Civil War

Title: From John A. Bushnell to Eugenia Bronaugh
Description: John A. Bushnell writes a letter to Eugenia Bronaugh on August 18, 1863. He describes the beautiful scenery and overwhelming heat in Calhoun, Missouri. He complains about those who do not fear the law, claiming they would “sink the government, their neighbors—everything for their own dear personal safety.”
Date: August 18, 1863

Title: Quarterly Return of Ordnance and Ordnance Stores, March 31, 1863
Description: This military document is a quarterly return of ordnance and ordnance stores for Company "A" 8th Cavalary Regiment Missouri State Militia under the command of Captain David D. Stockton. This document covers the first quarter of 1863.
Date: March 31, 1863

Title: General Orders, No. 2
Description: Col. J.J. Gravely and Lieut. H. Mitchel of the Missouri State Militia issued General Order No. 2 on August 26, 1864. They instruct officers of companies stationed in Springfield, Missouri to prohibit their soldiers from leaving camp without permission. As punishment, "any soldier found absent from his command . . . will be arrested and confined."
Date: August 26, 1864

Title: From John A. Bushnell to Eugenia Bronaugh
Description: John A. Bushnell writes from St. Louis, Missouri on August 4, 1864 to Eugenia Bronaugh in Hickory Grove, Missouri. John worries about tension between the radical and conservative parties, declaring there is “more bitter feeling between them than ever was between the Secesh and Union parties.” John believes it may not be prudent for him to return home, because of “the way I was treated before I left, and the way I have been treated since I left.” He hints that he must censor his letter since “it might be seen by others.”
Date: August 4, 1864

Title: James J. Akard's Appointment and Commission to Colonel
Description: In this document, Missouri Governor Thomas C. Fletcher appoints and commissions James J. Akard as Colonel of the Polk and Cedar Counties Regiment in the Missouri Militia.
Date: June 23, 1865

Title: Quarterly Return of Ordnance and Ordnance Stores, 1863
Description: This military document is a return of ordnance and ordnance stores for Company "A" 8th Cavalry Regiment Missouri State Militia under command of Captain James J. Akard for the third quarter of 1863.
Date: May 26, 1865

Title: Certificate of a Lost Horse on October 8th, 1864
Description: In this military document, Captain James J. Akard certifies that one horse of the Missouri State Militia 8th Cavalry Regiment Company "A" was killed during the Battle of Jefferson City on October 8, 1864.
Date: February 16, 1865

Title: Invoice of Quartermasters Stores
Description: This military document is a Quartermasters Stores Invoice for the Missouri State Militia 8th Cavalry Regiment Company "A" that shows the transfer of iron and nails from Lieutenant M. W. Johnson and Lieutenant James J. Akard.
Date: August 4, 1862

Title: Missouri State Militia General Orders Enforcing Abstinence from Liquor
Description: This General Order to the Missouri State Militia reminds officers that while in service, alcohol consumption is illegal and punishable by Court Martial. S. B. Shaw states that the health of the troops "depends upon the regularity of their habits, and abstinence all unwholesome food and intoxicating liquors..."
Date: January 10, 1862

Title: Quarterly Return of Ordnance and Ordnance Stores, 1864
Description: This military document is a return of ordnance and ordnance stores for Company "A" 8th Cavalry Regiment Missouri State Militia under command of Captain James J. Akard for the second quarter of 1864.
Date: July 7, 1864

Title: From J.D. Kirk to Dear Sister
Description: This is a handwritten copy of a letter from J.D. Kirk in California to his sister on March 3, 1863. Kirk writes about the debate over slavery, criticizing "this bogus, free-negro, puritan congress" and explaining that his father opposes abolition of slavery in parts of the country "where the economy depends solely on its continuation." He also mentions the recently adopted Conscription Act, and predicts an imminent end to the Civil War.
Date: March 3, 1863

Title: Quarterly Returns of Deceased Soldiers, 1863
Description: This military document is a collection of quarterly returns of deceased soldiers of the Missouri State Militia 8th Cavalry Regiment Company "A". These returns are documentation of the first and second quarters of 1863.
Date: 1863

