Lewis Nelson
Database Record Change Request
| Name at Enlist | Lewis Nelson |
| Birth Name | Lars Larson |
| Other Names | Lewis Nelson Bolstad |
| Lived | 2 Sep 1842 – 28 Jun 1864 |
| Birth Place | Dane County, WI |
| Birth Country | Norway |
| Resident of Muster-In | Cambridge, Dane County, WI |
| Company at Enlistment | B |
| Rank at Enlistment | Private |
| Muster Date | 16 Nov 1861 |
| Cause of Death | Killed in action |
| Death Location | Battle of Kenesaw Mountain, Bald Knob, GA |
| Burial Location | National Cemetery at Marietta, GA, section G, grave 1449 |
| Mother | Anne Olsdatter Vindeg |
| Mother Lived | 31 Oct 1811-16 Jan 1893 |
| Father | Nils Larsen Bolstad |
| Father Lived | 5 May 1800-15 Aug 1865 |
Lewis Nelson was likely born Lars Larson on September 2, 1842, in Dane County, WI, the family using Larson and, later, Bolstad. His father immigrated June 10, 1837, and his mother August 12, 1840. He joined the WI 15th Infantry, Company B. The men of the company called themselves the “Wergeland Guards” in honor of Henrik Wergeland, the famous Norwegian writer and poet.
The army had Nelson living in Cambridge, Dane County, WI, age 19, a farmer, and unmarried. He had blue eyes, brown hair, dark complexion, and stood 5’8”. He enlisted for three years on October 11, 1861 at Madison, WI, and mustered there on November 16, 1861, as a Private (Menig). Nelson was wounded in Battle at Stones River, TN, on December 31, 1862, and sent to Nashville, TN. He was also wounded and taken prisoner at Chickamauga, GA, on September 20, 1863, and exchanged. Nelson was killed at Battle of Kenesaw Mountain, Bald Knob, GA, on June 28, 1864. He was buried in National Cemetery at Marietta, GA, section G, grave 1449. A memorial stone in East Koshkonong Church Cemetery, Dane County, WI, bears his name and dates “2 Sep 1842-28 Jun 1864”.
Sources: Series 1200: Records of Civil War Regiments, 1861-1900, Wisconsin Adjutant General’s Office, box 76-4,18; Regimental muster and descriptive rolls, 1861-1865, Wisconsin Adjutant General’s Office, vol. 20, p. 34; Det Femtende Regiment, Wisconsin Frivillige [The Fifteenth Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteers], Ole A. Buslett (Decorah, Iowa, 1894), p. 392; Nordmaendene i Amerika, Martin Ulvestad, 1907, History Book Co., Minneapolis, MN, p. 312; Oberst Heg og hans gutter, Waldemar Ager, 1916, Fremad Pub. Co., Eau Claire, WI, p. 274, photo, p. 296; Roster of Wisconsin Volunteers, War of the Rebellion, 1861-1865, Vol I & II, Compiled under direction of the Adjutant General, Madison, WI, 1886, p. 809; Lars Gjertveit, Bodo, Norway; NAGC&NL cemetery file; Blaine Hedberg, NAGC&NL; Nordmændene i Amerika, Ulvestad, Martin, 1907, History Book Co., Minneapolis, MN, p. 272; The Story of Father’s Life, Boe, Sophie, pub. 1919; www.ancestorsfromvoss.com/blog/category/all; WI Historical Society; Norwegian Immigrants to the United States. A Biographical Directory, 1825-1850. Volume One 1825-1843, Gerhard B. Naeseth, 2008, Anundsen Publishing Co., Decorah, IA, p. 34, ID 16, p. 101, ID 47.