Tag Archives: Detroit

The Real “Postmaster” of Detroit

When John Norvell was elected one of the first U.S. Senators from Michigan, he was faced with a serious problem. Although he was a lawyer, his income came mainly from his position as postmaster of Detroit in the early 1830s. … Continue reading

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Freeman Norvell and The Detroit Free Press

Although his time during the Civil War was marked by controversy, in the years after the war things seemed to settle down.  About 1866, my great-grandfather Colonel Freeman Norvell and his brother-in-law, Henry Nelson Walker assumed the ownership of the … Continue reading

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Washington in the 1830s

We often see politicians as living exciting lives today filled with much media attention. It wasn’t always so. In a letter dated December 18, 1835 John Norvell, soon to be a US Senator, wrote to Kate Mason commenting on his … Continue reading

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Yellow Fever takes a Life

Yellow fever was a major killer in the 19th Century.   It was often called the American plague.  New Englander Cotton Mather described it as “turning yellow then vomiting and bleeding every way.”   It was spread by a species of the … Continue reading

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In Old Detroit

  Detroit in 1833 was only a small village of about 1,800 residents; indeed, the census of 1830 showed only 30,000 in the entire territory of Michigan, but John Norvell quickly became involved in the political life of the area … Continue reading

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John Mason Norvell’s Civil War Memoir 4

John Mason Norvell, the son of Michigan U.S. Senator John Norvell (1789-1850) and his third wife, Isabella H. Norvell (1804-1873), was a career soldier. He prepared this memoir in 1866, his story continues  in the summer of 1862 with the … Continue reading

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John Mason Norvell’s Civil War Memoir 2

John Mason Norvell, the son of Michigan U.S. Senator John Norvell (1789-1850) and his third wife, Isabella H. Norvell (1804-1873), was a career soldier. He prepared this memoir in 1866, his story continues after Bull Run. Sep 1, 1861 Brigade … Continue reading

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John Mason Norvell’s Civil War Memoir 1

John Mason Norvell, the son of Michigan U.S. Senator John Norvell (1789-1850)  and his third wife, Isabella H. Norvell (1804-1873),  was a career soldier.    He entered the service of his county as a 2nd Lt in the 2nd Michigan … Continue reading

Posted in American History, Bull Run, C.S.A., Civil War, Civil War Battles, Lincoln, Michigan History, Michigan History, Military history, Norvell Family History | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

With the Sioux 5

  From 1857-1860 Alexander Hamilton Redfield, my great great grandfather served as the Indian agent for the Sioux nation at a time of great change. Yancton Agency, Dacotah Territory Redfield, commenting on violations of the treaty, noted in his report … Continue reading

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Antietam

  Lt Colonel John Mason Norvell, my great-uncle,  son of U.S. Senator John Norvell of Michigan,  fought in nearly every major battle in the Civil War.   He  fought in the Battle of Antietam,  one of the bloodiest of the … Continue reading

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