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Title: Warrant for the Arrest of Gen. John Reid
Description: This warrant for the arrest of Gen. John Reid was issued on September 19, 1856 by S.G. Cato, Assistant Justice of the Supreme Court of Kansas Territory. The warrant accuses Reid and others of sacking and burning the town of Osawatomie, Kansas, kidnapping two people, and stealing property worth several thousand dollars on August 30, 1856.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: September 19, 1856

Title: Court Martial Proceedings Against Capt. John E. Stewart
Description: This document details the court martial proceedings at Kansas City, Missouri against Capt. John E. Stewart, Co. C, 9th Kansas Volunteers on November 18, 1863. Stewart is accused of “conduct unbecoming an officer and a Gentleman” by misrepresenting himself as a Missouri citizen to Kansas City election officials on November 5, 1863. Stewart pleaded not guilty and was acquitted. On the last page of the document, General Ewing writes a response in which he asks the court to reconsider the verdict.
Date: November 18, 1863

Title: U.S. vs. Charles Robinson
Description: These legal documents include a warrant, dated May 24, 1856, for the arrest of Charles Robinson for committing treason against the United States. Attached is a summary of a witness's testimony: “he had heard Charles Robinson, in common conversation, repeatedly urge upon the people the propriety and necessity of resisting the enforcement of the Territorial laws.” Also included is a motion to sever Robinson’s case from that of a co-defendant, as well as a motion for continuance, dated September 10, 1856. The court documents are from the First District Court of the United States, Douglas County, Kansas Territory.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: May 24, 1856 and September 10, 1856

Title: From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Description: 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.
Date: August 10, 1856

Title: From A.J. Sexton to Catherine
Description: This letter was written on April 29, 1862, by A.J. Sexton in camp at Fort Riley, Kansas, to his wife Catherine. A.J. writes of his plans to send Catherine $20.00 after he is paid on May 1st. He reports that the health of his regiment is good, and he believes they will be sent next to Mexico. A.J. refers to the Battle of Shiloh, and writes with regret about the death of Wisconsin Gov. Harvey shortly after the battle.
Date: April 29, 1862

Title: From W.B. Spaulding to Daniel Peterson Woodbury
Description: This letter, dated April 17, 1858, is from W.B. Spaulding in Quincy, Illinois to Daniel Peterson Woodbury in New Hampshire. Spaulding criticizes James Buchanan for approving the Lecompton Constitution for Kansas Territory, and predicts that it will cause trouble for his administration and for the Democratic Party. He adds that "the whole proceedings seem to have been a farce."
Date: April 17, 1858

Title: From Edward Fitch to Dear Mother
Description: This unsigned April 11, 1858 letter, presumably from Edward Fitch to his mother, discusses the immigrants living in Kansas Territory. The Irish immigrants, Fitch says, are predominantly pro-slavery, while the German immigrants are mostly supporters of the Free State Party. He also describes to his mother the spring flowers in Lawrence, Kansas and his beautiful baby.
Date: April 11, 1858

Title: From O.C. Stewart to John W. Geary
Description: This letter is from O.C. Stewart, mayor of Lecompton, Kansas, to Gov. John W. Geary. In the letter, dated October 3, 1856, Stewart informs Geary that he has issued a proclamation prohibiting the use and sale of liquor in Lecompton. He asks Geary for help enforcing the proclamation, “as I have no law to justify me in destroying the liquor of persons selling under law.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: October 3, 1856

Title: From the Kansas State Central Committee to Philip St. George Cooke
Description: This September 3, 1856 letter is from the Kansas State Central Committee to Lieut. Col. Philip St. George Cooke. The committee members state that Free State supporters have been forced to take up arms to defend themselves against “the inhuman atrocities of organized bands of assassins” from Missouri. They claim that the civil authorities have not helped, and they ask Cooke for protection. The letter is signed by H. Miles Moore, secretary of the committee, as well as W.R. Frost, Morris Hunt, and J. Lawson.
Date: September 3, 1856

Title: From Charles Sumner to My Dear Hale
Description: Massachusetts Senator Charles Sumner writes a letter from Washington to "My dear Hale" on March 1, 1856. Sumner criticizes Stephen A. Douglas, Lewis Cass, and the Know Nothing Party, and worries that "this Congress will do nothing for the benefit of Kansas." He expresses concern that Kansas will not be admitted to the Union due to its small population and the lack of support for its constitution.
Date: March 1, 1856

