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Title: From Fred Brown and Sara Ann Brown to Michael H. Jose
Description: Fred Brown and his wife Sara Ann write a letter to Michael Jose on October 14, 1866 to share news of mutual acquaintances, including several that were killed by Bushwhackers or by members of the Missouri Militia during the War. They describe an atmosphere of political unrest in Vernon County but express a hope for peace in the aftermath of the conflict, stating “lets all do our next fighting at the Ballot Box.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: October 14, 1866

Title: List of Morgan County Radicals in This District
Description: This document, ca. 1861-1865, provides a list of “radicals in this District.” Each of the 22 “radicals” is identified by name, town, and county; most are from Andrew County, Missouri. A note on the reverse states “There are some others but don’t know their address.”

Title: From A.M. Bedford to Mary E. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated July 19, 1864, is from Lieut. Alex M. Bedford, of the 3rd Missouri Cavalry, to his wife Mary E. Bedford in Savannah, Missouri. Writing from Fort Delaware, where he is imprisoned, Bedford tells his wife that he and his friend, Lieut. James M. Bohart, are attempting to get parole. He asks his wife to find Gen. James Craig and ask for his assistance in granting Bedford parole.
Date: July 19, 1864

Title: James Hicklin Documents
Description: These documents attest that James Hicklin, a citizen of Lexington, Missouri, provided supplies and money to the Union army several times during the course of the war. Hicklin purchased $2,000 in state defense bonds on June 15, 1861, and received orders of protection from the army in February, September, and November 1862. He gave an oath of loyalty to the United States on July 8, 1862, which limited his movements to “Lafayette and Saline Counties.”
Object Type: Legal Document

Title: From Lucie Davis to John Pigg
Description: This letter, dated September 15, 1864, is from Lucie Davis in Clay County, Missouri to John Pigg. Davis tells Pigg that her mother died after a long illness. She also tells him that Louis Vandiver was moved from a prison in St. Joseph, Missouri to one in St. Louis. Davis predicts that “The bushwhackers are about to take this country,” and adds that they robbed the mail in Clay County and had a fight near Fredericksburg.
Date: September 15, 1864

Title: From J.T. Brown to Mrs. Martha Peak
Description: This letter, dated October 7, 1861, was written by J.T. Brown to Mrs. Martha Peak. “In view of the troubles of the Country and the Danger that some suppose Negro Property to be in,” J.T. reluctantly agrees to let Mrs. Peak borrow his slave for the rest of the year, provided she pays him for the “trouble and sacrifice I will have to make.”
Date: October 7, 1861

Title: From John A. Bushnell to Eugenia Bronaugh
Description: On May 7, 1865 John A. Bushnell writes from Sedalia, Missouri to Eugenia Bronaugh in Calhoun, Missouri. John observes that Sedalia’s economy is improving, probably due to the war's end. He adds, “I do hope our good Henry County folks will follow the example and use money and labor too for the benefit of the country and cease using their tongues and harsh threats.”
Date: May 7, 1865

Title: From Alice Trego to Joseph H. Trego
Description: This letter, dated September 22, 1862, is from Alice Trego in Mound City, Kansas to her husband Joseph. She reports on the movements of Kansas military units and informs Joseph that Gen. James Lane was authorized to raise four regiments of black soldiers. Alice also mentions that there has been a picket guard of citizens in her neighborhood ever since the Sacking of Olathe. She laments, “Oh! how I wish the war was over, and slavery abolished.”
Date: September 22, 1862

Title: From Abishai Stowell to "Dear Sister"
Description: On September 24, 1863, Abishai Stowell writes from camp in Springfield, Missouri to his sister. Stowell says he has been at home on furlough and that the family is "tolerably well." He reports that there is great excitement in Kansas about William Quantrill: "he burned Lawrence a week ago last Friday & killed about two hundred (200) citizens[.] The people blame Gens. Schofield & Ewing for letting them into Kansas."
Object Type: Letter
Date: September 24, 1863

Title: From J.M. and H.R. Waugh to A.J. Huntoon
Description: This letter was sent by J.M. and H.R. Waugh in Norwalk, to A.J. Huntoon in Williamsport, Kansas on July 21, 1861. J.M. expresses sympathy for the citizens of Missouri, and says he wants “to hear that the D—ned Mo. rebels ar ‘cleaned out’ with terrible loss of life and property in every engagement.” The Waughs are unsure if they will move back to Kansas, although they enjoyed their time there, “where a fellow can have a farm to live on and a home to go to without paying an enormous rent.”
Date: July 21, 1861

