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Resolutions of the Kansas Territorial Legislative Assembly
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
From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair and Emma Adair
Title
From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair and Emma Adair
Description
On September 14 and 15, 1860, Florella Brown Adair writes from Grafton Station, Ohio, to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair and daughter Emma Adair. Florella describes the contents of a barrel of clothing and other items she is sending to them. She says that her health has improved, and that her relatives and friends are “trying to make me look more like civilized folk than we did in Kansas.” Florella adds that she recently spent hours in conversation with a friend “about Kansas matters.”
Date
September 14, 1860-September 15, 1860
From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair and Emma Adair
Title
From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair and Emma Adair
Description
This letter was written on April 1, 2, and 8, 1861 by Florella Brown Adair in Greenfield, Ohio, to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair and daughter Emma Adair. Florella writes about going on a “calling & begging trip for Kansas” among friends in the area, and how she was disappointed to receive only $3.00 for her efforts. Florella discovered that many people had already given funds for Kansas to Mr. Stephenson, who managed to collect over $300.00 by representing himself as an acquaintance of John Brown.
Date
April 1, 1861-April 8, 1861
From Edward Fitch to Dear Father
Title
From Edward Fitch to Dear Father
Description
This unsigned May 20, 1858 letter is presumably from Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas to his father in Massachusetts. Fitch criticizes the Lecompton Constitution and the English Bill due to their proslavery stance. He fears that those in the Kansas territory will accept the English Bill since it offers large amount of public lands to Kansas settlers. Though Fitch fears Kansas' entrance into the Union as a slave state, he ends his letter in an optimistic tone, remarking that it would be as impossible to make Kansas into a slave state “as it would be to make Hell out of Heaven.”
Object Type
Letter
Date
May 20, 1858
From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Title
From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Description
Edward Fitch writes a letter to his parents from Lawrence, Kansas on May 5, 1861. He tells them that if Missouri secedes, Kansas will have to fight. He asks how people in Massachusetts feel about the war, and expresses hope that the “Yankees” will go to battle with the South and not stop until slavery is eradicated. “War is terrible,” he says, “but sometimes it is necessary for the good of the whole world.”
Date
May 5, 1861
From James Montgomery to George L. Stearns
Title
From James Montgomery to George L. Stearns
Description
James Montgomery writes a letter from Mound City, Kansas to George L. Stearns on May 8, 1861. He reports that, “We are in a perilous position here, and have not ammunition enough to make a respectable fight.” He says that he has organized a regiment to help defend Kansas against pro-slavery Missourians, whose troops are camped along the border of Linn and Bourbon counties. He mentions that an Osage Indian chief attacked some of these troops, then “tied them with ropes to the Horns of his Saddles and dragged them out of the country.” Montgomery asks for Stearns’s assistance in acquiring arms and declares that, “If we have to fight, we will carry the war out of Kansas.”
Date
May 8, 1861
From James Montgomery to G.L. Stearns
Title
From James Montgomery to G.L. Stearns
Description
These two letters were sent to G.L. Stearns by James Montgomery. Writing from Mound City, Kansas on May 8, 1861, Montgomery states that he has organized a regiment and accepted a position on the Governor’s War Council. He reports that the Missourians are “trying to stir up the Indians on our border,” and asks Stearns for two small breech-loading guns. Writing from Lawrence, Kansas on June 21, 1861, Montgomery says that southern Kansas is threatened by invasion from Missouri and Arkansas, while Union men in Missouri are either driven out of the state or drafted into the Confederate army. Montgomery states that he has used Stearns' letter of credit at various times, and thanks him for his generosity.
Date
May 8, 1861 and June 21, 1861
From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Title
From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Description
Edward Fitch writes a letter from Lawrence, Kansas to his parents in Massachusetts on February 24, 1856. He says that the Free State Legislature plans to meet next month in Topeka, and that President Pierce has proclaimed them traitors. Fitch predicts that the Missourians will attack Kansas, “but if they try it we shall have a bloody time out here.” He finishes the letter on March 9 and tells his parents that the Legislature met in Topeka, and that no violence occurred.
Date
February 24, 1856-March 9, 1856
From James Griffing to Augusta
Title
From James Griffing to Augusta
Description
This July 9, 1855 letter was written by James Griffing at Ottawa Creek, Kansas, to Augusta. James writes that he is “travelling the rounds of another preacher’s circuit,” currently staying with an Ottawa Indian named “Jones” (possibly “Ottawa Jones”). James criticizes the Kansas-Nebraska Act and the Bogus Legislature, and describes an inspiring speech given by Charles Robinson in Lawrence, Kansas on Independence Day.
