African American soldiers in the Civil War will be topic for Inland Empire Civil War Round Table

The Inland Empire Civil War Round Table will host two programs in February, a virtual program Feb. 19 on African American soldiers’ contributions in the Civil War, and an in-person presentation by Civil War re-enactor Ralph Keyes Feb. 21 in Redlands.

Both are free and open to the public.

In the Feb. 19 program, retired U.S. Navy Capt. Edward Gantt will present “The United States Colored Troops in the Civil War.” The 6:30 p.m. program is co-hosted by the new African Americans in the Civil War Era Round Table and will be available on Zoom and Facebook.

For the link to the online program, go to inlandempirecwrt.org. The program will also be recorded and will be available within a few days at inlandempirecwrt.org.

This is the inaugural program of the virtual African Americans in the Civil War Era Round Table, which is being mentored by the Inland Empire Civil War Round Table, according to a news release. Bill Gwaltney, president of the African Americans in the Civil War Era Round Table, will introduce the new Round Table and the speaker.

Edward Gantt began an association a decade ago with the 23rd Infantry Regiment of the United States Colored Troops Civil War re-enactors and living historians. Two years ago, he served as president of the re-formed 23rd Regiment USCT in Spotsylvania, Va. He is also a member of Company B, 54th Massachusetts, Civil War re-enactors of the Washington, D.C., area.

In the Feb. 19 program, Gantt will discuss the contributions of African American soldiers in the United States Colored Troops, which was founded in 1863 as a branch of the U.S. Army to recruit, organize and oversee the service of African American soldiers during the American Civil War.

Gantt, who graduated from Howard University in 1977, retired from the U.S. Navy in 2003 after 30 years of service.

In the Feb. 21 program, Ralph Keyes will present “Life in the 5th New York Zouaves.” For more than 20 years, he has been a Civil War re-enactor with Company C, 5th New York, also known as Duryee’s Zouaves.

The program is at 6:30 p.m. at the A.K. Smiley Public Library, 125 W. Vine St., Redlands, and will also be available on Zoom. For the Zoom link, go to inlandempirecwrt.org.