Manuscripts Collection
Ola Månsson was born in Sweden on May 12, 1808. His first wife was Ingar [or Ingred] Jonsdottir, with whom he had seven children: Jons, Mons, Pehr [Perry], August, Nels, Ingred, and Hannah. Månsson was the farmer-landowner of Gardlosa, a farm outside the parish of Smedstorp, Sweden. Månsson was also a prominent member of the Farmer's Estate of the Swedish Parliament, a loan officer of a regional bank, and secretary (1847-1858) to King Carl XV of Sweden. In 1858 Månsson was tried in the Swedish court on accusations of embezzlement of money from the bank at which he was a loan officer. After the trial, Ola Månsson, Lovisa Galen [transcribed variously as Louisa or Louise and Carlin, Carleen, or Carline], and her infant son, Carl, immigrated to the United States. When they immigrated, Ola Månsson changed his name to August Lindbergh and changed the family surname to Lindbergh as well. The infant's name was changed to Charles August Lindbergh. Two of Månsson's sons by his first marriage, Mons and Pehr, who stayed in Sweden attending the University of Lund, also changed their surname to Lindbergh. About 1862 sons Mons, Pehr, and August immigrated to the United States. Ingar Jonsdottir remained in Smedstorp; she died in 1864. August and Louise came to the Sauk Valley (Stearns County, Minnesota) in 1859, settling in Melrose, and were married in St. Cloud on September 15, 1885. August and Louise had seven children: Charles August,Victor Eugene, Louisa Ellen, Lillian May, Juno [later recorded as June], Pauline, Linda, and Frank Albert; all except Charles were born in Minnesota. August Lindbergh died in Little Falls, Minnesota on October 14, 1893; Louise Lindbergh died on April 22, 1921.
Charles August Lindbergh was born in Stockholm, Sweden on January 20, 1859, the eldest of the seven children of August and Louise Lindbergh. Charles Lindbergh graduated from the University of Michigan Law School in 1883. Following his graduation he practiced law in Little Falls, Minnesota until 1909 when he was elected to Congress from the sixth congressional district. He held this seat through 1916. Lindbergh was elected on the Republican ticket and soon became one of the leaders of the progressive Republicans in Congress. His activities as a member of this group included the attempt to unseat Joseph Cannon as Speaker of the House; the investigation of the "money trust"; opposition to the reciprocal trade policies of the Taft administration; and opposition to the Wilson administration’s attempts to aid the allies during the first years of World War I. Lindbergh's main concern, however, was the monetary policies of both Republican and Democratic administrations.
Lindbergh ran, and was defeated, in several subsequent elections: 1916 (United States
Senate), 1918 (governor of Minnesota), 1920 (Congress), 1923 (special United States
Senate election), and 1924 (governor of Minnesota) during which campaign he died. In
the 1910s and 1920s, Lindbergh began a number of political magazines and newspapers,
all of which failed. One paper of note was called the
Following his congressional career, Lindbergh maintained law offices in Little Falls and Minneapolis, Minnesota but much of his time was devoted to politics, to writing, and to real estate ventures in Florida and Minnesota. Lindbergh represented a number of individuals living in the eastern United States who owned real estate in Minnesota. He made real estate investments of his own in Florida.
In 1887 Charles A. Lindbergh married Mary LaFond, daughter of Moses LaFond, a prominent man in Little Falls. Together they had two daughters, Lillian and Eva. Mary LaFond Lindbergh died in 1898. In 1901 Charles married Evangeline Lodge Land, daughter of C.H. Land of Detroit, Michigan. Charles Augustus Lindbergh was their only child. Charles August Lindbergh died in Crookston, Minnesota on May 24, 1924; Evangeline Lodge Land Lindbergh died in 1954.
