The 21st Show

Union Civil War camp in Cairo once hosted up to 5,000 freed African Americans

Produced by Brian Mackey
 
The confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers on the southernmost edge of Illinois was once the site of Camp Defiance, a Union Civil War base in Cairo which hosted up to 5,000 African Americans.

The confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers on the southernmost edge of Illinois was once the site of Camp Defiance, a Union Civil War base in Cairo which hosted up to 5,000 African Americans. Brian Mackey/IPM News

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Efforts are underway to recognize important sites of Black history in southern Illinois. They include Camp Defiance, a Union Civil War base in Cairo which hosted up to 5,000 African Americans.

GUESTS:

Mark Wagner

Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Center for Archaeological Investigations, SIU Carbondale

George Hunt

Doctoral student in history, SIU Carbondale

Don Patton

President, The Cairo Historical Preservation Project (TCHPP)