Carleton Elliott Simensen Military Heritage Collection, 1862-

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Collection Overview

Abstract

Collection Historical Note

Subject/Index Terms

Administrative Information

Box and Folder Listing

Series 2: Civil War, 1861-1865

The American Civil War was fought during the years of 1861-1865 between the federal governement of the United States (Union Army) and the Confederate States of America (southern states who secceeded from the Union.) This particular war was fought in response  to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President. Eleven southern slave owning states therefore declared their secession from the United States and formed theConfederate States of America.

The following folders contain documents and photographs pertaining to the Civil War.

Sub-Series 1: William Bertram Coyle

William Bertram Coyle was born in Baltimore, Maryland on July 4, 1847. In September, 1861, Coyle entered the School of Medicine at the University of Maryland. He was then 14 years old. In May, 1863, he and some classmates left the University without leave and enlisted in the Union Army. As a result, the students were expelled for insubordination. In the Civil War, Coyle saw combat in Virginia and briefly served as a Prisoner of War (He was released after a few weeks in a prisoner exchange.). After the war, Coyle resumed his study of medicine at Queen's College in Belfast, Ireland. He graduated in 1868 and spent the next three years traveling Europe, Asia and Africa. He returned to the United States in 1871 and he became an acting assistant surgeon in the U.S. Army. He served on the Great Plains under Generals Custer, Crook and Miles and saw combat against Native Americans. He was an Army hospital steward at Camp Thomas, Arizona Territory, in 1879 and at Fort Robinson, Nebraska in 1882. Here he married Florence Handel on February 7, 1882, and a son, William Bertram, Jr., or "Bertie," was born on December 11, 1882. In 1883, the Coyle’s moved to Dakota Territory, settling in Spearfish and then Ipswich (both of which are now in South Dakota). A daughter, Florence, was born December 8, 1884. In 1890, the Coyle’s moved to Lakota, North Dakota where Coyle began a medical practice. In 1895, his son, Bertie, was thrown from a horse and killed. Coyle's wife, Florence, died the next year. Coyle continued to practice medicine in Lakota. He died there in 1903. This addition to the Carleton Elliott Simensen Military Heritage Collection consists of two separate donations from Gerry Wagness of the Lakota Public Library and Elizabeth Paul, a granddaughter of William Bertram Coyle who currently lives in Kalispell, Montana. Wagness donated the first folder of materials, which contains a family history by Coyle's daughter, Florence Coyle Wright, a copy of Coyle's obituary, a copy of Coyle's authorization to practice medicine in Dakota Territory (dated 1888) and two photos, one of Coyle with fellow Civil War veterans in the Grand Army of the Republic and another of Coyle's two children at a young age. Remaining materials were donated by Elizabeth Paul of Kalispell, Montana, a granddaughter of William Bertram Coyle. These document his military and medical career and personal life. They consist partly of U.S. Army documents received by Coyle, including notices of appointment, discharge papers, traveling cards and correspondence, spanning the years 1865-1893. Other papers span the years 1881-1906. These consist of correspondence, a copy of notes on a lecture by Coyle on heredity, a note from the North Dakota State Board of Medical Examiners authorizing Coyle to practice medicine in North Dakota, an ode written by Coyle and presented by him on Memorial Day, 1896, Resolutions of Sympathy from Euclid Lodge #24 upon the deaths of Coyle's son and wife and a 1906 letter from the Commercial Bank of Fargo requesting information on any surviving family members on behalf of Coyle's daughter, Florence Coyle Wright. Other materials include photographs, an 1883 medal from the Woman's Relief Corps, a ribbon commemorating the Seventh Annual Encampment of the North Dakota GAR (Grand Army of the Republic), a medallion commemorating a national encampment of the GAR, the memoirs of Albert Wright regarding the Sioux War of 1862 and newspaper clippings of Wright's recollections of same. The collection consists of two separate accessions. The first folder contains materials donated by Gerry Wagner of the Lakota City Library in Lakota, North Dakota. The materials were photocopied from Lakota Library holdings. Items photocopied include Coyle's obituary, a biography of Coyle written by his sister, Florence Coyle Wright, and photos of a young William Bertram and Florence and of Coyle with other Lakota members of the Grand Army of the Republic (Accession # 93-1898).

Four photographs were separated and placed in the Photograph File Cabinets (OGL #1278-6-9). These consist of three portraits of William Bertram Coyle (one showing him in uniform) taken in 1902 and one photo of Fort Robinson, Nebraska taken circa 1882.