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1902 to Charles August and Evangeline Lodge Land Lindbergh. He grew up in Little Falls, Minnesota where he graduated from high school in 1918. Lindbergh attended the University of Wisconsin's school of mechanical engineering (1920-1922) and the Lincoln, Nebraska flying school (1922). He enlisted in the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) (1921) and served as a cadet in the United States Army Air Service (1924-1925). During the period preceding his historic 1927 flight across the Atlantic Ocean, he was an airmail pilot flying the route between St. Louis, Missouri and Chicago, Illinois.
On May 20-21, 1927 he made the historic nonstop solo flight from New York to Paris, France. Following that event he was a recipient of many honors from the United States and many foreign governments and was hailed worldwide as a hero. He was made a director of Pan American World Airways and would become a colonel in the Missouri National Guard. During one of his many goodwill tours to popularize air travel he met Anne Spencer Morrow, the daughter of industrialist and United States ambassador to Mexico, Dwight Morrow. Charles and Anne were married in 1929. Together they had six children: Charles Augustus, Jon, Land, Anne, Scott, and Reeve. Their first child, Charles, was kidnapped and murdered in 1932. In 1935 Charles and Anne Lindbergh left the United States; living in England, France, and Switzerland. The family returned in 1939, moving first to Michigan, then New York, and eventually settling in Connecticut.
While living abroad, Lindbergh made trips to Germany to study German rearmament and received honors from the Nazi government. He was also involved with the French scientist Dr. Alexis Carrel, inventor of an artificial heart. Lindbergh returned to America deeply involved in the conflict between isolationist and interventionist forces. Lindbergh became a spokesman for America First, an organization dedicated to keeping America out of World War II. Following America's entry into the conflict, however, he participated in the war effort by helping to develop aircraft engines and flying Pacific Theater combat missions as a civilian consultant.
In the 1960s and 1970s Lindbergh's interests turned to national and global environmental problems, and he traveled extensively in an effort to publicize them. He died of cancer on the island of Maui, Hawaii on August 26, 1974. Anne Morrow Lindbergh published several volumes of memoirs and poems. She died on February 7, 2001 in Vermont.
Eva Lindbergh, daughter of Mary LaFond and Charles August Lindbergh, was born in
Little Falls in 1892. She graduated from Carleton College in 1914, after which she
taught school in Akeley, Minnesota. From 1914 to 1916 she worked in her father's
congressional office. In 1916 she married George West Christie and the couple moved
to Red Lake Falls, Minnesota where they edited and published the
Biographical information was taken from the papers; from
The papers are organized into four series that contain : Lindbergh Family Papers, 1808-1981. August Lindbergh Papers, 1848-1879, 1972-1978. Charles August Lindbergh Papers, 1881-1954. Charles Augustus Lindbergh Papers, 1913-1987.
Lindbergh Family papers are a mix of original papers and compiled research materials that primarily focus on Charles August Lindbergh's career as a politician in Minnesota but that pertain to other family members as well. They include family correspondence, a small number of photographs, and family histories and interviews compiled by researchers Grace Lee Nute and Bruce L. Larson. A few materials related to the Lindbergh State Park and Lindbergh House Historic Site are also present, including photographs of Charles Augusts Lindbergh visiting the house in 1971 and 1973.
Papers regarding August Lindbergh (Ola Månsson) were primarily gathered by researchers Grace Lee Nute and Deborah L. Miller. They include photostats of the proceedings (1848-1858) of the Farmers' Estate of the Swedish Parliament and Swedish courts (1859) documenting charges of embezzlement against Månsson while a parliament member. The court records are in Swedish and have not been translated.
The papers of Charles Augustus Lindbergh document his high school, university, and aeronautical education; his early career in aviation (1925-1927); the 1927 transatlantic solo flight; his advocacy of neutrality in the years preceding United States' entry into World War II; his recollections (1969) of his childhood; and remarks (1968-1969) about his biographies.
The collection also includes copies of selected papers from Lindbergh collections at Yale University and the Missouri Historical Society.
These documents are organized into the following sections:
Speech transcripts, recorded speeches, photographs, albums, posters, and broadsides by and about both Charles August Lindbergh and Charles Augustus Lindbergh are available in the Minnesota Historical Society collections, cataloged separately.
