ELWYN B. ROBINSON DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL COLLECTIONS
CHESTER FRITZ LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY OF NORTH DAKOTA
GRAND FORKS, NORTH DAKOTA 58202

FRANK L. ANDERS PAPERS

COLLECTION: OGL #43

DATES: 1863-1966

SIZE: 24.5 linear feet

INTRODUCTION

ACQUISITION: The Frank L. Anders Papers were deposited in the Orin G. Libby Manuscript Collection on December 8, 1969 by his family. The acquisition records are unavailable.

ACCESS: Available for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Department of Special Collections.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

Franklin LaFayette Anders was born November 10, 1875, at Fort Abraham Lincoln, Dakota Territory. His father, Franklin L. Anders, was born in October 1850 in Ohio, while his mother, Anna McLeod, was born in Scotland in 1846. At the time of his birth, Anders' father was stationed at Fort Abraham Lincoln. Upon the elder Anders' discharge, the family moved to Fargo. His father died in 1891 from wounds suffered in the Civil War, while his mother lived until 1946.

Anders attended public school in Fargo until 1890. Upon the death of his father, Anders supported the family by finding work with the Northern Pacific Railroad. In December 1894, he enlisted in Company B, 1st Regiment of the North Dakota National Guard. He enlisted for a second time and saw combat in the Philippine Insurrection in 1898-99. He was awarded the Medal of Honor for action against the enemy on May 13, 1899 in Luzon. He was discharged in September 1899, and moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, where he spent two years working in the mining industry.

In 1902, Anders enrolled at Ripon College in Ripon, Wisconsin. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in engineering in 1906. While at Ripon, he met Mary Hargrave; the couple was married on June 29, 1910 in Ripon. The couple had two children: Marion and Franklin.

Anders returned to Fargo in 1909, and was named city engineer in 1910. He served in this capacity until 1920. He was called again to active military duty in World War I on September 12, 1918. Serving as a captain of engineers, Anders was assigned to a Quartermaster Corps at Camp Dodge, Iowa. He served there until his discharge on October 21, 1919.

Anders was general manager of the Lucky Strike Coal Company in Zap, North Dakota from 1920-1932. From 1931-1934 he was consulting engineer and secretary of the North Dakota State Capital Commission at Bismarck. Anders also held various positions as the consulting engineer on various projects, including Camp Grafton, Mayville Light and Water Plant, Montana Coal and Schueler Mine Development in Minot.

Anders was a member of numerous fraternal organizations, including the American Society of Engineers, the American Legion, the Masons and the Fargo Commons Club. In 1925, Anders joined the Army and Navy Legion of Valor, an organization reserved for Medal of Honor and Distinguished Service Cross recipients. He served as the national commander for the Legion in 1929.

Frank Anders died on January 23, 1966 in Fargo.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

The Frank L. Anders Papers are arranged into four series. The four series are as follows:

SERIES I: Personal Correspondence
This series consists of the personal correspondence of Anders for the years 1892-1966. It contains his personal records and awards, and correspondence of various organizations, such as the Medal of Honor, Legion of Valor and the Masonic Temple. Boxes 1-3

SERIES II: Employment
This series deals with the various areas of employment in Anders’s life. Included in this series is correspondence covering all aspects of employment from the years 1892-1959. Also included are reports, speeches, blueprints, bills, publications, ledgers and notes, all relating to the various jobs Anders held during his lifetime. His work was in the areas of engineering, mining, design, and surveying. Boxes 3-4

SERIES III: Custer
This series contains material relating to Anders’s historical study of General George A. Custer’s life and military career. The series includes correspondence dealing with Custer’s career and the Seventh Cavalry dating from 1892-1964. This series also contains the transcripts of the Reno Inquiry, historical notes and essays by Anders and others, microfilm about the Battle of the Little Big Horn and the Reno Inquiry, bibliographies of published Custer material and miscellaneous materials of various park and trails. It also contains materials about the Custer trail which Anders surveyed and explored. Boxes 5-6

SERIES IV: Miscellaneous
This series contains miscellaneous materials: newspaper clippings, maps, pamphlets, memorabilia, and photographs. It also contains seven rolled over-size documents. Several oversized photographs are located in the Oversized Photograph Files, Box 2. Boxes 6-11 and the photograph files.

