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THE
Kansas Historical
Quarterly
NYLE H. MILLER, Managing Editor
KIRKE MECHEM, Editor
JAMES C. MALIN, Associate Editor
Volume XXVII
1961
(Kansas Historical Collections)
VOL. XLIV
Published by
The Kansas State Historical Society
Topeka, Kansas
Contents of Volume XXVII
Number 1 Spring, 1961
PACK
WHEN KANSAS BECAME A STATE 1
KANSAS: A Centennial Portrait Emory Lindquist, 22
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A Revised Annals Compiled by Louise Barry, 67
With reproductions of portions of the Guillaume Delisle maps of 1703 and
1718, between pp. 80, 81.
SOME NOTES ON KANSAS COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS
Continued Nyle H. Miller and Joseph W. Snell, 94
THE ANNUAL MEETING: Containing Reports of the Secretary, Treasurer,
Executive and Nominating Committees; Election of Officers; Address
of the President, THE SETTLEMENT OF THE SHORT-GRASS COUNTRY, by
Edward R. Sloan; Presentation of Painting of Philip Pitt Campbell;
Memorials to John S. Dawson and Jerome C. Berryman; List of Di-
rectors of the Society 124
BYPATHS OF KANSAS HISTORY 151
KANSAS HISTORY AS PUBLISHED IN THE PRESS 154
KANSAS HISTORICAL NOTES . . 157
Number 2 Summer, 1961
PAGE
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875: The Rise and Fall of a Kansas
Cowtown Robert Dykstra, 161
With map of Ellsworth county, 1875, p. 187.
THE EARLY CAREER OF C. K. HOLLIDAY: A Founder of Topeka and of
the Santa Fe Railroad Frederick F. Seely, 193
With portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Cyrus Kurtz Holliday, facing p. 192.
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A Revised Annals, Part Two,
1763-1803 Compiled by Louise Barry, 201
With a George Catlin sketch of Kansa Indians, about 1831, facing p. 208,
and the reproduction of a portion of Francois M. Pen-in du Lac's Carte
du Missouri, 1802, facing p. 209.
SOME NOTES ON KANSAS COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS
Continued Nyle H. Miller and Joseph W. Snell, 220
With portraits of Rowdy Joe Lowe, and William B., Edward J., and James P.
Masterson, facing p. 240; reproduction of a portion of a page of the
Delmonico Hotel register, Dodge City, and a photograph of Mr. and Mrs.
Thomas Masterson, parents of the Masterson trio of lawmen, facing p. 241.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY,
Compiled by Alberta Pantle, Librarian, 277
BYPATHS OF KANSAS HISTORY , . > 304
KANSAS HISTORY AS PUBLISHED IN THE PRESS 305
KANSAS HISTORICAL NOTES , . . . ; 308
(iii)
Number 3 Autumn, 1961
PACK
ENLISTMENT AND CONSCRIPTION IN CIVIL WAR KANSAS .... Albert Cartel, 313
THE LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT, JACKSON COUNTY PIONEER:
First Installment, 1854-1861,
Edited by Donald M. Murray and Robert M. Rodney, 320
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A Revised Annals, Part Three,
1804-1818 Compiled by Louise Barry, 353
With portrait of Capt. Zebulon M. Pike and sketch of his probable route,
facing p. 360; portrait of George C. Sibley, with sketch of his route, and
reproduction of a Pawnee pictograph of a Pawnee-Kansa battle, between
pp. 360, 361; and portrait of Auguste P. Chouteau, facing p. 361.
SOME NOTES ON KANSAS COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS
Continued Nyle H. Miller and Joseph W. Snell, 383
With bird's eye sketch of Dodge City, 1882, facing p. 408, and a photograph
of seven Cheyenne survivors of the last Indian raid in Kansas, facing
p. 409.
BYPATHS OF KANSAS HISTORY 448
KANSAS HISTORY AS PUBLISHED IN THE PRESS 449
KANSAS HISTORICAL NOTES . . 453
Number 4 Winter, 1961
PAGE
THE OTTAWA CHAUTAUQUA ASSEMBLY F. W. Brinkerhoff, 457
With a photograph of Sen. John A. Logan, Gov. John A. Martin, and B. F.
Flenniken, and a sketch and photograph of Forest park, 1886, frontis-
piece, and cenes on the grounds in 1897, facing p. 457.
THE LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT, JACKSON COUNTY PIONEER:
Final Installment, 1862-1906,
Edited by Donald M. Murray and Robert M. Rodney, 469
With portrait of Peter Bryant, facing p. 488, and a sketch of his farm build-
ings ( 1881 ), facing p. 489.
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A Revised Annals, Part Four,
1819-1825 Compiled by Louise Barry, 497
With sketches, arrival of a caravan at Santa Fe, and three Osage Indians;
portrait of Duke Paul Wilhelm of Wuerttemberg, and portion of the Fre-
mont-Gibbs-Smith map, between pp. 520, 521.
SOME NOTES ON KANSAS COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS
Continued Nyle H. Miller and Joseph W. Snell, 544
With portrait of Mysterious Dave Mather, facing p. 568, and reproduction
of the reward poster for the killers of Mike Meagher, facing p. 569.
BYPATHS OF KANSAS HISTORY 588
KANSAS HISTORY AS PUBLISHED IN THE PRESS 590
KANSAS HISTORICAL NOTES 593
ERRATA, VOLUME XXVII 598
INDEX TO VOLUME XXVII .... 599
(iv)
KANSAS HISTORICA
OUR
INDIA
.SWET
CENTENNIAL ISSUE SPRING 1961
KANSAS STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
NYLE H. MILLER KIRKE MECHEM JAMES C. MALIN
Managing Editor Editor Associate Editor
CONTENTS
PAGE
WHEN KANSAS BECAME A STATE 1
KANSAS: A Centennial Portrait Emory Lindquist, 22
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A Revised Annals Compiled by Louise Barry, 67
With reproductions of portions of the Guillaume Delisle maps of 1703
and 1718, between pp. 80, 81.
SOME NOTES ON KANSAS COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS
Continued Nyle H. Miller and Joseph W. Snell, 94
THE ANNUAL MEETING: Containing Reports of the Secretary, Treasurer,
Executive and Nominating Committees; Election of Officers; Address
of the President, THE SETTLEMENT OF THE SHORT-GRASS COUNTRY, by
Edward R. Sloan; Presentation of Painting of Philip Pitt Campbell;
Memorials to John S. Dawson and Jerome C. Berryman; List of Di-
rectors of the Society 124
BYPATHS OF KANSAS HISTORY 151
KANSAS HISTORY AS PUBLISHED IN THE PRESS 154
KANSAS HISTORICAL NOTES 157
The Kansas Historical Quarterly is published four times a year by the Kansas
State Historical Society, 120 W. Tenth St., Topeka, Kan. It is distributed
without charge to members of the Society; nonmembers may purchase single
issues, when available, for 75 cents each. Membership dues are: annual, $3;
annual sustaining, $10; life, $20. Membership applications and dues should be
sent to Mrs. Lela Barnes, treasurer.
Correspondence concerning articles for the Quarterly should be addressed to
the managing editor. The Society assumes no responsibility for statements made
by contributors.
Second-class postage has been paid at Topeka, Kan.
THE COVER
Samuel J. Reader's water color of his first log
cabin at Indianola (Shawnee county), in June,
1855. The picture represents the typical "Home,
Sweet Home" of many who were settling in Kansas
about the time statehood was achieved 100 years
ago.
1861 Kansas Centennial of Statehood 1961
THE KANSAS S
HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Volume XXVII Spring, 1961 Number 1
When Kansas Became a State
/CLOUDS were looming ominously over the not so United States
^^ in January, 1861. After 85 years the Union seemed on the
verge of dissolution over the vexing question of slavery. Saber rat-
tling Southern senators did nothing to alleviate the situation and
men with nerves frayed raw continued to jump at one another in
the halls of congress over this ideological problem which had existed
longer than the nation itself.
In Kansas the immediate future seemed likely to be as gloomy
as the past. Not only had the territory been the scene of a six-
year struggle identical to the one which would soon inflame the
whole country, but hunger, poverty, and disaster still confronted
her pioneers. The territory was in the midst of a severe drought
which brought carload after carload of supplies from sympathetic
and more fortunate friends and relatives in the East. The drought
caused tight money and low employment. Despair was the lot
of many a hardy soul.
Then, in the darkness of a cold January morning, came news that
gladdened the heart of nearly every Kansan; the future seemed less
dreary, spirits soared, and hopes were revived. Kansas had been
admitted as the 34th state of the Union.
Joyful as the news was, it was not unexpected. For four years
Kansans had been attempting to write a constitution under which
the territory might be admitted as a state. Instruments drawn at
Topeka, Lecompton, and Leavenworth had failed for various rea-
sons but the basic one, of course, was slavery versus freedom. A
fourth constitution had been written at Wyandotte in 1859 and an
admission bill introduced in congress the next year. Though the
bill had passed the house of representatives, the senate's Southern
bloc was able to keep it buried. In December the Kansas bill was
brought up in the second session and in January, 1861, after the
senators of seceding states had begun to withdraw, it finally was
passed by both houses. President James Buchanan signed the
bill into law on January 29.
Overanxious Topeka editors began to announce admission after
2
KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
the bill passed the senate on January 21. The Topeka Tribune,
January 26, 1861, stated:
KANSAS A STATE.
From the following dispatch to the Leavenworth Times, it will [be] seen that
our hopes have at last been realized, and Kansas admitted, a bright, new ^r, to
adorn the glorious constellation:
ST. Louis, Jan. 21, 11 P.M.
J. K. BARTLETT: The Kansas Bill passed the Senate with Fitch's amend-
ment, relating to Judiciary, by a vote of 36 to 16.
McKEE & FlSHBACK.
There is no doubt at all as to the success of the Bill in the House.
Gov. Robinson can now call together our State law-makers, lubricate the
wheels of government and "we'll all take a ride."
"In Dixie Land we'll take our stand "
Further rejoicing deferred until next week.
The Topeka State Record carried the news on the same date in
a column headlined "Kansas Admitted."
A second and more general round of rejoicing was had within
the territory after the Kansas bill passed the house on January 28.
The first to announce the news this time was the Leavenworth
Conservative, established only two days before. A telegram an-
nouncing house passage was sent by Kansas Congressional Dele-
gate Marcus J. Parrott to Abel Carter Wilder, chairman of the
Republican central committee for Kansas whose brother, Daniel
Webster Wilder, was editor of the Conservative. So it was that
within an hour, by four o'clock in the morning of January 29, 1861,
this newcomer to the Kansas journalistic scene had scooped all its
established contemporaries. Unfortunately no copies of that fa-
mous Conservative extra are known to exist. The next regular edi-
tion of the paper, however, perpetuated its feat:
KANSAS IN THE UNION!!
WE WILL FIGHT FOR THE UNION.
The news of the admission of Kansas, announced by THE CONSERVATIVE
yesterday and only by THE CONSERVATIVE, no other paper in Kansas having
the news was the most important that ever reached our borders. . . .
WHEN KANSAS BECAME A STATE 3
KANSAS ADMITTED!
RECEPTION OF THE NEWS!
Yesterday morning, THE CONSERVATIVE, in an extra, announced to the
people of Leavenworth the long-wished for and glorious tidings of the passage
of the Kansas Bill. The news flew like wild-fire. Men seemed to forget all
other considerations, and to unite heart and hand in giving expression to the
universal joy. At every corner might be seen throngs of enthusiastic people
giving vent in cheers to the general gladness. At an early hour a large number
of the members of the bar waited on Chief Justice [Thomas] Ewing and Judge
[William C.] McDowell, with their congratulations, and spent with them an
hour of unwonted hilarity. About noon, old Kickapoo [historic cannon now
in the museum of the Kansas State Historical Society], in the presence of a
joyous crowd, sent forth, in thunder tones, a greeting to the now sister State
of Missouri. The day was given up to general rejoicing. Those who entertain
the singular notion that the people of Kansas didn't want to be admitted, would
have been startled by the demonstrations of yesterday. Then hurra for the
STATE OF KANSAS! Our days of probation have been long and tedious, but we
believe the future, upon which we are about entering, will amply compensate
for the dangers and toils of the past. . . .
Col. Slough, Lieut. Gov. Slough, (if he had been elected), was seen yes-
terday in company with one of the Democratic candidates for the Supreme
Court, consulting in regard to the possible chance of getting a new count of
the votes for State officers under the Wyandot Constitution. It is needless to
remark that the quasi Judge was one Stinson.
THE STATE TREASURER.
The State Treasurer elect was seen shortly after the admission news was
received, seated on the ammunition chest of the Kickapoo cannon. An impres-
sion having gained credit that the State treasure (and some Territorial bonds)
was contained in the chest, a demonstration was made by certain State officers
elect to capture the cannon, chest and treasure, with a view of distributing the
contents as advance salaries. The timely rescue of the Treasurer and cannon
by the Shields' Guards, headed by their valiant Captain, prevented the im-
proper use of the public funds. This illustrates the necessity of an efficient
military organization.
SINGULAR EFFECTS OF THE ADMISSION NEWS.
An eminent member of the Judiciary of this State, and a General (?) under
the Territorial military organization, were seen on the Upper Esplanade within
fifteen minutes after the news was received, in the act of standing on their
heads. What does this mean? Is there a secret organization among us?
EFFECTS OF ADMISSION.
We have great respect for the proverb, "There is a time for all things," &c~
We were pained to notice yesterday, several gentlemen in high social standing,,
gentlemen who do or will hold, by the suffrages of their countrymen, high*
official positions under the new State, walking (or attempting to) the streets,
of our city in a state of inebriety. This is sad indeed.
LET Us REJOICE!
Now that Kansas is admitted, let us all take heart hope on and hope ever..
Let us forget border wars, drouth, and hard times. A new era is to be in-
augurated, and those who have undergone the privations of the pioneer, may
4 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
date from this a cessation of terrors, uncertainties and privations, and look con-
fidently for the time when they shall reap their reward.
With the fairest land and sky in (what we hope may yet prove) our united
and glorious Union, who can predict the future wealth, prosperity and grandeur
of this, our free State of Kansas?
LET Us ALL REJOICE!
In the troubles of Kansas was created that great party which, at the last
national election, gave to the nation a President. Our position, as the battle
ground upon which the new slavery issue was fought, gave us a prominence
for which subsequent events developed our fitness. Upon us a new people
emigrants, and soldiers of fortune all, was precipitated the most momentous
question which has ever yet agitated the American people. We met the issue.
The history of Kansas, even now, stands prominent in the annals of the nation.
To rehearse the story of the struggle between slavery and freedom in this
Territory, would be but to recount a story familiar to the whole civilized world.
Now is not the time or place for such a history.
The election of Lincoln, glorious as was the triumph, was, in our estimation,
far less important and decisive than the admission of Kansas. Against our
devoted people have been arrayed the whole force of the slavery power. The
ingenuity of the pro slavery partisans has been exerted to its utmost to prevent
the recognized expression of the will of the Free State people of Kansas. Every
resource having been exhausted, the persistent, manly efforts, and the godlike
courage of our people have at last prevailed, and the glorious reward, so
gallantly earned, has been doled out to us with an unwilling hand. Yet we
accept the boon accept it gratefully, and hasten to take our place as a free
State in the glorious Confederacy. Knowing, as we do, the resources of our
State, and the courage and endurance of our people, we feel that this accession
-will go far to fill the gap made by the seceding States.
Our people have an abiding love for, and a loving faith and confidence in,
the Union. This love and faith has been bred in the bone it has stood the
test of desertion, and even oppression; but is as strong and confident as ever.
For them, we send greeting to the sister States, and if ever the time should
come when the Union and the Constitution should call for defenders, we pledge
the faith and the strong arm of that gallant people, who, for the institutions
they loved, have heretofore trod the wine-press of oppression, and come out
unscathed in honor from the trial.
Then, to our Republican brethren of Kansas we send one joyous greeting
to Republicans everywhere we extend the same joyous greeting. The grand
culminating triumph [of] Republicanism has been achieved. Kansas has been
admitted. 1
A sister Leavenworth paper, the Herald, took a momentarily real-
istic view of admission in its issue of January 30, 1861:
The rejoicing over the momentous event was quite boisterous, but by no
means general. The principal participants were State officers elect and indi-
viduals who are not burthened with taxes. Could the citizens of Kansas be
divested of political bias on the subject, they would soon realize that our ad-
mission places us in a situation similar to the man who bought the elephant,
and impoverished himself in satisfying the capacious maw of the monster
1. The Leavenworth Conservative, January 30, 1861.
WHEN KANSAS BECAME A STATE 5
beast. A State government adds about four hundred thousand dollars, the
first year, to our expenses, and of course must be raised in the form of addi-
tional taxes. But, the thing is done, and "it is useless to worry over spilled
milk."
The editor of the Leavenworth Daily Times, January 30, 1861,
began majestically:
The long agony is over. The dream of years is realized. Justice, tardy but
ever-certain, has been meted out to this people, and this soil which [they]
have chosen as their heritage is embraced within the charmed circle of a
State Sovereignty, distinct and yet reciprocal. The field of blue upon our
national flag is to be embellished with another star, the luster of whose orb,
we predict, will vie with the fairest of the constellation. The last act of the
drama which opened in blood and was continued in violence, has been enacted,
and the curtain has fallen upon a happy consummation, long desired and long
postponed.
We trust that our history as a State may be as brilliant as the struggles and
trials of our Territorial condition have been severe and aggravated. If such
shall be the case, Kansas will stand in the records of the future without a peer.
We suppose that, when official information of the admission of the State
reaches the proper authorities, the functions of our Territorial officers and the
present Legislature, will cease. Wishing all a safe and speedy return to their
homes and hearths, we join them in toasting the youngest of the thirty-four.
The reference to the territorial legislature, then in session at
Lawrence, was a two-pronged jibe. Kansans not only wished to see
the end of that territorial body so that it could be replaced by a
state legislature but also because it was charged with being pe-
culiarly engrossed with the passage of unimportant private bills to
the detriment of more substantial public needs. A Lawrence cor-
respondent of the Atchison Freedoms Champion, February 2, 1861,
summed things up:
The Legislature has done but very little business thus far, chiefly because
there is nothing to do. Everybody has been incorporated and divorced. Every
stream has its chartered bridge, every creek its ferry, every town its College
and University, granted by some previous assembly; the real interests of the
country have been so confounded by absurd and impertinent legislation that
all hope of extrication under the present system of things is vain.
On January 30 the Lawrence correspondent of the Topeka
Tribune wrote that the "Territorial Legislature, in point of ability,
are an able body. . . . [There is] a good deal of fun in these
same Honorables. Dixie is heard at all hours." 2
But the most revealing description of that last territorial legis-
lature came from the pen of the Leavenworth Conservative's cor-
respondent:
2. Topeka Tribune, February 2, 1861.
6 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
LAWRENCE CORRESPONDENCE.
LAWRENCE, KANSAS, Jan. 29th, 1861.
The appearance of the messenger, bearing the "CONSERVATIVE" extra, con-
taining the intelligence of the admission of Kansas, created a fury of excitement
which can hardly be imagined, much less described. The powder mongers of
Lawrence immediately started a subscription to procure the necessary materials
wherewith to fulminate the long suppressed joy of the people, and as I write,
the deep reverberations of the dogs of war resound from the regions beyond
the turbid Kaw.
Gentlemen with no axes to grind, greeted members and officers with the
broad grin of delight, making jocular pantomine with the hand to the throat,
to indicate that the head was about to fall in obedience to the inevitable law
of mutability. They of the third house, whose little matters were yet in sus-
pense, shook their heads dubiously, and hoped the best was yet to come;
they thought of oyster suppers and champagne, and the non superfluous expen-
ditures to grease the ways of legislation, and grieved at empty exchequers,
pockets depleted, and desire unattained. Unhappy husbands, hoping for re-
lease from hymen's hateful bonds, suffered immense facial elongation: in-
corporators of towns and ferries, future professors in literary and scientific in-
stitutions, grew despondent and morose. The whole social scene ranged from
grave to gay, from lively to severe.
The Governor [Territorial Gov. George M. Beebe], long depressed with
cares of State, seemed to greet with pleasure his prospective release from the
gaudy but lonely pleasures of his high position, and to contemplate his descent
to the ranks of common men, with unfeigned satisfaction.
The Exchange of the Eldridge House was vocal with a strange combination
of sounds; grave and reverend Seignors adjourned to the bar and took a drink;
the rooms above and below resounded with bursts of laughter and congratula-
tion, and the throng seemed festive and jubilant, save where some forlorn
Democratic officials wandered through the crowd like condemned ghosts upon
the banks of the Stygian stream gazing at the fields from which they are forever
excluded.
The Council unfortunately adjourned at noon until 10 o'clock to-morrow,
but the House had provided for an afternoon session. With a punctuality un-
paralleled this session, the members were in their places at the hour, and went
to work with an ardor which attested the sincerity of their convictions that their
time was short. No provision had been made for the pay of the Clerks or
Assistants, and the airy rhetoric of the past week had congested the calendar
with the unfinished business of weeks. Behind the "Bond Swindle" as behind
a dam the bills had accumulated till the pressure threatened to bear every-
thing before it, if the obstruction once gave way.
The lobby was crowded to its utmost capacity. On the stove, on the benches,
on the ledges of the windows, looking over shoulders and under arms and
between heads, peered a dense mass of eager and painfully expectant faces,
each hoping that by some lucky accident his pet scheme might even now be
reached. The room was as tight as a bottle; not a breath of fresh air or an
ounce of oxygen enlivened the horrible atmosphere; the heat was stifling, the
stench overpowering; the windows reeked with a dark typhoidal moisture, and
when the Speaker had called the House to order, and announced that a quorum
was present, at least one hah the members sprang to their feet with one hideous
WHEN KANSAS BECAME A STATE 7
yell of "MR. SPEAKER," with an unanimity as astonishing as it was deafening.
Twenty hands, outstretched with sheets of rustling paper, menaced that inno-
cent but undisturbed functionary. With smiling composure and commendable
firmness, he held the reigns of control, amid what seemed to be the wreck of
matter and the crash of worlds, on a small scale. . . .
LATER. The House adjourned for an evening session, after a protracted
debate.
The indications are that the night will not be very favorable for meditation
or reflection. The symptoms are unusually violent. There is to be a "hop"
at the Eldridge, and a gay time is anticipated.
"D n it," said a Democratic office-holder to me to-night, with a melancholy
countenance and a series of exclamations more forcible than polite, "Kansas
ought not to have been admitted for ten years." B. 3
The citizens of Lawrence, Kansas' Free-State headquarters, were
jubilant over the victory. The Lawrence Republican, January 31,
1861, almost shouted:
GLORIOUS INTELLIGENCE!
KANSAS IN THE UNION!!
We have received the glorious news that Kansas is admitted into the Union!
The Kansas bill passed the House with Fitch's amendment in regard to the
Judiciary, yesterday. The following dispatch was sent to the Leavenworth
Conservative:
WASHINGTON, Jan. 28, 1861.
A. C. WILDER: The State bill, with Fitch's Judicial Amendment, has passed
the House.
MARCUS J. PARROTT.
Somebody gave us a copy of the Conservative, and, without waiting to in-
quire to whom we were indebted, we hurried to the office and placed it in the
hands of our printers. It was sent here by the proprietors of that paper, by ex-
press, some five hours in advance of the mail.
We hear the jubilant news vocally heralded in the streets, and the sounds
of the "spirit-stirring drum" admonish us that the "immortal Stubbs" are glori-
fying the event. All hail! We are citizens of the United States once more
partners in "Hail Columbia," "Yankee Doodle," the stars and stripes, the
Declaration of Independence, and the Fourth of July!
TUESDAY NIGHT'S JUBILEE THE OLD SACRAMENTO.
Yesterday, when the news arrived of the admission of Kansas, our whole
town was elated. Men ran from place to place proclaiming the glad tidings.
Cheering and music and all manner of exultation was heard everywhere through
our streets. A deputation was immediately sent to Capt. [Thomas] Bicker-
ton's for that celebrated old piece, the Sacramento [historic cannon now pre-
served at the University of Kansas], and it was brought to town after dark
and thirty-four guns fired at about twelve o'clock, and renewed at sunrise this
morning. The long hoped for event, the final triumph of Freedom, was
achieved, and never in the history of Kansas was such exultation known amongst
our people. . . .
3. Leavenworth Conservative, January 31, 1861.
8 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
KANSAS A STATE.
Two days ago Lawrence was electrified by the announcement of the ad-
mission of Kansas to the Union. She had been a virgin Territory so long, we
feared the fate of all over-ripe maidens; but as some women, like fruit, are
sweetest just before they begin to decay, Kansas, in her maturity, was more
attractive than in her youth. After a long candidacy, she has formed a union
a union, too, for weal or woe with discordant and beligerent States. She will
take her stand by the side of those sisters who are loyal to the Constitution,
and join in their appeal to those who are disaffected, first in the gentle tones
of love, and then, if need be, in the stern voice of war.
But it is not meet for us to conjure visions of terror to the bridal feast to
mingle strains of sorrow with your joyous epithalamium. Let men shout till the
welkin rings; let women smile till the prairies blossom and the birds sing as
though it were not winter.
A little while, and Charles Robinson assumes his official robes, with more
prestige than Governor ever had since the days when Isaiah sang his pean
over young Hezekiah's accession. He goes into office elevated by the suffrages
of "the wisest and the bravest and the purest people under the sun." He
stands at the head of, we trust, the never ending column of Kansas Governors.
After long years of suffering, under the despotism of a Democratic administra-
tion; after a long series of insults and abuses from delegated Governors, Kansas
is free, and has a Chief Magistrate of her own choosing. May he be unto us
all as a pillar of fire by night, and as a pillar of cloud by day.
Although Kansas is the youngest, she is by no means the weakest of the
States. She has grown strong from defending herself, and from long wrestling
with the Lord in prayer. She has taught Slavery to more dread her hug than
the Spanish Protestant did the Maid's of the Inquisition; and when she speaks
her sovereign voice, at home and in the National Senate, treason will be sicklied
o'er with the pale cast of fear.
The men of Kansas are conservative, but if any people under our broad
aegis have cause of irritation, they are the members of the new State. They
are those whose rights have been violated, whose interests neglected, whose
humanity outraged, yet they are those who most love the Union and the Con-
stitution. If, then, we are devoted to the federal government if, after all our
abuses, we love it still, can we submit to its overthrow by men who have never
felt a wrong or knew an injury? Nol a hundred thousand times, no! for such
is the answer of every human being in Kansas.
One year of peace and plenty will relieve our personal wants, and supply the
exchequer of the State. When this is done, we go out into life under more
favorable auspices than any of our sister States have ever emerged into existence
with a more beautiful country, a more prolific soil, a clearer empyrean, and
a more intelligent, patriotic and courageous people.
Our State: Length of days be in her right hand, and in her left riches and
honor; may her ways be ways of pleasantness, and all her paths be peace.
At Lecompton, the territorial capital and unofficial headquarters
of the Proslavery faction, the news was received with resignation.
On January 31, 1861, the Lecompton Kansas National Democrat
commented:
WHEN KANSAS BECAME A STATE 9
KANSAS ADMITTED AS A STATE.
It is reported, with apparent good authority, that the Senate amendment
to the Kansas bill, was agreed to in the House on Monday last. When the
President signs the bill, which he undoubtedly will do, we become one of
the States of the Union. Kansas comes into the Union at a critical time, but
it is all well if an end should thereby come to the political capital manufactory
called Suffering Kansas, versus the present Administration. We hope for other
good, also. . . .
In another center of Free-State activity, John A. Martin, editor
of the Atchison Freedom's Champion, wrote the territory's obituary
on February 2, 1861:
DIED.
Of Chronic Worthlessness, on the 28th ult., at his father's house in Washing-
ton, the child "K. T.," aged six years. His father was the notorious Squatter
Sovereignty, and his mother the infamous Slavery Extension. The child had
been an orphan for some time past, his father having been killed at the election
of 1857, and his mother murdered in November last by the people headed by
one A. Lincoln. Peace to his manes.
The above announcement will be read with satisfaction by the people of
this particular section, but with no particular surprise, because as "K. T." had
been a hopeless invalid for some time past, his sudden demise was expected.
"K. T." lived a nuisance and died a pauper. He was noted for Missouri Raids
and Divorce Bills; thrived on Montgomery Scares and the Drought; his jewels
were the frights and furor of Williams and the frowns and foolishness of Be-
bee; he lived on Governors, whom he masticated without salt or pepper, and
Federal Judges, whom he swallowed without a gulph; he sent Pierce into
obscure retirement and Buchanan into notorious infamy; his cause murdered
his god father Douglas, and quartered his god-mother, Democracy; he was
the pet of Missouri and the hatred of Massachusetts; like Ishmael his hand was
against every one and every one's hand was against him; he sprang into being
despised and went out of life disgraced.
His place is filled by the youth, KANSAS. It is a general opinion that his
successor is a good egg; keeps his nose clean; isn't ashamed to work for a living;
spells colored individual with one "g;" is clothed in the Stars and Stripes and
crowned with the American Bird; wears his heart on his sleeve for a friend
and carries his Colt cocked for an enemy; can read the Declaration without
stopping to spell the hard words and believes the Constitution doesn't mean
Slavery when it says Justice; goes his pile on Major Anderson and Capt. Mont-
gomery, and thinks Seward and Old Abe are the brains and the hub of the
universe; imagines that the Pacific Railroad is a good idea and that Barnum
is proprietor of the "What Is It;" would like to apply the toe of his boot to
the coattails of Secession, but wouldn't disgrace himself by kicking Bigler and
Pugl; thinks the Dis-unionists are fools, but knows the dough-faces are; believes
New York might have continued the Empire State if Kansas hadn't been ad-
mitted; likes manliness and dispises skulking and shirking; supposes Mt. Oread
to be just as sound on the goose as Bunker Hill, and Old Constitution Hall as
much pumpkins as Fanieul; wears his trowsers in his boots without osten-
tation and sustains the rights of Humanity without fear; smokes a pipe and
believes in Tom Jefferson; likes Garabaldi and hates men who believe that
10 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
government has to pay God's bill for national sins; snuffeth the battle afar
off when Old Ben Wade rings out his fun words, and curls his lip with scorn
when Joe Lane blows his penny whistle; never gives an insult nor takes one;
has John Hickman's pluck and Potter's bowie-knife; and don't know anything
that will keep him from being as big as any of 'em. That's KANSAS.
The first news of the decease of "K. T." was received on Tuesday morning
from Hon. ROBERT GRAHAM, of this city, who is now in Washington. But a
short time afterwards we received the following dispatch from Col. A. C.
WILDER:
LEAVENWORTH, Jan. 29
JOHN A. MARTIN, Esq: Kansas was admitted yesterday with Fitch's amend-
ment. We fire 50 guns here to day.
A. C. WILDER.
The news spread quickly, and every face brightened with joy. Except
here and there an old pro slavery Lecompton English Bill Secessionist, we
did not see a man who was not rejoiced at this welcome intelligence.
One enthusiastic youth wanted us to lend him an X to get on a big drunk
and treat all his friends. We had no distinct or vivid recollection of having
been blessed with that amount of U. S. Currency since the Drouth set in, and
so were compelled to entreat him not to treat. Another gentle but somewhat
impetuous boy wanted to know whether he hadn't better cut a hole in the ice
and duck a Missourian in the Missouri, and it took all our powers of persuasion
to convince him that it wouldn't be right to hole a friend, but better to leave
him whole. A third youth who stated that he felt as if he had been appointed
Minister to Breat Grittain or the Isewich Sandlands, he didn't know which,
wanted us to buy a barrel of Eager leer, so that he could get tightually slight,
and hollow loud for the Conandot Wystitution, Kree Fansas, Sill Beward and
Labe Linkum. We gently hinted to our enthusiastic friend that he was a
barrel of Lager Beer himself, when he immediately wanted us to take a drink
of him. We were forced to decline acceeding to his polite request, whereupon
he was suddenly seized with an exceeding decline, and informed us that he
cidn't dare schether whool nept or kot, and talked in various other dead and
Hottentot languages. A fourth individual wanted us to tell him whether
Kansas couldn't whip Russia and throw in two or three or a dozen second
rate powers to boot. We looked incredulous, whereupon he informed us that
he'd take the contract at five days notice, when we came down. And so they
went round. Everybody was seized with a bad attack of shake hands, and the
pump handle motion was decidedly handled for two or three hours.
Truly the people of Kansas have cause for rejoicing. With them it is the
realization of a six year's anxious hope; the termination of a struggle for the
Freedom of Kansas commencing with the passage of the Nebraska Bill in
1854, and ending by the triumph of Free Labor in our admission as a SOV-
EREIGN STATE on the 28th day of January, 1861. Who, of the friends of Free
Kansas; who, of the men who have helped to make her Free; who, of the
people who have stood by her cause through gloom and darkness until it
emerged into light and victory, could help rejoicing? Who could help huz-
zahing for the FREE STATE OF KANSAS?
In Emporia, then a small frontier town which had played little
part in the Free-State-Proslavery struggle, the news was received
in this manner:
WHEN KANSAS BECAME A STATE 11
THE ADMISSION OF KANSAS.
The latest intelligence from Washington leaves no room for doubt that noth-
ing but the signature of the President is wanting, to give Kansas her long-
deferred rights as an independent member of the Confederacy of States, even
if she has not already taken her place in the constellation, like
"Another morn,
Risen on mid-noon."
Amid the distractions of treason and rebellion, the doubts of the good, the
omens of the fearful, and the mistaken concessions of the timid and wavering,
this last act in our great political drama is full of consolation and hope, and has
a peculiar and inspiring significance. By it the founders of the Republic have
received a new vindication; their principles have been reasserted in a degenerate
age, and the great constitutional fabric which they constructed has been conse-
crated anew to universal freedom and the progress of the race. Particularly at
this period, when traitors' hands are raised against the sacred altars of the
fathers; when dangerous doctrines are born in a day, and even the endeavors
of the faithful are overborne in the demoralizing rush of unusual and unex-
pected dangers, is the spectacle presented by the people of Kansas worthy of
the highest commendation. Exposed to all the seductions of tyranny to the
blandishments of power to the threats and the arms of the despotism of
Slavery, through a period the most depressing to the hopes of Freedom, the
people of Kansas exhibit the heroic qualities of an adherence to the common
rights of man, and the support of those rights by a resort to the peaceful de-
fenses secured by the Constitution. If the imaginary wrongs of the South
justify a resort to robbery and treason, and all the horrors of civil and fratricidal
war, how much more the repeated and protracted outrages perpetrated upon
the long-suffering people of this unhappy land. For this endurance of wrong,
and this resistance of wrong, the world is our debtor, and history will vindicate
our claims to a successful inculcation of the lesson that no force that Tyranny
can employ can ever subjugate the faithful lovers of Liberty, protected by law.
Speculations for the future are premature, but not in vain. With an extent
of territory larger than that of some of the most powerful governments of the
ancient world; a soil whose fertility and kindness has no superior from sea to
sea; a climate that gives vigor to the healthy, strength to the diseased, and
affords scope for all the products of the temperate zone; a surface that gives
ready access for railroads, and a frontier upon one of the great natural high-
ways of the earth, it is not unreasonable to expect that Kansas will soon assume
a prominence which every augury of the hearts of her sons fortells. She hands
the torch of Freedom to the Pacific slope, and hails the day
"When not an altar can be found
Whereon her glories shall not burn!" 4
In White Cloud, Sol. Miller, whose acid pen almost continually
cauterized the Democratic party (and anything else that invoked
his ire), saw admission as an opportunity to stomp the Democrats
with the Republican heel of justice. In his Kansas Chief, January
31, 1861, he said:
OVERREACHING. It would be a good joke, if the Democrats in the United
States Senate, in displaying their spite toward Kansas, had overreached them-
4. Emporia News, February 2, 1861.
12 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
selves. They kept postponing the bill week after week, from the commence-
ment of the session; and when they did pass it, they stuck on an amendment,
the object of which was to impose Judge Pettit on her citizens for life. But a
number of Southern States seceded, reducing the Democratic majority in the
Senate; and about the time the House accepted the Senate amendment, Louisi-
ana went out. Her Senators have probably withdrawn ere this, leaving the
Senate Republican. Now, if Buchanan signs the Kansas bill, the next move
will probably be to send in the appointment of Pettit. But the Republicans will
have it in their power (and should exercise the power, just by way of retalia-
tion for the meanness of Democracy toward Kansas) to reject the appoint-
ment. When Lincoln goes into the White House, he can appoint a Judge who
is acceptable to the people of Kansas, and the Senate, in special session, can
confirm the appointment. What a good joke it would be, besides being a justi-
fiable procedure!
Editor Miller explained the Fitch amendment:
THE KANSAS AMENDMENT. Senator Fitch's amendment to the Kansas bill,
about which we have heard so much, simply makes Kansas a Judicial District.
It is supposed by many that this will insure its rejection by the House. If Re-
publicans delay the admission of Kansas on that account, it will be in violation
of the wishes of a large majority of her citizens. The amendment is by no
means sufficient cause for Republicans to oppose our admission, although it
would be far more agreeable without the amendment. The objection arises
from the probability that John Pettit will be appointed Judge, which office he
will hold for life, or during good behavior. As a politician, the people of Kansas
despise Pettit; but as a jurist, members of the bar say he has but few superiors.
Kansas has been kept waiting so long, that she will rejoice to get into the Union,
even if the pleasure must be seasoned with Judge Pettit.
Downstream on the Missouri river from White Cloud but still in
Doniphan county the editor of the Elwood Free Press shared the
anti-Democrat sentiments of Sol. Miller. On February 2, 1861, he
wrote:
THE STATE OF KANSAS.
We are pleased at being able to announce to our readers that the FREE PRESS
is published in the State of Kansas we have moved to America.
The House of Representatives concurred in the amendment of the Senate,
and Kansas has ceased to be a Territory. We pity, from the bottom of our
heart, the poor devils living in Territories! We lived in one once for four years
don't do it again.
The history of Kansas Territory, and the complications arising therefrom,
will fill a large space in the history of the United States, for the years from
1854 to 1861.
Citizens of Kansas! the Democratic party opposed your admission to the
last Douglas being the only one voting for it. The South just now prating of
the fulfillment of constitutional guarantees and new guarantees, voted solid,
save Crittenden, against our admission. Suppose Kansas was slave instead of
free, and the Republicans had so voted, or one-fourth of them, wouldn't there
have been a howl from the traitors and their sympathisers North and South
WHEN KANSAS BECAME A STATE 13
how holy would have been the horror of every "patriot" south of Mason and
Dixon's line, and all Democrats and conservatives north of said line.
But we are in, and we can afford to forget and forgive. .,/>, -,t '
In Jefferson county the news barely made the January 30, 1861,
edition of the Oskaloosa Independent:
HAIL! YE SOVEREIGNS!
KANSAS PROBABLY ADMITTED!
ALMOST IN THE UNION. The Kansas admission Bill passed the Senate on
the 21st inst. The vote was such as to secure our early admission, even in the
event of a Presidential veto. . . .
LATEST We learn from a private source, that a telegram was received in
Leavenworth at three o'clock yesterday, (Tuesday) announcing that Kansas
is admitted into the Union as a sovereign State. We have no particulars, and
neither time nor space for a more extended notice this week.
The Fort Scott Democrat, February 2, 1861, felt that the new
all-Republican state government would at least erase the excuse
for more violence in Kansas:
KANSAS ADMITTED.
The Senate amendment to the Kansas admission bill passed the House on
the 28th ult., and Kansas is now a State. As soon as the President's procla-
mation announcing the same officially, is received by Gov. Robinson, the State
Government will be inaugurated; but we understand that the Legislature will
not be called together before the 1st of May.
Now that we have a State Government entirely in the hands of the Re-
publican party; our county organization under their control; and our Federal
office-holders about to be appointed from their ranks, there can be no possible
excuse for future outbreaks, on the ground that their enemies control the
courts of justice. We have faith in the firmness and intelligence of Gov.
Robinson to believe that acts of lawlessness will receive a sterner rebuke at
his hands than has ever been administered by the Federal authorities.
The expenses of the State Government during the first two or three years,
will be very burdensome on our people; but in the present disordered condi-
tion of our national affairs, we believe it will be for the best.
In the East the New York Tribune had this to say about Kansas:
The House yesterday passed the Senate bill for the admission of Kansas,
which thus becomes the thirty fourth State of the Union, and the nineteenth
Free State. This act not only opportunely adds to the Confederation a sound
and loyal member, untainted by the pestiferous blight of Slavery, but does
rightful though tardy justice to a State which has suffered for five years
greater wrongs and outrages from Federal authority than all the slave States
together have endured since the beginning of the Government, even if their
own clamor about imaginary oppression be admitted as well founded. The
present generation is too near to these events to see them in their true propor-
tions, but in the future, in impartial history, the attempt to force slavery upon
Kansas, and the violations of law, of order, and of personal and political rights,
14 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
that were perpetrated in that attempt, will rank among the most outrageous
and flagrant acts of tyranny in the annals of mankind. 5
A third series of celebrations and editorials followed President
Buchanan's signing of the bill. The Leavenworth Conservative^
however, apparently had spent its force on the second celebration
for now, January 31, it merely stated:
KANSAS BILL SIGNED!
The following special dispatch came to THE CONSERVATIVE at a late hour
last night:
WASHINGTON, Jan. 30.
The Kansas Bill has received the President's signature. Mr. Conway ap~
peared on the floor of the House and was sworn in.
The Leavenworth Herald was somewhat more elated than it
had been during the previous round. On February 1, 1861, it said:
KANSAS ALL THE WAY THROUGH.
The President signed his name to the Admission Bill, and we are now the
State of Kansas. We are proud, not to say jubilant! The only question now
remaining to be considered is when shall we secede? Looking out upon the
landscape this morning, we found the view very much the same as when Kansas
was a Territory. The same old ice-blocked river the same rolling prairies
the Fort in the distance Pilot Knob, and South Leavenworth, all were there
just as though we had not been admitted. But it was upon the people that
the change was most susceptible. Some had been suddenly converted from,
pigmy citizens into the ponderous proportions of State Dignitaries. Judges
were thick as fleas, Secretaries were visible to the naked eye. Probate Judges,
prevailed to some extent, and Legislators were a drug in the market. Every
body is "clothed in the panoply" of freshly formed resolve no more tobacca
is to be used no more whisky will be consumed vice and immorality are at.
a heavy discount. Hurrah for the State of Kansas!
In Lawrence the territorial legislature was in a quandary. Was
it still a legally constituted body? Would the laws it was passing,
be binding upon the state of Kansas? And perhaps more important,
would the legislators be paid? A correspondent of the Emporia
News, February 2, 1861, wrote this dispatch:
KANSAS ADMITTED!
LAWRENCE, Jan. 31, 1861.
The Leavenworth Daily Conservative of to-day has a special dispatch from
Washington, informing us that the President has signed the bill admitting.
Kansas. This news creates great excitement here. Everybody's in high glee,
and hurrahing for the State of Kansas.
Since the receipt of the news two days ago that the Kansas Bill, with the
Senate amendment, had passed the House of Representatives, the two branches,
of the Territorial Legislature have been holding three sessions per day, and
have rushed through a great many bills. Nearly every one of these bills, how-
ever, is of a private nature. . . .
The great question now, is whether any of the acts passed by the Territorial
5. White Cloud Kansas Chief, February 14, 1861.
WHEN KANSAS BECAME A STATE 15
Legislature after the President signed the Kansas bill are of any force. Beebe
has said that they would receive no pay from the time we were admitted. The
members generally maintain that their body is a legal one until the Governor
receives official information of the fact of our admission. Both branches of the
Legislature will probably adjourn to-morrow or next day.
Beebe, as an institution, is no more. May the day soon arrive when as
much can be said of all Democratic appointees.
Hurrah for the State of Kansas! Long may she wave! She has come up
through much tribulation, and may kind Providence grant her and her noble
and freedom-loving people a prosperous future. . .'..-.,
A correspondent of the Leavenworth Conservative, February 2,
wrote:
LAWRENCE, Jan. 31, 1861.
