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Title: Proceedings of the Citizens of Tecumseh
Description: This document details the proceedings of a meeting of Tecumseh, Kansas citizens held at the Tecumseh courthouse on November 26, 1856. The attendees appointed 12 men to serve as delegates at an upcoming convention in Leavenworth. They also voted on and approved several resolutions, including a commitment to establishing peace in Kansas, and an agreement to support Gov. John W. Geary. The document is dated November 29, 1856 and is signed by 18 citizens.
Object Type: Document
Date: November 29, 1856

Title: From William Murphy to John W. Geary
Description: This letter, dated September 23, 1856, is from William Murphy, mayor of Leavenworth, Kansas, to Gov. John W. Geary. Murphy responds to Geary’s recent inquiry about a group of citizens who claim they were forced to leave Leavenworth. He confirms that Capt. Emory told “all persons who were not in favour of the laws, and unwilling to fight in defence of the City, that they had better leave.” He assures Geary that these people may safely return to Leavenworth “if they will act as law abiding citizens.”
Date: September 23, 1856

Title: Kansas Territorial Records
Description: These documents include letters and affidavits documenting election fraud that occurred in Leavenworth, Johnson, Coffey, and Linn Counties in Kansas Territory. Kansas citizens voted on January 4, 1858 to determine the fate of the Lecompton Constitution and to elect state officials. These documents refer to incidents of “enormous fraud” including men voting repeatedly under false names, falsifying poll books, and destroying ballot boxes “by violence and force.”
Object Type: Government Document
Date: January 5, 1858-March 15, 1858

Title: From S. Norton to John W. Geary
Description: This letter, dated September 9, 1856, was sent to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary by S. Norton and seven other citizens of Leavenworth, Kansas. Writing from St. Louis, Norton states that on September 2, 1856, he and the others were ordered to leave Leavenworth by Capt. Emory and his “armed posse.” They seek protection from Geary so they may safely return to their homes.
Object Type: Letter
Date: September 9, 1856

Title: Petition of F.G. Adams
Description: This petition, dated September 13, 1856, was sent to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary by F.G. Adams and five other citizens of Leavenworth, Kansas. The petitioners, writing from Lawrence, Kansas, state that Leavenworth is “infested by armed bands of men” who robbed them of their property and drove them away from their homes and families. The petitioners seek military protection from Geary to ensure a safe return to Leavenworth.
Object Type: Petition
Date: September 13, 1856

Title: From Daniel Woodson to William P. Richardson
Description: This order, dated August 30, 1856, was sent by Acting Kansas Governor Daniel Woodson in Lecompton, Kansas, to Major General William P. Richardson, Kansas Militia, Northern Division. Woodson orders Richardson to occupy the area between Leavenworth and Lawrence to prevent General James Lane’s escape with his forces. Woodson states that he has ordered Major General Coffey, Kansas Militia, Southern Division, to proceed to or near Lawrence.
Date: August 30, 1856

Title: Petition from Leavenworth Women
Description: This petition, written ca. September 1856, is addressed to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary and is signed by 16 women in Leavenworth, Kansas. The petitioners complain that they have been driven from their homes by a group of armed men. They say that some of their husbands have been imprisoned or extradited, “leaving us unprotected in the midst of a scene of general robbery and all too frequently of murder.” They also claim that the mayor of Leavenworth and other city officials were aware of the raids and failed to stop them. The petitioners ask Geary for his assistance.
Object Type: Petition

Title: From D.R. Anthony to Dear Sister
Description: D.R. Anthony writes a letter from Leavenworth, Kansas to his sister on September 10 and 11, 1858. He reports the results of a recent municipal election, which put into office three Democrats, two Whigs, and fourteen Republicans. He expresses dismay about local Irish-Americans voting Democrat and their desire to establish a “Free white state for white men.” Anthony decries the rampant racism of the times, as well as “the ignorance and prejudice of the Irish.” He tells his sister that his antislavery stance has earned him “the reputation of being one of the most radical men in Kansas.”
Date: September 10, 1858-September 11, 1858

Title: From William Murphy to John W. Geary
Description: William Murphy, mayor of Leavenworth, Kansas, writes a letter to Gov. John W. Geary on October 11, 1856. In response to Geary’s inquiry about the death of Addison Rogers, Murphy states that Rogers was not killed in a political skirmish, but was shot by a fellow gambler. Murphy also informs Geary that U.S. Marshal Israel Donalson took M.J. Mitchell into custody and will bring him to Lecompton to stand trial before Judge Samuel Lecompte.
Date: October 11, 1856

Title: Petition for a Provision Train to Leavenworth
Description: This petition, dated September 18, 1856, requests that Kansas Gov. John W. Geary send a provision train to Leavenworth. It states: “Hundreds of our citizens are suffering – almost starving for supplies that could be easily obtained by your aid in three days. It seems impossible to wait until next week, and we hope you will give our case your earliest possible attention.” The petition is signed by ten citizens of Leavenworth, Kansas.
Object Type: Petition
Date: September 18, 1856

