From the April 20, 2011, Voice of America.
When the Civil War started, there were only 200 Chinese in the east and 58 served, many in the US Navy.
Three Chinese rose to the rank of corporal in all-white units. One, Corporal Joseph Price, brought to America as a child by his father and fought at Antietam and Gettysburg.
At least five Chinese fought for the Confederacy.
Siamese twins Chang and Eng were brought to America by P.T. Barnum to be in the Barnum and Bailey Circus. They became wealthy, slave-owning farmers in North Carolina near Mt. Airy so it was not surprising that their sons, Christopher and Stephen, fought for the Confederacy.
Research indicates that Chinese were treated well in the ranks.
A LONG HARD RIDE
In 1862, an Act of Congress granted US citizenship to any who served, but Chinese were denied.
Edward Day Cohota served during the war and became a member of the regular army after it. Even after serving twenty years, he was still denied citizenship.
In 1882, the Chinese Exclusion Act went into effect. As a matter of fact, until 1943, it was still technically illegal for a Chinese person to become a US citizen, but it was inconsistently enforced as Cohota had voted.
In 2008, Congressman Mike Honda, of Asian descent, got Congress to pass a resolution honoring the contributions of Chinese during the Civil War.
Should Have become Citizens. --Old Secesh
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