The Legislature dies hard. Its action to-day has been spasmodic and
convulsive; it writhes under the last telegraphic announcement in THE CON-
SERVATIVE, that the President had signed the Kansas Bill. An agony of un-
certain desperation has pervaded both departments, and bills have been put
through under suspension of rules with very remarkable celerity. The legisla-
tion has been mostly of a private character, and by some mysterious process,
the lower House has become demoralized to such an extent that about a dozen
divorce bills were granted without debate.
The Lawrence Republican, February 7, 1861, in reporting the
proceedings of the legislature said: "A message was received from
the Governor, with various bills which he returned without his sig-
nature, on the ground that he was unwilling to recognize them
longer as a legal body/' This occurred on February 1.
Kansas' last territorial legislature gasped its final breath on Feb-
ruary 2, leaving behind a physical record of 35 pages of general
laws and 68 pages of private laws. Included in the latter were 20
divorces granted. Sol. Miller wrote that the representatives of his
district had reached home "looking remarkably respectable con-
sidering the crowd they associated with, and the business they
were engaged in/' 6 while the Fort Scott Democrat declared that
the "principal object of the session seems to have [been] that of
securing their per diem and milage. . . ." 7
Regarding admission, the Lecompton Kansas National Democrat,
February 7, changed from its previous air of resignation to one of
condescension:
KANSAS A STATE. No one can fail to notice that the admission of Kansas
as a State is producing much interest among the people of the country. Our
brethren of the Republican school including editors of Kansas journals are
all at the height of glorification. "We did it!" "we conquered!" "glory to
6. Ibid., February 7, 1861.
7. February 9, 1861.
16 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
us! to us!" is sent through the host in an excellent manner. We like to see our
friends happy, if the snow is deep. Our Free State Democratic friends, too,
claim a share in the universal rejoicing, and are glad with a right good will.
We say cheer up! right good cheer! Kansas is a state!! But we, of the leading
Pro-slavery party journals as the enthusiastic little Atchison Champion calls
us in a late issue, are left in the background entirely. Lecompton has failed!
The Territorial Government has failed and we, too, join in the chorus! We
are glad Kansas is a State, and we want to see this young progeny of the Union
wash her face, comb her hair and put on clean clothes, so that we won't be
ashamed of our little State when she goes to meeting with her large, intelligent
and well-dressed sisters.
And what did John Martin of the "little" Atchison Freedoms
Champion have to say?
THE STATE OF KANSAS!
How does that look? Doesn't every one like it? Won't every one feel better
when he writes it, instead of that small, petty, mean, dispicable sneaking, crawl-
ing "K. T.P" Hurrah for us, we, ourselves! Hurrah for the new Star! And
three times three again for the NEW STATE OF KANSAS!! 8
In Oskaloosa the Independent, which had previously mentioned
admission only in a fleeting manner, developed its thought to such
length that it required two issues to say all it believed necessary.
The first of the articles appeared on February 6, 1861:
KANSAS A STATE.
The admission bill has received the signature of the President, and Kansas
is a sovereign State, and stands on an equal footing with her sisters in the
Confederacy. . . .
Kansas, though the youngest, is by no means the least important of the
sisterhood of States. Her central geographical position will give her at once an
influence in the councils of the nation that no other new State has ever had;
and the rapid development of her natural resources, a steady and increasing
growth in population, the inauguration of an efficient system of free schools,
the establishment of manufactories, and the proper and judicious encourage-
ment of internal improvements, will in a few years give her a place among the
first States in the Union.
Very soon the guardians of the vital interests of the young State will be
called upon to enter upon the duties assigned to their several positions. Not
many weeks hence the legislature will convene to whom is entrusted weighty
responsibilities. Among the first and most important business that will come
before them, will be the election of two Senators to represent the people of this
commonwealth in the United States Senate. It is needless to say that the
wisest, most sagacious, and yet the most prudent of the prominent men of Kan-
sas should be selected to fill these high stations of honor and trust; the good of
the nation and the State alike demand that our Senators should be the best
statesmen we have. We will not now suggest our preference for any individuals
for the position of Senators, for we believe the combined wisdom of the State
Senate and House of Representatives will elect those men who are the best
qualified to fill those stations.
8. February 2, 1881.
WHEN KANSAS BECAME A STATE 17
After the election of the Senators, it devolves upon the Legislature to enact
and inaugurate a thorough, liberal, yet economical system of statutory laws.
While high taxation and a heavy State debt should be studiously avoided, free
schools, agricultural, mechanical and manufacturing interests, and a judicious
system of railroads and other internal improvements, should receive liberal en-
couragement from the State government. A proper disposition of the public
lands should be made, for the benefit of the State, and not be disposed of in
a way that will line the coffers of individuals with the gold that ought to fill
the public treasury.
Possessing the advantage of the history and experience of other States that
have preceded Kansas, our legislators ought to devise a system of State govern-
ment, and enact a code of laws, far in advance of any of her predecessors; thus
giving her an impetus to future greatness and influence unparalleled in the
history of the nation.
The second Independent article appeared on February 13, 1861:
KANSAS A STATE.
Long before this reaches our readers they will have heard the glad intelli-
gence that Kansas is a State in the Union. Long and unjustly kept out by the
machinations of political demagogues, she has at last triumphed, and today
makes the thirty-fourth State in the Confederacy, and will add the thirty-fourth
star to our national banner, on and after the Fourth of July next.
Hereafter our people will have no federal governors, judges or other officers
to interfere with their local affairs or throw impediments in the way of the
prosperity of our State.
It is not our intention to rehearse the past grievances of Kansas; they are now
matters of history, and we hope will prove a salutary lesson to generations
coming after us and that their parallel will never be known in the future de-
velopment of our progress as a nation. Let the past be past, and remembered
only as a warning and a guide for the time to come.
We hope our Legislature will elect two good men to represent us in the
United States Senate not mere partisans, but men of understanding and states-
man like capacities and views. They must be MEN if they can stand up with
the giant intellects of that body; and we would not have our young State low-
ered in character by the men who stand for her good name and rights in the
highest deliberative body known under the constitution. Give us two good
men. Doubtless we have them yes, a score of them.
Kansas now has her own future to make. Her destiny is in her own hands.
If she is governed by wise counsels, she will soon rank among the first in the
sisterhood of States, for her natural advantages are manifold, her resources un-
bounded, her climate one that will attract settlers and her soil inexhaustible.
Let her people be wise in the selection of rulers and discreet in the manage-
ment of internal policy.
Emporia fired a salute to Kansas and the Union when the news
came around the third time. The News, February 2, 1861, stated:
We have received the welcome intelligence, that Kansas is admitted. The
House concurred in the Senate amendment on the 28th. The President has
signed the bill, and we are now citizens of the United States. The joyful
news was received here on Thursday afternoon, and soon was communicated
24660
18 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
to all within hearing, by the booming of the "big gun." A national salute of
thirty-four guns was fired one for each State, and a "tiger" for Kansas. We
have not room for extended remarks at this time, and will leave our readers
to glorify over the result "in their own way."
At Manhattan the Western Kansas Express, February 2, 1861,
said:
KANSAS A SOVEREIGN STATE!!!
OUR ADMISSION BILL SIGNED BY THE PRESIDENT.
HON M. F. CONWAY SWORN IN AS THE REPRESENTATIVE OF KANSAS
IN CONGRESS! 1 1
The following dispatch was sent to THE DAILY CONSERVATIVE of Leaven-
worth, dated Washington Jan. 30.
"The Kansas Bill has received the President's signature. Mr. Conway ap-
peared on the floor of the House and was sworn in."
At last the great victory, for which the people of Kansas have fought so
many hard battles against the slave power, suffered so many acts of injustice,
at the hands of a corrupt and vindictive Administration, and submitted to so
many sacrifices and privations, is won! We are a FREE and Sovereign State!!
A member of the great American Union!!! A new Star in the glorious Banner
of the noblest, most free and best Government in the world, the treason of
Southern fire eaters, and their State Secession Ordinances to the contrary not
withstanding!
Citizens of Kansas! Let us rejoice at the auspicious event! If the Union
and the Constitution of our Country are now menaced with distruction by a
powerful conspiracy, let us be thankful unto God, that we have been admitted
into the UNION in time to co-operate in the vindication of the sanctity of its
laws, by enforcing them, of the honor of its flag, by punishing those traitors,
who trampled upon it, and of the inviolability of its Federal Constitution, by
proclaiming it over again, if necessary, in all parts of the United States, and
defending it at all hazards as the Supreme Law of the Land!! To deserve
prosperity and success as a State, let us solemnly vow on the altar of our virgin
Commonwealth, that we shall always be faithful to the CONSTITUTION and the
UNION of our beloved Country!
The citizens of Manhattan celebrated the admission of Kansas
in a quiet and orderly manner. The Express, February 2, 1861,
described their meeting:
PUBLIC REJOICEING.
At an early hour on Friday evening Feb. 1st, the Citizens of Manhattan
assembled at the City Hall, which was brilliantly illuminated, to greet the
intelligence of our admission into the Federal Union as a Sovereign State, with
feelings of rejoicing. The meeting was called to order by Mr. C. F. de Vivaldi
[editor of the Express], and on motion Judge Pipher was called to the Chair,
and James Humphrey appointed Secretary.
After announcing the object of the meeting, the Chair introduced the Hon.
S. D. Houston, senator elect from the 4th District. Mr. Houston, enumerated
a few of the advantages which we should derive from our admission, and
pointed through the present gloom to a prosperous future. On retiring, Rev.
Mr. Paulson was loudly called for, and on coming forward, remarked, that the
long conflict between freedom and Slavery in Kansas was now forever settled.
WHEN KANSAS BECAME A STATE 19
The foul conspiracy inaugurated by the repeal of the Missouri Compromise,
and the enactment of the Kansas Nebraska dodge, to fasten on this beautiful
State the dark repulsive features of Slavery had signally failed. Mr. Paulson
entered into a becoming and manly vindication of the right and duty of
ministers to lift up their voice against political iniquity, and severely rebuked
that snivillmg class of politicians, who conceive that the ministerial function
and patriotism are incompatible.
The meeting was subsequently addressed by Mr. C. F. de Vivaldi, Mr. Fox,
Rev. C. E. Blood and others. Three rousing cheers were then given for the
new State of Kansas, after which the meeting was dismissed.
The Topeka State Record, one of the papers which inaugurated
the first round of statehood celebrations by announcing admission
after passage of the bill by the senate, seemed to be remembering
that fact when on February 2, 1861, it reported:
KANSAS ADMITTED.
We are at last enabled to announce to our readers, the gratifying intelli-
gence that Kansas is really admitted. . . .
THE CONSTITUTION.
As the Wyandotte Constitution is now a living instrument the fundamental
law of the State of Kansas, which all will feel a new interest in reading, we
surrender much of our space this week to its re-publication. In it are embodied
the hopes and aspirations of the people of Kansas. It has become their rep-
resentative the embodiment of their wisdom, and their capacity for self-gov-
ernment upon the National Record. Born of strife and oppression, it stands
forth to vindicate its people from the aspersions of venality, of which States-
men have accused them through a rival but hated instrument, and to demon-
strate their unswerving devotion, under temptations which seldom fall to the
lot of man, to the enduring principles of Free Soil, Free Labor, and Free
Speech. It will stand for future time as a proud monument of the first sub-
stantial victory of the Nineteenth Century, of Freedom over Slavery, in aa
equal race, and will be revered by the millions who are destined, at no distant
day, to people this great valley of the North American continent, as the in-
auguration of a new and brilliant era in American politics, when Freedom
instead of Slavery will be the presiding genius of our institutions Democracy
enthroned, and man in the abstract be clothed with equality, and his higher
nature acknowledged and vindicated.
The Topeka Tribune, February 2, 1861, followed the general line
of Free-State thought but added paragraphs extolling the virtues
and glorious history of the new, though supposedly temporary, capi-
tal of Kansas:
THE STATE OF KANSAS!
"ALL HAUL THOU GLORIOUS ORB!!"
LET THE OLD CANNON SPEAK.
Do RE ME FA SOL LA Si Do!!
THE KANSAS BILL.
PASSED THE SENATE DITTO HOUSE!
SIGNED BY THE PRESIDENT!
LET Us ALL REJOICE!!
20 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
There is no longer any doubts to be entertained with regard to our admis-
sion. The nail is clinched. Kansas is to-day a Sovereign State of the American
Union.
At last, our prayer has been answered. Kansas is no longer a foot-ball for
partizan demagogues and unscrupulous politicians a bait to the whale and
no longer will her people be made to dance and fiddle to advance the cause of
a corrupt, ambitious and designing class of political aspirants. We are in the
Union, of the Union, for the Union; and what is more, have no thanks to return
to any source for political influence or favor, without our own borders. The
boon has been nobly fought for, and obtained by the merest exercise of justice
dearly paid for. Let us give praise unto-ourselves, take hope, courage, and
renew our vows of devotion to our glorious country, to our adopted State and
our cherished homes and hearthstones. May our dreams of coming prosperity
and greatness be realized, and our future prove as glorious and peaceful as our
past has been gloomy and beclouded with sorrow.
We, of TOPEKA, hail the news with a peculiar feeling of interest and pride.
TOPEKA is CAPITAL OF KANSAS. Her history is coeval with that of the Terri-
tory with the cause of political freedom under the unhappy culminations of
long continued and bitterly waged intestine partisan conflict; her name in time
past has been associated with the history and struggle of the Free State cause of
Kansas, and through which it has gained a celebrity second only to the name
<of Kansas herself. Here it was that was held, commencing upon the 19th day
>of September, 1855, the first Convention of the freemen of Kansas, having
under consideration the question of adopting effective measures in behalf of
K)ur sovereign liberty and freedom as a people, and from whose deliberations
arose majestically that fair yet formidable structure that monument to right
and justice around which so determinedly rallied the sovereigns of the soil
of these beautiful prairies the first State organization of Kansas. Here it was
that was held, convening upon the 2d day of October, 1855, the Convention
for the purpose of drafting a Constitution for the embryo State, and here it was
that assembled, in the March following, the Legislature under its provisions,
and enacted a code of laws for the government of its people. Here it was that
upon the 4th day of July, '56, the same Legislature assembled pursuant to
adjournment, and where, at the exact time of noon-day, in the presence of three
thousand people, at the roll-calling of the members, it was dispersed at the
point of the bayonet by Col. Sumner, at the head of government troops, acting
under authority of President Pierce.
Topeka is to Kansas what Philadelphia, with her Continental Congress, was
to the Colonies. Her name was the watchword in "times that tried men's
souls," and to-day her influence, aside from considerations of policy or profit,
is felt in every quiet nook and corner of the Territory. Yet she can exert an
influence based upon more substantial reasons. The superiority of her natural
and acquired advantages, the great and most important consideration being
her nearly exact central location, secured to her the seat of government under
the Wyandotte Constitution, an act of justice and wisdom not to be called in
question by her veriest enemies. The town was founded in December, '54,
and to-day, in point of beauty of location, of population, building, public and
private, postal, express and stage arrangements, printing facilities, mercantile
and manufacturing prosperity, artistic and mechanical development, general
industrial pursuits, religious and educational privileges, wealth, refinement and
intelligence, will compare with any city in the West. So much for Topeka.
WHEN KANSAS BECAME A STATE 21
Her civil honors can only be lost when by vote of the people of the State, a
majority of all the votes cast are for another locality.
The news of admission was received by our citizens in a becoming manner.
The old cannon echoed the joyful tidings to the people of the country, the
whole town rejoiced and general conviviality prevailed.
Marcus Parrott arrived in Lawrence on February 8 bearing official
notification to Gov.-elect Charles Robinson that Kansas had been
admitted. On February 9 Caleb S. Pratt, county clerk of Douglas
county, administered the oath of office to the state's first governor.
Robinson's first official act was to call the legislature to meet March
26 at Topeka.
Rumors soon filtered into Kansas' new capital that the new gov-
ernor would visit there on February 12 to obtain a residence for
himself and to arrange for the inauguration of a state government.
In a flurry of activity the residents of Topeka prepared to meet their
leader with disheartening results. The Topeka Tribune, February
16, 1861, told the humorous story:
TOPEKA'S LOYALTY TO THE CROWN.
The news having reached our city of his Excellency, Governor ROBINSON'S
intention to visit the Capital on Tuesday last, preparations were hastily made
to welcome him in a manner becoming the occasion. The band was called into
requisition and mounted in a carriage, and, attended by an escort of cavalry,
some twenty-five or thirty strong, took their line of march out eastward, upon
the Lawrence road, with the intention of proceeding until they met the Gov-
ernor, when they would formally escort him into the city. They passed out of
town in fine order, the band playing a national air, (the Southern Confederacy
to the contrary notwithstanding,) and our citizens commenced gathering, for
the purpose of being on hand and taking part in the public demonstration when
the Governor should arrive. Long and patiently they waited to welcome the
gallant and brave old soldier he who stood foremost in the free State ranks
of '56, and who preferred a long incarceration in the "great political prison,"
at Lecompton, rather than deviate from his cause or compromise his honor
long they waited we say; twilight came, the cavalcade was seen or heard
approaching, expectation was upon tip-toe, there was a fluttering of hearts a
few moments more and all would have the pleasure of saluting of welcoming
the first Governor of the State of Kansas! the cannon belched forth in "thunder
tones" three rounds had been fired, when the party came in, BUT NO GOV-
ERNOR! Though great the disappointment, with philosophical cheerfulness it
was borne by those upon the ground, and three rousing cheers were sent up for
GOVERNOR ROBINSON, when the people dispersed. We were gratified to see
persons who, but a few months since, were foremost in maligning Mr. ROBIN-
SON'S character and motives, make themselves particularly active in rendering
homage to the official of to-day.
The Governor, however, did visit us on the next day [February 13], . . .
On March 26 the first state legislature convened at Topeka. Thus,
after a long and sometimes bloody struggle, the state of Kansas was
born and launched on its voyage into history.
Kansas: A Centennial Portrait
EMORY LINDQUIST
INTRODUCTION
A VARIETY of answers can be given to the question, "What is
Kansas?" Kansas is the 34th of 50 commonwealths that form
the United States, having gained its cherished place in a time of
national tension in January, 1861, and having contributed from its
birth to the future of the national destiny, geographically and po-
litically. Kansas is an almost perfect parallelogram, except for the
jagged corner in the northeast, fashioned by the Missouri river. It
has an area of slightly more than 82,000 square miles, rising from an
elevation of less than 700 feet above sea level near the southeastern
corner, to more than 4,100 feet in the northwest. Its border is 400
miles long, running east and west along Nebraska and Oklahoma,
and 200 miles, north and south adjoining Missouri and Colorado,
lying within 37 to 40 north latitude and 95 to 102 west longitude.
Kansas has known the proprietorship of Indians, some native, others
having migrated there at various times; and at least two foreign
flags, Spanish and French, actually waved in the Kansas breeze,
symbols of authority over the sparsely settled peoples prior to the
Louisiana Purchase in 1803, when the Stars and Stripes replaced
the banner of Napoleon's consulate. When Mexico gained inde-
pendence from Spain in 1821, the southwestern one-sixteenth of
Kansas, south of the Arkansas river and west of the 100th meridian,
was Mexican territory, a claim that Texas sought to enforce when
independence was gained from Mexico in 1836. All of Kansas came
under United States jurisdiction when Texas was annexed in 1845.
Originally, and for many decades, overwhelmingly agrarian, but
now increasingly industrial and urban, Kansas has at times helped
to shape the course of national developments, but more often has
responded to such developments with varying degrees of acceptance,
rejection, or indifference.
Kansas in the dimension of time, like every populated geographic
area, has a history which casts long shadows into the future some
good, some evil a history not always fully understood nor inter-
preted in accordance with the facts, but creating, nevertheless,
that indefinable quality called a "tradition," to inspire or to console,
DH. EMORY KEMPTON LINDQUIST, Rhodes scholar and former president of Bethany
College, has been at the University of Wichita since 1953. He is author of Smoky Valley
People: A History of Lindsborg, Kansas (1953), and numerous magazine articles relating
to the history of this area.
(22)
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 23
as circumstances called for inspiration or consolation. That tra-
dition, from its earliest foundation, includes "Bleeding Kansas,"
Puritanism, individualism, extremism, dogmatism, idealism, agrar-
ianism, and other less dramatic but nonetheless real elements in
fashioning the mind of a state. That is, if a state can be de-
scribed as having a mind.
Kansas has shared in the diversified company of other states
that have joined to form the great symphony of American life.
Some states are older, others younger, and all are different in
origin, culture, and spirit. Dorothy Canfield Fisher sought to de-
scribe a few of them by dramatic word portraiture in an article,
a part of a series described as "the new literature of self -appraisal,"
which appeared in The Nation in 1922. "Everybody knows/' wrote
Mrs. Fisher, "that New York State is a glowing, queenly creature,
with a gold crown on her head and a flowing purple velvet cloak.
The face of Louisiana is as familiar dark eyed, fascinating, tem-
peramental. Virginia is a white-haired, dignified grande dame
with ancient, well-mended fine lace and thin old silver spoons.
Massachusetts is a man, a serious, middle-aged man, with a hard
conscientious intelligent face, and hair thinned by intellectual ap-
plication." Then Mrs. Fisher concluded: "These State counte-
nances are familiar to all of us." . . - 1
The countenance of Kansas is not readily portrayed. The artist,
using brush and paint, often finds the creation of a personal portrait
difficult because of the changing moods of his subject day by day.
How much more difficult it is to create the portrait of a state across
a century of change, from the pioneer world of an isolated rural
community to the jet-driven international era of today! There
must be several partial portraits before there can be a composite
one, if that should ever be attempted. Before we speak of the
countenance of Kansas there is still the prior question "What is
Kansas?"
I
Kansas is a place of irregular wooded hills in northeastern coun-
ties, where streams of varying sizes wend their way hesitatingly
toward the inevitable destiny of a far-away ocean, but it is also
the High Plains of the western reaches, where prairie land stretches
undisturbed farther than unaided eye can see. It is the silence
of early November twilight in Brookville amidst the vestiges of
the Old West, but it is also the hustle and bustle of Broadway and
1. Dorothy Canfield Fisher, "These United States. IV. Vermont: Our Rich Little
Poor State," The Nation, New fork, v. 114 (May 31, 1922), p. 643.
24 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Douglas in urban Wichita, once known as the "Peerless Princess
of the Plains/' at five P. M. on weekdays. It is the solitude of the
unheard song of a meadowlark in the shadows of a great cathedral-
like wheat elevator near Grinnell, singing because it is the nature
of a meadowlark to sing, but it is also the piercing shriek of a
man-made Navy jet fighter stationed at Olathe, symbol of a time
of troubles, off on a mission of rehearsal in a world that knows not
if it can survive. It is the blistering heat of August on the good
earth, now parched, the roaring blizzard of January, reminiscent
of that fateful January, 1886, when storm gods unleashed their
mighty power, and the sodden soil of mid-April, with promise of
new life in nature. But it is more than that.
Kansas is the village of Victoria, with its English name and re-
membrances of the adventurous people from behind the white cliffs
of Dover, who in the early 1870's wished to honor Her Majesty,
Victoria, Queen of all Britain, Defender of the Faith, soon to be
designated Empress of India, by giving her name to a yet to be
inhabited Kansas village, and it is Victoria's great twin-spired
"Cathedral of the Plains/' St. Fidelis, built by a later generation of
German-Russian immigrants from the steppes of Czarist Russia,
affirming faith in the City of God, which traced its origin to events
almost two thousand years before there was a Kansas. It is Linds-
borg, lying serenely in the shadows of Coronado Heights, named
after the famous Spaniard and his conquistadores, who came to the
future Kansas in search of fame and fortune eight decades before
the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock, a town which is a tribute to
the Swedish pioneers who later fashioned the "Messiah" tradition
during Holy Week and gave hospitality to Birger Sandzen, son of
the Northland, who caught so magnificently the Kansas spirit with
bold strokes and elegant colors on hundreds of canvases.
Kansas is Lecompton, now primarily an historic reference on the
map of memory, but in 1857 a place bustling with a constitutional
convention pointing up the national debate over slavery between
North and South, but it is also Kansas City, across the Missouri river
from a dominant big brother, recalling that its predecessor, Wyan-
dotte, housed the convention which gave Kansas its constitution 100
years ago. It also is Topeka, the middle section of the trio of towns
designating the name of a railroad, later set to rhythmic song, "The
Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe," which was identified so intimately
with the lurch toward the Pacific; Topeka, proud of its green-domed
capitol building, an imitation of the larger one at Washington, D. C.,
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 25
where a great struggle had been launched to decide the fate of
Kansas, or Kanzas, or Kanza, or any of the 80 variations associated
in the early days with the name of the state. It is a place where
hardy sunflowers grow in abundance and its people acknowledge
somewhat reluctantly, at times, that they are Jayhawkers. Kansas
is Abilene, famous in early days as a shipping point for Texas cattle,
but now known world- wide as the boyhood home of D wight D.
Eisenhower, Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Powers in Europe
during World War II and the 34th President of the United States,
with its Eisenhower home and Eisenhower center, the latter por-
traying the distinguished career of the most famous Kansan and a
great American in a splendid museum and library.
Kansas is the rolling area of the southeast, with Shaw and the
first Christian mission in Kansas founded in 1824 by Protestants,
and Pittsburg, named after that older industrial metropolis in the
East, with coal mine shafts and shale piles in the surrounding area,
symbols of the search for the hidden bounty of nature, whether it
be the burrowing miles of salt veins stretching from Hutchinson to
Lyons and Kanopolis, or the rhythmic beat of thousands of Kansas
oil-well pumps, bringing black gold to the surface to drive the
swept-winged vehicles of jaunty men in the name of the 20th cen-
tury goddess, Speed. Kansas is the Flint Hills, a scenic belt of
intriguing beauty, stretching two counties wide north and south
across the entire state, dotted with villages bearing quaint names
like Matfield Green and Bazaar, Beaumont and Grenola, its western
edge forming the boundary of the eastern third of Kansas, charac-
terized by outcropping rocks of the Permian age, formed 200 million
years ago, with its cattle grazing peacefully in the luscious bluestem
grass. In the High Plains, it is Dodge City, "Cowboy Capital of the
World," with its streets named after Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson,
and other famed police officers of the West, some real, some leg-
endary, with its Boot Hill and its replica of Front street, with
shadowy remembrances of Doc Holliday and Dora Hand, and now
a modern city of modest size with fine schools, homes, and churches,
and a new college, St. Mary of the Plains, founded to honor the
Virgin through the ministry of teaching and learning as the 20th
century rushed jet-driven into its turbulent and fleeting second half.
But Kansas is more than that.
Kansas is John Brown, Charles Robinson, James H. Lane, John J.
Ingalls, Isaac T. Goodnow, W. A. Phillips, Edmund G. Ross, Jerry
Simpson, Mary Elizabeth Lease, Victor Murdock, Carry A. Nation,
Joseph Bristow, Charles Curtis, Arthur Capper, Dr. John R. Brink-
26 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
ley, Gen. Frederick Funston, Walter Chrysler, Earl Browder, Alf M.
Landon all names, the mere mention of which reveals no lack of
variety in the annals of the state's history. But Kansas is also D. W.
Wilder, William Allen White, Ed Howe, Eugene F. Ware, E. Halde-
man-Julius, Margaret Hill McCarter, Charles M. Sheldon, William
A. Quayle, Snowden D. Flora, J. C. Mohler, Birger Sandzen, Dr.
Samuel J. Crumbine, Dr. Arthur Hertzler, F. H. Snow, the Doctors
Menninger, father and sons, each one of which is representative of
the varied talent that Kansas has shared with the world. Kansas is
Amelia Earhart, Walter Johnson, and Jess Willard, all heroes in
their time, and A. K. Longren, E. M. Laird, Clyde Cessna, Lloyd
Stearman, Glenn Martin, and Walter H. Beech, pioneers in the air
lanes above the prairie trails, and also Pres. D wight D. Eisenhower
of Abilene.
II
Kansas is more than those who would be included in a Hall of
Fame, if Kansas chose to honor thus her great. Kansas is the com-
posite of the dreams and hopes of all the people, some by choice,
others by birth or circumstance, who have shared the vibrancy of
life, or answered the claims of death, in that piece of God's creation,
once described as the "Great American Desert," but later to become
a cherished place called home, with friends and work and a share
in the great promise of American life. They came, these future
Kansans, for a variety of reasons from older states with familiar
names, from Massachusetts and New York, from Ohio and Illinois,
from Missouri and Kentucky, and from distant European places
with unfamiliar names, from Sunnemo and Volhynia, Molotschna
and Neuchatel. The number of foreign born increased at an irreg-
ular tempo, reflecting factors in the old country and in the new, and
reaching a maximum of 147,630, for a total of 10.3 per cent of the
state's population in 1890, with the Germans forming almost one-
third of this total. 2 In 1895, when the population was one and a
third million, there were 188,000 Kansans using a language other
than English. Moreover, as Prof. J. Neal Carman has pointed out,
at the mid-point of the 20th century, probably one-half of the people
of Kansas had grandparents or great grandparents born in Europe. 8
The sound of native Indian tongues yielded to the new linguistic
cosmopolitanism of the Kansas plains as English, Welsh, French,
Bohemian, Russian, German, Italian, Spanish, Swedish, Norwegian,
and Danish were spoken, sung, and written. The language of the
2. Carroll D. Clark and Roy L. Roberts, People of Kansas (Topeka, 1936), pp. 50, 51.
3. J. Neal Carman, "Babel in Kansas," Your Government. Bulletin of the Bureau of
Government Research, Lawrence, v. 6 (March 15, 1951), No. 7. n. p.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 27
Old World became immersed in the language of the New World,
but as late as 1911, the Kansas City (Mo.) Star described Aurora,
Cloud county, as a French-speaking village, with the names of
business houses "as French as frog legs/' and "farmers who loafed
on drygoods boxes in front of the stores reminisced of the Franco-
Prussian War in the language of Moliere." 4 The spoken language
of the homeland, somewhat corrupted in the new milieu, continued
to be used quite widely among immigrant groups until the first
World War, in the second decade of the 20th century, served a
warning that non-English speaking peoples should embrace the
language of the land in full fervor. The language of the immi-
grants is now spoken only rarely and then only by the older genera-
tion. Although the pattern of language and culture has yielded
to the new forces, a generation twice removed from the pioneer im-
migrants shares the sincere feelings of the Swede in central Kansas,
who wrote in 1869 to friends in far away Varmland that America
was "framtidslandet" "the land of the future." And so it was for
him and his generation, and so it is for their children, and for their
children's children.
Although people from distant places, speaking strange languages,
came to Kansas in goodly numbers, future growth depended upon
the westward movement from older states toward the ever-expand-
ing frontier. When federal census takers completed their rolls
in 1860, Kansas, on the threshhold of statehood, numbered 107,206.
The six New England states furnished only 4,208 of these people.
New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, and
Kentucky each provided more names in the census year of 1860
than all of the New England states together. The largest number
from New England was 19,338 in 1880, but in that year, Illinois
had sent 106,922, and Ohio 93,396, in a total population of 996,096.
At the turn of the century there were 1,470,495 people in Kansas,
and three decades later, the number had increased moderately to
1,880,999. At the mid-point of the 20th century, the census enumera-
tors accounted for 1,905,299, and in 1960 as Kansas prepared to enter
the second century of statehood, there were 2,178,611 people in the
Jayhawker region, an increase of 14.3 per cent during the decade. 5
After 1890 restless Kansans reversed the trend of interstate mi-
gration as increasingly large numbers left Kansas at an accelerated
pace, and in the decade from 1920 to 1930, the state experienced
4. Kirke Mechem, ed., Annals of Kansas (Topeka, 1956), v. 2, p. 19, refers to the
Kansas City Star, December 10, 1911.
5. Clark and Roberts, op. cit., pp. 31, 208; United States bureau of the census,
Statistical Abstract of the United States (Washington, D. C., 1955), p. 16; Wichita
Evening Eagle and Beacon, November 25, 1960.
28 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
for the first time a net loss from interstate migration. 6 By 1930 r
39.2 per cent of native Kansans lived elsewhere in the United States,
while the Kansas population included 36.3 per cent born in states
other than Kansas. Not until the census of 1920 did the population
include more native born Kansas sons and daughters than persons
from other states and nations. The census for that year showed
54.7 per cent born in Kansas, 38.5 per cent in other states, and
6.8 per cent in foreign countries and places not identified. 7
A decisive factor in Kansas is the trend towards urbanization.
In 1900, 22.5 per cent of the population lived in incorporated places
of 2,500, or more, in 1950, the figure was 49 per cent, and in
1959, it had risen to 55 per cent. Cities with 10,000 or more people
had 12.8 per cent of the population in 1900, 28.8 per cent of the
population in 1930, and 42.5 per cent of the total population in
1959. Incorporated cities of all classes provided the residence
for 69.4 per cent of all Kansans in 1959. The population of Wichita
increased from 114,966 in 1940, to 168,279 in 1950. In 1960 the
population of Wichita was 254,059, an increase of 121 per cent in
the last two decades. 8
Although the population of Kansas exceeded the 2,000,000 mark
in its centennial year, Horace Greeley's prophetic declaration in
the New York Tribune in October, 1870, following a visit to Kansas,
was far too optimistic when he affirmed that the child was born
who would see Kansas fifth, if not fourth, in population and pro-
duction among the states of the Union. 9 The rate of population
growth has not kept pace with that of the United States. For
instance, since the turn of the century to 1960, the increase in
Kansas was 47 per cent, compared with almost three times that
growth, 135.7 per cent for the entire nation. 10
Ill
Many factors enter into shaping the character of a state as the
decades pass to form a century. The physical facts of an area
climate, geography, topography, location, natural resources play
significant roles, especially in the formative period. Certainly these
6. Clark and Roberts, op. cit., p. 199.
7. Ibid., pp. 66, 68.
8. Comprehensive Educational Survey of Kansas (Topeka, March, 1960), v. 1, p.
20. The Survey consists of five volumes prepared by Otto E. Domian and Robert J. Keller
on the basis of action taken by the Kansas legislature in 1957 and 1958 authorizing the
legislative council to provide for the study of education in Kansas. Clark and Roberts,
op. cit., pp. 74, 79; Wichita Evening Eagle, June 20, 1960; 17. S. Department of Commerce,
"census," August 31, 1960, CB 60-60, p. 17.
9. D. W. Wilder, Annals of Kansas (Topeka, 1886), p. 529.
10. Census Reports. Vol. I. Twelfth Census of the United States. 1900. Population.
Part I (Washington, D. C., 1901), p. 2; Wichita Eagle, August 2, 1960.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 29
factors are important, and occasionally decisive, but the pattern of
Kansas history does not depend upon "environmental determin-
ism." New crop varieties and improved methods of tilling the soil
created some measure of control, although uncertain and sporadic,
over the forces of nature. The windmill, barbed wire, sulky and
gang plows, tractors, and other inventions were important elements
in changing the manner of work and life. Improvements in trans-
portation and communication steadily eliminated the feeling of iso-
lation. The coming of increasingly large numbers of people pro-
vided the possibility of co-operative community life. These factors,
and others, combined to challenge the impact of environmental
influences.
More important than environmental factors are elements of a
spiritual character, broadly speaking, that create the ethos, the
distinguishing character, or tone, of a group, or region, or state, or
nation. History, and remembrances and interpretations of that his-
tory, some true, some false, provide a large and productive reservoir
of meaning for the ethos, the spirit, the tone of Kansas.
Looming large in the creation of the image of Kansas were the
violent and complex developments that preceded the Civil War,
Teaching a climax in the course of that conflict. Kansas was the
center of the national crisis: freedom and righteousness were the
issues. Various factors, political and economic, were obviously im-
portant, but the idealism and emotion generated by the magic word
"freedom," in contrast to the dreadful word "slavery," must not be
underestimated. The forces were clearly joined: the declared ideal-
ism of the New England Emigrant Aid Company, the Beecher Bible
and Rifle colony, the Andover band, representing the forces of law,
order, and decency, confronted the depravity of the border ruffians,
Quantrill and his raiders, and the cruel slaveholders portrayed sym-
bolically in Uncle Toms Cabin. This was the understanding of the
background for the birth and early history of Kansas, a mounting
conviction that entered into the life of the state. John Greenleaf
Whittier expressed it in "The Kansas Emigrant's Song":
"We cross the prairies as of old
The pilgrims crossed the sea,
To make the West, as they the East,
The homestead of the free."
Kansas was considered as belonging to the great tradition of the
Pilgrims and Plymouth Rock. This provided symbolical and sub-
stantive meaning for the future.
30 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Moreover, it seemed appropriate that Kansans should not only
enshrine these facts in the temple of memory, but blessings would
accrue across the years because of them. In 1879, when William
Lloyd Garrison reviewed in glowing terms the progress of Kansas
since 1861, he declared that this was "her fitting recompence for
having gone through a baptism of blood, and an ordeal of fire, with
such firmness and devotion to the sacred cause of human freedom/' n
In September, 1879, J. W. Forney affirmed confidently, as reported
in the Commonwealth that "Kansas was the field on which the first
modern battle was fought in favor of the Declaration of Inde-
pendence." 12
The Kansas spirit was fashioned by the zeal of the crusader, the
crusader against slavery and oppression, and he was equipped with
the effective weapons of righteousness, moral indignation, and a
deep-seated belief that the wrong could be made right and the
rough places plain by organized social action. William Allen White
wrote in The American Magazine, January, 1916, that "All our
traditions [in Kansas] are fighting traditions fighting established
orders, fighting for better orders." Kansas had responded whole-
heartedly in the national crisis of freedom during the Civil War;
no state had as high a percentage of eligible men in the Union army
as did Kansas. This was a battle for more than home and fireside;
this was a greater conflict of principles and ideals.
The momentum of this early start influenced greatly the later
history of Kansas. It was a prologue to the future, written with
sacrifice and faith. Belief in righteousness is a mighty force, and a
twin, Puritanism, was present in the founding period. William
Allen White, writing in the World s Work, June, 1904, declared that
"as a State, Kansas has inherited a Puritan conscience, but time and
again she has allied herself with Black George because he preached
more noble things and promised much." The heritage of Puritanism,
a persistent element in the image of Kansas, was emphasized in the
London Spectator as late as June, 1936, when it was observed that
"Kansas is the inheritor of the old Puritan morality which once
dominated New England. It is indeed, in a very literal sense, the
last refuge of the Puritan, for Kansas was settled from the old stock
of Massachusetts Bay." Moreover, the correspondent in the Spec-
tator continued: "Its physical descent from Bradford and Winthrop
11. Letter from William Lloyd Garrison to the Kansas State Historical Society, March
25, 1879, quoted in Wilder, op. cit., p. 847.
12. Quoted from the Commonwealth, Topeka, September 14, 1879, in Wilder, op. cit.,
p. 857.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 31
and Williams is only one degree less certain than its spiritual herit-
age from the same men. Kansas, even among farming States, is the
most zealous upholder of Prohibition and the Sabbath. 13
The statement relative to physical descent from Bradford, Win-
throp, Williams, and New England generally is obviously inaccurate
as already indicated. 14 The spiritual heritage from New England is
a factor, however, of far greater importance. The leaders in early
Kansas clergymen, writers, teachers, lawyers, editors, physicians
were often New England in origin and spirit. From 1854 to 1861,
51 Congregational ministers came to serve in Kansas, 36 arriving
before the end of 1860. In April, 1857, the General Association of
Congregational Ministers and Churches in Kansas declared in an
address to other Congregational bodies that "it shall be our aim
. . . to transplant the principles and institutions of the Puritans
to these fertile plains, and to lay foundations which shall be an
honour to us, when in the grave, and blessing to all coming genera-
tions." 15 This high resolve was symbolic of the expectations of
New England Congregationalism. The church sought to challenge
the frontier world by example and through the ministry of preach-
ing. Special attempts were made to leaven the satanic elements.
One response was the organization of the Band of Hope by the
Rev. Peter Me Vicar in Topeka, in 1861, in which members took a
pledge to totally abstain from the use of intoxicating drink, tobacco,
and profane language. 16
The religious future of Kansas belonged, however, not to the New
England Congregationalists, but to Methodists, Baptists, Disciples
of Christ, Presbyterians, and to immigrant Churches, such as the
Lutheran, Mennonite, and Evangelical. The principal emphasis of
these groups was, in regard to morals and conduct, definitely Puri-
tan. In 1861, for instance, the Methodist conference passed a strong
resolution on alcoholism, and declared that "Whereas, Intemperance
with all its accumulation of moral and social evils is still destroying
the souls and bodies of many in our state, Be it Resolved, that
Methodist Preachers should not cease to 'cry aloud and spare not*
before all people." 17 The dominant forces of Protestantism in Kan-
sas were essentially pietistic, building upon the earlier foundations
13. The Spectator, London, v. 156 (June 26, 1936), p. 1170.
14. Vide, p. 27.
15. Emory Lindquist, "Religion in Kansas During the Era of the Civil War," Kansas
Historical Quarterly, v. 25 (Winter, 1959), pp. 433, 434.
16. Ibid., v. 25 (Autumn, 1959), p. 323.
17. Emory Lindquist, "The Protestant and Jewish Religions in Kansas," in Kansas:
The First Century, J. D. Bright, ed. (New York, 1956), v. 2, p. 374.
32 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
of New England Puritanism. This pattern furnished important
sources for further developments.
Manifestations of the Puritan conscience are a part of the annals
of Kansas. The most dramatic aspect is related to the prohibition
amendment. The temperance movement gained in momentum
after 1870 through the work of the Independent Order of Good
Templars, the "Woman's Crusade/' which used the contrasting
weapons of prayers for the saloonkeepers at their places of busi-
ness and "spilling parties," great camp meetings of the "cold water"
faithful at Bismarck Grove and elsewhere, the "blue ribbon" work-
ers, the W. C. T. U., and the churches. J. R. Detwiler, who advised
the introduction of a bold constitutional amendment outlawing
the liquor traffic, established the Temperance Banner in October,
1878. Detwiler also arranged with Judge N. C. McFarland to
draft a resolution, known later as Senate Resolution 3, on the sub-
ject. The proposed prohibition amendment carried the senate
without effort. One vote was lacking for the required two-thirds
majority in the house of representatives, but in a dramatic gesture
of loyalty to his new wife, George W. Greever, a Democrat from
Wyandotte county, on March 5, 1879, changed his vote, and the
issue was now in the hands of the people of Kansas. 18
The campaign for the amendment was carried on intensively.
Frances Willard, Frank Murphy, Drusilla Wilson, and other famous
enemies of "daemun rum" spoke to large audiences. Mrs. Wilson
affirmed that "this crusade was an inspiration from the Holy Ghost,
sent from heaven to arouse action in this great work." The opposi-
tion, although not equally active because of overconfidence,
charged, however, that the amendment was unconstitutional and
an attack upon public liberty, a "sumptuary and gustatory" pro-
ceeding which would curtail immigration and delay economic
advance. The people spoke, although not too convincingly, when
the final tabulation showed 92,302 for and 84,304 against the
amendment, producing a majority of 7,998 in favor of prohibition.
Although Kansas was the first state to pass a prohibition amend-
ment, Tennessee had a prohibition law in 1838 and Maine in 1846.
The Kansas amendment was not repealed until 1948, and then by a
majority of more than 60,000 votes, following a failure to obtain
repeal in 1934, when 89 of 105 counties supported prohibition. 19
18. Clara Francis, "The Coming of Prohibition to Kansas," Kansas Historical Collec-
tions, v. 15 (1919-1922), pp. 204-227; Grant W. Harrington, "The Genesis of Prohibition,"
Kansas Historical Collections, v. 15 (1919-1922), pp. 228-231; Agnes D. Hays, The White
Ribbon in the Sunflower State (Topeka, 1953), pp. 20-23.
19. Francis, loc. cit., pp. 221-227; Proceedings and Debates of the Wyandotte Con-
stitutional Convention. July, 1859 (Topeka, 1920), p. 593; The legislative act is found
in Laws of Kansas, 1881 (Topeka, 1881), ch. 128, sec. 1-24, pp. 233-244; Hays, op. ctt.,
pp. 60, 67.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 33
Carry Nation's home town of Medicine Lodge voted to repeal the
amendment in 1948. A later generation may not fully understand
the fact that idealism joined with Puritanism in 1880 to pass the
prohibition amendment. A study of contemporary sources indi-
cates convincingly the real social and economic evils of liquor on
the Kansas frontier. The groggery shops and saloons were scarcely
compatible with the ideals of Kansas.
