Henning Von Minden

Henning Von Minden (December 30, 1826 - December 25, 1871) was a German American civil engineer, surveyor, and military officer from Schleswig-Holstein and a prominent citizen of Saint Paul, Minnesota. Von Minden was responsible for the platting of Chisago City, Minnesota and was an associate of Ignatius L. Donnelly.

Early life Henning Von Minden was born on December 30, 1826, in Schleswig-Holstein; little else is known about his upbringing. At the time, the Duchy of Schleswig was highly contested between the German Confederation and Denmark. In autumn 1855 Von Minden emigrated to the United States, electing to settle in St. Paul Von Minden later partnered with C. Meyer to draft an 1856 map of Minnesota and St. Paul which is still held by the Minnesota Historical Society. In June 1857 Von Minden assisted Ignatius L. Donnelly in the platting of Chisago City, Minnesota alongside Isaac Bernheimer and Samuel W. Arnold of Philadelphia. In 1858 Von Minden was elected as the surveyor of St. Paul, the very same year Minnesota was admitted to the Union as the 32nd State. This unit was raised at Fort Snelling alongside the 2nd and 3rd Companies of Minnesota Light Cavalry under D. Mortimer West and Alfred Bruce Brackett. Von Minden would serve with the 5th Iowa Cavalry from 1861 to 1864. During his time as the Captain of Company G he was captured twice; once during the Battle of Lockridge Mill and again during the Battle of Dover near Fort Donelson. Von Minden was eventually paroled along with his men and was transferred along with the rest of the Minnesota companies G, I, and K back to Minnesota where they were reformed as Brackett's Minnesota Cavalry Battalion. Von Minden was elected as the Captain of Company A in Brackett's Battalion while it was deployed to the Dakota Territory. During the ensuing campaigns against the Dakota people the unit would ultimately take part in the Battle of Killdeer Mountain and the Battle of the Badlands. Minden was later assigned to Major general John Pope's staff as a topographical engineer.

Hatch's Battalion In September 1864 Von Minden was promoted to the rank of Major and reassigned to Hatch's Minnesota Cavalry Battalion under the command of Colonel Charles Powell Adams. While assigned to Hatch's Battalion he was headquartered at Sauk Centre, Minnesota.

Later life After the war Von Minden worked as a clerk and bookkeeper for William Dawson and the Dawson & Company Bank in St. Paul. Dawson later became the president of the Bank of Minnesota, as well as the 20th mayor of St. Paul. Von Minden was later appointed as the Chief Draftsman for the Surveyor General's Office of Minnesota. Von Minden Street in West Seventh, Saint Paul was named in honor of Von Minden, but was later renamed to West Michigan Street. "Von Minden" Post 105 of the Grand Army of the Republic was named in honor of Henning Von Minden; it was located in Jordan, Minnesota and existed from 1884 to 1918.