Rallying with the Hearts of Lions

When Samuel Cable ran away from his owner in Brunswick, Missouri, he was exuberant. In 1863, he found himself in Massachusetts and decided to enlist in the 55th Massachusetts Infantry (a sister regiment of the famous 54th Massachusetts, notably profiled in the movie Glory). He was 21, eager to fight for the cause of freedom for other enslaved African-Americans, and especially for his wife, whom was still bound into servitude. In a eloquent letter transcribed below, he writes to his wife in the summer of 1863, and tells her why he fights for the Union:

An unidentified African-American Soldier (Library of Congress)

Dear wife i have enlisted in 

the army i am now in the state 

of Massachusetts but before this 

letter reaches you i will be in 

north carolina and though
great in the present national 

difficulties yet i look forward to 

a brighter day when i shall have

the opertunity of seeing you in 

the full enjoyment of freedom 

i would like to no if you are still

in slavery if you are it will not 

be long before we shall have crushed 

the system in that now opreses you
for in the course of three months 

you shall be at liberty. 

great is the outpouring of the 

colored people that is now rally[-]

ing with the hearts of lions against

that very curse that has separated 

you and me yet we shall meet 

again and oh what happy time 

that will be when this ungodly
rebellion shall be put down 

and the curse of our land is 

trampled under our feet i am
a soldier now and i shall use my

utmost endeavor to strike at 

the rebellion that so long has kept
us in chains. write to me just as soon 

as you get this letter tell me if you

are living in the same cabin where 

you use to live. tell eliza i send 

her my best respect, and love

ike and sully likewise i would send 

you some money but i now it is 

impossible for you to git it 

i would like to see little jenkin, now 

but i no it is impossible at present 

so no more but remain your own
afectionate husband until death

                                 Samuel Cabble

An image of the letter, included in Samuel's service record at the National Archives (NARA) is below.

The Letter from Samuel Cable's service file at NARA