The conditions in Kansas after the effective date of prohibition,
May, 1881, dramatized clearly the problems relating to the attempt
to legislate reform. The drugstores became prosperous with brisk
sales of liquor for which a physician's prescription was not re-
quired. The New York Tribune pointed out in November, 1886,
that in Osage county, 215 different reasons had been cited by
patrons for purchasing alcohol including "a bilious headache,"
"dry stomach," "congestion of the lungs," and "for making a mix-
ture to wash apples against rabbits." 20 The saloons soon reap-
peared in large numbers as did also the patrons.
The prohibition issue produced the unusual career of Carry A.
Nation of Medicine Lodge. She started her campaign at Kiowa
in June, 1899, after a voice had told her: "Take something in
your hand, and throw at those places in Kiowa and smash them."
She cast her carefully collected stones with great skill in three
Kiowa saloons. At Wichita, early on the morning of December
27, 1900, she went to the Carey Hotel saloon, where she threw
two stones with unfailing accuracy at the nude picture, "Cleo-
patra at the Bath," and smashed with a billiard ball (alas! not a
hatchet) the mirror that covered almost one entire side of the large
room. By 8:30 A. M. that day she was arrested, telling her jailor
as the gate closed on her cell: "Never mind, you put me in here
a cub, but I will go out a roaring lion and I will make all hell
howl." 21 When released from the Wichita jail, she went to Enter-
prise to continue her solo performance of good works.
The activities of Carry A. Nation dramatized an important con-
tradiction in Kansas: a prohibition state with wide open saloons.
William Allen White, in an editorial in the Emporia Gazette on
February 11, 1901, "Hurrah for Carrie," described this contradic-
tion effectively: "At first the Gazette was against Carrie Nation.
She seemed to be going at it wrong end to. But events justify her.
20. New York Tribune, November 3, 1886.
21. Carry A. Nation, The Use and Need of the Life of Carry A. Nation (Topeka,
1908), pp. 133, 134, 143-145, 148, 159.
34660
34 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
She is all right. . . . She has aroused the law-abiding people
of Kansas to the disgrace of lawbreaking partly by the example
of her own lawlessness. . . . Hurrah for Carrie Nation! She's
all right." 22
The Kansas mind had developed a type of pharisaical legalism
blended with genuine idealism. It was, perhaps, a manifestation
of what Ernest Hamlin Abbott called "moral dogmatism" in Kan-
sas. 23 Puritanism and the prairie joined with pietism and per-
sistence to initiate a noble experiment. Kansas had resolved upon
a course of action in an overwhelmingly agrarian culture: he who
sets his hand to the plow must move straight ahead. There were,
and are, real evils associated with liquor and the liquor traffic. The
Kansas approach was to legislate reform. In addition to the Kansas
amendment of 1880, the so-called "Bone-Dry" law of February,
1917, was an attempt in the 20th century to achieve certain avowed
goals. 24 However, after the repeal of the 18th amendment to the
constitution of the United States in 1933, an uneasy conscience
harried observant persons who saw the dire results of bootlegging
and wide spread violation of Kansas liquor laws. The idealism of
the Puritan and pietistic tradition was forced to yield in the face
of new forces. This is Kansas, intent upon the conviction that the
shortest distance between two points is a straight line, unmindful
of the pitfalls along the way, or refusing to recognize them. Com-
promise has not always been a decisive characteristic of Kansas;
compromise may be the quality of a less courageous, or a more
mature civilization. Compromise may sometimes be the part of
wisdom or practical policy; it is often less interesting. Kansas has
sometimes been interesting.
A significant comparison between Kansas and other states was
made by Ernest Hamlin Abbott in an article in Outlook magazine,
April, 1902, when he declared that the difference could be identified
as doctrinal dogmatism elsewhere and moral dogmatism in Kansas.
He observed: "In the Southwest religious dogmatism is a choppy
sea; for doctrines of one sect conflict with the doctrines of another.
In Kansas religious dogmatism is a strong current, for church people
of all names are practically agreed as to what moral courses are
unquestionably Christian." He observed, moreover, that "in the
main the *Higher Criticism* is the representative heresy of the
22. Quoted in Helen Ogden Mahin, The Editor and His People (New York, 1924), pp.
178, 179.
23. Ernest Hamlin Abbott, "Religious Life in America, VIII. Kansas," The Outlook,
New York, v. 70 (April, 1902), p. 970.
24. Laws of Kansas, 1917 (Topeka, 1917), ch. 215, sec. 1-9, pp. 283-286.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 35
Southwest, while that of Kansas is Beer/' Abbott described the
Kansas mentality by recourse to the traditional explanation since
he "was more than ever impressed with the truth that the present
[1902] religious and moral character was only the persistence of
the temper that was wrought into the people during the days of
Eli Thayer's Emigrant Aid Company/' He found that the most
articulate Kansas idealist "can always be found to have his idealism
firmly fastened to a peg driven deep in the earth. The Beecher
Bible and Rifle Company still in the spirit hovers over Kansas like
the horses and chariots of fire around about Elisha/' 25
Although prohibition is the most dramatic manifestation of moral
dogmatism in Kansas, official policy relative to cigarettes is also
a part of that pattern. As early as 1862 the Methodist conference
declared "that it is the duty of Christians to put off all 'filthiness
of the flesh' especially that which is involved in the use of to-
bacco." 2G Ordinances were passed by various cities governing the
sale of cigarettes and cigarette paper. The agitation mounted in
the second decade of the 20th century. The Kansas Civil Service
Commission, which had declared that habitual users of liquor could
not receive state jobs, announced on August 16, 1915, that the
habitual use of cigarettes might also be the reason for refusing
to certify an applicant for a position. 27 The W. C. T. U., the Kan-
sas Federation of Women's Clubs, and other groups joined in the
crusade to ban the "coffin nails/' In the legislative session of 1917,
a law was passed "prohibiting the sale, giving away, or advertise-
ment of cigarettes or cigarette paper." 28 The cigarette law was
not repealed until 1927. 29 Another attempt, for a decade, to legis-
late reform in Kansas had resulted in an unrealistic situation as far
as enforcement and public acceptance was concerned.
Many Kansans in the centennial year view the past as having
been quaint and wrong. There is pride in the new emancipation.
However, the present generation should understand that many
citizens who had opposed liquor and cigarettes did so earnestly
and with genuine idealism. It was the manifestation of Puritanism
and moral dogmatism; it did at least have some distinct principles
for guidance and belief in matters of conduct.
25. Abbott, loc. cit., pp. 970-972.
26. Minutes of the Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 1862, p. 21.
27. Topeka Daily Capital, August 17, 1915.
28. Laws of Kansas, 1917 (Topeka, 1917), ch. 116, sec. 1-5, pp. 212-214.
29. Laws of Kansas, 1927 (Topeka, 1927), ch. 171, sec. 1-24, pp. 219-223.
36 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
IV
On August 9, 1922, the New York Times, in editoralizing on a
bulletin of the census bureau stating that Kansans lived longer
than other Americans, declared that this was understandable be-
cause in addition to the salubrity of the climate, "Kansans are power-
ful sleepers, thanks not only to their climate and quiet nights, but
to self-complacency/' William Allen White countered this obser-
vation effectively by an appraisal of Kansas history in the Emporia
Gazette on August 25: "The reason is plain. We are never bored.
Always something is going on and we like the show. . . . Kan-
sans have the box seats of the world's theaters and can always see
the figures, issues, events, causes and cataclysms waiting in the
wings for the cue from fate. For things start in Kansas that finish
in history. . . . Kansas is hardly a state. It is a kind of
prophecy!" 30
Box seats for the great drama of Populism were fashioned early
in Kansas. Before the curtain raised with the organization of the
Kansas People's Party at Topeka in June, 1890, there had been
preliminary scenes of preparation in the economic and social life of
the state. Prof. Raymond Curtis Miller has made excellent studies
of the background and the development of Populism in Kansas. 31
His studies chronicle effectively the frenzied speculation, over ex-
pansion, inflation of land values, railroad and town booms, spiraling
private and public indebtedness, and the many other factors that
furnished the theme for the unfolding drama.
The response to the promise of great opportunities in Kansas
produced a 37 per cent rise in population between 1880 and 1885,
increasing from 900,000 to 1,200,000. Property doubled in value
during those years. In central Kansas, the number of residents
increased about 100 per cent between 1881 and 1887, and the 32
western counties grew from 41,000 to 148,000 in the two years
1885 to 1887. In Wichita, the population increased threefold be-
tween 1884 and 1887. Eastern financiers, like Charles M. Hawkes,
Jabez B. Watkins, and others poured money into Kansas as prices
soared and values boomed. By 1887 the mortgage debt per capita
was three times as high as that of 1880. The public debt climbed
from $15,000,000 in 1880 to $41,000,000 in 1890, the largest increase
in the nation. Mortgages were held on 60 per cent of the taxable
land in 1890, the highest percentage of all the states, with one
30. Quoted in Mahin, op. cit., p. 175.
31. Raymond Curtis Miller, "The Background of Populism in Kansas," Mississippi
Valley Historical Review, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, v. 11 (March, 1925), pp. 487-489.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 37
mortgage for every two adults. The private per capita debt was
$347, a figure four times as high as that of the entire nation. 32
Charles M. Harger, the distinguished editor and publisher of the
Abilene Reflector wrote in June, 1898, that the business history of
the Western Mississippi valley could be divided into three periods
"settlement, extravagance, and depression/' 33 The last two, ex-
travagance and depression, were twins, whose combined results set
the stage for the great drama of Populism. The peak of Kansas
prosperity was reached in 1887, to be followed by several years of
depression. Inadequate rainfall, poor crops, low prices for items
sold and high prices for goods purchased, foreclosures, high inter-
est rates, bank failures, bankruptcy, restrictions on credit, loss of
confidence, unemployment, and the flight of large numbers of peo-
ple completely disillusioned with Kansas, created times of stress and
strain. For instance, between 1887 and 1892, the population of
western Kansas decreased by one-half and that of central Kansas by
one-fourth. 34
The response of Kansans to the desperate conditions was collec-
tive action. Representatives of Farmers' Alliance and Industrial
Union, Patrons of Husbandry, Knights of Labor, Mutual Benefit As-
sociation, and Single Tax clubs merged to form the Kansas People's
party at Topeka in June, 1890. When a national convention met in
Cincinnati in May, 1891, adopting resolutions to form a new party,
nearly one-third of the 1,418 delegates were from Kansas. 35 The
People's party of the U. S. A. was organized at St. Louis in Febru-
ary, 1892.
In the Kansas election of 1890, the Populists, supported by the
Democrats, elected five congressmen, including Jerry Simpson. Al-
though the Republicans retained control of the Kansas senate, the
Populists had a margin of 92 to 26 in the Kansas lower house.
Judge W. A. Peffer, a Populist, described as having "a gruffy, hoarse,
but low-toned voice issuing from a sea of long, dark beard flowing
nearly to his waist," succeeded J. J. Ingalls, the "silver-tongued ora-
tor/' in the United States senate. 36 In 1892 Lorenzo D. Lewelling
was elected the first Populist governor and the entire Populist state
ticket was victorious. Four Populists were elected to the congress
32. Ibid., pp. 470, 478, 481, 485; Richard Sheridan, Economic Development in South
Central Kansas. An Economic History 1500-1900 (Lawrence, March, 1956), p. 183.
33. Charles M. Harger, "New Era in the Middle West," Harper's New Monthly Maga-
zine, New York, v. 97 (July, 1898), p. 276.
34. Miller, loc. cit., pp. 484, 487.
&TuSfS^: p Hi 43? * *" (Chicago - 1928) - v - 2 - p - 1164 < Th
36. The Nation, v. 52 (February 5, 1891), p. 104.
38 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
of the United States. The Kansas senate had a substantial Populist
majority, but in the house, disputed elections resulted in the "legisla-
tive war" with eventual control by the Republicans. In 1894, be-
cause of the defection of the Democrats and internal dissension,
Populism suffered a severe setback. The year 1896 witnessed the
final triumph for the Kansas Populists. John W. Leedy was elected
governor, and the majority of both houses of the Kansas legislature,
state officers, and members of the supreme court were Populists.
One of the most eloquent of the critics of the old order was Mary
Elizabeth Lease, who had come to Kansas from Pennsylvania to
teach school, but married Charles Lease, later a Wichita druggist,
studied law, and was admitted to the Kansas bar in 1885. Like John
Wesley whose chance entrance into a religious meeting in Alders-
gate one night changed the course of his life, it has been reported
that Mary Elizabeth Lease rushed by chance one night into a labor
union meeting in Wichita to get out of the rain, and soon she in-
spired the group with her fiery speech, and was launched on her
great career. Editing the Wichita Independent, a reform paper,
and giving hundreds of speeches, this remarkable woman, whom
Victor Murdock described as having "the dignity of an abbess" and
who "knew her lines in Shakespeare like Ellen Terry," was irresisti-
ble before great crowds of Kansas farmers, urging them convincingly
"to raise less corn and more hell." 37
Another important actor in the drama of Populism was Jerry Simp-
son. Canadian born, and for more than 20 years a sailor on the
Great Lakes with the final rank of captain, he came to Kansas in
1878. Simpson had been a Greenbacker, a Union Labor party sup-
porter, and a follower of Henry George's single tax program before
he became a Populist. After bad luck in cattle raising and farming
in Barber county, where he lost a small fortune, he became city
marshal in Medicine Lodge at $40 a month. His next position was
in the congress of the United States, where he represented the big
seventh district for six years during the 1890's.
Simpson was an entertaining and powerful figure on the platform.
He urged his hearers to "put on your goggles and watch the buc-
caneers of Wall Street; the brigands of tariff; and the whole shootin'
match of grain gamblers, land grabbers, and Government sneak
thieves, before they steal you blind." The usually staid and safely
Republican Kansans applauded and sent him to congress. "Sockless
Jerry," a name given to him by Victor Murdock of the Wichita Eagle
37. Victor Murdock, "Folks" (New York, 1921), pp. 97-100.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 39
in reporting Simpson's attack upon a debonair opponent, James R.
Hallowell, because the latter supposedly wore silk stockings, while
the former had none because of the high tariff, was a dramatic and
effective evangelist for the cause of Populism. 38
What had happened that such a debacle should occur in Kansas?
Eastern critics lamented these developments, and one spokesman,
Godkin of The Nation, wrote in 1890: "We do not want any more
States until we can civilize Kansas/' 39 On August 15, 1896, William
Allen White published his famous editorial, "What's the Matter
With Kansas?" in the Emporia Gazette, a scathing attack upon the
Populists. White argued that "If there had been a high brick wall
around the state eight years ago and not a soul had been admitted
or permitted to leave, Kansas would be a half million souls better
off than she is today. And yet the Nation has increased in popula-
tion." He continued his great lament: "Go East and you hear them
laugh at Kansas, go West and they sneer at her, go South and they
'cuss* her, go North and they have forgotten her. . . . She has
traded places with Arkansas and Timbuctoo." 40
Populism was an explosion, an uprising, and it had about it the
quality of a religious crusade. Elizabeth N. Barr has described it
dramatically: "The upheaval that took place in Kansas in the sum-
mer and fall of 1890, can hardly be diagnosed as a political cam-
paign. It was a religious revival, a crusade, a pentecost of politics
in which a tongue of flame sat upon every man, and each spake
as the spirit gave him utterance." 41 The "New Jacobins" as they
were called by some, created a great stirring in the normally quiet
political prairie. Victor Murdock wrote that as David Leahy and
he watched a great Alliance parade, passing before them mile after
mile, the latter turned to him and said: "This is no parade; it is a
revolution." 42 Over at El Dorado, Thomas Benton Murdock, pub-
lisher of the Republican, and a keen observer of events associated
with the new stirring among the farmers, told young William Allen
White one Saturday afternoon: "By Godfrey's diamonds, some-
thing's happening, young feller. These damn farmers are prepar-
ing to tear down the Courthouse." 43
Although agrarian discontent produced angry men and women,
it did not result in revolutions. Populism aroused the nation to
38. Annie L. Diggs, The Story of Jerry Simpson (Wichita, 1908), pp. 108, 109; Mur-
dock, op. tit., p. 103.
39. Quoted in Matthew Josephson, The Politicos, 1865-1896 (New York, 1938), p. 480.
40. Mahin, op. cit., pp. 244-246.
41. Connelley, op. cit., v. 2, pp. 1164, 1165.
42. Murdock, op. cit., p. 101.
43. William Allen White, Autobiography (New York, 1946), p. 184.
40 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
the need of change. Prof. Allan Nevins has pointed out that "What
Kansas Populism did do was to help throw a bridge from Jefferson-
ian liberalism to the Progressivism of Theodore Roosevelt and
Woodrow Wilson." 44 On the large canvas of national development,
Prof. John D. Hicks observed correctly that "a backward glance at
the history of Populism shows that many of the reforms that the
Populists demanded, while despised and rejected for a season, won
triumphantly in the end." 45 Such planks in the Populist platform
as woman's suffrage, direct elections of United States senators, direct
primary elections, income tax, initiative, referendum, and recall,
have become a part of the American tradition. Populist agitation
for banking and fiscal reform, improved farm credit and loan facil-
ities, regulation of railroads and trusts, conservation of natural re-
sources, have been translated into legislation and policy, evidences
of a prophetic insight into America's needs. Max Lerner has ob-
served that "the sweep of Populism set new sights for Americans." 46
Kansas has not deviated appreciably from the party of Lincoln
which owed its origin to issues related intimately to the birth of
the state. The Kansas Republican party was organized at Osa-
watomie in 1859, with Horace Greeley as the distinguished guest
speaker. In 25 Presidential elections in Kansas, all went Republican
except in 1892 and 1896, when the Populists, joining with the Demo-
crats, were victorious; in 1912 and 1916, when the Democratic
standard bearer, Woodrow Wilson, and the New Freedom tri-
umphed; and in 1932 and 1936, the year of victory for Democrat
Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the New Deal. Ellis county is the
only Kansas county which has voted more times for the Democratic
candidate for the Presidency than his Republican opponent; Doni-
phan county has an unsullied record of loyalty to the Grand Old
Party. 47
The pattern of loyalty to the Republican party is demonstrated by
the fact that of the 33 elected Kansas governors all have been Re-
publicans except for six Democrats and two Populists. The Demo-
crats and Populists were granted only one term except for George
Docking, conservative Democrat, who was re-elected for a second
term in 1958. In 1924 William Allen White polled approximately
150,000 votes as an independent, basing his candidacy on the desire
"to offer Kansans afraid of the Klan and ashamed of that disgrace,
44. Allan Nevins, Kansas and the Stream of American Destiny (Lawrence, 1954), p. 13.
45. John D. Hicks, The Populist Revolt (Minneapolis, 1931), p. 404.
46. Max Lerner, America As a Civilization (New York, 1957), p. 49.
47. Walter Butcher, Presidential Election Returns for Kansas, 1864-1952, The Em-
poria State Research Studies, Emporia, v. 5 (September, 1956), p. 3.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 41
a candidate who shares their fear and disgrace. . . . And the
thought that Kansas should have a government beholden to this
hooded gang of masked fanatics, ignorant and tyrannical in their
ruthless oppression, is what calls me out of the pleasant ways of my
life into this disgraceful but necessary task." 48 White's frontal at-
tack upon the Ku Klux Klan in the Gazette and in public speeches
was a decisive factor in eliminating a disgraceful chapter in Kansas
history when bands of sheet-covered men burned crosses in cow pas-
tures. In 1930 John R. Brinkley, described as the "goat gland
doctor" of Milford, won 183,278 votes that could be counted as a
late write-in candidate for governor. The winner, Harry H. Wood-
ring, Democrat, won over his Republican opponent, Frank Haucke,
by a plurality of only 251 votes. W. G. Clugston, the most articulate
commentator on Kansas politics and an outspoken critic of the power
structure in the state, has observed, and many have agreed with him,
that "There wasn't an experienced political observer in the state who
didn't admit that if the ballots of all who had tried to vote for
Brinkley had been counted . . . the goat gland rejuvenator
would have been elected by a smashing plurality." 49
Third party movements, exclusive of Populism, have not gained
victories in Kansas. Theodore Roosevelt, running as the Progressive
candidate for President in 1912, and Robert La Follette, a candidate
for the same office on the Progressive ticket in 1924, gained a sub-
stantial number of votes. The largest number of votes cast for a
Socialist candidate for President was 26,807 for Eugene V. Debs in
1912. Jules A. Wayland moved the place of publication of the
Socialist paper, Appeal To Reason, to Girard in 1897. By 1912 this
paper had a circulation approaching 500,000, with editions running
as high as 4,000,000 copies for special issues. From February, 1907,
through 1912, Eugene V. Debs served actively as a contributing
editor, commuting between Terre Haute, Ind., and Girard. The im-
pact of the Appeal To Reason was not significant in Kansas except
for a brief time in Crawford county. 50
The decisive trend toward urbanization is beginning to produce
changes in the political life of Kansas, but the pattern has some
confusing aspects as Kansas celebrates the centennial of her birth.
For instance, in 1958, Gov. George Docking, a Democrat, was
elected to an unprecedented second term for a member of his party,
on a platform which condemned "right to work" legislation, al-
48. White, Autobiography, pp. 630, 631.
49. W. G. Clugston, Rascals in a Democracy (New York, 1940), p. 158.
50. Charles L. Scott, "Appeal To Reason, A Study of the 'Largest Political Newspaper
in the World,' " M. A. thesis, University of Kansas, 1957, pp. 25, 37, 38, 41, 49.
42 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
though, at the same time, the voters of Kansas endorsed an amend-
ment making "right to work" a new addition to the century old
Wyandotte constitution.
Kansas gave recognition to the rights of women as voters prior to
action on a nation-wide basis. 51 The struggle for the right to vote
began in 1859 when Mrs. Clarina I. H. Nichols, Mary Tenney Gray,
and Mother Armstrong attended the Wyandotte constitutional con-
vention as uninvited guests to plead the cause of woman's suffrage.
An amendment providing full suffrage for women lost in 1867 by a
vote of 19,856 to 9,070. The second attempt to gain enfranchise-
ment by amendment lost in 1894 by a vote of 130,139 to 95,302. In
September, 1894, the New York Tribune reported that the suffragist
women of Topeka appeared on the streets in shifts with reform dress
to identify their cause, their garb consisting of "Turkish trousers
covered by a skirt reaching to the fold, a close or loose waist, as
the wearer may prefer, and cloth leggings to match the trousers." 52
The goal of woman's suffrage was achieved in 1912 by a vote of
175,246 to 159,197, eight years prior to the 19th amendment to the
United States constitution.
The triumph was achieved after a long struggle which had small
beginnings when the Equal Suffrage Association was formed by
three women at Lincoln in 1879; it became a state organization in
June, 1884. The state was thoroughly organized county by county
for the election of 1912. The movement was supported by women's
clubs with 60,000 members, and a variety of organizations including
the Kansas State Teachers Association, the Kansas Federation of La-
bor, the Kansas Grange, the Kansas State Board of Agriculture,
the Kansas G. A. R., the Kansas Editorial Association, the Kansas
W. C. T. U., Kansas church groups, and others. Kansas suffragists
put their objectives in words designed for familiar tunes. The
following verse to the tune of "Auld Lang Syne," appeared in the
Burlingame Enterprise on October 3, 1912:
"If a body pays the taxes,
Surely you'll agree
That a body earns the franchise,
Whether he or she."
Jane Addams of Hull House, Chicago, conducted a successful speak-
ing campaign in May, 1912, and Dr. Anna Howard Shaw, president
51. Full descriptions of the woman's suffrage movement are found in Martha B. Cald-
well, "The Woman's Suffrage Campaign of 1912," Kansas Historical Quarterly, v. 12
(August, 1943), pp. 300-318, and in Wilda Marine Smith, "The Struggle for Woman's
Suffrage in Kansas, M. S. thesis, Fort Hays Kansas State College, 1957, 161 pages.
52. New York Tribune, September 25, 1894.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 43
of the National American Woman Suffrage Association, rendered
effective service in the ten-day period preceding the election.
The victory of 1912 had been preceded by legislation as early as
1861 when qualified women could vote in school elections. This
action was prior to that of every other state except Kentucky, which
passed a limited school suffrage law in 1838, and Wyoming which
gave women equal suffrage in 1869. In 1887 women received the
right to vote in cities of the first, second, and third class for any city
or school official, and in school bond elections. This legislation
made Kansas a leader of all the states in woman's rights. In 1903
women became eligible to vote in elections for public bond im-
provements in addition to those for schools.
The history of the attainment of woman's suffrage is full of heroic
struggle by individuals and groups, and, in contrast, there was
frustrating indecisiveness and delay by the political parties, except
the Populists who supported the movement, and several members of
the press. Kansas responded to the natural rights theory of woman's
suffrage with some reluctance, but with enough enthusiasm to lead
the nation in certain aspects, and to be among the leaders in the full
embrace of complete voting rights for women.
The record of voting in Kansas shows a higher percentage in years
in which a President is elected. For instance, in 1952, almost 70
per cent of potential voters in Kansas went to the polls in contrast
to 54 per cent in 1954. In 1952 Kansas held the rank of 22d among
the 48 states in the percentage of eligible voters using the franchise.
In both Presidential elections of 1948 and 1952, Kansans voted
in greater numbers on a percentage basis than the rest of the
United States. Prof. Rhoten A. Smith concludes, on the basis of a
study of voting in the United States, that "Kansas' voting record
in recent years is better than most of the other states in the Union
and better than the United States as a whole." 53
A century ago the dominant factor in Kansas was the potentialities
for agricultural production. Kansas has lived up to those expecta-
tions beyond all reasonable hopes; the achievement has reached
magnificant proportions. The year 1958 witnessed an all time rec-
ord in volume, though not in income, of farm production; the total
exceeded the previous record year of 1952 by 29 per cent. Record
receipts for farm products in 1947 are expected to be exceeded by
53. Rhoten A. Smith, "Voter Participation in Kansas and the United States," Your
Government, bulletin of the Governmental Research Center, University of Kansas, v. 10
(February 15, 1955), p. 3.
44 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
the 1960 total. 54 Kansas continues as the number one wheat state.
The biggest wheat crop was harvested in 1952, the "Bin-Buster"
year, when 14,649,000 acres produced 307,629,000 bushels for an
average of 21.0 bushels per acre. It was harvested by 85,000 com-
bines, and would have filled 180,958 box cars, reaching 1,508 miles.
The 1960 wheat crop of 281,848,000 bushels was 60 per cent above
average, and the state's fourth largest crop, exceeded only in the
years 1947, 1952, and 1958. The average of 28 bushels per acre
tied with that of 1958 for the record high yield. A great trans-
formation has taken place since the Mennonites brought small
amounts of hard winter wheat in trunks and sea chests to Kansas
from Russia in 1874 to be planted in small allotments. 55
Kansas has shared in the trend toward larger farms and fewer
farmers. In 1930 there were 166,000 Kansas farms, but the num-
ber had dropped to 115,000 in 1959. The average size of a farm
had increased in the three decades from 238.6 acres to approximately
440 acres. 56 In the period from 1920 to 1950, the population on
Kansas farms decreased from 735,884 to 443,739, or from 41.6 per
cent of the total population to 23.3 per cent. It is now about 365,000
or 20 per cent of the state population. In the half century from
1909-1959, the labor force on Kansas farms has decreased by more
than 40 per cent from 282,000 to 165,000. The amount of land in
farms has remained fairly constant at about 50,000,000 acres. Farm-
ers have $6,000,000,000 invested in land, machinery, and other facili-
ties. 57 Kansas is more than "the wheat state." In 1960 Kansas
reached an all-time high with 4,700,000 head of cattle within its
boundaries, ranking fourth among all the states. The value of
livestock and poultry on Kansas farms on January 1, 1959, was more
than $735,000,000. The high national rating of Kansas agriculture
is recounted in part by the following, in addition to its first rank
in wheat production: first in silage production, second in brome
grass seed and dehydrated alfalfa, third in rye, fourth in wild hay,
fifth in alfalfa seed and broomcorn. 58
54. Kansas State Board of Agriculture, 42nd Report, July 1958-June 1959 (Topeka),
p. 24.
55. Kansas State Board of Agriculture, Thirty-Eighth Biennial Report, 1951-1952
(Topeka, 1952), pp. 11-22; "Summary of the 1960 Wheat Quality Survey," Kansas Crop
and Livestock Reporting Service, Kansas State Board of Agriculture, August 11, 1960;
"Kansas Crop Report, August 1, 1960," Kansas Crop and Livestock Reporting Service,
Kansas State Board of Agriculture. August 10, 1960. An interesting study on the de-
velopment of wheat in Kansas is found in James C. Malin, Winter Wheat in the Golden
Belt in Kansas (Lawrence. 1944).
56. Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1959, p. 616; Comprehensive Educational
Survey, v. 1, p. 15; Farm Facts, 1959-60, Kansas State Board of Agriculture (Topeka),
p. 12.
57. Comprehensive Educational Survey, v. 1, p. 17; Kansas State Board of Agriculture,
42nd Report 1958-59, pp. 27, 24f Farm Facts, 1959-60, p. 90.
58. Farm Facts, 1959-60, pp. 13-15. Excellent information about Kansas agriculture
is available in the publications of the Kansas State Board of Agriculture.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 45
The cycles of change have been a part of the pattern of agricul-
tural developments. Times of prosperity have yielded to times of
depression. The dominant emphasis upon agriculture until recent
years has made Kansas subject to the vagaries of nature and of the
price structure. Periods of drought produced great hardships. The
variations in prices were equally disastrous. For instance, using
the index of 100, based on the years 1910-1914, the price of all farm
commodities has varied in less than two decades from a low of 55
in 1932 to a high of 313 in 1951. The season average price of wheat
has ranged from 33 cents per bushel in 1931 and 1932 to $2.25 per
bushel in 1947. 59
Agriculture was not replaced as the largest source of income in
Kansas until 1953, when the production from manufacturing ex-
ceeded that of agriculture. Kansas has a larger percentage of her
people engaged in manufacturing than any of the surrounding states
with the exception of Missouri. Nonfarm employment has been
steadily increasing, reaching 553,000 in 1959, a 24.1 per cent gain
in the last decade. The largest nonfarm employment was 557,900
in 1956. The industrial growth of Kansas is shown in a striking
manner by the following index comparison with national growth:
value added by manufacture, 1947-1957, Kansas, 167, U. S., 95; pay-
rolls, 1948-1958, Kansas, 142, U. S., 65; capital expenditures, 1948-
1958, Kansas, 115, U. S., 90; employment, 1949-1959, Kansas, 37,
U. S., 11. The $623,000,000 Kansas payroll in 1957 was a record
high for all manufacturing. Employment in manufacturing reached
a high of 137,900 in 1953. The most outstanding manufacturing
development in the last two decades has been in the aircraft industry
in Wichita. Since 1939 the Kansas Industrial Development Com-
mission estimates that 1,500 new industries have been developed
or have moved to Kansas. The 1960-1961 edition of the Directory
of Kansas Manufacturers lists 3,677 manufacturing and processing
plants in Kansas. 60 Kansas has the greatest capacity for grain stor-
age in the nation with space in 1960 for more than 746,000,000
bushels. The 40 flour mills in Kansas produced 35,000,000 sacks of
wheat flour in 1958, most of any state in the nation. 61
Mineral production in Kansas has exceeded $500,000,000 annually
since 1956. Twenty-two minerals are produced commercially. The
59. Price Patterns. Prices Received by Kansas Farmers 1910-1955, Kansas State Board
of Agriculture (Topeka, June, 1957), pp. 20, 31.
60. Kansas! Kansas Industrial Development Commission, v. 15 (January-February,
1960), pp. 13, 14; Kansas Department of Labor, Biennial Report, July 1. 1956-June 30
1958 (Topeka, 1958), p. 43; Comprehensive Educational Survey, v. 1, p. 14: Kansas De-
partment of Labor, Monthly Bulletin, v. 30 (July, 1960), p. 8.
61. Farm Facts, 1959-60, p. 8.
46 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
largest percentage of income is from crude oil, which in 1959 had a
value of $345,000,000. The 120,000,000 barrels produced in 195&
placed Kansas fifth in the nation in crude oil production. Oil is
produced in 76 counties. Facilities in Kansas process 87.6 per cent
of the total crude oil production in the form of motor oil, gasoline,
grease, and other petroleum products. 62
The Santa Fe, Oregon, Chisholm, and other important trails
crossed Kansas in early days as thousands of people moved west to
share in the promise of a new life. Railroads came later to cany
the heavy traffic of passengers and goods. Kansas today ranks sixth
among the 50 states in total railway mileage, carrying 15,000,000,000
ton miles of freight. Only Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Iowa, and
Texas have more miles of railways. A network of highways, totaling;
nearly 125,000 miles, including federal, state, and county, create
second place for Kansas among all the states in total rural mileage.
One hundred and seventy-one airports serve military, commercial,,
and private planes. 63
The greater diversification in economic activity in recent years
may bring greater stability. The United States Department of
Commerce reported that the total personal income of Kansans for
1958 had reached $4,234,000,000. A new record of $2,001 per capita
was achieved that year, ranking Kansas 19th among the states on
the American continent. 64 Kansas has not equaled the average
nationally in per capita income since 1921, although it has regularly
been close to the average. 65
The development of organized labor in Kansas depended upon
the growth of industry. The Lecompton and Leavenworth Typo-
graphical unions were organized in 1859, the earliest in the state.
In the 1880's the Knights of Labor, who included skilled, unskilled^
and agricultural workers, gained a substantial following, but a
decline set in after 1886. The United Mine Workers came to the
coal fields of southeastern Kansas in 1890. This organization later
produced considerable gains for the miners under the leadership
of Alex Howat from 1906-1921. The Kansas State Federation of
Labor, organized in 1890, survived only to 1896. It was reorganized
in 1907 and served as an effective agency for organized workers.
The C. I. O. came to Kansas in 1937, and established its own state
organization in 1940. The impact of industrialization, and especially
the tremendous expansion during World War II increased deci-
62. Kansas! (January-February, 1960), p. 5.
63. Ibid., p. 7.
64. Ibid., p. 3.
65. Comprehensive Educational Survey, v. 1, p. 36.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 47
sively the role of the unions. The report of the state department
of labor for the biennium ending June 30, 1956, showed the follow-
ing pattern of labor unions in Kansas: international unions, 90;
state organizations, 29; district organizations, 17; city organizations,
30; local unions, 952. At the time of the merger of the C. I. O.
and A. F. of L. in 1957, the membership in Kansas was 125,000.
The membership in 1960 was approximately 115,000. The statistics
for 1959 show that only five hundreths of one per cent of "the
estimated working time" of all employed persons was lost by
strikes or lockouts in contrast to sixty-one hundreths of one per
cent nationally. There were only 15 work stoppages in manu-
facturing and 11 in nonmanufacturing in 1959 lasting a day or a
shift or a longer period in situations involving six or more workers.
The 26 work stoppages actually involved only 6,440 persons. 66
The most controversial labor issue in Kansas history is associated
with the Kansas industrial relations act of 1920, which resulted in
the court of industrial relations from 1921-1925. Gov. Henry J.
Allen was the principal figure in this contest. The court received
extraordinary power to deal with labor and industry. William
Allen White took issue with Allen and was arrested for placing a
placard favorable to the railroad workers in the Gazette office at
Emporia. On July 27, 1922, White's editorial in the Emporia Ga-
zette, "To An Anxious Friend," written in acknowledgment of a
letter from a friend who was critical of White's position, described
in convincing language the nature of freedom: "You tell me that
law is above freedom of utterance. And I reply that you can have
no wise laws nor free enforcement of wise laws unless there is free
expression of the wisdom of the people and, alas, their folly with
it. But if there is freedom, folly will die of its own poison, and the
wisdom will survive. That is the history of the race." This editorial
won the Pulitzer prize in 1922. The court was bitterly opposed
by the unions, and by some employers. The experiment was
abolished by the legislature in 1925. The Kansas attempt to legis-
late reform had met with failure. 67
The "Right to Work" legislation provoked much discussion and
action in the 1950's. Designed to eliminate the closed shop, unions
opposed it strenuously, while many employers marshalled their
66. The basic facts for this paragraph up to 1940 are taken from Marc Karson, "Trade
Unions in Kansas," Bright, op. cit., v. 2, pp. 286-299; Kansas Department of Labor Bien-
nial Report, July 1, 1954-June 30, 1956 (Topeka, 1956), p. 17; Kansas Department of
Labor, Monthly Bulletin, v. 30 (July, 1960), pp. 6, 7.
67. Quoted in Mahin, op. cit., pp. 348, 349. The legal provisions for the court of
industrial relations and its abolition are found in Laws of Kansas, 1920 (Topeka 1920)
ch. 29, sec. 1-30, pp. 35-47, and Laws of Kansas, 1925 (Topeka, 1925), ch. 258 sec.
1-11, pp. 337-339.
48 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
resources for its achievement. Vetoed by Gov. Fred Hall, a liberal
Republican in 1955, it was added to the constitution by a vote in
1958.
VI
One of man's ceaseless quests across the centuries has been to
preserve, create, and transmit knowledge. The annals of Kansas
contain many interesting chapters in the history of education from
the first Protestant Indian Mission school founded west of Shaw
in Neosho County in 1824, under the auspices of the United Foreign
Missionary Society, and the first free school for Indian and white
children established in present Wyandotte county in July, 1844, to
today's system of elementary, secondary, and higher education. In
the earliest era of Kansas, education was a private affair as families
organized schools on a voluntary subscription basis. The Wyan-
dotte constitution of 1859 authorized the legislature to "encourage
the promotion of intellectual, moral, scientific, and agricultural im-
provement, by establishing a uniform system of common schools,
and schools of higher grade, embracing normal, preparatory, col-
legiate, and university departments." 68
Education was viewed essentially as a matter of local concern
in the early years. Territorial Kansas included more than 200 dis-
tricts. This number grew to 6,134 by 1880, reaching a peak of
9,284 in 1896. Voluntary reorganization, and developments re-
lated to the reorganization law of 1945, reduced that number to
2,800 by 1958-1959. 69 The state board of education was created
in 1873, to issue teaching certificates. In 1905 it was given power
to prescribe the curriculum and accredit schools, and in 1915, addi-
tional authority was given to the board. The state department of
education was organized more effectively in that year. A lay board
of education was provided in 1945. 70
The story of education in Kansas reflects the struggle of local
authority and sentiment with the need for providing adequate edu-
cational opportunity for all children. State Supt. Isaac T. Goodnow
observed in 1863, that it was "far better for a scholar to walk three
or four miles to a first-rate school than 40 rods to a poor one." 71
The developments in transportation and the decrease of rural popu-
lation has established convincingly the need for further consolida-
68. Proceedings and Debates of the Wyandotte Constitutional Convention, July, 1859,
art. 6, sec. 2, p. 583.
69. Comprehensive Educational Survey, v. 1, p. 49.
70. "The Schools of Tomorrow for Kansas," educational planning commission, Kansas
State Teachers Association (Topeka, May, 1960), pp. 8. 9.
71. Quoted in George Frey, "A Century of Education in Kansas," Bright, op. cit.,
v. 2, p. 216.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 49
tion as recommended in the comprehensive survey of education in
1960. The red or white one-room schoolhouse, which served Kan-
sas so magnificently for most of her history, a symbol of a local,
grass-roots culture with many sources of strength, will soon be en-
shrined only in the temple of memory as Kansas parents send their
children with pride to modern schools with rich curricula taught by
well-educated teachers.
Kansas has depended heavily upon supporting education by
property taxes. In 1957-1958, only five states had greater support
from this source than the 77.7 per cent received in Kansas. Kansas
ranked 44th in revenue derived for school purposes from state
sources. Moreover, expenditures for education have not kept up
with gains in personal income. In 1929, for instance, when the
Kansas per capita income was $535, the expenditure for elementary
and secondary schools was 4.03 per cent. In 1958, with a Kansas
per capita income of $2,001, the expenditure was 3.12 per cent,
lower than the national average of 3.6 per cent. 72 Kansas ranked
33d among the 48 states in 1958-1959, in expenditures for teachers'
salaries. On the basis of personal income per child of school age,
Kansas ranked 24th. An increase of 15.3 per cent would be re-
quired to place teachers' salaries at the average for the entire
nation. Moreover, although substantial gains have been made in
the qualifications for teaching in Kansas, in 1958-1959, 39 per cent
of the state's elementary teachers, 5,129 out of 13,370, did not have
a baccalaureate degree. 73
Kansas ranked llth in 1950 in median years of schooling com-
pleted by persons 25 years of age and older. Utah was highest
with 12.0 years; Kansas had 10.2 years; the national average was
9.3 years. Kansas ranked tenth in 1950 in the percentage of popu-
lation of 25 years and older with at least four years of high school,
39.5 per cent of the population having that achievement. Kansas
ranked 22d, however, in the percentage of the adult population
with four or more years of college, with the neighboring states of
Colorado and Oklahoma rating higher. The statistics on education
show a great disparity in media years of schooling for urban resi-
dents at 11.2 years, rural nonfarm residents at 9.4 years; and rural
farm residents at 8.9 years. The range in counties in 1950 was from
12.4 years in Johnson county to 8.8 years in 13 Kansas counties. 74
72. "The Schools of Tomorrow for Kansas," p. 57, 63.
73. Comprehensive Educational Survey, v. 2, pp. 69, 75, 76.
74. Ibid., v. 1, pp. 25-27.
44660
50 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
A critical factor in education for the future is the rapid increase
in the population. The greatest increase since 1900 was between
1950-1958, when it amounted to 11 per cent, 80 per cent of which
were persons under 18. 75 In 1920 the birth rate for Kansas was
22.7 per thousand; in 1940 it was only 16.1. In 1956 it was 26.9, the
highest level in the history of the state. The 55,862 births in 1956
set a new record for the number of births in a year. In September,
1958, there were 486,596 pupils in the elementary and secondary
schools of Kansas, 441,883 (90.7 per cent) in public schools and
45,763 (9.3 per cent) in parochial and private schools. The pro-
jected enrollment in elementary and secondary schools for 1969-1970
is 523,286. This will represent an increase of 15.5 per cent in the
first eight grades and 34.6 per cent in grades nine to twelve. 76
Kansans early demonstrated an interest in higher education.
Highland College and Baker University, founded in 1858, and St.
Benedict's College in 1859, are the three oldest colleges in Kansas.
Kansas State University of Agriculture and Applied Science traces
its origin to Bluemont College, founded by the Methodists in 1859.
It became Kansas State Agricultural College in 1863, the first land
grant college in the United States under the Morrill act. Provision
was made for a state university in the Wyandotte constitution of
1859. The University of Kansas was authorized in 1864 by legis-
lative action. Classes began in 1866. The pattern of development
has included not only state supported and privately controlled col-
leges, but also public junior colleges and municipal universities.
Junior colleges were established at Fort Scott, Garden City, Holton,
and Marysville in 1919. Only the first two maintain colleges pres-
ently. The University of Wichita, a municipal institution, was the
first of the universities of this type in Kansas, established by refer-
endum vote in 1926, on the foundation built by Fairmount College,
a Congregational institution established in 1895. In the centennial
year, Kansas makes available a variety of undergraduate, graduate,
and professional programs through five state, two municipal, 21
private church-related, and 14 public junior colleges and universi-
ties accredited by the Kansas State Board of Education. The ratio
of enrollments to college-age population was 45.1 per cent in Kan-
sas as compared to 34.6 per cent for the entire United States in 1957.
In 1960-1961 the actual enrollment in colleges and universities was
51,329. The projected enrollment of 1975 is in excess of 70,000. 77
75. Ibid., v. 1, p. 46.
76. "The Schools of Tomorrow for Kansas," p. 23; Comprehensive Educational Sur-
vey, v. 2, pp. 14, 60.
