Time: All Day Event

Location: Birch Coulee Battlefield, Vicksburg Cemetery, Alexander Ramsey Park, Other Points of Interest (To Us)

Team Members Participating: Mark, Juli, Erin, Tim, Tim's Sister as Guide

Background Information:

Tim and his family had gone to most of these locations in the past when he and his family were out visiting his sisters family in Redwood Falls MN. After doing a little research into the Battle of Birch Coulee, Tim presented the idea for this "Road Trip" to other members of the team. Since it was scheduled during the week, only a few members were able to make the all day trip "out west". Tim had been in contact with his sister in Redwood Falls who agreed to serve as a guide for the team. After the roster was set, a meeting time and place were arranged, that being the Renville County Historic Society in Morton MN. After a tour of the museum and surrounding buildings the group headed out to view the Birch Coulee Battlefield, Birch Coulee Battlefield Monuments, The Schwandt Monument, and Alexander Ramsey Park in Redwood Falls MN.

Investigation:

Renville County Historical Center, Morton MN.

The team first stopped at the Renville County Historical Museum in Morton MN. The Historical Society has been in operation since 1940. Situated within the town of Morton, the Historical Society has grown significantly over the past few years, adding not only historical documentation and artifacts, but also buildings, which surround the Museum itself. Among these buildings are two one room schoolhouses, one of which is used as a storage/display center, the other restored as an authentic schoolhouse, a historical Episcopalian Church, an authentic log home, livery stable/blacksmith shop and large shed used to house farm equipment, a vehicle, fire brigade ladder wagon with new exhibits simulating a general store and doctors office, plus the Museum which housed historical books, donated artifacts, and displays about different communities within Renville County. The Curator of the Museum provided the team with a general overview of the Museum; it’s history, a brief description of the items previously listed, historical and genealogical resources available and saleable reference material. The Museum, while not very large, was a treasure trove of information about different communities, some still in existence and some long gone. Also displayed were artifacts recovered from the Birch Coulee Battlefield a short distance away, the teams’ primary destination.

After viewing the displays in the Museum, Erin and Juli went out to visit some of the other buildings on the grounds while Mark and Tim stayed to talk for a while with the curator. After a short time, they left the Museum to rejoin Erin and Juli in the church. The Curator shared an interesting fact about the church in that it had been moved 3 times previous to it’s final destination on the grounds. After leaving the church, the group next visited an authentic log cabin. One of the more interesting features was the dovetailed logs used to construct it.

The group then moved on to the two one roomed schoolhouses. One building was restored to resemble an authentic schoolhouse to include the desks, large wood-burning furnace for heat and a bookshelf filled with old text and other books. The other schoolhouse served as a display center for glassware, pottery dishes and other articles. The group then moved on to the machinery shed which boasted walls filled with antique tools, a 1927 automobile, an authentic ladder wagon used for firefighting, various antique farm implements, a small general store display and the beginning of a doctors office display. Needless to say, Mark and Tim found this to be the most interesting exhibit at the Museum.

The team was not able to gain entry into the livery stable/blacksmiths shop due to the deteriorating condition of the building. The Curator informed the team that plans are underway to restore the building before it is beyond repair. One suggestion is to construct a larger building around the current structure to provide shelter from the elements and allow the restoration to be done inside the larger building. Prior to departing, the Curator also provided Tim with some brochures on other attractions, both in the area and statewide.

Birch Coulee Battlefield:

Birch Coulee Battlefield is located just minutes from Morton MN off State Highway 71. Listed on the US register of Historic Places, this 32-acre plot is the site of the major turning point during the Sioux Uprising of 1862. On this site about September 1 st 1862, a detachment of mostly untrained, green troops and volunteers from Fort Ridgley MN set off as a burial detail to bury victims of attacks which occurred in the region about a month earlier. The detail took up a position on top of a small hill surrounded by woods with little expectations that they would be engaged in a fight for their very existence the next day. Sentries, or “pickets” were posted as a precaution due to the violence occurring in the area. On the morning of September 2 nd just after dawn, a soldier in one of the pickets fired at some movement in the tall grass. With that shot, the battle began. Sources vary on the total number of soldiers killed, but most do agree that the pack animals were all killed along with about a dozen soldiers very early in the battle. Completely surrounded and no place to retreat to for cover or safety, the survivors dug in and held their ground for about 36 hours. The Sioux had a definite advantage in that they had the cover of the woods, access to food and water, and could easily move from the battlefield into the safety of the surrounding woods and ravine, rest, and rejoin the battle without detection.