Title: From Daniel R. Anthony to Father
Description: This letter, dated June 10, 1857, was written by Daniel R. Anthony in Leavenworth, Kansas, to his father. Anthony has just arrived in Leavenworth, calling it “the most enterprising city in all Kansas.” Anthony states that land prices are very high but will likely decline during the winter until emigration begins again in the spring. He predicts that insurance will be a "good business" in Leavenworth and discusses various investment options. Anthony reports that he saw Gov. Harney, Sheriff Jones, and Judge Lecompte, who is presiding over the murder trial of Charles Fugett.
Date: June 10, 1857

Title: Statement of Hiram D. Preston
Description: This statement, dated September 11, 1856, was given by Hiram D. Preston regarding the robbery of a team of horses and a load of provisions near Leavenworth, Kansas in August 1856. Preston states that he was accosted by three men on the road from Lawrence, who took him to Capt. Emory’s camp nearby. After being held hostage for several days, Preston lost the team, which belonged to H.L. Jones, and provisions worth $120.52.
Object Type: Document
Date: September 11, 1856

Title: From Joseph Moore to Hugh Fisher
Description: Joseph Moore writes a letter from Marysville, Kansas to Rev. Hugh D. Fisher on August 8, 1863. Moore requests that Fisher send African Americans to work in Marshall County: “I understand you have charge of all the contrabands at Leavenworth, hence I write to you requesting you to send me a stout negro man. Quite a number could get good steady employment here at good wages.”
Date: August 8, 1863

Title: Maps of Shawnee Indian Reservation
Description: These 21 plat maps were made ca. 1857 by Isaac Cooper Stuck. The maps are marked with geographical features and locations of people’s land claims within the Shawnee Indian Reservation in eastern Kansas.
Object Type: Map

Title: Correspondence of the Kansas Territory Executive Department
Description: These documents, dated between 1855 and 1856, relate to the organization and administration of the Kansas Territorial Militia, Northern Division. The documents include commissions issued by acting Kansas Governor Daniel Woodson, officer appointments, and company requests to be mustered out of service.
Date: 1855-1856

Title: From William Murphy to John W. Geary
Description: This letter, dated October 3, 1856, is from William Murphy, mayor of Leavenworth, Kansas, to Gov. John W. Geary. Murphy states that three Leavenworth citizens received letters signed by “Regulators” ordering them to leave Kansas Territory; he tells Geary that he has investigated the incident but cannot determine who sent the letters. Murphy admits to Geary that citizens have complained about his performance as mayor, but he insists that their criticism is not justified. Murphy complains about people who are disloyal to the country and to President Pierce, and he expresses his support of the Democratic Party.
Date: October 3, 1856

Title: From John Wright to John W. Geary
Description: In this September 20, 1856 letter to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary, John Wright complains that a mob of 15 to 20 armed men raided his house. According to Wright, the mob was led by Capt. Miller of Leavenworth County, Kansas. They broke into his home with revolvers, threatened to kill him, and captured Joseph Wright and John Kissinger. Wright asks Geary to rescue Joseph and John from the mob and “Save their Lives.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: September 20, 1856

Title: From George W. Collamore to William P. Dole
Description: This letter, dated April 21, 1862, is from George W. Collamore to Hon. William P. Dole, Commissioner of Indian Affairs. Writing from Washington, DC, Collamore provides an account of his "recent visit to the Loyal Indians who were obliged to flee from their pursuers (the rebel Indians and Texans) in the dead of Winter and are now encamped on the Neosho River" in southern Kansas. Collamore states that these Indians, numbering about 8,000, have suffered and many have died from exposure and lack of food.
Date: April 21, 1862

Title: From Wilson Shannon to E.V. Sumner
Description: This dispatch, dated June 4, 1856, was sent by Kansas Gov. Wilson Shannon in Lecompton, Kansas, to Col. E.V. Sumner at Headquarters, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. Shannon informs Sumner that there are about 300 Free State men in Prairie City, Kansas, “fortified and prepared to fight.” Shannon adds that Capt. Pate and twenty or thirty prisoners are confined there.
Date: June 4, 1856

Title: From Wilson Shannon to E.V. Sumner
Description: This dispatch, dated June 4, 1856, was sent by Kansas Gov. Wilson Shannon in Lecompton, Kansas, to Col. E.V. Sumner at Headquarters, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. With the goal of “preserving the peace and good order of this Territory,” Shannon gives Sumner a detailed set of instructions to station U.S. troops at various points in Franklin and Douglas Counties in Kansas. Shannon warns that in carrying out the plan, the troops must treat all persons equally regardless of party affiliation.
Date: June 4, 1856

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

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