Search results

Title: From E.R. Brawner to Sue Brawner
Description: This letter, dated November 10, 1861, is from E.R. Brawner in Linneus, Missouri, to her sister Sue Brawner. E.R. Brawner writes that her friend Greg is recruiting for a cavalry company. Greg is also making plans with another man known as “Jack the Jayhawker” to “go down to Lexington and clear it out.” E.R. Brawner notes that she tried to dissuade Jack from this plan, but he is a “dare devil” and would not listen.
Object Type: Letter
Date: November 10, 1861

Title: Release From Arrest
Description: This document exonerates ten men who were charged with conspiracy to assassinate military officers at a post in Brunswick, Missouri. The document is dated November 29, 1862 and is signed by Brig. Gen. Richard C. Vaughan at the 6th Military District Headquarters in Lexington, Missouri. Vaughan states, “I have examined all the testimony . . . there is no foundation in truth for the charge against them.”
Date: November 29, 1862

Title: Examination of W.W. Dougherty
Description: This is W.W. Dougherty's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Dougherty, who was born in Indiana, describes himself as a 47-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri. He claims that he had "no particular sympathy" with either side during the Civil War. Upon hearing that Gen. Sterling Price had captured Gen. Mulligan and his army at Lexington, Missouri, Dougherty "felt that there was a big mess on hand." The oath, labeled No. 49 in a bound volume, was signed by Dougherty in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: From E.B. Alexander to A. Comingo
Description: On December 10, 1863, Col. E.B. Alexander, Acting Assistant Provost Marshal General in St. Louis, writes to Capt. A. Comingo, Provost Marshal for the 6th District of Missouri, in Lexington, Missouri. Alexander states that he received a telegram from Provost Marshal General James B. Fry dated December 9, 1863: "Awards for bringing recruits may be paid to the recruiting agent, or to any other person as you and the authorities deem best."
Date: December 10, 1863

Title: From J.W. Black to A. Comingo
Description: On December 14, 1863, J.W. Black, Deputy Provost Marshal for Ray County, Missouri, writes from Richmond, Missouri to Capt. A. Comingo, Provost Marshal for the 6th District of Missouri, in Lexington, Missouri. Black thanks Comingo for securing his new appointment as Recruiting Agent. He says he assumes Comingo is "annoyed very much with persons from our side of the river applying to you to be stricken from the enrollment list," and reports that he has already prevented many men from doing so.
Date: December 14, 1863

Title: Benjamin W. Grover
Description: This ca. 1861 sepia photograph depicts Benjamin W. Grover, a prominent early citizen of Warrensburg, Missouri. After a career with the railroad, Grover served in the 27th Missouri Infantry, U.S. Volunteers, and died October 30, 1861 from wounds received in the first Battle of Lexington. Grover is believed to have been a friend of General Grant; the coat he is wearing in the photograph may have been given to him by Grant.
Object Type: Image

Title: Benjamin W. Grover
Description: This ca. 1861 tintype depicts Benjamin W. Grover, a prominent early citizen of Warrensburg, Missouri. After a career with the railroad, Grover served in the 27th Missouri Infantry, U.S. Volunteers, and died October 30, 1861 from wounds received in the first Battle of Lexington. Grover is believed to have been a friend of General Grant; the coat he is wearing in the photograph may have been given to him by Grant.
Object Type: Image

Title: Discharge Papers of Lawrence Shannon
Description: This document certifies that Lawrence Shannon was discharged from the United States military on October 29, 1861 in St. Joseph, Missouri. The document describes Shannon as a 30-year old stone mason from Ireland. It states that Shannon was captured during the Battle of Lexington and mustered out of service per General Order No. 13. The document is signed by Capt. William Millar and Maj. R.T. Van Horn.
Date: October 29, 1861

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: From James Boyer to A. Comingo
Description: On December 23, 1863, James Boyer, Deputy Provost Marshal for Chariton County, Missouri writes from Brunswick, Missouri to Capt. A. Comingo, Provost Marshal for the 6th District of Missouri, in Lexington, Missouri. Boyer informs Comingo that his check on the Treasury at St. Louis has been drawn at Washington, DC in favor of enrolling officer Joseph Standley. Boyer states that he also received two checks drawn at Washington as "payment in full" for services rendered by James Sportsman as enrolling officer for Subdistrict No. 30.
Date: December 23, 1863

Title: From W.E. Prince to R.T. Van Horn
Description: This telegram was sent from Capt. W.E. Prince at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas to Maj. R.T. Van Horn on August 23, 1861. Prince instructs Van Horn to "destroy everything" if forced to "abandon position." He also tells Van Horn to "continue work on gun" and to "communicate with Lexington and obtain Grahams Company ordered by me to this place."
Object Type: Telegram
Date: August 23, 1861

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