Title: From George Lewis to Mrs. Fitch
Description: George Lewis of Lawrence, Kansas writes a letter to Mrs. Fitch (Edward Fitch’s mother) in Massachusetts on January 14, 1857. He thanks her for donating clothing to his family and to other poor emigrants in Kansas. He tells her that a band of proslavery men robbed him and burned down his house, leaving him living in a tent with his wife and six children. Despite his struggles, Lewis, a Welsh immigrant, expresses hope about the future of Kansas: “It must be made a Free State. It shall be a Free State.”
Date: January 14, 1857

Title: Resolutions of the Kansas Territorial Legislative Assembly
Description: These documents comprise 14 separate resolutions of the Kansas Territorial Legislative Assembly, dated between 1858 and 1861. The resolutions address a variety of topics, including support for admitting Kansas into the Union as a state; revision of county and township laws; protection of American Indian land rights; and maintaining peace with Missouri by denouncing any attempt by Kansans to interfere with slavery.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1858-1861

Title: Documents Relating to Kansas Territory, U.S. District Court, 3rd District vs. James Montgomery
Description: These documents, dated between December 24, 1858 and February 17, 1859, relate to the case of Kansas Territory, U.S. District Court, 3rd District versus James Montgomery for robbery and murder. In the documents, James Montgomery, John Brown, and other men are accused of murdering John Little and robbing his store on December 16, 1858, while attempting to free their comrade Benjamin Price at Fort Scott, Kansas. The documents include a writ for the arrest of John Brown and a statement by William P. Fain, U.S. Marshal for Kansas Territory.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: December 24, 1858-February 17, 1859

Title: From Z.M. Hadly to Edmund G. Ross
Description: This 1864 telegram was sent by Capt. Z.M. Hadly in Kansas City, Missouri, to Capt. Edmund G. Ross in Lawrence, Kansas. Hadly states that between 150 and 200 guerrillas crossed into Kansas the previous night, heading in the direction of Olathe, Kansas. Hadly reports that 350 cavalry were immediately dispatched from Kansas City to Olathe.
Object Type: Telegram
Date: 1864

Title: Free State Convention!
Description: Invitation to the Free State Convention in Big Springs, Kansas. On September 5-6, 1855, approximately 100 delegates gathered at Big Springs, Kansas, along the California Road in Douglas County, to form the Free-State Party. The party supported the entry of Kansas into the Union as a free state, but it did not necessarily espouse abolition of slavery in the South, a position commonly considered to be radical in both the North and the South.
Object Type: Image
Date: 1855

Title: From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Description: 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.
Object Type: Letter
Date: September 21, 1856-September 28, 1856

Title: Indictment Against Andrew Reeder et al.
Description: This indictment was issued against Andrew H. Reeder, Charles Robinson, James H. Lane, George W. Brown, George W. Dietzler, George W. Smith, Samuel N. Wood, and Gaius Jenkins for the crime of treason. The indictment, issued October 4, 1856 by the 3rd U.S. District Court of Kansas Territory, accuses Reeder and the others of “unlawfully and traitorously” assembling for the purpose of “overthrowing and subverting by force and violence” the government of Kansas Territory, among other crimes.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: October 4, 1856

Title: From Leigh R. Webber to Miss Brown
Description: This letter, dated March 8, 1862, is from Leigh R. Webber to Miss Brown. Webber describes marching with his regiment from Kansas City, Missouri to Fort Scott, Kansas, and shares concerns about an upcoming march to Fort Smith, Kansas.
Date: March 8, 1862

Title: From Daniel L. Chandler to John Stillman Brown
Description: This letter, dated September 11, 1861 is from Daniel L. Chandler to John Stillman Brown. Chandler reports that his regiment just arrived at Fort Scott, Kansas after a forced march from Lawrence. He complains that the unnecessary march and a lack of blankets caused a number of soldiers to fall ill.
Date: September 11, 1861

Title: From Leigh R. Webber to Charles Brown
Description: On March 23, 1862, Leigh R. Webber writes a letter from Fort Scott, Kansas to John Stillman Brown. He describes daily life in the "cheerless camp," complains about the disobedient and rowdy soldiers in his regiment, and expresses a longing for the "excitement of battle." He reports that his regiment has been ordered to advance to Fort Smith.
Date: March 23, 1862

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

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