90. Buffalo Soldier Coat
- Rainey Knudson
- 3 hours ago
- 2 min read
After the Civil War, the US Army created six all-black regiments, a tenth of the total force. These soldiers were disproportionately sent West, into terrain where temperatures could drop to 50 below zero, without adequate winter supplies. So they found their own.
The Army never officially adopted buffalo coats as standardized cold-weather gear, but they were ubiquitous in the West. For millennia, Native tribes had worn robes made from buffalo hides. White explorers on the Lewis and Clark expedition coveted the robes, and they were quickly adopted by fur traders and scouts. But buffalo coats are perhaps most obviously associated with the Buffalo Soldiers, the black army regiments who wore them on the western frontier.
The origin of the name is debated, although everyone agrees it was bestowed by Plains tribes. The troops themselves considered the name high praise. As the Army moved West along with the country, Buffalo Soldiers did much of the work that made westward expansion possible: fighting in the Indian Wars, battling cattle thieves and other outlaws, and protecting settlers crossing the frontier.
In winter photographs, the soldiers appear in enormous fur robes, the shaggy buffalo hides thrown over dark uniforms against the snow. It was resourceful improvisation; as George H.W. Bush said in 1992, Buffalo Soldiers “often received the worst food and equipment and labored without the respect and recognition that were their due.” But the stiff, heavy furs became part of their legend, inseparable from the hard frontier reputation that earned them their name.
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This post is part of The American 250, a series featuring 250 objects made by Americans, located in America, in honor of the country's 250th anniversary. 250 words on 250 works, from January 1 to December 31, 2026.
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