author
R. I. (Return Ira) Holcombe
1845–1916
A Civil War veteran turned printer, editor, and historian, he helped preserve the local history of Missouri and Minnesota in a long run of county histories and historical studies. His work is especially tied to Minnesota’s early historical record and to careful, document-based storytelling about the nineteenth century.
1 Audiobook
An account of the battle of Wilson's Creek, or Oak Hills, fought between the Union troops, commanded by Gen. N. Lyon and the Southern, or Confederate troops, under command of Gens. McCulloch and Price, on Saturday, August 10, 1861, in Greene county, Missouri
by R. I. (Return Ira) Holcombe, Thomas W. Adams
About the author
Born in Gallia County, Ohio, on February 24, 1845, he was originally named Robert Ira Holcombe and later changed his first name to Return, reviving an older family name. His family moved to Missouri when he was a child, and during the Civil War he served on the Union side in the Tenth Missouri Regiment, first as a drummer boy and later as a soldier.
After the war, Holcombe studied for a time, learned the printer’s trade, and worked as a newspaper editor in Iowa and Missouri. He became known for writing and compiling large local histories, including works on Greene and Marion counties in Missouri, before later contributing to major historical projects in St. Paul and across Minnesota.
His later career was closely connected with Minnesota history. Sources describe him as an author, editor, librarian, and historian, and his surviving papers at the Minnesota Historical Society reflect his interest in the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862 and related historical research. His books include county and regional histories as well as studies such as Minnesota in Three Centuries and History of the Minnesota State Agricultural Society.