77. Comprehensive Educational Survey, v. 1, pp. 66-71; ibid., v. 3, pp. 67, 72, 73.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 51
Excellent leadership for education in Kansas is provided by sev-
eral organizations. The oldest is the Kansas State Teachers Asso-
ciation, founded at Leavenworth in 1863. The permanent staff and
committees provide fine sources of information and support for
members and the citizens generally. The Kansas Congress of Par-
ents and Teachers and the Kansas Association of School Boards also
have fine records of achievement. Other lay groups and committees
cf various organizations share effectively in interpreting the possi-
bilities and problems of education in Kansas. There is much un-
finished business for education in Kansas. The greatest problems
are related to the equalization and elevation of educational oppor-
tunity and better financial support for education on all levels.
The life of man includes the abiding resources which come from
religious faith. Heroic men and women of Kansas bore witness to
their faith long before statehood was achieved. In September, 1824,
the Rev. Benton Pixley established a mission among the Osage In-
dians under the auspices of the United Foreign Missionary Society
in present Neosho county west of Shaw. Thus was initiated a
widespread missionary endeavor which was developed among the
Indians throughout the future Kansas area by Roman Catholic and
Protestant groups. Father Padilla, a Franciscan accompanied Coro-
nado to Kansas in 1541, and returned later to become a Christian
martyr. The first Jesuit Indian mission was established at Kickapoo
in June, 1836. 78
The available evidence indicates that W. H. Goode preached the
first Methodist sermon to white settlers in Kansas at Palmyra ( Bald-
win) in July, 1854. On October 15, 1854, the Rev. Samuel Young
Lum organized the Plymouth Congregational Church at Law-
rence. 79 Soon the American Home Missionary Society established
permanent work on the Kansas frontier with real energy and plan-
ning. The pluralistic pattern of American religious life was soon
manifested in the diversity of the Christian witness in Kansas in
liturgy, polity, doctrine, and faith.
The Christian witness manifested itself beyond worship services,
Sunday School classes, and specific church activities. The religious
forces sought to strengthen the moral fiber of the people. There
were great problems on the frontier as indicated by the Rev. S. Y.
Lum when he wrote to the American Home Missionary Society
in April, 1855: "The circumstances under which mind is thrown
78. Peter Beckman, The Catholic Church on the Kansas Frontier, 1850-1877 (Wash-
ington, D. C., 1943), pp. 1, 4.
79. Lindquist, "Religion in Kansas During the Era of the Civil War," loc. cit., p. 409;
Lindquist, "The Letters of the Rev. Samuel Young Lum, Pioneer Kansas Missionary, 1854-
1858," Kansas Historical Quarterly, v. 25 (Spring, 1959), p. 39.
52 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
in this wild frontier life . . . engenders a recklessness, & free-
dom from restraint, that too often, prove fatal to the principles,
as well as the practices of a home society & it is not too much to
say, that we have the material, for either the worst, or the best,
state of society in our country." 80 The gains in membership were
modest, but the foundations were laid as the frontier church called
men to abandon their reliance on secularism and materialism. The
churches, except the Methodist church South, identified themselves
with the Union cause in the slavery conflict. As indicated earlier,
churches shared in the crusade against King Alcohol.
Kansas churches, Protestant and Catholic alike, have rendered
distinguished service to the state through a wide variety of in-
stitutions. Academies, colleges, hospitals, homes for the aged,
children's homes, and other agencies devoted to the ministry of
mercy have brought great blessings across the years. The churches
have a continuous record of constructive service to humanitarian
causes in various relief and aid programs. In recent years, the
churches have distinguished themselves by service to stricken peo-
ples abroad through the Catholic Relief Services, Church World
Service, C. R. O. P. (Christian Rural Overseas Program), settle-
ment of refugees from political tyranny, and other works for the
family of man.
Protestantism in Kansas has largely been related to the conserva-
tive position. The state is usually identified with the "Bible Belt/'
so called because of its literal acceptance of the Holy Scriptures.
Only rarely has Kansas been affected by any violent controversies
related to the issues of modernism and fundamentalism. There
has been generally a clearly identifiable strain of moral and theologi-
cal dogmatism. The rural character, historically, of Kansas may
be an important factor in the generally conservative position of
Kansas church people.
Although the Congregationalists had the advantage of the mo-
mentum of an early start, the position of leadership soon passed
to the Methodists. The Methodist church has the first rank in
numbers among all denominations in Kansas. According to a study
made by the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U. S. A.,
based on 1952 yearbooks, the Methodist church not only outranked
all other denominations in Kansas but was also the largest Protestant
denomination in 97 out of the state's 105 counties. The same study
showed a surprising result for many Kansans, namely that 23 states
80. Lindquist, "Religion in Kansas During the Era of the Civil War," loc. cit. (Autumn,
1959). p. 315.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 53
had a higher ratio of church members to the entire population
than Kansas. 81 In 1958 Prof. Donald O. Cowgill and LaVerna F.
Wadsworth published a study of the religious preferences of Wich-
ita families based upon a survey by 5,500 volunteers of 65,000 house-
holds under the auspices of the Wichita Council of Churches. The
findings indicated the following: Methodist, 21.0 per cent; Baptist,
18.6 per cent; Roman Catholic, 11.8 per cent; Disciples of Christ,
11.0 per cent; Presbyterian, 7.9 per cent; Lutheran, 3.8 per cent;
and a variety of other groups with smaller percentages. The total
Protestant was 81.5 in 1958 in contrast to 66.2 per cent in the United
States, based on statistics for 1957, one year earlier than the Wichita
study. 82 According to the National Catholic Almanac, there were
267,850 Catholics in Kansas in 1959, or 12.77 per cent of the popula-
tion. There were 353 parishes and 42 missions. The first Jewish
congregation was organized in Leavenworth in 1859. The es-
timated Jewish population in Kansas in 1959, according to the
American Jewish Year Book, was 3,400 or 0.13 per cent of the total
population. 83
Co-operative efforts among Protestants were given official recog-
nition when the Kansas Sunday School organization was formed in
1865 at Bismarck Grove near Lawrence. In 1921 the Kansas Council
of Christian Education was formed. Six years later denominational
executives formed the Kansas Council of Churches for the purpose
of fellowship and the exchange of ideas. This organization and the
Kansas Council of Religious Education merged into the Kansas
Council of Churches in 1942. The council consists of hundreds of
churches in ecumenical fellowship. When the Rev. F. S. McCabe
addressed the quarter-centennial celebration of Kansas in Topeka
on January 29, 1886, he declared: "If we should ever inscribe a
supplementary motto on our coat-of-arms and if the clergy should
be allowed to select the legend, I believe that it would be the
golden phrase that has come down to us from the seventeenth
century: 7n necessariis unitas, in dubiis libertas, in omnibus, cari-
tas' In things essential, unity; in things doubtful, liberty; in all
things, charity." 84 Although there are many exceptions to this
81. Churches and Church Memberships in the United States, National Council of
Churches of Christ in the U.S.A. (New York, 1957), Series C, No. 29, n. p., and Series
C, No. 30, n. p.
82. Donald O. Cowgill and LaVerna F. Wadsworth, Religious Preferences of the
Families of Wichita (Wichita, 1958), p. 2.
83. Felician A. Foy, ed., The 1960 National Catholic Almanac (Paterson, N. J.), pp.
432, 436. American Jewish Year Book, 1960 (Philadelphia), pp. 5, 9.
84. Lindquist, "The Protestant and Jewish Religions in Kansas," loc. cit., pp. 376,
377; F. S. McCabe, "The Churches of Kansas," Kansas Historical Collections, v. 3 (1883-
1885), pp. 422-426.
54 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
admirable declaration, the relationship of the churches of Kansas
is quite well described, at least theoretically, by these words.
The resources of music came with the earliest settlers. The be-
ginnings were humble but important as the pioneer mother hushed
the fear of the infant on her knee by the tune of a favorite lullaby.
Old and familiar hymns were sung, some in English, others in the
language of the homeland, in cabin, dugout, and sod house. Church
choirs were organized to enrich the service of worship. As early
as the autumn of 1854, Forest Savage, a member of the second
party of the New England Emigrant Aid Company, organized a
small band at Lawrence. In September, 1869, the Kansas State Mu-
sical Convention met at Leavenworth. There was a growing interest
in music as clubs were organized in various communities including
the Topeka Musical Association which was formed in January,
1869. 85
Colleges and universities have furnished fine leadership in this
phase of the humanities. Lessons on the melodeon and piano were
given at Baker University from the date of its founding in 1858. The
most distinctive musical development in Kansas is related to the
founding of the Bethany College Oratorio Society at Lindsborg by
Dr. Carl A. Swensson, president of Bethany College, and Mrs.
Swensson, in 1881. In March, 1882, the strains of Handel's "Mes-
siah" were first heard in the Smoky valley of central Kansas. A tra-
dition of excellence has characterized this organization which has
rendered the "Messiah" more than 200 times in the great Holy Week
tradition on Palm Sunday and Easter, and Bach's "The Passion of
Our Lord According to St. Matthew" on Good Friday. Thousands
of people make an annual pilgrimage to Lindsborg to share in what
the New York Times has described as "an expression in song from
voices schooled to near perfection through years of training. But it
is more than that. In Lindsborg, the 'Messiah' is religion as much
a part of the people's worship as the church services which they at-
tend every Sunday." 86 The Lindsborg "Messiah" has also fur-
nished leadership for the organization of other groups and festivals
in the state.
Many forces have been joined in promoting an interest in music.
The Welsh influence in the Emporia area resulted in the traditional
music festival, the eisteddfod, brought from native Wales, and main-
tained enthusiastically almost until the end of the last century.
The Kansas Federation of Music Clubs has conducted auditions
85. Edna Reinbach, Music and Musicians in Kansas (Topeka, 1930), pp. 2, 3.
86. Emory Lindquist, Smoky Valley People (Lindsborg, 1953), p. 123.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 55
leading to scholarships for Kansas youth since 1927. The early
leadership given to high school music festivals by the Kansas State
Teachers College, Emporia, has resulted in a statewide program
which brings thousands of students together for solo and ensemble
participation under the sponsorship of the Kansas State High School
Activities Association. The colleges and universities present effec-
tive curricula, artists, and ensemble groups. Many private teachers
join with the public and parochial school programs to provide a fine
opportunity for musical development. The Wichita Symphony
Society has gained considerable praise for its civic orchestra. Topeka
and other cities also support commendable orchestral and choral
groups.
The achievement in the field of composition has been modest
among Kansans across the years. The Indian theme was developed
effectively by Thtirlow Lieurance while he was teaching at the
University of Wichita. Included in his works are a symphonic
sketch "Minisa." His best known work is entitled "By the Waters
of Minnetonka." Arthur Finley Nevin wrote an Indian opera called
Paia and another opera The Daughter of the Forest. Charles San-
ford Shelton, associated with the University of Kansas, also used
Indian themes in his compositions. 87
The most famous Kansas musical composition is "Home on the
Range," originally known as "Western Home," adopted by the
Kansas legislature as the official state song in 1947. The background
factors related to the writing of the words and music are described
in a fascinating account by Kirke Mechem. 88 The words were com-
posed by Dr. Brewster Higley in his one-room cabin on Beaver
creek about 20 miles from Smith Center. Higley, born at Rutland,
Ohio, had a good education, being a graduate of a medical college
at La Porte, Ind., and had practiced medicine for many years when
he moved to Smith county in 1871, at the age of 48. The melody
was composed by Daniel E. Kelley, who was bora at North Kingston,
R. I., in February, 1843. He came to Kansas in 1872 at the age of
29, settling at Gaylord, in Smith county. He was a member of an
orchestra in which his wife and his two brothers-in-law participated.
Kirke Mechem points out that there is no reason to believe that
the notes which form the melody were ever transcribed by Kelley.
Both Higley and Kelley lived in Kansas many years after "Home
on the Range" was created. They never knew how famous their
composition was destined to become.
87. Reinbach, Music and Musicians in Kansas, pp. 39-41.
88. Kirke Mechem, "Home on the Range," Kansas Historical Quarterly, v. 17 (Novem-
ber, 1949), pp. 313-339.
56 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
The frontier world did not generally prove hospitable to the arts,
but it did offer much subject matter. Prof. Robert A. Taft of the
University of Kansas, a distinguished Kansas writer and educator,
has portrayed effectively the frontier sources for artists in his
splendid volume, Artists and Illustrators of the Old West (1953).
The author points out that the first setting for a Kansas drawing
was "War Dance in the Interior of a Konza Lodge," sketched by
Samuel Seymour near present Manhattan in August, 1819. This
was the beginning of the Kansas locale in art which included the
work of the famous early Western artist, Frederic Remington, who
spent the period from March, 1883, to May, 1884, on a sheep ranch
in Butler county. Henry Worrall, who created many illustrations
for Harpers Weekly and Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper, has
been described by Professor Taft as "the only Kansas artist and
illustrator in the period under consideration [1850-1900] to achieve
recognition on anything approaching a national scale for his por-
trayal of Kansas life." 89 In more recent times the theme of Kansas
history resulted in the distinctive and controversial murals in the
Kansas capitol, painted by John Steuart Curry who was born in
Jefferson county, but lived out of the state during his distinguished
professional career.
The most famous Kansas artist was Swedish-born Birger Sandzen
who joined the faculty of Bethany College, Lindsborg, in 1893, and
for more than half a century served the college and Kansas with
distinction. Sandzen was an enthusiastic Kansan who loved the
West and transmitted his response in hundreds of paintings and
prints. William Allen White has written: "Birger Sandzen knows
that mood of nature. He goes to it unafraid, and comes back trium-
phant, capturing it, subduing it, translating it into human terms. He
grapples with its joy. He translates its terror and dread without
compromise, without understatement. He has come from the plains
where things grew rank and strong, from Kansas where he has in-
terpreted ugliness, disharmony, monotony in terms of beauty and
yet faithfully with affectionate wisdom." Sandzen enriched the life
of Kansas immensely by his promotion of interest in art. He was
an apostle of beauty, who insisted upon no artistic creed except
integrity. He organized the Smoky Hill Art Club and the Prairie
Water Color Painters, and shared in founding the Prairie Print
Makers. It is true as Leila Macklin has said of him: "Birger Sand-
zen has lit little candles of art knowledge and appreciation all
89. Robert Taft, Artists and Illustrators of the Old West, 1850-1900 (New York,
1953), pp. 118, 201. 211, 324.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 57
through the Middle West." 90 The Graphic Work of Birger Sandzen
(1952), prepared and edited by Charles Pelham Greenough, III,
presents valuable information on the career of the great Kansas
artist. Kansas has produced many other artists who have gained
considerable recognition in various artistic media. 91
Colleges and universities have played leading roles in art ever
since the first instruction in that subject at Baker University in 1858.
The Kansas State Art Association was organized in 1883. The Uni-
versity of Kansas with its Thayer collection and other sources has
been a center for the study and appreciation of art The Mulvane
museum at Washburn University and the Birger Sandzen Memorial
Gallery at Lindsborg provide fine opportunities for developing art
appreciation. The Murdock collection at the Wichita Museum,
made possible by a grant from Mrs. Louise Caldwell Murdock, has
a distinguished collection of masterpieces inadequately housed. The
Kansas Federation of Art, founded in 1932, and the Kansas Maga-
zine, edited and published at Kansas State University, have fine
records of achievements in promoting interest in art.
Kansas has produced a variety of writers who have dealt with a
wide range of subjects in many literary forms. 92 The Civil War era
furnished the source for several books by leading participants such
as Gov. Charles Robinson, Sara T. D. Robinson, W. A. Phillips, and
others. The Kansas locale has furnished the theme for novels rang-
ing from Margaret Hill McCarter's portrayal of life in Kansas during
the Civil War era in The Price of the Prairies (1910) to Kenneth S.
Davis' realistic portrayal of life in a rural Kansas town in the Flint
Hills in The Years of the Pilgrimage (1948). Ed Howe, editor of
the Atchison Globe, became nationally famous for his first novel,
The Story of a Country Town ( 1883), describing the sombre aspects
of life in Kansas. In contrast is Charles M. Sheldon's religious
theme, In His Steps (1896), a portrayal of the response of Jesus to
everyday living which was published in millions of copies and in
several languages. Frank Harris, an interesting and controversial
literary figure, attended the University of Kansas in the 1880's. He
later worked on a Flint Hills ranch, an experience which he de-
scribed in his book, My Reminiscences as a Cowboy (1930).
90. Lindquist, Smoky Valley People, pp. 211, 212.
91. Sources for material on Kansas artists include the following: Edna Reinbach,
"Kansas Art and Artists," Kansas Historical Collections, v. 17 (1926-1928), pp. 571-585;
Faye Davison, "What I Know About Kansas Artists," Kansas Magazine, Manhattan, 1933,
pp. 43-48; Margaret Whittemore, "Notes on Some Kansas Artists," Kansas Magazine, 1935,
pp. 41-45; Kansas, A Guide to the Sunflower State (New York, 1939), pp. 137-145.
92. Maynard Fox, Book-Length Fiction by Kansas Writers, 1915-1938, Fort Hays
Kansas State College Studies (Topeka, 1943); Elizabeth D. Van Schaack, "The Arts in
Kansas," Bright, op. cit., v. 2, pp. 248-263; Kansas, A Guide to the Sunflower State, pp.
129-136.
58 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Many Kansas poets have turned to the great Muse from earliest
times to the present. Several anthologies of Kansas poetry have
appeared including the volumes edited by the following: Hattie
Homer, Kansas Poetry ( 1891 ) ; Thomas W. Herringshaw, Poets and
Poetry of Kansas (1894); Willard Wattles, Sunflowers, A Book of
Kansas Poems ( 1914 ) , which included the well-known poems, "Op-
portunity," by J. J. Ingalls, and "Each in His Own Tongue," by
W. H. Carruth; Helen Rhoda Hoopes, Contemporary Kansas Poetry
(1927); and May Williams Ward, Kansas Poets (1953). William
Herbert Carruth edited a two-volume anthology entitled Kansas in
Literature (1900). William Inge, who was born at Independence
and graduated from the University of Kansas, has gained national
recognition for his plays, Come Back Little Sheba (1949), Picnic
(1953), and Bus Stop (1955). Inge often uses the Kansas locale
for his writing. Picnic won the Pulitzer prize for drama in 1953.
The greatest name in Kansas literary circles is William Allen
White. As editor of the Emporia Gazette, he became an effective
ambassador-at-large for Kansas. Friendly critic, devoted enthusiast,
and Pulitzer prize winner he interpreted Kansas and America by
novels, essays, poems, special articles, and editorials in a magnificent
manner. One bibliography of his works includes almost 500
items. 93 His Autobiography (1946) contains an intimate and in-
teresting portrayal of the life of a great and famous Kansan from his
birth in 1868 to 1923. William L. White, the son of the great Em-
poria editor, has written a number of well-known books including
What People Said (1938), Journey for Margaret (1941), and They
Were Expendable (1942).
The career of Dr. Arthur Hertzler, M. D., famous Halstead sur-
geon, received a dramatic portrayal in the interesting autobiographi-
cal work Horse and Buggy Doctor (1938), a striking success na-
tionally. Dr. Hertzler was the author of many books on surgery.
Dr. Karl Menninger, M. D., Topeka, is the author of such well-
known books as The Human Mind (1930), Man Against Himself
(1938), and Love Against Hate (1942), in collaboration with
Jeanetta Lyle Menninger. Frank W. Blackmar, Frank H. Hodder,
William E. Connelley, and James C. Malin have made extensive
contributions to the knowledge of Kansas history.
The Kansas Magazine, a periodical devoted to literature and
art, was published intermittently until 1933. The first series, 1872-
1873, was in four volumes, and was referred to as "The Kansas
93. Walter Johnson and Alberta Pantle, "A Bibliography of the Published Works of
William Allen White," Kansas Historical Quarterly, v. 15 (February, 1947), pp. 22-41.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 59
Magazine of blessed memory. ... Its flight was brief but
glorious, and the light of it still lingers in the western sky." The
new series appeared in two volumes, 1886-1888, and the third series
in six volumes, 1909-1912. The Kansas Magazine was re-established
in 1933, this time under the leadership of faculty members at
Kansas State University. The magazine has maintained since that
time a splendid pattern of achievement for literature and art in
Kansas. The Agora was published in five volumes, 1891-1896; it
contains interesting material for that period. 94
Kansas has been singularly fortunate in its editors and news-
papers across the century. It is true as D. W. Wilder, a pioneer
Kansas editor, pointed out at the quarter-centennial celebration
of statehood that Kansas, in a sense, is the child of newspapers.
Editors Horace Greeley, Joseph Medill, Chas. A. Dana, and many
others served the cause of future Kansas in pre-statehood days.
William A. Phillips of the New York Tribune and James Redpath
of the St. Louis Democrat and the Boston press were also closely
identified with territorial Kansas. The press came early to Kansas.
The Kansas Weekly Herald, the first regular newspaper, appeared
at Leavenworth, under the date line of September 15, 1854. 95
In 1860 there were 27 newspapers in Kansas. 96 A century later
there were 346, including 53 dailies, 13 semiweeklies and 272
weeklies. The editors have generally been Kansas enthusiasts.
Closely identified with the political life, they have constituted a
fraternity of ability and dedication. There have been real indi-
vidualists among them. The encroachment of business demands
have made the newspaper editor less colorful in recent decades
than were his predecessors in early Kansas years. There have been
conflicts within the ranks as should be expected when men of in-
dependence clash. The Kansas Editorial Association code of ethics,
dating from 1910, was a pioneer statement in that field. Many
great names are found in the Editor's Hall of Fame established
in 1931 at the University of Kansas, and a large number could
be added. Kansas has been served well across the century by edi-
tors and the press.
An unusual literary and publishing venture was established in
Kansas in 1919 when E. Haldeman-Julius pioneered in inexpensive
94. A List of Books Indispensable to a Knowledge of Kansas History and Literature,
Kansas State Historical Society (Topeka, 1916), p. 16.
95. D. W. Wilder, "The Newspapers of Kansas," Kansas Historical Collections, v. 3
(1883-1885), pp. 405, 406; A. T. Andreas and W. G. Cutler, History of the State of
Kansas (Chicago, 1883), p. 278.
96. Wilder, "The Newspapers of Kansas," loc. cit., p. 405.
60 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
paper-back books, known as the "Little Blue Books/' which sold
for five cents each. Millions of copies of hundreds of titles, includ-
ing well-known classics, came from the presses at Girard. National
advertising and promotion boosted sales. The publication of the
"Blue Books" continues in the family tradition at Girard.
The Kansas State Historical Society owes its origin to a meeting
of newspaper editors and publishers in Manhattan in 1875. As
early as 1855 the first charter for a historical society was granted,
and attempts were made again in 1859 and 1867 to establish such
an organization. The editors pledged at the meeting in 1875 to
provide the historical society with copies of papers published in
the state. This pledge has been maintained. The Society has
been the official archives for the state since 1905. 97 The excellent
library, newspaper collection, publications, museum, and services
of the staff provide rich resources for the study of Kansas history.
VII
A quaint contradiction prevails in the view of Kansas first drama-
tized by William Allen White in his famous editorial, "What's the
Matter With Kansas?" in the Emporia Gazette in 1896, circulated
in a million copies by Mark Hanna in the campaign to elect William
McKinley, and its contemporary expression in a feature article by
the same title in the New York Times Magazine in 1954 by Kenneth
S. Davis, distinguished Kansas novelist and biographer. 98 The latter
lamented the conformity and drabness of Kansas in our time in con-
trast with the colorful individualism and dynamic radicalism of the
Populists which White attacked so scathingly in his editorial. Re-
gardless of the background factors, our generation seems enthralled
to repeat the old question, "What's the Matter With Kansas?"
The question, with its chafing tone of despair, repeated in our
time, demonstrates inadequate understanding of history and of the
forces over which Clio's Muse presides. Kansas has had times of
distinctiveness, periods characterized by a kind of "momentous
now/' and it may have such times again, when men and events join
to provide a forward thrust that a later generation applauds. Other
states have also had those all too fleeting times of distinctiveness.
Virginia once had a great dynasty of talent George Washington,
Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, and others. Gov. J. Lindsay Al-
mond, Jr., and Sen. Harry Byrd are scarcely leaders of equal stature.
97. Your Kansas State Historical Society (Topeka, n. d.), a brochure.
98. Kenneth S. Davis, "What's the Matter With Kansas?" the New York Times Maga-
zine, June 27, 1954, sec. 6, pp. 12, 39, 41.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 61
Do Virginians join in a lugubrious lament, "What's the Matter With
Virginia?" There was once a time in the northeastern states, when
greatness flourished, and the "flowering of New England" was iden-
tified with the genius of Emerson, Lowell, the Adams family, and
other celebrities. The memory of that era looms large in contrast
with contemporary achievement. Should a national chorus swell
with a great crescendo, "What's the Matter With New England?"
When Carl Becker wrote his famous essay on Kansas 50 years ago,
emphasizing the idealism and individualism of the people, he con-
cluded with this observation: "The Kansas spirit is the American
spirit double distilled." " Perhaps this interpretation, placed in the
context of our time, is still valid. The faults of Kansas are the faults
of America. Alexis De Tocqueville observed about America in the
third decade of the last century that the American passion for
equality would result in conformity. 100 Kansas, like America, is
characterized by conformity, and, at times, there seems to be no
plurality of paths. The citadel of conservative Republicanism in
Kansas had some breaches recently, but strenuous efforts were
made to repair them. Protestantism, the dominant religion of
Kansas, which is not now characterized by any distinctiveness, both
Teflects and promotes a traditional pattern of value. Moreover, an
aggressive right-wing fundamentalist emphasis seems to be gaining
strength in some quarters. The schools faithfully transmit the pre-
vailing image of America. The colleges and universities struggle
long and learnedly with internal business, and generally respond on
controversial issues with the considerate restraint the people expect.
In 1958, when a group of professors, largely in the fields of eco-
nomics and political science, from a few of the institutions, publicly
proclaimed their opposition to "Right to Work" legislation, there
were protests from influential people and groups that the professors
were out of bounds. However, the knowledge and skill of the pro-
fessors are gladly sought in the promotion of scientific, engineering,
and business enterprises.
Kansas has abandoned largely the extreme isolationist position
that characterized its citizens prior to World War I, although the
vestiges remain. Two World Wars, in which Kansas made dis-
tinguished contributions through her sons and daughters on far
flung battlefields and in agricultural and industrial production at
home, have created new world horizons. Towards the middle of
99. Carl Becker, "Kansas," in Essays in American History Dedicated to Frederick
Jackson Turner (New York, 1910), p. 110.
100. Alexis De Tocqueville, Democracy in America (London) was published in two
volumes, the first in 1835 and the second in 1840. Many editions have been published.
62 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
the century, under the leadership of Milton Eisenhower, president
of Kansas State University, and chairman of the National Com-
mission of U. N. E. S. C. O., there was heartening interest and sup-
port for this important international approach to life and learning.
Kansas State University recently sent a large team of experts under
the auspices of the Department of State to aid in strengthening the
agricultural production of India. Alf M. Landon, two-term governor
of Kansas and the Republican candidate for President of the United
States in 1936, has provided enlightened leadership for Kansans in
international affairs during the last decade.
Kansas was the center of the national controversy over slavery,
but the commitment to freedom for the Negro was not inclusive.
The Wyandotte constitution of 1859 restricted the franchise to
"white male persons/* by a vote of 37 to 3, after W. Hutchinson had
pled with the convention that unless the franchise was granted,
"We must go back to the work of this morning, and revise and
change our declaration of rights." 101 The Negro received the right
to vote in Kansas as a result of the Fourteenth amendment to the
constitution of the United States. School segregation was the policy
in several cities in Kansas. It was somewhat ironical that Kansas
should furnish the occasion for Brown et. al. v. Board of Education
of Topeka et. al., which resulted in the famous United States su-
preme court desegregation case in May, 1954. Approximately a
century after Kansas had been the focal point in the struggle
for freedom, the elementary schools in the capital city were
desegregated by court order; the other levels of instruction were
not segregated. In 1953 legislation became effective designed
to prohibit discriminatory practices in employment based upon
race, color, religion, or country of ancestral origin. Kansas joined
11 other states in establishing a commission to carry out the intent
of the legislation, although Kansas was one of four states which
provided no regulatory or enforcing power. In 1959 a law became
effective making it a misdemeanor to discriminate because of race,
color, religion, or country of ancestral origin in hotels and restau-
rants, in places of public amusement or entertainment, and on trans-
portation facilities. The legislature in 1959, however, failed to pass
an act based upon legislation in 17 other states, which, if passed,
would have given Kansas excellent fair employment legislation. 102
101. Proceedings and Debates of the Wyandotte Constitutional Convention, July, 1859,
p. 30.
102. Laws of Kansas, 1953 (Topeka, 1953), ch. 249, sec. 1-9, pp. 469-472; Topeka
State Journal, August 14, 1954; Kansas Anti-Discrimination Commission, 1959 Report of
Progress (Topeka, 1959), p. 8.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 63
The Kansas mind is generally conservative. This an under-
standable response by a generation that has listened to graphic
descriptions, or witnessed directly the hard won conquest over
nature and circumstances. There have been times of great adversity
when man or nature seemed to conspire against the present and en-
danger the future. The annals of Kansas include the great drouth
of 1860, the great grasshopper invasion of 1874, the great economic
collapse after 1887, and the great depression of the 1930's. But the
Kansas spirit has shown unusual capacity to triumph over what
seemed to be insuperable odds. Times of hardship yielded to times
of rejoicing, and the good years far outnumbered the bad years.
The state's motto, Ad Astra Per Aspera, suggests the true facts of
struggle, and, if the stars have not been reached, in certain areas of
life, more than flickering glimpses have been seen. Kansas has
arrived at a point of stability and progress. Less friendly observers
might contend that it is on dead center. If so, it need not stay there.
Kansans have not really expected very much from their state,
and some of them are almost unbelieving about her achievements.
The net result has been a kind of quaint conservatism. A symbol
of it is found in a well-established bank in a Flint Hills town. The
new building is beautifully designed and effectively equipped
with central air conditioning, central heating, a strong vault, and
electric machines for efficient maintenance of records. However, on
an attractive turquoise wall is a circular tin plate, covering a hole
that leads into the chimney. The board of directors insisted upon
this item, based on the consideration that possibly some time in
the years ahead it would be necessary to install an old-fashioned
stove with pipes. This alternative was taken into account in the
midst of all the other modernity. Possibly this kind of conserva-
tism has made the bank a sound financial institution, and sym-
bolically, it may be written large in Kansas life and thought. This
conservatism, however, is brought to the straining point in con-
templating the century old constitution of Kansas which needs
drastic revision demanded by the onward rush of change.
The rugged spirit of independence, which characterized the
pioneer era, has yielded generally to the inroads made by changes
chronicled across the years. Although often professing personal
opposition to the role of centralized government, Kansans have
been recently as eager as residents of neighboring states in the
quest for federal funds for highways, flood control, government
contracts, and support for social agencies. Kansas has shared
64 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
annually, and rightly so, in the multibillion dollar federal agri-
cultural program which, although piling up huge surpluses, has
also built up the physical resources of Kansas soil and enabled the
vital role of agriculture to be maintained. The good earth of Kansas
will also be needed to feed the far flung members of the family of
man. The need will be greater in the decades that belong to the
future.
Kansas is generally slow to respond, but when aroused, the re-
sults are sometimes gratifying. A leading example is found in the
substantial progress which has been made in recent times in the
field of mental health. 103 The great Menninger clinic in Topeka
has furnished inspiring leadership in this great area of concern. In
Wichita the Institute of Logopedics, founded in 1934 by Dr. Martin
F. Palmer, and directed by him, with its splendid program in re-
building people through speech and language habilitation, is an-
other example of the response of Kansans to the needs of man.
Recent gains in several phases of education are encouraging por-
tents for the future.
Kansas has a full quota of organizations. Optimists, Rotarians,
Kiwanians, and Lions meet with unfailing regularity, and the "tail
twisters," or their counterparts, must be about equal, on a per
capita basis in Kansas, with those of neighboring states. Youth
find opportunities for sharing in Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Camp
Fire groups, 4-H Clubs, Boys' State, Girls' State, Y-Teen, Hi-Y,
and many other fine organizations with impressive records of
achievement. Kansas has an unusually large number of excellent
community, county, and district fairs, climaxed by two great state-
wide fairs, which appropriately emphasize the outstanding role of
agriculture in the state. Patriotic, fraternal, and women's organi-
zations are numerous, and make an appropriate contribution to the
life of the state. In the cities, country clubs multiply, and new
and smaller replicas are organized to give the middle class men-
tality a glimpse in part of what that kind of life is supposed to be
like.
The tastes of Kansas are fashioned in part by the forest of tele-
vision antennas and, to a lesser degree, by radio receiving sets. The
TV listener can relive, if he chooses, and many so choose, the ex-
ploits in Kansas of Wyatt Earp and his contemporaries, some real,
some fictitious. The culture of old Dodge City and Wichita town
103. A report on the Kansas situation by the National Institute for Mental Health
is found in Kansas State Board of Health News Letter, Topeka, v. 26 (August, 1958), p. 6.
KANSAS: A CENTENNIAL PORTRAIT 65
are transmitted weekly to millions of eager viewers in the nation.
In a few places in Kansas, Great Books discussion groups rival the
heroes of the Old West for attention. The Puritan emphasis on
thrift and hard work has yielded somewhat to the new leisure of the
40-hour week. Although libraries report a flourishing business and
book and record clubs have their patrons, golf courses, bowling
alleys, and boating docks also have their faithful disciples.
Things do change in Kansas. Cocktail parties and drinking in
homes and clubs are fairly common practices in the state of Carry
Nation. It is somewhat ironical that the monument which was
raised with great ceremony in Wichita in September, 1918, to honor
Carry Nation was knocked over accidentally and unceremoniously
years later by a beer truck. It now rests undisturbed and unappre-
ciated in a warehouse.
The physical countenance of Kansas has changed, too. Winding
trails and, later, inadequately drained dirt roads with narrow bridges
have yielded to the magic of macadam and cement, and a system of
county, state, and federal roads has been climaxed by a four-lane
turnpike running southwest 236 miles from Kansas City through
Wichita to the Oklahoma state line. Even the hurried traveler sees
many vacant farm houses, or the area of the former farmstead out-
lined by old cedar trees, the only memorial of earlier years to mark
the place where children played and their parents dreamed dreams
about the future. There are towns, almost deserted, and bulging
cities, with great problems, symbols of the end and the beginning
of an era whose secrets have not yet been revealed to mortal man.
Thousands of miles of transmission lines crisscross the Kansas
landscape, thanks to an effective Rural Electrification Administra-
tion program, and private and public sources of power, so that over
95 per cent of Kansas farms are electrified. 104 The country side
shows a heartening response to sensible conservation practices, as
the erosion of soil is stopped by terracing and contour farming.
Ponds and lakes dot the landscape in all parts of Kansas, and west
of Marquette is the Kanopolis reservoir, one of six federal reservoirs
in the state designed effectively for flood control and recreation,
with additional resources for irrigation to improve upon the bounty
of nature. Kansas, like many other states, joins in the quest for
more adequate water resources. In some areas of the state, giant
power plants loom on the horizon, generating the energy to move
104. Kenneth E. Merrill, Kansas Rural Electric Cooperatives Twenty Years With thf
R.E.A. (Lawrence, 1960), p. 53.
54660
66 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
the wheels of industry, symbols of the changing nature of the Kan-
sas economy.
Kansas can scarcely be described as Dorothy Canfield Fisher de-
scribed New York, "a glowing queenly creature," or like Virginia,
"a dignified grande dame with ancient, well-mended fine lace and
thin old silver spoons/' or like Massachusetts, a man with "hair
thinned by intellectual applications/' 105 Kansas is like a man re-
turned from a long journey that has covered vast stretches of time.
He has witnessed the conflict of the real and the ideal, the extremes
of poverty and affluence, the ebbing tide of despair and the rising
tide of hope. He is glad he made the journey, but he isn't sure what
it really meant, nor does he know how to profit fully from it. He
wasn't the most brilliant in the company of travelers, but he was
respectable, and generally, quite a decent fellow. He had always
worked hard, and he could be justly proud of the labor of his hands.
He would do things differently if he could go again, but really not
too differently. He was glad to be back home, and reflect on what
he had seen. And what he saw looked good to him.
105. Vide, p. 23.
Kansas Before 1854: A Revised Annals
Compiled by LOUISE BARRY
I. INTRODUCTION
QEVENTY-FIVE years have elapsed since the 1886 (and final)
^ edition of Daniel Webster Wilder's Annals of Kansas. For the
territorial and statehood years the compiler had ample source ma-
terials at hand for the preparation of a work of lasting historical
value. It is still, for the 1854-1886 period, a storehouse of informa-
tion and basic reference data.
But for the pre-Kansas era (before 1854), this was not true. Of
necessity, Wilder had to quote the historians of his day and rely
on their works. Of the now-available records (documents, manu-
scripts, maps, archaeological findings) pertaining to pre-Kansas
history, only a fraction were known to the writers of the 1880's.
In the perspective of present-day knowledge, the Annals entries for
the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries are a curious mixture of fact, er-
ror, fiction (Penalosa's 1662 expedition), misinterpretation (Kale's
account of Du Tisne's 1719 expedition), and obsolescent material.
For the pre-Kansas era the Annals is now of little value.
To take Coronado's expedition as an illustration: Wilder quoted,,
among others, the historian H. H. Bancroft who (in an 1884 work)
stated that the explorer of 1541 u . . . found only wigwam
towns in the province of Quivira, possibly in the Kansas of to-day
. . ."; and Bradford Prince who (in an 1883 history) wrote
that Coronado ". . . traversed parts of the Indian Territory
and Kansas, and finally stopped on the borders of Missouri. . . ."
Today it is known that the "wigwam towns" were grass house vil-
lages; and the Quiviras have been identified as the Wichita Indians-
of modern times, who in 1541 had their settlements in present central
Kansas (the province of Quivira).
Among the controversial issues which have been less successfully
resolved to the entire satisfaction of historians, archaeologists, and
others concerned, are these: the site of the Pawnee Republic vil-
lage visited by Pike in 1806 (Kansas, or Nebraska?); the location
of El Cuartelejo (Kansas, or Colorado, or both?); the identity of
the populous Indian people known to the French in the 18th cen-
tury as the Padoucas (were they Plains Apaches, or Comanches?);
the location of the Paniouassa villages Du Tisne visited in 1719'
(Kansas, or Oklahoma?); the extent of Bourgmont's travels in
LOUISE BAHRY is a member of the staff of the Kansas State Historical Society.
(67)
68 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
1724 to the great village of the Padoucas (Saline, or Ellsworth, or
Rice counties or elsewhere?).
The centennial year of Kansas statehood has seemed an appro-
priate time to collect and summarize the currently-known facts of
pre-Kansas history into a new annals. Perhaps the bringing to-
gether of this widely-scattered information into a chronology will
provide both a review, and a new view, of the now-distant past.
II. PART ONE, 1540-1762
1540
Francisco Vasquez de Coronado (governor of a Mexican prov-
ince) headed a large Spanish expedition (200 horsemen and 70
foot soldiers, well-armed; nearly 1,000 Indians and servants; perhaps
1,200 horses; pack mules; some light artillery; droves of cattle,
sheep, goats, and swine) which set out from Compostela [in north-
western Mexico] late in February to search for the reportedly large
and wealthy Seven Cities of Cibola. In July this great company
came to the first of the Cities a Zufii village [on the western border
of present New Mexico]. Greatly disappointed, but still hopeful
of finding riches, Coronado made his headquarters among the Zuni
and sent out exploring parties. One, led by Cardenas, discovered
the Grand Canyon of the Colorado. Another, under Alvarado,
traveled eastward to the Rio Grande and found Indian pueblos
[north of present Albuquerque] where there were food supplies.
Coronado then moved to the Rio Grande valley for the winter.
His next objective was the kingdom of Quivira a land of enormous
wealth, according to an Indian slave known as 'Turk."
Ref: See next entry.
1541
In search of fabled rich Quivira, Coronado and a small, selected
party (30 mounted men; six foot soldiers; the Franciscan father,
Juan de Padilla; some attendants; extra horses and pack animals)
apparently entered present Kansas in June [possibly near present
Liberal], having come from the southwest across the Texas and
Oklahoma Panhandles of today. On June 29 these explorers reached
and crossed the Arkansas [in present Ford county?]. A week later,
east and north of the river's great bend, they came to a Quivira
settlement. The friendly Indians were tall (some over six and a
half feet), dark-skinned, tattooed, nearly-naked people [identified
as the Wichitas], who lived in round, grass-covered houses and
raised crops of corn, beans, and melons.
For 25 days Coronado and his men ranged the land of the
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 69
Quiviras [particularly, it is thought, in present Rice and McPherson
counties], visiting the scattered Indian villages (some of which
had as many as 200 houses ) . Nowhere did they find the sought-for
wealth and civilization, and they were bitterly disappointed. But
the surroundings pleased them. Quivira's "rich and black" soil
was "well watered by arroyos, springs and rivers." Wrote Coro-
nado's lieutenant Juan Jaramillo: "It is not a hilly country, but has
table-lands, plains, and charming rivers with fine waters. . . .
I am of the belief that it will be very productive of all sorts of
commodities." They found plums, grapes, mulberries, nuts; and
there were the bison (the principal source of food) in numbers
"as large as any one could imagine."
In mid-August, accompanied by six young Quivira guides, the
expedition returned to the Arkansas crossing. By a route more
direct than on the outward journey they marched to the Rio Grande
where Coronado's main army awaited him.
Ref: H. E. Bolton's Coronado on the Turquoise Trail (Albuquerque, c!949); Geo. P.
Hammond and Agapito Rey's Narratives of the Coronado Expedition (Albuquerque, 1940);
Geo. P. Winship's The Coronado Expedition (in 14th Annual Report, Bureau of Ethnology);
Paul A. Jones' Coronado and Quivira (Lyons, 1937); W. R. Wedel's An Introduction to
Kansas Archeology (Washington, 1959). A Kansas historical marker, "Coronado and
Quivira," is west of Lyons, Rice county.
Though the Spanish supposed it a part of the Mississippi (which
Hernando De Soto discovered in May, 1541), Coronado had learned
of the existence of the Missouri river during his 1541 visit among
the Quiviras. Pedro de Castaneda's account of Coronado's expe-
dition (written some time after the event) stated:
The great Spiritu Santo river [the Mississippi] that had been discovered
by Don Fernando de Soto in the knd of Florida flows from this region
[Quivira]. It runs through a province called Arache [Harahey north of Qui-
vira], according to information which was considered reliable, though its
sources were not seen, because it was said that they come from very far, from
the land of the southern cordillera, where it empties into the plains and, cross-
ing the flat lands, cuts through the northern cordillera and comes out at the
place where it was sailed by Don Fernando de Soto's men. . . j
Thus the Spanish knew about the Missouri some 130 years before
the first known white explorers the French saw its waters. (See
1673.)
Ref: Hammond and Rey, Narratives of the Coronado Expedition, p. 263.
1542(?)
Father Juan de Padilla (outfitted by Coronado whose expedition
he had accompanied), returned to the Quivira Indians in the spring
of 1542 as a missionary. With him were Andres do Campo (a
Portuguese), two Indian lay assistants (Lucas and Sebastian), some
70 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
servants, and six Quiviras who had guided Coronado. Their equip-
ment included mules, one horse, a flock of sheep, and they took
church ornaments and "other trifles." After some time among the
friendly Quiviras [Wichitas], at the village where Coronado had
planted a cross in 1541 [said to have been near present Lyons, on
Cow creek], Father Padilla determined to visit a country (the Guas)
toward the east. He set out with his companions, but had not gone
far when hostile Indians approached. Campo (on the horse),
Lucas, and Sebastian escaped, but Father Padilla was slain by
many arrows. The Indian lay assistants returned, "buried him with
the consent of the murderers," and then fled with Campo. The
place where Kansas* first Christian martyr met his death is not
known; nor is the year certain. The event probably occurred in
1542 but may have been as late as 1544.