BOX AND FOLDER INVENTORY

Box 1
Folder
SERIES I

1. Personal correspondence, 1892-1899
2. Personal correspondence, 1900-1904
3. Personal correspondence, 1905-1910
4. Personal correspondence, 1911-1915
5. Personal correspondence, 1916-1917
6. Personal correspondence, January-March, 1918
7. Personal correspondence, April-June, 1918
8. Personal correspondence, July-September, 1918
9. Personal correspondence, October-December, 1918
10. Personal correspondence, January-May, 1919
11. Personal correspondence, June-December, 1919
12. Personal correspondence, 1920
13. Personal correspondence, 1921-1925
14. Personal correspondence, 1926-1927
15. Personal correspondence, 1928-1929
16. Personal correspondence, 1930-1931
17. Personal correspondence, 1932-1933
18. Personal correspondence, 1934
19. Personal correspondence, 1935
20. Personal correspondence, 1936
21. Personal correspondence, 1937-1939
22. Personal correspondence, 1940-1941
23. Personal correspondence, 1942
24. Personal correspondence, 1943
25. Personal correspondence, 1944-1945
26. Personal correspondence, 1946
27. Personal correspondence, 1947-1948
28. Personal correspondence, 1949
29. Personal correspondence, 1950
30. Personal correspondence, 1951-1952
31. Personal correspondence, 1953
32. Personal correspondence, 1954
33. Personal correspondence, 1955
34. Personal correspondence, 1956

Box 2
Folder

1. Personal correspondence, 1957
2. Personal correspondence, 1958
3. Personal correspondence, 1959
4. Personal correspondence, 1960
5. Personal correspondence, 1961
6. Personal correspondence, 1962
7. Personal correspondence, 1963
8. Personal correspondence, 1964-1966
9. Correspondence about North Dakota
10. Dakota Territory Centennial Committee, 1961
11. Army awards and records
12. Biographical information
13. Personal army related correspondence
14. Family records
15. Personal records and awards
16. Awards
17. Letters of recognition to Frank L. Anders
18. Articles of philosophy and theology
19. Ripen College - miscellaneous
20. Engineering course notes from Ripen College
21. Army correspondence course, 1928
22. Diary of a trip to New York and California, 1955
23. Ledger, 1902-1903
24. Journal
25. Spanish American War - correspondence and records
26. Spanish American War - miscellaneous
27. First North Dakota Volunteer Infantry
28. Medal of Honor correspondence, St. Petersburg, Florida, School Children
29. Medal of Honor correspondence, 1906-1940
30. Medal of Honor correspondence, 1941-1943
31. Medal of Honor correspondence, 1947-1949
32. Medal of Honor correspondence, 1951-1954
33. Medal of Honor correspondence, 1955-1957
34. Medal of Honor correspondence, 1958-1959
35. Medal of Honor correspondence, 1960-1964
36. Medal of Honor legislation
37. Medal of Honor - miscellaneous
38. Medal of Honor essays and articles
39. Congressional Medal of Honor Bulletin and convention information, 1961-1965
40. Congressional Medal of Honor Newsletter and convention information, 1961- 1965
41. Congressional Medal of Honor correspondence and miscellaneous, 1910-1964

Box 3
Folder

1. Chevrolet Chronicles correspondence
2. Legion of Valor correspondence, 1925-1926
3. Legion of Valor correspondence, 1927
4. Legion of Valor correspondence, 1928-1929
5. Legion of Valor correspondence, 1930-1936
6. Legion of Valor correspondence, 1951-1965
7. Legion of Valor correspondence, undated
8. Legion of Valor memorabilia, 1924-1965
9. Legion of Valor publications and essays
10. Army and Navy Legion of Valor General Orders, 1924-1940
11. Army and Navy Legion of Valor General Orders, 1958-1962
12. Legion of Valor - miscellaneous
13. Masonic Temple membership papers
14. Miscellaneous memos
15. Miscellaneous

