Manuscripts Collection
Richard Moe was born on November 27, 1936 in Duluth, Minnesota, the son of Russell James and Virginia Mary (Palmer) Moe. He graduated from Williams College in 1959 and then served as administrative assistant to Minneapolis Mayor Arthur Naftalin (1961-1962), as administrative assistant to Minnesota Lieutenant Governor A. M. Keith (1963-1966), and studied for a law degree at the University of Minnesota. He passed the Minnesota state bar in 1967 and in the same year became financial director of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. He became chairman of the DFL in 1969 and continued in that post until 1972 when he joined the Washington office of Senator Walter Mondale. In 1977 Moe became Mondale's vice presidential chief of staff and a member of the Carter senior staff.
Following the Carter-Mondale administration Moe joined the Washington office of the
New York law firm Davis, Polk & Wardwell, became a partner of the firm in 1985,
and also served as a senior adviser to Michael Dukakis in his 1988 Democratic
presidential campaign. In 1993, the year that Moe's history of the First Minnesota
Infantry Regiment was published, Moe was elected the seventh president of the
National Trust for Historic Preservation. A second book,
The collection represents the primary sources, published materials, and background information that Moe gathered from a variety of sources--including private collections, county historical societies, the Minnesota Historical Society, the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, the Library of Congress, and other researchers--for his Civil War history of the men of the First Minnesoa Infantry Regiment. The collection includes photocopies and typed transcripts of letters, diaries, reminiscences, contemporary and retrospective newspaper reports, biographical data, obituaries, magazine articles, book excerpts, unpublished research papers, National Park Service battlefield pamphlets, and photographs. These materials describe the men of the First Minnesota Infantry and their experiences in the very first regiment volunteered to the Union Army as well as the regiment that suffered the highest percentage of losses of any Union regiment at both the First Battle of Bull Run and Gettysburg.
The letters, diaries, and reminiscences discuss personal and family matters, camp life, food, clothing, marches, the election of officers, the enlisted men's opinion of their officers and Union command, descriptions of the regiment's stations in the eastern campaign, observations of civilian sentiment, and the regiment's participation in skirmishes and several major battles of the Civil War. Biographical data, obituaries, news clippings, and other materials provide information about the lives and careers of the regiment's members after the War.
Key topics include the regiment's drill at Fort Snelling (Minn.) and transfer to Washington, D.C. (April-June 1861); the regiment's participation at the First Battle of Bull Run (July 1861); drills, picket duty, and winter quarters at Camp Stone on the Potomac River near Edwards Ferry (Aug. 1861-Feb. 1862); the Battle of Antietam (Sept. 1862); the Battle of Fredericksburg (Dec. 1862); the Battle of Gettysburg (July 1863); its duty as a provost guard during the draft in Brooklyn, New York (Aug.-Sept. 1863); and its return and discharge at Fort Snelling (May 1864). Correspondent Edward A. Walker also discusses his employment with the U.S. Military Railroads in Nashville (Tenn.) after his discharge (1865) and Joseph H. Spencer discusses his service with the U.S. Signal Corps during and following the War.
The papers are arranged in three groups consisting of files pertaining to individual regiment members, to places such as camps and battlefields, and to sources such as county historical societies and libraries. Additional files include photographs and materials compiled for use in the book's epilogue.
Moe's history of the First Minnesota Infantry Regiment,
Accession numbers: 14,667; 15,423
Processed by: Frank Hennessy, November 1992; Monica Manny Ralston, May 2001.
Catalog ID number: 09-00037351
A typed transcript of a diary kept by a private in Company E from the time of his enlistment to his wounding at Gettysburg. The diary was transcribed by Virgil R. Chirhart in 1958 and the transcript is in the collections of the Washington County Historical Society, Stillwater, Minnesota.
Photocopy of a diary kept in German by a private in Company K who was wounded at Bristoe Station. The original source of the diary is not indicated and Moe did not appear to use it in his book.
Photocopies of letters, news clippings, a memorial program, genealogical data, reminiscences, and articles about a captain of the Goodhue County volunteers who formed Company F. Later promoted to the rank of Colonel, Colvill led the First Minnesota at Gettysburg in their famous bayonet charge from Cemetery Ridge into the dry creek bed of Plum Run to defend a gap in the army's left flank on July 2, 1863. The file also includes a copy of a 1928 address made by Calvin Coolidge during a dedication ceremony for a statue of Colvill erected in Cannon Falls.
Photocopies and typed transcripts of three letters written by Dana in October and November of 1861 while camped near Edwards Ferry, Maryland to Rufus Wheeler Peckham in Minnesota. The original letters are in the collection of Peckham family papers held by the Library of Congress.
Two letters written while training at Fort Snelling in May of 1861, one letter from Washington, D.C. on June 30, 1861, and a fourth letter from Washington, D.C. on July 27, 1861 following the regiment's first engagement at Bull Run by a private of Company F to his friend Emma [Olin] in Red Wing, Minnesota. The originals are held by the State Historical Society of Wisconsin.