Four oversized portraits, three 1924 newspaper clippings describing A.M. Wright's recollections of the 1862 Sioux War, an 1879 Army document appoint Coyle as Hospital Steward for the U.S. Army, and an 1886 authorization to practice medicine in the Dakota Territory were placed in the Oversize File Cabinets.

Box 1

Folder 19: Photos, Appointment to County Board of Health, Biography, Obituary: 1888, 1903 and not dated

Folder 20: Army Papers: 1865-1879

Folder 21: Army Papers: 1882-1893

Folder 22: Personal Papers: 1881-1906

Folder 23: "History Written by Albert M. Wright of Skirmishes with Indians at Fort Abercrombie:" circa 1924

Oversize Folder 1: Articles Pertaining to William Bertram Coyle

Newspaper clippings RE: Albert M. Wright

History of Fort Abercrombie, 1924

Authorization to Practice Medicine in Dakota Territory, 1886

U.S. Army Appointment as Hospital Steward, 1879

Item 1

Photograph 1: Elizabeth Handell Coyle (1860-1896)

Photograph 2: William Bertram Coyle Jr. (1882-1895)

Photograph 3: Florence May Coyle

Photograph 4: William Bertram Coyle Sr. (1847-1903)

Sub-Series 2: Ted Pedeleski

Ted Pedeleski of the University of North Dakota Political Science Department contributed six prints to the Carleton Elliott Simensen Military Heritage Collection. The prints are of paintings depicting Minnesota regiments at Little Rock, Corinth, Mississippi, Vicksburg, Nashville, Missionary Ridge and Gettysburg. The prints were separated and placed in OGL #1278 Oversize Folder # 9.

Sub-Series 3: George Sawyer

George Sawyer was a Civil War soldier from Medford, Minnesota. He enlisted in the First Minnesota regiment on April 29, 1861. At some point within the next two years, he became engaged to Helen Sanborn, a teenager in Medford. Sawyer wrote her several letters from Maryland and Virginia. With the First Minnesota, Sawyer first saw combat at the First Battle of Bull Run and went on to participate in General George McClellan's Peninsula Campaign. He eventually rose to the rank of Corporal and fought in many battles, including the Battle of Antietam, which is often cited as the bloodiest one-day battle of the war. Sawyer died at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 2, 1863. Sanborn eventually married Walter Wilkins, another Union veteran.

The documents include photocopied correspondence from George Sawyer to his fiancée, Helen Sanborn from the years 1862-1863. The letters provide one soldier's view of the war. Sawyer was patriotic but also commented on the rigors of camp life, his homesickness and his plans to marry Helen. He was often preoccupied with events in Minnesota, including the 1862 Sioux Uprising in the southern part of the state. Sawyer died at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 2, 1863. The collection is two folders in length. The first folder contains photocopies of the twenty-four existing complete letters. The second folder contains unassembled fragments of several letters. These records were donated to the Carleton Elliott Simensen Military Heritage Collection by Arlem Bryngelson of Bemidji, Minnesota in July, 1993. Bryngelson is the great grandson of Helen Sanborn, the recipient of Sawyer's letters (Accession # 93-1898).

Box 1

Folder 17: George Sawyer Letters, 1862-1863

Folder 18: George Sawyer Letters, 1862-1863 (continued)

Sub-Series 4: South Dakota National Guard Museum

John Madigan of the South Dakota National Guard Museum donated two folders of materials. Materials were photocopied from holdings in the South Dakota National Guard Museum.

The first folder includes photocopied historical essays. The first is a history of the United States National Guard. The second essay details the history of the Dakota Territorial Militia and the third explains the Territorial militia's role in the Civil War. Subsequent essays describe the South Dakota National Guard's roles in the Spanish American War, World War I, World War II, Korean War and Berlin Crisis of 1961. The final essay is an historical summary of the South Dakota Air National Guard.

The second folder contains photocopies of the World War II diaries of Col. Kenneth R. Scurr, Commanding Officer of the 147th Field Artillery of the South Dakota National Guard (Accession # 93-1923).

Box 2

Folder 62: Histories of Dakota Territory and South Dakota National Guard, not dated

Folder 63: Kenneth R. Schurr Diaries, 1941-1944

Oversize Folder 9: Artwork Pertaining to Minnesota Participation in the Civil War

Minnesota Regiments in the Civil War, undated print collection