569th Quartermaster Salvage Co. [caption title]

Fort Campbell, Ky, 1952. Very good plus.. Photographic collage, 12 x 20 inches. Minor wear and dust-soiling. A stunning photographically-illustrated broadside picturing the officers and enlisted men of the 569th Quartermaster Salvage Company stationed at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. The most striking feature of the broadside is that not only are all of the enlisted men African American, but the same goes for all five officers pictured at center. This is contrary to previous practices of the United States military from the recently-concluded Second World War and before, when military units were segregated but were led by a white officer corps. Ironically, the present broadside features the all-Black 569th Quartermaster Salvage Company after President Truman desegregated the Army via Executive Order 9981 on July 26, 1948. The photographic collage pictures small portraits of the unit's five officers led by commanding officer First Lieutenant H.M. Jones surrounded by similar portraits of the 133 enlisted men in the 569th. All of the officers and soldiers are identified by rank, initials of first name, and last name. The 569th apparently served in the Korean War for at least six months during 1952, service for which they earned a Meritorious Unit Citation. A wonderful photographic celebration of a decorated mid-20th-century, African-American military unit. (Inventory #: 4365)