Samuel McPhail

Last updated
Colonel

Samuel McPhail

Judge
BornMay 2, 1826
Russellville, Kentucky
DiedMarch 6, 1902
Alta Vista Township, Minnesota
Buried
Canby City Cemetery, Canby, Minnesota
Allegiance Union Army
Branch Army
Years of service
  • 1846-1847
  • 1862-1866
Rank Colonel
Unit
Commands 1st Minnesota Cavalry Regiment
Battles / wars
Spouse(s)Martha "Minnie" Kingston
Other work

Samuel McPhail (May 2, 1826 - March 6, 1902) was a Minnesota settler, lawyer, judge, military officer, and is the founder of Caledonia, Redwood Falls, Alta Vista Township, and Redwood County, Minnesota. [1] [2]

Contents

Early life

McPhail was born on May 2, 1826 in Russellville, Kentucky to John McPhail and Hannah McAdams, both of whom were of Scottish ancestry. He attended a military school in his youth and later participated in the Mexican–American War as a Private in Company C, 3rd Regiment of Illinois Volunteers. [1] [2] [3] McPhail and the 3rd Illinois Volunteers were present at the Battle of Cerro Gordo and the Siege of Veracruz. [4] [5] After the war McPhail married Martha "Minnie" Kingston and moved to Minnesota Territory in 1850. [6] Together the McPhail's had 4 children, two of which died at young ages in 1855 and 1860.

McPhail first arrived in Brownsville, Minnesota in 1850 where he first settled. McPhail later platted what would be the city of Caledonia, Minnesota from 1853-1855 and was greatly responsible for it becoming the county seat of Houston County. [7] The city's name was chosen by McPhail to be Caledonia as he was of Scottish ancestry and it was the Latin name given to Scotland by the Roman Empire. [3] [8] Two plots of land were donated by McPhail to erect a school, as well as two more plots to erect a Methodist Church. [3]

Involvement in the Dakota War

At the outbreak of the Dakota War of 1862 McPhail organized a 200-man mounted volunteer militia which served during the Battle of Birch Coulee as part of Henry Hastings Sibley's relief column. [9]

On October 10, 1862 McPhail started to organized the 1st Minnesota Cavalry Regiment and became its commanding officer with the rank of Colonel. [10] The 1st Minnesota Cavalry would go on to fight against the Dakota in several punitive expeditions under Henry Hastings Sibley and Alfred Sully at the Battle of Big Mound, the Battle of Dead Buffalo Lake, and the Battle of Stony Lake. McPhail mustered out of service with the rest of the regiment between October 20 to December 7, 1863. [11]

Founding of Redwood Falls and Redwood County

On May 2, 1864 after serving in the 1st Minnesota Cavalry Regiment, McPhail came to what is now Redwood Falls, Minnesota with a party of 4 other land speculators in order to claim land. The settlement itself consisted of a stockade wall made of sod and reinforced with a four foot ditch along with a log cabin lined with bricks on the inside for added protection. [2] [5] Settler John St. George Honner later joined McPhail at the stockade in 1864 and would settle in the northern section of what is now Honner Township, named after John Honner. [2]

One year later in 1865 McPhail had platted the town of Redwood Falls. McPhail became the Judge of probate, the first County attorney, the first road supervisor, and became the editor of The Redwood Falls Patriot newspaper. By 1874, Redwood Falls had a population of 200 people and was established as the county seat of Redwood County, Minnesota. [3]

Later life in Lincoln County

In 1875 after 12 years in Caledonia and a decade in Redwood Falls, McPhail at age 49 moved to Lincoln County, Minnesota where he would reside for the remainder of his life. McPhail founded Alta Vista Township in 1875. He derived the name Alta Vista supposedly from his time spent in Mexico during the Mexican–American War, alta or alto meaning "high" and vista meaning "pleasing view". [12] McPhail also served as the county attorney and county surveyor for Lincoln County. [12] McPhail later became an arborist and studied different species of Minnesota trees. [3] McPhail's wife Martha died in 1885, McPhail remarried and had several more children.

Death and legacy

Samuel McPhail died on March 2, 1902 from stomach cancer at his farm in Alta Vista Township. He was initially buried at his farm, but was later moved to the Canby City Cemetery in Canby, Minnesota.

The McPhail's Butte Overlook is a state historic site owned and operated by the State Historical Society of North Dakota along the Sibley Trail. [13] [14] It is named "McPhail's butte" as Colonel McPhail utilized the natural area as an overlook and vantage point during the Battle of Big Mound where the 1st Minnesota Cavalry Regiment controlled the highest vantage point during the course of the battle. [13]

The following areas in the state of Minnesota were founded by McPhail:

References

  1. 1 2 "KinSource - The History of Renville County, 1916, Volume 2, Col. Samuel McPhail". www.kinsource.com. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "History of Redwood Falls". City of Redwood Falls. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Peering at the Past McPhail founded two county seats, fought two wars, dueled on foot". fillmorecountyjournal.com. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
  4. ↑ Brownsville, Mailing Address: 600 E. Harrison Street Room 1006; Us, TX 78520 Phone: 956 541-2785 x333 Contact. "US Mexican War Search Detail - Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2025-06-06.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. 1 2 "History | Lac qui Parle County, MN". lqpco.com. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
  6. ↑ "Oshkosh Daily Northwestern Archives, Sep 13, 1933, p. 4". NewspaperArchive.com. 1933-09-13. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
  7. ↑ Upham, Warren (1969). Minnesota geographic names; their origin and historic significance. Harvard University. [St. Paul] Minnesota Historical Society. p. 238.
  8. ↑ "ePodunk". www.epodunk.com. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
  9. ↑ Anderson, Gary Clayton (2019). Massacre in Minnesota: The Dakota War of 1862: The Most Violent Ethnic Conflict in American History. Norman, Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press. pp. 156, 169–170. ISBN   978-0-8061-6434-2.
  10. ↑ Minnesota. Adjutant General's Office (1862). Annual report. The Library of Congress. Saint Paul. p. 633.
  11. ↑ "Battle Unit Details - The Civil War (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
  12. 1 2 "ALTA VISTA TOWNSHIP". lincoln.mngenweb.net. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
  13. 1 2 "McPhail's Butte Overlook State Historic Site - Sibley & Sully Expeditions of 1863 - State Historical Society of North Dakota". www.history.nd.gov. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
  14. ↑ "Sibley Trail Historical Marker". www.hmdb.org. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.