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Title: Examination of Archibald Kelly
Description: This is Archibald Kelly's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Kelly, a 33-year-old resident of Liberty, Missouri, states that he was born in Scotland and that he served as a Union soldier during the Civil War. The oath, labeled No. 60 in a bound volume, was signed by Kelly in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: From Leigh R. Webber to Miss Brown
Description: On August 30 and 31, 1862, Leigh R. Webber writes from Gibson County, Tennessee to Miss Brown. Webber says there are rumors that his regiment may go back to Kansas, but he hopes not. He writes that some of his fellow soldiers say "they had rather go to hell than to Lawrence and that it is the meanest place they were ever in, full of damned Abolitionists." Webber also offers his opinion that "guerrillas infest the country just in proportion, as the great rebel armies...are successful."
Date: August 30, 1862 - August 31, 1862

Title: From John A. Bushnell to Eugenia Bronaugh
Description: John A. Bushnell of Calhoun, Missouri writes a letter on September 25 and 27, 1862 to Eugenia Bronaugh in Hickory Grove, Missouri. He tells her that he has been forced to surrender his house to the military for use as a hospital. He complains that he “could not regard it as friendly . . . yet I have done and am doing the best I can to bear with it.” He also discusses his faith in God, and expresses hope for peace and for positive changes in the Democratic Party.
Date: September 25, 1862-September 27, 1862

Title: From Mary E. Bedford to A.M. Bedford
Description: This letter, dated January 11, 1864, is from Mary E. Bedford to her husband, Lieut. Alex M. Bedford. She expresses concern about his ailing health, and promises to send him money and provisions. She shares news of relatives, and reports that “it is peaceable hear now but the lord only knows how long it will remain so.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: January 11, 1864

Title: From A.J. Huntoon to My Dear Wife and Boy
Description: This letter, dated October 6, 7, 10, and 11, 1861, is from A.J. Huntoon to his wife Lizzie and son Prentice. Huntoon, a member of the 5th Kansas Cavalry volunteer regiment, tells his family that he was ordered to take charge of a military hospital in Mapleton, Bourbon County, Kansas. He estimates that there are 50,000-55,000 Union soldiers in Missouri, including the companies of Generals Sturgis, Siegel, and Fremont, and that there are about 70,000 Confederate troops in Missouri under the commandment of Generals McCulloch and Rains. Huntoon predicts that “We will have a big battle in this vicinity ere so long.”
Date: October 6, 1861-October 11, 1861

Title: From Daniel R. Anthony to Sister
Description: This letter, dated February 3, 1862, was written by Daniel R. Anthony in Mound City, Kansas, to his sister. Anthony’s command will march the following day to Humboldt, Kansas; he also plans to visit the Cherokee Nation where “there are 6,000 or 7,000 friendly Indians…ready and willing to fight all rebeldom.” He says that when his troops are on the march, they free and arm every slave they meet, hoping to incite a slave insurrection. Anthony notes that many men believe Frederick Douglass should come to Kansas and raise a regiment of blacks.
Date: February 3, 1862

Title: Examination of Charles Barbee
Description: This is Charles Barbee's 1866 Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Barbee, a 48-year-old Kentucky native, states that he has lived in Missouri for 6 years, and was enrolled by the military authorities as "loyal" in 1862. The oath is No. 252 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Order for Funding from Lexington, Missouri
Description: This is an order for funding issued by the headquarters of the Sixth Military District E.M.M., Lexington, Missouri. The order, issued by Brigadier General Vaughn and dated October 29, 1862, declares that “the disloyal citizens of the City and Township of Lexington are assessed $15,000 for the subsistence of the troops, the families of such as are in indigent circumstances, and refugees.” Recipients of the order are directed to pay their “proportion of the said assessment” at headquarters within ten days.
Date: October 29, 1862

Title: From Charles Doubleday to James Montgomery
Description: This dispatch, dated April 1, 1862, was sent by Adj. Brig. Gen. Charles Doubleday at Fort Scott, Kansas, to Col. James Montgomery. Doubleday writes that he will investigate the “guerrilla parties” in Bates County as soon as he receives more specific instructions from department headquarters. He says he is reluctant to send his cavalry very far at present since he expects to receive marching orders for them.
Date: April 1, 1862

