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Title: From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair
Description: This letter was written on March 21 and 26, 1861 by Florella Brown Adair to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair. Florella describes her train journey from Grafton, Ohio to Xenia, Ohio. On March 26, she writes from Yellow Springs, Ohio that Mr. Stephenson has been in the area collecting money for Kansas: “Thousands of dollars have been sent from Ohio alone & it seems as if Kansas must be well supplyed with many a provision if it all gets there & is properly distributed.”
Date: March 21, 1861-March 26, 1861

Title: Application of Elizabeth Turner
Description: This is Elizabeth Turner’s application for compensation from the United States government for the military service of her slave, Nelson. The application, dated November 17, 1866, includes an oath of allegiance to the United States and a statement that Turner, of Howard County, Missouri, lawfully obtained her slave. The application is signed by two witnesses and a notary public in Cooper County, Missouri.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: November 17, 1866

Title: From Jane C. Tandy to My Dear Grand Mother
Description: This letter, dated October 22 and October 31, 1866, is from Jane C. Tandy to her grandmother. Tandy describes the tension between "conservatives" and "radicals" in Missouri following the Civil War. She reports that conservatives are taking the Oath of Loyalty to the United States Government required for Missouri voters, while the radicals are refusing.
Date: October 22, 1866 and October 31, 1866

Title: From Elizabeth Peery to George F. Peery
Description: On January 1, 1856, Elizabeth Peery writes a letter from Edinburgh, Missouri to George F. Peery. Elizabeth describes local festivities for the Christmas holiday, including a large party held by slaves. She reports that friends and family in the area are well, and recounts some of their recent activities. Elizabeth writes that she has a new baby boy, as yet unnamed; she asks George to suggest a name.
Date: January 1, 1856

Title: From John Ordway to Dear Friend
Description: This letter, dated January 19, 1856, was written by John Ordway in Roxbury, Massachusetts, to a friend, presumably in Missouri. John inquires about the progress of the railroads in Missouri, explaining that the newspapers choose to focus on “the Kansas troubles” instead of Missouri’s “internal improvements.” Of political sentiment in Massachusetts, John writes: “The extreme men here are few but an antislavery feeling is universal and the Kansas difficulties have rather tended to give it deeper root.”
Date: January 19, 1856

Title: From A.J. Sexton to Catherine
Description: This letter was written on April 29, 1862, by A.J. Sexton in camp at Fort Riley, Kansas, to his wife Catherine. A.J. writes of his plans to send Catherine $20.00 after he is paid on May 1st. He reports that the health of his regiment is good, and he believes they will be sent next to Mexico. A.J. refers to the Battle of Shiloh, and writes with regret about the death of Wisconsin Gov. Harvey shortly after the battle.
Date: April 29, 1862

Title: From Charles Adair and M.L. Davis to Samuel Lyle Adair
Description: On September 24, 1860, Charles Adair writes from Aunt Marthey’s to his father Samuel Lyle Adair. Charles describes seeing Stephen A. Douglas at the station that morning and says he was unimpressed: “he is a mean looking man if ever I saw one.” On September 30, 1860, Samuel’s sister M.L. Davis finishes the letter Charles began, explaining that Charles left the letter behind when he went away. She writes briefly about Charles's and Florella's activities during their Ohio visit.
Object Type: Letter
Date: September 24, 1860 and September 30, 1860

Title: Diary of A.H. Lewis
Description: This diary, written between December 15, 1861 and March 19, 1862, records the experience of A.H. Lewis of Saline County, Missouri as a Confederate soldier and prisoner of war. Lewis’s company of Missouri State Guards was captured by Col. Davis in the Battle of Blackwater River on December 19, 1861. After being held for several weeks at the St. Louis military prison, the Confederate prisoners were moved to the penitentiary at Alton, Illinois. Although Lewis initially criticized prisoners who took an Oath of Loyalty to the Federal government to gain freedom, Lewis took the Oath himself on March 14, 1862 and was released.
Object Type: Diary
Date: December 15, 1861 - March 19, 1862

Title: From William Clarke Quantrill to My Dear Mother
Description: This letter is from William Clarke Quantrill to his mother. Quantrill writes from Stanton, Kansas on January 26, 1860. He acknowledges "the wrongs committed" by the proslavery party, but argues that the abolitionists are "the most lawless set of people." He criticizes their sympathy for John Brown, calling him a murderer and a robber, and declaring that he "should have been hung years ago."
Date: January 26, 1860

Title: From Florella Brown Adair to Unknown
Description: This undated letter was written ca. April 15, 1861 by Florella Brown Adair, presumably to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair. Florella reports that she plans to start for home on April 21, arriving home on the following Saturday. Florella says that Samuel’s father’s health is poor, and that she may attend a family wedding before she leaves Ohio. She writes that Charles and Ada are both well.

