Letter from Fred L. Warner, Chairman of the Library Building Committee, to Isaac N. Tompkins, Library Board Secretary, Redwood Falls Public Library, Redwood Falls, Minnesota, authorizing payment to contractor W.B. Rutan for six days labor on library grounds, $2.00.
Letter from Fred L. Warner, chairman of the building committee, to Isaac N. Tompkins, secretary of the library board, authorizing payment to W.T. Wilcox, $6.00, for use of a team grading the grounds for the new library in Redwood Falls, Minnesota.
Letter from Fred L. Warner, chairman on the grounds, to Isaac N. Tompkins, secretary of the library board, authorizing payment to Franz Seifert for labor cutting trees on new library grounds, $5.40, Redwood Falls Public Library, Redwood Falls, Minnesota.
Letter from Fred L. Warner, chairman of the building committee, to Isaac N. Tompkins, secretary of the library board, Redwood Falls Public Library, Redwood Falls, Minnesota, authorizing payment to Levi Owen for labor cutting trees on new library grounds, $4.60.
Letter from the Redwood Falls Public Library board, Redwood Falls, Minnesota, to Fred L. Warner, chairman of the library building committee, regarding payments made for express (.40), to Seifert for trimming trees (1.00), for postage and telephone (2.15).
Letter from Fred L. Warner, chairman of the building committee, to Isaac N. Tompkins, secretary of the library board, authorizing payment to Nellie Stevens for scrubbing and cleaning windows on the new library building, Redwood Falls Public Library, Redwood Falls, Minnesota, in the amount of $7.40.
The community of St. Peter was initially, and for a very brief time, known as Rock Bend, a name taken because of the presence of a sharp bend in the course of the Minnesota River on the east side of the settlement. The name was used probably from late in 1853 until sometime in 1854. The envelope shown here, addressed to Charles E. Flandrau (1828-1903), who was living in the area at the time, is one of only a few objects that survived with the name "Rock Bend" on it. Flandrau, himself, became a very prominent resident of the State of Minnesota. Among many other duties during his lifetime, he commanded the defenders of New Ulm in August of 1862 and later served on the Minnesota Supreme Court.
This letter, dated August 26, 1862, describes the fighting between settlers and Dakota men who participated in a conflict in a southern Minnesota community, most likely in New Ulm. Wheelock also describes his experiences as a member of a burial party that ventured out into the surrounding countryside. Many dead settlers were found, as well as a group of thirteen settlers who had been hiding for three days. Wheelock states his intention to leave Minnesota if the fighting does not stop soon and if he is not able to feel that he is safe in his home.
Lieutenant Thomas van Etten wrote to his schoolmate, William H. Seward of Chester, New Jersey, in this 1862 letter from Fort Ridgely, near the western end of Nicollet County. He wrote about his military duties and experiences and about people he knew in New Jersey. Lt. van Etten participated in the Battle of Birch Coulee and described the battle in the letter. William H. Seward was a son of President Lincoln's Secretary of State, William H. Seward, Sr.
Lieutenant Thomas van Etten wrote to his schoolmate, William H. Seward of Chester, New Jersey, in this 1863 letter from St. Peter, Minnesota. Van Etten was stationed at Fort Ridgely, near the western end of Nicollet County, and was serving as the fort's quartermaster. He wrote about his military duties and experiences and about people he knew in New Jersey. William H. Seward was a son of President Lincoln's Secretary of State, William H. Seward, Sr.
The Commissary Officer of the First Regiment of the Minnesota Mounted Rangers, First Lieutenant Edward D. Cobb, wrote this note to Captain Eugene St. Julien Cox, Captain of Company E of the Rangers, from Fort Snelling on March 21, 1863, in response to a request for supplies from Cox. Captain Cox had requested a number of items, including horses, tents, jackets, socks, boots, haversacks, canteens, axes, kettles, spades, mess pans, hatchets, and picks. Cobb informed Cox that some of the items were available, but that some items could not be supplied at once. He also said that Cox was to take the lame horses from his company to Fort Ridgely, where they would be inspected and certified as lame. Cox could then submit a requistion for additional horses.
This document, dated May 11th, was sent to Eugene St. Julien Cox of St. Peter, who was the Captain of Company E of the First Mounted Rangers. The document addressed Cox as a major, but various records indicate that his highest rank was that of captain. Cox was ordered to include Sibley County in the sub-district for which he was responsible. He was also informed that a new squad had been organized in New Ulm, and that ""trappers report Indians plenty west of here."" The letter was sent from Mankato by Second Lieutenant and Adjutant George A. Clarke. The document appears to have an 1865 date, but Cox served from December 10, 1862, until November 11, 1863, and Clarke served from December 20, 1861, until December 20, 1864. It therefore appears that the document was sent in 1863.
A letter from Henry H. Sibley, St. Paul, Minnesota, to Charles Benson, President of the Young Men's Library Association (YMLA), regarding his upcoming speaking engagement in Winona, Minnesota. Sibley's lecture on the "Early Times of Minnesota" took place on the last day in February in 1867 and was sponsored by the YMLA.
A hand written letter from Wendell Phillips to the Young Men's Library Association, dated March 22, stating he will not be able to fulfill his speaking engagement in Winona, Minnesota scheduled for April 19, 1867. Phillips was supposed to appear as a part of the Young Men's Library Association Course of Lectures for 1867.