Ref: Castaneda, in ibid.; Bolton's Coronado . . . pp. 335-341. In Herington's
city park is a monument to Father Padilla which was dedicated in 1904; ceremonies were
held for a monument at Council Grove in 1931; near Lyons is a 26-foot granite cross
erected to his memory in 1950; and a Kansas historical marker, "Father Juan de Padilla
and Quivira," is south of Herington.
7593 or 7594
Captained by Francisco de Leyva y Bonilla and Antonio Gutierrez
de Humana, an unauthorized expedition of Spaniards left San
Ildefonso [in New Mexico] in 1593 or 1594 and entered present
southern Kansas after a journey which took them east and then on
a northward course in search of the "gold mines of Tindan." Along
a river [the Arkansas?] they found the friendly Quiviras in a "very
large settlement in a great plain 10 leagues long" and some two
leagues wide where there were grass houses and fine crops of corn,
beans, and melons. Continuing northward across a plain, three
days later the explorers came to a buffalo herd of amazing size.
Then there occurred a quarrel between the leaders and Leyva was
murdered by Humana who took command. When the Spaniards
had gone some ten days' travel beyond the Quivira settlements they
reached a large river [possibly the Smoky Hill, or the Kansas; or
the Platte?] which was about a quarter of a league wide, deep, and
sluggish. At this place Jusepe and five other Indians deserted.
(Jusepe, the only one to make his way back and to give an ac-
count of the expedition was held prisoner by Apaches for a year. )
As was later learned ( by Onate, in 1601 ) the Spaniards were all
murdered (except one?) when Indians of the region fired the grass
on all sides of them as they slept one night. (The Quiviras, in 1601,
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 71
said that the massacre had occurred 18 days' travel beyond their
settlements. )
fThe "wide, deep and sluggish" river (which Jusepe in his account said the
party had been afraid to cross) may well have been the Smoky Hill or Kansas,
in flood stage.]
Ret": Hammond and Key, Narratives of the Coronado Expedition, pp. 416-419, 755, 838,
940; Wedel, op. cit., p. 21 (who suggests the river was the Smoky Hill or Kansas); H. E.
Bolton in his Spanish Exploration in the Southwest . . . (New York, 1916), pp. 200,
201, decided the river was the Platte.
1607
Don Juan de Onate, governor (and colonizer, in 1598) of New
Mexico, with a large force (upwards of 70 well-equipped men; two
Franciscan friars, attendants; over 700 horses and mules; carts, arms,
and artillery) set out late in June (from San Gabriel) for the coun-
try to the northeast where the Leyva-Humana expedition of the
1590's had gone. Their guide was the Indian Jusepe. After more
than 200 leagues of travel they came upon a large camp of Escan-
jaques (a roving, buffalo-hunting people). Accompanied by these
Indians (who numbered 5,000 or more), Onate's party traveled
three(?) days more towards the settlement where (according to the
Escanjaques) the Spaniards they sought had been slain. They
crossed an east-flowing river [the Arkansas?] with "marvelous level
banks ... so wooded that the trees formed very dense and
extensive forests," which had good fords but was very deep in places.
A little farther on they came to a large Indian settlement of more
than 1,200 grass houses, located on the banks of another fairly large
river [the little Arkansas at present Wichita?] which flowed into the
larger one.
These grass-house people (unnamed by Onate) also grew crops,
and in other ways fitted the description of the Quiviras [Wichitas].
Their chief was called Catarax [the Wichitas' word for chief is
Tatarrax]. The arrival of the large force of Escanjaques, their ene-
mies, ended any possibility for friendly relations between the Qui-
viras and the Spaniards. Prudently deciding to turn back, Onate
and his men first had to fight and defeat the Escanjaques who had
turned hostile when restrained from firing the Quiviras' abandoned
houses.
Except for learning that the Leyva-Humana expedition had been
massacred by people who lived beyond the Quiviras; and that there
were, in the region northward, very large settlements, Onate's ex-
pedition accomplished nothing. He penetrated no farther than the
other Spaniards before him and discovered nothing new. He and
72 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
his men returned safely to New Mexico, reaching San Gabriel on
November 24.
Ref : George P. Hammond and Agapito Rey's Don Juan de Onate, Colonizer of New
Mexico . . . (Albuquerque, 1953); Bolton's Spanish Exploration, pp. 250-265; Wedel,
op. cit., pp. 21, 22, who discusses Onate's route in Kansas in relation to streams.
1606(?)
A Quivira chief, with 600 warriors, journeyed to Santa Fe follow-
ing the defeat of the Escanjaques by Onate. He offered friendship
and lands to the Spanish in return for aid against the Quiviras' ene-
mies, the Ayjaos [who may have been the Indians Onate had called
Escanjaques].
Ref: Alfred B. Thomas' After Coronado, Spanish Exploration Northeast of New Mexico
(Norman, Okla., 1935), p. 8; G. E. Hyde's Indians of the High Plains . . . (Norman,
Okla., c!959), p. 13.
1670
Father Jacques Marquette, writing from his mission among the
Ottawas, told of the Missouri river, as reported to the French by
the Indians: "Six or seven days below the Hois [Illinois] is another
great river [Missouri], on which are prodigious nations, who use
wooden canoes. . . ."
Ref: J. G. Shea's Discovery and Exploration of the Mississippi Valley (New York, 1853),
p. Ivi.
7673-7674
In mid-June, 1673, Louis Jolliet, Father Jacques Marquette, and
five other Frenchmen, started down the Mississippi river in two
canoes. At the end of June they passed by the mouth of the
Pekitanoui (Missouri), and became the first known white men to
see the river.
Three of the earliest existing maps based on discoveries by this
expedition are noted below. They were, also, the first known which
showed the Kansa Indians.
(1) A map drawn by Jolliet in 1673-1674(?) which accompanied the
Narrative of the expedition published in M. Thevenot's Recueil de Voyages
(Paris, 1681). Shown as dwelling some distance up the Missouri (unnamed
on the map) were the Missouris ( Oumissouri ) ; above them were the Osages
(Autrechaha) and the Kansa (Kamissi) living in the same general area;
and well beyond were the Paniassa. On the Arkansas river (unnamed on the
map) were also the Paniassa well upstream, with other tribes living above
and below them.
(2) The so-called "Marquette" manuscript map of 1673-1674(?). The
"R. Pekittanoui" was drawn as a large, but short river, ending abruptly. The
same Indian tribes were noted, but under variant spellings for three: Ouchage,
Oucmessourit, Kansa, and the Paniassa.
(3) The "Joliet map of 1674" (not drawn by Jolliet). The Messouris,
Kansa, Ouchage, Pani, and Minengio(P) tribes (in that order ascending)
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 73
were shown on the south bank of a large, east-flowing stream (unnamed)
emptying into the Mississippi. Far to the south, on the "Riviere Basire" (the
Arkansas), the Paniassa were shown as the farthest west of eight tribes dwell-
ing on its south bank.
Ref: F. B. Steck's Marquette Legends (New York, c!960) discusses the authorship
und date of the "Marquette" map, and presents the author's theory that Marquette did
not accompany Jolliet on the 1673 expedition; Tucker, op. cit.; Wedel, op. cit.
Before 1680
Between 1664 and 1680 Juan de Archuleta and some soldiers
were sent by the New Mexican governor to bring back several
Taos Indian families which had fled Spanish rule in the middle
17th century. They found them to the northeast in the "plains of
Cibola" in a fortified place to which the Spanish gave the name
El Cuartelejo. The Taos Indians had copper and tin articles which
they said were "from the Quivira pueblos" to which they had made
a journey. The Spaniards also learned that the route to the Paw-
nees lay by way of Quivira; and were told ( or perhaps concluded )
that the French already were trading with the Pawnees.
[The Pawnees referred to were probably the Southern Pawnees the
Paniouassa (or, Black Pawnees) of the area that is now northern Oklahoma
and southern Kansas. No direct trade was likely between the Pawnees and
the French at this early date.]
Ref: Thomas, After Coronado, p. 53.
7682
Rene Robert Cavalier, Sieur de La Salle, and party, descending
the Mississippi in 1682, arrived at the mouth of the Missouri on
February 14, camped there, and proceeded next day. Father Ze-
nobe Membre (chaplain of the small French expedition) wrote:
The Indians assure us that this river is formed by many others, and that
they ascend it for ten or twelve days to a mountain where it rises; that
beyond this mountain is the sea where they see great ships; that on the river
are a great number of large villages, of many different nations; that there
are arable and prairie-lands, and abundance of cattle and beaver. . . .
La Salle, from information received, estimated the "grand riviere
des Emisourites" to be navigable for 400 leagues or more.
Ref: G. J. Garraghan's Chapters in Frontier History (Milwaukee, 1933), pp. 54, 55;
A. P. Nasatir's Before Lewis and Clark (St. Louis, 1952), v. 1, p. 4; Shea's Mississippi
Valley, p. 167 (for quotation).
7684-7688
Jean-Baptiste Louis Franquelin's Carte de la Louisiane, based
on La Salle's map and data, was first published in 1684. La Salle's
misconception of the present Platte river's eastward course as that
of the Missouri a mistake perpetuated in Franquelin's and some
later maps of the French period thus showed "La Grande Riviere
74 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
des Emissourittes" flowing almost due east, and influenced a long-
held French belief that the route to the mines of New Mexico lay
up the Missouri river. Franquelin's 1688 map showed the same
confused network of rivers sketched in his earlier work, but gave
more detailed information on the Indian tribes of the West. On
the Missouri he showed the Missourits and Zages (Osages); then
the Cansa well above them; and on westward, two villages of
Pana, and the Panososo. On northwest branches were located the
Panimaha (19 villages) and the Panetoca (four villages). South-
west of the Osages were 20 villages of Paneassa.
Ref: The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Cleveland, v. 63, frontispiece; Sara
J. Tucker, Indian Villages of the Illinois Country (Springfield, 111., 1942); Wedel, op. cit.;
American Historical Review, New York, v. 39, pp. 647, 650.
7693
In mid-May, 1693, two French traders and some Kaskaskia In-
dians visited the Missouris and Osages, to make an alliance with
them. Two chiefs from each village and "some elders and women"
accompanied them back to Kaskaskia for a visit, and annual trade
relations were established. From this contact, and others in the
later 1690's, the French began to learn about other Missouri river
Indians. They heard that the Pawnees traded with the Spanish
"from whom they get horses of which they make use sometimes to
pursue the buffalo in the hunt. . . ."
[The Pawnees acquired the Spanish horses in raids on the Padoucas ( Plains
Apaches), who got them from the Indians of the New Mexican frontiers. There
is no record of direct trade between New Mexico and the Pawnees at this
period.]
Ref: Garraghan, op. cit., p. 57; The Jesuit Relations, v. 64, pp. 161, 169, 171; Nasa-
tir, op. cit., v. 1, p. 5.
7698
Dr. Daniel Coxe outfitted two ships commanded by Captain Barr,
which he sent some distance up the Mississippi river in 1698. From
notes and journals of expedition members, Daniel Coxe, Jr., com-
piled A Description of the English Province of Carolana, by the
Spaniards Called Florida, and by the French La Louisiane, in which
the following appeared:
It will be one great conveniency of this country, if ever it comes to be
settled, that there is an easy communication therewith and the South Sea,
which lies between America and China ... by the north branch of
the great Yellow River, by the natives called the River of the Massorites
[Missouri], which hath a course of 500 miles, navigable to its heads or springs,
and which proceeds from a ridge of hills somewhat north of New Mexico,
passable by horse, foot, or wagon in less than half a day. On the other side
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 75
are rivers which run into a great lake, that empties itself by another great
navigable river into the South Sea. . . .
Ref: B. F. French's Historical Collections of Louisiana (Philadelphia, 1850), pt. 2,
p. 253.
1699
Pierre Lemoyne, Sieur dlberville, with some 200 soldiers and
colonists in four vessels, arrived from France in February, at a point
a little east of the Mississippi's mouth, and founded Biloxi [Miss.].
About 1700
In present Scott county ( 12 miles north of Scott City, and about
50 miles east of the Colorado line ) on a small knoll in Ladder creek
valley, are ruins of ancient stone buildings, the principal one having
t>een a seven-room, 53 x 35-foot structure with walls 18 to 24 inches
thick. Archaeologists at the turn of the 20th century identified the
ruins as of Pueblo origin and suggested they represented the place
named El Cuartelejo (by the Spanish some 200 years earlier). More
recently (1959) Dr. Waldo R. Wedel (of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion) has stated that the Scott county ruins represent "... a
Plains Apache community of circa A. D. 1700 that included a multi-
roomed stone structure, irrigation works, and other features clearly
inspired by, if not the actual handiwork of, Pueblo Indians. . . ."
On at least two occasions in the latter half of the 17th century,
Pueblo Indians fled from Spanish rule into the plains northeast of
New Mexico. Sometime before 1680 when the Spaniards went
after the earliest of these refugees ( a group of Taos Indians ) they
found them among the Plains Apaches, living in structures which led
the white men to call the place El Cuartelejo. ( The term was also
applied to the Indians in the vicinity.) In 1706 Ulibarri and a
Spanish-Indian force went to El Cuartelejo to get some Picurie In-
dians and return them to New Mexico. ( See, also, Before 1680, and
1706 in this chronology. )
Ulibarri's diary and accounts of an expedition by Valverde in
1719 (published in 1935 in A. B. Thomas' After Coronado and else-
where noted in this chronology), seem to indicate that El Cuartelejo
was in present eastern Colorado. (Thomas expressed the opinion
that El Cuartelejo was either in Otero or Kiowa county, Colorado. )
Discussing El Cuartelejo's location in his An Introduction to Kan-
sas Archeology (1959), Dr. Wedel commented on the fact that no
archaeological remains have been found in eastern Colorado to sub-
stantiate the Thomas claim, and summed up his own conclusions
(p. 468) as follows:
76 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
As I see it, then, the case for El Cuartelejo in eastern Colorado rests solely
on the testimony of certain historical documents. That for Cuartelejo in Scott
County rests on archeological evidence, including particularly the unique
association of a pueblo ruin with Plains Apache cultural remains. If Scott
County pueblo and its associated archeological materials is not the very
Cuartelejo rancheria from which Ulibarri rescued Don Lorenzo and his Picuris
compatriots . . ., then we must conclude that it was a simultaneously
occupied community (Sanasesli?) [for explanation of "Sanasesli" see this
chronology under 1706] in which pueblo Indians from the upper Rio Grande
and Plains Apaches were residing together in the late 17th and early 18th
centuries.
Ref: Kansas Historical Collections, v. 6, pp. 124-130; Thomas' After Coronado, see
index under El Cuartelejo; Wedel, op. cit., see index under El Cuartelejo, and Scott county
pueblo site.
7700
Father Gabriel Marest, of the Kaskaskia mission ( on the Illinois )
dispatched a report (dated July 10) to Iberville (at Biloxi), sum-
ming up the information he had gathered about the Missouri river
and its people. For the first time, though indirectly, the Kansas
river was mentioned. Marest wrote, in part:
As to the Missouri, it is a very beautiful and large-sized river extending as
far as the Mississippi. It is entirely covered with different nations of Indians.
. . . Its real name is the Peldtanoui and the French call it the Missouri
because this people is the first you meet there. Then come the Arkansas
[Kansa], who are on a little river of their own name. Then the Pana, Pani-
assa or rather Panis. These nations are very numerous and by way of their
river, which discharges into the Pekitanoui, they carry on commerce with
the Spaniards. Our warriors have brought us horses and bridles, which
these nations took from the Spaniards. . . .
Ref: Marc de Villiers du Terrage, La Decouverte du Missouri . . . (Paris, 1925),
p. 33; Garraghan, op. cit., pp. 58, 59; Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, p. 6.
Pierre Le Sueur (who had lived on the Upper Mississippi since
the 1680's) made the voyage from France to Louisiana in 1699
with Iberville's colony. In 1700 he traveled up the Mississippi (to
the mining country of present Minnesota ) and passed by the mouth
of the Missouri on July 13. He described the river's mouth; stated
(mistakenly) that Emissourita meant "peoples of the canoe"; wrote
of a tin mine 30 leagues up the river of the Osages [tributary of
the Missouri]; and noted that the Aiaouez [lowas] were enemies
of the Panis [Pawnees] who lived along the Missouri. (His in-
formation on the mine came from Indians, and on the Pawnees
from a Frenchman who had gone to the lowas by way of the Des
Moines river and married a woman of that nation.)
Ref: Villiers du Terrage, op. cit., pp. 31, 32.
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 77
1702
Seventeen Frenchmen set out in March from Tamaroa [opposite
present St. Louis] to ascend the Missouri, build a trading fort in
the Pawnee-Iowa country, and explore from there towards New
Mexico. This earliest(P) organized trading expedition up the
Missouri failed when hostile Indians, at some place not recorded,
forced the French to take refuge on an island. They apparently
returned safely to Tamaroa.
Ref: Garraghan, op. cit., p. 62.
In a memoire of June 20, the Louisiana colony's Iberville listed
some Indian nations who lived on the Missouri and estimated their
population in families. The Kansa were given as 1,500, the Pani-
mahas as 1,200, and the Panas near Arkansas as 2,000. The Mis-
souris were numbered at 1,500 families, but the Osages were not
mentioned. Other upper river Indians in the tabulation were the
Otoes, lowas, and the Sioux.
On August 6 another Frenchman (Remonville) wrote that 14
large Indian tribes lived along the Missouri, which was a larger
river than the [upper?] Mississippi.
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, p. 8; Pierre Margry, Decouvertes et Etablissements des
Francois, v. 6 (1888), p. 179.
7703
Guillaume Delisle's Carte du Mexique et de la Floride, published
in 1703, contained data on the Missouri river country incorporated
from his manuscript maps (1701 and 1702) of the Mississippi valley
data gained from Iberville and Le Sueur. Notably, the Missouri's
course was sketched as from the northwest. (See 1684-1688.)
The Osages were shown as living on the Osage river ("R. des
Osages"), a tributary of the Missouri; and the Kansa ("Cansa")
were placed on another branch of the Missouri some distance
above, which Delisle designated as the "Metchigamiki" [the Kan-
sas]. Farther up the Missouri, and on east-flowing tributaries, were
the Pawnees ("Apana," "Panis," "Panimaha" ) . On the headwaters
of a river north of, and paralleling the Kansas, he showed the
Paniassa. Far to the south, on a tributary of the Arkansas river
("R. des Acansa") were also "2 grands Villages" of Panis ; and on
another branch downstream, the Paniassa.
See reproduction of a portion of Delisle's 1703 map between pp. 80, 81.
Ref: Tucker, op. cit.; American Historical Review, v. 39, pp. 652-654; Wedel, op. cit.,
p. 28.
78 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
1706
Juan de Ulibarri with a force of Spaniards and Indian allies set
out from Santa Fe in mid-July to ransom some Picuries who, flee-
ing Spanish rule in 1696, had become slaves of the Apaches of El
Cuartelejo. On July 29 they reached the river "which all the tribes
call the Napestle" [the Arkansas]. (Ulibarri named it the Rio
Grande de San Francisco.) Crossing, and turning eastward they
arrived in the El Cuartelejo settlements on August 4. Ulibarri
claimed the new country traversed for Spain. Among these friendly
Apaches, he found the Picuries chief and some of his people. Next
day, he dispatched men to three other Apache rancherias. In the
one named Sanasesli (described as "forty leagues distant from the
other two") were the son of a former chief, and 18 other Picuries.
They were turned over to Ulibarrf s scout, Jose de Naranjo, after
he and his men had been entertained and given "excellent quar-
ters" by the Sanasesli (a numerous and friendly people).
Meantime Ulibarri established relations with his Apache hosts,
and gathered information. The El Cuartelejo Indians said that
their enemies were the Pawnees and Jumanos. These Pawnees
[i. e., the Paniouassa ( Black Pawnees ) of present southern Kansas
or northern Oklahoma] lived in two large villages on the "Sita-
scahe" river "seven days' journey across level land with sufficient
water." The Apaches had a gun of French make and told of
killing a white man and woman (but later said the gun had been
taken from a Pawnee). Ulibarri got it in exchange for a Spanish
gun. The Apaches said that all the tribes on the five large rivers
they knew about were hostile to each other, but had trade with
white people to the east. Asked about the "seas" to the north and
east, they said they had heard that the one on the north was three
long days' journey beyond a tribe called the Pelones [Palomas? See
1719 under Valverde] over a road which was all sand dunes of
very fine sand without grass.
On August 11, having gathered together all the Picuries, Ulibarri's
expedition left El Cuartelejo for New Mexico. The Arkansas river
was reached on the 18th; and the company arrived in Santa Fe on
September 2.
Ref: Thomas, After Coronado, pp. 16-22, 59-80, 262-265.
7706 or 7707
A party of Frenchmen under Derbanne went up the Missouri
"nearly 400 leagues" from its mouth in 1706 or 1707. They were
(according to Derbanne's 1724 report) "the first of the French to
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 79
have been so far into the interior," and they met Indians who di-
rectly, or indirectly, had been in contact with the Spaniards.
Ref: Garraghan, op. cit., p. 63; Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, p. 9.
1772
Antoine Crozat, a wealthy French merchant, was given a 15-year
monopoly of trade in the country south of the Illinois river and
between the colonies of Spain and England, in exchange for his
agreement to bring two shiploads of immigrants into the Louisiana
colony each year. (In 1717, the venture having been unsuccessful
financially, Crozat gave up his patent. )
7712-1777
Etienne Veniard de Bourgmont ( a young French officer, ex-com-
mandant at Detroit) accompanied some Missouris (who had gone
north to aid the French against the Fox Indians) to their village in
1712, and lived among them for several years. He made at least
two trips far up the Missouri. In 1714 he ascended to the mouth
of the Pawnee [Platte] river and kept an accurate log of the "Route
to Follow to Mount the Missouri/' On another journey he went
beyond the mouth of the Niobrara, to the Aricara villages farther,
perhaps, than any white man had ascended before him.
In an account ( 1717? ) of the Missouri and its people, Bourgmont
wrote:
There are the Missouris, a nation of savages, bearing the name of the
river, who are allies of the French. There are also the Auzages [Osages],
another savage nation, allies and friends of the French. Their entire com-
merce is in furs; they are not numerous; they are a splendid race, and more
alert than any other nation. All Missouri furnishes fine skins of all kinds, the
climate there being very cold. Upstream is a smaller river which flows into
the Missouri, called the "Riviere d'Ecanze [Kansas] and a nation of the same
name, ally and friend of the French; their trade is in furs. This is the finest
country and the most beautiful land in the world; the prairies are like the
seas, and filled with wild animals; especially oxen, cattle, hind and stag, in
such quantities as to surpass the imagination. They hunt almost entirely with
the arrow; they have splendid horses and are fine riders. Farther up is the
Riviere Large, called by the French and the Indians Nibraskier [i.e., the
Platte?]. . . .
Ref: Ibid, pp. 60, 61; Missouri Historical Review, Columbia, v. 35, p. 374; v. 36,
pp. 282-284; Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 12, 13. (Some sources spell the name "Bourg-
mond." )
7774
Indians reported in Santa Fe that the Jumanos and some allied
French traders had attacked El Cuartelejo.
Ref: Thomas, After Coronado, p. 264.
80 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
7777
The Company of the West (or, the Mississippi Company) secured
control of Louisiana and its trade for 25 years. Though the specula-
tive^ schemes of John Law, its head, quickly failed, the company
continued in power for 14 years. ( In 1732 it failed and surrendered
its charter. ) Upper Louisiana (the Illinois country) came under the
supervision of lower Louisiana's government in 1717.
7778
New Orleans was founded by Jean Baptiste Lemoyne, Sieur de
Bienville, who had recently become governor of Louisiana. (In
1723 New Orleans became the seat of government. )
Guillaume Delisle's Carte de la Louisiane et du Cours du Missis-
sipi ( 1718 ) was much more detailed in its information on the Mis-
souri, the tributaries, and the Indians, than his map of 15 years
earlier. The new data had come from Bourgmont.
For the first time, so far as known, the Kansas river ("Grande
Riviere des Cansez") appeared by that name on a map; and some
tributaries ( unnamed ) were indicated. In the forks of two branches
[the present Junction City area?], Delisle placed a large village of
the Kansas ("Cansez"). To the west, on headwaters of the Kansas,
he showed villages of Padoucas. The Padoucas (indicated in four
other locations to the north and south ) , together with the Apaches,
were shown as forming a barrier to all the region west and south-
west.
On the Missouri river, some distance above the mouth of the Kan-
sas, was shown another village of the "Cansez" Indians, below a
tributary labeled "Petite Riv. des Cansez" [the village in the present
Doniphan area presumably].
Delisle located villages of Paniassa (Black Pawnees) on south-
flowing tributaries of the Arkansas ( "Riviere des Akansas" ) .
See reproduction of a portion of Delisle's 1718 map between pp. 80, 81.
Ref: Carl I. Wheat, "Mapping the American West, 1540-1857," in Proceedings of
the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Mass., v. 64, p. 50; Tucker, op. cit.; Ameri-
can Historical Review, v. 39, p. 656; Wedel, op. cit., pp. 28, 29, and (for discussion of
the identity of the Padoucas) 77, 78; Villiers du Terrage, op. eft., p. 57 (who identified the
"Petite Riv. des Cansez" as the Big Nemaha of today).
1779
In an attempt to reach the Padoucas by an overland route, French
officer Claude Charles Du Tisne set out in the spring from Kaskaskia
[on the Mississippi]. His first objective was a visit to the Big Osages
[in present Vernon county, Missouri]. He was well treated in their
' 1 *
>V-
Above (enlarged from Delisle's map of 1703) is a scale of distances showing compara-
tive lengths of (1) the French land league, (2) the French marine league and Spanish
land league [same], (3) the Spanish marine league, and (4) the English mile.
The league as a measure of distance has varied for different times and countries from
2.4 to 4.6 miles. Historians, tracing routes of the pre-1 9th century Spanish and French
explorers, have estimated the league, generally, as between 2.5 and 3 miles; and seldom
as more than 2.6 miles for the land league.
(On verso) A section of Guillaume Delisle's Carfe du Mex/que ef c/e la
Floride . . . 1703. The Cansa Indians are shown as living on the
Metchigamiki river, a name apparently applied but briefly to the Kansas.
It does not appear in later records.
**. . . Upstream is a smaller river which flows into the
Missouri, called the 'Riviere d'Ecanze [Kansas], . . . This
is the finest country and the most beautiful land in the world;
the prairies are like the seas, and filled with wild animals;
especially oxen, cattle, hind and stag, in such quantities as to
surpass the imagination. . . ."
Quoted from the 1717 account of De Bourgmont, whose explorations up the
Missouri supplied much new information for Delisle's 1718 map.
(On verso) A portion of Guillaume Delisle's Carfe de la Louisiane et
du Cours du Mississipi . . . 1718. Here, the Kansas river ("Grande
Riviere des Cansez") appeared by that name for the first time on a map,
so far as is known. As located by Delisle, the Kansa Indians were living
in the early 18th century in two, far-apart villages, one, between the
forks of a Kansas tributary, the other, on the Missouri, at the mouth of a
stream labeled "Petite Riv. des Cansez/ 7
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 81
villages, and spent some time trading among them. ( Du Tisne was
their first official French visitor. ) Though they opposed his continu-
ing onward to the Paniouassa (Black Pawnees), he was able to
obtain a few horses from the Osages. But he left all his trading
goods except three guns and a few other articles when he started
southwest (accompanied by a guide-interpreter and perhaps one
other person ) . He traveled over prairies and hills [in present south-
east Kansas] where there were many buffalo. The country was fine
and well wooded. He crossed four rivers, the largest, a branch of
the Arkansas [the Neosho or Grand?] flowed from the northwest
and had rapids. ( The others were Osage tributaries. )
After four days and 40 leagues of travel Du Tisne came to a stream
(12 leagues west of the large Arkansas branch) where there were
two large villages of Paniouassa (a few miles apart), totaling at
least 250 lodges and 500 warriors. [Whether they were in southeast
Kansas or in northeast Oklahoma has not been determined.] There,
Osage meddling nearly cost him his life, but Du Tisne was saved
by his own daring and boldness. He was able to secure a peace
and trade alliance with the Paniouassa, but they refused to let him
proceed to the country of their mortal enemies, the Padoucas, whose
great village they said was 15 days journey beyond. The Paniouassa
said Spaniards had visited them, but the Padoucas were a barrier
to intercourse. Du Tisne traded three guns, powder, pickaxes, and
knives to the Paniouassa (who had many horses) for two horses
and a mule marked with the Spanish brand.
On September 27, after placing a French flag among these In-
dians, Du Tisne began the homeward trip. The Osages refused him
guides, and he relied on a compass to make his way back to Kas-
kaskia. Of his 14 horses (and a mule), six (and a colt) were lost
during the journey.
Ref: Benard de La Harpe's Journal Historique de L'Etdblissement des Francois a la
Louisiane (New Orleans, 1831), pp. 168-172, in which it is specifically stated that the
largest stream Du Tisne crossed en route to the Paniouassa was a branch of the Arkansas
(not the Arkansas itself, as given in Margry's work); Margry, op. cit., v. 6, pp. 309-315;
Villiers du Terrage, op. cit., pp. 68, 69; Missouri Historical Review, v. 39, pp. 505-512;
Nasatir, op. cit., pp. 18, 19; Kansas Historical Collections, v. 9, pp. 252-254; Wedel, op.
cit., pp. 32, 65, 66, 533. See, particularly, Wedel, p. 533, for possible location of the
Paniouassa villages sites in the Neodesha area.
Antonio de Valverde, governor of New Mexico, led an expedition
against the Utes and Comanches in the fall of 1719. Unsuccessful
in finding them, he was ready to return home in late October when
he learned that several bands of El Cuartelejo Apaches were coming
64660
82 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
to meet him. The gathering place was on the Rio Napestle [Arkan-
sas], in southeastern Colorado of today. From the Palomas (a band
never visited by the Spanish) who came from "the most remote
borderlands" of the Apaches "farther in from El Cuartelejo," Val-
verde heard disquieting news of white men [the French] who had
made recent alliance with the Cancer [Kansa], and with the Paw-
nees and Jumanos, to whom they had given firearms. [Presumably
these were references to Bourgmont's and Du Tisne's activities.]
The Palomas told of an attack made on them earlier in the year by
the Pawnees and Jumanos and said they had been forced to leave
their lands. (A Paloma Indian, wounded by a bullet in the fight,
in one version of his story said they had fought the Kansa Indians. )
Elaborating the facts, they told of two French settlements among
the Pawnees and Jumanos. [The Palomas apparently lived in pres-
ent Kansas neighbors to the Kansa and to the Black Pawnees of
southern Kansas or northern Oklahoma. To the French the Paloma
Apaches very likely represented a part of the people they called
Padoucas.]
The Palomas spoke only of the Kansa, the Pawnees and Jumanos,
and the Cadodachos Indians. When they described French settle-
ments on a large river they were talking about lower Louisiana, but
the Spaniards misinterpreted what the Apaches were telling them.
Valverde's scout Naranjo, who had previously traveled as far as a
large river which he named the Rio Jesus Maria [i. e., the South
Platte], where there were Pawnees, decided it was the river the
Palomas meant.
The Spanish expedition returned to New Mexico in November.
Valverde's report (of November 30) specifically stated: ". . . the
French have their settlement on a very large river which here [Santa
Fe] is known as the Jesus Maria. . . ."
Ref: Thomas, After Coronado, pp. 129-133, 143, 144.
7719-7722
From lower Louisiana Benard de La Harpe made explora-
tions by way of the Red river and the Arkansas in the 1719-1722
period explorations which first brought him to the Arkansas river
in present Oklahoma in 1719. He met representatives of nine allied
Indian nations most of whom lived on a tributary (probably the
Canadian of today). These people raised crops, spent their winters
hunting buffalo, bred fine horses. They were allied with the Pani-
ouassa (the Black Pawnees) who were 40 leagues to the north.
With the Osages (40 leagues to the northeast) they were at peace,
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 83
but there was mutual mistrust. Other allies were some nomadic
nations on the upper Red river. Their enemies were the Canecey
(to the south on the Red river), the Padoucas (who had villages
15 days journey to the west-northwest), and a few villages of
Panis. The "nine-nations" people ate their captives.
They told La Harpe that a white nation [the Spaniards] traded
with the Padoucas, but that they seldom went far in that direction
because of their enemies. They said they knew that the Aricaras
[meaning the northern Pawnees] lived in the direction of the
Cances [Kansa] on the Missouri.
Knowledge gained by La Harpe's explorations was depicted on
the Sieur de Beauvilliers' map of 1720 (manuscript). The "nine-
nations" Indians were shown well to the west on the stream labeled
"Atcanka R." [the Canadian]. The Arkansas above the junction
of the Canadian was designated only as "R. decouverte en 1720."
Between the two rivers and north of the nine nations were "Villages
Ascanis et Ousita." (These were, actually, two of the nine nations
as listed by La Harpe.)
[The Ousita may well have been the Wichita Indians of today, and if so,
La Harpe provided an early reference to the Wichitas by the name which
was later to be applied to them.]
Ref: La Harpe, op. cit., pp. 206-209, 316-325; Wheat, loc. cit., p. 50.
7720
Alarmed by reports of French settlements which, as the Spanish
understood, were among the Pawnees on the present Platte river,
Governor Valverde of New Mexico, sent Pedro de Villasur with a
small but well-equipped force to reconnoiter the French position.
Villasur, with 45 Spaniards, 60 Indian allies, a priest, a French
interpreter, and attendants, set out from Santa Fe in mid-June.
Arriving at the El Cuartelejo settlements they stopped to rest.
There some Apaches joined them, to act as guides.
On August 6 the Spaniards and their Indian cohorts crossed the
Rio Jesus Maria [South Platte]. At what point, and by what route
they arrived at the river cannot be determined. (Their course had
been generally northeastward.) Four days later they came to a
large Pawnee village at the junction of another river with the
Platte, and made a camp opposite. Though aware that the Pawnees
were up to some trickery, after unsuccessful attempts to negotiate
and to get news of the French, the Spaniards were ill-prepared
for the surprise attack which occurred at daybreak of August 13.
(The only precautions they had taken were to move their camp,
84 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
and place guards, but the El Cuartelejo Apaches had realized the
danger, and departed. ) The Pawnees, aided by some Otoes, mas-
sacred a large part of the Spanish force. Villasur, more than two-
thirds of his soldiers, and many of the Indian allies were slain.
Survivors of the disastrous defeat made their way to the El Cuarte-
lejo settlements, and then to New Mexico. Governor Valverde
heard the bad news on September 6.
[There is disagreement as to where the massacre took place. It may have
occurred, as some maintain, on the south side of the North Platte, near pres-
ent North Platte, Neb.; others contend the Spaniards were killed near the
mouth of the Loup Fork. If the Villasur massacre was in the Loup Fork vi-
cinity, the Spanish expedition may have crossed northwestern Kansas to
arrive at that locality. The French reported that the attackers were Otoes and
Panimahas.]
Ref: Thomas, After Coronado, pp. 36-39, 133-137, 171-175, 182-187, 226-256
passim; Hyde, op. cit., pp. 74-80; Nebraska History, Lincoln, v. 6, pp. 13-19; v. 7, pp.
68-87; Garraghan, op. cit., p. 64; Villiers du Terrage, op. cit., p. 72.
1723
Discussing possible sites for a Missouri river fort which Bourg-
mont had been ordered to establish, French engineer La Renaudiere
wrote (on August 23):
. . . At thirty leagues in ascending [the Missouri, above Grand river]
is the river of Quans [the Kansas] a beautiful river. . . . Thirty leagues
higher up is a little river which runs to the north, where there is a large
village of Quans, it is composed of 150 huts which border the Missouri. One
finds there, on the south side, many beautiful prairies, and on the west side
many mountains. . . .
[Despite the variation in distance, this was presumably the later-designated
""Village of 24" that is, the Kansa village on the Missouri said to be 24
leagues above the mouth of the Kansas in the present Doniphan area.]
Ref: Margry, op. cit., v. 6, pp. 393, 394.
Etienne Veniard de Bourgmont and a party of 40 Frenchmen,
journeyed up the Missouri from Kaskaskia in the fall of 1723, ar-
riving at the Missouri Indians' village [on the south bank, in present
Saline county, Missouri] on November 9. Crossing to the north
side, a few miles up from the mouth of the Grand [in present Car-
roll county, Missouri] they erected, during the winter, a small post
called Fort Orleans the first French fortification on the Missouri.
There, Bourgmont planned and prepared for his proposed expedi-
tion to the Padoucas.
Kansa chiefs apparently visited Fort Orleans either in the win-
ter, or spring of 1724, and were given a French flag which was
displayed in the Kansa village when Bourgmont arrived there the
following July.
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 85
Fort Orleans was used for only five years. It was probably
abandoned in 1728.
Ref : Garraghan, op. cit., pp. 65, 67, 93; Missouri Historical Review, v. 35, pp. 373-384;
v. 39, p. 525; Margry, op. cit., v. 6, p. 404.
7724
Bourgmont (at Fort Orleans) in June organized his expedition
to the Padoucas. It was to proceed by way of the Kansa village
on the Missouri. He sent a small party under Saint-Ange upriver
in canoes on June 25; and set out with seven other Frenchmen,
some 100 Missouris and 64 Osages on July 3, traveling overland
across present Missouri. Bourgmont's party camped, on July 7,
on the Missouri opposite the Kansa village, crossing the next day.
Illness among Saint-Ange's men kept the expedition in camp for over
two weeks. (The Osages returned home because of the prevalent
fever.) Meantime Bourgmont traded with the Kansa, obtained
furs, and bought from them two Padouca slaves.
On July 24 a great throng of people set out westward across
present Kansas. Accompanying the 19 Frenchmen were the two
Great Chiefs, 14 war chiefs and 300 Kansa and Missouri warriors,
about 300 women and 500 young people. And there were at least
300 dogs (drawing baggage). (The Kansa villagers were headed
west on a buffalo hunt. )
A week later, when about three leagues from the Kansas river,
Bourgmont became so ill he had to be carried back to the Kansa
village on a litter (and then was taken by boat to recuperate at
Fort Orleans). Before turning eastward on July 31, he delegated
one of his men, Gaillard, to conduct the Padouca slaves to their
people. Fifty Kansa Indians went with Gaillard. Traveling south-
west and west they reached the Grand Village of the Padoucas
[perhaps in Saline county?, or Ellsworth county?] on August 25.
The Padoucas treated the party well, as Bourgmont was notified
on September 6.
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 20, 21; Villiers du Terrage, op. cit., pp. 109-112;
Margry, op. cit., v. 6, pp. 398-449; Wedel, op. cit., pp. 28-33; The Colorado Magazine,
Denver, v. 14, pp. 121-128; Missouri Historical Review, v. 36, pp. 279-298; v. 39, pp.
521-528; A. T. Andreas and W. G. Cutler, History of the State of Kansas (Chicago, 1883),
pp. 48, 49 (which has a translation of Le Page du Pratz's account of the Bourgmont ex-
pedition).
Bourgmont left Fort Orleans again on September 20 (by way of
the Missouri ) , arriving at the Kansa village on the 27th. On Octo-
ber 5 and 6 he held councils with assembled Indian chiefs and head
men. Five Padoucas had returned with Gaillard to the Kansa
village (and encamped not far away were great numbers of Pa-
86 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
doucas with their families who had followed them eastward ) . The
Missouri river Indians (Kansa, Missouris, Otoes, lowas, and Pani-
mahas) reluctantly agreed to make peace with the Padoucas.
On October 8, Bourgmont, with a party totaling 40, set out across
present Kansas to visit the Great Chief of the Grand Village of the
Padoucas. Accompanying Bourgmont were his ten-year-old son
(by a Missouri woman); 14 Frenchmen; the five Padouca envoys;
seven Missouris; five Kansa chiefs; four Otoe; and three Iowa
chiefs. They had ten baggage-carrying horses. Proceeding west
and southwest they crossed the Kansas river [near present Ross-
ville?] on October 11; then traveled some 48 leagues farther (first
southwest, and then west) during the next seven days.
On October 18 they met the Padoucas [in present Saline? or Ells-
worth? county]. At the Grand Village, not far from a little river
with brackish water [the Saline presumably], they were welcomed
warmly. There were some 500 lodges, 800 warriors, 1,500 women,
and more than 2,000 children in that village. The Padoucas had
some horses, and lots of dogs. On October 19 Bourgmont presented
many gifts to the Indians; then, before the assembled chiefs and
head men (some 200 persons) he made a speech exhorting the
Padoucas to cease warfare with the Missouri river Indians. A peace
treaty was agreed to, and the Great Chief (who had been given a
French flag ) promised the allegiance of more than 2,000 warriors, as
well as aid to Frenchmen who wished to cross to New Mexico. ( The
Spaniards were 12 days' travel from the village he said.) Bourg-
mont was presented with seven horses as a gift.
On October 22 the Frenchmen and Missouri river Indians started
homeward. They took a route northeast, and east to the Kansas
river (which they reached and crossed on the 27th). From that
place they followed eastwardly down the river valley till they came
to the Missouri, near the mouth of the Kansas. On November 1
Bourgmont embarked in a canoe with some of his men (sending
the rest overland with the horses) and reached Fort Orleans on
November 5.
Ref: See preceding entry. Wed el discusses Bourgmont's route and the conclusions
others have reached as to the locale of the Grand Village of the Padoucas.
7725
Bourgmont, returning to France in the summer of 1725, escorted
a delegation of Indians including a Missouri, an Otoe, an Osage,
and a young "Princess of the Missouri" to France. They arrived
in Paris on September 20, were presented at court, and entertained
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 87
by royalty. The "Princess" was baptized in Notre Dame cathedral,
and married one of Bourgmont's lieutenants. After more than a
year abroad these Indian "ambassadors" were returned to their own
people.
Ref: Garraghan, op. cit., p. 69; Missouri Historical Review, v. 36, p. 295; Nebraska
History, v. 6, pp. 33-38; Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 21, 22.
7739
Bound for New Mexico on a trading expedition, the brothers
Paul and Peter Mallet, and six other Frenchmen, ascended the
Missouri river in the late spring, at least as far as the Panimaha
village [on the Niobrara? river in Nebraska] before learning they
had gone far out of their way. From that place they set out over-
land, with pack horses, on May 29, on a route which would take
them back where they could set a course for the Spanish settlements.
The river which they came to on June 2 they named the "Plate"
[Platte]. Following up this stream beyond the river of the Pa-
doucas [the Loup Fork?], they crossed the Platte on June 13 and
set out toward the southwest. As they proceeded through present
Kansas they crossed several large streams. On the 20th they lost
seven merchandise-laden horses in the waters [swollen by rain?]
of a river they thought was the "Cances" [possibly the south fork
of the Solomon]. On June 30 they reached the bank of the Arkansas
[perhaps in Ford county], where they found stones with Spanish
inscriptions. Following upstream, on July 5 they came to a camp
of Laitan [Comanche] Indians [perhaps in the vicinity of Lamar,
Colo.]. From there, an Aricara slave guided them to the Spanish
settlements. They reached Santa Fe on July 22; received good treat-
ment in friendly custody; and remained for nine months. The
Mallet party was the first (of record) to reach New Mexico from
the Missouri country.
Ref: Margry, op. cit., v. 6, pp. 455-465; The Colorado Magazine, v. 16, pp. 161-173;
Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, p. 28.
7740
Seven of the eight Frenchmen of the Mallet party left Santa Fe
on May 1, intending to go to New Orleans. Arriving at the Cana-
dian river on May 10, they followed downstream for three days
[reaching a point probably a little east of the New Mexico-Texas
boundary]. There the party split, three men deciding to "take the
route of the Pani Indians" to the Illinois country. They reached
their destination safely, probably more or less retracing their route
of 1739 across present Kansas. No record of their journey exists.
88 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
The Mallet brothers and two companions proceeded down the
Canadian [through present Oklahoma], abandoned their horses
for canoes made of bark, and continued to the Arkansas river. Not
long afterwards they came to a French hunting camp. From there
they proceeded to the French post on the Arkansas about 45(?)
miles upstream from the river's mouth, and eventually made their
way to New Orleans.