Books by Anne Morrow Lindbergh are available in the Minnesota Historical Society book collection, cataloged separately.
A collection of Charles A. Lindbergh, Jr. Papers is located at the Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis, Missouri.
A collection of Charles A. Lindbergh Papers is located at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut.
A collection of Charles A. and Anne Morrow Lindbergh Papers is located at Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey.
Original diaries and cancelled checks are filed in the reserve collection (Res. 50) and are closed to general use. Transcripts or photocopies of these materials are filed within the main body of the collection and are open for access.
The Lindbergh Flight Logs, 1922-1929, in this collection are copies made from originals owned by the Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis, Missouri.
The Correspondence and Miscellaneous Papers, 1900-1967, sub-series (boxes 12-14) within the Charles August Lindbergh Papers series is composed of copies made from originals owned by Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut.
Copyrights in the papers are reserved for life of the author(s), plus 70 years.
Accession number: 3546; 4044; 4044a; 4050; 4054; 4066; 4147; 4162; 4343; 4361; 4371; 4382; 4407; 4408; 4412; 4428; 4468; 4480; 4481; 4489; 4490; 4492; 4493; 4494; 4497; 4522; 4525; 4532; 4555; 4556; 4567; 4568; 4617; 4620; 4648; 4701; 4763a; 4787; 4893; 4923; 4923a; 4972; 5052; 5055; 5125; 5129; 5182; 5260; 5358; 5823; 6975; 7352; 8218; 8778; 9059; 9565; 9691; 9947; 9963; 10,063; 10,113; 10,133; 10,254; 10,269; 10,379; 10,448; 11,303; 11,393; 11,440; 11,717; 12,995; 13,585; 14,132; 14,315; 14,734; 15,837; 16,420
Processed by: Kathryn Johnson, 1985-1990; Lynn Leitte, February 2002.
Catalog ID number: 09-00320535
The Lindbergh family papers have a very mixed provenance. Some were donated by Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Eva Lindbergh Christie Spaeth, and Anne Morrow Lindbergh. Others were donated by individuals who knew the Lindbergh family. The Lindbergh family papers focus on Charles August Lindbergh and his career as a politician in Minnesota, though they touch on the lives of his parents, his wives, and his children.
Family correspondence is concentrated in the years 1900-1923. Charles August Lindbergh's letters to his children, particularly Eva and Charles, do contain family information but, for the most part, they relate to his political activities. There is some information on the deaths of his daughter Lillian (1916), and his mother Louisa (1921).
Correspondence written by Charles Augustus Lindbergh begins in 1920. The letters describe his activities managing the Lindbergh family farm in Little Falls and family properties in Florida. Correspondence is thin for the 1928-1971 period. Matters discussed include the condition and future status of the Lindbergh home in Little Falls (1928-1932), the establishment of the Lindbergh State Park (1932), and the Minnesota Historical Society's interests in the Lindbergh family papers and the Lindbergh home (1957-1971).
In addition, the collection incorporates correspondence exchanged with Lindbergh family members and research notes compiled by three researchers on Charles August Lindbergh: Grace Lee Nute, Bruce Llewellyn Larson, and Deborah L. Miller. The papers from Nute include interviews with family and community members, voluminous correspondence files, genealogical research, and other materials. Miller's files contain correspondence and research notes which reflect further efforts to locate information on the legal difficulties and family background of Ola Månsson in Sweden and the immigration of the Lindbergh family to Minnesota. The papers from Larson include copies of newspaper clippings (1893-1941) pertaining to the Lindbergh family and Lindbergh's political career; a typed copy of a 1964 interview between Bruce Larson and Frank A. Lindbergh (a sibling of Charles August) which contains information on Charles' political activities; and a copy of a 1966 letter from Charles Augustus Lindbergh to Larson containing comments on the elder Lindbergh's temperament.
