Diary entries by Matthew Marvin, Corporal in the 1st Minnesota Regiment who was wounded at Gettysburg. Marvin has been discharged, and is now home at his family’s farm in St. Charles, Illinois where he spends his time helping his family and visiting friends. On October 29 he writes, “Weather pleasant[.]” It appears to be a slow, (or perhaps busy) time for Marvin, since his only comments for the past several days are about the weather.

See a week’s worth of entries: 1864-10-29_Marvin_combined

Citation: October 25 – November 1, 1864 Diary entries by Matthew Marvin, Diary, January 1- December 31, 1864. Volume 3. Matthew Marvin Papers. Minnesota Historical Society. [P2355 box 1]

Cloydy & damp. Regt was inspected and Mustered by Maj Losey. Working on Muster Rolls. Lt. Roberts on Grand Guard. Had Dress Parade.

Citation: October 31, 1864. Diary entry by Thomas Montgomery, Diary, 1864. Thomas Montgomery and family papers. Minnesota Historical Society. [P2812 box 1]

A photograph of two black cats boxing over a Halloween pumpkin on October 29, 1937. Happy Halloween!

This image forms part of our Minneapolis and St. Paul Newspaper Negative collection. Additional photographs in this series may be available in the library, please view the finding aid here.

For more information or to purchase a photograph of this item, view this photograph in our collections database.

(Note: The comments section has been temporarily disabled while we upgrade the website. You can always leave comments on our Flickr Photostream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/minnesotahistoricalsociety/)

A bentwood willow rocking chair painted dark green with an open style flared back and a rolled log seat. Used on the donor’s porch in the early 1900s.

For more information or to purchase a photograph of this item, view this chair in our collections database.

(Note: The comments section has been temporarily disabled while we upgrade the website. You can always leave comments on our Flickr Photostream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/minnesotahistoricalsociety/)

A Colt Model 1860 United States Army .44 caliber, six-shot revolver. It belonged to John B. Sanborn. The revolver has a round barrel, walnut grips, a wheel-engraved Navy scene on the round cylinder, brass mountings and a blade sight. Manufactured by Colt’s Manufacturing Company in New York.

For more information or to purchase a photograph of this item, view this pistol in our collections database.

(Note: The comments section has been temporarily disabled while we upgrade the website. You can always leave comments on our Flickr Photostream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/minnesotahistoricalsociety/)

A personal letter from Ebenezer Brewer Mattocks, a surgeon in the Minnesota Seventh Regiment, to his sister Nellie, written from Harrisonville, Missouri, telling of pursuing  General Price, difficult marches, and performing surgery on wounded soldiers.

A partial transcription of the letter:

Harrisonville MO
Oct 28th 1864

My Dear Sister Nellie
[…] For the past ten days we have been following up General Price night and day. The nearest we came to him was [Eleven] miles – of course we could not [h…] him as his men are mounted and we are infantry. I think now that we are about through and we expect soon to leave for St. Louis, and from there to Memphis – the Authorities may change our course and we may remain in the field, and follow Price. You have no idea how we have had to travel – in two months we have traveled twelve hundred miles and have had to march a part of the way. Out of 800 men we have but 280 with us – the rest are not dead, but scattered all over the country. I should not wonder if we wintered in Memphis. I hope so. On our last march we came across a battle field fought over by Price and Blunt. There were a number of dead and wounded there. Upon the […tation] of a rebel surgeon I took off a mans thigh and anothers leg – pretty good for a boy isn’t it? […]
Your aff brother
Brewer Mattocks

See entire letter here: 1864-10-28_Brewer_combined

Citation: October 28, 1864. Mattocks, Ebenezer Brewer, 1841-1934.  Ebenezer Brewer Mattocks and Family Papers.  Correspondence and related papers , 1830-1911. Minnesota Historical Society, Box 1. [P1452]

A pieced, appliqué and reverse appliqué cotton quilt in Whig’s Defeat pattern. The quilt consists of 12 solid red and yellow blocks with rounded corners set on point with plain blocks between. Quilted with a one inch grid throughout except for a decorative horn of plenty design in the center of each plain block. Ink or pencil guidelines for quilting are still visible on each horn of plenty. Background, binding and backing fabrics are the same green cotton. All fabrics used are plain weave cotton with a glazed finish. Entirely hand stitched. Reportedly made by M J Hover of Allen County, Ohio, circa 1860.

For more information or to purchase a photograph of this item, view this quilt in our collections database.

(Note: The comments section has been temporarily disabled while we upgrade the website. You can always leave comments on our Flickr Photostream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/minnesotahistoricalsociety/)

A woodcut print on paper showing a fall farm scene, made by Minnesota artist Charles Beck, circa 1980.

For more information on this item, view this print in our collections database.

(Note: The comments section has been temporarily disabled while we upgrade the website. You can always leave comments on our Flickr Photostream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/minnesotahistoricalsociety/)