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Title
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From George Lewis to Mrs. Fitch
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Description
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George Lewis of Lawrence, Kansas writes a letter to Mrs. Fitch (Edward Fitch’s mother) in Massachusetts on January 14, 1857. He thanks her for donating clothing to his family and to other poor emigrants in Kansas. He tells her that a band of proslavery men robbed him and burned down his house, leaving him living in a tent with his wife and six children. Despite his struggles, Lewis, a Welsh immigrant, expresses hope about the future of Kansas: “It must be made a Free State. It shall be a Free State.”
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Date
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January 14, 1857
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Title
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Resolutions of the Kansas Territorial Legislative Assembly
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Description
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These documents comprise 14 separate resolutions of the Kansas Territorial Legislative Assembly, dated between 1858 and 1861. The resolutions address a variety of topics, including support for admitting Kansas into the Union as a state; revision of county and township laws; protection of American Indian land rights; and maintaining peace with Missouri by denouncing any attempt by Kansans to interfere with slavery.
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Object Type
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Government Document
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Date
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1858-1861
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Title
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Kansas Territorial Records
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Description
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These documents include letters and affidavits documenting election fraud that occurred in Leavenworth, Johnson, Coffey, and Linn Counties in Kansas Territory. Kansas citizens voted on January 4, 1858 to determine the fate of the Lecompton Constitution and to elect state officials. These documents refer to incidents of “enormous fraud” including men voting repeatedly under false names, falsifying poll books, and destroying ballot boxes “by violence and force.”
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Object Type
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Government Document
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Date
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January 5, 1858-March 15, 1858
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Title
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From Edward Fitch to Dear Father
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Description
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This unsigned May 20, 1858 letter is presumably from Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas to his father in Massachusetts. Fitch criticizes the Lecompton Constitution and the English Bill due to their proslavery stance. He fears that those in the Kansas territory will accept the English Bill since it offers large amount of public lands to Kansas settlers. Though Fitch fears Kansas' entrance into the Union as a slave state, he ends his letter in an optimistic tone, remarking that it would be as impossible to make Kansas into a slave state “as it would be to make Hell out of Heaven.”
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Object Type
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Letter
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Date
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May 20, 1858
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Title
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From Sara Robinson to My Dear Sister
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Description
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This letter is from Sara Robinson, the wife of Kansas Gov. Charles Robinson, to her sister. Robinson, writing from Lawrence, Kansas on January 5, 1858, tells her sister that an election was held yesterday for the Lecompton Constitution. She states that Charles opposed the constitution and that voting against it was the only option that "promised victory to the Free State men." She also mentions that he has been attending sessions of the Topeka Legislature.
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Date
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January 5, 1858
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Title
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Constitution Hall, Lecompton, Kansas
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Description
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Photograph of Constitution Hall, site of the Lecompton Constitutional Convention on January 12, 1857. Constitution Hall was built in 1856 and restored in 1991.
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Object Type
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Image
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Date
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1933
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Title
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From Edward Fitch to Dear Parents
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Description
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Edward Fitch of Lawrence, Kansas, writes a letter to his parents in Massachusetts on August 9, 1857, announcing that Kansas has voted to ratify the Topeka Constitution. He adds that Free State supporters appear to comprise a majority in Kansas. Fitch complains about a recent Herald of Freedom article on the apportionment of the Kansas Legislature, and claims that it is “the most damning piece of villany ever perpetrated by any men or set of men.”
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Date
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August 9, 1857
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Title
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1857 Election Ballots
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Description
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These are ballots that were cast in the December 21, 1857 election in Kansas Territory. Citizens voted to either ratify the Lecompton Constitution with slavery or to ratify it without slavery. Free State supporters boycotted the election and the pro-slavery vote prevailed.
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Object Type
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Ballots
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Date
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December 21, 1857
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Title
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1858 Election Ballots
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Description
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These are ballots that were cast in the January 4, 1858 election in Kansas Territory. Citizens voted to either ratify or reject the Lecompton Constitution. They also voted for State officers and a Congressional representative. The majority of voters rejected the Constitution and elected Free State politicians.
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Object Type
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Ballots
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Date
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January 4, 1858