RENO, Nev. (AP) — A runaway slave who joined the Union Army during the Civil War and lost a leg after being wounded in battle finally received recognition Sunday, nearly 100 years after he died in Nevada.
Nevada historians say they decided to hold a military funeral for Pvt. Scott Carnal of the 1st Kansas Colored Infantry because it's unlikely he received any recognition after his 1917 death in Dayton, about 40 miles south of Reno.
He was long forgotten until researchers discovered he belonged to the United States Colored Troops and was severely wounded in the 1863 Battle of Honey Springs in what is now Oklahoma.
The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War and the Historical Society of Dayton Valley helped organize the tribute to him at the Dayton cemetery.
