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Title: From A.M. Bedford to Mary E. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated October 12, 1864, is from Lieut. Alex M. Bedford to his wife Mary E. Bedford in Savannah, Missouri. He writes from Morris Island off the coast of Charleston, S.C., where he is imprisoned. He informs his wife that he has written to Gen. Craig and requested parole. He tells Mary, “I am very tired of prison life + want to get out if there is any honorable way.”
Date: October 12, 1864

Title: From Mary E. Bedford to A.M. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated May 1, 1864, is from Mary E. Bedford in Savannah, Missouri to her husband, Lieut. Alex M. Bedford, at the Officers Prison in Point Lookout, Maryland. Mary updates him on the health of family members and on her tenant’s upkeep of her farm. She reports that two acquaintances who joined the army the previous spring have both recently died. Missouri, she states, “is peaceable . . . and I hope it will remain so.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: May 1, 1864

Title: From Alex M. Bedford to Mary E. Bedford
Description: On January 26, 1865, Alex M. Bedford writes from Hilton Head, South Carolina, to his wife, Mary E. Bedford, in Savannah, Andrew County, Missouri. Alex writes, “I must get out of prison or I will soon go to my long home[.] I am leaner in flesh than I ever was…I am so weak I reel as I walk & nearly lossed my eyesight.” He asks Mary to verify that it is safe for him to return home, and inquires whether James Bohart has returned yet.
Date: January 26, 1865

Title: Letters Sent (Provost Marshal's Office, 7th District Missouri)
Description: This notebook contains copies of letters sent from the Provost Marshal's Office, 7th District of Missouri, in St. Joseph, Missouri, between July 2, 1864 and April 21, 1865. The correspondence, written by Capt. William Fowler, Provost Marshal of the 7th District, addresses such topics as military enrollment, including names of recruits; army desertion; compensation; draft dodgers; and an instance of character defamation in the St. Louis "Morning Herald." Correspondents include Missouri Provost Marshal General E.B. Alexander and U.S. Provost Marshal General James B. Fry.
Date: July 2, 1864-April 21, 1865

Title: From O.H.P. Craig to A.M. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated April 25, 1861, is from O.H.P. Craig in St. Joseph, Missouri to Alex M. Bedford in Savannah, Missouri. Craig announces, “We have nothing here, but War! War!” He reports that local business has stagnated and that everyone is eager for news about the war. He also mentions that he recently returned from a trip to St. Louis and that residents there are full of “excitement and alarm.”
Date: April 25, 1861

Title: From A.M. Bedford to Mrs. Mary E. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated April 11, 1864, is from Lieut. Alex M. Bedford to his wife, Mary E. Bedford, in Savannah, Missouri. Bedford, stationed at the Officers Camp in Point Lookout, Maryland, writes about recent travel and assures his wife that he is in good health. He asks her about her home life, their farm, and their neighbors, and he warns her to “be careful how you talk to anyone.”
Date: April 11, 1864

Title: From M.E. Bedford to A.M. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated June 12, 1864, is from Mary E. Bedford in Savannah, Missouri to her husband, Lieut. Alex M. Bedford. Mary shares news of a mutual acquaintance, and of their home and farm. She reports that a Mr. Leneer was executed in Savannah after serving two years in prison for burning the railroad. She tells her husband that she has sent him clothing, and complains that he has been away from home for nearly three years.
Object Type: Letter
Date: June 12, 1864

Title: From Mary E. Bedford to A.M. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated June 13, 1863, is from Mary E. Bedford to her husband, Lieut. Alex M. Bedford. She states that she sent him $30 and asks if he needs more money or clothing. She also reports that she has rented out her farm and that she might spend the summer visiting relatives in Kentucky. She asks her husband if she would be permitted to visit him.
Date: June 13, 1863

Title: From Mary E. Bedford to Alex M. Bedford
Description: On August 11, 1863, Mary E. Bedford writes from her home to her husband, Alex M. Bedford. Mary says that she has not yet received her permit to visit him, and writes that she hopes the war will soon end. She says that she is ready to go to Kentucky to stay with relatives, because although “times are better hear now…the Lord only knows how long [they] may stay so.” Mary also informs Alex that Cousin Oscar is in Tennessee serving in General Wheeler’s army.
Date: August 11, 1863

Title: From Alex M. Bedford to Mary E. Bedford
Description: On November 4, 1862, Alex M. Bedford writes to his wife, Mary E. Bedford. Alex says that he was wounded and taken as a prisoner of war by the Federals near Corinth, Mississippi. He is now staying at the home of a wealthy man in Franklin County, Alabama, where “we are furnished with every thing we want…the kindness I have received from the family I will never forget.” Alex instructs Mary to direct her letters to Iuka Hospital via Corinth, and declares, “If I get killed I cannot die in a better cause.”
Date: November 4, 1862

