Jump to content

Lewis L. McKune

Add links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lewis L. McKune
McKune c. 1858
Member of the Minnesota Senate from the 15th District
In office
December 2, 1857 – December 6, 1859
GovernorSamuel Medary
Henry Hastings Sibley
Personal details
Born(1821-07-22)July 22, 1821
Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedJuly 21, 1861(1861-07-21) (aged 39)
Manassas, Virginia, U.S.
Other political
affiliations
Republican
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/serviceUnion Army
Years of service
1861–1861
Rank Captain
Unit1st Minnesota Infantry Regiment
CommandsCompany G, 1st Minnesota Infantry Regiment
Battles/wars

Lewis L. McKune (July 22, 1821 – July 21, 1861), also spelled as Lewis McCune, was an American politician, businessman, farmer, and military officer. McKune served a single term in the Minnesota Senate as part of the 1st Minnesota Legislature and was later killed in the American Civil War at the First Battle of Bull Run. McKune is noted as being the first person from Waseca County, Minnesota to die in the conflict.[1]

Early life

[edit]

McKune was born on July 22, 1821 in Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania.[2] McKune's father was Joshua McKune who was acquainted with Martin Harris and Joseph Smith during their residence in Harmony Township.[3] McKune was educated in Pennsylvania before moving to Illinois at the age of 25.[2] McKune successfully took part in the California gold rush, eventually returning to Illinois in 1854.[2] McKune moved to Minnesota Territory in 1856 and settled in Morristown, Minnesota near Wilton Township in Waseca County where he worked as a farmer and served as a member of the local school board.[2][4]

Politics

[edit]

McKune began his career in Minnesota politics as a member of the 1857 Minnesota Constitutional Convention which ratified the Minnesota Constitution, at the time McKune was a member of the Republican Party of Minnesota.[2][5]:60 During the convention McKune represented the 10th Council District of the Minnesota Territory alongside Amos Coggswell and Edwin P. Davis.[5]:45[6]

McKune was later elected to the Minnesota Senate on October 13, 1857.[6] McKune was sworn into office on December 2, 1857 and served in the 1st Minnesota Legislature from December 2, 1857 to December 6, 1859 as the chairman of the Roads and Bridges Committee, as well as a member of the Judiciary Committee and the Towns and Counties Committee.[6] McKune eventually retired from politics and worked as a business owner in Morristown.[7]

Military service and death

[edit]

During the American Civil War McKune enlisted in the Union Army on April 29, 1861 and was commissioned as the Captain of Company G of the 1st Minnesota Infantry Regiment, nicknamed "the Faribault Guards".[2][8][9]:25 McKune was killed in action on July 21, 1861 during the First Battle of Bull Run.[2][9]:25 McKune's sword, belt, and watch were retrieved by Major William H. Dike of the 1st Minnesota who sent them back to Minnesota to his family.[10] McKune's burial details are unknown.

Legacy

[edit]

Lewis McKune Post #10 of the Grand Army of the Republic in Morristown was named in honor of McKune.[11]

References

[edit]
  1. ↑ Victory: Waseca County, Minnesota in the World War. Waseca: The Journal Radical. p. 192.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 History of Steele and Waseca counties, Minnesota: an album of history and biography, embracing sketches of the villages, cities, and townships : educational, civil, military, and political history: portraits of prominent citizens, and biographies of old settlers and representative men. Chicago: Union Publishing Company. 1887. p. 472.
  3. ↑ Blackman, Emily C. (1873). History of Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania. Philadelphia: Claxton Remsen & Haffelfinger. p. 579.
  4. ↑ Schmidtke, W.B. (1956). 100 Years in Morristown, 1855-1955. Morristown. p. 76.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  5. 1 2 Hubbard, Lucius F.; Holcombe, Return I. (1908). Minnesota in Three Centuries. Vol. 3. Saint Paul: The Publishing Society of Minnesota.
  6. 1 2 3 "Lewis L. McKune". Minnesota Legislators Past & Present. Retrieved September 8, 2026.
  7. ↑ Child, James A. (1905). Child's History of Waseca County, Minnesota: From Its First Settlement in 1854 to the Close of the Year 1904. A Record of Fifty Years (PDF). Owatonna: Press of the Owatonna Chronicle. p. 118.
  8. ↑ Annual Report of the Adjutant General, of the State of Minnesota, for the Year Ending December 1, 1866, and of the Military Forces of the State From 1861 to 1866. Saint Paul: Pioneer Printing Company. 1866. p. 18.
  9. 1 2 Moe, Richard (1994). The Last Full Measure: the Life and Death of the First Minnesota Volunteers. New York: Avon Books, Inc. ISBN 0-380-72322-0.
  10. ↑ Bryant, Charles S. (1882). History of Rice County. Including Explorers and Pioneers of Minnesota and Outline History of the State of Minnesota. Minneapolis: Minnesota Historical Company. p. 373.
  11. ↑ Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War. "GAR Records Catalog". garrecords.org. Retrieved September 8, 2026.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lewis_L._McKune&oldid=1374387101"