SERIES II

16. Business correspondence, 1892-1894
17. Business correspondence, 1895
18. Business correspondence, 1896
19. Business correspondence, 1897-1899
20. Business correspondence, 1900-1905
21. Business correspondence, 1906-1907
22. Business correspondence, January-May, 1908
23. Business correspondence, June-December, 1908
24. Business correspondence, 1909
25. Business correspondence, 1910-1911
26. Business correspondence, 1912-1914
27. Business correspondence, 1915-1916
28. Business correspondence, 1917-1919
29. Business correspondence, 1920-1922
30. Business correspondence, 1923-1925
31. Business correspondence, 1926-1927
32. Business correspondence, 1928
33. Business correspondence, 1929
34. Business correspondence, 1930-1931
35. Business correspondence, 1932-1934
36. Business correspondence, January-May, 1935
37. Business correspondence, June-December, 1935
38. Business correspondence, 1936
39. Business correspondence, 1938-1939
40. Business correspondence, 1940-1949
41. Business correspondence, 1950-1959
42. Mining correspondence
43. Receipt book from work with the capital commission, May-August, 1931
44. Historical Record Camp Utilities at Camp Dodge, Iowa, hardbound book

Box 4
Folder

1. Pony Mine, Montana-Misc., 1892-1911
2. Fond du Lac County Surveyor, 1904-1905
3. Milwaukee Electric Railway and Light Company, 1907
4. Utah Copper Company, 1907-1908
5. Freement Copper Mines and Copperfield Copper- 1908
6. Fargo Municipal reports and speeches, 1911-1917
7. Fargo Municipal reports and speeches, 1913-1917
8. Army orders and misc., 1918-1919
9. Historical Record of Camp Utilities at Camp Dodge, Iowa, 1919
10. Outline of roads, walks and drainage, Camp Dodge, Iowa, 1918-1919
11. Report on utilities operations at Camp Dodge, Iowa, February 1919
12. Camp Dodge, misc., 1917-1919, 1923
13. Report on Utilities operations at Fort Sheridan Illinois, July 1919
14. Camp Grafton range and target house, 1914, 1924-1925
15. Camp Grafton sewer and water, 1925-1926
16. Camp Grafton misc., 1926, 1928-1929
17. Camp Grafton plans and specifications, 1925-1926
18. Camp Grafton, 1926-1927
19. Blue prints for Fort Riley, Kansas, 1926
20. Lucky Strike Coal Company, 1921-1927
21. Iowa Development Company, Belshazzer Mine, 1926-1938
22. Zap Colliery Company, 1925-1927
23. Coal leasing and bills of sales, 1927
24. Mayville Light and Water Plant, 1930
25. Public Works Administration, 1935
26. Mining Reports, Alder Gulch, 1935
27. Montana Giant Mining Company, 1927-1939
28. Montana Coal, 1938
29. North Dakota work (other than Fargo) 1913, 1937
30. Minot work, 1923-1938, 1944
31. Schueler Mine Development, Minot, 1944
32. North Dakota Water Commission Conservation Report, 1954
33. Coal-misc.
34. Mining and Engineering misc., 1895-1956
35. Equipment advertisements and brochures
36. Fargo Water and St. Johns Hospital, 1954
37. Employment-misc.

Box 5
Folder
SERIES III

1. Custer correspondence, 1947-1953, with Brininstool, Boorap, Brooks and Buttz
2. Custer correspondence, Burnside, 1927, 1936, 1948-1949
3. Custer correspondence, Burnside, 1950
4. Custer correspondence, Burnside, 1951
5. Custer correspondence, Burnside, 1952-1953
6. Custer correspondence, Cartwright, 1939-1944
7. Custer correspondence, Cartwright, 1946-1948
8. Custer correspondence, Cartwright, 1949
9. Custer correspondence, Cartwright, 1950-1951
10. Custer correspondence, Cartwright, 1952-1954
11. Custer correspondence, Cartwright, 1955-1957
12. Custer correspondence, Falconer, 1925-1936
13. Custer correspondence, Falconer, 1938-1942
14. Custer correspondence, Frost, 1950-1964
15. Custer correspondence, Godfrey, 1892-1932
16. Custer correspondence, Hutchins, 1955-1960
17. Custer correspondence, Masen, Custer trail, 1934-1942
18. Custer correspondence, Masen, Custer trail, 1943-1953
19. Custer correspondence, Scott and Wallace, 1942, 1948
20. Custer correspondence, A - E
21. Custer correspondence, F - H
22. Custer correspondence, I - M
23. Custer correspondence, N - Z
24. Custer trail markers
25. Custer trail markers, 1876
26. Custer parks and programs
27. Diary of Ole Johnson - Sulley Expedition, 1863-1865
28. Critical notes on the line of March, 1876
29. Custer Trail
30. Seventh Cavalry notes
31. Fort A. Lincoln, ration forms
32. United States Geological Survey
33. Custer maps
34. Handmade maps of the Custer trail
35. Frank L. Anders's essays
36. Colonel Benteen letters
37. Reno notes
38. Reno Inquiry, Chicago Times summary
39. Reno Inquiry, Chicago Times account, January 14-18, 1879
40. Reno Inquiry, Chicago Times account, January 19-25, 1879
41. Reno Inquiry, Chicago Times account, January 26-31, 1879
42. Reno Inquiry, Chicago Times account, February 1-6, 1879
43. Reno Inquiry, Chicago Times account, February 7 - March 7, 1879
44. Reno Court of Inquiry, Judge Advocate Generals Office, War Department Records, Day 1-7
45. Reno Court of Inquiry, Judge Advocate Generals Office, War Department Records, Day 8-11
46. Reno Court of Inquiry, Judge Advocate Generals Office, War Department Records, Day 12-15
47. Reno Court of Inquiry, Judge Advocate Generals Office, War Department Records, Day 16-18
48. Reno Court of Inquiry, Judge Advocate Generals Office, War Department Records, Day 19-21

