Former slave, Civil War vet lived final decades in Minneapolis January 30, 2021 1:36pm Text size Copy shortlink:
Grave No. 384 in Section A-3 commemorates one of the more remarkable lives among the 240,000 military people and family members buried at Fort Snelling National Cemetery.
Henry Mack, an escaped slave and Civil War soldier who lived to 107, was buried there in 1945 near the fence running along 34th Avenue in south Minneapolis, known as an area where early Black veterans were laid to rest.
Mack was born into Alabama slavery sometime between 1836 and 1838, according to pension records, Civil War logs and affidavits. Newspapers later settled on 1837 as his birth year.