Civil War

Title: President Franklin Pierce, Seated, with Left Hand Inside Vest
Description: Portrait of President Franklin Pierce circa 1855-1865.
Object Type: Image
Date: 1855-1865

Title: Major Clark's Raid
Description: This unsigned document, ca. 1856, states that Maj. Clark and 300 men burnt down houses, robbed stores, took prisoners, and sent people down the Missouri River. The document declares that Clark “has always been a fire brand” and has left the country “in a state of turmoil.”
Object Type: Government Document

Title: From Charles Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair
Description: This letter was written on January 16, 1861 by Charles Adair in Hudson, Ohio, to his father Samuel Lyle Adair. Charles reports on his school activities, and says that his uncle and aunt are now at the oil springs running a boarding house. He says he received a letter from his mother, Florella Brown Adair, who expects to go to Lafayette the following week.
Object Type: Letter
Date: January 16, 1861

Title: William D. Matthews
Description: A sepia colored carte-de-visite of First Lieutenant William Dominick Matthews. Matthews was a member of the Independent Battery, U.S. Colored Light Artillery, who served at Fort Leavenworth and helped protect eastern Kansas during Price's invasion in 1864. In addition, Matthews helped recruit many members of the First Colored Kansas Volunteer Infantry. Prior to the Civil War, Matthews operated a boarding house in Leavenworth, Kansas that was used as part of the underground railroad. Assisted by Daniel R. Anthony, the brother of Susan B. Anthony, Matthews helped many Missouri slaves escape to Kansas and other "free" states.
Object Type: Image
Date: 1861-1865

Title: Maps of Shawnee Indian Reservation
Description: These 21 plat maps were made ca. 1857 by Isaac Cooper Stuck. The maps are marked with geographical features and locations of people’s land claims within the Shawnee Indian Reservation in eastern Kansas.
Object Type: Map

Title: From James Mooney to Robert M. Stewart
Description: This letter was written on January 8, 1859 by Capt. James Mooney in West Point, Missouri, to Missouri Gov. Robert M. Stewart. Mooney reiterates what he communicated in an earlier letter: a company of 100 men has been organized in Bates County, Missouri to provide protection against “depredations” by guerrillas. Mooney provides a list of the company’s officers and requests that Stewart provide them with arms.
Date: January 8, 1859

Title: Contract for Hire
Description: In this document, dated December 30, 1859, T.F. Prewitt promises to pay Lisbon Applegate $50, plus interest, for “the hire of a negro girl named Ellen.” Prewitt promises to take care of her, pay the requisite taxes, and to return her on December 25, 1860.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: December 30, 1859

Title: Report of Slaves Enlisted, Richmond, Missouri
Description: This military roll, dated March 30, 1864, shows the total number of slaves enlisted from the 5th Missouri Sub-District at Richmond, Missouri during January 1864. The roll lists each recruit's name, owner, date of enlistment, and the enrolling officer. The document is signed by J.W. Black, Recruiting Agent.
Date: March 30, 1864

Title: James (Jim) Robert Cummins
Description: Charcoal portrait of James (Jim) Cummins (sometimes spelled Cummings) in suit coat and checked (?) shirt. Jim Cummins was a neighbor to the James family near Kearney, Missouri. He, along with Jesse James, Doc Rupe, Silas King, and Tom Smith joined the regular service of the Confederacy under Colonel Calhoun Thornton. Later he and Jesse joined the guerrillas. Jim was not at Lawrence, but was at the Centralia massacre, September 27, 1864. After the war, some believe he was at some point a member of the James-Younger gang. Cummins sometimes used the alias Jim Johnson. He periodically stayed at the Confederate Home near Higginsville, Missouri, until his death on July 9, 1929. He is buried in the Veterans Cemetery in Higginsville.
Object Type: Image
Date: 1893

Title: Edward Thomas
Description: This carte de visite depicts Edward Thomas, who served in the Fifth Kansas Volunteer Cavalry. The photograph was produced ca. 1861-1865.
Object Type: Image

Title: Gen. James G. Blunt
Description: Black and white full-length portrait of Major General James Gillpatrick Blunt posing in uniform. Blunt commanded Union forces in several notable Civil War battles, including the Battle of Prairie Grove, the Battle of Fort Blair, and the Battle of Westport.
Object Type: Image

Title: Inventory and Inspection Report of Public Property
Description: This document is an "Inventory and inspection report of public property (including Captured or "Contraband" Property), belonging to the United States, and held by Co. "A" 8th MSM Cavalry, and for which Captain James J Akard is accountable." This report was completed by Akard and submitted for inspection to Lieutenant D. E. Murphy, Assistant Inspector for the District of Southwest Missouri at Springfield. This specific inventory includes eighteen wedge tents received new from Lt. Stockley Etter on July 4, 1863.
Date: March 29, 1864

Title: Signing the Ordinance of Secession of Louisiana, January 26, 1861
Description: Painting by Enoch Wood Perry, Jr. depicting the signing of the Ordinance of Secession of Louisiana on January 26, 1861, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Object Type: Image
Date: 1861

Title: From Charles Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair
Description: This letter was written on February 20, 1861 by Charles Adair in Hudson, Ohio, to his father Samuel Lyle Adair. Charles says that he plans to stop attending school the following week before joining his mother, Florella Brown Adair, in Grafton, Ohio to travel south. He states that his school’s schedule was briefly disrupted by Lincoln’s recent visit to Hudson.
Date: February 20, 1861

Title: John Otis Wattles
Description: A photograph of John Otis Wattles, abolitionist and founder of the Free-State town of Moneka, in Linn County, Kansas.
Object Type: Image

Title: Benjamin McCulloch, C.S.A.
Description: Black and white portrait of Confederate Brigadier General Benjamin McCulloch.
Object Type: Image

Title: Lexington Courthouse
Description: Partial frontal view of courthouse in Lexington showing cannon ball embedded in column.
Object Type: Image
Date: n.d.

Title: From Samuel B. Lawrence to A. Comingo
Description: On December 3, 1863, Assistant Adjutant General Samuel B. Lawrence writes from the Provost Marshal General's Office in Washington, DC, to Capt. A. Comingo, Provost Marshal for the 6th District of Missouri, in Lexington, Missouri. Lawrence informs Comingo that the nominations he submitted for recruiting agents have been approved, adding that Comingo should notify him if any of the men are currently in the U.S. service.
Date: December 3, 1863

Title: B.F. Woodworth
Description: This carte de visite depicts B.F. Woodworth, who served in the Fifth Kansas Volunteer Cavalry. The photograph was produced ca. 1861-1865.
Object Type: Image

Title: From G.A. Parsons to Robert M. Stewart
Description: This letter, dated June 4 and 5, 1858, is from Adj. Gen. G.A. Parsons to Missouri Gov. Robert M. Stewart. Parsons reports that he will ask a former Kansas resident named Hamilton to submit a statement about the crimes of James Montgomery and his followers. Parsons relays a rumor that 100-200 Kansas citizens who have sought refuge in Missouri plan to return to Kansas and seek revenge on Montgomery. He also reports a recent attack on Butler County, Missouri, and informs Stewart that Col. Blakey is organizing a volunteer company of Missouri citizens.
Date: June 4, 1858-June 5, 1858

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

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