Box 6
Folder

1. Reno Court of Inquiry, Judge Advocate Generals Office, War Department Records, Day 22-24
2. Reno Court of Inquiry, Judge Advocate Generals Office, War Department Records, Day 25 and exhibits
3. General notes before 1890
4. Yellowstone Exposition, 1873-1877
5. Little Big Horn Battle
6. Bibliographies of Custer's battles and Indian wars
7. Custer notes, 1860
8. Articles, essays and publications about Custer
9. Correspondence about Lt. Beaver, 1944-1951
10. Lt. Beaver notes
11. Dakota History
12. Microfilm, Roll 1, Battle of Little Big Horn accounts and maps
13. Microfilm, Roll 2, Chicago Times account of the Reno Inquiry
14. Microfilm, Roll 3, Records of the War Department, Reno Court of Inquiry, Judge Advocate Generals Office

SERIES IV

15. Misc., the will of Matthew F. Steele
16. Frank L. Anders's memorabilia
17. Inauguration, 1953
18. Inauguration, 1957
19. Inauguration, 1961
20. Inauguration, 1965
21. The American Old Timer, September 1940 and January 1941
22. The Capital, Lincoln, Nebraska
23. Commons Club pamphlets
24. Pamphlets in Dakota Territory History
25. City of Fargo, pamphlet, 1910-1912
26. Frontier Scout, Fort Union, Dakota Territory, 1869, reprinted in 1955
27. Legion of Valor pamphlets
28. The 164th Infantry News, 1961-1962
29. The Middle Border Bulletin, 1941-1947
30. Military pamphlets and articles
31. Order of Indian Wars of the United States, by-laws
32. Philippine, Magazine and Philippine Mining News
33. The Pilgrim, July 1942
34. Popular Comics, June, 1940
35. Trains and Travel, January 1952
36. The Schwenkfeldian, August 1942 and September 1942
37. The Soldiers Letter, November 1898 and December 1894
38. Newspaper clippings honoring Major Frank L. Anders
39. Hail Chrisholm, newspaper clippings
40. Newspaper clippings about Custer and the 7th Infantry
41. Newspaper clippings about Custer and Fort Lincoln
42. Dakota Territory Centennial, 1961
43. Newspaper clippings, the Divit Story
44. Fargo City Commission political newspaper clippings
45. Fargo political cartoons
46. Articles about members of the First North Dakota Volunteer Infantry

Box 7
Folder

1. Legion of Valor newspaper clippings
2. Spanish American War newspaper clippings
3. Talks on town development, Fargo Forum, 1917
4. The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier newspaper clippings
5. World War II newspaper clippings
6. General Jonathan M. Wainwright, "My Own Story," from the Minneapolis Tribune
7. Newspaper clippings of the Yellowstone expedition of 1877
8. Frank L. Anders misc. newspaper clippings

