Editing Octavius Catto (section)

== Civil War Activism ==

The Civil War transformed Catto's activism from local educational work to national significance. When the Union authorized the enlistment of African American soldiers in 1863, Catto threw himself into recruiting efforts, helping to fill the regiments that trained at [[Camp William Penn]]. He organized a company of emergency troops when Confederate forces threatened Pennsylvania during the Gettysburg campaign in 1863, though the unit was not accepted for service because Governor Andrew Curtin refused to allow Black troops in the Pennsylvania militia. The experience deepened Catto's understanding that military service alone would not guarantee equality—legal and political action would be necessary.<ref name="taylor">{{cite book |last=Taylor |first=Frank H. |title=Philadelphia in the Civil War, 1861-1865 |year=1913 |publisher=Published by the City |location=Philadelphia}}</ref>

Throughout the war, Catto combined his educational duties with broader activism. He helped organize the National Equal Rights League, which advocated for Black suffrage and civil rights. He corresponded with Frederick Douglass and other national leaders, positioning himself as part of a network of Black activists who sought to use the war's transformative potential to advance racial equality. His skill as a speaker—inherited, perhaps, from his minister father—made him effective at public meetings and fundraising events. By war's end, Catto had emerged as one of the most prominent young Black leaders in the North, prepared to lead the struggle for civil rights in the Reconstruction era.<ref name="biddle"/>