Spanish American War

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Spanish American War The War In Cuba
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U. S. S. Maine 1898
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5 Gun Crew on the Maine
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In 1898, the United States Battleship Maine was
sent to Havana, Cuba as a warning to the Spanish
Government
The Battleship Maine entering Havana Harbor
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On February 15, 1898, a little after 900 PM, the
Maine exploded, killing 266 members of her crew...
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Investigations of the Maines Wreck showed that
there had been an explosion under the keel...
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The Yellow Press of the day demanded the United
States declare war on Spain
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Mast of the Maine at Arlington Cemetery
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The Congress of the United States
Declared war on Spain on April 25, 1898.
The United States had a standing Army of only
25,000 men, so the call went out for Volunteers
and State Militia (the forerunner to the National
Guard) to swell the ranks to 280,00 Troops.
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The Regular Army of the United States consisted
of 10 Regiments of Cavalry, 20 Regiments of
Infantry, and 5 Regiments of Artillery scattered
mostly in the Western United States
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The Best Known of all of these Volunteer Units
was the 1st U.S.Volunteer Cavalry
Col. L. Wood and Lt. Col.Theodore Roosevelt
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For the first time in American History, there
were no East, West, South, or NorthWe were all
Americans
The Rough Riders were organized from Arizona, New
Mexico, Indian Territory (Oklahoma) and comprised
of Native Americans, Hispanic, and Anglo Troopers
and filled out by Texans They worked with the
Black Soldiers that made up the Buffalo Soldiers
of the 9th, 10th Cavalry and 24th and 25th
Infantries.
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K Troop Training in San Antonio, Texas in May,
1898
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On to...
Cuba
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Rough Riders landing in Daiquiri, Cuba
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Rough Riders in Camp after Guasimas
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Fifth Corps Commander Major General William Pecos
Bill Shafter Commander of the Army in Cuba
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The most famous of all the Battles in Cuba was
San Juan Heights
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Buffalo Soldiers on San Juan Hill
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The same scene showing Buffalo Soldiers, Regular
Army and Volunteers on San Juan Heights
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Theodore Roosevelt became the Col. Of the Rough
Riders and the Commanding Officer of the Cavalry
Battalion. After Returning to the United States,
he ran for Governor of New York the next
year. Then became our 26th President.
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Following the war, he served as Military Governor
of Cuba until 1902. As a Brigadier General he
fought the Moros during the Philippine
Insurrection in 1904 and less than a year later
he was named Army Chief of Staff by President
William Howard Taft (who he knew in the
Philippines where Taft served as Civilian
Governor). In less than a decade, he had jumped
from a Captain in the Medical Corps to the
highest post in the Army.
Leonard Wood
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Living History Programs keep our Heritage
alive K Troop