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Camp Nelson was established in 1863 as a base camp for slaves
commandeered from Kentucky owners to build railroads for the army.
When the Union began recruiting blacks as soldiers the following
year, the camp quickly became the major site for cavalry and
artillery training for the new “colored”
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Thousands of former slaves from Confederate states, declared
free by the Emancipation Proclamation, volunteered to fight for the
Union. Many reported to Camp Nelson with families in tow, creating
a logistical and political problem. Kentucky had never seceded, and
President Lincoln's proclamation did not apply to Kentucky since it
was legally a slave state. Initially Brig. General Speed S. Fry,
the commander of Camp Nelson, harrassed and expelled the solders'
dependents in cooperation with the slave owners, who were seeking
the return of their former slaves. Eventually Fry removed the
dependents and destroyed their shanties. Hundreds died of exposure
and disease in the cold weather during the fall and winter of 1864.
Due to public outcry and the impact on African-American
recruitment, Washington instructed Fry to officially open the camp
to soldiers’ families. A resulting federal law was then passed in
February 1865 that freed the wives and children of ex-slave
enlistees. |
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Gradually, Camp Nelson evolved from a refuge to a center of
education and training for the dependents of the former slaves, due
mainly to the efforts of Kentucky native Rev. John Fee. Fee was a
fiery preacher who previously had been chased out of the state for
his abolitionist views. Fee established and administered schools, a
church, and other services for the families at the camp. As the
Civil War came to a close, he left the camp to pursue his life's
goal of founding a racially integrated school. It began as an
elementary school but the institution soon became Berea College,
which operated as the only integrated school in Kentucky until the
1904 passage of the Day Law.
The cache is placed along the Freedom Trail, which was the Eagle
Scout project of Christopher Tucker, who is now serving in the
armed forces. The trail is not actively maintained so you may have
to bushwhack a bit at certain times of the year. The cache is a
camouflaged, plastic cylinder with room for small trade items. As
always, bring your own writing instrument just in case.
This cache placed and maintained by a Geocky member.