Lincoln University of Missouri

The Soldiers' Dream

 

Lincoln University was founded by black enlisted men of the 62nd and 65th United States Colored Infantries and their white officers, who fought for the cause of the Union during the Civil War. The black soldiers of these two regiments were the victims of an 1847 Missouri law that prohibited black from learning to read and write. Amidst the horror of war, they were given the opportunity to rise above this obstacle when their white officers established informal classes for them. As the war came to a close, the men dreamed of sharing the gift of education with other blacks in Missouri. They resolved to establish a school in their home state dedicated to teaching freed blacks

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