development (PA-DCED)
Lenwood Sloan, Director Cultural and Heritage Tourism
For more information:
visitPA.com or call (800) VISIT PA
facebook.com/visitPA // twitter.com/visitPA // flickr.com/visitPA // youtube.com/visitPA
Special Credits
Prof. Michael Barton and his students at Penn State Harrisburg
Library of Congress (photos)
National Archives (photos)
Grand Review 2010 Partners
Appalachian Regional Commission
PA Dutch Country Roads
Senator John Heinz History Center
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
Concerned Black Men of PA
Partnership for Sacred Spaces
Institute for Cultural Partnerships
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
Pennsylvania Civil War 150 Consortium
Historical Society of Dauphin County
Dauphin County Parks and Recreation
Jump Street Inc.
Harrisburg 150
Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Northern Appalachian Studies