7th Minnesota Infantry Regiment

An artist's depiction of the death of Sibley aide Lt. Beaver of the 7th Minnesota Infantry after the Battle of Stony Lake On July 29, 1863.

The 7th Minnesota Infantry Regiment was mustered into Federal service at Camp Release, Fort Snelling, and St. Peter, Minnesota, between August 16 and October 30, 1862. Over the course of the War, the Seventh fought in Minnesota against the Dakota and then moved South. They fought decisive battles on the Western front of the War and spent much of their time moving between engagements.

Though the regiment was not fully formed, some companies participated in the US-Dakota War in the fall of 1862. They fought at the Battle of Wood Lake in September of that year. Following the surrender of Little Crow and the Dakota, the Seventh spent the winter in Minnesota. The next summer, they accompanied Henry Sibley on raids against Indians to the west of Minnesota. They fought in the Battle of Big Mound in July, 1863. Then, they returned to Minnesota and were sent South in October of that year.

After arriving in St. Louis, the regiment spent the winter there. Once spring arrived, the regiment moved east into Paducah, Kentucky. From there, the Seventh moved South into Tennessee and by the end of June were in northern Mississippi. In July, they fought Confederate forces in the Battle of Tupelo. They pursued Sterling Price but did not engage his troops. They arrived in Nashville that winter and contributed to the Union victory at the Battle of Nashville. After the battle, they moved further South and arrived in Alabama for the Battle of Spanish Fort, one of the last battles on the Western front. The war ended soon afterward, and by July the Seventh was heading North for home.

It was mustered out in St. Paul, Minnesota, on August 16, 1865.[3]

Veterans of the 7th Minnesota, taken in 1905.

The 7th Minnesota Infantry suffered 2 officers and 31 enlisted men killed in action or who later died of their wounds, plus another 138 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 171 fatalities.[4]

• Colonel Stephen Miller – August 24, 1862, to November 6, 1863.
• Colonel William Rainey Marshall – November 6, 1863, to August 16, 1865.

• Andrews, C. C., ed. (1891). Minnesota in the Civil and Indian Wars 1861-1865. St. Paul, Minn: Printed for the state by the Pioneer Press Co. OL 7088819M.

• The Civil War Archive
• Minnesota Historical Society page on Minnesota and the Civil War

• List of Minnesota Civil War Units