Date
July 9, 1855
From A.J. Huntoon to My Dear Lizzie
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
From George Collamore to G.L. Stearns
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
From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Title
From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Description
In this November 21, 1856 letter to his parents, Edward Fitch describes attending a fundraising dinner in Lawrence, Kansas for the Free State Prisoners in Lecompton. He reports that Governor Geary was not there and that, according to rumors, Judge Lecompton had ordered Geary arrested. He mentions that Governor Robinson and Lieutenant Governor Roberts were both in attendance and gave optimistic speeches about the future of Kansas as a free state.
Object Type
Letter
Date
November 21, 1856
From A.J. Huntoon to Lizzie P. Huntoon
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
From Edward Fitch to Dear Mother
Title
From Edward Fitch to Dear Mother
Description
Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas writes a letter to his mother in Massachusetts on June 15, 1856. He voices disappointment with James Buchanan and predicts that if John C. Fremont is not elected president, Kansas will be admitted to the Union as a slave state. Yet he expresses optimism that “the death knell of slavery has been tolled.” He reports that Colonel Sumner has been gathering troops in Palmyra, Kansas, and he predicts that violence will ensue. He adds that in Lawrence, a number of Free State men have been robbed, and that “Men are being found dead more or less every little while.”
Date
June 15, 1856
From James Montgomery to George L. Stearns
Title
From James Montgomery to George L. Stearns
Description
This letter, dated March 11, 1861, was written by James Montgomery in Mound City, Kansas, to George L. Stearns. Montgomery offers his opinion of sending fugitive slaves to Canada: “it will cost less to protect them here…and, besides, the principle is much better.” He believes that “Kansas is truly a free state, and ever shall be. A fugitive can travel as safely here, in Southern Kansas, as he can in Canada.” Montgomery adds that a free African-American was recently kidnapped by the Missouri Militia, because his guns had not been kept in firing condition.
Date
March 11, 1861
From George W. Dietzler to Charles Robinson
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
From Sarah A. Fitch to My Dear Mother
Title
From Sarah A. Fitch to My Dear Mother
Description
Sarah A. Fitch writes a letter to her mother on April 24, 1861 from Lawrence, Kansas. She discusses her son's health and reports that her husband Edward has postponed his trip to St. Louis after hearing news of the war’s commencement, and says, “I feel as tho I could fight when I read of the outrageous conduct of the South.” She mentions the possibility of Missouri seceding and predicts that Missourians will face trouble if they do not “let Kansas alone.”
Object Type
Letter
Date
April 24, 1861
Edward Fitch
Title
Edward Fitch
Description
This black and white portrait depicts Edward Payson Fitch. He was born in Hopkinton, Massachusetts in 1857 and was one of the early settlers in Kansas Territory. On August 21, 1863, he was killed in Quantrill’s Raid on Lawrence. An intruder shot him in the heart, then burned down his house with his body still inside. His wife and three children escaped.
Object Type
Image
From Edward Fitch to Dear Father
Title
From Edward Fitch to Dear Father
Description
In a May 26, 1856 letter to his father in Massachusetts, Edward Fitch describes the Sack of Lawrence that had occurred six days earlier on May 21, 1856. He mentions that Governor Shannon has called for protection “for fear we should rise up and exterminate him and the Pro-Slavery party.” He expresses his own fear that the Free State Party will be defeated and that Kansas will become a slave state. He also fears for his personal safety, saying he "shall not dare to stay at my cabin without a rifle or gun at my bedside." He adds that he hopes John C. Fremont will win the upcoming presidential election.
Date
May 26, 1856
From Edward Fitch to Mr. Editor
Title
From Edward Fitch to Mr. Editor
Description
In a July 23, 1856 letter to the editor of the Hopkinton (MA) Patriot, Edward Fitch writes that “two or three” men were killed for attending a meeting of the Free State Legislature in Topeka. He says that U.S. Troops have been disarming members of the Free State party and that Border Ruffians have driven out and captured a number of Free State men. He ends the letter by stating that the people of Kansas will not allow themselves to be taxed by the Bogus Legislature.
Date
July 23, 1856

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