Hearing the firefight back at Fort Ridgley, General Henry Hastings Sibley sent another detachment of men to join the fight. Unfortunately, Colonel McPhail, leader of the force thought that he was surrounded at one point while heading to the battle, stopped and sent back for more troops. It would not be until September 3 rd nearly 36 hours after the battle began that the reinforcements would arrive to relieve the beleaguered troops. Suffering only couple of casualties, the leader of the Sioux ordered his men to retreat before the rescue party engaged them.

The team arrived at the Battlefield at about 1130. After unpacking recorders and cameras, they started down the trail to the Battlefield led by Cindy. The first stop was at the gravesite of a soldier buried just outside the battlefield. It is suspected that at one time the site was being considered as a Veterans Cemetery, but after the lone Veteran and his wife were buried, the plans were cancelled.

The Battlefield itself is a self-guided tour via a trail with signage providing visitors information about the participants of the battle, where they were stationed and other information. As the group proceeded around the battlefield, they stopped at the informational signs. Not far from where they entered the Battlefield, Juli was drawn to a piece of granite. She went over to it and rested her hand on it, turned and said to Tim that she believed that a soldier was either severely wounded or died on or near it. She stated it was like the piece of granite recorded the entire thing. Then Erin was drawn to one of the tall, white wooden markers that designate where some of the participants, both Sioux and Soldiers, were stationed during the battle itself. Juli called out to her and asked if she was picking up on anything, to which Erin replied that her ears were “clogging”. She walked out towards Tim and continued down the trail. As they got down past towards the farthest end of the Battlefield, Tim commented that his chest was getting a heavy feeling to it, but not as bad as other investigations.

Tim stopped along with way to photograph the signs and also points of special interest showing where both the Sioux and Soldiers were stationed and their perspective of the battlefield from their various positions. The team immediately saw that due to a small knoll in the center of the battlefield, it was not possible to see from one side of the field to the other by the tree line. As they continued to walk towards the tree line on the far side of the Battlefield, Tim stopped for a moment. He stated that he heard what almost sounded like someone crying out loudly in pain. He continued on to meet up with the rest of the group and informed Juli about what he had heard. Juli then informed him she “saw” a boy, probably in his teens, running across the battlefield. After traveling a short distance more, Erin stated that she too thought she heard a yell come from across the battlefield.

After following the trail down to the tree line and back towards the parking area, Juli stopped suddenly and stated that she too heard what sounded like a male yelling. The group stopped, but could not hear anything else. As they walked along the tree line, the team members all agreed that the Sioux definitely had the advantage. Just past the tree line was a ravine, which provided excellent cover for the Sioux before, during and after the battle. After the group got back to where the trail started, they started back up the beginning of the trail to view one marker placed just about in the center of the Battlefield that had been missed during the trek around the perimeter of the Battlefield.

After proceeding to the center informational sign, the group then began walking back towards a pavilion near the parking area. The entire group stopped suddenly because they all heard a loud audible hum, similar to how a cell phone on vibrates. Everyone checked their phones and none of them were the source of the strange hum.

Everyone then went to the pavilion to take a break and recount their experiences while in the battlefield.

Birch Coulee Monuments:

Nearby the Birch Coulee Battlefield are two monuments that were erected to the memory of the union soldiers that were engaged in the battle in 1862. Each monument is 50 feet tall and constructed out of granite from quarries around Morton MN. The soldiers’ monument has inscriptions detailing the battle; soldiers that fought, were wounded or died in the battle according to the companies they belonged to.

Vicksburg Cemetery:

Listed on the web as a reportedly haunted location, the team had this on their list of destinations while out in the Redwood Falls MN area. Shortly after arrival, the team assembled and headed down a trail towards the cemetery. In the background thunder could be heard approaching the team from the southwest. As the team headed down the winding path, they soon came across a fairly unassuming, fenced in cemetery. There only appeared to be two stones that were visible upon first approach. One stone was standing parallel to the fence with plastic crosses nearby and another stone appeared to be broken and leaning up against a tree near the entrance.

One of the rumors is that there is a stone that appears to glow in the dark at night. This was one of the primary reasons to investigate here, to try and either prove or dispel the phenomenon. There was immediate evidence that at least two individuals that were once buried there had been disinterred and probably moved to another cemetery. The “sunken graves” as they were referred to were approximately 6 feet long, 3 feet wide and a depression of about 9 to 12 inches. If a person were disinterred and moved, little thought would have been put into insuring the ground was leveled especially if it was a dormant burial site.

