Civil War

Title: Letters Sent (Provost Marshal's Office, 7th District Missouri)
Description: This notebook contains copies of letters sent from the Provost Marshal's Office, 7th District of Missouri, in St. Joseph, Missouri, between July 15, 1863 and June 30, 1864. The correspondence, written by Capt. William Fowler, Provost Marshal of the 7th District, addresses such topics as military enrollment and recruitment of free blacks, army deserters, and management of the draft. Correspondents include Missouri Provost Marshal General E.B. Alexander and U.S. Provost Marshal General James B. Fry.
Date: July 15, 1863-June 30, 1864

Title: From W.A. King to A. Comingo
Description: This letter, dated November 9, 1863, is from W.A. King in Liberty, Missouri to Capt. A. Comingo, Provost Marshal of the 6th district of Missouri. King states that he obeyed a military commander's orders to publish a notice urging all citizens to enlist. He reports to Comingo the expenses he paid for printing and requests reimbursement.
Date: November 9, 1863

Title: Proceedings of the Board of Enrollment (6th District Missouri)
Description: This notebook documents the proceedings of the Board of Enrollment for the 6th District of Missouri between July 1863 and April 1865. The journal contains information on meetings held by the Board to appoint Deputy Provost Marshals and Enrolling Officers; enrollment records for individual counties; and requests for exemptions. Entries are signed by John B. Ryland, "Recorder," and Thomas O'Neil, "Recorder of Board."
Date: July 1863-April 1865

Title: From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair
Description: This undated letter was written ca. December 1862 by Florella Brown Adair in Osawatomie, Kansas, to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair. Florella expresses distress over reports regarding “the great battle of the 6 of this month.” She states that their son Charles is among the missing, and does not know if he is dead or has been taken prisoner. Florella says that her friends “seemed to sympathize & hoped it might not be so bad, or that it was not true, as many reports are exagerated.”

Title: From Daniel R. Anthony to Dear Father
Description: Daniel R. Anthony writes a letter from Leavenworth, Kansas to his father on November 5, 1861. He states that he will command his regiment on a trip to Sedalia, Missouri to bring oxen and wagons to Gen. Fremont’s army, while Col. Jennison stays behind in Kansas. At the end of the letter, Anthony lists the equipment his regiment needs, including saddles, clothing, sabres, rifles, and revolvers.
Object Type: Letter
Date: November 5, 1861

Title: Quarterly Ordnance Office Survey Reports
Description: This military document is a collection of three quarterly ordnance office survey reports from 1864 filled out by Captain James J. Akard of Company "A", 8th Cavalry Regiment, Missouri State Militia. These circulars ask questions to the commanding officer of a company or regiment concerning the equipment issued to Union cavalry units.
Date: 1864

Title: Correspondence With Recruiting Officers and Special Orders (Provost Marshal General's Bureau)
Description: This notebook contains copies of correspondence between the Missouri Provost Marshal General's Bureau and recruiting officers in the field from February to November 1863. Topics addressed in the correspondence include appointments to various military positions; issues with payment to soldiers; and information about new recruits. Participants in the correspondence include Col. B.L.E. Bonneville, Col. E.B. Alexander, and Provost Marshal General James B. Fry.
Date: February 1863-November 1863

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

Title: From Samuel Worthington to Dear Father
Description: This letter, dated October 27, 1864, was written by Samuel Worthington at Headquarters, District of South Kansas, Paola, Kansas, to his father. Worthington states that he recently returned from the front, where he took part in five cavalry charges in one day during the Battle of Mine Creek. He describes participating in a charge with the 7th Kansas Cavalry in which they took 5 pieces of artillery and captured 300 prisoners including Confederate Gen. Marmaduke. “The Rebs are whipped completely,” Worthington declares.
Date: October 27, 1864

Title: From Florella Brown Adair to Samuel Lyle Adair
Description: On November 30, 1862, Florella Brown Adair writes from Osawatomie, Kansas, to her husband Samuel Lyle Adair. Florella discusses various household and community matters, stating that she has “a black woman coming to help me.” She says she heard a report that Gen. Blunt was going to Fort Smith with his whole command, and also heard that their son Charles was involved in battle and was “among the first to take the Rebbel Battery.”
Date: November 30, 1862

Title: Missouri Militia Request for Recommendations for Enrolling and Exemption Officers
Description: Missouri Militia Colonel Hosea G. Mullings requests that James J. Akard recommends "suitable persons as Enrolling and Exemption Officers for Polk and Cedar Counties" in southwestern Missouri.
Date: May 18, 1865

