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Title
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From Sarah Fitch to My Dear Father and Mother
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Description
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In an emotional letter dated September 2, 1863, Sarah Fitch informs her husband Edward’s parents that he was killed during Quantrill’s Raid on Lawrence. She estimates that 250-300 of Quantrill's men arrived in Lawrence on horseback and fired at everyone in sight, leaving bodies “scattered all over town.” She writes that they approached her home, “screaming and yelling like so many demons from the infernal pit,” then shot Edward in the heart and burned down their house. She suspects they targeted her family because her children had been playing "soldier" and had left a Union flag hanging on their woodshed.
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Date
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September 2, 1863
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Title
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From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
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Description
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In this August 10, 1856 letter to his parents in Massachusetts, Edward Fitch reports a rumor that Border Ruffians plan to attack Lawrence, Kansas. He says he has been gathering firearms in preparation, but worries that “this may be the last letter” he ever writes. He also tells them about the Battle of Franklin and relates a rumor that Colonel Lane was there.
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Date
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August 10, 1856
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Title
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From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
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Description
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This letter, dated September 21, 1856, is from Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas to his parents in Massachusetts. He tells them that he and his army regiment marched to Franklin the previous week in an attempt to defend the town from Border Ruffians. The Ruffians rode into town, burned several buildings, robbed Fitch of everything he owned, and then “dispersed in different directions . . . stealing and murdering as they went.” Fitch mentions his suspicion that Governor Geary is a traitor who has negotiated with the Border Ruffians.
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Object Type
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Letter
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Date
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September 21, 1856-September 28, 1856
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Title
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From John W. Geary to F.J. Marshall
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Description
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This dispatch, dated September 16, 1856, was sent by Kansas Gov. John W. Geary in Lecompton, Kansas, to Gen. F.J. Marshall, 1st Division, Northern Kansas Militia. Geary received Marshall’s dispatch about the threatened invasion of Gen. Lane’s troops and his proposal to station regiments of the Kansas Militia along the northern Kansas line. Geary replies that if such an invasion occurs, he will first employ U.S. troops to combat it, and then call upon Kansas Militia troops if necessary.
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Date
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September 16, 1856
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Title
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From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
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Description
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In this January 20, 1856 letter to his parents in Massachusetts, Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas writes that Missourians launched an attack near Leavenworth on Election Day and tried to confiscate the ballot boxes. Fitch predicts an imminent war, and laments: “How long O Lord must we suffer thus. I hope you will raise an army in the East and March through Missouri and Proclaim liberty to the slave.” Included is a copy of a September 15, 1855 broadside published by John Speer that challenges the Bogus Legislature.
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Date
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January 20, 1856
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Title
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Charles Otis Fitch
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Description
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This black and white photograph, taken circa 1890, depicts Charles Otis Fitch, son of Edward and Sarah Fitch. He was born in Lawrence, Kansas in 1860. At the age of three, he survived Quantrill’s Raid on Lawrence, but his family’s house was burned down and his father was killed in the attack.
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Object Type
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Image
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Title
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From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
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Description
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Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas writes a letter to his parents on March 25, 1855, discussing controversy over the Massachusetts Emigrant Aid Society. Some consider it “a curse to the territory,” Fitch says, but he disagrees and claims it merely “has not done as much good as I wish it had.” He informs his parents, who live in Massachusetts, that he has turned his school into a boardinghouse to accommodate an influx of emigrants. He also mentions the upcoming state legislative election in Kansas and expresses concern that the pro-slavery ticket will win.
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Object Type
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Letter
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Date
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March 25, 1855
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Title
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From James H. Lane to Charles A. Foster
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Description
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This note, dated December 5, 1855, was sent by James H. Lane in Lawrence, Kansas, to Charles A. Foster. The note reads: “We want every true Free State man in Kansas at Lawrence immediately,” probably referring to the conflict known as the Wakarusa War.
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Date
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December 5, 1855
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Title
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From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
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Description
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This unsigned December 12, 1855 letter, presumably from Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas to his parents in Massachusetts, announces the peaceful end to the Wakarusa War. Fitch declares that “we have gained a complete victory without bloodshed,” and that Governor Shannon has “come round on to our side.” He tells them that he has been discharged from military service, and proclaims, “Peace, Peace! and it was Peace.”
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Date
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December 12, 1855
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Title
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From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
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Description
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Edward Fitch writes a letter from Lawrence, Kansas to his parents in Massachusetts on February 24, 1856. He says that the Free State Legislature plans to meet next month in Topeka, and that President Pierce has proclaimed them traitors. Fitch predicts that the Missourians will attack Kansas, “but if they try it we shall have a bloody time out here.” He finishes the letter on March 9 and tells his parents that the Legislature met in Topeka, and that no violence occurred.
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Date
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February 24, 1856-March 9, 1856
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Title
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The Western Dispatch.
