"Commanded by Black Officers"

On April 11, 1864, J.P. Campbell, Baltimore correspondent for The Christian Recorder, a weekly newspaper distributed to black regiments, wrote about the parade of the Thirty-ninth U.S. Colored Infantry through downtown Baltimore. Of special note is the mention of a black captain, George A. Hackett (1806-1870), a prominent local leader and an activist for African American rights. Hackett was not a member of the Thirty-ninth. It appears he had the honor of riding at the head of the regiment as it marched through the city. This account was published on April 16, 1864:

The 39th Regiment U.S.C.T., had a grand parade on last Thursday. The occasion was, that the Rev. A.W. Wayman, had invited them through Col. Bowman, to his church on that day, to hear a sermon preached for their especial benefit. The Colonel consented to this proposition. They came to Bethel Church, and the sermon was preached by Bro. Wayman. It was well received; and, at the conclusion, a resolution was passed, requesting a copy of the original for publication, to be distributed among the soldiers. the day was pleasant, and hundreds of persons were in attendance upon the occasion. Anxious spectators of both sexes were there, and several gentlemen of the clerical order; among whom, we noticed the Rev. S.H. Chase, an out-spoken advocate for the rights of his race. It would have done your soul good, to have seen our colored Captain, George A. Hackett, mounted upon a white charger, dressed in full military costume, commanding this regiment, marching through the streets of Baltimore, after the heart-cheering notes of a new brigade band, and gazed upon by admiring hosts. They marched, not through the back streets, lanes and alleys, but through the main, the fashionable, and the most aristocratic streets of the city. What a wonderful thing, if not a miracle, to see a regiment of colored soldiers, commanded by black officers, marching through the streets of the city of Baltimore, unmolested by slaveholders and their miserable wretched minions; but so it is, and they cannot prevent it.

New Site for Historic Newspapers is Helpful Resource

I've often benefited from the content in old newspapers, but have been less than enthusiastic about combing through poor-quality microfilm or difficult to navigate web sites. In truth, it is almost always a painful experience, but one that I endure because the payoff — an obituary or other article of interest — breathes life and adds context to my research subjects.

Recently I learned about NewsinHistory.com, a digitized collection of more then 1,100 newspapers spanning two centuries. I arranged for a trial subscription and determined to test it with one of my more difficult subjects, Edwin S. Likens, a Civil War veteran who has proved hard to track.

Civil War military service records list two men named Edward S. Likens who wore Union blue: One who served in two New York regiments, and another who served in two Pennsylvania regiments. But a search of other sources suggest only one man, a Philadelphia native, with this name. After a number of unsuccessful attempts to solve this history mystery, I reluctantly moved his file to the bottom of the priority list.

After my NewsinHistory.com user name and password arrived, I entered the name Likens in the search box. The results included an article in the March 12, 1863, edition of the Philadelphia Public Ledger announcing the marriage of Lieut. Edwin S. Likens to Josephine Ophelia Dodd. This article is the missing link to my research, for it connects Likens the Pennsylvania officer to the New York Likens whose widow, Josephine O. Likens, filed for a government pension after her husband's death.

Mysery solved! Thank you NewsinHistory.

The site's strength, aside from the number of newspapers and search capability, is the functionality that makes it easy to pan and zoom, scroll, flip and scan pages. The yellow keyword search highlights are also a plus. Reminds me of Google Books and Amazon. (I am a fan of both sites.)

Two minor changes would improve the site experience:

1. Add the name of the publication and date to the pdf download, a detail offered by the New York Times on its archived articles.
2. Move the search bar to the top of the home page and all the results pages. The strength of this site is the search, and yet it seems to be hidden in the design.

Overall, NewsinHistory gets a big thumbs up. I plan to add it to my research tool kit, and recommend it to any individual or institution involved in genealogical and other historical studies.