Title: Examination of Calvin Moore
Description: This is Calvin Moore's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Moore describes himself as a 21-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri who was born in Andrew County, Missouri. He states that he demonstrated his loyalty to the United States Government during the Civil War by joining the military. The oath, labeled No. 59 in a bound volume, was signed by Moore in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Laura Hidden Pearson
Description: This tintype, ca. 1860, depicts Laura Hidden Pearson, an Ohio native who married William D. Pearson in Cass County, Missouri. William was the oldest child of Robert D. Pearson, an early Cass County pioneer. William served in Confederate Captain Shanks’ company for nine months until he was taken prisoner near Lexington, Missouri; he was eventually released on parole. Laura and William married after the war.
Object Type: Image

Title: From E.C. to Dear Father and Mother
Description: This letter, dated March 21, 1862, is from E.C. to his father and mother. E.C. says he is well and is anxious for news of the fight at Sugar Creek: "it is current report that a fight…lasted 4 days with a loss of 8 or ten thousand on the side of the confederate and twenty two thousand killed wounded and prisinors." He adds that skirmishes continue to take place every two or three days.
Date: March 21, 1862

Title: Examination of Morris Maib
Description: This is Morris Maib's Oath of Loyalty to the United States, signed October 12, 1866. Maib, a 46-year-old Missouri native, states that he resides in Clay County, Missouri and tried to enroll as "loyal" with the military authorities in 1862, but was required to give bond. The oath is No. 149 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: October 12, 1866

Title: Examination of John A. Beauchamp
Description: This is John A. Beauchamp's 1866 Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Beauchamp, a 41-year-old Kentucky native, states that he has lived in Missouri for 18 years. He says that during "the Blue Mills fight I assisted the Federals to bury their dead and assisted the wounded." The oath is No. 208 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Examination of James M. Watkins
Description: This is James M. Watkins's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Watkins describes himself as a 54-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 but "was too old to take up arms." The oath, labeled No. 122 in a bound volume, was signed by Watkins in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Examination of C.W. Baker
Description: This is C.W. Baker's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Baker describes himself as a 65-year-old resident of Liberty, Missouri. In response to the question, "Have you during the late rebellion been truly and loyally on the side of the Government of the United States and against all its enemies?" Baker replies, "I think so." The oath, labeled No. 35 in a bound volume, was signed by Baker in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: From G.W. Veale to George W. Dietzler
Description: On October 30, 1864, this dispatch was sent by Col. G.W. Veale at Headquarters, 2nd Regiment, Kansas State Militia in Topeka, Kansas, to Maj. Gen. Dietzler, Comm. Kansas State Militia. Veale reports on a recent campaign in which his regiment moved from Topeka to Shawneetown in Johnson County, Kansas, to Jackson County, Missouri, where it fought in the Battle of the Blue on October 22, 1864. Veale states that his regiment lost 44 killed and wounded, with 68 men taken prisoner after fighting “a force six times our number for three quarters of an hour.” The dispatch includes a list of the soldiers killed and wounded in the battle.
Date: October 30, 1864

Title: From John A. Bushnell to Eugenia Bronaugh
Description: In this July 15, 1864 letter, John A. Bushnell of Calhoun, Missouri informs Eugenia Bronaugh of Hickory Grove, Missouri that he is in great danger. He says that his safety and his personal property are at risk and he laments that “the pretence of civil law is a humbug.” He conveys his desire for the war to end and for enemies to become friends, to love one another, and to love God.
Date: July 15, 1864

Title: Examination of G. Francis
Description: This is G. Francis's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Francis, a 50-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri, states that he demonstrated his loyalty to the United States during the Civil War "by my conduct at home." The oath, labeled No. 78 in a bound volume, was signed by Francis in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Examination of James W. Crow
Description: This is James W. Crow's 1866 Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Crow, a 34-year-old native of Clinton County, Missouri, states that he was required to give bond during the war: "I was enrolled disloyal against my wishes I claimed to be loyal at the time." The oath is No. 236 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

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

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