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Title: Statement of C.W. Babcock
Description: This is C.W. Babcock’s sworn statement to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary. Dated October 11, 1856, the statement claims that a man named Castleman, posing as a Deputy U.S. Marshal, unlawfully arrested Babcock in Topeka, forcibly moved him to Lecompton, and held him there for three hours.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: October 11, 1856

Title: Report of Deputy U.S. Marshal William H. Tebbs
Description: This report, dated September 29, 1856, is addressed to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary and is signed by Deputy U.S. Marshal William H. Tebbs. Tebbs tells Geary that the U.S. Marshal sent him to Topeka to make several arrests. In his first attempt to make an arrest, Tebbs says, the suspect escaped and could not be found; the townspeople then told him that if he tried to arrest anyone else, he would be resisted. Tebbs also informs Geary that Col. Lane was spotted near the Nebraska state line.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: September 29, 1856

Title: Gale Block, Topeka, Kansas
Description: Photograph of the Gale block in Topeka, Kansas, where the Kansas state legislature convened in the 1860s.
Object Type: Image

Title: From B.F. Dawson to Colonel of the Second Kansas Militia
Description: This letter, dated October 14, 1864 but presumably written ca. October 22, 1864, was sent by B.F. Dawson in Topeka, Kansas, to the Colonel of the 2nd Kansas Militia. Dawson, a member of Capt. Huntoon’s Company B, 2nd Kansas Militia, describes his participation in the Battle of the Blue, during which he was taken prisoner by the Confederates. He was later paroled by Gen. Shelby and marched back to Topeka.

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: Election of A.J. Huntoon
Description: This certificate declares A.J. Huntoon’s election to First Lieutenant of a volunteer company of Cavalry of the Kansas State Militia. It is dated August 25, 1863 and is signed by Kansas Gov. Thomas Carney and Secretary of State W.W.H. Lawrence in Topeka.
Date: August 25, 1863

Title: From A.J. Huntoon to Lizzie Huntoon
Description: A.J. Huntoon writes a letter from Shawnee County, Kansas to his wife Lizzie in New Hampshire. The letter, dated December 30, 1860-January 4, 1861, describes Huntoon’s daily life in Kansas Territory. He also reports to his wife that he plans to travel to Lecompton the following week “to witness the convening of our territorial legislature.”
Date: December 30, 1860-January 4, 1861

Title: From Daniel Woodson to H.H. Sibley
Description: This dispatch, dated July 4, 1856, was sent by Acting Kansas Gov. Daniel Woodson in camp with the 1st Cavalry at Topeka, Kansas, to Major H.H. Sibley, 2nd Dragoons. Woodson instructs Sibley to march his command down to the vicinity of Topeka and encamp for the day just above the town.
Date: July 4, 1856

Title: Proclamation of Daniel Woodson
Description: This proclamation was issued July 4, 1856 by Acting Kansas Gov. Daniel Woodson. Woodson forbids all persons claiming legislative authority or power in Kansas from assembling at Topeka, Kansas and from organizing, attempting to organize, or acting in any legislative capacity whatsoever. Woodson declares that this proclamation upholds President Pierce’s proclamation of February 11, 1856, which decreed that all such acts would be considered insurrectionary.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: July 4, 1856

Title: From S.P. Higgins to John W. Geary
Description: Lieut. S.P. Higgins writes a letter from Tecumseh, Kansas to Gov. John W. Geary on November 23, 1856. He informs Geary that 31 prisoners in his custody escaped the previous night through holes in the prison walls. He says that he suspected the prisoners were headed for Topeka, so he travelled there, but did not find them. He now suspects that they might have gone to Lawrence, and assures Geary that he will update him when he receives new information.
Date: November 23, 1856

Title: Soldier, Eleventh Kansas Volunteer Cavalry
Description: This sepia carte de visite, ca. 1861-1865, depicts an unidentified soldier who served in the Eleventh Kansas Volunteer Cavalry. The carte de visite was produced by Bliss & Wentworth in Topeka, Kansas. Carte de visites were small photographs that were often used as calling cards and became very popular during the Civil War.
Object Type: Image

Title: From G.W. Veale to George W. Dietzler
Description: On October 30, 1864, this dispatch was sent by Col. G.W. Veale at Headquarters, 2nd Regiment, Kansas State Militia in Topeka, Kansas, to Maj. Gen. Dietzler, Comm. Kansas State Militia. Veale reports on a recent campaign in which his regiment moved from Topeka to Shawneetown in Johnson County, Kansas, to Jackson County, Missouri, where it fought in the Battle of the Blue on October 22, 1864. Veale states that his regiment lost 44 killed and wounded, with 68 men taken prisoner after fighting “a force six times our number for three quarters of an hour.” The dispatch includes a list of the soldiers killed and wounded in the battle.
Date: October 30, 1864