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Description
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This is the August 17, 1856 evening issue of the Western Dispatch, printed in Independence, Missouri. The newspaper announces that war is "being waged by the Abolitionists," and reports that James Henry Lane, John Brown, and their forces have robbed several Kansas residents and driven them into Missouri. The paper also mentions that Kansas Gov. Wilson Shannon requested aid from the U.S. military, but was refused. A last minute extra, printed at the bottom of the paper, states that Lane and his men have captured Lecompton.
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Object Type
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Newspaper Article
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Date
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August 17, 1856
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Title
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From Israel B. Donalson to Daniel Woodson
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Description
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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.
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Date
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September 1, 1856
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Title
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Edward Payson Fitch, Jr.
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Description
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This black and white photograph, taken circa 1890, depicts Edward Payson Fitch, Jr., son of Edward and Sarah Fitch. He was born in Lawrence, Kansas in 1863. As a baby, he survived Quantrill’s raid on Lawrence, but his family’s house was burned down and his father was killed in the attack.
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Object Type
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Image
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Title
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Julia Sumner Fitch
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Description
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This black and white photograph, taken circa 1890, portrays Julia Sumner Fitch. Julia was born to Edward and Sarah Fitch in Lawrence, Kansas in 1858. At the age of five, she survived Quantrill’s Raid on Lawrence, but her family’s house was burned down and her father was killed in the attack.
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Object Type
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Image
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Title
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From Daniel Woodson to Lt. Col. Philip St. George Cooke
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Description
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This letter, dated September 1, 1856, was written by Acting Kansas Gov. Daniel Woodson in Lecompton, Kansas, to Lt. Col. Philip St. George Cooke near Lecompton. Woodson instructs Cooke to proceed immediately with U.S. troops to Topeka, Kansas and disarm all insurrectionists, burn their fortifications and breastworks, and take as prisoner any man found in arms against the Territorial government. Woodson also directs Cooke to station a detachment of troops near the road leading from the Nebraska line to Topeka, to “intercept all aggressive invaders…that may make their appearance.”
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Date
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September 1, 1856
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Title
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Statement of Wilson Shannon
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Description
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This statement by Kansas Gov. Wilson Shannon was written ca. December 1855. Shannon describes the series of events leading to the Wakarusa War, beginning with the murder of a Free State supporter named Charles Dow by Franklin Coleman, a proslavery man. To address the subsequent civil unrest in Douglas County, Kansas, Shannon asks General Richardson, General Strickler, and Col. Sumner to supply troops and assist Douglas County Sheriff Samuel J. Jones in restoring order.
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Object Type
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Government Document
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Title
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From Daniel Woodson to William P. Richardson
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Description
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This order, dated August 21, 1856, was sent by Acting Kansas Governor Daniel Woodson in Lecompton, Kansas, to Major General William P. Richardson, Kansas Militia, Northern Division. Woodson approves the use of the Northern Division militia to intercept General James Lane and his forces when they attempt to enter Kansas. Woodson emphasizes that the militia must protect all peaceable citizens and their property regardless of their political views. He adds that no houses may be destroyed unless they are proven to be used as forts or arsenals against the territorial government.
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Date
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August 21, 1856
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Title
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From Daniel Woodson to William P. Richardson
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Description
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This order, dated August 30, 1856, was sent by Acting Kansas Governor Daniel Woodson in Lecompton, Kansas, to Major General William P. Richardson, Kansas Militia, Northern Division. Woodson orders Richardson to occupy the area between Leavenworth and Lawrence to prevent General James Lane’s escape with his forces. Woodson states that he has ordered Major General Coffey, Kansas Militia, Southern Division, to proceed to or near Lawrence.
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Date
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August 30, 1856
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Title
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From John M. Schofield to Thomas Carney
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Description
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This letter, written on the letterhead of Headquarters, Department of the Missouri and dated August 29, 1863, was sent by John M. Schofield in St. Louis to Kansas Governor Thomas Carney in Topeka, Kansas. Writing in the aftermath of Quantrill’s raid on Lawrence, Kansas, Major General Schofield states his hope that President Lincoln will appoint a Court of Inquiry to investigate the raid. Schofield refers to a meeting proposed for September 8, 1863 in Paola, Kansas, in which participants plan to enter Missouri “to recover their stolen property.” Schofield emphasizes the need to preempt this potentially violent meeting.
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Date
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August 29, 1863
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Title
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Massachusetts Street, Lawrence, Kansas
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Description
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Stereograph by Alexander Gardner depicting Massachusetts Street in downtown Lawrence, Kansas. Founded by members of the Massachusetts Emigrant Aid Society (later renamed the New England Emigrant Aid Company) in 1854, Lawrence was a center of Free-State activism during the Border War.
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Object Type
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Image
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Date
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1867
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