Born a Slave, Henry Mack Served in Union Army and Lived to Be 107-- Part 1

From the January 30, 2021, Minneapolis Star-Tribune "Former slave, Civil War vet lived final decades in Minneapolis" by Curt Brown.

The picture shows him at the age of  104 in 1941.  Five Civil War veterans were honored at the Third Annual Good Will dinner at Post 166 Jewish War Veterans.  He is bottom row, right.

Grave No. 384 in Section A-3 commemorates one of the most remarkable lives among the 240,000 military and family members buried  at Fort Snelling National Cemetery.

This is the grave of Henry Mack, an escaped slave, Civil War veteran who lived to be 107.  He died in 1945 and was buried in the area where early black veterans were interred.

Mack was born into Alabama slavery sometime between  1836 and 1838 according to pension records.  Newspapers later settled on 1837 for his birth year.

"I only know my birthday being July 4th as having been told by my parents and master," Mack said in a 1912 interview.  "He concluded:  "I am 75 years old and past."

At age 100 in 1937, he was described as being in great shape for a man of his age.  The Minneapolis Star-Journal reported in 1941 that Mack, at 104, was "trim, alert, conversational," a busy man" with little time for reminiscing" given his schedule as a "patriotic instructor" and one of the last members of the Civil War veterans group, the Grand Army of the Republic.

--Old Secesh