Socrates Nelson

Socrates Nelson (January 11, 1814 – May 6, 1867) was an American businessman and politician who served one term as a Minnesota state senator from 1859 to 1861. He was heavily involved in his local community, being a founding member of the first Independent Order of Odd Fellows lodge in Minnesota as well one of the earliest members of the Minnesota Historical Society. As a businessman, he was associated with numerous companies in the lumber, insurance, and rail industries. In politics, he was involved in the formation of the Minnesota Territory and held various posts such as county treasurer, auditor, and county commissioner and was a member of the University of Minnesota Board of Regents before being elected to the senate.

Socrates Nelson
Member of the Minnesota Senate
from the 1st district
In office
December 7, 1859 – January 8, 1861
Personal details
BornJanuary 11, 1814 (1814-01-11)
Conway, Massachusetts, U.S.
DiedMay 6, 1867(1867-05-06) (aged 53)
Stillwater, Minnesota, U.S.
Cause of deathTuberculosis[1]
Resting placeFairview Cemetery
Political partyDemocratic[2]
Spouse(s)Betsey D. Barlett[lower-alpha 1]
ChildrenEmma Nelson[3]
Ella Nelson[4]
Hettie Carson (adopted)[5]
MotherDorothy Boyden
FatherSocrates Nelson
OccupationMerchant, politician, lumberman, real estate investor
Net worth$100,000 (equivalent to $1,829,286 in 2019)[6]
CommitteesRailroad and Railroad Bonds Special Committee
State Prison Committee

Early life and business career

Born in Conway, Massachusetts on January 11, 1814,[1] to Socrates Nelson and Dorothy Boyden,[7] Nelson moved to Illinois in 1839 on a prospecting tour and then to St. Louis, Missouri in 1840 to sell goods and collect furs.[8][9][4] In spring 1844, he traveled up the Mississippi River to the mouth of the Chippewa River in the Wisconsin Territory[8][4] and opened a trading post at a site – since washed away – known as Nelson's Landing.[1] He moved to Stillwater that fall and opened the town's first general store,[10][11][lower-alpha 2] and his family joined him soon after.[15]

That same fall, he married Betsey D. Barlett[lower-alpha 1] (born September 6, 1813) in Hennepin, Illinois, who had moved there with her parents following the death of her previous husband.[18] On September 22, 1848, they had two children – twins Emma and Ella Nelson – but Ella later died in infancy on October 23, 1849.[19][1] Along with Mahlon Black, Nelson was one of the first two men in Minnesota to be initiated into the Independent Order of Odd Fellows in 1849, co-founding Minnesota Lodge No. 1 in Stillwater;[20][21] that same year, he became a member of the Minnesota Historical Society – the year it was founded.[22] On November 1 of that year, Nelson was named a corporator of the Minnesota Mutual Fire Insurance Company.[23]

Nelson entered the lumber business on February 7, 1851, when the Minnesota Territorial Legislature organized the St. Croix Boom Company in Baytown on the St. Croix River, of which Nelson was one of the incorporators.[24][25][4] In 1852, Nelson and two others built the first lumber mill in South Stillwater, called the S. Nelson Lumber Company.[26] The mill operated from 1853 to 1858, when the company dissolved,[27] and would be rebuilt in 1873 as the St. Croix Lumber Company.[26][28] In early March 1853, he became one of the corporators of the Louisiana and Minnesota Railroad Company,[29][lower-alpha 3] the St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company,[32] and the Minnesota Western Railroad Company.[33] He would later become a corporator of the Stillwater & St. Paul Railroad on January 27, 1867.[34] Nelson was also a real estate speculator and sold much of his land to the government.[35][4] In 1885, his estate was valued at over $100,000, equivalent to $1,829,286 in 2019.[6]

Political career
A tablet commemorating the sixty-one delegates who attended the 1848 Stillwater Convention, one of whom was Socrates Nelson.

