LAID Celebrates Black History Month: Salem Poor
Rick's Firearm Academy of Detroit is celebrating one person every day in February as part of its tribute to patriots and freedom fighters. Today's honoree - Salem Poor - is an apt subject.
Salem Poor earned his place in history. During "the Battle of Charleston"-known today as the Battle of Bunker Hill. In this battle, African Americans suffered more than 1,000 casualties. At the Battle of Bunker Hill, Salem Poor performed so well that fourteen officers sent a petition to the Massachusetts legislature declaring that he behaved like an experienced officer, as well as an excellent soldier and added that "a reward was due to so great and distinguished a character."
In the Massachusetts State Archives is a petition to the General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, stating that in the "late Battle at Charlestown. " a man from Colonel Frye's Regiment "behaved like an experienced officer" and that in this man "centers a brave and gallant soldier." This document, dated December of 1775, just six months after the Battle of Bunker Hill, is signed by fourteen officers who were present at the battle, including Colonel William Prescott. Of the 2,400 to 4,000 colonists who participated in the battle, no other man is singled out in this manner.
This hero of the Battle of Bunker Hill is Salem Poor, of Andover, Massachusetts. Although documents show that Poor, along with his regiment and two others, were sent to Bunker Hill to build a fort and other fortifications on the night of June 16, 1775, we have no details about just what Poor did to earn the praise of these officers. The petition simply states "to set forth the particulars of his conduct would be tedious." Perhaps his heroic deeds were too many to mention.
Few details of this hero's life are available to us. Born a slave in the late 1740s, Poor managed to buy his freedom in 1769 for 27 pounds, which represented a year's salary for the typical working man. He married Nancy, a free African American woman, and they had a son. Salem Poor left his wife and child behind in May 1775 and fought for the patriot cause at Bunker Hill, Saratoga, and Monmouth.
Salem Poor was a true patriot and today we salute his legacy.
If you don't like guns, you probably don't know your history. Yep, I said it.
About The Author
Rick Ector is a National Rifle Association credentialed Firearms Trainer, who provides Michigan CCW Class training in Detroit for students at his firearms school - Rick's Firearm Academy of Detroit. Ector is a recognized expert in firearm safety and has been featured extensively in the national and local media: Associated Press, UPI, NRAnews, Guns Digest, Tactical-Life, The Truth About Guns, The Politics Daily, Fox News Detroit, The Detroit News, The Detroit Examiner, WJLB, WGPR, and the UrbanShooterPodcast.
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