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Title: From W.W. Phillips to John B. Ward
Description: W.W. Phillips writes a letter from Auburn, Kansas to his friend John B. Ward on May 21, 1861. Phillips tells Ward that Kansas is full of excitement: “War. War. is the cry.” He says that troops are organizing in preparation for defense, and he declares that “We are Ready for Missouri.” He also anticipates there will be a conflict with Native Americans living nearby.
Object Type: Letter
Date: May 21, 1861

Title: Statement of C.W. Babcock
Description: This is C.W. Babcock’s sworn statement to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary. Dated October 11, 1856, the statement claims that a man named Castleman, posing as a Deputy U.S. Marshal, unlawfully arrested Babcock in Topeka, forcibly moved him to Lecompton, and held him there for three hours.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: October 11, 1856

Title: From Sara Robinson to My Dear Sister
Description: This letter is from Sara Robinson, the wife of Kansas Gov. Charles Robinson, to her sister. Robinson, writing from Lawrence, Kansas on January 5, 1858, tells her sister that an election was held yesterday for the Lecompton Constitution. She states that Charles opposed the constitution and that voting against it was the only option that "promised victory to the Free State men." She also mentions that he has been attending sessions of the Topeka Legislature.
Date: January 5, 1858

Title: From A.J. Huntoon to Lizzie Huntoon
Description: A.J. Huntoon writes a letter from Shawnee County, Kansas to his wife Lizzie in New Hampshire. The letter, dated December 30, 1860-January 4, 1861, describes Huntoon’s daily life in Kansas Territory. He also reports to his wife that he plans to travel to Lecompton the following week “to witness the convening of our territorial legislature.”
Date: December 30, 1860-January 4, 1861

Title: From Daniel Woodson to H.H. Sibley
Description: This dispatch, dated July 4, 1856, was sent by Acting Kansas Gov. Daniel Woodson in camp with the 1st Cavalry at Topeka, Kansas, to Major H.H. Sibley, 2nd Dragoons. Woodson instructs Sibley to march his command down to the vicinity of Topeka and encamp for the day just above the town.
Date: July 4, 1856

Title: Proclamation of Daniel Woodson
Description: This proclamation was issued July 4, 1856 by Acting Kansas Gov. Daniel Woodson. Woodson forbids all persons claiming legislative authority or power in Kansas from assembling at Topeka, Kansas and from organizing, attempting to organize, or acting in any legislative capacity whatsoever. Woodson declares that this proclamation upholds President Pierce’s proclamation of February 11, 1856, which decreed that all such acts would be considered insurrectionary.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: July 4, 1856

Title: From James Griffing to Augusta
Description: This April 6, 1855 letter was written by James Griffing in Wakarusa, Kansas, to Augusta. James has been helping some new “pioneer friends” stake a claim and become settled in Kansas Territory, remarking, “You can hardly think how fast the emigration is pouring in from the free states.” James describes a recent episode of election fraud: “armed forces from Missouri came and took possession of the ballot boxes and pretty much carried on the election as they pleased. Their proceedings will only work against them.”
Date: April 6, 1855

Title: From S.P. Higgins to John W. Geary
Description: Lieut. S.P. Higgins writes a letter from Tecumseh, Kansas to Gov. John W. Geary on November 23, 1856. He informs Geary that 31 prisoners in his custody escaped the previous night through holes in the prison walls. He says that he suspected the prisoners were headed for Topeka, so he travelled there, but did not find them. He now suspects that they might have gone to Lawrence, and assures Geary that he will update him when he receives new information.
Date: November 23, 1856

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

Title: From Edward Fitch to Dear Friends at Home
Description: Edward Fitch writes a July 26, 1855 letter from aboard a steamboat on Lake Erie. He tells friends in his hometown of Hopkinton, Massachusetts that he is en route from Boston to Osawatomie, Kansas. He describes the other members of his travelling party, a group of nineteen emigrants he is taking to Kansas for the New England Emigrant Aid Company.
Object Type: Letter
Date: July 26, 1855

