Conclusion of the American Civil War was the last battle of the American Civil War involving large numbers of United States Colored Troops. The Battle of Fort Blakely happened six hours after Lee's surrender to Grant at Appomattox. In the course of the battle, Brigadier General St. John Richardson Liddell was captured and surrendered his men. Out of 4,000 soldiers originally, Liddell lost 3,400 that were captured in this battle. About 250 were killed and only some 200 men escaped. The successful Union assault can be attributed in large part to African-American forces. Unaware of Lee's surrender on April 9 and the assassination of President Lincoln
Commemoration of the American Civil War The 2010 Conference topic of "Race, Slavery and the Civil War: The Tough Stuff of American History and Memory is held in September of that year at Norfolk State University, Norfolk, Virginia and chaired by historian James O. Horton, PhD. A sampling of that day's panel are: David Pitcaithley, PhD on "Causes of the Civil War and Public History," and Ira Berlin, PhD speaks on "The African American Soldier." Edna Medford, PhD of Howard University discusses that in the quest for Black rights there must be a dismantling of the contemporary social and legal systems within that Southern culture that