LibGuides: Civil War Military Units from Minnesota: 9th Minnesota

9th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry

9th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry
The 9th Regiment was created in the summer and fall of 1862, and like other units formed at that time, it spent much of its early career on the frontier. In November 1863 the 9th was sent to Missouri and for several months it guarded railroads against Confederate guerrillas. In May of 1864 the regiment was reposted to St. Louis and then sent to Memphis, TN. There they joined an expedition against Confederate forces in northern Mississippi. This Union force, under the command of General Samuel Sturgis, was decisively defeated by the army of Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest at the battle of Brice's Crossroads (June 10, 1864). Although the 9th Minnesota fought well in the battle and subsequent retreat, 233 men of the regiment were captured. Many of these men would later die in the notorious Confederate prison camp at Andersonville, Georgia. A month later the 9th helped defeat Forrest's command at the battle of Tupelo, although the regiment's commander, Col. Alexander Wilkin, was killed in this fight. After operations in Arkansas and Missouri, the 9th took part in the Battle of Nashville, fighting alongside other Minnesota regiments. The regiment was also part of the operations around Mobile, Alabama in early 1865. Following the end of the war, the 9th Minnesota spent several months on occupation duty in Alabama before returning to Minnesota where they were discharged in August, 1865.

9th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry
MNopedia article.
Andersonville Prison-Civil War
A guide listing the resources available at the MNHS library.
Wilkin, Alexander (1819–1864)
MNopedia article.

One Drop in a Sea of Blue: The Liberators of the Ninth Minnesota, by John B. Lundstrom
St. Paul, MN: Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2012.
MNHS call number: Reading Room E515.5 9th .L86 2012, also available for purchase.

"Narrative of the Ninth Regiment" by Hon. C. F. MacDonald.
In Minnesota in the Civil and Indian Wars, Vol. I, p. 416-438.
Minnesota Historical Society Press: St. Paul, 2005.
MNHS call number: Reading Room, E515 .M66 2005

William R. Lovell Reminiscence, 1937, 1945.
Handwritten reminiscence detailing his service from enlistment (August 1862) through discharge (August 1865), including Dakota Conflict duty at Glencoe, Forest City, Acton, and Hutchinson; skirmishes with the Dakota near Acton and Hutchinson; and Civil War duty in the South, particularly several months as a prisoner in Andersonville. Also a photocopy of Lovell’s 1945 obituary. Lovell was a resident of Sherburne County.
MNHS call number: See the finding aid in the library (M582: Lovell, William R).

Letters of A. P. Davies 1864, 1865.
Letters from Davies, Ninth Minnesota Regiment, Company E, to his wife and children, describing his return to duty following a furlough (Feb. 29, 1864), hospitalization (Oct. 29, 1864), and surrendering Confederate soldiers (Jan. 30, 1865).
MHNS call number: See the finding aid in the library (P939: Davies, A. P.).

Aaron Hervey Kerr Papers, 1864-1889.
Civil War field diary and account book (Jan.-July 1865) kept by Kerr as chaplain of the 9th Minnesota Volunteer Infantry, describing the regiment’s movements and activities, its participation (March-April) in the siege of Spanish Fort, Alabama, and general wartime news and opinions.
MNHS call number: See the finding aid in the library (P1289).

Pehr Carlson and Family Papers, 1862-1904.

Civil War documents and diary (1865, 1904), and obituary (ca.1903) of an early resident of East Union (Carver County), Minnesota. Carlson came to the United States in 1854, serving in Company H, 9th Minnesota Infantry Regiment, 1862-1865. Carlson’s Civil War correspondence (in Swedish) describes his Dakota and Civil War activities in the following places: Glencoe, Minnesota (1862-1863); Fort Abercrombie (1863); St. Louis (1863-1864); Memphis (1864); Rolla, Missouri (1864); Eastport and Vicksburg (1865); and Alabama (1865). His diary, also in Swedish (with an English translation), describes the war action in the Mobile, Alabama area 1n 1865. The collection also includes a folder of Carlson family correspondence, 1863-1890 (in Swedish); Carlson’s regimental discharge papers, 1865; and a document regarding his wife’s Civil War widow’s pension, 1896.