Family histories containing interview notes and other materials compiled by Grace Lee Nute are included in the family papers because correspondence by and about family members is intermixed with Nute's notes and papers. Interviews conducted by Bruce L. Larson include a typed copy of a 1964 interview with Frank A. Lindbergh and a copy of a 1966 interview with both Charles Augustus Lindbergh and Eva Lindbergh Christie Spaeth.
This file consists of photocopies made from family and church vital statistics records. The excerpted pages indicate birth, marriage, and death dates of a number of Lindbergh ancestors. These papers do not contain a compilation of the genealogical data. Some records are in Swedish.
Includes two Washington, D.C. Public Library cards (1909); calling cards for Evangeline and Mrs. Charles Henry Land, Evangeline's mother; a commencement program for Edna Lodge; and the second impression from the die for the Lindbergh-Air Mail stamp (1927) which was presented to Evangeline by the office of the United States Postmaster General. The stamp and a letter from the Postmaster General are bound in a commemorative volume printed on the front cover with Mrs. Lindbergh's name in gold ink.
From cassette cover: Two Maui people recall their friendships with the Lindberghs.
From cassette cover: Lindbergh spent his last week in the Pechins' guest house, and there he died. Samuel F. Pryor, Executive Vice President to Pan Am for 28 years, was the cause of Lindbergh's coming to Maui. Pryor gave Lindbergh 5 acres to build his home. Interviewed by T. Willard Hunter, aided by Samuel F. Pryor's son, Lawrence Pryor, Irvine, California.
From cassette cover: Samuel F. Pryor and James D. Newton, longtime friends of Charles Lindbergh, tell the children about Lindbergh's faith.
From cassette cover: Lindbergh and Maui. John Hanchett, manager Hana Ranch and Mrs. Milton (Roselle) Howell, wife of the physician who attended Lindbergh in Maui.
Includes: Anne Morrow Lindbergh, Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Eva Lindbergh Christie Spaeth, and the airplane "Jennie."
Correspondence to and from Grace Lee Nute, who researched the Lindbergh family and Charles August Lindbergh's political career for a biography of him that was never completed. Ms. Nute corresponded with Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Eva Lindbergh Christie Spaeth, friends of the family, and others. She also did genealogical research on Ola Månsson and other Lindbergh ancestors in Sweden. Grace Lee Nute was Curator of Manuscripts at the Minnesota Historical Society (1920-1946).
Dedication of Lindbergh Museum, 25th anniversary of the Lindbergh transatlantic flight.
Papers pertaining to August Lindbergh, formerly Ola Månsson. By and large, these papers are copies made from Swedish records on charges of embezzlement against Ola Månsson. The Swedish court records were acquired by Grace Lee Nute during her genealogical research. This series contains a few items pertaining to Lindbergh's arrival and establishment in Minnesota. Correspondence and research notes about Ola Månsson's political career, collected by Deborah L. Miller, are also included in this series.
The Charles August Lindbergh papers contain information on Lindbergh's political career, particularly his 1906 campaign for Congress and his stand on political issues such as the reciprocal trade agreement with Canada (1911), the Indian liquor tariff (1912), the Progressive Party's campaign in Minnesota (1912), neutrality and preparations for war (1917), the Federal Reserve System (1917), and his postwar political campaigns (1920-1924). Of particular interest in this section are a number of letters from Theodore Roosevelt: November 15, 1908 regarding the Panama Canal; January 15, 1909; and March 11 and April 16, 1912 regarding the Progressive Party's 1912 presidential campaign.
Lindbergh's business correspondence details his interests in Howard P. Bell's
investments in Minnesota (1900-1906), the Bell Estate (1921-1928), William
Agard's real estate investments in Minnesota (1922-1924), and the
Saskatchewan Valley and Alberta Land Company, Ltd. (1903, 1906). It also
documents Lindbergh's collaboration with Joseph Seal (1906), William Hatten
(1908), M.M. Williams (1908-1909), and Carl Bolander (1906, 1916). There
are exchanges with Dorrance and Company, Philadelphia (1921-1924) and other
correspondence concerning the publication of Lindbergh's book
These files are arranged in chronological order.
