This is a story of one man’s determination to discover and uncover a compelling story about a local hero and his contributions in the Civil War and the Pennsylvania National Guard. This determined decade-long study of the African American military history of western Pennsylvania would focus on the four counties of Fayette, Allegheny, Washington, and Westmoreland and would become a passion of Walter H. Seal, local resident and historian.
In the process, he would preserve and amplify the story of William H. Catlin, who served with the 32nd Regiment of United States Colored Troops during the Civil War and led to black troops serving in the Pennsylvania National Guard. By researching Catlin, the hero of this story, Seal would also do justice to many of the other Black members of the community, especially those living in the area of Monongahela, Pa. While our story will mostly deal with the military history associated with the Civil War and post-Civil War service of Black units in the Pennsylvania National Guard, we first digress to give some background on events prior to the Civil War period.
Before the war …
From 1750 to the completion of the Mason/Dixon Line and the formation of present day Washington County and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the exact population of the Black community was unknown. The population would include slaves, freed slaves and runaway fugitive slaves, as Pennsylvania was at that time a slave colony. With the establishment of the Mason/Dixon line, Virginia
