Cathy Williams: From Slave to Buffalo Soldier (Great novels and memoirs of World War I) [Hardcover]

Phillip Thomas Tucker (Author)

Book Description

Series: Great novels and memoirs of World War I | Publication Date: January 1, 2002

Few people today, black or white, know about the incredible life of Cathy Williams. From her beginnings as a slave in Independence, Missouri, to her enlistment with Company A, 38th US Infantry, in November, 1866, the story of this remarkable woman deserves to finally be told. By disguising herself as a man and assuming the name William Cathay, Williams became a 'buffalo soldier', serving in one of the six black units formed following the Civil War. Her story tells us much about prevailing attitudes toward both race and gender in post-Civil War America.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The prize-winning author of The Confederacy's Fighting Chaplain here tells the remarkable tale of Pvt. William Cathay of Company A, 38th U.S. Infantry, who in fact was a big-boned, 5' 7" black woman named Cathy Williams. Tracing Williams through often-spotty records from her birth as a slave near Independence, MO, to her final days as a businesswoman in Trinidad, CO, Tucker extends the narrative to include broad perspectives, sweeping from a West African background to the expanse of the post-Civil War West. He focuses on Williams's service from 1866 to 1868 with the famed Buffalo Soldiers as they patrolled the historic 900-mile Santa Fe Trail. Tucker casts Williams as an inspirational champion against the odds in a feminine Horatio Alger story, brimming with testaments to personal initiative, desire to succeed, strength, and resiliency. He also touts the Buffalo Soldiers' roles as guardians of the frontier on the vanguard of Western development. A unique story of gender and race, time and place, Tucker's work is a recommended read that reaches across categories, from American, African American, and military history to Western and women's history. Thomas J. Davis, Arizona State Univ., Tempe

Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Language Notes

Text: English, German (translation)

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 258 pages
• Publisher: Stackpole Books; 1 edition (January 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811703401
• ISBN-13: 978-0811703406
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #482,803 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fact or Folklore?, May 2, 2003

By 

The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers (RAWSISTAZ.com and BlackBookReviews.net) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cathy Williams: From Slave to Buffalo Soldier (Great novels and memoirs of World War I) (Hardcover)

There is greater awareness because of the magnitude of this book and
its message. And I'll wager that there are few Americans today, Black
or White, who know about the incredible life of Cathy Williams. This
remarkable story now has a voice.

Once a slave in Independence, Missouri, Cathy Williams lived and
worked in the 'big house' as a servant to its mistress. And though
being a house servant carried greater privilege and status than
that of the field hand, Cathy began to resent the menial tasks she
performed as much as she resented her masters.

After the death of her owner, and having the good fortune of not
being sold to pay debts, Cathy realized that the fundamental premise
of slavery was a lie and this life was not her chosen destiny. So in
November 1866 she disguised herself as a man, used the name William
Cathay, and enlisted in Company A, 38th U.S. Infantry and became a
Buffalo Soldier. As the first and only African American woman to
serve in one of the six black units formed following the Civil War.
Interestingly enough, Williams was able to become a member of the
Army without detection of her sex, and it was imperative that she
keep her true identity unknown. Her adventures took her from Missouri
to the Mexican border where she served for nearly two years. After
her military career Cathy did not envision returning to her roots in
Missouri, plus her heart was now in the West. So she married and
created a life for herself on the Western frontier, as a business-
woman in Trinidad, CO.

There is much contention surrounding the validity of Cathy's story.
Historians claim Tucker's only source about Williams' alleged service
as a Buffalo soldier is based on a newspaper account published in
1876 and that there are no official records in existence to
authenticate her Civil War service. Some believe it was easy for
Williams to get discharge certificates from the 'real' William
Cathay and pass it off as her own. And that 'Far too many of the
speculations about Williams are colored by a 21st century
"politically correct" perspective'.

Yet others offer a more positive analogy, "Phillip Thomas Tucker the
prize-winning author of The Confederacy's Fighting Chaplain tells
this remarkable tale of Pvt. William Cathay of Company A, 38th U.S.
Infantry, who in fact was a big-boned, 5' 7" black woman named Cathy
Williams. This is a unique story of gender and race, time and place.

Tucker's work is a recommended read that reaches across categories,
from American, African American, and military history to Western and
women's history." -- Thomas J. Davis, Arizona State Univ.

Regardless of the controversy, this was a fascinating story presented
more in the vein of a documentary than a novel and it allows readers
to experience a non-traditional, non-typical life for a 'Colored'
woman in the 1800's. Tucker uses this storyline to captivate and
educate, and he introduces a believable character who unknowingly and
unintentionally charted a course for the role of today's women in all
branches of the military. This story vividly brings to life another
chapter of our colorful history.

Reviewed by aNN Brown
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

13 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars A Seriously Flawed Book!, April 5, 2002

By 

Pennsylvania Cajun (Shippensburg, PA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cathy Williams: From Slave to Buffalo Soldier (Great novels and memoirs of World War I) (Hardcover)

This is a book that should, at best, have been an article in a scholarly journal or popular magazine. The great majority of the text is what politely might be termed "fluff." There is so little actually known about the subject of the book that the author has filled his pages with generalities and speculations to lengthen to story. The first three chapters deal with Cathy Williams' supposed service with the 8th Indiana Infantry Regiment, which is based exclusively on a newspaper account published in 1876. Tucker admits "no official record existed of her Civil War service" yet takes that article at face value and attempts to find support for it. One aspect of the tale should serve to show how weak it is. Williams claimed to have been with the regiment during the Red River Campaign in 1864. This was patently impossible because, at that time, the unit was home on veteran furlough. Tucker apparently did not research this or chose to ignore the fact since it contradicts Williams' tale.

Again, there is no proof that the person calling herself "Cathy Williams" for the newspaper story had, in fact, disguised herself as a man and served as "William Cathay" in the 38th U. S. Infantry after the Civil War. The woman whose tale was published might easily have gotten the discharge certificate from the real William Cathay and then claimed it as her own. Tucker's six chapters on the service of William Cathay are also almost exclusively "fluff." They are replete with "probablys" and "might haves" since not one scintilla of evidence exists to describe Williams' activities if she actually had been in the 38th U. S. Infantry. Far too many of these speculations about Williams' feelings and thoughts are colored by a 21st century "politically correct" perspective.

Finally, in talking about a doctor who examined Williams and found her in good health, Tucker writes: "It is possible that he had not served in the Civil War or in any Indian War like Cathy Williams, and felt that he was less of a man upon meeting a female veteran of two wars." This and other comments that follow reek of "politically correct" psychobabble and impugn the reputation of a man about whom Tucker knows nothing. He too easily points a finger at "racism" and "sexism" as the reasons for denying Williams' pension application, when the truth is that there simply was no evidence to support her claim. Oddly, Tucker fails to cite Williams' pension file found in the National Archives even though it is available to any researcher. His only source is a journal article about Williams' alleged service as a Buffalo soldier.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Review For Cathy Williams Book, July 19, 2002

By 

AJ Campbell, MD (South Padre Island,, Texas United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cathy Williams: From Slave to Buffalo Soldier (Great novels and memoirs of World War I) (Hardcover)

I just finished this wonderful book....enjoyed it very much..One can see all the truly great research that went into this book...This Missouri Author Phillip Tucker has written about 25 Civil War Books..All have best good sellers...I would recommend everyone reading his books....Dr. AJ & Janet Canpbell