An attempt by the Mallet brothers, in 1741, to guide an expedi-
tion to Santa Fe by way of the Canadian river ended in failure.
Ref : Same as preceding entry.
1744
At some time between 1724 and 1744 (apparently) the Kansa
Indians moved from the "Village of 24" [present Doniphan] down-
stream to the site later known as the 'Village of 12" [12 leagues up
the Missouri from the mouth of the Kansas, in the present Salt Creek
valley, Leavenworth county]. Near the new town, in 1743-1744, a
Canadian named Deruisseau built a trading post, and a small forti-
fication (Fort Cavagnolle), in return for a five-year (1745-1750)
monopoly of the Missouri river trade. This second French post
on the Missouri (see Fort Orleans, 1723-1728) was in use as late
as 1758 when Fort Cavagnolle was described as a circular palisade
enclosing some poor cabins and huts, where an officer, seven or
eight soldiers, and some traders lived. One commandant was the
Chevalier de Villiers ( described as a capable officer of good intellect
and conduct). The trading post annually furnished 100 packs of
furs (chiefly beaver, deer, and bear). When the Sieur de Portneuf
(successor to Deruisseau) asked French authorities about renovat-
ing the post in 1752, repairs were approved only after it was ascer-
tained that the Kansa Indians had returned to their village near by.
(Portneuf had earlier complained that the post was three days
march from any Indians; that voyageurs went up the Kansas river
without his permission; and for both reasons wished to build the
fort at a better site.) It seems likely Fort Cavagnolle was aban-
doned before the Spanish came into control of the area in the 1760's.
[In 1804 the Lewis and Clark expedition camped opposite Salt Creek
valley on the night of July 2. They saw no traces of the village but "About
a mile in the rear . . . was a small fort, built by the French on an eleva-
tion. . . . the situation of the fort may be recognized by some remains of
chimneys, and the general outline of the fortification, as well as by the fine
spring which supplied it with water. . . ." Of the fort's one-time occu-
pants they had no information.]
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 28, 35, 36, 40-42, 46-48, 50, 52; Collections of the
Illinois State Historical Library, Springfield, v. 29, p. 9; Elliott Coues' History of the Ex-
pedition . . . of Lewis and Clark (New York, 1893), v. 1, p. 37.
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 89
7748
Pierre Satren, Luis Febre, and Joseph Riballo, deserters from the
French post on the Arkansas, were members of a party of 12 which
set out from a village of Zarca Indians [in eastern Arkansas] in the
fall of 1748, for New Mexico. They went up the Rio de Napestle
[the Arkansas] to the two villages of the Jumano or Panipiquet In-
dians [the Wichitas, possibly in present Kansas]; and were con-
ducted by those Indians to a Comanche settlement of three villages.
After remaining for a time, hunting, Satren, Febre, and Riballo ac-
companied some Comanches to Taos, and from there were taken by
the Spanish to Santa Fe, arriving six months after leaving the Zarca
Indians. They were allowed to remain as residents.
Ref: H. E. Bolton's French Intrusions Into New Mexico 1749-1752 (reprinted from
Stephens and Bolton's The Pacific Ocean in History (c!917), pp. 400-404; A. B. Thomas'
The Plains Indians and New Mexico, 1751-1778 (Albuquerque, 1940).
7749-7750
Felipe de Sandoval ( native of Spain ) who had been at the French
post on the Arkansas, and who left that place some time in 1749 with
six other persons, arrived in Santa Fe, N. M., with two Frenchmen
in February, 1750. Sandoval related that he and his companions
had traveled up the Rio de Napestle [Arkansas] in canoes. After
50 days they reached the Jumano [Wichita] settlements where they
found a French flag flying. These settled people lived along the
river [possibly in the Wichita area of today] in grass houses, in two
adjoining villages surrounded by stockades and ditches. They raised
crops of corn, beans, and melons. The French, with whom they
carried on an extensive trade, had recently paid them a visit and
left gifts and the flag. The Jumanos, who numbered about 500
warriors, were at war with the Pananas [Apaches?] and they were
"fierce cannibals" according to Sandoval, who had seen them eat
two captives. They had a few horses, secured from the Comanches.
Sandoval's party spent 20 days in the Jumano settlement, then set
out with Indian guides, to find the Comanches. Unsuccessful, San-
doval and his companions separated, and he, after returning to the
Jumanos for a few days, set out once more, this time following up
the Arkansas with a Comanche guide. After 40 days of travel he
reached a Comanche village, and remained among those Indians
for some time. Then with two Frenchmen who had come there,
and an Indian guide, he proceeded by way of Taos to Santa Fe.
Sandoval thought the Jumanos were 20 to 25 days travel to the
northeast and east of Taos; and that from the Jumanos, traveling
90 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
down the Arkansas to the French post would require about nine
days.
Ref: Bolton's French Intrusions, pp. 396-398.
7750
Governor Velez of Santa Fe, in a report to his superiors, noted
that on the northwest New Mexican frontier there were the Co-
manches, and the Jumanes ( whom the French called Panipiquees ) .
The alliance ( in the latter 1740's ) of the Comanches and Jumanes,
he wrote, had resulted in their waging war against the Carlanes and
other Apache bands of New Mexico; and had also made it easier
for their allies, the French, to advance towards the southwest.
Velez described the Rio deNapestle [the Arkansas] which had
its source in a rugged mountain range about 80 leagues from Taos.
In its upper reaches the river was shallow, he wrote, but Frenchmen
had told him that it was large at the Jumano [Wichita?] village, and
farther down where the Colorado [Canadian] joined it, was still
larger. Velez further reported that New Mexican soldiers under
Lt. Gen. Bernardo de Bustamante y Tagle, pursuing some Co-
manches, had followed down the Rio de Napestle to the vicinity of
the Jumano villages "on which expedition were acquired adequate
reports of those regions, in the summer very delectable and pleasing,
and inhabited by innumerable buffalo, which the Divine Providence
created for the support of the barbarians and the greed of French-
men." (Presumably this expedition had occurred in the late 1740's. )
Ref: Ibid., p. 398; H. E. Bolton's Athanese de Mtzieres and the Louisiana Texas Fron-
tier, 1768-1780 (Cleveland, 1914), v. 1, p. 48.
7757
La Jonquiere (commandant at Illinois) reported (September
25) that the Great Osages had been making continual warfare on
"Les Panis noirs et picquees" [the black and tattooed Pawnees
i. e., the Wichitas?] and "have completed the destruction of one of
their villages, which was begun by the measles and smallpox."
They [the Wichitas?] had "begged help of the Laytannes [Co-
manches], a tribe close to the Spaniards. This tribe . . . joined
them, and they went together against the village of the Great Osages
when a party of their people were at the Cerne [surround] kill-
ing animals. + ,; . the Great Osages lost twenty-two of their
chiefs, and the others left twenty-seven of their people on the
field of battle. . . ." The Osages had then come to get the
Illinois Indians to help them avenge the defeat, but the French
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 91
reminded the Illinois that "Les Panis noirs et picquees" and the
Laytannes were, like themselves, allied with the French, and in-
duced them not to go with the Osages. La Jonquiere noted that
the "Laytannes are armed with the lance like the Spaniards. They
all are mounted on saddle horses, and the women go to war with
them."
Ref : Collections of the Illinois State Historical Library, v. 29, pp. 357-359, 678; Nasa-
tir, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 44, 45.
1752
After a winter at Fort Cavagnolle [on the Missouri, in what is
now Leavenworth county] Jean Chapuis and Luis Feuilli ( ? ) , joined
by eight other Frenchmen, set out about the middle of March on a
trading expedition to New Mexico a trip for which Chapuis had
secured a license from French authorities. They first went upriver
to the Panimaha village to obtain horses. There, or later, when
in the Comanche country, eight men turned back. Chapuis and
Feuilli, after paying a heavy toll to the Comanches were given
directions to New Mexico. [Of their route across present Kansas
there is no record.]
Forty days later, and four and a half months after setting out
from Fort Cavagnolle, the two men reached Pecos mission, on
August 6. They came from the north, guided by an Ae woman
(a slave fleeing New Mexico) whom they had met north of the
Arkansas, and persuaded to show them the way. Chapuis and
Feuilli were taken into custody and sent to Mexico (and from
there to Spain). The merchandise on their nine pack horses was
confiscated and sold at auction.
Ref: Bolton's French Intrusions, pp. 400-404; Thomas, The Plains Indians, pp. 21, 24,
82, 85, 93, 94, 103-106; Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, p. 42.
1753
Macarty (the commandant at Illinois) reported, on May 20,
these items from the Western country:
"Four men who deserted from the Missouri post [Fort Cavagnolle] were
killed by 'Les panis noire' [Black Pawnees]. . . .
"The Laitannes [Comanches], numerous and wandering tribes between
our posts and the Spaniards, have asked . . . permission to come and
see me; they said they wished to have a father. . . .
"The Spaniards have been in convoys as far as the places where they were
defeated some years ago. . . ." [A reference to the Villasur massacre of
1720?]
Ref: Collections of the Illinois State Historical Library, v. 29, pp. 820, 821.
92 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
1755
Ste. Genevieve was settled by the French. (When, in 1763, the
French territory west of the Mississippi came under Spanish con-
trol, it was the only organized community in present Missouri.)
7757-7758
Antoine S. Le Page du Pratz's Histoire de la Louisiane was pub-
lished in Paris in 1758 (and later in English translation, in London).
The author (resident in the Natchez-New Orleans area from 1718
to 1734), wrote extensively, and from personal observation, of the
lower Mississippi country. For upper Louisiana he had to rely on
others. He devoted one chapter to an abridged version of Bourg-
mont's 1724 journey to the Padouca village; and he related a story
[fabrication?] supposedly obtained in an interview, of a Yazoo In-
dian named Moncacht-ape who was said to have gone far up the
Missouri before 1734.) But he apparently knew nothing of La
Harpe's 1719-1721 discoveries, or of the Mallet brothers* 1739 jour-
ney to Santa Fe, or even of the existence of the great Platte river. In
short, both Le Page du Pratz's writings and his map of Louisiana
(dated 1757, and published in the Histoire) were more than 20 years
out-of-date in presenting French geographical knowledge of the
1750's. (Delisle's map of 1718 contained more, and better data on
the country of the Arkansas and the Missouri. ) Of these rivers Le
Page du Pratz wrote:
[The Arkansas] . . . takes its rise in the mountains adjoining to the
east of Santa Fe. It afterwards goes up a little to the north [the great bend
in south-central Kansas] from whence it comes down to the south, a little
lower than its source. . . .
[The Missouri] . . . takes its rise at eight hundred leagues distance,
as is alleged, from the place where it discharges itself into the Mississippi
. . . though the Missouri comes out of a mountain, which lies to the
northwest of New Mexico, we are told that all the lands it passes through
are generally rich. . . . The French [have] . . . penetrated up the
Missouri only for about three hundred leagues at most. . . . According
to what I have been able to learn about the course of this great river, from
its source to the Canzas, it runs from west to east; and from that nation it
falls down to the southward, where it receives the river of the Canzas, which
comes from the west; there it forms a great elbow, which terminates in the
neighborhood of the Missouris. . . . The largest known river which
falls into the Missouri is that of the Canzas which runs for near two hundred
leagues in a very fine country. . . .
[Of the Indian tribes of the Missouri country] The principal nations who
inhabit upon the banks, or in the neighborhood of the Missouri, are, besides
. i . [the Missouris and Osages], the Canzas, the Othoues, the White
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 93
Panis, the Black Panis, the Panimachas, the Aiouez, and the Padoucas. The
most numerous of all those nations are the Padoucas, the smallest are the
Aiouez, the Othoues, and the Osages; the others are pretty considerable.
Ref: Antoine S. Le Page du Pratz, Histoire de la Louisiana (Paris, 1758); Bernard
De Veto's The Course of Empire (Boston, 1952), pp. 566-568 (for discussion of Mon-
cacht-ape).
7758
Describing the Missouri river Indians with whom the French had
dealings, the governor of Louisiana (Louis Billouart de Kerlerec),
reported that the Kansa had only 250 to 300 warriors. They had
once been very numerous, he wrote, but wars with the Pawnees,
and smallpox had greatly weakened them. He mentioned their
great friendship for the French, and noted that Fort Cavagnolle was
located at their village. He stated that the Great Osages numbered
700 warriors; the Little Osages 250; the Missouris about 150; the
Otoes 100; the lowas 200; the Pani-Mahas on the Platte 600; the
Mahas on the Missouri 800; and the Arikaras were thought to be
more numerous than the Mahas.
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 51-53.
7762
On November 3, by the secret treaty of San Ildefonso, France
ceded Louisiana west of the Mississippi, plus the Isle d'Orleans, to
her ally Spain.
(To Be Continued in the Summer, 1961, Issue.)
Some Notes on Kansas Cowtown Police Officers
and Gun Fighters Continued
NYLE H. MILLER and JOSEPH W. SNELL
JONES, DANIEL WILLIAM
(1846?- )
/^ALDWELL was incorporated on July 22, 1879, and the city
^S government was formed following the election of August 7.
One week later city ordinance No. 3, providing for a marshal and
policeman, was passed. Appointed under this ordinance were
George W. Flatt, marshal, and Dan W. Jones, deputy.
That Deputy Marshal Jones was a courageous man there can be
little doubt, for he had exhibited considerable fortitude after being
thrown from a horse, December 31, 1878. The Caldwell Post of
January 2, 1879, described the misfortune:
PAINFUL ACCIDENT.
THROWN FROM His HORSE Our ON THE PRAIRIES
ALMOST THIRTY-SIX HOURS WITHOUT FOOD
RESCUED AT LAST.
Dan Jones, who is well known to the people in these parts, met with a very
painful accident last Tuesday, the particulars of which are as follows: In the
morning of the day named, he started on horseback from the Red Fork ranch,
I. T., intending to look at a herd of cattle some distance below. After part of
the distance had been accomplished, and when Dan was little thinking of dan-
ger, his horse fell and threw him, breaking his leg. Unable to remount, and
too far away from any human being to make himself heard by shouting, he
began to think of some means whereby assistance might be obtained. Al-
though suffering terribly with the broken limb, the brave man strapped it to
the other and commenced crawling toward a high ridge overlooking Red Fork
ranch. All Tuesday night the plucky fellow was out, without any covering
save the clothing he wore. How many of our readers, under similar circum-
stances suffering to the intensest degree the agony of a broken leg, and almost
freezing to death from the severity of the cold, would have displayed the grit
that he did. Nor has all been told.
Daylight came at last, and with it the hopes of the brave man rose, for the
worst, he thought, had been passed. Slowly creeping on his painful journey,
Dan at length saw the much-wished-for ridge. At last it was reached, and
taking his hat he waved it feebly for his strength was fast leaving him. Geo.
Haines, the keeper of the ranch, saw it, and thinking it was a hunter who had
NYLE H. MILLER and JOSEPH W. SNELL are members of the staff of the Kansas State
Historical Society.
NOTE: These articles on Kansas cowtown officers and gun fighters, with additional
information and an index, are expected to be reprinted and offered for sale under one
cover, upon completion of the series in the Quarterly.
(94)
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 95
killed a deer, and that he was signaling for help, went to his assistance.
Imagine his surprise when, instead of finding the hunter and the slain deer, he
saw the man who had the day before started from his house, in such a pitiable
condition. Mr. Jones was taken to the ranch, and word sent to Dr. Hodge, at
Fort Reno, who came up and attended to the needs of the sufferer.
It was Tuesday morning when the accident happened, and three o'clock
P. M., Wednesday, when the man was found. It shows the stuff of which the
man is made, when he crawled three miles with a broken leg, while almost
freezing, and being without food for nearly thirty-six hours. At last accounts
the wounded man was improving, and we hope it may not be long before he will
be able to "go it alone" again.
Caldwell's police court docket, the initial entry being dated Sep-
tember 6, 1879, recorded Jones' first arrest on September 22. On
that same day this embarrassing incident occurred, and was re-
corded in the Post, September 25:
That "mistakes occur in the best of regulated families'* was only verrified
by the singular and unexpected incarceration and disarming of Deputy City
Marshal Dan Jones last Monday night, the circumstances of which are very
difficult to detail so that a modest public might clearly and unmistakably com-
prehend the situation, but the trials and tribulations of the news-monger can
only be surmised by those who were so unfortunate as to read of Mr. Beecher
in his balmy days, however, we will proceed by saying that Dan is a very
efficient officer, and where Dan can't be found, you can't find any one, as the
sequel will show.
It happened at one of Caldwell's fashionable hotels, and, like all other
fashionable hotels, has two small rooms over each door is an inscription by
which a person may know whether he is to be admitted or not, but it being
dark, and Dan's "business" qualifications not allowing him to stop and read
everything that is hung up entered. About this time a lady attempted to enter
but was foiled by Dan turning an inside latch the lady hastened away, but
soon returned with the key (this is not a romance) locked, unlocked and
relocked and finally left to return no more.
Now as Dan's occupation calls him on the street he concluded that he might
depart with safety, but imagine his feelings when he discovered that he had
been locked in, but, as will be seen, Dan is equal to all emergencies, and
began trying to extricate himself from his odorous prison. There is a seat in
the room just opposite the door upon which Dan sat himself down, put his
feet against the door, and with Heenan like strength pushed the door asunder,
and at the same instant back went Dan's revolver down, down to the bottom-
less after which a light was brought into requisition it was fished up, a
tub of water, barrel of soft soap and scrubbing-brush were readily used up
and the pistol looks as natural as ever, and if the street gossip don't mention
this we will never a say a word about it to Dan.
On October 29, 1879, Marshal Flatt and Deputy Jones failed to
catch John Dean who was firing his pistol within the city limits.
The Post article describing this escape was included in the section
on Flatt.
96 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Under his first appointment, Jones' final arrests, recorded in the
police court docket, were made November 3, 1879, when he brought
in four alleged violators of the law.
On April 12, 1880, Dan Jones was nominated assistant city
marshal by the newly elected mayor of Caldwell, Mike Meagher.
The city council confirmed his appointment as well as those of
William Horseman, marshal, and James Johnson, policeman, re-
ported the Post, April 15, 1880.
Jones' first arrest under this new appointment was made April
19. The Caldwell police court docket stated:
One Jersey Defendant arrested on the complaint of D. W. Jones, Assist
Marshall charging that on the 19 day of April A. D. 1880, at the said City
of Caldwell the said Defendant Riding his horse at Full Speed Through the
streets of Caldwell.
Deft Pleads Guilty.
Fine $3.00 + cost.
J. M. THOMAS
Police Judge
Fine and cost paid.
J. M. THOMAS
Acting Police Judge
Paid to treasure by J. M. Thomas
Jersey's arrest was recorded in the Caldwell Post, April 22, 1880:
One day in the early part of the week one of our noble defenders, holding
the exalted rank of corporal in Uncle Sam's army, was vainly attempting to
get up a race with some one. At last he made up his mind he would try
to beat his own shadow, so putting spurs to his horse, he went down Main
street like a thousand of brick. Dan Jones, our assistant marshal con-
sidered himself capable of being referee in the matter and declared "a foul."
The corporal goodnaturedly paid the city $7 for the use of the race course.
Jones and Policeman Johnson arrested another soldier on April
24. The article reporting this arrest was reprinted in the section
on James Johnson.
Soldiers were also the cause of a fight which took place in the
"Keno room" on May 11, 1880. This article was reprinted in the
section on William Horseman.
There is some confusion on the terminal date of Jones' second
appointment. The Caldwell police court docket did not list him
as a complaining officer after May 8, 1880, but the United States
census, enumerated as of June 5, recorded him as assistant marshal.
Apparently he was not on the city force when George Flatt was
killed, June 19. He was at that time, however, a township con-
stable and the first man to whom Flatt spoke after he had been
shot.
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 97
Jones was among those arrested for suspected complicity in the
crime. The Caldwell Commercial, July 1, 1880, labeled him "con-
stable" in its report of the arrests while the Post of the same date
merely identified him as "Mister" Jones. When the Flatt murder
case was tried at the April, 1881, term of the district court, Jones
was released because his name had been omitted from the in-
formation. The sections on Flatt, Horseman, Johnson, and Meagher
contain more material on the arrest and trial of the city authorities.
Constable Jones arrested a horse thief on July 21, 1880. The
Caldwell Commercial of July 22, reported:
There was quite a little flurry of excitement at the Eldorado stables yes-
terday morning, caused by the arrest of a horse thief. The thief's name is
D. Waterman, and the horse was stolen on Monday night from a man named
J. C. Brain, living between Winfield and Arkansas City. Brain discovered
the loss of the animal some time during the night, and at once sent parties
out to catch the thief and recover the property. Among those who started
out were C. McKerlie and D. W. Ramage. They struck Waterman's trail
at Arkansas City, followed him from there to Caldwell, reaching here about
dark, some three or four hours after Waterman had arrived and put up his
horse at the Eldorado stables. Finding the man and horse both here, and
not likely to get away, they waited until yesterday morning before taking in
the outfit.
At daylight Waterman concluded it was about time for him to start out,
and mounting his horse, put out for the north. Ramage and McKerlie im-
mediately went in search of a policeman, and finding Dan Jones, pursuit was
given and the thief overhauled before he had time to get any distance from
town. Waterman owns up to the theft and says he stole the horse because
he was broke and wanted to raise a stake. And he succeeded beyond his
most sanguine expectations. He will be staked to a few years grub and hard
work under the fostering care of the State institution near Leavenworth.
Jones was reappointed several times for short periods of service
as a special policeman. Arrests made by him were docketed on
September 13 and October 14, 1880. On October 9 it was in that
capacity that Jones aided Marshal Johnson in the fruitless pursuit
of Frank Hunt's killer. The article reporting Hunt's death and the
actions of the marshal and his special assistant has been printed in
the section on Hunt.
Red Bill Jones, a name given Dan Jones by the Caldwell Post,
October 30, 1879, reappeared in the Post and the Caldwell Com-
mercial, October 27, 1881. Said the Commercial:
Bill Jones, better known as "Red Bill," turned himself loose for a little racket
on Tuesday night. Bill was taken in and locked up in the cooler, but upon
going to that institution yesterday morning, Marshal [John] Rowen found the
74660
98 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
door broken open and the bird gone. A states warrant has been issued against
William and the next time he puts in an appearance he will be arrested again
and trotted through on high pressure.
It seems unlikely that Dan "Red Bill" Jones and William "Red
Bill" Jones were one and the same. Only a few days after the above
event Dan Jones was offered the marshalship of Caldwell, a proposi-
tion hardly to be tendered an escapee with a state warrant on his
head. Dan Jones, as well as Mike Meagher and George Brown,
refused the position and with that Jones disappeared from the annals
of the Caldwell police force.
LOWE, JOSEPH
(1845P-1874?)
Joseph "Rowdy Joe" Lowe, and his wife Rowdy Kate, were two
of the early characters in Wichita's tough district, Delano. The team
operated what was ostensibly a dance hall and saloon but which was
actually a house of prostitution. Delano, or West Wichita as it was
more often called, was not a part of the city of Wichita but was a
separate community across the Arkansas river. City authority did
not extend beyond the river and West Wichita had no law of its
own. When things would get too "hot" for trouble makers in
Wichita they merely had to cross the bridge at the foot of Douglas
avenue to find refuge in West Wichita. From the earliest days there
were some persons who felt that West Wichita should be annexed
and law extended over its bounds but others saw the place as a
safety valve, a necessary adjunct to house the lively element at-
tendant to any cowtown.
In June, 1872, after a visit to Wichita, the editor of the Emporia
Ledger had this to say about West Wichita:
THE IMMORALITY
of Wichita is not of such a terrible nature after all. The city is governed by
an excellent body of officers, due strictness and enforcement being paid to law.
We saw nothing while there to induce us to encourage the report for crime and
wickedness which has already gone forth. "Over the river" may be called the
red-hot place of Wichita, where everything originates and culminates to give
a hard name to this youthful city. Some are agitating the addition of West
Wichita to the city, but we believe that in doing so the city proper will be
injured more than benefitted, because authority will be required to cover too
much ground, and in leaving it out the city has now some point for a vent to
everything bordering upon crime. If West Wichita should become a part of the
city there would be just as much freedom to transcend the decencies of civiliza-
tion in one portion of the city as any, but leaving it out, all such parties will
go over the bridge to be buried. With the present condition of things we ask
no better protection than Wichita now offers. 1
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 99
Rowdy Joe was his own policeman. When a customer became
too rambunctious after a night of swill and gaiety, Joe would calm
him down with a pistol whipping. Such an incident occurred on
July 19, 1872, and was reported in the Wichita Eagle on July 26:
A fracas occurred at the dance house of Joseph Lowe, in West Wichita,
on last Friday evening, in which a man by the name of Joseph Walters, who
was at the time drunk, was badly bruised and cut about the face and head,
by a revolver in the hands of the keeper of the house. Dr. [W. T.] Hendrick-
son dressed the man's wounds. From what we can learn Walters invited the
attack by very disorderly conduct. At this writing the wounded man lies in
a very critical condition.
A correspondent (perhaps S. S. Prouty, general manager) of the
Topeka Daily Kansas Commonwealth described Rowdy Joe's on
October 15, 1872:
A description of Wichita would be incomplete without a notice of the
notorious dance house on the west side of the river, kept by that singular
personage
ROWDY JOE,
or Joseph Lowe, his real name. Joe has been a frontiersman for many years,
and has experienced about as much roughness as any other man. His dance
house is patronized mainly by cattle herders, though all classes visit it; the re-
spectable mostly from curiosity. I understand that the receipts over his bar
average over one hundred dollars per night for months. The receipts are for
drinks. No tax is levied for dancing, but it is expected that the males will
purchase drinks for themselves and female partners at the conclusion of each
dance. Joe is his own policeman, and maintains the best of order. No one is
disposed to pick a quarrel with him, or infringe upon the rules of his house.
A dancing party at this place is unique, as well as interesting. The Texan,
with mammoth spurs on his boots, which are all exposed, and a broad brimmed
sombrero on his head, is seen dancing by the side of a well-dressed, gentle-
manly-appearing stranger from some eastern city; both having painted and
jeweled courtezans for partners. In the corner of the hall are seen gamblers
playing at their favorite game of poker. Jests and conversation suitable to
the place and oc[ca]sion are heard. I would not recommend the establishment
as one adapted for the schooling of the rising generation, but to those of mature
years, who should become acquainted with all phases of society, Rowdy Joe's
is a good place to get familiarized with one peculiar phase. While I would not
recommend Rowdy Joe as a model for Sunday school scholars, yet I am con-
strained to say that there are many men passing in society as gentlemen whose
hearts are black in comparison with his.
Possibly the correspondent did not know that the person whose
heart he so charitably described had been involved in several early
day escapades which obviously had no connection with Sunday
school. For instance, on July 16, 1869, Joe and a companion
drugged and robbed a man in Ellsworth. The Junction City Weekly
Union, July 24, 1869, reported the act:
100 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Friday night of last week a man was found drugged and robbed in Ellsworth
by fellows known as Jim Bush and Rowdy Joe, the people got after them and
in a few days secured the robbers and about seven hundred and fifty dollars
of the money. They turned the money over to a pal named Howe who was also
secured. The parties were permitted to leave the country. . . .
In November, 1870, Lowe was accused of stealing a mule. The
case was recorded in the docket of the Wichita township justice
of the peace:
The State of Kansas
against Criminal Action 35
Joseph Low
Comes now T. I. McAdams this day of November 1870, and after
being swom according to Law deposes and Says that one Joseph Low on or
about the 12th day of October A. D. 1870 at and in Said County of Sedgwick
and State of Kansas, then and there being, did feloniously Steal take and
carry away One Slate Colored Mule of the Value of One Hundred and Seventy
five Dollars the personal property of Thos J. McAdams
November 1870 State Warrant issued returnable forthwith
Served this warrant by arresting Joseph Low alias Rody [sic] Joe at Ells-
worth City Ellsworth County Kans and bringing him to Wichita Sedgwick
County Kansas before Justice Van Trees Wichita J. P. Kans This 17th day of
March 1871.
Fees Serving Warrant 75
Milage 200 miles 20.00
Board 5 00
Jailor 1000
Expenses 5 00
$40.75
W. N. WALKER Sheriff
J. C. SEIBER Deputy
And now towit on this 17th day of March 1871 this Cause Comes on for
hearing, the Prosecuting Witness not appearing, the County Atty Dismissed this
action at the Costs of the Prosecuting Witness T. I. McAdams.
Costs taxed at $49.40. VAN TREES J. P.
In Ellsworth, too, Rowdy Joe and Kate kept a saloon but the
United States census enumerator for the county forever branded
their real occupation on his tally sheet when in scarlet letters he
wrote before their names "house of ill fame." Kate, by the way,
was only 19 years old when the census was taken on July 1, 1870,
while Joe was 24. Both were born in Illinois.
In May, 1873, sportsman Lowe was injured in an accident on his
way home from the races. The Eagle, May 22, 1873, said:
On returning from the races last Saturday, Joseph Lowe's familiarly known
as Rowdy Joe horse fell, throwing Mr. L. under him. He was picked up
insensible and carried into the house of Ida May and a doctor sent for. At
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 101
this writing (Monday) we have not heard further, but several who saw the
accident thought him badly hurt.
Next door to Rowdy Joe's place in West Wichita a similar house
was operated by E. T. "Red" Beard. On June 3 a shooting occurred
there which eventually caused the destruction of Red's and threat-
ened the existence of Rowdy Joe's. The Eagle, June 5, 1873, re-
ported:
A shooting affray occurred on the west bank of the river, opposite Wichita,
on Tuesday morning, between a party of rowdies and some soldiers, in which
a "girl of the period" named Emma Stanley received a severe wound, two
soldiers also being seriously injured. Doley, a private, was shot through the
neck, the ball being extracted from the throat. Another soldier, named Boyle,
had his right shin bone splintered by another ball. Neither of the parties were
implicated in the origin of the affray. The balls were extracted by Dr. [C. C.]
Furley, and the parties are all doing well.
The Topeka Commonwealth, June 4, 1873, went into more detail:
A TERRIBLE SHOOTING AFFRAY AT WICHITA.
ONE WOMAN AND Two SOLDIERS BADLY WOUNDED.
THE SOLDIERS' COMRADES HIGHLY INDIGNANT.
LIVELY TIMES EXPECTED. . . .
SPECIAL DISPATCH TO THE COMMONWEALTH.
Wichita, Kansas, June 3. A shooting scrape occurred at Red's dance house
in West Wichita, in which two soldiers of company A 6th cavalry, and Emma
Stanley, an inmate of the house, were badly wounded. The shooting originated
in a quarrel which one of the soldiers had with the woman. He claims that
she was attempting to beat him out of five dollars, and that he threatened to
shoot her unless she complied with his demands, which she treated with con-
tempt. He then drew his revolver and shot her through the fleshy part of the
thigh, six inches below the hip joint. As soon as the shot was fired Red instantly
drew his self -cocking revolver and commenced an indiscriminate fusilade, shoot-
ing two soldiers. One soldier was shot an inch below the angle of the lower
jaw, in the neck, the ball lodging in the throat at the base of the tongue, and
nearly severing it in its passage. It was extracted by Dr. Finley [C. C. Furley],
of this city. His comrade received a ball through the middle of the calf of the
leg, severely splintering the shin bone. The soldiers who were shot were not
engaged in the quarrel, and are spoken of by their comrades as being very quiet
and gentlemanly. The soldier who commenced the affray escaped unhurt and
deserted last night. The dance house was closed this morning when your re-
porter called, and no admittance could be obtained. Rumor has it that Red
has disappeared and will not be seen until the soldiers leave, who are en route
for Ft. Hays. They are terribly indignant and threaten to raze the house to the
ground.
Lively times are expected to-night. . . , .
Not long after, the indignant soldiers returned. The Eagle, June
5, 1873, reported:
The soldiers have carried out their threat. This morning about 2 o'clock
102 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
we were aroused from sleep by the rapid discharge of firearms across the river.
Hurrying on our clothes we ran down to the bridge, by which time the lurid
flames were bursting forth from "Red's" dance house, accompanied by a yell
from a squad of some thirty soldiers, whom we met on the bridge, marching
by fours. They appeared to be perfectly possessed, and after the order to
"shoulder arms," asked us "how is that for high?" pointing to the burning build-
ing. Being the first upon the ground, we found a man lying some fifty yards
in front of the burning building, who gave his name as Chas. Leshhart, wounded
through the body. We saw no one else that was hurt, but we heard that one
of the girls was wounded, and that the girl wounded in the melee on Monday
night had received a fresh shot. In a few minutes hundreds of citizens were
upon the ground, and by prompt action and considerable exertion the house
of Joseph Lowe was saved. The soldiers went off up Water street. We have
no room for comments, but upon the whole the affairs of Monday and last
night are no credit to our neighbor town.
The avenging troopers had been well organized. The Eagle, June
12, 1873, mentioned their precautions: "Before the soldiers made
their raid upon Red's dance house, on last Wednesday night, they
stationed a guard around the sheriffs [John Meagher's] house, an-
other at the end of the bridge, and another with the horses on a
back street."
Rowdy Joe and his neighbor, Red, were fighting again the night
of October 27, 1873, but this time they chose each other. The after-
math of the combat included Red's death and Rowdy Joe's hasty
departure from Sedgwick county. The Eagle, October 30, 1873,
reported:
The dance houses on the west side of the river were again the scene of a
terrible and fearful onset, on Monday night last. We have heard the versions
of the principal actors, as also that of outsiders and the officers, with little
satisfaction. Suffice it to say that the proprietors of the two dance houses in
West Wichita, which stand in close proximity, "Rowdy Joe" and "Red," both
being mad from the effects of distilled poison, and armed with revolvers and
shot guns, waltzed into a deadly melee. Rowdy Joe was shot in the back of the
neck with a pistol ball. The wound is not dangerous. Red was wounded in
the arm and hip by buck shot from a shot gun. The chances are that he will
lose the lower part of his arm. A poor dance girl, Annie Franklin, sick at the
time, received a shot in the abdomen, which the doctors think must prove fatal.
Bill Anderson, who through mistake killed a man last spring, was shot in the
head, the ball passing just back of the eyes. Was alive at last accounts. Rowdy
Joe gave himself up, and is now out on $2,000 bail. No other arrests have been
made, we believe. Comment is unnecessary, and a further dilation worse than
foolish.
Red died on November 11. The Wichita Eagle, November 13,
1873, said:
E. T. Beard, better known as "Red," the proprietor of one of the dance
houses across the river, paid the penalty of his misdeeds with his life, on Tues-
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 103
day morning at 3 o'clock a. m. It will be remembered that he was shot in a
row at his dance house some two weeks since. A post mortem examination was
made upon the body day before yesterday by Dr. [H.] Owens, the coroner. In
company with Mr. [Fred A.] Sowers, of the Beacon, we proceeded to the Eagle
Hotel, where we found seven doctors and a coroner's jury. The examination
disclosed that his right arm at the elbow had been shattered fearfully and was
in a state of decay. The wound in the hip was also in the same state. In the
latter wound a bullet was found imbedded in the bone. Traces of pus were
discovered, we believe, about the wound and in the lungs. The examination
was very thorough, but we withdrew before the entire process was gone through
with. At the hotel were several frail women, who had been inmates of his
house, who seemed much affected. We noticed also Rowdy Joe, who is charged
with shooting Red, who wore a solemn countenance.
The post mortem examination, technically and properly stated, revealed the
fact of death by infiltration of pus in the blood, the result of gun shot wounds.
E. T. Beard was formerly from Beardstown, 111., which place was laid out
and named after his father, who was wealthy. He was well educated, and had
Christian training. He has three children, two daughters and a son, nearly
grown, who are now attending school somewhere in the east, and know nothing
of their father's wild life in the west. He was about forty-five years of age,
straight as an arrow, red hair, which fell in a profusion of curls upon his shoul-
ders, and from which he took his name of "Red," an enormous moustache and
large nose. He knew no such thing as fear and was counted one of the best
shots on the border. At the time of the burning of his house last summer by
U. S. soldiers, and at which time, in a desperate encounter against great odds,
he shot and wounded several, he remarked to some of our citizens that he
would not live the summer through. He told Dr. Furley last week that he
followed the disreputable business only in the hopes of getting a start in the
world again, but if he got over his wounds he would never go inside of a dance
house again.
"Oh, what a sign it is of evil life
When death's approach is seen so terrible."
Beard left some property and money in the hands of parties here for the use
and benefit of his children, in the shape of a regular bequest.
A Winfield editor, who had known Red in days before, gave some
additional information:
"Red." James Kelley, the editor of the Windfield Courier, who was in
Wichita the day "Red" was burned, was acquainted with the desperado in his
early life, and in his paper makes the following interesting note:
"Red was none other than Ed. Beard, whose father gave to Beardstown, Cass
county, Illinois, his name. We remember Ed. Beard as a jolly, rollicking young
man, without a single bad trait in his make up. He married an estimable young
lady near Virginia, Cass county. The writer of this article met "Red" last July,
at Wichita, for the first time since he left Illinois, ten or twelve years ago. He
then gave us his solemn promise that so soon as the Texas "season" was over
he would abandon forever his wild, infamous life. The next time we saw him
was in his coffin, and while we stood and gazed on that lifeless clay, going back
in thought to his wild reckless life for the last twelve years, in California, Ore-
104 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
gon and Arizonia, where his name was a terror to everybody, we could hardly
convince ourselves that this was the handsome, jovial gifted Ed. Beard. Verily,
the way of the transgressor is hard. Peace to his ashes." 2
On November 20, 1873, the Eagle reported:
Joseph Lowe, charged with killing Beard, had his examination before Esquire
[E. B.] Jewett this week, [H. C.] Sluss upon the part of the state, [S. M.]
Tucker for the defendant, the result of which was, bound over in the sum of
$2,000 for his appearance at the December term of court. The evidence is very
voluminous, and, although we procured much of it, we cannot spare the space
for its insertion.
Rowdy Joe's case came up before the Sedgwick county district
court on December 9, 1873. The Eagle, December 11, reported:
The district court opened Monday noon, with Judge W. P. Campbell on
the bench. . . .
Tuesday morning the case, state of Kansas vs. Joseph Lowe, alias, Rowdy
Joe, was called. The court room filled with curious and interested people. In
securing a jury the usual number of preemptory challenges were exhausted by
the defense, but an unobjectionable jury was empannelled within an hour or
two. H. C. Sluss for the state, [B. H.] Fisher, Tucker and [J. Smith] Deveny
for the defense. Much interest has been evinced by court, bar and jury in the
evidence given by the witnesses for the state, who, at this writing, Wednesday
morning, we give in their testimony, and the prosecuting attorney will, in a
few moments, rest his case. We understand that a large number of witnesses
will be examined for the defense, and when the case will be given to the jury
it is impossible to say, although a verdict may be reached before tomorrow
morning. To give an opinion, or even to hazard a guess, as to what the verdict
will be, would be impossible, of course, in this connection, but should one be
rendered before going to press to-night we shall append it to this article.
The trial went to the jury on December 10 and the next morning
Rowdy Joe was pronounced not guilty. New warrants were then
issued against him for wounding Anderson and for destruction of
property, but Lowe had skipped out. The Wichita Eagle, Decem-
ber 18, 1873, said:
In the culmination of the trial of Rowdy Joe on last Wednesday evening, for
the killing of Red, more than ordinary interest was evinced by the people of
the city. The court room was crowded, the stage in the rear of the hall even
being filled. The judge charged the jury at great length on what constituted
murder in the second degree, including five lesser crimes, either of which the
prisoner might be found guilty under the charge. There were four speeches
made by counsel, of the average duration of an hour each. H. C. Sluss, for the
state, opened with a review of the entire testimony, giving his constructions
and conclusions. After supper he was followed by S. M. Tucker for the de-
fense, who not only in a clever but able manner reviewed the case in all its
legal bearings. He in turn was followed by Smith Deveny, of Olathe, in an
appeal to the jury, in which was recited the redeeming traits of Rowdy Joe, and
in which was pictured in not very enviable colors the vagabond and desperado,
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 105
Red. By this time the interest of the spectators was visible to court and jury.
Mr. Sluss rose to close. His earnest manner told that he appreciated his
surroundings. Embarrassed by his own witnesses, who were composed of men
and women in full sympathy with the accused, whose sense of modesty and
appreciation of right had long since been sacrificed with their virtue, and who
cared little for the obligations of an oath, and less for the penalty that is
attached to its violation, he had been conducting the case through almost hope-
less surroundings. But unawed by menaces and undismayed in the absence of
sympathy, with all the earnestness of his nature, he stood up to defend the
sacred right to life, and the majesty of the law.
Despite the fact of being in a court of justice, upon closing his speech the
spectators gave way to an uproarous applauding. It was a spontaneous ac-
knowledgment by the better class of citizens of the able and conscientious
manner in which the attorney for the people had discharged his duty. The
jury retired at about 10 o'clock. A verdict of "not guilty" was rendered next
morning.
Immediately another writ was issued for his arrest for shooting Anderson,
also an action was commenced against him for damages. The pressure was too
great, and Rowdy Joe came up missing last Sunday morning. He had eluded
the vigilance of the officer, Mr. [John] Nugent, who had him in charge, and
at this writing nothing has been heard of him. Sheriff [William] Smith with a
posse followed all Saturday night, but returned disappointed. On Monday
Smith had several parties arrested for participating or criminality in his escape,
among them Rowdie Kate, the result of which we will inform our readers all
in good season.
Sedgwick County Sheriff William Smith offered $100 for Rowdy
Joe's return. The Eagle, December 18, 1873, published a description
of the wanted man:
I will give $100.00 reward for the apprehension of one Joseph Lowe, alias
Rowdy Joe, a fugitive from justice from Sedgwick county, Kansas. He is about
28 years old, 5 feet 9 inches tall, heavy set, dark complexion, black hair, and
heavy black moustache, gruff manners, formerly proprietor of a dance house.
Had a scar on right side of neck from a pistol ball. Had on, when last seen,
black pants, brown frock coat, and a brown overcoat, trimmed with fur; rode a
bay horse with California saddle. The foregoing is the matter of a notice sent
to all sheriffs in the western states by Wm. Smith.
A few days after the trial, Rowdy Joe showed up in Osage Mission,
a Neosho county town now known as St. Paul. William D. Walker,
editor of the Osage Mission Transcript, did not know another war-
rant was hanging over Joe's head when, on December 19, 1873, he
wrote: "ROWDY JOE the famous Wichitan is in town, and not much
rowdy about him after all/'
The same day, however, Editor Walker learned of the second
charge against Lowe, but the culprit had flown "GTT" (gone to
Texas ) as the frontiersmen called it. The editor immediately noti-
fied the Wichita Eagle, which reported:
106 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Rowdy Joe, it seems from the following card, went direct east instead of
south or southwest, as nearly every one supposed he had. Mr. Walker, who
writes us, is the editor of the Transcript and knows Rowdy Joe, so there is no
mistake:
OSAGE MISSION, Dec. 19th, 1873.
BROS MURDOCK: Had your EAGLE reached here one day sooner, Rowdy Joe
would have been taken. He has been here for several days, but left here yester-
day morning for Texas. The horse is still in a stable. He watched the papers
regularly in my office. Yours, WALKER. 3
In spite of the fact that Lowe could not be caught, the Wichita
Eagle seemed satisfied with the results of the trial:
Wichita is fast getting rid of that element which has proved such a curse to
her prosperity, thanks to the county attorney and the improved sentiment of the
place which is backing him up. Rowdy Joe made a telling shot that night. It
shot "Red" into eternity; himself out of the country; Anderson through the head;
[Walter] Beebe, Red's bar tender, into the penitentiary [for assisting Joe to
escape]; Joe De Merritt, Red's mistress, into the penitentiary; Rowdy Kate to
parts unknown; and Smith, Omet and another into jail for perjury. "The mills
of the gods grind slowly but they grind exceedingly small." Patten was sen-
tenced for a year, Beebe for three years, and Josephine De Merritt for ten
years. 4
Rowdy Joe was finally arrested in St. Louis, Mo., on January 3,
1874. A dispatch from St. Louis, reprinted in the Wichita Eagle,
January 8, notified the town of his capture and subsequent release:
ROWDY JOE.
