A local history group came a step closer to honoring a national hero last week.</p><p>The Los Banos Buffalo Soldiers started a campaign in April 2009 to posthumously promote Col. Charles Young to brigadier general, which would make him the nation's first black general.</p><p>"Many believe he was unjustly treated and not promoted due to his race and there is documentation to support it," said David Ofwono, president and captain of the local group, in an email.</p><p>Last week, with the assistance of the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights and the National Veterans Coalition, the Los Banos Buffalo Soldiers earned a victory when the Kentucky House of Representatives adopted House Resolution 21, a resolution to urge the U.S. Congress to promote the Kentucky native.</p><p>"It is a big deal, because it makes it one step closer to being official," said Ofwono.</p><p>The Army's black regiment rode more than 320 miles from the Presidio to Sequoia and Yosemite national parks, which until 1914 were under Army management. The soldiers patrolled the backcountry, built roads and trails, fought fires and undertook other work later assigned to park rangers.</p><p>Young was the third black graduate of West Point, the first black superintendent of a national park and was the highest ranking black officer at the time of his death. </p><p>A typical route taken by the soldiers around the turn of the century started from the Presidio of San Francisco and passed through Los Banos as the Buffalo Soldiers made their way to either Yosemite or Sequoia national park.</p><p>"[Young] did indeed pass through Los Banos in 1902," Ofwono said. "He was a captain at the time and was in command of the Buffalo Soldiers who were assigned to the national parks.</p><p>"He had three white officers under his command as well."</p><p>In a letter to the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights, Speaker of the Kentucky House of Representatives Gregory Stumbo and Rep. Leslie Combs said they hoped the resolution would have an impression on Congress.</p><p>"Col. Young has an impressive military r&#233;sum&#233; and served his country with great distinction," the letter stated.</p><p>A bill introduced by Sen. Diane Feinstein in March would provide for a study to identify properties to be added to the National Register of Historic Places, or designated as a national historic landmarks. Ofwono and others traveled to Washington in February to advocate for both causes.</p><p>The Los Banos Buffalo Soldiers Association is a nonprofit organization dedicated to educating the public and youth regarding Buffalo Soldier history and the contributions of American veterans through speaking engagements, field trips and activities.</p><p>Enterprise reporter Thaddeus Miller can be reached at (209) 388-6562 or by email at tmiller@</p><p>losbanosenterprise.com.