Civil War

Title: Memorial to the President of the United States
Description: This 1854 broadside, entitled “Memorial to the President of the United States,” was drafted “on behalf of the settlers upon lands in Kansas Territory, ceded to the United States in July last, by the Delaware Indians.” The memorandum protests against a new treaty between the U.S. government and the Delaware Indians, because it will result in white settlers being driven from Kansas Territory and “will benefit none but speculators.” The document’s authors beg the President to reconsider the treaty.
Object Type: Broadside
Date: 1854

Title: Citizens' Meeting at Weston, Missouri
Description: This broadside describes the proceedings of a citizens’ meeting held in Weston, Missouri, on September 1, 1854. G.W. Gist is identified as chair of the meeting, with J.B. Evans serving as secretary. The broadside states that ten resolutions were passed at the meeting, with attendees declaring themselves to be “Union men” forced to accept measures contrary to their principles by “certain members of the Platte County Self-Defensive Association.” The broadside is signed by 174 men.
Object Type: Broadside
Date: September 1, 1854

Title: War in Kansas!
Description: This 1856 broadside announces the commencement of civil war in Kansas. It urges the citizens of Lafayette County, Missouri to gather with their guns and horses in Lexington on August 20, and "put an end to Abolitionism in Kansas." The broadside, signed by twelve men, reports that John Brown, James Henry Lane, and their forces have launched several guerrilla attacks upon Kansas residents, and are now "advancing upon us--the next breath from Kansas may bring to our ears the death shrieks of our Fathers, brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, neighbors and friends."
Object Type: Broadside
Date: August 1856

Title: An Abolition Trick Exposed!
Description: This broadside was written by B.F. Stringfellow in Platte County, Missouri on August 7, 1854. Stringfellow denies H. Miles Moore’s accusation that he declared that all men who labor for a living are slaves. He accuses Moore of being an abolitionist, a Freesoiler, and a “white slave.” The broadside includes statements by people who witnessed an argument between Stringfellow and Moore, and a statement signed by 22 citizens who denied that Stringfellow ever called laborers slaves.
Object Type: Broadside
Date: August 2, 1854-August 7, 1854

Title: "An Abolition Trick Exposed!" Eh?
Description: This broadside was published by H. Miles Moore, a writer for the Weston Reporter in Platte County, Missouri, on August 12, 1854. Moore responds to B.F. Stringfellow’s accusations that he is a Freesoiler and “the secret tool of abolitionists.” He angrily denies the charges and claims to despise abolitionists. He includes a letter, signed by 17 other Platte County citizens, that accuses Stringfellow of publicly stating that “all who labor for their daily bread . . . are slaves” and “all females who labor for their daily bread are whores.”
Object Type: Broadside
Date: August 12, 1854

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