Title: From A.J. Huntoon to My Dear Lizzie
Description: A.J. Huntoon writes a letter from Williamsport in Shawnee County, Kansas to his wife Lizzie, announcing that the country is “in a state of great political excitement” following the seizure of Fort Sumter. The letter, dated April 19, 21, and 22, 1861, states that Confederate supporters tried to raise a Palmetto flag in St. Joseph, Missouri, but Union supporters stopped them. Huntoon informs his wife that militia companies are organizing in Kansas, and he asks her if she objects to him becoming an assistant surgeon for the army. He also relays the news that Gen. Lane has been placed in command of 1,000 men in Washington.
Date: April 19, 1861-April 22, 1861

Title: From A.J. Huntoon to Lizzie P. Huntoon
Description: This letter was written on July 7, 9, and 11, 1861 by A.J. Huntoon in Williamsport, Shawnee County, Kansas, to his wife Lizzie P. Huntoon. A.J. describes a party he attended on July 4 in Topeka, Kansas, and states that he enlisted in the service as part of “the Lane guards.” He says that since Lizzie is away from home, “I feel that there is no excuse for not taking an active part in this struggle for freedom & humanity…Such as can leave should be the first to offer themselves, & I feel that I am one.” A.J. adds that he recruited three local men for his company.
Date: July 7, 1861-July 11, 1861

Title: From E.V. Sumner to Daniel Woodson
Description: This dispatch, dated July 2, 1856, was sent by Col. E.V. Sumner at Headquarters, 1st Cavalry in camp at Topeka, Kansas, to Acting Kansas Gov. Daniel Woodson. Sumner states that he will be glad to meet the following day with Woodson, Judge Cato, Col. Isaacs, and U.S. Marshal Donalson. He asks Woodson to bring the Governor’s and President’s proclamations, along with his instructions under them, and the Governor’s letter about the Topeka legislature.
Date: July 2, 1856

Title: From A.J. Huntoon to Lizzie P. Huntoon
Description: This letter, dated January 27-28, 1861, was written by A.J. Huntoon at Johnson House in Lawrence, Kansas, to Lizzie Huntoon. Huntoon reports that he has reached Lawrence from Williamsport, Kansas, after a delay due to severe winter weather. He describes activity in the Kansas Legislature and says that everyone is eager for news of Kansas’ application for statehood; he believes “we will not get to be a state this session.”
Date: January 27, 1861-January 28, 1861

Title: From A.J. Huntoon to My Dear Lizzie
Description: On April 26, 1861, A.J. Huntoon writes a letter from Topeka to his wife Lizzie. He informs her that Kansas is preparing for war and that he plans to start a company of mounted riflemen in Williamsport Township. He says that rumors have circulated about a possible attack by the Osage tribe, and that Governor Robinson responded by warning the Osage to leave the white settlers alone. Huntoon also says he heard a rumor that Indians attacked Fort Riley. He does not believe the rumor, and yet “We are preparing for the worst.”
Date: April 26, 1861

Title: From Thomas Carney to Col. James B. Fry
Description: This letter, dated January 9, 1864, was written by Kansas Gov. Thomas Carney in Topeka, Kansas, to Col. James B. Fry, Provost Marshal General, in Washington, DC. Carney says that part of a letter he wrote to Fry was published in the Leavenworth Daily Conservative, “accompanied with scurrilous remarks.” Carney blames Capt. Sidney Clarke, Assistant Provost Marshal General, for publishing the letter, but leaves it up to Fry to determine Clarke's guilt.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: January 9, 1864

Title: From Lizzie P. Huntoon to A.J. Huntoon
Description: This letter was written by Lizzie P. Huntoon between July 14 and July 21, 1861 to her husband A.J. Huntoon. Lizzie expresses concern for her husband’s safety, while questioning his decision to enlist in the military and leave her and their young son on their own. She writes that she wants to go home to Kansas as soon as possible, feeling like a burden upon the people with whom they are staying.
Date: July 14, 1861-July 21, 1861

Title: From George W. Dietzler to Charles Robinson
Description: George W. Dietzler writes on April 16, 1861 from Lawrence, Kansas, to Kansas Gov. Charles Robinson. Dietzler declares that “Old Abe has decided ‘to put his foot down firmly’ against the ‘Confederate government,’” and suggests that Robinson offer 1000 or more Kansas troops to support Lincoln. He writes, “We must be ready for war—all Lawrence will enlist at short notice. Heaven grant that peace may not be restored until the disease is effectively & permanently cured.”
Date: April 16, 1861

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

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