Title: From John A. Bushnell to Eugenia Bronaugh
Description: On October 17, 1864 John A. Bushnell writes from Calhoun, Missouri to Eugenia Bronaugh in Hickory Grove, Missouri. John hints that he cannot “write every thing which I know would interest you” because Eugenia is “'staying at a suspicious house' and not considered faithful to the household of the chosen.” He adds that it has been difficult to get reliable news of the war, and warns Eugenia that “the hated rebels” nearby are in possession of “some captured letters and ambrotypes too.”
Date: October 17, 1864

Title: Ordnance and Ordnance Store Receipts
Description: This military document is a collection of Ordnance and Ordnance Store Receipts for the Missouri State Militia 8th Cavalry Regiment that shows transfers of weapons and ammunition in between Captain James J. Akard and Lieutenant J. P. Tracy at Springfield, Missouri.
Date: January 12, 1865

Title: Missouri Militia Division of Sub Districts
Description: In this military document, Colonel Hosea G. Mullings lists the eight divisions of the 5th Sub District, 2nd Military District of the Missouri Militia. He specifies what counties or townships of counties belong to each division as well as the names of those charged with superintending the organization of their command for each division.
Date: June 14, 1865

Title: John Jarrette
Description: Charcoal portrait of John Jarrette dressed in suit coat, vest, shirt, and tie. Jarrette served as a captain under Quantrill and was married to the Younger brothers' sister Josephine. He also was a member of the James-Younger Gang.
Object Type: Image

Title: Frank James or Henry Clements
Description: Charcoal portrait drawing of one of the guerrillas, likely to be Frank James. Frank James, the older brother of Jesse, first joined the Missouri State Guard, but later became a member of Quantrill's guerrillas. Frank took part in many Civil War battles and skirmishes, including the raid on Lawrence, Kansas, August 21, 1863, and the Centralia massacre. He surrendered at Samuel's Depot, Kentucky, at the end of the war. He was a member of the James-Younger gang and participated in numerous robberies, and although tried for some of these, was acquitted. He died of a stroke February 15, 1915. He is buried in the Hill family private cemetery near Kansas City.
Object Type: Image

Title: Court Martial Proceedings of Captain Lyman D. Rouell
Description: This military document includes proceedings of the general court martial of Lyman D. Rouell, Captain of the 2nd Colorado Volunteers, Company F. In this court martial held at the Headquarters District of the Border in Kansas City, Missouri, Captain Rouell pleads "not guilty" to: charges of drunkenness while on duty at Fort Lyon in the Colorado Territory and at Council Grove, Kansas; and for driving contraband stock into Kansas from Hickman Mills, Missouri. The official charges included "Conduct unbecoming an Officer and Gentlemen" and "Neglect of duty to the prejudices of good order and military discipline." The verdict is not extant. This document shows how some military units took advantage of General Ewing's General Order No. 11 by accumulating and selling property from abandoned counties.
Date: November 1863 - December 1863

Title: George (Bud) Wigginton
Description: Charcoal portrait of George (Bud) Wigginton dressed in suit coat, vest, shirt, and tie. George, along with his cousin John McCorkle, joined Quantrill in August of 1862. He fought at Independence, August 11, 1862. He went to Kentucky with Quantrill and fought at Worthville. "John McCorkle and his cousin George Wigginton attached themselves to a regular Confederate command and surrendered to ensure that they received honorable terms" (Pettersen, Paul R. "Quantrill of Missouri." Nashville, TN: Cumberland House, 2003, pp. 409-410 [MVSC 973,742 Q12ZP].) After the war, Wigginton lived in Lee's Summit. He received the Southern Cross of Honor from Independence Chapter, U.D.C. in 1913. He died at Boulder, Colorado, on August 21, 1918, and was buried in Lee's Summit cemetery.
Object Type: Image

Title: Colonel McClurg Orders the Missouri State Militia 8th Cavalry Regiment to Shape Up
Description: By order of Colonel J. W. McClurg, 1st Lt. David Hunter writes that, "the Colonel Commanding trusts that this will be the last time... to insist upon the orders contained therein being strictly obeyed." These orders include commanding officers being properly uniformed, weekly inspection of equipment, and commanding officers not eating rations issued to the privates. Hunter warns that any offending officer will be sent before a General Court Martial.
Date: July 13, 1862

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

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