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Title: Petition from Residents of Vernon County, Missouri
Description: This petition was sent to Missouri Gov. Robert M. Stewart on August 25, 1859 by 45 citizens of Vernon County, Missouri. The petitioners request that a company of Missouri Volunteers be stationed on the state line in Vernon County “until Kansas has a Constitution…or you are convinced…that her people…will obey some law.” As evidence of their need for protection, they refer to the threat posed by James Montgomery and his men, who are demanding the immediate release of William Wright, a prisoner held in Vernon County.
Object Type: Petition
Date: August 25, 1859

Title: Petition from Vernon County Citizens
Description: This petition, dated November 21, 1860, is addressed to Missouri Gov. Robert M. Stewart and signed by 34 citizens of Little Osage, Vernon County, Missouri. The signers assert that they are “imminently in danger of another invasion” from Kansas guerrillas. They claim that they have been victim to numerous attacks over the past three years, and that during one attack, John Brown stole “ten or eleven thousand dollars” of property. The petitioners ask Stewart to station the Missouri Mounted Militia, Company A, in Little Osage for their protection.
Object Type: Petition
Date: November 21, 1860

Title: Petition from Jackson County Citizens
Description: This petition, ca. 1860, is addressed to Missouri Gov. Robert M. Stewart and signed by 43 citizens of Jackson County, Missouri. The signers declare their need for protection from the “murderous attacks of Montgomery” and his band of guerrillas. They ask Stewart to authorize Samuel Ralston to raise a company of troops to serve under the command of Col. Frost.
Object Type: Petition

Title: Petition from Bates County Citizens
Description: This petition, dated November 23, 1860, is addressed to Missouri Gov. Robert M. Stewart and signed by 13 citizens of Bates County. The signers declare their need for further protection from Jayhawker attacks. They inform Stewart that they are sending fellow citizen William Doak, a captain in the Missouri Militia, to visit him and request protection. They assure Stewart that Doak is a trustworthy citizen.
Object Type: Petition
Date: November 23, 1860

Title: Petition from N.J. Chaney & Others
Description: This petition was sent to Missouri Gov. Robert M. Stewart on January 7, 1859 by N.J. Chaney and 12 other citizens of West Point, Bates County, Missouri. The petitioners request that Dr. Thomas J.B. Rockwell be appointed as surgeon for the Missouri Militia companies serving in Bates County “and in adjoining counties of the border.” Among the petition’s signatories are U.S. Deputy Marshal Andrew J. Russell and Bates County Sherriff John W. Cline.
Object Type: Petition
Date: January 7, 1859

Title: Petition to Henry Wager Halleck
Description: This ca. 1862 petition is addressed to Maj. Gen. Halleck of the Commanding Department of the Mississippi, and is signed by twenty officers of the 25th Missouri Volunteer Infantry. The petitioners urge Halleck to promote Lieut. Col. R.T. Van Horn to Colonel, citing his skill and bravery in the First Battle of Lexington and in the Battle of Shiloh.
Object Type: Petition

Title: Petition to H.R. Gamble
Description: This July 11, 1862 petition is addressed to H.R. Gamble, Governor of Missouri. The petitioners, citizens of Jackson County, Missouri, request that Lieut. Col. R.T. Van Horn of the 25th Missouri Volunteer Infantry be assigned "to the Command of the Troops." They cite Van Horn's familiarity with the area, and argue that the Federal troops' ignorance of the area is "the principal reason why the Guerilla bands infesting this District have not been broken up."
Object Type: Petition
Date: July 11, 1862

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