Members+of+the+108th+Regiment

Original Author: Cary Garavaglia Revision Author: In the basement museum of the arsenal is one file drawer full of information on the Infantry. There is a creamy yellow cardboard cover type booklet containing many names that were in the colored infantry. The third page is missing from the book. It may be in the file cabinet of information somewhere. This booklet lists name, age, height, complexion, eye color, hair color, where born and occupation. The names appear to be in alphabetical order and are numbered but are only in order by first letter of their last name. I only copied the first thirty-four names due to not wanting to damage the booklet. The ages are between eighteen and thirty-five with a few exceptions in their forties. Almost everyone was from Kentucky with one from Tennessee, one from Virginia and one is blank. Most of the occupations of the men prior to the infantry were farmers or laborers. There were two other occupations only listed once and were a tobacconist and a blacksmith. There were different shades of hair color. Most were called dark, black, or brown. There was one fellow that was yellow haired even though his complexion and eyes were both black. His name was Kendrick Allen and he was nineteen years old. His height was left blank. All of the men’s eye colors were black, brown or dark. The most astonishing part of the booklet is the documentation of a person’s complexion. The colors chosen were black, dark, copper and yellow. No complexion charts have been found from that time to distinguish the chosen colors. There were a few pictures found in the file drawer. They are all of one picture but a few different angles to show the number of people there. The picture says, “Rock Island Barracks, ILL; Military Prison. 1864-1865” with this description underneath, “view looking north at west gate (now near west ave. opposite commanding officer’s quarters). Roll call squad; prisoners in front of barracks for roll call. Stockade (not visible) is at left of two trees. Dead line ditch (Past rubbish pile). Figure in left foreground, Father C.L. Dunham. From five to ten thousand prisoners” were there at any time. On another picture of the same men says, “Rock Island Arsenal Ordnance Department and Roll Call, Rock Island prison barracks 1864-1865” and has some type of filing number to the left which is 398-52225 and to the right of the picture is typed January 30, 1956. There is a picture of three men from the infantry where one man is posing and the other two are sitting upon a wooden structure. They are all in front of a building that has twelve octagons on its door. There is one last picture of a 108th USCT memorial park drawing that was never made. Visible on the structure are the words, “108th Regiment U.S. Colored” and at the top of it says, “To Whom it may concern.” It has five statues of people and an American eagle surrounding the writing. ** Works Cited  ** The Rock Island Arsenal Museum Basement Return to the 108th Return to Home
 * Members of the U.S. Colored Infantry at Rock Island Arsenal **