Civil War

Title: From Edmund G. Ross to My Dear Wife
Description: Edmund G. Ross, a captain in the 11th Kansas Cavalry, writes a letter to his wife on June 15, 1864. He informs her that he has just arrived in Olathe from Lawrence, Kansas, and has heard rumors of “a great scare along the border” of Kansas and Missouri. Ross predicts that Kansas troops will soon cross into Missouri to fight the Bushwhackers.
Date: June 15, 1864

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: Chloroform Tin
Description: Chloroform tin used by Civil War surgeons to render wounded soldiers unconscious. During the Civil War, chloroform slowly replaced ether as an incapacitating agent to subdue struggling and suffering patients. Chloroform was administered to wounded soldiers by placing drops of the drug onto a cone-shaped cloth, which was placed over the patient's nose and mouth.
Object Type: Image

Title: From W. Leonard Birney to A. Comingo
Description: On December 25, 1863, W. Leonard Birney writes from Plattsburg, Clinton County, Missouri to Capt. A. Comingo, Provost Marshal for the 6th District of Missouri, in Lexington, Missouri. Birney states that he has accepted the position of Recruiting Agent for Clinton County, but has not heard anything more from Comingo. He adds that the printed enrollment lists need to be corrected, because certain names are missing.
Date: December 25, 1863

Title: From Henry S. Glaze to James Boyer
Description: On December 18, 1863, Capt. Henry S. Glaze, 9th Missouri State Militia Cavalry, writes from Macon, Missouri to James Boyer, Deputy Provost Marshal for Chariton County, Missouri. Glaze sends a summary of his recent interviews with a number of soldiers accused of deserting, noting that most of them were properly discharged or released unconditionally.
Date: December 18, 1863

Title: From Alex M. Bedford to Mary E. Bedford
Description: On January 26, 1865, Alex M. Bedford writes from Hilton Head, South Carolina, to his wife, Mary E. Bedford, in Savannah, Andrew County, Missouri. Alex writes, “I must get out of prison or I will soon go to my long home[.] I am leaner in flesh than I ever was…I am so weak I reel as I walk & nearly lossed my eyesight.” He asks Mary to verify that it is safe for him to return home, and inquires whether James Bohart has returned yet.
Date: January 26, 1865

Title: Examination of Nathaniel Grant
Description: This is Nathaniel Grant's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Grant, a 48-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri, says that he felt "a little sorry" when Gen. Sterling Price captured Gen. Mulligan's army at Lexington, Missouri, and that he felt "rather down in the mouth" when the Federal army was defeated at Bull Run in 1861. The oath, labeled No. 52 in a bound volume, was signed by Nathaniel Grant in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: From Daniel Woodson to William Hutchinson and H. Miles Moore
Description: This letter, dated September 3, 1856, was written by Acting Kansas Gov. Daniel Woodson at Lecompton, Kansas to William Hutchinson and H. Miles Moore on behalf of the Kansas State Central Committee. Woodson refers to Gen. James Lane’s recent raid on Franklin, Kansas and several other areas of the Territory. He reminds Hutchinson and Moore about the proclamation issued August 25, 1856, declaring Kansas to be in a state of insurrection, and also cites the recent general order issued to Gen. Richardson and Gen. Coffey forbidding the burning of houses under any circumstances.
Object Type: Letter
Date: September 3, 1856

Title: Letters Sent (Provost Marshal's Office, 7th District Missouri)
Description: This notebook contains copies of letters sent from the Provost Marshal's Office, 7th District of Missouri, in St. Joseph, Missouri, between July 2, 1864 and April 21, 1865. The correspondence, written by Capt. William Fowler, Provost Marshal of the 7th District, addresses such topics as military enrollment, including names of recruits; army desertion; compensation; draft dodgers; and an instance of character defamation in the St. Louis "Morning Herald." Correspondents include Missouri Provost Marshal General E.B. Alexander and U.S. Provost Marshal General James B. Fry.
Date: July 2, 1864-April 21, 1865

Title: Examination of Martin Fisher
Description: This is Martin Fisher's 1866 Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Fisher, a 71-year-old Virginia native, states that he has lived in Missouri for 50 years and was enrolled by the military authorities as "loyal" in 1862. The oath is No. 185 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Plat of Iatan, Edgerton, Parkville, et al., Platte County, Missouri
Description: A plat of the Platte County towns of Iatan, Edgerton, Parkville, and East Leavenworth, as well as Platte County Township 50 North Range 33 & 34 West. This page is included in an 1877 plat book of Platte County, Missouri.
Date: 1877

Title: Statement of the Citizens of Bates Co. Concerning Border Troubles
Description: This statement, dated June 5, 1858, was written by Joseph Clymer and signed by Adj. Gen. G.A. Parsons and 11 citizens of West Point in Bates County, Missouri. The statement describes the invasion of West Point and the robberies and attacks on Missouri citizens committed by James Montgomery and his band. The citizens state that Montgomery’s men have threatened to destroy West Point, and that a number of citizens have fled their homes in fear. The citizens request assistance from the Missouri government.
Date: June 5, 1858

Title: From O.H.P. Craig to A.M. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated April 25, 1861, is from O.H.P. Craig in St. Joseph, Missouri to Alex M. Bedford in Savannah, Missouri. Craig announces, “We have nothing here, but War! War!” He reports that local business has stagnated and that everyone is eager for news about the war. He also mentions that he recently returned from a trip to St. Louis and that residents there are full of “excitement and alarm.”
Date: April 25, 1861

Title: New England Emigrant Aid Company Sign
Description: Sign advertising the New England Emigrant Aid Company.
Object Type: Image

Title: Application of Jesse Brown
Description: This is Jesse Brown’s application for compensation from the United States government for the military service of his slave, Simon. The application, dated November 22, 1866, includes an oath of allegiance to the United States, a statement that Brown lawfully purchased his slave, and the signatures of two witnesses in Clinton County, Missouri. A note in pencil on the first page indicates that the application was rejected.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: November 22, 1866

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: Examination of Robert G. Robertson
Description: This is Robert G. Robertson's 1866 Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Robertson, a 24-year-old Missouri native, states that he was enrolled by the military authorities as "loyal" in 1862. The oath is No. 217 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

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: From Abelard Guthrie to James Henry Lane
Description: This letter, dated November 21, 1864, is from Abelard Guthrie in Quindaro, Kansas to James Henry Lane. Guthrie reports on the proceedings of a Supreme Court case to determine if Kansas has the right to tax land assigned to the Shawnee Indians. Guthrie argues that if the court exempts these areas from taxation, it will deprive "the counties of Douglass, Johnson, and Wyandot of about sixty thousand dollars of taxes which they sorely need."
Date: November 21, 1864

Title: From Philip St. George Cooke to John W. Geary
Description: This dispatch, dated September 16, 1856, is from Lieut. Col. Philip St. George Cooke to Gov. John W. Geary. Cooke states that after returning to camp near Lecompton, he discovered that 101 prisoners who were taken at the Battle of Hickory Point are now being held at the camp. Cooke asks Geary to send a “proper civil officer” to take the prisoners into custody.
Date: September 16, 1856

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

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