ST. Louis, Mo., Jan. 5. Joseph Lowe, alias A. A. Becker, was arrested here
on Saturday by orders received from Kansas, and was released to-day on a writ
of habeas corpus, and after it was known that Sheriff Smith, of Sedgwick county,
would arrive here on the first train to take him back to Kansas. Over $8,000
were found on Lowe.
Ex-Sheriff Smith arrived home yesterday. The facts above given, he says,
are correct. After he was notified that Joe was under arrest he telegraphed to
the officers of St. Louis three times to hold him, as he would procure a requisi-
tion and be down on the next train. Just as he got ready to start he was notified
by telegraph that Joe had escaped upon a writ of habeas corpus. It is evident
that somebody in St. Louis was bought up.
The St. Louis Democrat evidently felt the same way but in addi-
tion to the charge of bribery the Democrat included internal bicker-
ing within the St. Louis police department as a factor in Lowe's
release:
RELEASE OF ROWDY JOE.
A NOTED CHARACTER ALLOWED TO EVADE A KANSAS SHERIFF,
A RATHER STRANGE PROCEEDING.
For some time past the chief of police and the detectives have not been on
the most friendly terms. There were various causes for this, but the matter was
kept very quiet, and few knew of it, save those whose daily duty brings them
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 107
in contact with the police department. Yesterday this trouble rose to the sur-
face, and there is a prospect that in a few days it will result in something
.serious. The cause of yesterday's rupture is as follows:
On Saturday last a noted character from Nevada named Joseph Low, fa-
miliarly known by the elegant cognomen of "Rowdy Joe," was arrested at the
Laclede hotel by Detective Duckworth, one of the shrewdest men on the force.
Low had been in the city some time and was under the surveillance of the
detectives, who knew his reputation and suspected that his visit was not for any
good. They were not aware that he was needed anywhere else until the receipt
of the following telegram:
LEAVENWORTH, January 2nd.
Arrest and hold A. A. Becker for breaking jail; about five feet ten inches;
thirty years old; square shoulders; heavy built; very full face; black moustache,
eyes and hair; fresh scar across the back of his neck. He is to meet Kate Low
to-morrow morning on arrival of one of the trains from Kansas City. Kate left
here at 3 p. m. Kate is slender built; light brown hair; waterproof suit lined
with red; has with her one large bull-dog in express car; also one small yellow
lap dog; she will probably arrive by Missouri Pacific. A. A. Becker is an as-
sumed name; is stopping at the Laclede hotel. C. H. HALLETT,
Deputy United States Marshal.
Two days afterward another dispatch was received from Wm. Smith, sheriff
-of Sedgwick county, Kansas [Smith had been defeated for sheriff on November
4, 1873, and on January 1, 1874, turned the office over to the successful candi-
date, Pleasant H. Massey], asking if Low had been arrested, and on January 5th,
still another came, as follows:
LEAVENWORTH, January 5th.
Is Low still in your custody? Answer quick. If so, I will be down on the
next train. WM. SMITH, Sheriff.
And yesterday morning, in answer to the telegram announcing the arrest of
Lowe, a dispatch was received from Smith, stating that he would be down on
the next train, and asking the Chief to hold the prisoner until his arrival.
When Low was arrested, the snug sum of $8,295 was found on him. He
passed under the assumed name of A. A. Becker, and was having a gay time
with the boys.
Yesterday morning Mr. R. S. MacDonald and Kate Low, the prisoner's wife,
called on Chief McDonough and had a conference, which resulted in the chief
sending a note to Mr. A. W. Mead, the attorney of the board, asking whether the
money found in Low's possession could be turned over to his wife. Mr. Mead
answered that if he was not arrested on a charge which involved the money,
such as larceny, it could be turned over on an order from Low. The money
was accordingly given to Mrs. Low. The next step was to secure Low's release
before the arrival of the sheriff, and MacDonald proceeded at once to the court
of criminal correction and took advantage of the "great writ of habeas corpus."
In the petition it was claimed that Low "is now unlawfully and illegally
restrained of his liberty by one Capt. James McDonough, chief of police; that
no warrant or criminal process has been issued against him; that he is [not]
guilty of the violation of any law of the state; that he was arrested by order of
said McDonough, illegally, and is in the custody and control of said Mc-
Donough, and is held by said McDonough in confinement against his will and
108 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
consent; that there are no papers or process against him, and that his imprison-
ment was unlawful and unjust.
Judge Colvin ordered the writ issued, and it was immediately delivered to
the Chief, who made the following return thereon:
"Executed the within writ, by delivering the within mentioned Joseph Low
to the St. Louis court of criminal correction, this 5th day of January, 1874.
JAMES McDoNOUGH,
"Chief of Police."
Low was then taken before Judge Colvin by Detective Duckworth and
Tracy. The Judge asked Duckworth if that was all the return there was to
be made, and was answered that there were some telegrams. The chief how-
ever, was willing to have the man released, but the detectives wanted him held
until the sheriff arrived. Judge Colvin said he would recognize only the Chief,
and told Duckworth to go and ascertain if that was all the returns to be made.
"Duck" soon returned with a note to the judge, saying that the only authority
he had for holding the man was the above telegrams, which he forwarded for
the judge's inspection and enlightenment. Judge Colvin was in a quandery after
reading them, and in a very hasty manner told the detective that he might
have kept the writ back twenty-four hours if he wanted to, and knew the sheriff
was coming for his prisoner. "Duck" replied that he did not answer the writ.
Mr. McDonald moved that the prisoner be discharged, which was accordingly
done, and Low, with several friends, rapidly disappeared from the court, entered
a carriage and drove swiftly away.
There were many comments on the case made, and several parties were so
rash as to hint that some one in authority received a portion of the small change
that Mrs. Low received a most preposterous idea!
Low is said to have escaped from jail, where he was confined on a charge
of murder. 5
Later in the year Rowdy Joe was one of the early gold hunters
in the Black Hills region of Dakota territory, and it was reported
that he had been killed by Indians. The Eagle published the story
October 29, 1874:
ROWDY JOE MURDERED.
Mayor [James G.] Hope received a letter from J. W. Brockett, now at
Yankton, containing the information that Rowdy Joe, alias Joseph Lowe, so
well known at Wichita, was with the party which was enroute for the Black
Hills, and which was attacked by Indians and a portion of its number killed.
The notorious Rowdy Joe fell first mortally wounded. We last week published
an account of the attack, but the dispatches had his name John Lowe, instead
of Joe. Thus this violent man met a violent death. Several of his victims
are taking their last long sleep beneath the prairie sod of this border. Anderson,
another, is here in Wichita, totally blind; Walter Beebe, who helped Lowe to
escape the officers of the law at this place, is in the penitentiary, and Josephine
Demerit keeps Beebe company. What a list of crimes Joe has gone to answer
for.
Mayor Hope handed us an account of the attack clipped from a Yankton
paper, from which we make the following extract:
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 109
"Of the Yankton company, Lowe was instantly killed three bullets piercing
his body from a volley fired at the tent; Chas. Allen was wounded in the leg
by an arrow; Baden was shot through the chest, probably fatally, while Orton
received a flesh wound in the arm. The Indians then retreated from the field,
when the Yanktonians put the body of Lowe, together with wounded man,
Baden, into their wagon, and turning their faces homeward, traveled all night,
leaving Mr. Baden at the Bohemian settlement and burying Mr. Lowe a few
miles further east near a soldier camp, occupied by a detachment sent out
from Randall to guard the settlers. The survivors arrived at Yankton on Thurs-
day night. Their wagon bears unmistakable evidences of the bloody fight the
party had with the Indians, being completely riddled with bullets and covered
with the gore of their wounded and dead comrades, for it acted the part of a
fortification behind which the boys concealed themselves as best they could
during the time they were besieged. The survivors of this expedition will most
likely give up opening a stock farm in that portion of Nebraska lately visited
by them."
In 1899 the Wichita Eagle again reported that Rowdy Joe Lowe
had been killed, this time in a Denver saloon. Lowe, then 72 ac-
cording to the paper, insulted the Denver police department and
was shot by a former policeman. 8
Thus the reader has a choice of endings for the character known
as Rowdy Joe.
1. Wichita City Eagle, June 28, 1872. 2. Ibid., November 27, 1873. 3. Ibid., De-
cember 25, 1873. 4. Ibid., January 8, 1874. 5. Ibid., January 15, 1874. 6. February
15, 1899.
McCARTY, HARRY T.
( -1878)
Harry T. McCarty, surveyor and draftsman, was appointed deputy
United States marshal for Ford county (Dodge City) in April, 1878.
The Ford County Globe, April 30, reported his commission:
DEPUTY U. S. MARSHALSHIP.
Our active, energetic fellow-citizen, H. T. McCarty, who is known to every
man, woman and child in Ford County, has received his commission as Deputy
U. S. Marshal, under U. S. Marshal [Benjamin F.] Simpson.
When we say that the appointment gives good satisfaction to our farmers
and a large majority of our business men, we simply tell the truth. There are,
of course, some who may not like his appointment, but by inquiry they will be
found to be, either violaters of the U. S. laws themselves, or personal enemies
of Mr. McCarty.
We know that no other man in the County is so well fitted and qualified for
the position as he is; because of his unlimited information concerning the viola-
tions of laws which take place in this county, and his desire to stop them.
We are greatly pleased that such a judicious choice has been made by Mr.
Simpson, and predict a faithful performance of duty, "according to Hoyle," by
Deputy Marshal McCarty.
110 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Harry McCarty served less than three months. On July 13, 1878,.
he was shot and killed. His tragic murder was first described in the
Dodge City Times, July 13:
ANOTHER MURDER.
H. T. MCCARTY COWARDLY ASSASSINATED.
THE MURDERED MAN'S OWN PISTOL THE DEADLY WEAPON.
H. T. McCarty, a well-known citizen of Dodge City, was shot this morning:
about 4 o'clock, at the Long Branch saloon. The shot took effect in the right
groin, severing the femoral artery; and the unfortunate man, after profusely-
bleeding for about an hour, expired.
The circumstances of the shooting are about as follows: A party of men
were ridiculing one of their number, one Thomas Roach, a half-witted, rattle-
brained and quarrelsome wretch, who, becoming incensed at the jibes and
jeers of the crowd, rushed to where McCarty stood at the bar, and drawing
McCarty 's pistol from the latter 's side, flourished it once or twice and fired one
shot, which took effect as we have stated. McCarty was quietly standing at
the bar drinking, and was in no manner connected with the hilarious crowd-
A pistol shot was fired at the murderer, Tom Roach, which grazed him, though
he fell to the floor, pretending to be dead, which prevented a bystander from
repeating the shot upon being informed that the murderer of McCarty was;
already dead.
McCarty was removed to the house of Chas. Ronan, where in about an hour
he died, having bled to death. The murderer was arrested and placed in jail.
A coroner's inquest was held this morning and the facts were elicited about
as we have stated.
There is a good deal of indignation manifested over this brutal, unwarranted
murder; and while it may appear in the present temper of a large class of
people that law's delays and uncertainties are dangerous to the peace, life and
protection of the community, we hope the sober, second thought will prevail
and justice take its course.
Limping Tom, the prisoner, as he is familiarly known, was a cook in the
camp of Shiner Bros. He was once led out of town last night and bid his way
to camp, the party knowing Tom's querulous nature when under the influence
of liquor. He has been living in this section of Kansas since last fall, and is
generally unknown.
The deceased, H. T. McCarty, was an old resident of the border and for
several years a resident of Dodge City. He was well-known in this section of
Kansas.
He held the office of Surveyor of Ford county for two years, and followed
the occupation of surveying and painting. The deceased was a man of warm,
genial nature, and though he made strong friends he had bitter enemies. He
was a man of excellent attainments, though of rude culture; a forcible writer,
and an artist and painter of no mean merit. While possessing virtues he had
faults; but the kindlier nature takes hold of these people as the soul of the
deceased is wafted to another sphere. His faults are buried with the body, and
the virtues only hold in the affections and sympathy of the kind and generous
people of Dodge City.
The funeral of the deceased McCarty takes place this afternoon at 4 o'clock
under the auspices of the Dodge City Fire Company, of which company the
deceased was a member.
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 111
The Ford County Globe reported the shooting in its issue of
July 16:
ASSASSINATION.
A DEPUTY U. S. MARSHAL FOULLY MURDERED.
THE ASSASSIN UNDER ARREST.
Saturday at 3:30 A. M., two pistol shots fired in quick succession were heard
issuing from the "Long Branch" saloon, the first of which it was soon found had
summoned the genial, warm-hearted Harry T. McCarty, ex-county surveyor and
Deputy U. S. Marshal for Ford county, from this world to another. The cir-
cumstances seem as follows: "Mack" had just came up the street and stepped
into the "Long Branch;" while leaning on the counter talking to Mr. Jackson,
a half drunken desperado named Thomas Roach snatched "Mack's" pistol (a 45
caliber Colt) from the scabbard, and as "Mack" turned to see who had so
nimbly disarmed him, the assassin, giving the weapon a flourish or two, fired the
fatal shot. The ball penetrated the right groin severing the femoral artery,
thence passing through the thigh lodged in the floor. The deceased staggered
toward the door where he fell another shot was almost instantaneously fired
at Roach by a bystander, the ball grazing his right side. Roach falling called
out "I am shot," and dropped to the floor, thus saving himself from the im-
mediate penalty of his crime from the leveled revolvers about him. In the
meantime medical assistance had been promptly summoned to the aid of his
unfortunate victim, but it was soon found that he had passed that point when
human aid however skilled could be of assistance. He was removed to the
rooms of Charles Ronan to breath his last in a few minutes, recovering con-
sciousness but for a brief period of time.
Even a stranger, unfamiliar with the circumstances, would have known as
he passed up the streets an hour later that some sad tragedy had been enacted,
by the air of gloom that pervaded every countenance, and the groups gathered
upon the corners, some with minds too much occupied with the calamity to
indulge in conversation, others in whispers that portended mischief, discussing
the propriety of obviating the delays attendant upon legal process, and giving
immediate illustration to the saying of our Savior, "Whoever sheds man's blood
by man shall his blood be shed." But to the credit of Dodge City be it spoken,
that the better counsel prevailed and even in the moment of excitement she
determined to put herself on record as willing to submit to the law.
An inquest was held in the forenoon and a verdict rendered in accordance
with the facts, and in the afternoon as quietly as possible (it being the desire
of the officers to prevent anything that could tend to excite the already agitated
crowd) an examination was held before R. G. Cook, Esq., at which time the
prisoner was charged with murder in the first degree. Upon being brought up
the charge was read to him, and he was fully instructed as to his rights, etc.,
by M. W. Sutton, County Attorney, and upon expressing it as his wish to waive
an examination, he was recommitted to await trial at the next term of court.
Early in the forenoon the Dodge City fire company, of which deceased had
been an active member since its organization, began to take the necessary steps
to show their respect for the deceased. The hall was tastefully draped in
mourning and the flag hung suspended at half mast. After services by Rev.
O. W. Wright, at 4 P. M., the procession left the hall headed by the band, with
Judge H. E. Gryden, M. W. Sutton, Dr. S. Galland, J. J. Webb, G. F. Jones
and Marshal C. E. Bassett as pall bearers, followed by the entire company in
112 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
uniform and a large concourse of citizens in carriages. The procession moved
through the principal streets, the pavements being thronged with spectators
gazing at the solemn cortege.
At the grave a short address was delivered by the Rev. Mr. Wright, and all
that was mortal of Harry T. McCarty was mingled with the dust.
Immediately on the return of the fire company they assembled at their hall
when a short address was delivered by Marshal [P. L.] Beatty followed by
Judge H. E. Gryden who spoke in eulogistic terms of the deceased and offered
the following resolutions which were passed and ordered to be printed in the
"GLOBE" and "Times" and the secretary ordered to furnish copies of proceed-
ings to relatives of deceased.
WHEREAS, In His mercy it has pleased the Father of all to, by the hands of
an assassin, take from us our fellow citizen and brother fireman, HARRY T.
McCARTY,
Resolved, That we deeply feel the loss, not only of an efficient fireman and
true brother, but of one whose superior qualities of head and heart have ever
commanded our love and esteem.
Resolved, That we tender our heartfelt sympathies to the relatives of the
deceased, and especially to his aged mother, assuring her and them that the
sudden and unjustifiable assassination of the deceased has cast a shadow and
gloom over our entire community, and that, though many winters' snow may
spread its cold covering over the place where his ashes lie mingled with the dust,
and though the green grass of his prairie grave be as often sered by the frosts of
autumn, while life lasts the memory of HARRY T. MCCARTY will be ever fresh
and green in our hearts ef affection.
Resolved, That in honor of our dead brother the members of the Dodge City
Fire Company will wear the usual badge of mourning for thirty days.
Thus all that was mortal of the third of the gallant little band of Dodge City
Firemen, killed by the hand of the assassin, was consigned to Mother Earth.
Let us hope that it will be the last. In the years to come when the silvery hairs
of the few remaining charter members will be warning them of the grave, they
will ever remember with love and respect their early companions, Master son
[City Marshal Edward J. Masterson, killed by drunken cowboys on April 9,
1878] and McCarty, and as the blossoms of spring peep from the prairies they
will, we doubt not, long to strew garlands, bedecked with tears, upon their
untimely graves.
Thomas O'Haran, alias Thomas Roach, was tried at the January,
1879, term of the Ford county district court, Judge S. R. Peters pre-
siding. O'Haran plead guilty to manslaughter in the first degree
and was sentenced to 12 years and three months in the state peni-
tentiary, the Dodge City Times reported, February 1, 1879.
MASON, JOSEPH W.
(1842?- )
Joe Mason, a former scout and one of the "old timers" of Dodge
City, was appointed policeman on the Dodge force May 9, 1877.
Lawrence E. Deger was marshal and in June Ed Masterson became
assistant. All three officers earned $75 a month salary. 1
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 113
The Dodge City Times, May 12, 1877, said of the new officer:
"Joe Mason was appointed policeman by Mayor [James H.] Kelley
and confirmed by the Council this week. Joe is a quiet young
man who attends strictly to his own business, but will not fail to
'go to the joint* in case of a row. He will make a good officer."
Two days after he was appointed Joe Mason stopped a cruel and
bloody game of 'lap jacket/' The Times, May 12, 1877, reported:
We yesterday witnessed an exhibition of the African national game of "lap
jacket," in front of Shulz* harness shop. The game is played by two colored
men, who each toe a mark and whip each other with bullwhips. In the contest
yesterday Henry Rodgers, called Eph for short, contended with another darkey
for the championship and fifty cents prize money. They took heavy new whips
from the harness shop and poured in the strokes pretty lively. Blood flowed
and dust flew and the crowd cheered until Policeman Joe Mason came along
and suspended the cheerful exercise.
In Africa, where this pleasant pastime is indulged in to perfection, the
contestants strip to the skin, and frequently cut each other's flesh open to the
bone.
On June 6, 1877, Policeman Mason helped subdue Bat Masterson
who had "wound his arm affectionately around the Marshal's
[Deger's] neck and let ... [his] prisoner escape." Bat had
objected to Deger's manner of taking Bobby Gill to jail. The article
reporting this will appear in the section on Masterson.
"The new policemen, Ed Masterson and Joe Mason, are covering
themselves with glory, and their prompt and efficient action cannot
be too highly commended," said the Dodge City Times, June 16,
1877.
Joe Mason stopped another fight a few days later, this time be-
tween "ladies," according to the Times of June 23, 1877:
THE JOINT.
A BATTLE OF THE BEAUTIES.
Presto Change! Josie Armstrong wears the belt. Now you wouldn't think
to look at Miss Josie a very pink of feminine symetry and grace that she
would buckle on her armor and go into the shoulder hitting business. But there
are times when occasion demands great effort, and such a time always arrives
with a woman when she falls in with the evidences of an intruding rival.
Last monday Josie happened upon evidence of this kind. She didn't seize
the weapon of her sex broomstick but she rolled up her delicate sleeves,
and hand in hand with the green eyed monster, marched on to victory. ( Here,
were it not for the clamours of a curious public, we would gladly drop the
curtain, for there is something about human carnage and the flow of human
blood that harrows up our soul.)
In the fight that ensued there was a display of the most remarkable activity.
The combatants unanimously waived the established rules of the London P. R.
84660
114 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
and fell to pulling hair and kicking shins in a way that will live in the minds
of the bystanders long after the noble piles of architecture that surrounded the
battle field have fallen into decay.
Just as the combat deepened and the prospect for two bald-headed maidens
was bright, the irrepressible Joe Mason, regardless of the fact that
"Those who in quarrels interpose
Must often wipe a bloody nose,"
sallied in and restored the peace and dignity of the city. A similar display of
muscular activity has never before been known in this community.
Such is the brief story of the combat, and thus is added to immortality two
more Maids of Orleans.
On September 8, 1877, the Times stated that "Policeman Mason
made six arrests this week." And on September 15: "Policeman
Mason was this week presented with a magnificent air gun which
opens with a padlock. Mr. Mix has it on exhibition at the Long
Branch."
Policeman Mason tried to arrest the sheriff of Edwards county,
not recognizing that gentleman when he arrived in Dodge on
September 17 and unwittingly thinking him to be a member of a
gang of swindlers who had been operating in Dodge. The Times
article reporting this will be presented in the section on W. B.
Masterson.
The city council of Dodge City discharged Mason from the police
force on October 2, by reason "that his services would no longer
be required/' 2 By October 13 Joe had become bartender of the
Long Branch saloon. He left the Long Branch before November
24 and started working for one Russell; by December 1 he was again
a police officer, this time a deputy sheriff under Charles E. Bassett.
A week later, however, Mason was on his way to Sweetwater, Tex.,
with several other Dodgeites intending to open a saloon there. 3
It was in Sweetwater that Mason shot and killed Ed Ryan. The
Dodge City Times, January 12, 1878, reported:
A FATAL SHOT.
AN EX-DODGE CITY POLICEMAN KILLS His MAN.
ED. RYAN, A WELL KNOWN SPORTING MAN, THE VICTIM.
Last evening about dusk the overland stage from the south brought a letter
from Sweetwater, Texas, in which the following paragraph appeared:
"Jo. Mason shot Ed. Ryan yesterday. He will be buried to-day. Jo. is
willing to give himself up. Ed. was here three days before he was killed."
Mr. Reynolds, the mail contractor, confirms the news.
Jo. Mason is well known here, having served on the police force nearly all
last summer. He never bore the reputation of being a "killer/' and we believe
this is the first time the click of his revolver has been the signal for a fatal shot.
Ed. Ryan was in Dodge City nearly all last Summer, and like many others in
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 115
the wild frontier, followed that artistic and exciting profession, of which four
aces is the highest accomplishment. Ed. Ryan was a very large, stout man,
not over thirty years of age, and seemed to be of a good natured disposition
when sober.
At one time last summer, while Mason was on the police force, the two men
had a very bitter quarrel, which would have probably resulted seriously had
not third parties interfered.
In the next edition, January 19, the Times gave some additional
information:
CAMP SUPPLY.
CAMP SUPPLY, I. T., Jan. 13, 1878.
To THE EDITORS OF THE TIMES.
. . . News reached us this evening from Fort Elliott that Joe Mason
formerly of Dodge City shot and killed a man at that post a week ago. Joe
it seems is connected with a free-and-easy kind of a house at Sweetwater City,
and at the time one of his old friends, a hunter, who it seems Joe had arrested
while an official at Dodge, came up to him and commenced abusing him, and
threatened that he would some day square accounts with him. Joe stood it for
awhile and then gave the fellow the alternative of lighting out or a ball through
his skull. It seems the fellow chose the latter for Joe fired and the bold hunter
fell. Joe went out dug a hole six by two and placed his victim therein. Joe
with his girl is on his way to Dodge City.
THE MASON-RYAN SHOOTING.
Joe Mason arrived in Dodge City yesterday. The following is a copy of the
proceedings of a court of inquiry, which exonerates Mason, held at Sweetwater:
Proceedings of a Board of Officers convened at Fort Elliott, Texas, by virtue
of the following order.
HEADQUARTERS FORT ELLIOTT, TEXAS,
January 5, 1878.
SPECIAL ORDERS, No. 4.
A Board of Officers to consist of Capt C Mauck 4th Cav, Capt E H Liscum,
19th Inf, and 2d Lt G K Hunter, 4th Cav, will convene at once to inquire into
and report upon the killing of one Ed Ryan by Jos Mason, in the town of
Sweetwater, last evening the 4th inst. The Board will make a report in writing
on the merits of the case.
By order of Lt Col J P Hatch.
(Signed) THEO H ECKERSON
2d Lt 19th Inf, Post Adjutant.
FORT ELLIOTT, TEXAS, Jan 5, 1878.
The Board met pursuant to the foregoing order at 2.30 o'clock P M. Present,
Capt C Mauck, 4th Cav, Capt E H Liscum, 19th Inf, and 2d Lt G K Hunter,
4th Cav.
The Board then proceeded to the examination of the following named wit-
nesses. Tim Leavy, Harry Fleming, Granger Dyer, W H Weed, David Rem-
ington, Arrington, Norton and Dr. LaGarde. The Board after mature delibera-
tion arrived at the following conclusion. That Ed Ryan came to his death
116 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
from a gun shot wound at the hands of Jos Mason, and that the said Jos Mason
was justifiable in the premises. There being no further business before it the
board then adjourned sine die.
C MAUCK, Capt 4th Cav,
E H LISCUM, Capt 19th Inf.
GEO K HUNTEY, 2d Lt 4th Cav, Recorder.
HD QTS, FORT ELLIOTT, Jan 10, 1878.
The foregoing proceedings are approved.
JNO P HATCH,
Lt Col 4th Cav, Commanding.
Apparently feeling that his Dodge City friends would not think
well of him, Mason wrote this note to the Times which was pub-
lished on January 26:
To THE EDITORS OF THE TIMES.
In your issue of January 19th I find among the items from your correspondent
at Camp Supply, a description of the unfortunate shooting at Ft. Elliott some
days ago. I only wish to say that your correspondent has misrepresented me.
I was in no way connected with a "free-and-easy" at Sweetwater, nor did I
"dig a hole and place the victim therein."
J. W. MASON.
The Ford County Globe, January 22, 1878, merely stated: "J oe
Mason has returned from Elliott, he looks well and says he intends
remaining in the city."
This epilogue appeared in the Globe, February 12, 1878: "J oe
Mason received a letter yesterday morning, from Sioux city, Ne-
braska, containing a photograph of Ed Ryan, telling him that if the
photo represented the man he killed he is entitled to the thanks of
Sioux city."
Mason was temporarily reappointed to the Dodge City police
force in April, 1878, 4 but no record was found of the length or
effectiveness of his service.
In June he assisted Sheriff Bat Masterson in guarding some pris-
oners and on July 1 the board of county commissioners allowed
him $18 for his services. 5
The last mention found of Joe Mason in the Dodge City papers
appeared in the Ford County Globe, May 17, 1881: "J ose P n Mason,
an old frontiersman and former police officer of Dodge City, after
an absence from this place for over a year returned to the city
Saturday last with a view of making this his permanent home."
1. "Kansas State Census," 1875, Ford county, p. 11; Dodge City Times, May 12, June
9, July 7, August 11, September 8, October 6, 1877. 2. Dodge City Times, October 6,
1877. 3. Ibid., October 13, November 24, December 1, 8, 1877. 4. Ibid., April 13, 1878.
5. Ibid., June 15, July 6. 1878.
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 117
MASSEY, PLEASANT H.
(1823- )
The Republicans of Sedgwick county, at a convention held in
Wichita October 4, 1873, nominated P. H. Massey for sheriff. Mas-
sey, then a 50-year-old farmer, received the support of the Wichita
Eagle editor Marsh Murdock who said of him:
PLEASANT H. MASSEY,
the nominee for sheriff, is an old resident of South Bend, Indiana, a Colfax
Republican of many years standing. He has never voted any other ticket since
the organization of the party. He served three years as deputy sheriff in that
populous county. He is a farmer living in Ninesha township was brought up
a Whig. Mr. Massey is a pleasant gentleman, full of earnestness and life.
From letters that we have been permitted to read we know that he must have
stood well at his old home. He has been a resident of this county for three
years and commands the respect of all who know him and will be elected
without a doubt. 1
Massey's chief opponent was incumbent William Smith, a former
Wichita city marshal and deputy sheriff who had been appointed in
September, 1873, to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of
Sheriff John Meagher. 2
At the November 4 election Massey won handily over Smith and
one D. L. Green, a third candidate. The sheriff-elect received 665
votes, Smith 599, and Green 167. 3
When the district court was scheduled to open in December, 1873,
Massey, being the sheriff-elect, felt it was his duty rather than the
duty of appointee Smith to announce the opening of the session.
The Eagle, December 11, 1873, reported this interesting controversy:
The district court opened Monday noon, with Judge W. P. Campbell on the
bench. Preceeding the formal command for the sheriff to announce the open-
ing, Mr. Stanley submitted the matter of difference between Sheriff Smith, the
appointee, and Sheriff Massey, elect. Mr. Balderston appeared on behalf of
Sheriff Smith. It appeared that Mr. Massey had duly qualified, and his bonds
having been approved by the commissioners, he claimed that under the law
he was entitled to and that it became incumbent upon to assume the active
duties of the office. The judge said that in chambers he had no power to
adjudicate any such matter; that he should recognize as the officer of his court
the individual who had the possession of the books and papers pertaining to
said office of sheriff, and that after the court had regularly opened he would
be ready to hear any matter brought before him in proper form in the regular
practice. Mr. Smith opened the court, and so the matter stands at present.
The office was officially turned over to Massey on January 1, 1874.
Said the Eagle, January 8: "Sheriff Smith delivered, on New Year's
day, to Sheriff P. H. Massey the books and papers pertaining to the
118 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
office of sheriff, and now friend Pleasant may be heard crying from
an upper window, liear ye! hear ye!' etc."
Shortly before Massey was sworn into office, Wichita was shocked
by an incendiary murder which the Eagle termed the "Christmas
Cremation." Since Massey, as sheriff, was only indirectly involved
the complete story of the murder and the subsequent activity in
capturing and trying the perpetrators will be presented in the section
on Mike Meagher who was city marshal at the time.
Massey's primary concern with the case was in holding the pris-
oners before the trial and in acting as an officer of the court during
the hearing. On March 5, 1874, the Eagle had reported that "Sheriff
Massey took McNutt and his wife [two of the accused murderers]
to Topeka for safe keeping." Arthur Winner, the third accused
killer, was being kept in Cottonwood Falls.
By May 17, 1874, the McNutts and Winner were brought back to
Wichita for their trial. The two male defendants were placed in
the sheriff's office, next door to the Eagle printing plant, and were
not only chained to each other but also at night were chained to iron
rings bolted to the sheriff's floor. 4 In spite of this security, Winner
was able to give the sheriff some anxious moments. The Wichita
Eagle, May 21, 1874, reported one incident:
Winner, who is chained to McNutt, both of whom have been for some days
confined in the sheriff's office, adjoining that of our own, is as nochalant, gay
and independent as he was during the preliminary examination last Christmas.
Nothing appears to depress his spirits. On Sunday he constructed a key out of
a pen point with which he unlocked his shackles, and laughingly exhibited the
result of his feat to the sheriff, which officer then riveted his shackles.
On Monday one of the guards discovered him trying to part the rivets with
a pocket knife. The fact being reported to Sheriff Massey, that officer attempted
to search him and take away the knife, whereupon the wiry little fellow took
it into his head to kick up a resistance. The noise and confusion made by the
sheriff in taking the young man down startled us, and we rushed around to the
door to find it locked. Treasurer Johnson came rushing up the hall with a
cocked revolver in his hand, and Kellogg, Little and Phillips came puffing out
of their offices, and for a moment the tableau was at least interesting, if not
exciting.
A call from us, asking if help was desired, elicited no answer, but Nessley
opened the door, when we found the sheriff holding in his iron grip the pros-
trate prisoner; who was wagging his tongue at a lively rate, declaring that it
would take three such men to handle him if he had a show. He was mancled
still more closely, when he cooled down and all was again serene. The rest of
the prisoners sat around, appearing to enjoy the excitement. Winner asked us
before we left to give the facts, and we guess we have. He is rather an odd
boy, aggressive and fearless, and withal of a light and cheerful disposition.
Sheriff Massey opened the district court, May 18, and the trial of
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 119
the murderers commenced May 21. 5 Apparently such a crowd was
expected that certain alterations had to be made in the court room.
The Eagle, May 21, 1874, reported: "Sheriff Massey has had a tem-
porary railing put up in the court room, the court, its officers, jury-
men and witnesses occupying one side and the spectators the other.
Good idea."
Finding unprejudiced jurors was a task for the sheriff. Editor
Murdock felt it was the result of the Eagles popularity in Sedgwick
county:
Sheriff Massey and deputies, are out hunting fifty more men, qualified to sit
on the trial of McNutt. The sheriff says when he finds a man in a lonely out
of the way place, he asks the question, "do you read the EAGLE?" when if the
answer is in the negative, he draws his papers on him, in the full assurance that
another juryman has been found. He says he found one such man within four
miles of the city the fellow couldn't read at all. 6
While the Christmas cremation trial was in progress, a Texas cow-
boy named Ramsey shot and killed a Negro hod carrier, Charley
Sanders. The article reporting this, May 28, 1874, will be included
in the section on William Smith. Ramsey had not been captured
by July 23, 1874, when the Eagle reported a false lead:
Sheriff Massey is bound to catch the desperado that shot the colored man
last spring. He heard that the outlaw was at Coffeyville last week and the
next train of cars found him en route to trap the bird, which he successfully did,
and in spite of a partial issued habeas corpus, brought him in irons to Wichita,
but it proved to be a different rooster and he was released. We hope our
officers will leave no stone unturned to bring the murderer to trial.
In August a man by the name of James Long stole a horse from
a Wichita stable and headed east. Massey, learning that he had
been in Fort Scott, left for that place. The Eagle, August 13, 1874,
said: "Sheriff Massey has gone to Ft. Scott to accompany a man
by the name of Long back to this place, Long having borrowed a
horse at the diamond front stable which he forgot to return."
Long hoodwinked the citizens of Fort Scott and journeyed on into
Missouri where he was finally caught. The Fort Scott Daily Moni-
tor, August 18, 1874, reported Long's abilities as a confidence man:
HORSE THIEF CAUGHT.
About three weeks ago a man giving his name as Long, from Sumner county,
arrived in our city and asked Mr. Tannehill to lend him some money, stating
that he was after a horse thief, had run out of money and wished to proceed.
Mr. T., having heard of the horses being stolen, took it for granted that it was
all right and advanced the amount desired. It turned out, however, that Long
was the horse thief and took this method of avoiding suspicion. Mr. Tannehill
and Constable Avery started in pursuit and overtook him at Springfield, Mo.,
120 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
with three horses, and they are now awaiting a requisition from the Governor
to bring him here.
Horse stealing is getting to be a dangerous business. In most every instance
the thief is caught, and in many cases the punishment is swift and terrible.
While Massey chased Long over two states, his son acted as
sheriff in his father's absence: "Sheriff Massey is still absent, and
Tence, his son and deputy sheriff, has his hands full. He was de-
tained in Jefferson City by a telegram from the Governor." 7
On August 27, 1874, the Eagle reported that Sheriff Massey had
returned with a prisoner. It is apparent that the captive was not
the horse thief so eagerly sought but was rather someone who un-
fortunately remains unknown: "Sheriff Massey returned Saturday
night with one prisoner, but he took the next eastern bound train
for Springfield, Missouri, after Long, the man who hired a horse
at the livery stable and forgot to come back."
The Fort Scott Monitor, August 28, 1874, reported that "Constable
Avery has returned from Springfield, Mo., bringing with him the
horse thieves which he arrested at that place a week or more ago.
They are in durance vile to await their trial at the next term of
court/'
Perhaps the Sedgwick county charge of horse stealing carried
more weight than the Bourbon county charge of monetary theft
for the sheriff soon showed up in Wichita with the two horse
thieves: "Sheriff Massey came home from Springfield, Mo., last
week with two prisoners charged with horse stealing," said the
Wichita Weekly Beacon, September 2, 1874. The identity of the
second thief is not definitely known but he may have been young
Bill Wright who was convicted for pony stealing in October, 1874.
The next day, September 3, 1874, the Eagle complimented the
sheriff and his son:
Sheriff Massey seldom if ever fails to get his man when he goes for him.
He returned a few days since with Long, who will have justice meeted out to
him we trust.
Sheriff Massey, who for the past three weeks has been continuously on the
track of criminals in this and other states is again at home. Our boy, Tence,
as deputy makes a splendid officer. He is prompt, affective and makes no
mistakes.
The travels of Pleasant H. Massey were not yet over. On Septem-
ber 4, 1874, the sheriff headed back for Missouri:
Sheriff Massey, George Fessenden, D. M. V. Stewart and Jackson Bolend,
will start to Jefferson City, Mo., on Friday to testify in the case of Dr. W. F.
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 121
Bowie, before the United States District Court. Bowie was merchandising at
Sedalia, Mo., went into bankruptcy, forfeited a bond of $15,000, and is now
charged with perjury. His trial is set for the 7th of this month. 8
Later in the month he visited the state penitentiary:
Sheriff Massey returned yesterday from the state penitentiary, where he had
delivered three prisoners convicted at the last term of court, viz: J. H. Hill, for
two years for shooting Stewart, on the Ninnescah, last spring; James Long, for
three years, for stealing a horse; Wm. Wright, a boy, for one year, for stealing
a pony. The criminal docket was not entirely cleared up for want of time. Two
prisoners yet remain in the sheriffs custody. 9
About the beginning of Massey's second year as sheriff, the new
Sedgwick county jail was finished. The jail was designed to house
not only county prisoners but also the sheriff. The living section of
the building was one of the most modern in town for it boasted a
furnace and running water. Massey moved into his new quarters
about the end of January, 1875. The Eagle, January 28, reported:
Sheriff Massey has moved his family into the city. His new home, the
resident portion of the new jail, is one of the most complete and comfortable
establishments, heated, as it is, by a furnace and supplied with soft water from
an up-stairs tank.
A month later the sheriff celebrated his 52d birthday in his new
home. The Eagle, February 25, 1875, reported the success of the
surprise party:
Sheriff Massey 's fifty-second birthday, the 22d, was the occasion of a feast
and old fashioned frolic tendered him by his good wife, who made all the
arrangements and done the inviting. In the evening the house of sheriff Mas-
sey was invaded by a hilarious surprise party consisting of young folks, who
kept things lively until well nigh unto morning, with feasting dancing and
merry-making. By a coincidence, Geo. Washington, the father of his country,
was born on the same day that sheriff Massey was. But the sheriff gets away
with George in the item of birthday celebrations.
Things were pretty quiet in the sheriff's office the first few months
of 1875. On March 31 the Beacon reported: "Sheriff Massey re-
turned from Leavenworth last week having delivered his 'fresh fish*
Becker and Hoss, sent up for horse-stealing, at the penitentiary. He
says that McNutt is cutting leather in the shoe shop, while Winner
works in the paint shop." On June 16 the paper stated: "Al Thomas
was put in jail Sunday, by Sheriff Massey, but was allowed to go
out on parole after a short imprisonment," and on June 23 it men-
tioned another trip east:
Sheriff Massey left yesterday morning for Topeka in charge of county com-
missioners York, Carpenter and Hobbs, who will invoke the aid of the supreme
court through the instrumentality of a writ of habeas corpus to wrest them
122 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
from the clutches of Judge Campbell who now holds them in contempt, with a
fine of $100 each and "conditional" imprisonment in the county jail staring
them in the face.
Sheriff Massey lost three prisoners from his jail on July 10. The
"Beacon, July 14, 1875, reported the escape:
THREE PRISONERS BREAK JAIL.
On Saturday afternoon the prisoners were allowed to promenade along
the corridor of the jail which incloses the narrow space in front of the cells.
This was only being partly restored to liberty, and the three prisoners took
advantage of their position by cutting through an eighteen-inch thick brick
wall with a knife and hatchet, while Sheriff Massey and family were at supper.
How they obtained their instruments to work with, is not known. The work
was done in a short time, and as the brick were taken out, they were placed
in a blanket and carried to a cell, by which means a hole eighteen inches in
diameter was soon made under one of the outer windows, through which the
three men escaped.
When Mr. Massey returned from supper and called the prisoners to their
cells no response was made and their absence was soon made conspicuous.
Now in the first place these men were allowed too wide latitude, and in the
second place it is a piece of stupidity to construct the outer walls of a jail
with strong wrought-iron windows (through which it would be extremely
difficult to effect an escape with a crow bar) in walls of brick, which can be
dug through with a jack knife in twenty minutes. The heat in the cells is
terribly oppressive, and, under the circumstances, Mr. Massey can hardly be
censured for permitting the prisoners to breathe half-pure air for so short
a time.
Wallace Bennett, the notorious thief and desperado who was recently cap-
tured in the territory, was one of the party. The other two, Geo. Houstin
and W. W. Chamberlain, were awaiting trial for stealing in this city. No
clue has yet been heard of them.
The Eagle, July 15, 1875, suggested that outside aid had been
given:
"Last Saturday evening, just before being locked up for the night,
three prisoners dug their way out of the jail. They had been as-
sisted by outside confederates. Sheriff Massey has taken steps for
their recovery."
The Beacon, July 28, 1875, published a description of two of the
escapees and reported a $50 reward offered for their return:
Sheriff Massey has offered a reward of fifty dollars for Geo. Houston and
W. W. Chamberlain who escaped from the jail on the 10th of July. They
are described as follows:
Houston is about twenty-eight or thirty years old, dark complexion, dark
hair, dark chin whiskers and moustaches; hight, about five feet eight inches;
weighs about 145 pounds; had coarse shoes on, nearly new, and dark colored
pants. Chamberlain is about twenty-seven years old, light complexion, light
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 123
hair, short chin whiskers and moustaches; had on light colored pants, badly
worn.
In July Massey failed to flush a horse thief from a corn field but
a private citizen, coming upon the man later, put the outlaw per-
manently out of business. The Eagle, August 5, 1875, reported
the incidents:
A week or two ago a telegram was received from Gamett giving the de-
scription of a man named Waterman who had stolen a horse. Sheriff Massey
found the horse in the course of a few days near Eldorado. The thief was
afterwards discovered near the depot where he ran into a corn field. The
field was surrounded by the Sheriff, police and a posse but the bird had flown.
The same night of his escape he stole a horse from a Mr. Allen, living between
here and Douglas. Mr. Allen gave pursuit, and some time during the day
came upon both man and horse, the former lying on the bank of a creek
asleep, with a revolver in each hand. Mr. Allen aroused him up and told
him to surrender or he would kill him. The thief said he would never sur-
render when Mr. Allen carried out his threat leaving the miscreant lying upon
the prairie and he returning with his property home. This is as we got it
and comment is unnecessary.
Pleasant H. Massey did not run for re-election in November,
1875. His successor was H. W. Dunning, who had been elected
over two other candidates. 10 In December Dunning was deputized
by Sheriff Massey in order that he might become acquainted with
the duties and routine of the office. The Wichita Eagle, December
9, 1875, reported:
Maj. Dunning becomes Sheriff sooner than the law or the people con-
templated. Sheriff Massey was compelled to leave on Monday for Topeka,
where he had been summoned as a witness before the United States District
Court, so to get the Major well started in, he just deputized the newly elected
Sheriff. Yank Owens and Major Dunning appear to hold everything level,
even the heels and heads of the lawyers, which are generally on a level with
the tables.
The last official act performed by Sheriff Massey which was
mentioned in the Wichita press was reported in the Eagle, Decem-
ber 23, 1875: "Sheriff Massey left yesterday morning for the State
Penitentiary in charge of Henry Lee, whom Judge Campbell had
sentenced to two years for pleading guilty to a charge of stealing a
horse from a colored man by the name of Stevens/'
From that point Pleasant H. Massey returned to the obscurity of
private life.
