By Mikala McCurry Associate Journalist
Eugene Bullard, an adventurous and courageous soldier, broke racial barriers in the military. By being the first and only black pilot to participate in World War I, Bullard aided in the integration of the military worldwide. Although Bullard took this pivotal step in improving race relations in the military around the world, he is rarely heard of in the United States because he never flew in the U.S.
Eugene Bullard was born in Columbus, Georgia in October of 1895. He was born to former slaves and lived a very harsh life due to racial tensions. After witnessing his father’s near death experience from almost being lynched, Bullard knew that he wouldn’t survive in Georgia. At age 11, Bullard ran away from home and joined a group of gypsies in Atlanta. He learned from this group that racial tensions were not nearly as high in Great Britain. He decided at that moment that he would find a way to leave the United States.
At age 12, Eugene Bullard traveled to Aberdeen, Scotland by stowing away on a German merchant ship. During his time in Scotland, he joined a fight ring and performed as a prize fighter. His team traveled to Paris, France for a fight, and Bullard decided to make Paris his permanent home.
Bullard always had a passion to serve his country, so he joined the French army at age 19. He underwent intensive training, which was easier for him due to his experience in fighting. After fighting on the front line for a few years and receiving major injuries, Bullard was no longer fit for ground combat.
After receiving the news that the French army would no longer allow Bullard to perform on the front-line, a friend of Bullard’s bet money that Bullard could not become a pilot in the military. Bullard accepted the challenge, and applied to the French Flying Corp. To his friend’s surprise, Bullard was accepted into the French Flying Corp on May 5, 1917. He became the first black pilot in the world, and the only black pilot to partake in World War I.
Not only did Bullard break a racial barrier, he also proved himself to be a superior pilot. During his time in the French Flying Corp, Bullard flew on 20 missions and shot down 2 enemy planes. Bullard attempted to transfer to the United States Air Force after World War I, but his transfer request was ignored. After getting into a scuffle with a French Lieutenant, Bullard was transferred back to his original army unit. He performed non-combat jobs until he was discharged in October of 1919.
Although Eugene Bullard was no longer required to be in France, he decided to stay. He opened a nightclub in Paris and had the opportunity to meet world-renowned individuals such as F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway. He managed this nightclub until he was called to serve again.
In the late 1930s, a French resistance movement requested Bullard’s services. He joined the movement against Germany and served as a spy to gain information from the Germans. Believing that a black man wasn’t smart enough to know more than one language, the Germans never suspected that Bullard spoke fluent German; he was able to gain valuable information by simply being around German soldiers.
Eugene Bullard returned to the United States after France was conquered by Nazi Germany. He settled in New York where he lived out the rest of his life as an unknown elevator operator until his death in October of 1961.
Although Bullard was nameless in the U.S., he was considered a hero in France. The French president ordained Bullard as a knight of the French Legion of Honor in 1959, which is the highest ranking order in French society. He was also awarded the Croix de Guerre.
77 years after Bullard’s monumental accomplishment and request to transfer to his home country, he was finally recognized by the U.S. military; he was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the US Air Force in August 1994.
All rights reserved, Gumptown Magazine. Copyright 2017.