Box 8
Folder

1. Awards and memorabilia
2. Newspaper clippings, Medal of Honor recipients
3. Newspaper clippings, military related
4. Newspaper clippings, political-theological related
5. Newspaper clippings, North Dakota State Capital Commission

Box 9
Folder

1. Maps of Frank L. Anders
2. Newspaper clippings, Dakota History
3. Newspaper clippings, Frank L. Anders work as an engineer
4. Newspaper clippings, Fargo History
5. Newspaper clippings, Roy P. Johnson column, Forgo Forum
6. Newspaper clippings, disasters
7. Newspaper clippings, Commens Club
8. Newspaper clippings, Jasper B. Chaplin, "Father of Fargo"
9. The New York Times, "The News of the Week in Review," June 1945-August 1945

Box 10
Folder

1. Manila Times and The Freedom, Philippine newspapers, 1894
2. Newspaper clippings, Indian History
3. Newspaper clippings, Custer and the 7th Infantry
4. Newspaper clippings, misc.

Box 11
Folder

1. Newspaper clippings, miscellaneous articles on General George A. Custer
2. Magazine articles on General George A. Custer's Last Battle
3. Pamphlets on General George A. Custer 1952-1961
4. Pamphlets on General George A. Custer 1927-1949
5. Pamphlets on General George A. Custer 1904-1926
6. "The Custer Fight" 1933-1940
7. The Cavalry Journal, June 1926-April 1927
8. Pamphlets on Washita Battle, November 18, 1868
9. Proceedings of the Annual Meeting and Dinner of the Order of Indian Wars of the United States, November 18, 1926
10. The Medora-Deadwood Stage Line - Lewis F. Crawford and Marquis de Mores at War in the Badlands - Usher L. Burdick
11. 75 Years of Progress, Bismarck 1827-1947
12. Farmers Union Camp Days (Dakota Territory Centennial 1861-1961)
13. The Story of Coal, Museum of Science and Industry
14. North Dakota Society of Engineers 1914-1921
15. Geology and Natural Resources of North Dakota 1926-1930
16. Miscellaneous pamphlets
17. Miscellaneous pamphlets

SEPARATIONS RECORD

43-1 Yellowstone exposition photographs
43-2 Custer battlefield, photographs and narrative
43-3 Custer trail photographs
43-4 Dakota and Minnesota Territory photographs, forts and towns
43-5 Fargo Water Works Plant photographs, 1911
43-6 Fargo Water Works Plant photographs, 1912
43-7 Group photographs and portraits
43-8 Indian photographs
43-9 7th Calvary photographs
43-10 Miscellaneous North Dakota photographs
43-11 Railroad photographs
43-12 Young Scouts and the Philippine Islands photographs
43-13 Glass plate photographs, Army Enlistment
43-14 Custer related photographs, negatives and data
43-15 Custer related photographs, negatives and data
43-16 Custer trail related photographs, negatives and data

Oversized Photographic File

43-17 Miscellaneous oversized photographs

Rolled Oversize Documents
Roll

1. Custer Trail. Line of March of the troops serving in the department of Dakota in the campaign against hostile Sioux, 1876. Drawn by Frank Anders
2. Recapitulation of general work. North Dakota State Capitol building, 1932. Holabird and Root, Associate Architects
3. One "Map of the line of March of the Troops Serving in the Department of Dakota in the Campaign against the Sioux, 1876." Drawn by James E. Wilson, Sgt. U.S. Engineers. One photostat of map drawn by Frank Anders. Various field notes by Frank Anders
4. Diploma as Associate Member (1911) and Member (1918) of the American Society of Civil Engineers. A diploma from Ripon College, Wisconsin. Grid map with inked trail of Custer
5. Another Recapitulation of general work on Capitol building and six unidentified architectural drawings in ink
6. "U.S. War Department of the Yellowstone and Missouri and their Tributaries. Explored by Captain W.F. Reynolds, Top. Engineers, 1859-1860. To accompany a report to the Bureau of Engineers, 1867."
   "Map showing Many Battlefields of the Indian Wars..., 1876."
   Highway map of Big Horn County, Montana, 1936
   Maps of Montana, 1923
   Map of South Dakota, 1921
   Map of Rosebud County, Montana, 1936
7. Blue prints of North Dakota State Capitol Building, Bismarck, North Dakota. Joseph Bell DeRemer and William F. Kurke, Architects

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