Peter Bruner facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Peter Bruner
|
|
|---|---|
Peter Bruner with his wife, about 1919.
|
|
| Born | 1845 Clark County, Winchester, Kentucky
|
| Died | April 6, 1938 (aged 93) Oxford, Ohio
|
| Occupation |
|
| Known for | A Slave's Adventures Toward Freedom Not a Fiction, but the True Story of a Struggle |
| Spouse(s) | Frances Proctor |
Peter Bruner (1845 – April 6, 1938) was born into slavery in Kentucky. He bravely escaped to join the Union Army during the Civil War. After the war, he built a life in Ohio, where he married and started a family. Later, he worked with his daughter to publish his life story.
Contents
Peter Bruner's Early Life
Peter Bruner was born in 1845 in Winchester, Kentucky. He was born into slavery in Clark County, Kentucky. His mother had three children, and she often argued with her owner, John Bell Bruner, about them. Peter's owner was also his father.
When Peter was about 10 years old, someone offered $800 to buy him. But John Bell Bruner said Peter was "growing into money." He believed Peter would soon be worth $200 more. Peter was taken away from his mother at a young age. He worked as a tanner, someone who prepares animal hides. He was also hired out to work for other people. Peter faced very harsh treatment and tried to escape many times. His owner's sister even said she wanted to buy him just to whip him. She thought this would stop him from running away.
Joining the Civil War Fight
On July 25, 1864, after many tries, Peter finally escaped slavery. He joined the Union Army as a free man at Camp Nelson in Kentucky. He served in Company C of the 12th Regiment Heavy Artillery U.S. Colored Troops. This was part of the United States Colored Troops.
In August 1863, Peter first tried to join the army. But he was told it was a "white man's war." Kentucky was the last state to let African-American men join its army. By February 1864, 400 men wanted to enlist. Colonel Andrew H. Clark began signing them up. By June of that year, 1,500 Black soldiers had joined. On June 13, 1864, rules changed. Men no longer needed to be free or have their owner's permission to fight. From then on, anyone who joined the army was set free.
Peter described his successful attempt to join in his book, A Slave's Adventures Toward Freedom: "The next morning about five o'clock I had gone twenty-one miles and had arrived at Richmond. After I had left Richmond I came upon sixteen colored fellows who were on their way to Camp Nelson and of course I did not get lonesome. Just a half hour before sundown we arrived at Camp Nelson and had come forty-one miles in that day.
The officers asked me what I wanted there and I told them that I came there to fight the rebels and that I wanted a gun."
Camp Nelson became a very important place. It was the third largest center for recruiting and training African-American men. More than 10,000 men were recruited there.
Peter Bruner served in western and central Kentucky. He performed garrison duty, which means guarding important places. He left the army in 1866. He went to Winchester, Kentucky, to visit his mother. He had not seen her for 18 years. After that, he moved to Ohio.
Peter Bruner's name is on plaque B-26 at the African American Civil War Memorial in Washington, D.C. This memorial honors African-American soldiers who fought in the Civil War.
Family Life in Ohio
In 1866, Peter moved to Oxford, Ohio. His aunt and uncle, the Brassfields, lived there. On March 10, 1868, he married Frances Proctor. She was the daughter of a free Black farmer. They raised five children together, including four daughters. Peter and his family were long-time members of the Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church (A.M.E. Church) in Oxford.
-
Home where Peter Bruner lived as a young man
-
Peter Bruner's family, in or before 1919
-
Home where Peter Bruner raised his family
Peter was well-liked in his community. In April 1938, he was even appointed "Mayor for the Day" of Oxford, Ohio.
Working at Miami University
Peter Bruner worked as a custodian and messenger at Western Female Seminary. This school later merged with Oxford College and then into Miami University.
He was the first African-American man to work at Miami University.
Peter learned to read and write. In his autobiography, he said he went to school in Oxford. He studied "reading, writing, geography and spelling." He joked that he "had not got it yet," meaning he was still learning.
-
Peter Bruner at Miami University, where he worked.
-
Peter Bruner, the day President Taft visited Miami University
Peter often served as a special greeter at the university. He would wear a top hat and tails for these events. His top hat is now shown at the William H. McGuffey House Museum at Miami University.
Several of his grandchildren and great-grandchildren later graduated from Miami University. These included Thomas Monroe Cheeks, Carrie Cheeks Morgan, Isabel Cheeks Lewis, Thomas Kelly, Margaret Greene McClain, and James Cheeks. Many of his other family members also graduated from different colleges.
Writing His Autobiography
Peter Bruner wrote his autobiography with his daughter, Carrie Burns. The book was called A Slave's Adventures Toward Freedom; Not Fiction, but the True Story of a Struggle. In the introduction, Peter wrote:
In this book I have given the actual experiences of my own life. I thought in putting it in this form it might be of some inspiration to struggling men and women. In this great, free land of ours, every person, no matter how humble or how great seems the handicap, by industry and saving, can reach a position of independence and be of service to mankind.
Interview for the Slave Narrative Collection
In 1936, Peter Bruner was interviewed for the Works Progress Administration Slave Narrative Collection. This project collected stories from formerly enslaved people. The interview did not share as many details as his book. He left out some personal information. He also did not go into deep detail about people or communities. Some historians think this might be due to memory loss or mistakes in writing down the interview. The WPA interview was only a couple of typed pages. Peter's book, however, was 54 pages long.
Death and Legacy
Peter Bruner passed away on April 6, 1938. He is one of the African-American Civil War Veterans buried in Woodside Cemetery in Oxford, Ohio.
Honors and Recognition
- There is an exhibit about Peter Bruner at The Blue Grass Heritage Museum in Winchester, Kentucky.
- He is listed as a Notable Kentucky African American by the University of Kentucky Libraries.
- Peter Bruner's autobiography is included in the "entries in print edition" of the African American National Biography. This important book was published in January 2008. It was a joint project by the W. E. B. Du Bois Institute at Harvard University and Oxford University Press.
- A discussion about his life, "Peter Bruner: An Informal Discussion of His Life and Times," was presented by Blake Vaughan. This event took place at the McGuffey Museum in Oxford, Ohio, on February 24, 2009.
