Civil War

Title: Notice of Drafting
Description: Draft notice for various counties in New Jersey.
Object Type: Image
Date: September 2, 1862

Title: The Governor's Mansion, Lecompton, Kansas Territory
Description: Harper's Weekly wood engraving of men on horseback outside of the governor's mansion in Lecompton, Kansas Territory. The house was built by Douglas County Sheriff Samuel J. Jones and briefly resided in by Kansas Territorial Governor John W. Geary. In 1855, The "Bogus Legislature" selected the proslavery town of Lecompton as Kansas Territory's capital city. Meanwhile, Free-Staters continued to denounce the legislature as illegitimate.
Object Type: Image
Date: June 6, 1857

Title: From J.W. Black to A. Comingo
Description: On December 24, 1863, J.W. Black, Deputy Provost Marshal for Ray County, Missouri, writes from Richmond, Missouri to Capt. A. Comingo, Provost Marshal for the 6th District of Missouri, in Lexington, Missouri. Black states that he ordered the release of Frank Adams, and that Aaron Elliott probably escaped to Nebraska "before I sent after him."
Date: December 24, 1863

Title: The Union Volunteer
Description: Patriotic print created by the Currier & Ives Lithography Company in 1861, following the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter and President Lincoln's call for 75,000 volunteers to suppress the rebellion.
Object Type: Image

Title: Meeting of the Southern Seceders from the Democratic Convention at St. Andrew's Hall, Charleston [S.C.] April 30, 1860
Description: Wood engraving from the May 12, 1860 issue of Harper's Weekly depicting the "Fire-Eaters" meeting in Charleston, South Carolina.
Object Type: Image
Date: May 12, 1860

Title: Thomas Carney, Kansas Governor
Description: Sepia portrait of Thomas Carney, a successful mercantile businessman from Leavenworth who served as second Governor of Kansas from January 12, 1863 to January 9, 1865.
Object Type: Image
Date: 1888

Title: Letters Sent (Provost Marshal, Northern District of Kansas)
Description: This notebook contains copies of correspondence sent by the Provost Marshal's Office, Northern District of Kansas in Leavenworth, Kansas, between August and December 1865. The correspondence addresses topics such as enrollment, desertions, and recruitment efforts. Participants in the correspondence include Quarter Master General M.C. Miegs; Assistant Secretary of War C.A. Dana; and Capt. J. McCahon, Provost Marshal for the Northern District of Kansas.
Date: August 1865-December 1865

Title: Civil War Muster Rolls
Description: These muster rolls from 1861 and 1864 list the names of soldiers enlisted in Captain James R. Murphy’s Company of Home Guards from Caldwell County, Missouri. Attached is a January 22, 1946 letter from Bertha E. Booth of Caldwell County to Mr. Shoemaker. Booth notes that the muster roll from 1864 is likely to be “a list of the militiamen who were in pursuit of the Thrailkill (Confed.) raiders.”
Date: 1861 and 1864

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: From Joseph H. Trego to Alice Trego
Description: This letter, dated July 21, 1863, is from Joseph H. Trego, a lieutenant in the 5th Kansas Cavalry Regiment, to his wife Alice. He writes from Atkinson, Illinois, updating Alice on his recent and future travels, and reporting on the health and well-being of several acquaintances. He expresses optimism for the future of Kansas, predicting that it will prosper if it “should prove capable of producing enough to support a large population.”
Date: July 21, 1863

Title: Odon Guitar
Description: This sepia photograph, ca. 1860s, depicts Union Col. Odon Guitar of the 9th Cavalry, Missouri State Militia, in military uniform. The photograph was taken at Nichols and Bros. Photographic Gallery in St. Louis, Missouri.
Object Type: Image

Title: From Charles Adair to Florella Brown Adair and Samuel Lyle Adair
Description: On June 17, 1862, Charles Adair writes from Emporia, Kansas, to his parents Florella Brown Adair and Samuel Lyle Adair. Charles writes that his company is encamped near the town of Emporia, and explains that they have no arms other than sabers. He says that since he is not allowed to ride his government-issued horse home on furlough, he may try to buy his own horse. Charles plans to write a letter home once a week, but says his parents should not worry if they don't hear from him: "It is hard work to get a chance to write when on the march.”
Date: June 17, 1862

Title: From James M. Boyer to A. Comingo
Description: This letter, dated October 9, 1863 is from James M. Boyer, Deputy Provost Marshal of Chariton County, Missouri, to Capt. A. Comingo, Provost Marshal of the 6th district of Missouri. Boyer asks Comingo for information about the proper procedure for discharging soldiers. He also reports that Jefferson J. Shaw of Chariton County was discharged from his regiment despite being fit and wanting to remain in the service. "It does seem to me," Boyer writes, "that there is a screw loose somewhere."
Date: October 9, 1863

Title: From Unknown to Dear Brother
Description: This unsigned letter, dated September 30, 1861, describes a recent Missouri state convention, which resulted in a majority vote against secession. The writer expresses ambivalence about the motivations for this vote: "As the Union at that time was hanging on a pivot, and all were anxious that it should be preserved--few having the boldness to assert that they were for secession--of course we elected good Union men . . . but there is no telling what men will do when they have the power."
Date: September 30, 1861

Title: Application of Elizabeth Turner
Description: This is Elizabeth Turner’s application for compensation from the United States government for the military service of her slave, Nelson. The application, dated November 17, 1866, includes an oath of allegiance to the United States and a statement that Turner, of Howard County, Missouri, lawfully obtained her slave. The application is signed by two witnesses and a notary public in Cooper County, Missouri.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: November 17, 1866

Title: From Morse to Joseph H. Trego
Description: This letter, dated October 28, 1862, is from a soldier named Morse to Lieut. Joseph Trego of the 5th Kansas Cavalry Regiment. Morse says that he was elected to Trego’s position after Trego left the company. He updates Trego on daily life at Camp Vandiver, informing him that Col. Clayton is planning to build barracks and that Lieut. Cox, who had gone AWOL, returned to camp drunk. He also mentions that rebels recently attacked an Illinois regiment and took 70 prisoners.
Date: October 28, 1862

Title: From Abishai Stowell to "Dear Sister"
Description: On January 15, 1864, Abishai Stowell writes from Fort Smith, Arkansas to his sister. Stowell reports that his company has just returned from escorting Gen. McNeil to Fayetteville, Arkansas; he expects they will soon be sent back to their regiment. He tells his sister the names of his company's officers, including Capt. John Johnston. Stowell also states that he belongs to the Veteran Corps.
Date: January 15, 1864

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 R.H. Kimball & Company of Leavenworth, 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: Jewell Hall
Description: Illustration of Jewell Hall on the campus of William Jewell College, Liberty, Missouri. The building was constructed in 1852, and temporarily housed Union soldiers during the Battle of Liberty.
Object Type: Image

Title: From Jane C. Tandy to My Dear Grand Mother
Description: This letter, dated October 22 and October 31, 1866, is from Jane C. Tandy to her grandmother. Tandy describes the tension between "conservatives" and "radicals" in Missouri following the Civil War. She reports that conservatives are taking the Oath of Loyalty to the United States Government required for Missouri voters, while the radicals are refusing.
Date: October 22, 1866 and October 31, 1866

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

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