The Black soldiers who built the Alaska Highway : a history of four U.S. Army regiments in the north, 1942-1943 / John Virtue ; foreword by Monte Irvin.

"This is the first detailed account of the 5,000 black troops who were reluctantly sent north by the U.S. Army during World War II to help build the Alaska Highway and install the companion Canol pipeline. Theirs were the first black regiments deployed outside the 48 states during the war"--Provided...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Virtue, John, 1947-
Language:English
Published: Jefferson, North Carolina : McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, [2013]
Subjects:
United States. > Army > African American troops > History > 20th century.
African American soldiers > Alaska > History > 20th century.
World War, 1939-1945 > Regimental histories > United States.
Alaska Highway > History > 20th century.
Physical Description:vii, 220 pages : illustrations, map ; 26 cm
Format: Book
Contents:
  • Introduction
  • Pondering a pathway to Alaska
  • Highway and pipeline approved
  • The second emancipation order
  • Blacks rush to enlist
  • Black soldiers voice their complaints
  • Army reluctantly assigns Black regiments
  • Heading north
  • Japanese attack justifies the Alcan highway
  • The 93rd and the 95th start off with picks and shovels
  • The 97th completes the highway
  • The 388th does the heavy lifting
  • An unexpectedly severe winter
  • Surviving isolation
  • The highway is praised, the pipeline criticized
  • Identifying problems
  • News coverage of Black troops suppressed
  • Epilogue.