Title: From John A. Bushnell to Eugenia Bronaugh
Description: John A. Bushnell of Calhoun, Missouri writes to Eugenia Bronaugh in Hickory Grove, Missouri, reacting to news that her family has fallen victim to “outrages” perpetrated by “evil minded persons.” In the letter, dated July 12, 1864, he informs Eugenia that a Mr. Taylor and a Mr. Robinson have taken possession of two of his houses. He also makes reference to an attack on a black woman’s home, but he omits details because he does not want his words to be “wrongly construed.”
Date: July 12, 1864

Title: From John A. Bushnell to Eugenia Bronaugh
Description: On June 15, 1863, John Bushnell writes from Calhoun, Missouri to Eugenia Bronaugh. John references an incendiary “peace meeting” in New York (possibly the June 3 “Peace Convention”), likening it to John Brown’s raid on Harper’s Ferry. He fears that war may soon permeate “every state in the Union.” John mentions a friend who has seen “every battle fought by General Price since the Lexington fight,” and is now awaiting exchange as a military prisoner.
Date: June 15, 1863

Title: From George Lewis to Mrs. Fitch
Description: George Lewis of Lawrence, Kansas writes a letter to Mrs. Fitch (Edward Fitch’s mother) in Massachusetts on January 14, 1857. He thanks her for donating clothing to his family and to other poor emigrants in Kansas. He tells her that a band of proslavery men robbed him and burned down his house, leaving him living in a tent with his wife and six children. Despite his struggles, Lewis, a Welsh immigrant, expresses hope about the future of Kansas: “It must be made a Free State. It shall be a Free State.”
Date: January 14, 1857

Title: From Sue Brawner to All at Home
Description: This letter of July 24, 1859 is from Sue Brawner in Linneus, Missouri to “all at home.” She describes a recent trip from Lexington, Missouri to Linneus via the city of Brunswick. Along the way she and her traveling companions visited relatives. Sue writes of staying with Tom, a relative in Linneus who owns several slaves: “They have a black girl as large as I am.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: July 24, 1859

Title: From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair and Emma Adair
Description: This letter, dated November 8, 1860, was written by Florella Brown Adair in Hudson, Ohio, to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair and daughter Emma Adair in Osawatomie, Kansas. Florella writes that she just returned to Hudson after a trip to Ashtabula, Geauga, and Portage Counties. She says that she will come home if necessary, but is reluctant to because of the present difficult times in Kansas. Florella adds that she came to Ohio “hoping to enjoy the society of my friends once more after being so long shut up in Kansas and I have so far not been disappointed.”
Date: November 8, 1860

Title: From A.M. Bedford to Mary E. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated August 2, 1863, is from Lieut. A.M. Bedford to his wife Mary E. Bedford in Savannah, Missouri. Bedford, imprisoned at Johnson’s Island, Ohio, tells his wife that he is looking forward to her visit, and that he plans to have a degarian artist to visit and make a portrait of them. He asks her if she received his last letter, and tells her he had enclosed 2 rings for “the little girls.”
Date: August 2, 1863

Title: From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair and Emma Adair
Description: This letter was written between December 20 and 29, 1860 by Florella Brown Adair in Hudson and Grafton, Ohio, to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair and daughter Emma Adair. Florella describes her trip from Hudson to Grafton with her daughter Ada. She states that she has collected $21.00 from friends and relatives to send back to Kansas, and that many people feel a “deep interest in Kansas troubles.” Florella adds that “People here are all awake upon the troubles that threaten our country.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: December 20, 1860-December 29, 1860

Title: From Charles Adair to Emma Adair
Description: This letter was written on October 21, 1860 by Charles Adair in Hudson, Ohio, to his sister Emma Adair. Charles describes a trip to Cleveland, Ohio, to witness “the inauguration of the Perry statue,” which featured “a great many military companies” and “a sham battle.” He also writes about his schooling and future travel plans.
Date: October 21, 1860

Title: Application of Martha A. Barker
Description: This is Martha A. Barker’s application for compensation from the United States government for the military service of her slave, Henry Lewis. The application, dated December 1, 1866, includes an oath of allegiance to the United States, a statement that Barker lawfully purchased her slave, and the signatures of four witnesses and a notary public in Carroll County, Missouri. A note in pencil on the first page indicates that the application was rejected.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: December 1, 1866

Title: From John A. Bushnell to Eugenia Bronaugh
Description: In a May 9, 1863 letter from Calhoun, Missouri, John A. Bushnell tells Eugenia Bronaugh that he has cancelled a trip to visit her in Hickory Grove, Missouri, out of fear for his safety. He also fears discussing information that he has read in newspapers, for “I may be charged with stating it wrong.” He warns Eugenia to be careful and to not talk about “what the Rebels are going to do.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: May 9, 1863

Civil War on the Western Border: The Missouri-Kansas Conflict, 1854-1865

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