Civil War

Title: From Maurice E. Pitcher to Mr. Colgan
Description: On November 6, 1864, Maurice E. Pitcher writes from Independence, Missouri to Mr. Colgan. Pitcher states that he saw Colgan's son Willie on October 21 when he came into Missouri with Gen. Price's army: "he is looking quite well…he had no appearance of being 'one of Price's starved to death, rag-muffins.'" He says that Price's men "had a series of battles from little blue (in this county) until within a few miles of Fort Scott, and you may well imagine they had a series of successes."
Date: November 6, 1864

Title: Robert John Walker, 1801-1869
Description: Portrait of Robert J. Walker from an 1887 issue of Centry Magazine.
Object Type: Image
Date: 1887

Title: Examination of John G. Wood
Description: This is John G. Wood's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Wood, a 31-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri, states that he demonstrated his loyalty to the United States Government during the Civil War by serving in the army from 1861 to 1865. The oath, labeled No. 34 in a bound volume, was signed by Wood in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: John R. Howe against William Mitchell
Description: Dated November 7, 1859, this document states that its signers will pay a sum of $400 to John P. Bowman, Lafayette County sheriff, for a female slave aged about 42 years. The slave was “sold by said sheriff...in the Probate Court of Lafayette County” as part of a lawsuit brought by John R. Howe against William Mitchell.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: November 7, 1859

Title: Petition from Jackson County Citizens
Description: This petition, ca. 1860, is addressed to Missouri Gov. Robert M. Stewart and signed by 43 citizens of Jackson County, Missouri. The signers declare their need for protection from the “murderous attacks of Montgomery” and his band of guerrillas. They ask Stewart to authorize Samuel Ralston to raise a company of troops to serve under the command of Col. Frost.
Object Type: Petition

Title: From Joseph H. Trego to Alice Trego
Description: This letter, dated August 6 and 7, 1862, is from Joseph H. Trego to his wife Alice. Trego, a lieutenant in the 5th Kansas Cavalry Regiment, writes from Camp Beech Grove. He reports that the weather is so hot that a number of his fellow soldiers have become ill. He includes $690 with his letter and instructs his wife to “take good care of it . . . you may need it before you will find anyone to take my place if I should be so unfortunate as to get killed.”
Date: August 6, 1862-August 7, 1862

Title: Examination of John N. Estes
Description: This is John N. Estes's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Estes, a 35-year-old resident of Liberty, Missouri, states that he was born in Kentucky, and admits that he did not remain loyal to the United States Government during the Civil War. In response to the question, "Did you at any time during the rebellion advise, counsel, or urge any person whomsoever to enter into the rebel service?" Estes replies, "I did." The oath, No. 23 in a bound volume, was signed by Estes in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Battle of Chattanooga
Description: L. Prang & Co. lithograph print of the Battle of Chattanooga as painted by Thure de Thulstrup, circa 1880.
Object Type: Image

Title: Inauguration of James Buchanan
Description: First photograph of an inauguration at the Capitol, which was still under construction in 1857. The stone yard in the foreground was covered with boards to provide a platform for the crowd. The life dates of the photographer, John Wood, are unknown, but he was the photographer for the Architect of the Capitol from 1856 to 1861. Mr. Wood then entered the war as a photographer of maps for McClellan. Another print of this image of Buchanan's inauguration in 1857 is in the photography collection of the Architect of the Capitol.
Object Type: Image
Date: March 4, 1857

Title: Examination of Mortaca Scott
Description: This is Mortaca Scott's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Scott, a resident of Liberty, Missouri, states that he was born in Ohio and served in "the Northern Army" during the Civil War. The oath, No. 21 in a bound volume, was signed by Scott in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

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 15, 1863 and June 30, 1864. The correspondence, written by Capt. William Fowler, Provost Marshal of the 7th District, addresses such topics as military enrollment and recruitment of free blacks, army deserters, and management of the draft. Correspondents include Missouri Provost Marshal General E.B. Alexander and U.S. Provost Marshal General James B. Fry.
Date: July 15, 1863-June 30, 1864

Title: From W.A. King to A. Comingo
Description: This letter, dated November 9, 1863, is from W.A. King in Liberty, Missouri to Capt. A. Comingo, Provost Marshal of the 6th district of Missouri. King states that he obeyed a military commander's orders to publish a notice urging all citizens to enlist. He reports to Comingo the expenses he paid for printing and requests reimbursement.
Date: November 9, 1863

Title: From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Description: This unsigned December 12, 1855 letter, presumably from Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas to his parents in Massachusetts, announces the peaceful end to the Wakarusa War. Fitch declares that “we have gained a complete victory without bloodshed,” and that Governor Shannon has “come round on to our side.” He tells them that he has been discharged from military service, and proclaims, “Peace, Peace! and it was Peace.”
Date: December 12, 1855

Title: Examination of R.C. Collins
Description: This is R.C. Collins's 1866 Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Collins, a 21-year-old Missouri native, states that he manifested his loyalty during the war by "staying at home and attending to my business and…taking sides with the Gov't." The oath is No. 237 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Clarina Irene Howard Nichols
Description: Engraving of Clarina I.H. Nichols, prominent activist and journalist, from an 1887 publication of the "History of Woman Suffrage".
Object Type: Image
Date: 1887

Title: Examination of M.H. Bartlett
Description: This is M.H. Bartlett's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Bartlett, a 41-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri, originally from New York, states that he remained loyal to the United States Government during the Civil War. The oath, No. 8 in a bound volume, was signed by Bartlett in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Examination of Robert T. Lincoln
Description: This document attests that Robert T. Lincoln, a 41-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri, did not remain loyal to the United States Government during the Civil War. Lincoln admits that he served under Gen. Price during the Civil War and he refuses to take an Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Lincoln signed the document in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Jesse Connell
Description: This undated portrait depicts Jesse Connell, a Kentuckian who moved to Leavenworth, Kansas in 1855. Connell, a slave-owner, served as a delegate to the Lecompton Constitutional Convention in 1857, and was later elected to the Senate of the first Kansas State Legislature.
Object Type: Image
Date: n.d.

Title: Proceedings of the Board of Enrollment (6th District Missouri)
Description: This notebook documents the proceedings of the Board of Enrollment for the 6th District of Missouri between July 1863 and April 1865. The journal contains information on meetings held by the Board to appoint Deputy Provost Marshals and Enrolling Officers; enrollment records for individual counties; and requests for exemptions. Entries are signed by John B. Ryland, "Recorder," and Thomas O'Neil, "Recorder of Board."
Date: July 1863-April 1865

Title: From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair
Description: This undated letter was written ca. December 1862 by Florella Brown Adair in Osawatomie, Kansas, to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair. Florella expresses distress over reports regarding “the great battle of the 6 of this month.” She states that their son Charles is among the missing, and does not know if he is dead or has been taken prisoner. Florella says that her friends “seemed to sympathize & hoped it might not be so bad, or that it was not true, as many reports are exagerated.”

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

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