Cathay Williams
U.S. Army
Indian Wars

Cathay Williams
U.S. Army
Indian Wars

During the Civil War, Cathay Williams lived enslaved at a plantation near Jefferson City, Missouri. The Union Army camp occupied the city in 1861, captured Cathay and other enslaved people and forced them as “contraband” to serve in support roles. Cathay found herself forced to cook for the Union soldiers. She described the harrowing experience, “the officer… carried us off. I did not want to go. He wanted me to cook for the officers, but I had always been a house girl and did not know how to cook.” Cathay traveled all over the country with the Union Infantry. After the end of the Civil War in 1865, Cathay concealed her sex, passed initial medical examinations, and enlisted in the U.S. Army under the false name, “William Cathay” for a three-year enlistment in the 38th U.S. Infantry Regiment. Cathay’s health began to decline and after frequent hospitalizations, an Army doctor discovered her sex and notified her superiors. The Army honorably discharged Cathay in 1868, but she remained undeterred and sought to continue her military service. She served amongst the famous all-Black regiment, the Buffalo Soldiers, fighting on the frontier. Later in life, Cathay applied for disability pension but was denied, despite a precedent for providing pensions to female soldiers. Cathay Williams is considered the first African American woman to enlist in the U.S. Army as well as the only female soldier to serve during the Indian Wars.