https://veteranstories.kennesaw.edu/files/original/4e9e1d7e1bff6c5a4e64c9c588525984.jpg 8a8f92e0eb43558b7657f2eb2fb69eca Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Cropped portrait of Eugene Bullard Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource French Aeronautique Militaire Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Wikimedia Commons Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1914-1918 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain https://veteranstories.kennesaw.edu/files/original/2c007522fb6e06aba9bf54c3f06b7bd0.jpg 912d76188062f5c6e3270d6df2fd5c6f Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Eugene Bullard in his Legionnaire uniform Description An account of the resource ID: A black and white portrait of a Black man wearing a leather jacket and leather cap with a medal on his chest. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource U.S. Air Force Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Wikimedia Commons Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource ca. 1914-1917 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain https://veteranstories.kennesaw.edu/files/original/e8708ee7a3c7607deb89683fd45c595d.jpg 98cad25b149dac3f7900445cad3fcc7b Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Portrait of Eugene Bullard Description An account of the resource Eugene Bullard was the first African American military pilot to fly in combat and the only African American pilot to fly during WWI. Ironically he never flew for the United States, but rather for the Aéronautique Militaire in France. ID: A Black man wearing a high-neck military uniform bedecked with medals, standing with his arms crossed over his chest. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Aeronautique Militaire Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived National Air and Space Museum Archives, Smithsonian Institution, https://airandspace.si.edu/multimedia-gallery/si-91-6283640jpg Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource ca. 1918 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain https://veteranstories.kennesaw.edu/files/original/15a36f8fe1687a1bdb748144cb6cfdbe.jpg a2fdeb68f33e048669c261a924d929d2 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Eugene Bullard with his Rhesus Monkey, Jimmy. Description An account of the resource Photo taken between August 27, 1917 and September 13, 1917, where Bullard served, in Escadrille Spad 93, with the Lafayette Flying Corps in France. According to the Smithsonian, Bullard was said to have had an insignia on his Spad 7 C.1 that portrayed a heart with a dagger running through it and the slogan “All Blood Runs Red.” ID: Black and white photograph of a Black man wearing a coat and boots resting his arm on the body of small airplane with a furrty monkey sitting on hi sarm. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource French Aeronautique Militaire/U.S. Air Force Photo Montage Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Smithsonian Air and Space Museum Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource August 27, 1917 - September 13, 1917 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain https://veteranstories.kennesaw.edu/files/original/e22933c58ab51e62620f600c48db0bc6.jpg 97be1dea07ae4892a1e2f429e45fb875 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Bronze sculpture of Eugene Jacques Bullard, donated to the National Air and Space Museum in 1992 by the McDonnell Douglas Corporation. Artist: Eddie Dixon. Description An account of the resource ID: Bronze bust of an African American man wearing a leather cap and scarf Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Eddie Dixon Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1992 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource All Rights Reserved https://veteranstories.kennesaw.edu/files/original/c191071e66ba8aef1f400f8264c6fca8.jpg 90f6913adeb9859e88677fac82db0534 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource :Eugene Bullard exhibit in the Early Years Gallery at the National Museum of the United States Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo) , Dayton Ohio Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource U.S. Air Force Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Wikimedia Commons Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource ca. 1990s Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain https://veteranstories.kennesaw.edu/files/original/3f04b26530f1dc283680ad5c4d1b43ea.jpg 0eeadb8f42731345892a5795d34c0952 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Eugene Bullard in France with a group of soldiers Description An account of the resource ID: Two rows of soldiers in uniform stand in front of a white tent. Eugene Bullard is fourth from the right in the back, the only Black man in the group. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource French government Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Wikimedia Commons Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource ca. 1914 - 1918 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain https://veteranstories.kennesaw.edu/files/original/5b87a8046d04bb1f07409d71bfad793f.jpg 9a19c053d2046c485fd9d521d5ca73ce Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Eugene Jacques Bullard, in a historic photo provided by the U.S. Air Force. Description An account of the resource ID: Two rows of men in French Legionaiires uniforms stand. Bullard is the only Black man in the group, standing at the far left of the back row, looking over his right shoulder. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource U.S. Airforce Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Wikimedia Commons Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource ca. 1914 - 1918 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain https://veteranstories.kennesaw.edu/files/original/69bf431413c48f832bea99beb1029b98.jpg c048fe082fad3a1642e26e59e0d682d0 Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Eugene Bullard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Paris Description An account of the resource Bullard was invited to Paris in 1954 to be one of three men chosen to rekindle the everlasting flame at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier under the Arc de Triomphe. According to the website The Unknown Soldier At The Base Of The Arc De Triomphe: "At the base of the Arch de Triomphe stands a torch. Every evening at 6:30 P.M. it is rekindled, and veterans lay wreaths decorated with red, white and blue near its flickering flame. It burns in the darkness to recall the sacrifice of an unknown French soldier who gave his life during World War I." ID: A Black man wearing a coat and glasses leans over a large pile of flowers toward a gas flame beside a white man with a black cap and white mustache. Behind the two men a crowd looks on. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource French Government Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived U.S. Air Force, Wikimedia Commons Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource January 1, 1954 Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Public Domain Curatescape Story A narrative body of text being sent to Curatescape mobile applications or being displayed using Curatescape themes. Please use relevant Dublin Core fields for Title, Creator, and other key elements as needed. Subtitle A subtitle or alternate title for the entry. Military Pilot Lede A brief introductory section that is intended to entice the reader to read the full entry. "Tout le sang qui coule rouge." ~Eugene Bullard's pilot's motto, meaning "All Blood is Red," 1914-1917 Story The primary full-text for the entry. Eugene Bullard was born in Columbus, Georgia, on October 9, 1895. His parents, William and Josephine, had formerly been enslaved. At the age of 11, he ran away from home, seeking a better life. This led him to stow away on the Marta Russ, a ship bound for Germany, in 1912. Bullard spent his early youth in Scottland and England performing as a member of an Afrian American entertainment troupe that made use of popular stereotypes. A talented boxer, he traveled to France in 1913 and was impressed by French democracy, writing later that "it influenced the minds of both black and white Americans there and helped us all act like brothers." Bullard enlisted in the French Foreign Legion in 1914, shortly after the start of World War I. He fought in the Battle of Verdun as a part of the 170th Infantry Regiment and decided to enlist in the French flying service while recuperating from a wound he sustained in battle. In November 1916, he became a part of the Aeronautique Militaire. After completing his training at Tours, he received in wings in May 1917 and served with Excadrille Spas 93 and 85. He claimed two aerial victories and became known for flying with his pet Rhesus monkey, Jimmy. Racial prejudice affected Bullard's life as the world became more interconnnected. When the United States joined World War I in 1917, Bullard tried to join the U.S. Air Service but was rejected. He did not remain with the Aeronautique Militaire for the duration of the war either due to a reported confrontation with a French officer. He finished the war as a member of the 170th Infantry Regiment. In the inerwar years, Bullard married and raised two daughters in Paris. On the eve of World War II, Bullard became involved in espionage against French supporters of the Nazi regime, leveraging his position as a night club entertainer in Paris's burgeoning jazz scene and his ability to speak French, German, and English. He joined the 51st Infantry Regiment in France when the war broke out, but fled to the United States, fearing capture by the Nazis. Back in the United States, Bullard worked as a security guard and longshoreman, living in Harlem in New York City. He became an advocate for civil rights but grew dissillusioned with progress in the United States after several violent incidents including being beaten by police at a Paul Robeson concert in Peekskill, New York in 1949. In the 1950s, Bullard split his time between France, where he was honored for his wartime service with 14 medals and made a knight of the Legion of Honor, and the United States, where he worked odd jobs including as a translator for jazz trumpeter Louis Armstrong and an an elevator operator at Rockefeller Center. He died in New York in 1961 and was buried with military honors in the French War Veterans' section of the Flushing Cemetery, in Queens. It was not until more than thirty years later that he was posthumously commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Air Force. He was also recognized as one of the inaugural membes of the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame. In 1992, a bronze portrait of Bullard, created by Black sculptor Eddie Dixon was added to the National Air and Space Museum, donated by the McDonnell Douglas Corporation to honor his memory. Sponsor The name of a person or organization that has sponsored the research for this specific entry. Use HTML to create an active link. Kennesaw State University Department of Museums, Archives, and Rare Books Factoid One or more facts or pieces of information related to the entry, often presented as a list. Examples include architectural metadata, preservation status, FAQs, pieces of trivia, etc. Use HTML to create bullet lists and headings. 1895 - 1961 Related Resources The name of or link to a related resource, often used for citation information. https://airandspace.si.edu/stories/editorial/eugene-j-bullard Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Eugene Bullard Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Museum of History and Holocaust Education Subject The topic of the resource World War I 170th French Infantry Regiment 1914-1918 51st Regiment d'infanterie African American Aviation Black Croix de Guerre Foreign Legion French Army U.S. Air Force World War I