The group split up with Cindy and Tim starting on the north side photographing the remaining tombstones and walking towards the rear of the cemetery. As they moved closer to the back of the cemetery, they noticed a small, fence enclosed area which contained at least two markers, one shaped like an urn and another smaller foot stone or marker. Both were fairly overgrown with vegetation and difficult to read. One suggestion that it was possibly smaller families private plot, and separated from the remaining cemetery with the fence. It suddenly began to thunder and rain fairly hard which necessitated the group to search for some form of shelter under the few trees within the cemetery. The rain continued along with a fairly strong wind for only about 5 minutes, but the group decided that for safety sake it might be best to return to the vehicle.

The group did agree that there were a probably good number of individuals buried there as evidenced by the terrain. Erin and Tim discussed the properties of the one tombstone. It appeared to be marble but did have a somewhat luminescent property about it. It was surmised that it might be possible if it did have phosphorescent traits to it that may cause light to either be absorbed or possibly reflect off of it from a distance. If an individual were to draw closer, this glow, while evident from a distance may lose some of its illumination when one grew closer. The team chose not to enter the area at night due to Tim’s schedule.

There were also stories that there once stood a church nearby the cemetery. The group spent a short time exploring a small, flat area adjacent to the cemetery in hope of finding some evidence of the structure, but none was found.

It was agree that the older pines with the barren branches approximately 8 feet up the trees did tend to provide a somewhat eerie backdrop to the area.

Schwandt Monument:

Located northwest Redwood Falls MN is the Schwandt Monument. It was erected by the State of Minnesota in 1915. It is dedicated to the memory of the Schwandt family and two other individuals that were murdered during the Sioux uprising. The inscription reads…

Erected by

State of Minnesota

1915

In Memory Of

Martyrs For

Civilization

Johann Schwandt

Christina Schwandt

& Their Children

Fredrick and Christian

John Walz

Karolina Schwandt

Waltz & John Frass

Murdered by Sioux

Indians Aug 18 1862.

Alexander Ramsey Park:

Alexander Ramsey Park is the largest municipal park in the State of Minnesota. At 217 acres, it has been called the Little Yellowstone of Minnesota. Alexander Ramsey, the first Govenor of Minnesota, established the park. It has about 4 miles of trails to walk, a campground, small zoo complete with Bison and Elk, a DNR Trout Stream and many scenic overlooks.

Of particular interest are the two waterfalls, which are located in the park. One waterfall has a suspension bridge that you can walk across the top of the falls; the other is accessed via a paved trail. Tim had visited this park in the past while visiting family in Redwood Falls and wanted the take the team for a short trip around to view the scenery. While there is nothing paranormal that has been reported occurring here, it is still a destination that is highly prized while visiting the area.

 

Supplemental Reports:
	None

Occurrences or Experiences:

• One team member reported they saw "a youth" running across the battlefield
• Two team members stated they heard what sounded like a male yelling, no other team member in close proximity heard anything
• All team members heard an audible hum similar to a cell phone, however, when checked no team members had received any incoming signals
• EVP's were collected to include a corraboration between what one member felt and heard while walking the trail

EVP's...

 

BC 148 Male - Tim	BC Conversation -Tim	BC Male Unknown Tim
BC F-it Male - Tim		Vicksburg Noise (Horse) Tim
BC male whisper Erin D	BC_Shots & Male Native American_Erin_D	BC female whisper Erin D

 

Investigation Photos...

This first set of pictures is the Birch Coulee Battlefield. There is a self guided tour around the battlefield with signs which explains the circumstances leading up to the battle, the position of both the Native Americans and soldiers and their respective vantage points. To be perfectly honest, all the team members were in full agreement that we were all surprised that ANY of the Union soldiers made it out alive.

This next set of photos depicts the two monuments erected to those that died in the Battle of Birch Coulee, those that fought and a Thank You to the "Good Native Americans" that assisted the settlers during this tense period in history.
The Schwandt Monument was erected and dedicated to the Schwandt Family and three additional settlers who fell victim to the violence leading up the the Battle of Birch Coulee.
Hidden back in some trees along a state highway is Vicksburg Cemetery, long reported as haunted by locals. Needless to say, we HAD to go there. After a trek through the woods, we were surprised at how small the cemetery was. Although we came away with one EVP, the team members, especially the Sensitives did not sense much at all. The only notable thing was that as soon as the team stepped onto the Cemetery, it began to storm, literally. As soon as they left, it stopped. Coincidence???

 

 

 

Design downloaded from FreeWebTemplates.com
Free web design, web templates, web layouts, and website resources!