Title: From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Description: In a June 29, 1856 letter to his parents in Massachusetts, Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas predicts the onset of war and states that he is happy about it, “for the North needs something to wake them up once.” He also expresses happiness about the recent presidential nomination of John C. Fremont. He anticipates that there will be trouble at the July 4 convention of the Topeka Legislature, stating, “I hope for the best, but fear for the consequences.” He recommends that his parents read the book "Six Months in Kansas" by Hannah Anderson Ropes.
Object Type: Letter
Date: June 29, 1856

Title: Statement of Wilson Shannon
Description: This statement by Kansas Gov. Wilson Shannon was written ca. December 1855. Shannon describes the series of events leading to the Wakarusa War, beginning with the murder of a Free State supporter named Charles Dow by Franklin Coleman, a proslavery man. To address the subsequent civil unrest in Douglas County, Kansas, Shannon asks General Richardson, General Strickler, and Col. Sumner to supply troops and assist Douglas County Sheriff Samuel J. Jones in restoring order.
Object Type: Government Document

Title: From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Description: Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas, writes a letter to his parents in Massachusetts on August 9, 1857, announcing that Kansas has voted to ratify the Topeka Constitution. He adds that Free State supporters appear to comprise a majority in Kansas. Fitch complains about a recent Herald of Freedom article on the apportionment of the Kansas Legislature, and claims that it is “the most damning piece of villany ever perpetrated by any men or set of men.”
Date: August 9, 1857

Title: From James Griffing to Augusta
Description: This letter, dated June 8, 1855, was sent to Augusta by James Griffing at Walnut Cabin. James discusses frontier life and news of friends in the area, and says that he plans to dispose of his current claim and secure one near Topeka, Kansas. He reassures Augusta that Kansas remains safe despite a violent episode of election fraud perpetrated by “a gang of drunken, worthless villains.”
Date: June 8, 1855

Title: From E.V. Sumner to Daniel Woodson
Description: This dispatch, dated July 2, 1856, was sent by Col. E.V. Sumner at Headquarters, 1st Cavalry in camp at Topeka, Kansas, to Acting Kansas Gov. Daniel Woodson. Sumner states that he will be glad to meet the following day with Woodson, Judge Cato, Col. Isaacs, and U.S. Marshal Donalson. He asks Woodson to bring the Governor’s and President’s proclamations, along with his instructions under them, and the Governor’s letter about the Topeka legislature.
Date: July 2, 1856

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

Title: From William Rachel to Josiah Miller
Description: This letter, dated March 2, 1858, is from William Rachel in New Orleans to Josiah Miller in Kansas. He expresses disappointment that many members of the Kansas Free State Party chose not to vote in the recent election on the Lecompton Constitution. He criticizes the constitution, referring to it as "the Lecompton Swindle," but predicts that Stephen Douglas and "the northern Democrats" will encounter trouble for opposing it.
Date: March 2, 1858

Title: From Philip St. George Cooke to John W. Geary
Description: Lieut. Col. Philip St. George Cooke writes a dispatch from camp in Nebraska to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary on October 8, 1856. He reports on military operations near the Nebraska-Kansas border, and informs Geary that he is sending troops to Lecompton and Topeka.
Date: October 8, 1856

Title: From Philip St. George Cooke to Daniel Woodson
Description: This dispatch, dated July 1, 1856, was sent by Lt. Col. Philip St. George Cooke at Headquarters, Ft. Riley, Kansas, to Acting Kansas Gov. Daniel Woodson in Lecompton, Kansas. Cooke states that he received Woodson’s request for military aid dated June 29, 1856, and that he ordered Maj. H.H. Sibley to march in the direction of Topeka, Kansas, via the Santa Fe Road. Cooke encloses a copy of his instructions to Sibley.
Date: July 1, 1856

Title: From Philip St. George Cooke to John W. Geary
Description: Lieut. Col. Philip St. George Cooke writes a dispatch to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary on September 23, 1856, informing him that Col. Johnston has received orders to march to the “Northern frontier.” Cooke asks Geary to relay any new information he might have.
Date: September 23, 1856

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

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