Creation of Fort Ridgely

Roger Breckenridge will give a presentation telling about the beginnings of Fort Ridgely, from its very conception to the construction of the fort. Through the use of many images, the audience will be taken on a visual tour, shown and told about many landmarks and events, leading to the creation and building of Fort Ridgely.

Breckentidge grew up in Redwood Falls, just twenty miles from Fort Ridgely, so naturally began learning about the Indian reservation, Birch Coulie, the Redwood Ferry massacre of 1862 and Fort Ridgely. After serving in the military, he earned a BS in Mathematics and Science at Mankato State and taught high school science and later became a computer programmer analyst at Unisys in Eagan, Minnesota. Since his retirement, he has continued researching various things about his hometown, e.g. businessmen, townsfolk's and various places of business, Civil War Soldiers who are buried in the Redwood Falls Cemetery, and from there, began researching the history of the US-Dakota War of 1862 and of Fort Ridgely. He has given numerous talks/slide shows on hometown photos at the Redwood Falls Public library and Fort Ridgely.

The program will begin at 7:00p.m. at the Rice County Historical Society Museum of History, 1814 NW Second Avenue, Faribault MN. Refreshments will be served following the program. Admission is $2.00 for non-members and FREE for members. Reservations are encouraged. Please contact the Rice County Historical Society at (507) 332-2121 with any questions.