Texas Buffalo Soldiers to Salute Civil War Medal Recipient

Media Contact: Rob McCorkle, TPWD, (830) 866-3533 icle__media__contact">Media Contact: Rob McCorkle, TPWD, (830) 866-3533 or robert.mccorkle@tpwd.texas.gov; Luis Padilla, TPWD Buffalo Soldiers, (830) 389-8569 or luis.padilla@tpwd.texas.gov

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AUSTIN — Sgt. Maj. Milton M. Holland, the first Texas recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor, will be honored posthumously on Sept. 27 at the Texas Capitol. The ceremony, being presented by the Texas Buffalo Soldiers in partnership with the Buffalo Soldiers National Museum, will begin at 1 p.m. Saturday on the south steps of the Capitol with a posting of colors by TPWD’s buffalo soldiers.

Hosted by State Rep. Sylvester Turner of Houston, the tribute will commemorate the contributions of Holland, the first Texan awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor on April 6, 1865. Noted historian Frank D. Jackson, mayor of Prairie View, will be the keynote speaker.

Holland served as a member of the 5th U.S. Colored Troops during the American Civil War and was awarded the Medal of Honor for his exceptional bravery and meritorious actions in battle on Sept. 29, 1864 at Chaffin’s Farm, Va. The Austin native joined the U.S. Army in Ohio and lived to the age of 65. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.

Holland was cited for taking command of Company C and gallantly leading it in battle after all the officers had been killed or wounded during the Union’s attack on fortifications on the James River south of Petersburg. The unit was attempting to cut the Confederacy’s railroad supply lines during the Richmond-Petersburg Campaign. The fighting around Chaffin’s Farm cost the nation nearly 5,000 casualties.

The Texas Buffalo Soldiers program is operated by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Texas State Parks Division. The living history program’s purpose is to connect people to the outdoors and share with them the story of the African-American troops who fought in the Civil War and Indian Wars that followed.