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Title: From Sara Robinson to Charles Robinson
Description: Sara Robinson writes a letter to her husband, Kansas Gov. Charles Robinson, on May 11, 1862. She discusses officer appointments in a Kansas military regiment, and reports that some regiments have been ordered to leave for New Mexico soon. She also discusses their finances, expresses concern for her ill husband's health, and seeks his permission to let her visit him.
Date: May 11, 1862

Title: The Western Dispatch.
Description: 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.
Object Type: Newspaper Article
Date: August 17, 1856

Title: From George Collamore to G.L. Stearns
Description: This letter was written on May 2 and 7, 1861 by George Collamore in Leavenworth, Kansas to G.L. Stearns in Boston. Collamore writes that Kansas is under threat of attack from Missouri and the Cherokee and Osage Indians, and that Kansas’s defenses are weak. He reports that Gov. Robinson offered him the position of Quartermaster General of the Kansas Militia, which he temporarily accepted. Collamore asks Stearns to send “thick colored blankets” and other items to Kansas, urging Stearns to keep his activities secret and to be cautious about what he writes in future letters.
Object Type: Letter
Date: May 2, 1861 and May 7, 1861

Title: From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Description: Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas, writes a letter to his parents in Massachusetts on August 9, 1857, announcing that Kansas has voted to ratify the Topeka Constitution. He adds that Free State supporters appear to comprise a majority in Kansas. Fitch complains about a recent Herald of Freedom article on the apportionment of the Kansas Legislature, and claims that it is “the most damning piece of villany ever perpetrated by any men or set of men.”
Date: August 9, 1857

Title: From John M. Schofield to Thomas Carney
Description: 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.
Date: August 29, 1863

Title: Sectional Map of Kansas Territory
Description: This color map, dated April 1857, is entitled "Sectional Map of Kansas Territory." It was drafted by C.P. Wiggin and signed by L.A. MacLean, Chief Clerk of the Surveyor General’s office in Lecompton, Kansas Territory. MacLean certifies that the map was compiled from U.S. survey field notes. The map was published by MacLean and Lawrence and printed by William Schuchman and Bro. in Philadelphia.
Object Type: Map
Date: April 1857

Title: From Persifor Smith to M.C. Dickey
Description: This letter, dated July 23, 1856, is from Persifor Smith, a U.S. Army Major at Fort Leavenworth, to M.C. Dickey and “others, conductors of emigrating companies.” Smith responds to a letter in which Dickey and the others request military protection from armed bodies guarding the Kansas border. Smith denies their request: “I have no evidence that any parties are in arms to oppose you . . . I cannot act on your vague suspicions.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: July 23, 1856

Title: New Sectional Map of Kansas
Description: This color map, drafted in 1859 by Robert L. Ream, was published by Stevenson and Morris of St. Louis, and printed by A. Janicke and Co. of St. Louis. The map is entitled “New Sectional Map of Kansas,” and was compiled from the field notes in the Surveyor General’s office.
Object Type: Map
Date: 1859

Title: From A.J. Huntoon to My Dear Wife
Description: A.J. Huntoon writes a letter from Williamsport in Shawnee County, Kansas to his wife Lizzie, reporting that Rebels have fired at U.S. troops in Independence, Missouri. He adds that hundreds of Kansas troops have left Lawrence and Fort Leavenworth to assist U.S. troops in Kansas City and St. Joseph, Missouri. The letter, dated June 16 and 19, 1861, also mentions recent shootings in Leavenworth and Atchison, Kansas. Huntoon writes, “We may look for these as common occurrences in Kansas, for a while at least. All carry arms now . . . Men are paying out their last cent for them.”
Date: June 16, 1861-June 19, 1861

Title: Sectional Map of the Territory of Kansas
Description: This color map, entitled “Sectional Map of the Territory of Kansas,” was compiled from the field notes in the Surveyor General’s office. It was published in 1857 by John Halsall in St. Louis.
Object Type: Map
Date: 1857

Title: Kansas and Nebraska 1856
Description: This color map, entitled “Kansas and Nebraska 1856,” was printed by J.G. Wells in New York.
Object Type: Map
Date: 1856

Title: Map Showing the Progress of the Public Surveys in the Territories of Kansas and Nebraska
Description: This black-and-white map, signed by Ward B. Burnett, Surveyor General, was issued by the Surveyor General’s office in Nebraska City, Nebraska Territory on October 1, 1860. The map shows the progress of the public surveys in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska, and was produced to accompany the Surveyor General’s 1860 annual report.
Object Type: Map
Date: October 1, 1860

Title: Map Showing the Progress of the Public Surveys in the Territories of Kansas and Nebraska
Description: This black-and-white map, signed by Ward B. Burnett, Surveyor General, was issued by the Surveyor General’s office in Nebraska City, Nebraska Territory on October 1, 1859. The map shows the progress of the public surveys in the territories of Kansas and Nebraska, and was produced to accompany the Surveyor General’s 1859 annual report.
Object Type: Map
Date: October 1, 1859

Title: Map Showing the Progress of the Public Surveys in Kansas and Nebraska
Description: This black-and-white map, signed by Mark W. Delahay, Surveyor General, was issued by the Surveyor General’s office in Leavenworth, Kansas on September 2, 1861. The map shows the progress of the public surveys in Kansas and Nebraska, and was produced to accompany the Surveyor General’s report of 1861.
Object Type: Map
Date: September 2, 1861

Title: From Edward Hoogland and John A.W. Jones to John W. Geary
Description: In this November 29, 1856 letter, Edward Hoogland and John A.W. Jones report to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary about their recent expedition to southeastern Kansas. They inform Geary that they took depositions, issued warrants, and made arrests in relation to a number of crimes, including some committed during the Pottawatomie Massacre. They also report that they found and returned a substantial amount of stolen property. Hoogland and Jones ask Geary to station U.S. troops in southeastern Kansas, suggesting that “their presence would aid in restoring confidence.”
Date: November 29, 1856

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