Originals and photocopies of probate court documents, most of them filed in Hudson County, New Jersey. In addition to copies of relevant legal agreements, the documents include itemizations of charges against the estate for which Charles August Lindbergh served as an executor.
Most statements are printed as small pamphlets advertising him as a candidate for Congress on the front cover. They address farming, banking, party politics, business, and other issues.
Volume 1, numbers 1 and 2 are available on microfilm, cataloged separately.
All speeches are typed and a few are annotated in pencil. The pages are fragile.
Includes correspondence with George I. Wilson, a membership roster for the National Citizen's Committee, and a list of bills introduced to the 60th Congress.
Includes articles on Lindbergh's visit to Panama, political articles, and other items.
Made from originals in the Charles A. Lindbergh Papers, Yale University Library. Photocopies of correspondence, legal documents, and newspaper clippings covering the period from 1900 to 1936. A few documents date to 1951 and 1953. Much of the correspondence is between Charles August Lindbergh, his wife Evangeline, and his son Charles concerning family matters and Lindbergh's personal finances. Other letters, memoranda, and legal papers relate to Lindbergh's numerous real estate transactions and mortgage holdings in Minnesota and Florida.
Letters and articles from the period of Lindbergh's service in the United States House of Representatives (1907-1917) discuss such current issues as the money and banking trusts, progressive Republican philosophy, and World War I.
Lindbergh died intestate in 1924, leaving an entangled estate and a dispute over its administration, which resulted in a lawsuit between Lindbergh's heirs and the Wells-Dickey Trust Company of Minneapolis. Most of the correspondence and legal papers after 1924 pertain to the dispute over his estate.
The bulk of the Charles Augustus Lindbergh papers focus on his boyhood, his life as a student at the University of Wisconsin (1921-1922), and his early interest in aviation (1921).
The papers of Charles Augustus Lindbergh begin in 1913 with a few items from grammar school. The correspondence begins in 1920 and describes his activities in managing the Lindbergh family farm in Little Falls and property in Florida. a few letters from aviation associates (1922-1925), and ephemera and `memorabilia commemorating his flight across the Atlantic, much of it from fans and admirers addressed to his mother.
A series of letters from Charles A. Lindbergh to Russell Fridley, Director of the Minnesota Historical Society, providing information on his boyhood and the Little Falls farm. The series of letters comprises a single 85-page sequence written as five separate letters while Lindbergh was on a trip around the world.
Originals are in reserve collection, filed as Res. 50 and are closed to general use.
Checks written in 1927 by aviator Charles A. Lindbergh to Ryan Air Lines in partial payment for the construction of the "Spirit of St. Louis," the airplane in which he made the first solo non-stop transatlantic flight from New York to Paris. The checks are drawn on the United States National Bank of San Diego. The checks were a part of the Otto Kallir Collection of Aviation History until 1993. Original checks are in the reserve collection, filed as Res. 50, and are closed to general use.
The printed map is marked in pencil charting a flight across Minnesota. "Lindbergh 1927" is written in pen and ink on the lower right corner.
The cover of the reprint bears a water color of the "Spirit of St. Louis" and a dedication of the booklet "To the Mother of Charles A. Lindbergh."
The cover is imprinted with "presented by the Secretary of State, Frank B. Kellogg, June 11, 1927 to Captain Lindbergh in commemoration of his epochal achievement {facsimile of presentation copy}."
Contains transcript of a speech by Honorable Fritz G. Lanham.
Charles A. Lindbergh is cited on page 19: "History-Making Flights."
Made from originals in the Charles A. Lindbergh, Jr. Papers at the Missouri Historical Society. Photocopies of handwritten logs made during Charles A. Lindbergh's training, experimental, and commercial airplane flights, including the log of his transatlantic flight (1927).