Bureau of Colored Troops

The Bureau of Colored Troops was created by the United States War Department on 22 May 1863, under General Orders, No. 143, during the Civil War, to handle "all matters relating to the organization of colored troops." Major Charles W. Foster was chief of the Bureau, which reported to Adjutant General Lorenzo Thomas. The designation United States Colored Troops replaced the varied state titles that had been given to the African American soldiers.