CAMDEN, N.J. (KYW Newsradio) — In preparation for America’s 250th birthday in two years, 34 new historical markers will be placed around Camden County to better understand the local history. A new marker in Lawnside commemorates the first Black battalion in U.S. history from the Revolutionary War.
The new historical marker unveiled Saturday in front of the Wayne Bryant Community Center in Lawnside memorializes more than a few of the forgotten Black figures of the American Revolution who once crossed through New Jersey.
“African American history is American history,” said Noah Lewis, a historical interpreter.
On Saturday in Lawnside, Lewis was acting as Ned Hector, one of the many Black soldiers of the American Revolution.
“What they did fight for is something called values — values of what this country could be and would be,” said state Rep. Donald Norcross, who helped bring funding to Camden County for these markers.
Lewis said 3,000 to 5,000 people of color would serve the American cause, and 7,000 to 10,000 would serve the British.
“Everytime we turn around and we talk about American history, Black folks have been involved in it,” said Jonathan L. Young, a Camden County commissioner and one of the many contributors to the project.
On the new historical markers, figures like Oliver Cromwell, who crossed the Delaware River with George Washington, and Colonel Tye, who freed slaves to fight for the British.
In Lawnside the marker tells the story of the Rhode Island Regiment — the first Black battalion in U.S. history.
“This was one that included Black, Native American, mixed-race soldiers serving — not considered, by all accounts back then, American,” said Norcross.
The marker sits along a path that kids in the community take every day for school. Shockley says its purpose is to inspire the next generation to uncover more unknown American history.
“We want that to be embedded in their minds. We have no idea how inspiring, or what can trigger a young person,” said Linda Shockley, president of the Lawnside Historical Society.
“There’s so much to be found out.”
Correction: A previous version of this story misnamed the Camden County commissioner. The current version reflects that change.