Based at the Presidio in San Francisco, Buffalo Soldiers were assigned to Sequoia and Yosemite National Parks where they patrolled the backcountry, built trails, stopped poaching, and otherwise served in the roles later assumed by National Park rangers. In observance of Black History Month, Ranger Frederik Penn will discuss the importance of the Buffalo Soldiers to the management of the National Parks and to the legacy of African Americans in the post-Civil War era. In this presentation, he will display historic photographs and explore this multi-layered and multi-faceted, yet seldom told, story.
