Civil War

Title: From John A. Bushnell to Eugenia Bronaugh
Description: John A. Bushnell writes a letter from Clinton, Missouri to Eugenia Bronaugh in Hickory Grove, Missouri. In the letter, dated July 3 and 5, 1864, Bushnell expresses fear that his life may be in danger and that his letters may be misconstrued as disloyal. He criticizes traitors and declares that this country was “not made by selfish hands for selfish purposes.” He says that soldiers have left Calhoun, and that he would like to know what they are doing next, but does not want to “manifest any unusual curiosities.” He also mentions hearing a sermon on Independence Day about racial equality.
Object Type: Letter
Date: July 3, 1864-July 5, 1864

Title: From Sara Robinson to "My Dear Martha"
Description: This letter, dated October 19, 1862, is from Sara Robinson in Topeka, Kansas to Martha. Sara reports that her husband, Kansas Gov. Charles Robinson, went to Altoona, Pennsylvania to meet "the Governors," but by the time he arrived they had already gone to Washington, D.C. Charles "had no wish to see the Sec. of War or the President, both of whom have treated him & the young state of Kansas so villainously & did not follow them." Sara states that when Charles returned, he went to St. Louis to see Gen. Curtis.
Object Type: Letter
Date: October 19, 1862

Title: Examination of John Ferrel
Description: This is John Ferrel's 1866 Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Ferrel, an 81-year-old Virginia native, states that he has resided in Clay County, Missouri for 28 years. The oath is No. 141 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Examination of Ezekiel Bailey
Description: This is Ezekiel Bailey's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Bailey, a 37-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri, states that he was born in Illinois and that he served as a Union soldier during the Civil War. The oath, labeled No. 61 in a bound volume, was signed by Bailey in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Battle of Westport
Description: Newell Convers Wyeth mural of the Battle of Westport, fought on October 23, 1864, which is displayed at the Missouri State Capitol.
Object Type: Image

Title: James Montgomery
Description: Carte de visite portrait of James Montgomery.

Title: From James Montgomery to George L. Stearns
Description: James Montgomery writes a letter from Mound City, Kansas to George L. Stearns on May 8, 1861. He reports that, “We are in a perilous position here, and have not ammunition enough to make a respectable fight.” He says that he has organized a regiment to help defend Kansas against pro-slavery Missourians, whose troops are camped along the border of Linn and Bourbon counties. He mentions that an Osage Indian chief attacked some of these troops, then “tied them with ropes to the Horns of his Saddles and dragged them out of the country.” Montgomery asks for Stearns’s assistance in acquiring arms and declares that, “If we have to fight, we will carry the war out of Kansas.”
Date: May 8, 1861

Title: From Abishai Stowell to "Dear Sister"
Description: On March 26, 1862, Abishai Stowell writes from Springfield, Missouri to his sister, Margaret. Stowell, a member of Co. A, 2nd Regt., Kansas Volunteers, says that he recently went home and reports that their family was mostly in good health. Stowell asks his sister to write to Jim "and try to persuade him to go home…if he will only stay at home till this war is ended."
Object Type: Letter
Date: March 26, 1862

Title: Examination of Edmund Haynes
Description: This is Edmund Haynes's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Haynes describes himself as a 48-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri who was born in Kentucky. He states that he remained loyal to the United States Government during the Civil War. The oath, labeled No. 94 in a bound volume, was signed by Haynes on October 6, 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: October 6, 1866

Title: From Emma Adair to Florella Brown Adair
Description: On May 10, 11, and 21, 1862, Emma Adair writes from Oberlin, Ohio, to her mother Florella Brown Adair. Emma writes that her school term ends on May 27, and that she believes there will be a place for her next term. She says that a report came by telegram “that Richmond was taken, but there was not much confidence put in it.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: May 10, 1862-May 21, 1862

Title: Examination of Russell Shouse
Description: This is Russell Shouse's 1866 Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Shouse states that he is a Kentucky native who has resided in Clay County, Missouri for 12 months. The oath is No. 137 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Examination of Emanuel Messick
Description: This is Emanuel Messick's 1866 Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Messick, a 31-year-old Kentucky native, states that he has lived in Missouri for 11 years and was enrolled by the military authorities as "disloyal" in 1862. He says that he was required to give bond without his consent: "I was asked if I sympathized with the South and I answered I did and I was put under bond for that." The oath is No. 201 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: From Ben Loan to Hamilton R. Gamble
Description: On September 28, 1862, Brig. Gen. Ben Loan writes from Headquarters, Central Division of Missouri, in Jefferson City, Missouri to Missouri Gov. Hamilton R. Gamble. Loan reports that he sent Capt. Hout's company to Sedalia, Missouri and ordered Col. Spedden to take command at Warrensburg, Missouri. He tells Gamble that "the condition of our citizens on the western border is most deplorable," and that the Missouri militia has suffered "persecution and outrage at the hands of the guerrillas."
Date: September 28, 1862

Title: From James Griffing to My Dear Wife
Description: This letter, dated October 23, 1864, was written by James Griffing in camp at Kansas City, Missouri, to his wife. James provides an account of “a tremendous battle about five miles south of this” (presumably the Battle of Westport), which he heard about via dispatches from the battlefield. James includes an assessment of the Union casualties from regimental surgeon Dr. Hidden: “he thought but few cases would prove fatal.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: October 23, 1864

Title: Examination of Darwin J. Adkins
Description: This is Darwin J. Adkins's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Murray, a 45-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri, states that he was born in Kentucky and that he served in the militia during the Civil War. Upon hearing that Gen. Sterling Price had captured Gen. Mulligan and his army at Lexington, Missouri, Adkins "was badly scared over it." The oath, labeled No. 99 in a bound volume, was signed by Murray on October 6, 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: October 6, 1866

Title: Examination of James Malony
Description: This is James Malony's 1866 Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Malony, a native of Ireland, states that he has lived in Missouri for 15 years. When asked what side he supported during the war, Malony replies, "I was not on either side but my feelings were more for the Govt." The oath is No. 251 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: John R. Boyd Handbill
Description: This handbill, signed by John R. Boyd, urges the citizens of Buchanan County, Missouri to join arms and fight against the “usurping invader, Fremont.” Boyd instructs them to bring their shot guns and rifles to Rock House Prairie, where hundreds of men have set up camp and plan to fight until they achieve freedom, “or be buried beneath the dead bodies of men who would rather die than be slaves.”
Object Type: Leaflet

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: 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: 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

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

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