Minnesota State Soldiers and Sailors Civil War Memorial

Memorial: Minnesota Soldiers and Sailors of the Civil War Memorial

Year Erected: 1903

Located: St. Paul, MN

Near: St. Paul Cathedral

This is the first post discussing local monuments during my travels. I am originally from Minnesota, so you will see significantly more Midwest monuments to start. I find looking at military monuments so interesting because they provide a historical milestone of the community. There was a reason that people decided to dedicate a monument/memorial in the middle of valuable real estate in downtown St. Paul right outside of the cathedral. The reason for this memorial is to commemorate the lives lost by Minnesotans during the U.S. Civil War.

Erected in 1903

The U.S. Civil War took place between the United States of America (North) and the Confederate States of America (South) from April 12th 1861 when shots were fired on Fort Sumter through May 26th 1865 when the final Confederate troops formally surrendered in Texas. This war was fought by soldiers from all 34 states at the time as well as many of the territories where people had settled. Minnesota was no exception.

Minnesota became a state in the union in 1858 and at the start of the conflict a call was made by Governor Alexander Ramsey (The MN county is named after him) for troops to send to the capital. He was actually in D.C. when the first shots were fired on Fort Sumter and it is said that he was the first Governor to promise troops to President Lincoln. Being that Minnesota was a frontier state, there were many guard and militia units already prepared to answer the call and cities across the eastern part of the state formed into the 1st Minnesota Regiment. The regiment drilled at Fort Snelling before going by rail to Washington D.C. in mid 1861. These troops arrived in time for the First Bull Run engagement where they suffered 49 killed, 107 wounded and 34 missing.

1st Minnesotan Regiment

Company A: Pioneer Guard

Company B: Stillwater Guard

Company C: St. Paul Voluntees

Company D: Lincoln Guards

Company E: St. Anthony Zouaves

Company F: Red Wing Volunteers

Company G: Faribault Guards

Company H: Dakota County Volunteers

Company I: Wabasha Volunteers

Company K: Winona Volunteers

Company L: 2nd Minnesota Sharpshooters

Minnesota eventually sent 11 Infantry Regiments, 4 Calvary Units, 4 Artillery Units as well as numerous militia groups that sprouted up during the Dakota War of 1862. Minnesota troops fought as far west as Montana, and in the east in the army of the Potomac. Minnesota regiments fought bravely at many major battles during the war, just to name a few below.

• Battle of First Bull Run

• Battle of Antietem

• Battle of Gettysburgh (2nd Day at Cemetary Ridge)

• Battle of Nashville (Shy's Hill)

• Battle of Birch Coulee

• Battle of Chickamauga

• Battle of Chatanooga (Missionary Ridge)

• Battle of Atlanta Campaign (Resaca)

• Siege of Petersburg

• Shermans March to the Sea

This Monument was put in place in 1903 and on the first side of the monument states that "The statue represents Josias R. King the first man to volunteer in the first Minnesota infantry the first regiment tendered the government for the suppression of the rebellion"

Personal:

It was genuinely a nice day to walk around St. Paul for January, normally it's freezing, and glad I got to get off work early to go see it. I'm excited to show more and more of these memorials as time goes on. Please forgive my poor writing. I shall get better eventually.

-PW