In 1846, Nelson was treasurer for St. Croix County, Wisconsin Territory, and in 1847, he was treasurer and a county commissioner.[36] He was one of sixty-one delegates at the August 26, 1848, Stillwater Convention,[37] whose petition to Congress led to the 1849 establishment of the Minnesota Territory.[37][38] A committee of David Lambert (its chairman), Nelson, and three others[lower-alpha 4] met in Nelson's general store during the convention's recess to draft a report of the convention's resolutions.[39]

On November 26, 1849, he was elected to serve as the treasurer for the newly formed Washington County, Minnesota Territory.[40] He was on the University of Minnesota Board of Regents from February 1851 (the first Board) to February 1859 and served as Minnesota Territorial Auditor from May 15, 1853, to January 17, 1854,[41][42] succeeding Abraham Van Vorhes.[43] In 1852, 1855, and 1856, he served as a commissioner for Washington County.[44] In February 1856, Nelson and four others platted and named the village of Baytown.[45][46] He also named Greenfield in May 1858 – after his former Massachusetts home – which was later renamed to Grant Township in 1864.[46] On October 4, 1858, Nelson – alongside Charles E. Leonard – was declared the Minnesota Democratic Party's Washington County nomination for state senator.[47]

Nelson served in the Minnesota Senate from 1859 to 1861, elected as a Democrat from the 1st district on October 12, 1858, along with Republican William McKusick.[48][2] During his term in the 2nd Minnesota Legislature, he served on the Railroad and Railroad Bonds Special Committee and the State Prison Committee.[48] On October 13, 1860, the Democratic District Convention met and nominated Nelson for the 2nd district; Republicans nominated Joel K. Reiner,[49][50] a physician who had previously served the 1st district in the 1st Minnesota Legislature.[51] Reiner would win the election held on November 6, 1860, defeating Nelson.[51][52]

Nelson later served on the Stillwater City Council from 1863 to 1865,[53] and in 1864, he was elected as a delegate for the 1864 Democratic National Convention.[54]

Later life

In 1859 and 1866, he was the president of the Old Settlers Association,[55] having been one of its charter members.[56] In April 1867, Nelson and Elizabeth Churchill – the widow of Nelson's former partner – offered to give the city of Stillwater an entire block of land for $5 (equivalent to $91 in 2019) with no strings attached for the construction of a courthouse; the city accepted, and today, the building is the longest-standing courthouse in Minnesota.[57][58] At some point later in his life, he would come to own an Indian pony mare named Lady Maguire.[59]

Nelson died of tuberculosis in Stillwater, Minnesota on May 6, 1867, at the age of 53.[1][8] Four years later in 1871, Emma married attorney Fayette Marsh, a former engineer who had studied law and moved to Stillwater to co-found a firm.[3] They had three children before Emma died on November 23, 1880, at age 32 of what was described as "a short but painful illness",[3][60] and Betsey died five years later of heart complications on October 8, 1885, at age 72, having been ill for two months prior.[18][16]

Legacy

A plaque on the north portico of the Washington County Historic Courthouse commemorates the date when Nelson and Churchill sold the block of land for its construction.[58]

In 1885, the Nelson School, named after him, was constructed in Stillwater and opened on September 28 of that year.[61] To accommodate a growing student body, a new facility was opened at the same site on September 25, 1897,[35][62] and on October 25, 1979, the building was listed in the National Register of Historic Places.[63]

  • The Washington County Historic Courthouse in Stillwater, Minnesota.
  • The building of the Nelson School, named in Socrates Nelson's honor.

See also

Notes
  1. Betsey D. Barlett is referred to in various sources as 'Betsy' and 'Bertha' (and in one contemporary news source as 'Martha E.'[16]), but US census data from 1850 records her given name as 'Betsey D.'[17]
  2. Nelson built the general store under the same roof as his Main Street home.[12] While one source leaves room for error, calling his store "the first, or among the first, in Stillwater",[13] and another calls both Nelson's and Walter R. Vail's the first,[14] there are no accounts of any before it, and it is therefore regarded unambiguously by most sources as the first.
  3. No railroad was ever laid by the Louisiana and Minnesota Railroad Company.[30] On March 5, 1869, the Minnesota Legislature transferred the benefits and powers the company had been given by the Minnesota Territorial Legislature to the Brownsville, Caledonia and State Line Railroad Company.[31]
  4. The three others were Henry L. Moss, Orange Walker, and Joseph R. Brown.[39]