MNHS call number: See the finding aid in the library (P1672).

Biographical Data on Moses Greenleaf, 1862-1865.

Eight letters (Oct. 15, 1862-June 28, 1863) from Greenleaf at Fort Ridgely to his family in Scott County, describe life in the 9th Minnesota Infantry, Company I, particularly everyday camp activities, illnesses and death among the troops, and courts martial. Also included are a letter from his sister, Clara Greenleaf of Shakopee, Minnesota (1863) and his commission as captain of Company I (1865).

MNHS call number: See the finding aid in the library (M582: Greenleaf, Moses).

Regimental Letter and Order Book, 1862, Nov. 28-1864, July 30.

Copies of letters and orders, written largely by colonels Alexander Wilkin and Josiah F. Marsh from regimental headquarters at St. Peter, Minnesota, and in various locales in Missouri and Tennessee during the Dakota Conflict (1862) and the Civil War. They deal with supplies and equipment, transportation of men and supplies, transmittal of reports, personnel (enlistments, discharges, promotions, duties, sickness, furloughs, payments), drills, troop and Indian movements, selection of sites for military posts in Minnesota, and similar matters. The letters are addressed to Henry H. Sibley, James H. Baber, Stephen Miller, and others.

MNHS call number: See the finding aid in the library (Microfilm M22).

Company I Records, 1862-1865.

Enlistment records of men from Scott County and muster and pay rolls kept by company officers Horace B. Strait and Moses Greenleaf during the Civil War.

MNHS call number: See the finding aid in the library (BG4/-M643 9th).

James M. Woodbury Diary and Miscellaneous Letter and Papers,1862-1908.

Diary of a soldier from Mower County, Minnesota who served in the Ninth Minnesota Infantry Regiment in Missouri and Mississippi until his capture by Confederate forces and his subsequent incarceration and death at Andersonville Prison. Woodbury’s letters to Amanda (Oct. 1863-May 1864) were primarily written from various camps in Missouri and concern the regiment’s movements, camp routine, fellow Minnesotans in the regiment, and similar matters. Diary entries begin May 21, 1864, and follow Woodbury’s travels through Missouri, Tennessee, and Mississippi; his capture by Confederate forces at the Battle of Brice’s Crossroads; and his imprisonment at Andersonville Prison, Georgia. Entries by a second writer continue until October 9, some two months following Woodbury’s death at Andersonville. The diary speaks of "dismal" conditions at the prision; Woodbury’s removal to the prison hospital and his subsequent death (August 1862); the deaths of other men from the regiment; and the second writer’s eventual transfer from Andersonville to Florence Prison, South Caroline (September 1864).

MNHS call number: See the finding aid in the library (P1091).

Alexander Wilkin and Family Papers, 1830-1894.

Includes photocopied manuscript correspondence, some with typed transcriptions; deeds and other legal documents; manuscript and printed invitations; and typed transcripts of newspaper articles that relate to the family and career of the first Secretary of Minnesota Territory. Topics include Alexander’s experiences during the Mexican War (1874-1848); his political and business affairs in St. Paul (1849-1860) including his two terms as Secretary of Minnesota Territory (1851-1853) and his real estate speculations (1849-1860); his service during the Civil War and his death at the Battle of Tupelo, Mississippi (1861-1864).

MNHS call number: See the finding aid in the library (P1921).

Search MNHS Resources

Library Catalog
Search for books, pamphlets, maps, A/V materials, and archival and manuscript collections in our Library Catalog.
Collections Online
Search for 3D objects, photographs, art, maps, and more from the MNHS Collections.
Finding Aids
Search the full text of digital finding aids for State Archives and manuscript collections at MNHS.
Newspapers
Search historic newspapers for advertisements and articles about people, events, and activities.
Search MNHS Box
Search MNHS websites, as well as Collections Online, Finding Aids and other resources. This search does not search in the library catalog.