Iron Riders remembered as 'truly heroes' during ceremony in Missoula

In 1897, members of the fledgling 25th Infantry Bicycle Corps left Missoula, Mont., headed out on a 41-day, 1,900-mile ride to St. Louis, Mo. They were made up of all Black enlisted U.S. Army personnel, known as Buffalo Soldiers, and were greeted by a crowd of more than 10,000 people when they arrived in Missouri.

The Iron Riders were, as one speaker said during the opening ceremony of a week-long event to commemorate their achievement, “truly heroes.”

Coming together in Missoula for the Buffalo Soldiers Iron Riders Gathering to honor the quasquicentennial celebration of the historic ride were veterans and others from all over the nation. They formally kicked off the week-long celebration with a ceremony in the Northern Rockies Heritage Center’s Heritage Hall.  

Julie Vacura, Montana’s Civilian Aide to the Secretary of the Army and a recently retired Montana Army National Guardsman with 33 years of service, said all those who serve “understand … the call to duty no matter the mission. But these Buffalo Soldiers were men who wanted to be a part of something bigger than themselves. That desire, that yearning, that drive to service above self drove these unique men to achieve a challenging and very unusual mission that was set before them. They were truly living the Army values … true heroes to be emulated as they threw themselves into their mission.”

Vacura said the story of the Iron Riders “is one to be shared with our young people and with our community, for today the Army and all the services need this caliber of American to serve in the armed forces.”

Also attending the ceremony was University of Montana President Seth Bodner, who graduated first in his class from the U.S. Military Academy, earning both Rhodes and Truman scholarships and then receiving two master’s degrees from the University of Oxford. He went on to service in the 101st Airborne Division and the U.S. Army’s First Special Forces Group. While serving in the Green Berets, he commanded multiple Special Forces detachment deployments around the world and later served as a special assistant to the Commanding General in Iraq.

Bodner called the Iron Riders “a remarkable group of heroes to this country.” He went on to call their accomplishments “unbelievable. I’ve been on lots of marches … but I know the weather in Montana. Being on a bike in Montana, over these hills, no gears … I’m not sure I could have hung with these men. It’s just a real privilege and honor to be here to celebrate the 25th Infantry, to celebrate the history. And not just the bravery and courage and physical determination, but the moral and, as we say in the Army, intestinal fortitude of the Buffalo Soldiers and the many barriers that they broke. I stand in awe of the Iron Riders and everything they represent.”

Julian Purdy, the Department of Labor’s Chief of Staff for Veterans Employment and Training, traveled from Washington, D.C., to attend the quasquicentennial. “This moment is special to me because my grandfather served at Fort Huachuca as part of the 10th Calvary,” he said. “Seeing that I could come here on the 125th anniversary of this ride and celebrate this special group of Buffalo Soldiers is really important. I’m so happy to be here.”

Purdy’s flight from D.C. was delayed; he didn’t arrive in Missoula until midnight, just 10 hours before the opening ceremony. “Getting to and from Montana isn’t easy, but biking out of Montana is even harder,” he said. “That 1,900-mile ride is truly amazing. I really appreciate so much what these amazing soldiers did.”

Retired Army Master Sgt. Michael Theard, president of the 9th & 10th (HORSE) Cavalry Association, used the Army’s 247th birthday as a backdrop for talking about how the U.S. military opened doors for Black Americans at times when many were closed to them.

“As the military advanced, as the Army evolved, the military would introduce several firsts,” Theard said. “Those soldiers of color … would also get to do many firsts in our society that might not have been able to be achieved outside of the U.S. military.”

Legionnaire Linda Johnson, who retired from the U.S. Army in 1996 and is a Paid-Up-For-Life member of American Legion Post 27 in Missoula, sits on the board of the Rocky Mountain Museum of Military History. She feels a personal connection to the Buffalo Soldiers because of that, and because of the possibility members of her family saw the 1897 ride leave Missoula.

“My father was stationed out here in 1931, and his office was in this building,” Johnson said. “I want to say that possibly my ancestors may have been out here to see them off. I’m a fifth-generation Montanan. So I’ve always had a fascination with (the Buffalo Soldiers). I think it’s absolutely incredible (what they did). All of my support would have gone out to them if I’d been here.”

Kevin Smith, an interpreter with Missouri State Parks and a Buffalo Soldiers reenactor, will be in Missoula through Saturday, before heading back home. He came to Montana to take part in quasquicentennial events and to see off adventure bicyclist Erick Cedeno, who is riding the same route the Buffalo Soldiers took in 1897, using 35 days to traverse the 1,900 miles. Smith said he will reunite with Cedeno when he arrives in St. Louis later this summer.

Smith also is the nephew of U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee, who introduced legislation that eventually led to posthumously promoting Col. Charles Young, just the third Black student to attend the U.S. Military Academy at the time, from colonel to brigadier general. Lee’s father was a Buffalo Soldier, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel.

“I have a personal connection to this project,” Smith said. “It means a great deal to me, because it’s a little-known story. And that’s a great deal of what I deal with working for Missouri State Parks. I research and tell untold stories of African-American history.”

Prior to the opening ceremony, a group of bicyclists dressed as Buffalo Soldiers staged a five-mile ride from the Historical Museum at Fort Missoula to downtown Missoula. Follow the links for complete coverage of the week.

·Legionnaire: Buffalo Soldiers ‘opened the door’ for minorities serving in the military

·Story of the Buffalo Soldiers ‘positive history’ for Iron Riders Gathering co-chair

·Buffalo Soldiers association driven to educate about its predecessors

·Buffalo Soldiers gatherings have become a ‘family reunion’ for their attendees