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Lt. Henry O. Flipper site. Image provided by George
D. Torok
Lt. Henry O. Flipper Site
El
Paso, Texas
Research Packet and Narrative by:
Tommy Vicks
Dr. George D. Torok
Honors Project
Summer 2002
National Endowment for the
Humanities Historical Markers Project
Narrative History: Henry O. Flipper
Henry O. Flipper was born a slave in Thomasville,
Georgia in 1856. His family later moved to Atlanta and in 1873,
Flipper became the first African-American cadet to graduate from West
Point. He was the first black officer in the regular army and in 1877
was assigned to the 10th U.S. Cavalry Regiment at Fort
Davis, Texas, which included the famous “buffalo soldiers.” In 1882,
in what was probably a racially-motivated attack, Lieutenant Flipper
was charged and tried before a General Court-Martial. He was cleared
of embezzlement charges but was found guilty of “conduct unbecoming an
officer.” Flipper was dismissed from the Army and spent the rest of
his life trying to clear his name.
Henry
Flipper spent the next 37 years in the Southwest working as a mining
engineer, surveyor, and translator. From the 1880s to the early years
of the 20th century, Flipper spent time in El Paso,
arranging work and writing reports. He did contract work for many
mining companies in both the United States and northern Mexico. He
worked extensively for Colonel William C. Greene and Albert Fall who
both promoted his work and became close friends. Flipper also became
an authority on Southwestern history and folklore, writing articles
for Old Santa Fe (forerunner of the New Mexico Historical
Review) and conducting research in New Mexico, Mexico, and Spain.
Flipper was well-known and respected in the African-American community
of El Paso. During the Mexican Revolution, there was a rumor that
Flipper was serving with Pancho Villa’s troops, a rumor that followed
him the rest of his life.
Flipper never owned property in El Paso but according to city
directories he spent ten years living in two of the city’s many
boarding houses. For eight years, from 1910 to 1919, he resided at
803 ˝ El Paso Street. This two-story building is still standing and
in use at the corner of El Paso Street and Father Rahm Avenue.
From 1919 to 1920, Flipper lived at 202 E. Third Street. This
two-story brick building stands at the corner of Third and Oregon
Streets and houses a few residents and small businesses. Faded
lettering on the side of the building advertises furnished rooms and
beds available from twenty-five cents.
In
1920, Flipper followed Fall to Washington, serving under him as
Assistant Secretary of the Interior in the Harding Administration. He
eventually returned to Atlanta where he died in 1940 at the age of
eighty-four, without having cleared his name. In 1976, the Army Board
for Correction of Military Records issued an honorable discharge. Lt.
Henry O. Flipper was formally pardoned by President Bill Clinton in
1999.
Flipper was described by southwest historian J. Frank Dobie as a
“remarkable character.” During his adventurous lifetime he helped
break new ground for African-Americans and gained the respect of many
prominent people throughout the nation.
Suggested Marker Text: Lt. Henry O. Flipper Marker
Henry O. Flipper was described by southwest
historian J. Frank Dobie as a “remarkable character” and during his
adventurous lifetime he helped break new ground for African-Americans.
Although born a slave in Georgia before the Civil War, he became the
first African-American to graduate from West Point and the first black
officer in the regular army. In 1877, Lieutenant Flipper was assigned
to the 10th U.S. Cavalry Regiment at Fort Davis, Texas,
which included the famous “buffalo soldiers.” In 1882, in what was
probably a racially-motivated attack, he was tried before a General
Court-Martial and dismissed from the Army.
Although his military career had ended, Henry Flipper’s adventures had
just begun. He spent the next 37 years working as a mining engineer,
surveyor, and translator throughout the Southwest and northern Mexico.
For ten years he lived in El Paso working for prominent mining
companies and making the acquaintance of Albert Fall. He also became
an authority on Southwestern history and folklore writing articles for
many prominent publications. In 1920, under the Harding
Administration, Flipper became the first black man to be appointed as
Assistant Secretary of the Interior. Despite his many accomplishments,
Flipper was unable to clear his name. He eventually returned to
Atlanta where he died in 1940 at the age of eighty-four. In 1976 the
Army Board for Correction of Military Records issued an honorable
discharge. Lt. Henry O. Flipper was formally pardoned by President
Bill Clinton in 1999.
.Theodore
D. Harris, “Henry Flipper and Pancho Villa,” Password 5-6
(Spring 1961), 39-40; Charles M. Robinson, The Court-Martial of
Lieutenant Henry Flipper (El Paso, TX 1994), 7-8; Henry Ossian
Flipper, The Colored Cadet at West Point (Salem, NH 1966),
ii-xi. The research for this proposal was conducted by El Paso
Community College student Tommy Vick as an Honors’ Project.
.
Harris, “Henry Flipper and Pancho Villa,” Password 5-6,
41-42.
.
U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Fourteenth
Census of the United States 1920
(Washington, DC, 1921); El Paso
City Directory (Dallas, TX, various dates 1890-1920).
.
El Paso (TX) Times, Feb. 19, 1999; Ibid., Sept. 22,
1975; Ibid., July 27, 1997.
.
Harris, “Henry Flipper and Pancho Villa,” Password 5-6, 39.
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