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Kentucky native posthumously made honorary brigadier general

Posted at 9:18 AM, Feb 12, 2020
and last updated 2020-02-12 09:18:52-05

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - A Kentucky native who attended the U.S. Military Academy and achieved the rank of colonel has been promoted posthumously to the honorary rank of brigadier general by Gov. Andy Beshear.

Charles Young was born in Mays Lick, Kentucky, in 1864 to enslaved parents. Beshear's office said in a news release Young graduated from high school in Ohio, where his parents escaped slavery. As an Army officer, Young served in assignments ranging from Haiti and Liberia to Mexico and Nigeria.

The event was held in the Capitol Rotunda on Tuesday as part of the Legislative Black History Month Celebration.