Title: From William Fowler to John Flint
Description: On January 31, 1865, Capt. William Fowler, Provost Marshal, 7th District Missouri, writes from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Deputy Provost Marshal John Flint. Fowler states that he has been directed by the War Department to gather information about the family of Thomas Megglemore of Harrison County, Missouri. He explains that Megglemore's father applied for his son's release from Co. D, 23rd Mo. Vols., so he can "contribute to the support of" of the family. Fowler instructs Flint to procure at least two affidavits regarding the family's "true condition."
Date: January 31, 1865

Title: Letters Sent (Provost Marshal, Northern District of Kansas)
Description: This notebook contains copies of correspondence sent by the Provost Marshal's Office, Northern District of Kansas in Leavenworth, Kansas, between May and August 1864. Topics addressed in the correspondence include military enrollment, accounting matters, and desertions. Participants in the correspondence include Provost Marshal General James B. Fry and Capt. J. McCahon, Provost Marshal for the Northern District of Kansas.
Date: May 1864-August 1864

Title: Statements of Clothing Prices and Clothing Invoices
Description: This military document includes a statement on clothing prices beginning in July 1861. Following this statement are two invoices of clothing turned over to Captain David D. Stockton from Colonel Joseph W. McClurg and Captain Henry D. Moore, all of which are officers of the Missouri State Militia 8th Cavalry Regiment.
Date: December 8, 1862

Title: Application of Montgomery Slemons
Description: This is Montgomery Slemons’s application for compensation from the United States government for the military service of his slave, George. The application, dated November 14, 1866, includes an oath of allegiance to the United States, a statement that Slemons lawfully acquired George, and the signatures of two witnesses, a lawyer, and a notary public in Clinton County, Missouri. A note in pencil on the second page indicates that the application was rejected. Also included is a signed statement that Slemons lawfully purchased another slave, Nat.
Object Type: Legal Document
Date: November 14, 1866

Title: From "C." to "Col."
Description: This letter, dated September 21, 1861, is from "C." in St. Joseph, Missouri to "Col." C. reports that the Federal troops surrendered at the Battle of Lexington on September 20. He writes that "our country has been rob[b]ed by both parties . . . nearly evry body that is worth any thing has been rob[b]ed more or less, no matter what their politics are." He adds that people are "bitter" about the Platte Purchase, and predicts that fighting will ensue.
Date: September 21, 1861

Title: From Thomas Carney to James L. McDowell
Description: This dispatch, dated September 15, 1863, is from Kansas Gov. Thomas Carney to General James L. McDowell. Carney informs McDowell that Col. C.G. Foster and Major Crowell of the Kansas State Militia want additional arms and cavalry. He urges McDowell to grant their request.
Date: September 15, 1863

Title: Medical Record of Examination of Recruits
Description: This is a bound volume of records noting the medical examinations of men recruited to the Union Army in Kansas. The records, dating from November 5, 1864 to April 20, 1865, include the recruits' names, ages, country or state of birth, occupation, height, complexion, eye and hair color, chest measurements, race, and town or county of residence.
Date: November 5, 1864-April 20, 1865

Title: From James Montgomery to G.L. Stearns
Description: These two letters were sent to G.L. Stearns by James Montgomery. Writing from Mound City, Kansas on May 8, 1861, Montgomery states that he has organized a regiment and accepted a position on the Governor’s War Council. He reports that the Missourians are “trying to stir up the Indians on our border,” and asks Stearns for two small breech-loading guns. Writing from Lawrence, Kansas on June 21, 1861, Montgomery says that southern Kansas is threatened by invasion from Missouri and Arkansas, while Union men in Missouri are either driven out of the state or drafted into the Confederate army. Montgomery states that he has used Stearns' letter of credit at various times, and thanks him for his generosity.
Date: May 8, 1861 and June 21, 1861

Title: From S.H. Holmes to A. Comingo
Description: This letter, dated December 21, 1863, is from S.H. Holmes in Liberty, Missouri to Capt. A. Comingo, Provost Marshal of the 6th district of Missouri. Holmes reports that he arrested a deserter and turned him over to Col. Moss. Holmes asks Comingo to give him the authority to make arrests, claiming that otherwise "it will be next to impossible for me to discharge my duties as an officer of my Government."
Date: December 21, 1863

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

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