SOLON K. CHEADLE:

Solon K. Cheadle was born in Ohio on July 17, 1843 to Peter Van Clief and Jane (Welch) Cheadle. The family came to Minnesota from Ohio in 1855 with their four young children (Milton, Solon, George, and DeEtte) and settled on a farm near Cleveland, in LeSueur County.

Solon Cheadle served with Company E of the 2nd Minnesota Infantry Regiment during the Civil War. He was mustered in on July 5, 1861, and attained the rank of corporal. He re-enlisted on December 26, 1863, attained the rank of sergeant, and was mustered out on July 11, 1865. He married Mary Jane Stevens/Jennie Stephens on December 8, 1867. They moved to Colorado around 1880, where they operated grocery and lumber businesses. Solon Cheadle was one of the original petitioners for the incorporation of the town of Brush, Colorado, and was elected its mayor in 1884. Cheadle died of an accidental gunshot wound on March 30, 1894, an injury suffered while working as a guard at a Colorado silver mine.

Mary Jane/Jennie (Stevens/Stephens) Cheadle was born in Davis County, Kentucky, on November 13, 1846 to John C. and Lucinda (Goldsmith) Stevens. Solon and Mary Jane had five children: Helen Marie DeEtte (Nellie Flowers?) (1868-1966), Frederick George

(1875-1943), Luther Frances (1878-1949), Milton (1882) and Paul (1891). Mary Jane died at Brush, Colorado, on November 26, 1911.

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The collection includes a Civil War diary (1864) and an accompanying typewritten transcription. There are some letters written by Solon, Mary Jane, and Fred Cheadle, which concern Solon's business activities in Colorado, family matters, and Solon's death. Photographs include portraits of Solon and various family members, and images of the I. Smith & Son Company (lumber dealers) building in Holyoke, Colorado, and the S. K. Cheadle store ("groceries and provisions") (Brush, Colorado?). There are some newspaper obituaries and other genealogical materials relating to both the Cheadle and the Stevens/Stephens families.

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Availability:

The collection is open for research use.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Solon K. Cheadle and family papers. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.

Accession Information:

Accession number: 15,447

Processing Information:

Processed by: David B. Peterson, August 1999

Catalog ID number: 990017358140104294

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This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.

Topics:

Silver mines and mining -- Colorado.

Places:

United States. History. Civil War, 1861-1865.

Persons:

Cheadle, Mary Jane, 1846-1911.

Cheadle, Peter Van Clief, 1816-1902.

Cheadle family.

Stevens family.

Organizations:

United States. Army. Minnesota Infantry Regiment, 2nd (1861-1865). Company E.

Types of Documentation:

Diaries.

Occupations:

Farmers--Minnesota--LeSueur County.

Soldiers.

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