Theodore Roosevelt Island, a small island located in the Potomac River between Rosslyn, VA and the Georgetown waterfront, is maintained by the National Park Service in honor of our nation's 26th president. However, during the Civil War, the 80 acre island, then known as Mason's Island or Analostan Island, served as a training camp for the 1st United States Colored Troops (1st USCT), an infantry regiment of African American soldiers recruited in the District of Colombia in 1863. The island was occupied by Union troops at the outset of the war and used for various purposes.
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| Photograph of the 1st U.S. Colored Troops in camp circa 1863. The regiment's white officers can be seen in the foreground. (Library of Congress) |
