The Spanish-American War was declared on this date in 1898.
On February 15 of that year, 250 Americans died when the USS Maine blew up and sank in Havana Harbor. Many people in government and the press blamed the deaths on the Spanish government, which was fighting to keep its overseas empire alive. The United States declared war on Spain on April 25, 1898. Americans rallied to the cause of liberating Cuba from Spain with the slogan, “Remember the Maine!”
In this conflict, the Buffalo Soldiers of the Ninth and Tenth Cavalries of the United States further proved their military abilities in battles and guarding the Mexican border.
Members of both regiments fought in Cuba, participating in the battle at San Juan Hill in eastern Cuba, near the city of Santiago de Cuba. It was the scene (July 1898) where Theodore Roosevelt and the Rough Riders took part.
Walking up and down the line of the Tenth’s position and talking to the troops, Edward Lee Baker saw Private Lewis Marshall of C Troop wounded and face down in the San Juan River. Baker pulled Marshall from the water and carried him to safety. After carrying Marshall to safety, and survived. Baker received the Medal of Honor for these actions three years later in 1902.
After the Battle of San Juan Hill, Rough Rider Frank Knox said, “I never saw braver men anywhere.” Lieutenant John J. Pershing wrote, “They fought their way into the hearts of the American people.” A total of 26 Buffalo Soldiers died in the fight for San Juan Hill.
The Tenth also served under General John J. Pershing in the expedition against Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa.
Black Leaders of the Nineteenth Century.
Edited by Leon Litwack and August Meier
Copyright 1998, the University of Illinois Press
ISBN 0-252-06213-2
