Civil War

Title: John McCorkle
Description: Charcoal portrait of John McCorkle in suit coat, shirt, tie, and hat. McCorkle, born December 12, 1838, in Andrew County, Missouri, moved to a farm near Westport around 1846. In April 1861 he enlisted in Company A of the Missouri State Guards, but in August 1862 he became part of Quantrill's guerrillas. In 1865, McCorkle surrendered at Newcastle, Kentucky, along with George Wigginton and a Confederate Captain Stone. They were paroled. Some years later, O. S. Barton helped McCorkle write his memoirs, "Three Years with Quantrell [sic]," published in 1914. McCorkle lived in Howard County, Missouri, until he died in 1918.
Object Type: Image

Title: From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair
Description: This letter was written on December 21 and 22, 1862 by Florella Brown Adair in Osawatomie, Kansas, to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair. Florella writes that she has heard various reports concerning their son Charles in the army, and says that although none of them can be trusted, “I cannot help being affected by them especially if I do not know they are not true.” Florella also discusses household matters such as taxes and her plans concerning a cow and calf she loaned to a neighbor.
Date: December 21, 1862-December 22, 1862

Title: Map of North America Showing Proposed Railroad Routes
Description: This black-and-white map is entitled “Map of North America, From the Latest Authorities Showing the Proposed Railroad Routes from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans.” The map was printed in 1854 by J.H. Colton and Co. in New York, for J. Disturnell.
Object Type: Map
Date: 1854

Title: Affidavit of Henry E. McKee
Description: This is the sworn affidavit of Henry E. McKee, signed by Kansas Gov. John W. Geary on October 4, 1856. McKee claims that on October 2, he witnessed H. Miles Moore enter the American Hotel in Kansas City, Missouri, where eight men captured him. They took Moore to Wyandotte, Kansas and “unlawfully imprisoned” him there, McKee says. He adds that if Moore does not receive help soon, “his life is in great hazard and will be sacrificed.”
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: October 4, 1856

Title: From Daniel Woodson to Philip St. George Cooke
Description: This dispatch, dated August 28, 1856, was sent by Acting Kansas Gov. Daniel Woodson in Lecompton, Kansas, to Lt. Col. Philip St. George Cooke, commanding U.S. troops near Lecompton. Woodson states that the Douglas County, Kansas Sheriff and the U.S. Marshal have informed him they are currently prevented from executing legal writs. Woodson orders Cooke to furnish them with approximately 75 U.S. troops to assist them in executing the writs.
Date: August 28, 1856

Title: Atchison, Kansas
Description: Bird's eye view of the city of Atchison, Atchison Co., Kansas in 1869.
Object Type: Image
Date: 1869

Title: From Frederick Starr to Unknown
Description: This ca. April 1855 letter was written by Frederick Starr to an unknown recipient, possibly his father. Starr says that he plans to leave Weston, Missouri within 3 or 4 weeks, because “We are in the midst of terrible times again…The ballot box is violated[,] the press overthrown, the church denounced[,] surely pro slavery powers are making great advances.” Starr states that the printing press owned by Park and Patterson in Parkville, Missouri was thrown into the river, and the men were ordered to leave the state.

Title: Leavenworth City, Kansas Territory
Description: Depiction of the city of Leavenworth, Kansas in 1856. Missourians from Weston, Missouri and residents of Fort Leavenworth founded the city in the fall of 1854.
Object Type: Image
Date: n.d.

Title: From John W. Reid to John W. Geary
Description: John W. Reid writes a letter from Independence, Missouri to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary on September 20, 1856. Reid states that he obeyed Geary’s order to disband his troops and terminate an expedition to plunder Lawrence. He admits that “some bad men who were with us did commit some outrages . . . which I hope you will believe was beyond my control or power to prevent.”
Object Type: Letter
Date: September 20, 1856

Title: Examination of John W. Reynolds
Description: This is John W. Reynolds's 1866 Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Reynolds, a 60-year-old Kentucky native, states that he has lived in Missouri for 39 years, and opposed "the enemies of the Government" during the war "by staying at home and advising them to keep out of Rebellion." The oath is No. 182 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: From Philip St. George Cooke to John W. Geary
Description: Lieut. Col. Philip St. George Cooke writes a dispatch from camp in Nebraska to Kansas Gov. John W. Geary on October 8, 1856. He reports on military operations near the Nebraska-Kansas border, and informs Geary that he is sending troops to Lecompton and Topeka.
Date: October 8, 1856

Title: Seal of the Confederate States of America on Brass Medallion
Description: Brass medallion displaying the seal of the Confederate States of America, circa 1876-1900.
Object Type: Image

Title: Examination of Charles Warren
Description: This is Charles Warren's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Warren, a 74-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri, states that he was born in Kentucky and that he remained loyal to the United States Government during the Civil War. The oath, labeled No. 115 in a bound volume, was signed by Warren on October 6, 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: October 6, 1866

Title: Examination of John Braly
Description: This is John Braly's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Braly, a 72-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri, states that he was born in North Carolina and that he remained loyal to the United States Government during the Civil War. The oath, labeled No. 121 in a bound volume, was signed by Braly in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: From Emma Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair
Description: This letter was written on December 1, 1862 by Emma Adair in Osawatomie, Kansas, to her father Samuel Lyle Adair. Emma writes that school will begin the next day, and that she will try to attend. She went to “singing school” Saturday night and hopes to go again. She asks her father if he took his copy of “Butler’s analogy” with him, because they have searched for it and cannot find it in the house.
Object Type: Letter
Date: December 1, 1862

Title: Examination of O.P. Moss
Description: This is O.P. Moss's 1866 Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Moss, a 53-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri, states that he was born in Kentucky but has resided in Missouri for 47 years, including 30 years in Clay County. The oath is No. 135 in a bound volume.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Examination of Patrick Dwyer
Description: This is Patrick Dwyer's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Dwyer describes himself as a 50-year-old resident of Clay County, Missouri who was born in Ireland. He states that he demonstrated his loyalty to the United States Government during the Civil War by feeding soldiers. He admits that he "had no feelings in the matter" when he heard that Gen. Price had captured Gen. Mulligan's army at Lexington, Missouri. The oath, labeled No. 65 in a bound volume, was signed by Dwyer in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Planters Hotel, St. Louis, Mo.
Description: Photograph of the Planters Hotel, located in St. Louis, Missouri, circa 1901.
Object Type: Image

Title: Examination of B.W. Vineyard
Description: This is B.W. Vineyard's Oath of Loyalty to the United States. Vineyard, a 42-year-old resident of Liberty, Missouri, states that he is taking the oath under protest, because it contradicts the "fundamental principals of the Constitution of the United States" and denies citizens their rights to free thought and speech. Vineyard was born in Kentucky and served as president of the Liberty Ladies College. The oath, No. 2. in a bound volume, was signed by Vineyard in 1866.
Object Type: Government Document
Date: 1866

Title: Battle of Shiloh
Description: Thure de Thulstrup's painting of the Battle of Shiloh, the bloodiest battle in U.S. history.
Object Type: Image

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

Error message

In collections

Pages

Pages

Object Type

Local Subject

People

Geographic Subject

Owning Organization