Title: Application of John T. Doxey
Description: This is John T. Doxey’s application for compensation from the United States government for the military service of his slave, Samuel. The application, dated December 7, 1866, includes an oath of allegiance to the United States, a statement that Doxey lawfully inherited his slave, and the signatures of two witnesses and a notary public in Chariton County, Missouri. Attached is a note from November 8, 1864 declaring that Doxey has proven his loyalty to the Union and deserves federal protection. The note is signed by Captain Henry Bucksath of the 35th Regiment of Missouri Militia, Company G.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: November 8, 1864-December 7, 1866

Title: From E.F. Slaughter to Eliza Colgan
Description: On October 7, 1864, E.F. Slaughter writes from Hickmans Mill, Missouri to Mrs. Eliza Colgan. Slaughter says that prices for goods are rising and "farmers can't keep up with the merchant." He reports that the railroad is complete "from Independence to Kansas City and next spring will be run through to St. Louis…If we only had peace we might enjoy the sight of such improvements." He also mentions that "there was a great revival of religion in the army."
Date: October 7, 1864

Title: From Alex M. Bedford to Mary E. Bedford
Description: On October 31, 1863, Alex M. Bedford writes from Johnson’s Island, near Sandusky City, Ohio, to his wife Mary E. Bedford. Alex advises Mary not to return home until she is sure it’s safe. Alex describes an agreement made with M. Jeff Thompson about paying to send longer letters, which “suits us first rate.” He recalls his experience the previous year as a wounded prisoner of war in Alabama, where he recovered at the home of a kind family who "seem like my relations."
Date: October 31, 1863

Title: From John A. Bushnell to Eugenia Bronaugh
Description: On November 26, 1864, John A. Bushnell writes from Calhoun, Missouri to Eugenia Bronaugh in Hickory Grove, Missouri. John states that his recent trip to and from St. Louis was slowed by “those pesky rebels” who tore up the railroad, and Federals who burned the bridges. John says that since both armies were acting in accordance with the law of “self preservation,” which is "the first law of war," he will not complain.
Object Type: Letter
Date: November 26, 1864

Title: Sarah and Julia Fitch
Description: This black and white photograph shows Sarah Wilmarth Fitch Stevens along with her daughter Julia Sumner Fitch. They both lived in Lawrence, Kansas and were survivors of Quantrill’s Raid. Edward Fitch, husband to Sarah and father to Julia, was shot and killed in the 1863 attack. Their house was burned down and the rest of the family escaped.
Object Type: Image

Title: Oath of Allegiance of John T. Armantrout
Description: In his Oath of Allegiance, signed and dated June 22, 1865, former Confederate soldier John T. Armantrout declares loyalty to the United States government and denounces the Confederacy. Attached is a document that permits Armantrout to return home, by order of Major General Canby, following the surrender in Shreveport, Louisiana on June 8, 1865. Also attached is Armantrout’s Certificate of Enrollment in the Missouri Militia, signed in Saline County in 1866. Armantrout served as a private in Company C, 10th Regiment of Missouri Volunteers.
Date: 1865 - 1866

Title: Charles Otis Fitch
Description: This black and white photograph, taken circa 1890, depicts Charles Otis Fitch, son of Edward and Sarah Fitch. He was born in Lawrence, Kansas in 1860. At the age of three, he survived Quantrill’s Raid on Lawrence, but his family’s house was burned down and his father was killed in the attack.
Object Type: Image

Title: From John A. Bushnell to Eugenia Bronaugh
Description: John A. Bushnell of Calhoun, Missouri writes a letter on February 28, 1863 to Eugenia Bronaugh in Hickory Grove, Missouri. He tells her that “petty acts of tyranny have been committed elsewhere” and predicts that if similar violence occurs where he lives, his neighbors will be too cowardly to defend themselves. He also complains about censorship in newspapers and shares news that General Price “is appointed to the command in rebel army west of the Mississippi.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: February 28, 1863

Title: Disloyalists Banished from Western Missouri
Description: This newspaper clipping, ca. August 1863, lists the names of "disloyalists" who were banished from Western Missouri in accordance with Gen. Ewing's General Order No. 11. The people listed were residents of Kansas City, Missouri; Independence, Missouri; Osage County, Kansas; and Olathe, Kansas. The order prohibits these "disloyal" citizens from residing in their homes or in Platte, Clay, Ray, or Carroll counties.
Object Type: Newspaper Article

Title: From Emma Adair to Florella Brown Adair, Samuel Lyle Adair, and Ada Adair
Description: On May 30 and 31, 1862, Emma Adair writes from Leavenworth, Kansas, to her parents Florella Brown Adair and Samuel Lyle Adair and sister Ada Adair. Emma writes about staying with her Uncle and his family, who live in Leavenworth and own a store there. She supposes they have already heard about the evacuation of Corinth by the Rebels, and notes that “5 boats left here yesterday filled with soldiers.”
Date: May 30, 1861-May 31, 1861

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

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