SHELDON BROOKS:

Sheldon Brooks was born in Redfield, New York on May 20, 1811. As a young man he farmed and practiced medicine in Redfield. He married Jeanette Ranney (1811-1894) on March 5, 1844. They had four children: George Sheldon (1845-1861), Lester Ranney (1847-1902), Dwight Frederick (1849-1930), and Anson Strong (1852-1937).

The family moved to Minnesota Territory in 1856, where Brooks helped to plat Beaver, a hamlet in the Whitewater River Valley in northern Winona County, where he settled and farmed and practiced medicine. Brooks served as a county commissioner, and later in the Minnesota House of Representatives (1859-1860). In 1862 he built a grain warehouse at nearby Minneiska, Minnesota, and ran a grain business there until retiring in May 1874, when he turned the business over to his sons who operated as Brooks Brothers. The firm prospered and later expanded into the lumber trade. Brooks Brothers left the grain business in 1900 and subsequently organized the Brooks-Scanlon Lumber Company with Joe Scanlon. The village of Beaver eventually disappeared after repeated flooding and soil erosion, caused by poor farming practices in the hills above, forced the inhabitants to move away.

Sheldon Brooks died at Winona on May 19, 1883, after several years of failing health. Jeanette Brooks died at St. Paul, Minnesota, on March 15, 1894.

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The collection consists mostly of diaries (1836-1882) kept by Sheldon Brooks that include information about his experiences as a farmer and as a doctor in Redfield (1836-1856) and in southeastern Minnesota (1856-1879); a trip to New Orleans via sailing ship (1842); a trip to Minnesota (1855); the establishment of the family's new home in Minnesota; Sheldon's term in the territorial legislature; and his construction of the grain warehouse at Minneiska and entry into the grain business (1862). There are also observations about the weather, crop conditions, commodity prices, information about Sheldon's wife and sons, family life and events, personal and family illnesses, the Civil War, the Dakota Conflict (1862), and Mississippi River traffic.

There are several letters written by Sheldon Brooks to his wife (June 12-July 5, 1855) while on a trip from Redfield through the Great Lakes, Chicago, Dubuque, and Winona to the Whitewater Valley.

The collection also includes a diary (1855-1861) kept by Brooks' young son George, in which he describes life as a young farm boy in upstate New York and in southeastern Minnesota. A 36-page reminiscence penned by Brooks' sister Sarah Brooks McKinney (1872) contains some family history information and describes her experiences growing up without a father, teaching school, a trip to Ohio, her religious experiences, and her marriage to widower George McKinney. A small volume contains Brooks family genealogical data. There are a few photographs of Sarah Brooks McKinney (who did not move to Minnesota), and an obituary of Sheldon Brooks taken from the Winona Daily Republican.

Included as well is an 1862 diary of nephew-in-law Philip M. Ranney describing visits to Beaver, Minneapolis, and St. Paul, and a transcript of the diary.

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Availability:

The collection is open for research use.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Sheldon Brooks and Family Papers. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.

Accession Information:

Accession numbers 11,796; 15,324; 16,141; 16,826; 16,879

Processing Information:

Processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with a Basic Project grant awarded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).

Catalog ID number: 990017348780104294

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A published history of the Sheldon Brooks family is in the Minnesota Historical Society book collection.

Photographs of Jeanette Ranney Brooks and Lester, Dwight, and Anson Brooks have been transferred to the Minnesota Historical Society sound and visual collections.

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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:

Ghost towns -- Minnesota -- Winona County.

Grain trade -- Minnesota -- Minneiska.

Pioneers -- Minnesota.

Warehouses -- Minnesota -- Minneiska.

Places:

Beaver (Minn.).

Middle West -- Description and travel.

New Orleans (La.) -- Description and travel.

Oswego Couunty (N.Y.).

Redfield (N.Y.).

Wabasha County (Minn.).

Winona County (Minn.).

Persons:

Brooks family.

Brooks, Anson Strong, 1852-1937.

Brooks, Dwight Frederick, 1849-1930.

Brooks, George Sheldon, 1845-1861, author.

Brooks, Jeanette Ranney, 1811-1894.

Brooks, Lester Ranney, 1847-1902.

McKinney, Sarah Brooks, 1814-1895, author.

Ranney, Philip M., author.

Organizations:

Brooks Brothers (Minneiska, Minn.).

Minnesota. Legislature -- (2nd: 1859-1860)

Types of Documents:

Diaries.

Reminiscences.

Occupations:

Farmers -- Minnesota.

Farmers -- New York.

Legislators -- Minnesota.

Physicians -- Minnesota.

Physicians -- New York.

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