Cato Mead

Cato Mead (c.1761—1846; also spelled Meed) is the only known Black Patriot (American Revolutionary War veteran) buried west of the Mississippi River. Mead is buried in or near Montrose Cemetery in Montrose, Iowa.

Cato Mead
Cato Mead cemetery marker to an unknown grave in Montrose Cemetery
Born1762 or 1764
Norwich, Connecticut?
DiedApril 25, 1846 (aged 80-82)
Montrose, Iowa
Resting placeIn or near Montrose Cemetery, Montrose, Iowa
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)soldier, farmer, slave?
Known forBeing the only known African American, Patriot American Revolutionary War veteran buried west of the Mississippi River
Military career
Allegiance United States
Service/branch United States Army Continental Army
Years of service1776 or 1777 - ?
RankPrivate
UnitCaptain John McGregor's Company, 4th Connecticut Regiment
Battles/warsAmerican Revolutionary War

According to historian Barbara MacLeish, who is researching a book on Cato Mead, he joined the 4th Connecticut Regiment of the Continental Army commanded by Colonel John Durkee of Norwich, Connecticut in 1776 or 1777. Other sources reveal that Mead was born in 1762 and that he enlisted as private on 1 March 1778 for a one-year enlistment serving in Captain John McGregor's Company.[1] It is not entirely clear if he was a former slave. He served at Valley Forge from December 1777 through June 1778, where he contracted smallpox, spending two months in a Pennsylvania hospital.[2] Early military records show Mead received solder's pay of $10.04 for service his in the Continental Army in July 1783.[3] It is not known why he migrated to Iowa. While the exact grave location of Cato Mead is unknown, a marker stands at the Montrose Cemetery.

Sources
  • Abigail Adams Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution. Revolutionary War soldiers and patriots buried in Iowa. 1978.
  • Pierce's Register: Register of the Certificates Issued by John Pierce, Esquire, Paymaster General and Commissioner of Army Accounts for the United States, to Officers and Soldiers of the Continental Army Under Act of July 4, 1783, Issue 2 Volume 9, Issue 988 of Document, United States 63d Cong., 3d sess., 1915.

References
  1. 'Abigail Adams Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution. Revolutionary War soldiers and patriots buried in Iowa. 1978, p. 81
  2. Des Moines Register, "ZOOM". Archived from the original on 2008-07-25. Retrieved 2008-06-20.
  3. Pierce's Register: Register of the Certificates Issued by John Pierce, Esquire, Paymaster General and Commissioner of Army Accounts for the United States, to Officers and Soldiers of the Continental Army Under Act of July 4, 1783, Issue 2 Volume 9, Issue 988 of Document, United States 63d Cong., 3d sess. Genealogical Publishing Company, 1915, p. 348
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