Search results

Title: From John M. Schofield to Thomas Carney
Description: This letter, written on the letterhead of Headquarters, Department of the Missouri and dated September 3, 1863, was sent by John M. Schofield in Kansas City, Missouri, to Kansas Governor Thomas Carney. Major General Schofield expresses his agreement with Gov. Carney on the necessity of preempting a potentially violent meeting in Paola, Kansas. Schofield states that he will issue an order preventing armed men not in the U.S. service from entering Missouri. He also accepts Carney’s offer of the services of the militia to help avert “any irregular action.”
Date: September 3, 1863

Title: From Sarah Fitch to My Dear Father and Mother
Description: In an emotional letter dated September 2, 1863, Sarah Fitch informs her husband Edward’s parents that he was killed during Quantrill’s Raid on Lawrence. She estimates that 250-300 of Quantrill's men arrived in Lawrence on horseback and fired at everyone in sight, leaving bodies “scattered all over town.” She writes that they approached her home, “screaming and yelling like so many demons from the infernal pit,” then shot Edward in the heart and burned down their house. She suspects they targeted her family because her children had been playing "soldier" and had left a Union flag hanging on their woodshed.
Date: September 2, 1863

Title: From Florella Brown Adair to Unknown
Description: This undated letter was written ca. April 15, 1861 by Florella Brown Adair, presumably to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair. Florella reports that she plans to start for home on April 21, arriving home on the following Saturday. Florella says that Samuel’s father’s health is poor, and that she may attend a family wedding before she leaves Ohio. She writes that Charles and Ada are both well.

Title: From Z.M. Hadly to Edmund G. Ross
Description: This 1864 telegram was sent by Capt. Z.M. Hadly in Kansas City, Missouri, to Capt. Edmund G. Ross in Lawrence, Kansas. Hadly states that between 150 and 200 guerrillas crossed into Kansas the previous night, heading in the direction of Olathe, Kansas. Hadly reports that 350 cavalry were immediately dispatched from Kansas City to Olathe.
Object Type: Telegram
Date: 1864

Title: From G.A. Parsons to Robert M. Stewart
Description: This dispatch, dated June 3, 1858 is from G.A. Parsons, Adjutant General of the Missouri Militia, to Missouri Gov. Robert M. Stewart. Parsons reports from Cass County, Missouri on the border conflict; he states that a number of Missouri farmers have abandoned their farms and moved into the interior of the state to seek safety. He adds that James Montgomery and a group of Kansas citizens met with a committee of Missouri citizens and demanded their surrender.
Date: June 3, 1858

Title: From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair and Emma Adair
Description: This letter, dated November 8, 1860, was written by Florella Brown Adair in Hudson, Ohio, to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair and daughter Emma Adair in Osawatomie, Kansas. Florella writes that she just returned to Hudson after a trip to Ashtabula, Geauga, and Portage Counties. She says that she will come home if necessary, but is reluctant to because of the present difficult times in Kansas. Florella adds that she came to Ohio “hoping to enjoy the society of my friends once more after being so long shut up in Kansas and I have so far not been disappointed.”
Date: November 8, 1860

Title: From R.G. Elliott to Dear Sister
Description: This letter, dated August 24, 1863, is from R.G. Elliott in Lawrence, Kansas to his sister. He informs her that he was taken prisoner during Quantrill's Raid on Lawrence, but managed to escape. He states that troops from Kansas City are in pursuit of Quantrill's Raiders, but he does not believe they will catch them. Following the Raid, he writes, "We have been engaged ever since in burying the dead."
Object Type: Letter
Date: August 24, 1863

Title: Fort Union
Description: Camp Union at 10th and Central Streets in Kansas City, Missouri.
Object Type: Image
Date: 1861

Title: From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair and Emma Adair
Description: This letter was written on August 19, 1860 by Florella Brown Adair in Grafton, Ohio, to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair and daughter Emma Adair. Florella describes her journey to Grafton via boat and train with her son Charles and daughter Ada. She says there will soon be a great gathering in Oberlin but expresses reluctance to attend: “I have been so long away from such refined & stilish society that I feel a shrinking from it. Marian thinks I have grown old very fast.”
Date: August 19, 1860

Title: From Leigh R. Webber to Mrs. Brown
Description: This letter, dated January 11, 1862, is from Leigh R. Webber in Lexington, Missouri to Mrs. Brown. Webber reports that his regiment has been marching in rough weather since January, and the long march "has used up our men pretty badly," leaving many men ill. He adds that life in his undisciplined regiment, with its drunkenness, rioting, and stealing, "is a perfect hell to me." The letter is written on stationery featuring an eagle and the caption "Union Forever."
Date: January 11, 1862

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: .44 Caliber Lead Ball
Description: Black and white photograph of a .44 caliber lead ball found by archaeologist Doug Shaver during excavations in 2013 at Wornall House in Kansas City, Missouri. Wornall House, located on the site of the Battle of Westport, became one of six local buildings and houses that served as a hospital for troops wounded during the battle, which was fought from October 21-23, 1864.
Object Type: Image
Date: 2014

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 J.M. Kingsbury to J.J. Webb
Description: This September 22, 1856 letter is from J.M. Kingsbury in Kansas City, Missouri to J.J. Webb in Santa Fe. Kingsbury writes that Kansas Territory is still plagued by "difficulties" and that Congress has passed the Army Bill. He expresses hope that the new governor of Kansas, John W. Geary, will "succeed in quieting things there and be able to carry out the law."
Object Type: Letter
Date: September 22, 1856

Title: From M. Jeff Thompson to Robert M. Stewart
Description: On November 27, 1860, Col. M. Jeff Thompson writes a dispatch from the Headquarters of the 4th Military District in St. Joseph, Missouri to Missouri Gov. R.M Stewart. Thompson suggests that Stewart send troops to guard the Missouri River to prevent the escape of guerrilla attackers and prevent further invasions. Thompson also states that Major F.W. Smith has 200 troops ready for orders.
Date: November 27, 1860

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: 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: From James Griffing to Unknown
Description: This letter, dated January 10, 1854 but presumably written January 10, 1855, was sent by James Griffing in Wyandotte County, Kansas to an unknown recipient. James discusses pioneer life in Kansas Territory, claiming that it is not at all dangerous: “Our society is mostly all from the East, and you feel just as much composed as when in New England.” Although James believes Missourians are more dangerous than the American Indians, he insists “there is no more reason for a person who attends to his own business to be afraid here” than anywhere else.
Date: January 10, 1855

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 Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
Description: Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas writes a letter on August 25, 1856 to his parents, who live in Hopkinton, Massachusetts. Edward argues that Hopkinton, his hometown, should pay him for his contributions to the Free State cause in Kansas. He adds that a lot of his neighbors also need financial help and don’t have enough food or clothing. He writes that he recently attended the funeral of Captain Shombre, who was fatally wounded at the Battle of Fort Titus, and mentions that Major David S. Hoyt was killed the same week in an attack at Washington Creek.
Object Type: Letter
Date: August 25, 1856

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

Error message

Pages

Pages

Object Type

Local Subject

People

Geographic Subject

Owning Organization