Historical Symposiums & Round Tables

Annual Minnesota Civil War Symposium

East, West and Frontier: Turning Points of 1863

Sat., April 13, 2013, 9:30 am

Two years of bloody war had not yet resolved America's future. Half of Minnesota was still largely depopulated following the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862, while nearly 3,500 Minnesota soldiers marched west into Dakota Territory. At Gettysburg the First Minnesota's sacrifice became legend while other Minnesotians opened the Mississippi River by helping to capture Vicksburg. This symposium brings speakers from around the region to discuss this pivotal year in American history.

Program Schedule

8:30 - Registration
9:15 - Welcome, Introduction and Announcements, Symposium Committee
9:30 - America and Minnesota in 1863, Joseph Fitzharris and Darryl Sannes
9:45 - Round Table Brief Introductions
10:00 - Minnesota at Chickamauga, James H. Ogden, III
10:50 - Break (browse a variety of Civil War-related gifts and books)
11:10 - Minnesota at Vicksburg, Terrence Winschel
Noon - Lunch Break (on-site Italian buffet lunch is available to the first 100 advanced reservations, several fast-food restaurants available within a 5-min drive on W. Seventh St. in Saint Paul)
1:00 - Report - The Minnesota Civil War Commemorative Task Force, Darryl Sannes
1:10 - The Sibley Expedition of 1863, William Lass
2:00 - Report - Minnesota Historical Society (MHS) Civil War Exhibit and Programs, Randal Dietrich
2:15 - Reflections on Emancipation and Minnesota, William Green

Registration is FREE but ADVANCED REGISTRATION STRONGLY RECOMMENDED due to limited seating.

Download Registration Form

LUNCH REGISTRATIONS ARE FULL

The annual Minnesota Civil War Symposium is hosted by the Minnesota Historical Society and Historic Fort Snelling, and is sponsored by the Twin Cities Civil War Roundtable, the Rochester Civil War Roundtable, the Cannon Valley Civil War Roundtable, the St. Croix Valley Civil War Round Table, the Central Minnesota Civil War Roundtable, and the Hiawatha Valley (Winona) Civil War Roundtable.

World War II Round Table

The Dr. Harold C. Deutsch WWII History Round Table meets monthly from Sept.-May at the Fort Snelling History Center. Authors, noted historians, and WWII veterans come together to discuss the history of the conflict and share the stories of those who lived through it. The Roundtable also organizes Spring trips to tour historic sites and battlefields of the European theater.

Programs start at 7 pm.

$5.00 admission is requested to help defray costs. Students are FREE. 

2012-2013 schedule of programs include:

• Sept. 13 - Operation Market Garden: More than a Bridge Too Far, with author John McManus (September Hope), and veterans of the Airborne and Ground Operations.
• Oct. 11 - RUHR Pocket: Defeat of the Industrial Pocket, with author Derek Zumbro (Battle for the RUHR) and veterans of the Ruhr Pocket battles.
• Oct. 25 - Germany During the 1930s, with author Andrew Nagorski (Hitlerland) and Rudy Boschwitz, a German refugee.
• Nov. 8 - Operation Ashcan: Interrogation of the Nazi Leaders at Mondorf, with author Ken Hechler (Goering and His Gang).
• Dec. 13 - Relief of Bastongne: Patton as a Commander in the Battle of the Bulge, with author John Nelson Rickard (Advance and Destroy) and veterans of the winter operations in Belgium.
• Jan. 10 - Defeat in the East: 1943, Fighting the Lost War, with author Robert Citino (The Wehrmacht Retreats) and veterans of the Eastern Front.
• Feb. 14 - Emergence of Viet-nam From World War II, with author James Willbanks (Abandoning Viet-nam)
• March 8 - The Military Intelligence Language School, with author Bill Yenne (Rising Sons: The Role of the Nisei), historian Edwin Nakasone, and other Nisei veterans.
• March 28 - World War II in the Middle East, with author Frank Nicosia (Hitler's Germany and the Middle East).
• April 11 - Hitler's Breakwater Firghting in the Baltic, with author Henrik Lunde (Hitler's Breakwater Strategy) and veterans of the Eastern Front.
• May 9 - Kampfgruppe Peiper at Malmedy, with author Danny Parker (Fatal Crossroads) and veterans of the Battle of the Bulge.

2013 Battlefield Tour:   May 11-28
Holland, Remagen, Eban Emael, Huertgen, Battle of the Bulge

For more information visit the Dr. Harold C. Deutsch World War II History Round Table website   or call 612-867-5144