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Title: Instructions to Gen. P.F. Smith
Description: This document comprises a series of instructions given by the Secretary of War to Gen. P.F. Smith, Commander of the Department of the West, between February 15, 1856 and September 5, 1856. Smith is instructed to “make every exertion in your power with the force under your orders to preserve the peace and prevent bloodshed.” The Secretary of War empowers Smith to act if armed resistance is made by citizens of any political persuasion. Smith is instructed not to interfere with the activities of the Kansas Militia.
Date: February 15, 1856-September 5, 1856

Title: From Israel B. Donalson to Daniel Woodson
Description: This letter, dated September 1, 1856, was written by U.S. Marshal Israel B. Donalson in Lecompton, Kansas, to Acting Kansas Gov. Daniel Woodson. Donalson states that a large number of armed men, probably commanded by Gen. James Lane, are entering Kansas daily for the purpose of driving citizens from the Territory, robbing and burning houses, and committing murder. Donalson does not possess enough troops to suppress Lane’s men, and is submitting the facts of the situation to Woodson so he can determine a course of action.
Date: September 1, 1856

Title: From Wilson Shannon to E.V. Sumner
Description: This dispatch, dated June 23, 1856, was sent by Kansas Gov. Wilson Shannon in Lecompton, Kansas, to Col. E.V. Sumner. Shannon, who says he will soon leave for St. Louis, urges Sumner to attend the meeting of the Topeka legislature. Shannon indicates that he fears an outbreak of violence will occur if U.S. troops are withdrawn from Kansas, and says he will write to President Pierce saying so. Shannon requests that Sumner make no changes with the troops until he returns in ten days’ time.
Date: June 23, 1856

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