Photocopy of a diary with daily entries kept by a private with Company H. The original is in the collection of the Washington County Historical Society, Stillwater, Minnesota.
Photocopies of news clippings, an obituary, and an article about a private from Winona who lied about his age and enlisted with Company K at the age of 15, was wounded at Gettysburg, was promoted to the rank of corporal, and died in 1868 from a severe cold. Letters that Goddard wrote his mother during the Civil War are included in the Orrin F. Smith and Family Papers, available in the manuscripts collections of the Minnesota Historical Society.
Photocopy of a letter written to Senator Henry Wilson of Massachusetts in response to a newspaper article concerning Gorman's order for the flogging of slaves who sold whiskey to three men of the regiment. Gorman was appointed colonel of the regiment by Governor Ramsey and served in that capacity until he was promoted in October 1861 to brigadier general. The original letter is in the Henry Wilson Papers held by the manuscript division of the Library of Congress. Additional letters reflecting Gorman's Civil War service are in the Willis A. Gorman and Family Papers, available in the manuscripts collections of the Minnesota Historical Society.
Photocopy of an undated narrative regarding the regiment's engagement at Gettysburg handwritten by a first lieutenant of Company K. The source of this item is not indicated although additional reminiscences and information about the men of the First Minnesota are included in the William Lochren and Family Papers held in the manuscripts collections of the Minnesota Historical Society.
Photocopy of a scrapbook containing newsclippings, obituaries, biographical information, discharge certificate, and historical narrative authored by Mead, a corporal with Company H who was wounded at Fair Oaks. The original material was photocopied, typed and edited by his great granddaughter Sigrid Kathleen Sample Piroch. Additional Mead scrapooks are included in the editorial articles and paragraphs of Frank J. Mead, available in the manuscripts collections of the Minnesota Historical Society.
Photocopies and typed transcripts of two letters written by a private of Company A from Camp Stone to his cousins. The originals are held by the manuscript division of the Library of Congress.
Typed transcript of an 1861 letter written by the first sergeant of Company K from Camp Gorman near Alexandria, Virginia to T. J. Yorks of Stillwater, Minnesota and photocopies of an 1863 letter written to Marvin's parents from camp near Falmouth, Virginia. The originals are held by the Washington County Historical Society in Stillwater. Additional diaries and letters penned by Marvin are available in the manuscripts collections of the Minnesota Historical Society.
Photocopies of a lengthy, unpublished, typed memoir written by a corporal with Company C who later became captain of Company B, First Battalion. The original memoir is located in the collections of the St. Louis County Historical Society in Duluth, Minnesota.
Photocopies of letters written by a second lieutenant with Company G to his sister Eliza S. Spencer of Coventry, Vermont. Spencer was later commissioned a captain in the Signal Corps. The original letters are in the manuscripts collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin. Additional letters that Spencer wrote to his brother from Nashville in 1865 are available in the manuscripts collections of the Minnesota Historical Society.
Photocopies of genealogical data, typed transcripts of obituaries, and
letters regarding two brothers who enlisted in Company E. Also includes
a typed transcript of Patrick Henry Taylor's diary as it was published
in the
Photocopies of typed transcripts of letters written by a corporal of Company D to George W. Knight of North Uxbridge, Massachusetts.
The original letters are in private possession, including the Minnesota Historical Society.
These files are arranged in chronological order according to the places and campaigns where the First Minnesota were stationed and engaged. The files include National Park Service brochures and maps of battlefields, news clippings containing copies of letters sent by company correspondents to their hometown newspapers and other reports of the regiment's activities, printed material, historical society file clippings, and obituaries.
Typed transcripts of accounts made by Colvill concerning the activities of the First Minnesota at Gettysburg. Also includes typescripts of two letters Colvill wrote to John B. Bachelder regarding the charge made by the regiment on July 2.
This set of files contains photocopied material sent to Moe by county historical societies and public libraries. The materials include contemporary newspaper reports of the regiment's engagements, letters written by the newspaper correspondents of various regimental companies and published in hometown newspapers, excerpts from county histories, magazine articles, and other printed matter.
Photocopies of book excerpts naming members of the regiment who were awarded the Medal of Honor.
Includes photocopies and reproductions of photographs held by the Library of Congress, the Minnesota Historical Society, and in private possession depicting regiment members and significant campaign scenes. Also includes a fuller print of the photograph of Henry and Isaac Taylor used on the jacket of Moe's book. Some correspondence between Moe and his publisher concerning the book jacket, selection of photographs, and captions are also included.
Includes a summary of the regiment with a chronological listing of its maneuvers, battles, and engagements. Also includes photocopied letters between John R. Earnst, Superintendent of Gettysburg National Military Park, and Robert Meinhard, professor of history at Winona State University regarding the casualty rate of the First Minnesota at Gettysburg and a copy of an article by Anita Buck regarding the Last Man's Club of Company B.
Aranged alphabetically by name, includes photocopies of biographical, genealogical, military service, and occupational data on individual regiment members compiled from a variety of sources including letters, published articles, news clippings, obituaries, city directories, photographs, and a database kept by Charles Barden.