References
  1. The United States Biographical Dictionary and Portrait Gallery of Eminent and Self-Made Men. Minnesota Volume. New York and Chicago: American Biographical Publishing Company. 1879. pp. 235–236. LCCN 17014354.
  2. Easton 1909, p. 88.
  3. Peterson, Brent (May 19, 2017). "Back in Time: Fayette Marsh — battling personal demons". Stillwater Gazette. Archived from the original on December 21, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020. On Sept. 26, 1871, Marsh married Emma Nelson, the only child of Mr. and Mrs. Socrates Nelson. Together they had three children. Mrs. Marsh died Nov. 23, 1880, at the age of 32.
  4. Easton 1909, p. 323.
  5. Folsom 1888, p. 79.
  6. "Minnesota State News". New Ulm Weekly Review. VIII (46). November 11, 1885. p. 2. ISSN 2166-8124. LCCN sn89064939. Retrieved December 24, 2020 – via the Library of Congress.
  7. Boyden, Boyden & Boyden 1901, p. 108.
  8. Collections of the Minnesota Historical Society: Minnesota Biographies 1655–1912. XIV. St. Paul, MN: Minnesota Historical Society. June 1912. pp. 543–544. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  9. Folsom 1888, p. 58–59.
  10. Peterson, Brent (April 25, 2014). "Back in Time: Janda's, a department store legacy". Stillwater Gazette. Archived from the original on December 21, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  11. Easton 1909, p. 216.
  12. Holcombe 1908, p. 109.
  13. Easton 1909, p. 20.
  14. Grönberger, Robert (1879). Svenskarne i St. Croix-dalen, Minnesota [The Swedes in St. Croix Valley, Minnesota] (in Swedish). Minneapolis, MN: Stats Tidningens Tryckeri. p. 51. LCCN 22007161. Socrates Nelson och Walter R. Vail voro de första köpmän och hade den första handelsbod i Stillwater. [Socrates Nelson and Walter R. Vail were the first merchants and had the first shop in Stillwater.]
  15. Folsom 1888, p. 38.
  16. "An Old Settler Dead". St. Paul Daily Globe (obituary). VII (282). October 9, 1885. p. 5. Retrieved December 24, 2020 – via the Library of Congress.
  17. 1850; Stillwater Precinct, Washington County, Minnesota Territory; roll M432-367, page 67A,. Retrieved on December 23, 2020. URL
  18. Folsom 1888, p. 59.
  19. Easton 1909, p. 115, 323.
  20. Peterson, Brent (September 3, 2020). "A bunch of Odd Fellows". Stillwater Gazette. Archived from the original on September 21, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  21. Joseph R. Brown, Territorial Printer 1853, p. 80–81.
  22. Annual Report of the Minnesota Historical Society, Read at the Annual Meeting, Jan. 20, 1868. Saint Paul, MN: Press Printing Company. 1868. p. 13.
  23. Joseph R. Brown, Territorial Printer 1853, p. 66.
  24. Peterson, Brent (May 14, 2018). "The drive to the boom: log floated along the St. Croix". Forest Lake Times. Archived from the original on May 14, 2018.
  25. Folsom 1888, p. 696.
  26. Holmes 1908, p. 403.
  27. Torres, Angela R. (May 15, 2009). 2030 Comprehensive Plan Update (PDF) (Master of Urban and Regional Planning thesis). University of Minnesota. p. 6. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 24, 2020.
  28. Easton 1909, p. 26.
  29. "An Act to incorporate the Louisiana and Minnesota Rail Road Company". Session Laws of the Territory of Minnesota, Passed by the Legislative Assembly at the Session Commencing Wednesday, January 5, 1853. Saint Paul, MN. 1853. p. 15.
  30. Holmes 1908, p. 339.
  31. Special Laws of the State of Minnesota, Passed During the Eleventh Session of the State Legislature. Saint Paul, MN. 1869. p. 234.
  32. Joseph R. Brown, Territorial Printer 1853, p. 138.
  33. Joseph R. Brown, Territorial Printer 1853, p. 143.
  34. Executive Documents of the State of Minnesota, for the Year 1871. II. Saint Paul, MN. 1872. p. 97.
  35. Hoisington, Daniel J. (June 1, 2013). "Historic Site Designation" (PDF). Stillwater Heritage Preservation Commission. pp. 7–8. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 22, 2014. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