Title: From Samuel Lyle Adair to Florella Brown Adair
Description: This letter was written March 26 and 29, and April 1, 1861 by Samuel Lyle Adair in Osawatomie, Kansas, to his wife Florella Brown Adair. Samuel writes that he was forced to borrow money to continue work on the church’s construction, and will likely need to borrow more; he explains that this is difficult in Osawatomie because money is scarce. He states that many people in Kansas are destitute, although aid continues to arrive in the county, including a shipment of seed wheat from the New England Relief Committee.
Date: March 26, 1861-April 1, 1861

Title: From Alex M. Bedford to Mary E. Bedford
Description: On July 14, 1863, Alex M. Bedford writes from Johnson’s Island, near Sandusky City, Ohio, to his wife Mary E. Bedford. Alex writes of being troubled by Mary’s last letter, in which she “spoke of the death of my nearest & best friends[.] Why cannot the Federal authorities stop it[?]” Alex advises Mary to go to Kentucky to stay with relatives until times get better at home, although he regrets that the children must be taken out of school. He advises Mary to get a permit to visit him with the help of Robert Wilson, W.P. Hall, “or some other Union man of influence.”
Date: July 14, 1863

Title: General Orders, No. 34
Description: Maj. Gen. Samuel Curtis issued General Order No. 34 from the Department of the Missouri Headquarters in St. Louis on May 4, 1863. The order details the proceedings of a recent Military Commission in St. Joseph, Missouri, where several citizens were tried for war crimes, including disloyal conduct, violation of the conduct of war, bearing arms against the Government, violation of the Oath of Allegiance, and disturbing the peace of Union men. The order was signed by Assistant Adjutant General A.V. Colburn.
Date: May 4, 1863

Title: List of Colored Recruits Enlisted, 6th District Missouri
Description: This military roll, ca. 1863-1864, lists the names of "colored recruits" enlisted in the 6th congressional district of Missouri. The soldiers were recruited from Ray, Andrew, Clinton, Lafayette, Pettis, and Saline Counties. The document includes the names of the soldiers' owners and the months of their enlistment.

Title: From A.M. Bedford to Mary E. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated March 21, 1865, is from Lieut. Alex M. Bedford to his wife Mary E. Bedford in Savannah, Missouri. Bedford, imprisoned at Fort Delaware, reports that he expects to be released soon. “I have been a prisoner so long,” he writes. “God hasten the time when we can meet a gain in peace.” He adds that his health and eyesight are improving.
Date: March 21, 1865

Title: General Orders, No. 38
Description: Maj. Gen. Samuel Curtis issued General Order No. 38 from the Department of the Missouri Headquarters in St. Louis on May 22, 1863. The order details the proceedings of recent Military Commissions in St. Joseph, St. Louis, and Springfield, Missouri, where citizens were tried for war crimes, including consorting with guerrillas and bushwhackers, killing United States soldiers from the Seventh Cavalry Regiment Missouri Volunteers, and encouraging rebellion against the government. The order was signed by Assistant Adjutant General A.V. Colburn.
Date: May 22, 1863

Title: From Alex M. Bedford to Mary E. Bedford
Description: On November 11, 1864, Alex M. Bedford writes from Fort Pulaski, off Savannah, Georgia, to his wife Mary E. Bedford in Savannah, Andrew County, Missouri. Alex says he has not been exchanged yet and fears there is no chance of it happening soon, although he is pleased with the move to Fort Pulaski. He tells Mary that his bunkmate is Lt. David Bronaugh of Clay County, Missouri, whose cousin Miss F.A. Bronaugh lives in Barry, Clay County. Alex tells Mary that Miss Bronaugh may soon write to her and that she can get news of him through contact with her.
Date: November 11, 1864

Title: From Mary E. Bedford to A.M. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated March 8, 1864, is from Mary E. Bedford to her husband, Lieut. A.M. Bedford, who is at the military hospital in Point Lookout, Maryland. Mary reports that she has just arrived in St. Joseph, Missouri after visiting relatives and friends in Kentucky. She expresses hope that her husband will soon be able to return home. She encourages him to write letters to his relatives, and offers to send him money.
Object Type: Letter
Date: March 8, 1864

Title: From W.J. Clasbey to Alex M. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated August 13, 1865, was written by W.J. Clasbey in Nebraska City, Nebraska Territory, to his brother-in-law, Alex M. Bedford. Clasbey congratulates Bedford on returning home to his family “after four long, dark, wearisome years of strife and suffering.” Clasbey suggests that they “look back upon these unfruitful years not with feelings of regret…but with pleasing emotions and gratitude to Kind Providence.” Clasbey reports that he recently met their old friend Jeff Patton, who “had become sick in consequence” of taking the Oath of Loyalty.
Object Type: Letter
Date: August 13, 1865

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

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

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