Andrew Nelson - A Mystery Solved
For longer than the Museum may care to admit, we had a misidentified portrait on display. When we realized this, we removed the incorrect label, and the man became an unidentified face on the wall.
Sometime later, Museum staff came across a grainy photo in a newspaper of Hon. Andrew Nelson who looked a lot like our portrait. This gave us a possible name, but we weren’t completely convinced.
A few months passed, and a researcher visited the Museum. If you’ve done any amount of historical research, you probably know how one topic can lead to another, and at some point the name of “Andrew Nelson” came up. We mentioned the mystery photo and were soon comparing our portrait with a photo the researcher had of a younger Andrew Nelson. Backed by the researcher’s own knowledge of biology and forensics, we were sure we had a match and could confidently relabel our portrait.
Andrew Nelson was born in Sweden in 1829 and came to America in 1856. His ship arrived in New York on July 3, and the passengers remained on the ship until the following day and into the evening. As the story goes, Nelson and his companions were sure their new countrymen were crazy when the Fourth of July fireworks began, not yet understanding the significance of the holiday.
Nelson lived in Illinois for a couple of years before becoming one of the early settlers in Kandiyohi in 1858. He was still residing there in 1862 when the US-Dakota War began. In trying to alert family members while also saving some cattle, Nelson found himself alone at night. His tale includes near-misses with patrolling Dakota, a plunge into a muddy lake, becoming lost, and walking barefoot for miles before he was reunited with some of his neighbors. Nelson joined Captain Whitcomb’s militia for the remainder of the US-Dakota War. He then moved to St. Paul, where is work for the government included building stables at Fort Snelling.
By 1867, Nelson was ready to return west, settling first in Darwin and later in Litchfield. Over the years, he gained a large amount of land, and by the 1870s, he had many business interests in Litchfield. This included various stores, as well as being one of the founders of the Meeker County Bank and its first president. He would later be president of the Bank of Litchfield, a position he held until his death. At the time of his death, Nelson’s estate was valued at $80,000, over $2.5 million in today’s money.
Aside from his business ventures, Nelson was also elected County Commissioner and served in Minnesota’s House and Senate. He was known for his integrity and was always quick to offer advice or financial help.
Andrew Nelson died in 1908, leaving behind his wife Ellen (Johanson). Their only daughter died in infancy. According to his obituary, “No man in the country had a better reputation for honesty and square dealing than Andrew Nelson.”
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