The regiment was composed of African American enlisted men commanded by white officers and was authorized by the Bureau of Colored Troops which was created by the United States War Department on May 22, 1863.
Colored Infantry was organized in Nashville, Tennessee beginning February 29, 1864 for three-year service under the command of Colonel R. K. Crawford.
The regiment was attached to Defenses of Louisville & Nashville Railroad, Department of the Cumberland, to June 1864.
Defenses of Nashville & Northwestern Railroad, Department of the Cumberland, to December 1864.
2nd Brigade, 4th Division, District of East Tennessee, Department of the Cumberland, to July 1865.