“It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us–that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion–that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain–that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom–and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.”

-The Gettysburg Address, Nov. 19, 1863

Indolink’s Francis C. Assisi and Elizabeth Pothen have done a great bit of investigative journalism to uncover the details of the men of South Asian ancestry that fought during the American Civil War, mostly with the Navy.

The untold saga of people from the Indian subcontinent, who enlisted and served in the US Civil War of the 1860s, has been uncovered through the National Archives and the newly set up database, Civil War Soldiers System (CWSS) in Washington, D.C.



We have obtained additional evidence from the muster rolls (service documentation) of civil war veterans, which reveal that at least 50 South Asians enlisted and served in the US armed forces at the height of the US Civil War (1861-1865). Research over the past three years provide the bare outline about these South Asians who chose to fight for America at a critical point in the country’s history, then settled in the United States, raising families and receiving their war service pensions. This is the first time that the extant of South Asian participants in the US Civil War is being revealed. The work continues as we examine pension files in order to supplement the list of names with a more complete record of information about the experience of these enlistees and their families throughout the Civil War era. Efforts are also underway to locate their surviving family members through genealogical resources.

Fascinating. I just don’t know what else to say. I mean there weren’t enough of us to form an infantry brigade or anything but I had no idea that South Asians were involved in the Civil War.

Because many of these South Asians had anglicized their names on coming to the U.S., it is often difficult to confirm their nativity from the name alone. But fortunately the military archives and the records relating to them provide enough information about their place of birth along with some physical features. Records reveal that the South Asian servicemen who came from India were born in Calcutta, Bombay, Madras, Burhampur, Pondicherry and Bangalore. And their complexion was categorized variously as mulatto, creole, negro, swarthy, bronze or dark. They came from a variety of backgrounds: sailors, mariners, machinists, farmers, cooks, laborers, as well as the occasional student. They had enlisted in the Navy, the Cavalry, Artillery, and Infantry, serving in various capacities — from Sergeant and Seaman to Fireman, Steward, and Cook.

With every name I read my jaw dropped lower as I tried to imagine what they looked like and what kind of life they led:

The records of Charles Simons, who earned a Medal of Honor from President Lincoln in 1864, indicate that he was born in India, had enlisted in Virginia, and attained the rank of a Sergeant in Company A of the 9th New Hampshire Infantry. The Muster Rolls of the USS Minnesota show a John Burns of Madras, India, as having served in that vessel. Burns, aged 23, was a mariner by occupation and he enlisted on June 17, 1864 for 3 years at New York. He was described as having gray eyes, black hair and a dark complexion. Henry S. Bell, a native of Calcutta, aged 21, and a baker by profession, enlisted February 24, 1862 for the war at New York. He is shown in the Muster Rolls of the USS Orvetta and USS Pontiac and described as Negro. Similarly Joseph Sortee of Madras and John Joseph (USS Lancaster) a mariner from Bombay, are both described as Negroes. James Bradshaw of Calcutta who served as a cook aboard the USS Mystic is described as “black.” Another, Joseph Raimen, also from India, is described as Creole. Peter Blake, 23, born in Ceylon, enlisted on June13, 1864 in Boston as a Wardroom Cook and served for two years aboard the vessels Tristram Shandy, Massasoit and Boxer. The records describe his complexion as “Mulatto.”

We often get into testy debates on this blog with people who don’t like the ”South Asian” label. This just takes it to a whole new level. Brown is just brown…or yellow or black for that matter. PLEASE read the whole article because it’s worth every minute. Hopefully some ambitious Ph.D. student out there who is looking for a thesis would like to tackle this topic.

Thorough combing for files on a substantial subject will require time spent in Washington and the unglamorous scanning of reels of microfilm, handwritten papers, or both. Unglamorous, but not necessarily unrewarding. The archival researcher is the custodian of files that, with perseverance and luck, can resurrect hidden gems of information. The secret is that, for all the labor and time they can absorb, the archives and the records themselves are immensely satisfying. Not only do they inform and enlighten, they can also touch and inspire those intrepid enough to seek them out. This story of forgotten Desis who chose to fight for America and in American soil, is just one example.

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p>I’m waiting for the movie.