When the Civil War started in 1861, Minnesota’s governor Alexander Ramsey became the first Northern governor to officially promise troops to fight for the Union Army. At the time, Minnesota – the state — was just three years old. MN90 producer Marisa Helms tells us that Ramsey happened to be in Washington, DC, the day the war broke out. Eager to prove Minnesota’s mettle, he promised 1,000 soldiers to the war effort. By the time the war ended in 1865, Minnesota had furnished 25-thousand soldiers to the Union Army, an extraordinary number for a state so young and sparsely populated. More than 2,500 Minnesota soldiers died fighting Civil War battles.
AMPERS
Diverse Radio for Minnesota's Communities
