The Dusable, Museum of African American History is shining a light on a hidden part of black military history by spotlighting the 8th Illinois National Guard, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

“This has been a suppressed story, and the narrative we get about WWI leaves out the story of this regiment,” said curator Harold “Hari” Jones. “Commanded by African American officers and attached to several depleted French infantry divisions, this regiment earned the respect of all who saw them fight. Their prowess on the battlefield is one of the best-kept secrets in American history.”

The 8th Illinois National Guard has roots in all-black policing and military units from the mid-1800s; the two were recognized by the city of Chicago, but not by the state of Illinois.

An all-black volunteer regiment known as the 9th Infantry Battalion struggled to gain state recognition in hopes of joining the National Guard. After finally gaining the recognition of Illinois in 1890, however, the regiment's National Guard application was denied.

The group turned to the larger black community to get one of its leaders, J.C. Buckner, elected to the Illinois legislature, where he drafted legislation that created a new guardsman unit, and in 1895, the 9th Infantry Battalion were finally admitted into the National Guard.

From there, volunteers poured in and when the Spanish-American War began in 1898, what had become the 8th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment were deployed.

Following their success in that war, President Woodrow Wilson drafted troops from the 8th Illinois National Guard into 666World War I. They were renamed for a third time and attached to French armed forces as the 370th U.S. Infantry. The unit and its men were decorated with numerous honors and continued to fight until World War II, when the battalion was disbanded and the men were reassigned.

The DuSable's exhibit works to tell the regiment's story through the eyes of its soldiers, and features battle artifacts, miltary records, maps and photos.

“Given the race barriers in their own country, the soldiers viewed their efforts as … ‘clearing a path for democracy at home,'” Jones said said. “If you were not there in the making of the history, you do not get a quote in our exhibit.”

For all those in the Chicagoland area, the exhibit, “Clearing a Path for Democracy: Citizen Soldiers of the Eighth Illinois National Guard,” runs at the DuSable through April.

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