  36. Neill 1881, p. 322.
  37. Blegen, Theodore C. (December 1936). "Some Sources for St. Croix Valley History" (PDF). Minnesota History. 17 (4): 385–395. JSTOR 20162131. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 14, 2020. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  38. "Stillwater". Encyclopædia Britannica. March 15, 2013.
  39. Moss, Henry L. (1898). "Last Days of Wisconsin Territory and Early Days of Minnesota Territory". Collections of the Minnesota Historical Society. VII. Saint Paul, MN: Minnesota Historical Society. p. 76.
  40. "Washington County Timeline". Washington County Historical Society. Archived from the original on February 22, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  41. Holm, Mike (1937). The Legislative Manual of the State of Minnesota (PDF). Minneapolis, MN: McGill Lithograph Co. p. 72 – via the Minnesota Legislative Reference Library.
  42. Burnquist 1924, p. 23, 593.
  43. "Facts and Fancies". The Weekly Minnesotian. 2 (39). June 11, 1853. p. 2. ISSN 2694-4472. LCCN sn83016750. Retrieved December 24, 2020 – via the Library of Congress.
  44. Neill 1881, p. 323.
  45. Folsom 1888, p. 359.
  46. Upham, Warren (2001). "Washington County". Minnesota Place Names: A Geographical Encylcopedia (Third ed.). Minnesota Historical Society Press. pp. 616–617. ISBN 0-87351-396-7. LCCN 00048207.
  47. "Washington County Nominations". Saint Paul Weekly Minnesotian. 8 (2). October 9, 1958. p. 2. ISSN 2694-4308. LCCN sn90059500. Retrieved December 25, 2020 – via the Library of Congress.
  48. "Legislators Past & Present | Socrates Nelson". Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. Minnesota Legislature. Archived from the original on December 21, 2020.
  49. "Democratic Nominations for the Second District". The Weekly Pioneer and Democrat. XII (29). October 26, 1860. p. 3. ISSN 2694-4251. LCCN sn83016751. Retrieved December 24, 2020 – via the Library of Congress.
  50. "Our Own State". The Weekly Pioneer and Democrat. XII (29). Saint Paul, MN. October 26, 1860. p. 2. ISSN 2694-4251. LCCN sn83016751. Retrieved December 24, 2020 – via the Library of Congress.
  51. "Reiner, Joel K. "J.K."". Minnesota Legislative Reference Library. Minnesota Legislature. Archived from the original on December 24, 2020. Retrieved December 24, 2020.
  52. "The State Election". The Weekly Pioneer and Democrat. XII (31). November 9, 1860. p. 4. ISSN 2694-4251. LCCN sn83016751. Retrieved December 24, 2020 – via the Library of Congress.
  53. Easton 1909, p. 214.
  54. "Election of Delegates to the National Nominating Convention". The Weekly Pioneer and Democrat. XV (48). June 3, 1864. p. 4. ISSN 2694-4251. LCCN sn83016751. Retrieved December 26, 2020 – via the Library of Congress.
  55. Folsom 1888, p. 740.
  56. Folsom 1888, p. 731.
  57. Dunn, James Taylor (Winter 1962). "Minnesota's Oldest Courthouse" (PDF). Minnesota History. 38 (4): 186–189. JSTOR 20176468. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 17, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  58. "Washington County Historic Courthouse". Washington County Parks. June 21, 2020. Archived from the original on December 21, 2020. Retrieved December 21, 2020.
  59. Wallace, John Hankins (1879). Wallace's American Trotting Register. III. New York: Wallace's Monthly. p. 458.
  60. "Death of Mrs. Fayette Marsh". The Saint Paul Daily Globe (obituary). III (3). November 25, 1880. p. 2. Retrieved December 25, 2020 – via the Library of Congress.
  61. "Notes About Town". St. Paul Daily Globe. VII (272). September 29, 1885. p. 5. Retrieved December 24, 2020 – via the Library of Congress.
  62. Easton 1909, p. 145.
  63. "Nelson School". National Register of Historic Places. National Register Information System ID: 79001257. Archived from the original on December 24, 2020. Retrieved December 24, 2020.

Bibliography
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