1. Wichita City Eagle, October 9, 1873. 2. Ibid., September 18, 1873. 3. Ibid.,
November 6, 1873. 4. Ibid., May 14, 1874. 5. Ibid., May 21, 1874. 6. Ibid., June 18,
1874. 7. Ibid., August 20, 1874. 8. Wichita Weekly Beacon, September 2, 1874.
9. Wichita City Eagle, October 1, 1874. 10. Ibid., November 4, 1875.
(To Be Continued in the Summer, 1961, Issue.)
The Annual Meeting
85th annual meeting of the Kansas State Historical Society
and board of directors was held in Topeka on October 18,
1960.
Following a plan inaugurated in 1958, a session was held for
persons interested in county and local historical societies, and
museums. The meeting was called for 10 A. M. in the museum.
Edgar Langsdorf, assistant secretary, presided. Roger Kirkwood,
director of the Kansas Centennial Commission, talked on centen-
nial programs and activities for local groups, and on the major
activities of the state commission. Stanley Sohl, director of the
State Historical Society's museum, also participated. Organizations
in many parts of the state were represented.
The session for the Society's board of directors was held con-
currently in the newspaper reading room. Pres. Edward R. Sloan
was not present because of illness and George L. Anderson, second
vice-president presided. First business was the report of the sec-
retary:
SECRETARY'S REPORT, YEAR ENDING OCTOBER 18, 1960
At the conclusion of last year's meeting the newly elected president, Ed-
ward R. Sloan, reappointed Charles M. Correll and Frank Haucke to the execu-
tive committee. Members holding over were Will T. Beck, John S. Dawson,
and T. M. Lillard.
The death of Judge Dawson on February 19, 1960, at the age of 90, meant
the loss of one of the Society's oldest and most devoted friends. President in
1931-1932, a member of the board of directors for more than 50 years and of
the executive committee since 1935, Judge Dawson's advice and counsel were
of great benefit to the Society. Throughout his long life he was deeply in-
volved in the making of Kansas history, and he was equally interested in its
preservation.
Judge Dawson's place on the executive committee was filled by the appoint-
ment of Wilford Reigle of Emporia.
The Society suffered another blow in the loss of Jerome C. Berryman of
Ashland, who died May 23, 1960. At the time of his death Mr. Berryman was
first vice-president of the Society. He had been a life member since 1927
and a member of the board of directors since 1940. His widespread business
and political interests did not prevent his taking part in the work of the Society,
and his loss, like that of Judge Dawson, is sincerely regretted.
Three other members of the board of directors also passed away during
the year. Lloyd W. Chambers, Clearwater farmer-stockman and member of
the board since 1944, died January 15; W. W. Davis, former professor of his-
tory at the University of Kansas and member of the board since 1937, died
April 5, and Clyde K. Rodkey, Manhattan attorney, member of the board
(124)
THE ANNUAL MEETING 125
since 1947, died August 11. All were good friends whose absence will be
keenly felt.
APPROPRIATIONS AND BUDGET REQUESTS
Most worthy of note in the current budget is an appropriation for the
long-desired remodeling of the G. A. R. auditorium and adjacent areas. This
work is now in noisy and dusty progress, with completion expected perhaps
it would be better to say hoped for in December. The mammoth G. A. R.
hall, which has been used so seldom in recent years that there was no longer
any reason for keeping it, is being divided to make a smaller and more usable
auditorium, two new museum display areas, a microfilm reading room, and
three levels of storage stacks. In addition, the former G. A. R. museum area
in the west wing of the second floor is being altered to make a new military
display area, three new period rooms will be installed in the small rooms ad-
joining, and other modernizations are in process that will make the entire sec-
tion more pleasant and more efficiently utilized. Last but far from least, all
museum areas, offices, and reading rooms throughout the Society's quarters
will enjoy air conditioning next summer.
Another major appropriation of the 1960 legislature is for installation of a
new elevator at the east end of the lobby. The existing shaft, empty since the
Memorial building was completed in 1914, will be used, and the present nearly
50-year-old elevator which Governor Docking once remarked should be made
a part of the Society's collection of antiques will be relegated to stand-by and
emergency service.
Two new staff positions have been established since the last report. On the
professional staff, the Society now has an archaeologist; although archaeological
work has been a part of the program for two years, the archaeologist officially
was the assistant museum director until this new position was created. On
the custodial staff, a watchman-guide has been appointed. Upon completion
of the current remodeling, he will be stationed in the new museum areas on
the second and third floors.
The memorial to Kansans who participated in the campaigns before Vicks-
t>urg, mentioned in last year's report, was erected on June 13. Designed by
.State Architect John Brink, it is a monument of bronze symbolizing the broken
and subsequently reunited Union.
Budget requests for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1962, were filed with
the state budget director in September. Permission was asked to employ a
maintenance and equipment supervisor, and a director of field services, who
would work with school groups in what has been called in other states a junior
historian program, and who would also be given responsibility for searching
out and acquiring for the Society manuscript and other material which too
often is lost because its existence is learned of too late.
Capital improvement requests repeated from last year's budget include
installation of a suspended ceiling in the museum, replacing the old glass
floors with steel in the main stack area, and sandblasting and tuckpointing the
exterior of the Memorial building.
Other operating expenses are expected to remain at about the same level
as in recent years both for the Society itself and the historical properties it
administers.
126 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
PUBLICATIONS AND SPECIAL PROJECTS
With the Spring issue of 1960, The Kansas Historical Quarterly began pub-
lication of "Some Notes on Kansas Cowtown Police Officers and Gun Fighters,"
a series which has been received with wide interest.
The compilers, Nyle H. Miller and Joseph W. Snell, have sufficient note-
worthy police officers and gunslingers in their lineup to run the series well into
1962. So you fans of the Real West have much in store for the immediate
future. The Spring Quarterly also included Thomas H. O'Connor's story of
Boston's "Cotton Whigs" who spent time and fortune to save Kansas from
slavery. The Summer and Autumn numbers of 1960 included letters by
Charles M. Chase, a Vermonter, written during visits to Kansas in 1863 and
1873, edited by Mrs. Lela Barnes, treasurer of the Society. Dr. James C.
Malin gave an interesting insight into early Fort Scott politics in an article
entitled "Eugene Ware and Dr. Sanger: The Code of Political Ethics, 1872-
1892," published in the Autumn Quarterly. A timely article by Mrs. George
T. Hawley of the Society's staff, "Kansas Congressmen and Reapportionment,"
including a list of all U. S. representatives who have served Kansas, was fea-
tured in the Winter number.
Over 2,500 copies of each issue of the Quarterly are distributed to mem-
bers of the Society, schools, and libraries. Volume 26, comprising the four
1960 issues, will be bound and ready for distribution soon.
The Historical Society Mirror, now in its sixth year, has been since its in-
ception a markedly successful means of keeping members informed of their
Society's activities. It has been well received, and has proved its worth in
the large number of valuable donations submitted in response to specific re-
quests of the various departments.
Hundred-year-ago items from the Kansas press are still being compiled and
sent out each month to the newspapers of the state. The number of publishers
who use all or part of this material is gratifying, and it may not be unreasonable
to anticipate that even more will find use for this material during the centen-
nial year.
Work is continuing on the second volume of the Comprehensive Index, this
one expected to cover the published volumes of The Kansas Historical Quarterly.
Louise Barry, a member of the staff, although occupied with other Society
projects, has completed the indexing of the first three volumes of the Quarterly.
Pressure of centennial activities has meant slower than normal progress, but by
the middle of next year it is hoped this work can be resumed at the same pace
as formerly.
Texts for three more historical markers were prepared this year. One,
covering the history of the statehouse, is expected to be erected on the capitol
grounds in time for the centennial. The others, dealing with the cattle business
and the bluestem pasture region, are to be located in turnout areas in Chase
and Greenwood counties.
Mention was made in last year's report that work was underway on a pic-
torial history of Kansas, to be published jointly with the Kansas Centennial
Commission if the necessary financial assistance could be obtained from the
legislature. It is a pleasure to announce that this was accomplished, that all
editorial work except final proofreading and indexing has been completed,
and that the book is scheduled for official publication on January 10, 1961.
THE ANNUAL MEETING 127
All members will receive order blanks in ample time to take advantage of a
special prepublication price of $7.95, a dollar less than the regular price. The
book will run some 300 pages, will have more than 800 illustrations, with five
maps and a Samuel Reader painting of the "Battle of the Blue" reproduced
in color, and will be indexed. It should be a handsome as well as a useful
and it is hoped readable volume, one that all members of the Society and
other Kansans interested in the story of their state will want to make a part
of their libraries.
Another publication of special note is now in the hands of the printer and
is expected to be available early in December. This unique work, Kansas in
Maps, by Robert W. Baughman of Liberal, one of the Society's directors, is
being published by the Society through the generosity of the Baughman Foun-
dation. The 90 maps reproduced, including 20 pages in color, cover 400 years
of this space called Kansas. The maps are accompanied by a well-researched,
inspired textual commentary, and the book will give a fascinating, out-of-the-
ordinary view of the Jayhawk state.
The major phase of another Baughman project, a compilation of Kansas
postal beginnings of which mention was made in last year's report, is scheduled
for publication in 1961.
The Historical Society staff continues to co-operate fully with the Kansas
Centennial Commission and with individuals, newspapers, and others who have
need for historical information for use in centennial projects of various kinds.
The centennial commission has authorized the equipping of art and historical
trailers to travel the state during much of 1961, the state centennial year.
Stanley Sohl, the Society's museum director, will supervise the planning and
installation of the materials from the Historical Society which will be displayed
in the historical trailer.
ARCHAEOLOGY
The Society's major archaeological work during the summer was the ex-
cavation of four prehistoric Indian sites in the proposed Wilson reservoir area,
in Russell and Lincoln counties. The work was managed in the field by Tom
Witty, the Society's new archaeologist, in co-operation with the National Park
Service. It was designed to salvage information on some of the sites expected
to be destroyed when the reservoir is flooded.
The first excavation on Hell creek was the remains of a rectangular earth
lodge and its associated storage pits. The next site was a small cave which had
on the floor about four feet of fill resulting from camps, one on top of another,
over a period of some 300 years. This site provided an excellent record of
the sequence of various cultures which moved through the valley. The last
two digs were open camp sites along the edge of the Saline river valley. The
sites worked this season represent a time period from 450 to 800 years ago.
Material and data collected will be processed, studied, and written up during
the coming winter.
An archaeological survey of the John Redmond reservoir area meanwhile
was carried on by Roscoe Wilmeth, who has since left the employment of the
Society to work on his doctorate in anthropology. Some 40 sites have thus
far been located in the Redmond area. The report and analysis of the excava-
tions carried on in the summer of 1959 in the Pomona reservoir is now in
manuscript and copies should soon be available.
128 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
ARCHIVES DIVISION
Public records from the following state departments have been transferred
during the year to the archives division:
Source Title Dates Quantity
Agriculture, Board of . . *Statistical Rolls of Counties, 1953 1,710 vols.
Population Schedules of
Cities and Townships . . 1960 4,241 vols.
Engineering Examiners,
Board of Engineer License Application
Folders 1956-1959 9 reels mi-
crofilm
Labor Department .... Correspondence and
Papers 1942-1955 28 bxs.
( * Have been microfilmed. Originals will be destroyed. )
Annual reports were received from the Director of Alcoholic Beverage Con-
trol, Board of Healing Arts, Board of Podiatry Examiners, Fort Hays Kansas
State College, Real Estate Commission, and the Traveling Libraries Commission
for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1959. The state auditor's office transferred
to the Society two volumes recording the municipal indebtedness of the state,
1878 and 1880, and samples of World War I state soldiers' bonus bonds and
coupons.
Two large archival microfilming projects were completed this year. Records
of the insurance department received in 1958 and 1959 were put on film and
the originals destroyed. Agents' licenses, 1927-1928, 1945-1952; applications
for agents' licenses, prior to 1951, and annual statements, 1949-1952, are now
contained on 114 rolls of film.
The second project, begun in 1959, resulted in the placing on microfilm of
county statistical rolls, 1919, 1937-1953; abstracts of statistical rolls, 1905-1957;
and population schedules for cities and townships, 1919, 1937-1954. These
records, coming originally from the Board of Agriculture, are now contained
on 635 rolls of film. The completion of this job, and the subsequent disposal
of original records, will free valuable shelf space for other storage.
LIBRARY
A gratifying change in the interests of library patrons has become evident
in the past few years. While in 1955 only about 35 per cent worked on Kansas
subjects, in 1960 almost 50 per cent, or 2,336, devoted their time to state and
local topics. Some of this increased interest is due, no doubt, to the coming
state centennial, but much of it can be accounted for by the growing familiarity
of the public with the materials available in the Historical Society. More
students also take advantage of the library's resources each year. For the
past two years a Topeka high school history teacher has brought all sections
of his classes to tour the library. A surprising number of these students return,
bringing others with them, seeking a wide range of information for their classes.
The approaching Civil War centennial has also made itself felt. While the
number of patrons working on general subjects ordinarily stays much the same,
this year it rose over 22 per cent to a total of 1,071. Interest in genealogy, in
contrast, decreased slightly to a total of 1,364. Library patrons totaled 4,771,
an increase of almost six per cent over last year.
THE ANNUAL MEETING 129
More than half of the 800 inquiries by mail were from out-of-state patrons.
Forty-six states were represented as well as Canada, England, Australia, and
Germany. The English and German correspondents were members of West-
erners' associations in those countries and were interested in various phases of
frontier life in Kansas. There are over 1,000 German Westerners who hope,
through research, to improve the quality of the American frontier tales so
eagerly read by both teen-agers and adults in that country. Numerous free
pamphlets were sent out, principally to students, and 252 packages of loan
file material were mailed during the year.
In the clipping department 7,680 copies of newspapers were read. These
issues included seven regular dailies and over 5,000 miscellaneous papers.
Nearly 500 clippings were mounted on cards for the biographical file and
4,638 were pasted on sheets to be bound into volumes. With part-time help
during the summer it was possible to remount the clippings in ten badly worn
volumes. Many more of these older clipping books are in need of repair.
Microfilm accessions included a file of the Indian Advocate, Sacred Heart
Mission, Indian territory, 1889-1910; The Soule Genealogy, a two-volume family
history lent by A. L. Soule, Topeka; "History of Dodge City," a thesis on loan
from the author, Owen D. Wiggins; The Claghorn Family, donated by Mrs.
Guy D. Josserand; and Strangeman Hutchins, a genealogical pamphlet given
by Mrs. Nancy Hineman. The Virginia Gazette, of Williamsburg, Va., 1736-
1780, was purchased with money given by the National Society of Colonial
Dames in the State of Kansas. Louise Barry donated a reel of the 1810
federal census of Virginia, and Mr. and Mrs. Frank Helm gave two reels of
the 1850 New York census and one reel of the 1880 census of Texas. The
Polly Ogden chapter, D. A. R., Manhattan, sent money to be applied on the
purchase of additional reels of the 1850 New York census. Through the
courtesy of the probate judges of Anderson, Linn, and Shawnee counties early
marriage records of those counties were microfilmed. These records preceded
the marriage license law of 1867 and were recorded from slips sent in by the
persons performing the marriages. Early marriage records are important for
biographical and genealogical purposes and all such Kansas records should
be microfilmed for safe keeping.
Several theses were received during the year. Col. and Mrs. Harrie S.
Mueller gave a copy of "Elam Bartholomew, Pioneer, Farmer, Botanist," by
Leonard E. Muir; Ralph E. Herrick sent a copy of his thesis, History of the
First Baptist Church, Emporia, Kansas, and Mrs. Vera E. Fletcher gave a
copy of her "History of Smith County."
Collections of books were received from Grace E. Derby, Arthur Bridwell,
Mrs. Edward Carl Johnson, the U. S. Veterans Administration, Fort Leaven-
worth, Louise Wolcott, and the family of Dr. Charles H. Lerrigo. A number
of persons donated single volumes, pamphlets, and other material to the li-
brary. Kenneth Davis, a former Kansan, now of Seattle, Wash., sent a generous
check to be used for the purchase of books.
Centennial booklets from the First Presbyterian church, Salina; First Pres-
byterian church, Topeka; First Baptist church, Wathena; and the city of Wash-
ington, were added to the Kansas collection.
Heritage of Kansas, by Everett Rich, and One Way Ticket to Kansas, by
Frank M. Stahl, as told by Margaret Whittemore, were significant Kansas books
94660
130 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
published recently. An important contribution to the early history of the state
was the reprinting of three older books which have become scarce. Thirty
Years in Topeka, 1854-1884, by F. W. Giles, was issued in an attractive format
as a Stauffer Publication centennial contribution; History of Jewell County,
Kansas, by M. Winsor and J. A. Scarbrough, originally published in 1878, was
reprinted by the Excelsior Study Club, Burr Oak; and The Heart of the New
Kansas, a Pamphlet Historical and Descriptive of Southwestern Kansas, by
Bernard Bryan Smyth, was reproduced in facsimile by Ray S. Schulz, Great
Bend.
Library accessions, October 1, 1959-September 30, 1960, were:
Bound volumes
Books
Kansas 343
General 871
Genealogy and local history 180
Indians and the West 61
Kansas state publications 47
Total 1,502
Clippings 8
Periodicals 134
Total, bound volumes 1,644
Microcards (titles) 1
Microfilm (reels) 48
Pamphlets
Kansas 1,127
General '..' 564
Genealogy and local history 37
Indians and the West 17
Kansas state publications 359
Total, pamphlets 2,104
MANUSCRIPT DIVISION
Both manuscripts and microfilm acquired during the year have added to
information on the towns and surrounding areas which played a part in the
era of the cattle drives. Mrs. Merritt L. Beeson, Dodge City, gave five volumes
of justices' dockets for Dodge township, Ford county, 1891-1908. These are
records of civil and criminal actions. Mrs. Robert M. Rath, Dodge City, gave
records of the Wright and Beverley Mercantile company which operated in
Dodge City and Mobeetie, Tex. Included are cash books, invoices, cor-
respondence, and account books dated in the 1880's.
Gerald Carson, author of The Roguish World of Doctor Brinkley, presented
material gathered by him for use in preparation of the book. It consists largely
of photostats and reproductions of newspaper and magazine articles. There
are some letters. Mr. Carson also gave the typescript of his book.
Papers of the late Robert Stone, prominent Topeka attorney, were given by
his daughter, Mrs. Beryl Johnson. The collection includes correspondence,
speeches and articles, files on the Charles Boswell estate, a sketch of the life
of his brother, George Melville Stone, and an incomplete autobiography.
The family of the late Charles Henry Lerrigo, M. D., gave papers relating
THE ANNUAL MEETING 131
to Red Cross Ambulance company No. 44, organized by Dr. Lerrigo at Wash-
burn College in 1917. It subsequently became Ambulance company 347, 312th
Sanitary train, 87th division, and was commanded by Dr. Lerrigo.
Medical records of Horace G. Slavens, M. D., Neosho Falls, were given by
Lawrence E. Diver of that city. The 13 volumes include records of visits to
patients and medicine dispensed, accounts, and two stubs of returns of births,
1885-1888.
Elmo R. Richardson, coauthor with Alan Farley of John Palmer Usher,
Lincoln's Secretary of the Interior, presented a small group of letters from
members of the Usher family, written in response to inquiries by Mr. Richardson.
The Records Center of the General Services Administration at Kansas City,
Mo., gave negative photostats of 11 documents relating to the massacre of
the Jordan family in Ness county, 1872.
Bonnie Bailey Vaughn, Topeka, has given a 300-page manuscript, "Taming
the Kansas Prairie." This is a story of western Kansas, 1885-1902, dedicated to
the memory of her parents, Nathan Hunt and Ida King Bailey, who pre-empted
land in the Whitewoman creek basin, Scott county, in 1885. The manuscript
contains three books: "Boom and Bust 80's"; the "Gray 90's"; and "Turn of
the Century."
Received during the year were two single items of more than usual interest:
Order book of the band and noncommissioned officers of the Seventh regiment,
U. S. cavalry, 1889-1891, given by Judge Arthur J. Stanley, Kansas City; and a
record of licenses issued by the city of Topeka, 1907-1909, gift of Frank J.
Warren. Among those paying fees were hucksters, fortune tellers, bicycle
riders, hack operators, circuses, a minstrel show, and the Buffalo Bill Wild West
show.
Microfilm copies of the following have been acquired:
Dodge City police court dockets, September 3, 1888-September 20, 1894,
April 15, 1901-August 31, 1906; records of Wright, Beverley & Co. (subse-
quently R. M. Wright & Co.), Dodge City, 1879-1887; papers of Maj. George
W. Baird, 1874-1878, with references to the fight at Adobe Walls, the Indian
territory expedition, and the Yellowstone command. The originals were lent
by Mrs. Merritt L. Beeson, Dodge City.
Records of the city of Caldwell. These include city council proceedings,
1884-1904; city ordinances, 1885-1920; cemetery records, 1880's-1930's; and
police dockets, 1879-1896. Originals were lent by the city clerk of Caldwell.
Records of Dodge City. The 69 original volumes, 1875-1928, included
ordinance books, city council minutes, a warrant register, police court dockets,
voters' registration books, lot register for Maple Grove cemetery, and a single
volume of Ford county vital statistics, 1905-1911. Lent by Dodge City
through Merle Smith, city clerk.
Ford county commissioners' journals, 1873-1904. Lent by Ford county
commissioners.
Papers of Cyrus K. Holliday. This film, a gift from the Henry E. Hunt-
ington library, San Marino, Cal., is largely a duplication of film already in the
Society's holdings.
Records of Fort Wallace. Purchase of two microfilm reels of War Depart-
ment records from the National Archives, was made possible through a gift
from Mrs. Raymond Millbrook, Detroit. Included are letters sent, 1866-1882;
and orders, 1877-1882.
132 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Records of Fort Dodge. The six reels of records in the National Archives
contain the following: Letters sent, 1866-1882; telegrams received, 1874;
orders, 1866-1882; and reports of scouts and marches, 1868-1869, 1875-1879.
As in the case of the Fort Wallace records, purchase was also made possible
through a generous gift from Mrs. Raymond Millbrook.
Records of the court martial of Lt. Col. Owen A. Bassett, Second Kansas
cavalry. Originals are in the office of the judge advocate general, War Depart-
ment. This was a gift from Mark Plummer, Normal, 111.
Sedgwick county district court records, 1870-1886. Originals were lent by
Mrs. Harriet Graham, clerk of the Sedgwick county district court. Mrs. Graham
also lent justice of the peace dockets, 1870-1873, of Wichita township, Sedg-
wick county.
Records of the city of Wichita, miscellaneous papers, 1871-1881, including
reports of city marshals, city clerks, city treasurers, police judges, and papers
relating to the cattle trade. Originals lent by the city of Wichita through
Frank Backstrom, city manager.
Other donors included: Robert W. Baughman, Liberal; W. T. Bishop,
Winona; Mrs. S. J. Brandenburg, Worcester, Mass.; George H. Browne, St.
Petersburg, Fla.; Mrs. W. H. Bullock, Topeka; Madge E. Busch, East Lansing,
Mich.; C. C. Calnan, Troy; Capper Publications, Topeka; Berlin B. Chapman,
Stillwater, Okla.; George W. Cook, Topeka; Dudley Cornish, Pittsburg; Mrs.
C. E. Coulter, Kansas City, Mo.; Mrs. L. A. Delp, Topeka; Robert S. Drenner,
Culp Creek, Ore.; Alan Farley, Kansas City; Mrs. Lolita T. Fetter, Washing-
ton, D. C.; Clarence S. Gee, Lockport, N. Y.; Arthur Grosbeck, Topeka; Mrs.
R. M. Hartzler, Kansas City, Mo.; Paul Henderson, Bridgeport, Neb.; Katharine
Hobson, Fort Smith, Ark.; Donald W. Janes, Topeka; H. R. Landis, Topeka;
Mrs. E. W. McNeill, Syracuse; Mrs. Grace Fox Metzler, Carbondale; Ottawa
County Historical Society; Jennie Small Owen, Topeka; G. P. Putnam's Sons,
New York, N. Y.; Floyd E. Risvold, Minneapolis, Minn.; Mrs. J. C. Ruppenthal,
Russell; Mrs. B. C. Sander, Topeka; Frederick F. Seely, Meadville, Pa.; Mrs.
Barton L. Simpson, Windber, Pa.; Clare A. Sprool, New York, N. Y.; Mrs. E. T.
Stallard, Topeka; Mrs. Mildred Steinmeyer, Topeka; Mrs. Fred M. Thompson,
Topeka; Mrs. Nellie E. Thorpe, Topeka; M. W. Tuttle, Topeka; Caroline K.
Walbridge, Topeka; Dick Walker, Topeka; Louise Wolcott, Topeka; Mrs. Max
Wolf, Manhattan; Woman's Kansas Day Club; E. V. Wood, Baldwin; Mrs.
James York, Junction City.
MICROFILM DIVISION
Since the last report the microfilm division has produced nearly 246,000
photographs, more than 200,000 of newspapers, 30,000 of archival materials,
and the balance for the library and the manuscript division.
Larger newspaper microfilming projects included the Coffeyville Daily
Journal, 1921-1930; Wyandotte and Kansas City Daily Gazette, March 15,
1887-April 12, 1909, and its continuation, the Gazette-Globe, April 13, 1909-
May 27, 1917; Brown County World, Hiawatha, March 16, 1882-December 29,
1916; Wellington Daily News, January 1, 1920-September 30, 1927; Holton
Recorder, April 12, 1872-December 27, 1900; Fort Scott Weekly Monitor,
July 6, 1876-April 13, 1904; and the Kearny County Advocate, Lakin, May 23,
1885-December31, 1920.
Other newspapers microfilmed included the Olathe Mirror, October 5, 1905-
December 30, 1920; Wyandotte Weekly Gazette, June 4, 1859-July 6, 1888;
THE ANNUAL MEETING 133
Kansas City Weekly Gazette, July 13, 1888-April 29, 1909; Kansas City Daily
Globe, June 19, 1905-April 12, 1909, May 28, 1917-September 1, 1918; Hays
City Sentinel, January 26, 1876-October 15, 1895; and 14 other newspapers
requiring four rolls of film or less.
Filming of the statistical rolls of counties mentioned in the archives report
has been completed.
MUSEUM
The continuing expansion and modernization program of the museum has
again attracted a large number of visitors. Total attendance for the year
ending September 30 was 64,277, with 419 school and scout groups taking
advantage of the guided tours conducted as part of the educational program.
Frank Walsh, who joined the staff as assistant museum director on September
1, is in charge of the educational program.
For the third straight year the Society had a display at the Mid-America
Fair. Attendance was a record 16,177, an increase of 7,233 over last year. The
Society was given a larger exhibit area this year which provided space for a
display of farm implements dating from the late 1800's, in addition to various
household items of pioneer days, Indian clothing, and an old-time general store.
A blacksmith and harness shop, ninth in the series of period rooms, was
completed last winter. Items on display include a stone and brick forge, a
large hand-operated bellows, an anvil mounted on a tree stump, and numerous
hand tools.
Newest addition to the period rooms, and largest and most ornate in this
series of displays, is a Victorian parlor. Construction of the room was made
possible largely because of a generous gift from the Woman's Kansas Day
Club. A fireplace with intricately designed mantle and ceramic tile work, once
in the governor's mansion, is an outstanding feature of the room. Other items
lending to the atmosphere of Victorian elegance are a brass chandelier, grand-
father clock, marble-topped tables, and heavy velvet drapes.
The Woman's Kansas Day Club also provided funds for purchase of a
display case for the silver service used on the Battleship Kansas. A gift from
the Kansas Dental Association helped to complete the period room depicting
a dentist's office, while donations from the Dillon estate and the P. E. O. were
used to purchase two cases for displaying old-time medical and dental instru-
ments.
There were 166 accessions during the year. Among them are a switchboard
used since 1912 in the Watson community, presented by the Southwestern
Bell Telephone Company; a "G. W. Brown Imperial corn planter" donated by
Joe Campbell; and a scale model of the Jayhawk hay stacker given by the
F. Wyatt Manufacturing Company of Salina. The museum's collection of
clothing and household items was expanded by gifts from the Laing estate of
Topeka and from Lawrence E. Diver, Neosho Falls, which included 234 items.
Other donors were: Mrs. Rosella Aitken, Topeka; Clarence Althof, Topeka;
Mrs. L. N. Annen, Topeka; Mrs. W. J. Ash, Wichita; Creola-Charles Baker;
Pratt; George Baker, Wamego; Mrs. Lela Barnes, Topeka; Mrs. Lita Battey,
Yakima, Wash.; Joseph Bidwell, Baldwin; Mrs. Henry Blake, Topeka; Austin
Bolyard, Topeka; Dr. M. M. Booth, St. Helena, Gal.; Tom and Kate Bottom
estate, Topeka; Glenn L. Boydston, Denison; Richard D. Branum, Houston,
Tex.; Ray Brooks, Topeka; Mrs. George Brownson, Kansas City; Mrs. Juanita
Bullock, Topeka; Mrs. Madge E. Busch, East Lansing, Mich.; Joe Campbell,
134 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Rossville; O. F. Canterbury, Kansas City, Mo.; Mrs. Howard Carvin, Inde-
pendence; Mrs. Eileen Charbo, Topeka; Howard Claycamp, Strawn; Herman
M. Coffman, Topeka; Mrs. Arthur Coil, Kansas City, Mo.; George W. Cook,
Topeka; Copies Inc., by James Olive, Topeka; Ross Cornwell, Haddam; Mrs.
C. M. Correll, Manhattan; Mrs. R. R. Cross, Council Grove; Daughters of the
American Revolution, by Mrs. C. E. Niven, Topeka; Mrs. H. E. Davidson,
California; Larry Davis, Topeka; Lyndon R. Day, Springfield, Va.; Mrs. Loren
A. Delp, Topeka; Gov. and Mrs. George Docking, Topeka; Billy Eberting, To-
peka; Mrs. Martha Engert, Manhattan; D. D. Ensley, Hepler; Dr. T. A. Evans,
Baldwin; Ethelynn Fortescue, Topeka; Roy and Clyde Gibbons, Lecompton;
Mrs. Roy S. Gibson, Chanute; Robert Gorman family, Topeka; Art Groesbeck,
Topeka; Larry Hahn, Topeka; Standish Hall, Wichita; David E. Hamilton,
Moline; Mrs. Laura H. Hamilton, Topeka; Mrs. Samuel Hanna, Howard;
Vance Henderson, Topeka; Mrs. Joe R. Henning, Ottawa; Fern F. Henry es-
tate, Topeka; Mrs. H. L. Hiebert, Topeka; Otis Hofman, Burlington; Mrs. S. W.
Holt, Topeka; Mrs. Ora Hurst, Marysville; Emma and Louis T. Jacoby, Nap-
onee, Neb.; Danny Janes, Topeka; A. M. Jarboe, Topeka; Mrs. Edward C.
Johnson, Topeka; Dr. Fred Johnson, Topeka; Mrs. Lou V. Johnson, Hutchinson;
Kansas state senate; Frank Klicker, Topeka; William Koch, Manhattan; Ladies
of the G. A. R., Topeka; Mrs. Henry Lautz, Topeka; Dr. Charles Lerrigo family,
Topeka; Helen D. Little, La Crosse; Mrs. Clarence M. Locke, Topeka; Avery
McClain, Topeka; Mrs. Muriel McClary, Independence; Mrs. C. H. McElroy,
Merriam; Charlotte McLellan, Topeka; Mrs. C. C. McMillen, Topeka; Mark
Marling, Topeka; Regina Matson, Topeka; Mr. and Mrs. J. E. Merriam, Topeka;
Mrs. J. J. Milbauer, Los Angeles, Cal.; Harlan W. Miller, Lawrence; Max
Miller, Topeka; Mrs. Nyle Miller, Topeka; Harry Nelson, Topeka; Mildred
Otis, Agra; T. L. Pattison, Topeka; Frank Paulson, Topeka; Mrs. Jane B.
Pearson, Denver, Colo.; Jim Petterson, Topeka; John F. and Ben O. Pickering,
Olathe; Mrs. Roy Platt, Medicine Lodge; Mrs. H. W. Ragsdale, Silver Spring,
Md.; Mrs. Victor A. Rankin, Mission; Jerry Reiman, Topeka; Frank Rezac,
Topeka; Mrs. Robert W. Richmond, Topeka; A. W. Roberts, Herington; Mrs.
George D. Royer, Jr., Kansas City, Mo.; Gordon Sailors, Topeka; R. Schellenger,
Ottumwa; Mr. and Mrs. Clyde Schenck, Topeka; Mrs. Ted Scott, Topeka;
Mrs. Harriet Shaffer, Moline; Stanley Sohl, Topeka; Mrs. Ruth Sollner, Burdick;
Mrs. Ulin Sondlin, Greenleaf; Southwestern Bell Telephone Co., by Bob Hil-
gardner, Topeka; Mrs. Harry Stanton, Washington; George M. Stone, Jr., Kan-
sas City; Mrs. S. A. Stover, McPherson; Ron and Rick Strickland, Topeka; Miss
E. E. Terry, Olathe; Mrs. Luther Tillotson, Topeka; John Turnbull estate,
Maple Hill; H. C. Vangampolard, Topeka; Mr. and Mrs. Owen Ward, Law-
rence; Mrs. William Ward, Marysville; Dr. William L. Warriner, Topeka; John
E. Wible, Long Beach, Cal.; Edgar Williamson, Strawn; Roscoe Wilmeth,
Topeka; Louise Wolcott, Topeka; Woman's Kansas Day Club; Mr. and Mrs.
L. A. Womer, Agra; Emily Wood, Munson, Mass.; Otto Wullschleger, Frank-
fort; Mary A. Zimmerman, Valley Falls; Phil Zimmerman, Topeka.
NEWSPAPER AND CENSUS DIVISION
During the year 5,254 patrons were served in person by the newspaper and
census division, and 4,706 mail requests were answered. Over 10,700 searches
were made by members of the staff in census and newspaper volumes, an in-
crease of more than 700 over the previous year. Certified copies of records fur-
nished totaled 3,898.
THE ANNUAL MEETING 135
Materials used by patrons and the staff during the year included: 14,649
census volumes; 8,299 bound newspaper volumes; 4,825 single issues of news-
papers; and 3,243 microfilm reels. This is an increase of 1,700 bound volumes
of newspapers and 900 microfilm reels over the previous year.
The Society continues to receive nearly all Kansas newspapers for filing. In
addition the publishers of 14 newspapers donate microfilm copies of their
current issues. Publications currently received include 57 dailies, 15 semi-
weeklies, 306 weeklies, and 102 published less frequently. Of the total of
481 publications received by the newspaper division, 342 are regular news-
papers, and 139 are school, religious, fraternal, labor, industrial, trade, and
miscellaneous periodicals. Ten out-of -state newspapers are received.
Five hundred and ninety-six bound volumes of Kansas newspapers were
added to the files during the year, making the total 58,683. The Society also
has 12,024 bound volumes of out-of-state newspapers. The collection of
newspapers on microfilm was increased by 474 reels during the year, bringing
the total to 7,916.
Among older newspapers received by the Society this year were copies of
the Kansas Tribune, Lawrence, March 7, 1855, donated by the University of
Minnesota library, Minneapolis; White City Whig, August 29, 1885 (Vol. 1,
No. 1), and the Dwight Wasp, March 31, 1887 (Vol. 1, No. 1), donated by
R. R. Dodderidge, Council Grove; and the Continental Journal and Weekly
Advertiser, Boston, February 20, 1777, donated by Nelson A. Crawford, To-
peka. Other donors of newspapers included: Mrs. L. N. Armen, Topeka;
Lucinda Casey, Topeka; B. B. Chapman, Stillwater, Okla.; Lawrence E. Diver,
Neosho Falls; Mrs. L. H. W. HaU, Dodge City; Mrs. Laura Hall Hamilton,
Topeka; Lowell Hogue, Russell; Alf M. Landon, Topeka; Norman Niccum,
Tecumseh; Jennie S. Owen, Topeka; University of Kansas library, Lawrence;
Dick Walker, Topeka; Fe Waters, Topeka; and Mary Zimmerman, Valley Falls.
PHOTOGRAPHS AND MAPS
The collection of photographs has been increased by the addition of 2,015
new pictures, while 393 duplicate, damaged, or otherwise valueless prints have
been removed, making a net increase of 1,622. Of these, 1,263 were gifts, 341
were lent to the Society for copying, and 411 were taken by the Society staff.
There are now 516 items in the color slide collection.
In addition to the still photographs accessioned, one 400-foot reel of 16 mm.
motion picture film, taken at the Society's 1959 archaeological dig, was do-
nated by WIBW-TV, Topeka.
Several large groups of pictures were given to the Society this year. Among
the more important were 62 views of aircraft, Air Force personnel, and activities
from Forbes Air Force Base, Topeka; 28 pictures of the Hutchinson Naval
Air Station from the Hutchinson Chamber of Commerce; 65 views of Topeka
businesses, churches, and schools in the 1920's from the Topeka Chamber of
Commerce; 24 photographs of modern Kansas industry and agriculture from
the Kansas Industrial Development Commission; and 279 views of the 1951
flood and the 1954 Topeka centennial celebration from Wolfe's Camera Shops,
Topeka.
Excellent collections of Kansas pictures were lent for copying by Mrs.
Merritt Beeson, Dodge City; Otto Epp and Owen Sleigh, Tribune; Lawson
May, Hutchinson; Floyd Souders, Cheney; Merle Miller, Belleville; Mrs. Ray
Garrett, Neodesha; Caroline Walbridge and John Ripley, Topeka.
136 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Demands for copies of pictures in the Society's collection have increased
markedly, in large part due to preparations underway for the state centennial
in 1961. Many recent books on the West have used pictures from the Society's
files as illustrations, and national magazines continue to draw on Kansas
sources. The National Broadcasting Company, in preparing programs for the
Project 20 television series, has also made extensive use of the Society's pictures,
as have the Universities of Kansas and Nebraska, also for television purposes.
One hundred and eight new maps and atlases have been accessioned this
year, 42 of which are recent issues of the United States Geological Survey.
The Kansas Highway Commission has deposited with the Society 32 county
highway maps in the current series and the United States Coast and Geodetic
Survey has begun to send aeronautical charts for the Kansas area on a regular
basis.
Other map gifts of particular interest include an 1886 plat of Girard from
George F. Beezley, Girard; two Pawnee county atlases from E. E. Glasscock,
Wellesley, Mass.; a Finney county atlas from O. W. Terhune, Garden City; and
several different Pony Express maps from L. C. Bishop, Cheyenne, Wyo.; the
Wyoming Pony Express Centennial Commission; Edith Givens, Parsons; and
Sherrill Halbert, Sacramento, Cal. Other donors included Benjamin Powers,
Kansas City, Mo.; George Rion, Junction City; Gen. R. M. Montgomery, Wash-
ington, D. C.; St. Mary's College, St. Marys; Hearne Bros. Co., Detroit, Mich.;
Ida Freels, Oxnard, Cal.; Eugene Stotts, Mrs. Robert Kingman, and Art Groes-
beck, Topeka.
Mrs. Ray Garrett, Neodesha, lent a lithograph of the town of Neodesha,
1883, for copying.
SUBJECTS FOR RESEARCH
Subjects for extended research included: land policy of the Kansas Pacific
railroad in Wallace county, the open range, early history of Smith county,
history of the grange in Kansas, involvement of immigrants in Farmers'
Alliance and Populism in Kansas, Charles M. Sheldon and some aspects of the
social gospel movement, attitude of the farmer toward the New Deal farm
program in Kansas, history of Stevens county, 1885-1900, recent political
issues in Kansas, history of Alton, Atchison in the 1880's, history of Sterling
College, the Kansas Power and Light Company, banks of Jewell and Finney
counties, the German press in Kansas, rural health in Kansas, prohibition in
Topeka, forts of New Mexico, the Donner party, Samuel J. Crawford, E.
Haldeman- Julius, Arthur Capper, and John P. St. John.
SOCIETY HOLDINGS, SEPTEMBER 30, 1960
Bound volumes
Books
Kansas 10,537
General 58,898
Genealogy and local history 10,397
Indians and the West 1,637
Kansas state publications 3,302
Total 84,771
Clippings 1,306
Periodicals 17,657
Total, bound volumes 103,734
THE ANNUAL MEETING
137
Manuscripts ( archives and private papers,
cubic feet) 5,707
Maps, atlases, and lithographs 5,553
Microcards (titles) 106
Microfilm (reels)
Books and other library materials 371
Public archives and private papers 2,293
Newspapers 7,916
Total 10,580
Newspapers ( bound volumes )
Kansas 58,683
Out-of-state 12,024
Total 70,707
Paintings and drawings 1,093
Pamphlets
Kansas 97,083
General 39,600
Genealogy and local history 3,822
Indians and the West 1,106
Kansas state publications 6,357
Total, pamphlets 147,968
Photographs
Black and white 36,518
Color slides 516
Total 37,034
THE FIRST CAPITOL
Total visitors at the First Territorial Capitol on the Fort Riley military
reservation during the year, were 6,994, representing 48 states, the District of
Columbia, and 18 foreign countries. The property is in good condition except
for a small amount of water seepage through the walls. Funds have been
requested for repairing these defective areas.
THE FUNSTON HOME
Registration this year at the Funston Home, north of lola, totaled 713.
Visitors represented 17 states.
Except for a termite infestation which has caused some damage, the property
is in good physical condition, and presents the best appearance since it was
taken over by the state.
THE KAW MISSION
An unusual number of Indian visitors were reported at the Kaw Mission,
at Council Grove, during the year. Tribes represented were the Kaw, Navajo,
Cherokee, Apache, Pottawatomie, Osage, and Pawnee. Total number of visi-
tors was 6,038, with 45 states and 13 foreign countries represented. As in past
years, the Society is happy to express appreciation for the co-operation of the
Council Grove Republican, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Nautilus Club,
all of which have taken an active interest in the progess of the Mission.
Donors of museum items included Mrs. Mabel Amrine, the C. H. Chitty
family, Mrs. C. C. Krause, Mrs. Ethel Marks, the P. E. O. Club, Mrs. A. J.
Tatlow, Ida Treels, W. T. Turnbull, and Mrs. Albert Ullrich.
138 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
OLD SHAWNEE MISSION
Number of visitors at the Shawnee Mission jumped substantially this year
to a total of 11,193, of whom 6,603 were Kansans, 4,573 came from 43 other
states, and 17 represented ten foreign countries. Among the visitors were
Ray F. and David E. Bluejacket, great-great-grandsons of Shawnee Chief
Charles Bluejacket, and Mrs. Florence Brown of Illinois, a great-great-niece
of Moses Silverheel.
The Colonial Dames, Daughters of American Colonists, Daughters of 1812,
Daughters of the American Revolution, and the Shawnee Mission Indian
Historical Society are again to be thanked for their continued interest and
assistance.
THE STAFF OF THE SOCIETY
As in past years it is a privilege to make public acknowledgment of the
fine work of the Society's staff. This has been perhaps the busiest and most
productive year in the past decade, and each department has carried its full
share of the load. Expressions of appreciation from persons who have re-
ceived assistance indicate real satisfaction with the Society's service. A public
official in another state wrote that "it was very unusual to receive such a re-
sponse from a historical society. . . . The response from your office is the
best and most gratifying of any from any State in the Union." Another corre-
spondent said, "You have done the impossible. . . . You . . . have
provided the one thing that nobody else has." We do take pride in the
quality of our research and the lengths to which we go in order to provide
satisfactory information. May we always be able to furnish prompt and
quality service to the public!
Respectfully submitted,
NYLE H. MILLER, Secretary.
At the conclusion of the reading of the secretary's report, James
Malone moved that it be accepted. The motion was seconded by
Will T. Beck and the report was accepted.
Mr. Anderson then called for the report of the treasurer, Mrs.
Lela Barnes:
TREASURER'S REPORT
Based on the post-audit by the State Division of Auditing and Accounting
for the period August 9, 1959, to August 20, 1960.
MEMBERSHIP FEE FUND
Balance, August 8, 1959:
Cash $4,732.10
U. S. bonds, Series K 5,000.00
$9,732.10
THE ANNUAL MEETING 139
Receipts :
Membership fees $1,671.99
Interest on bonds 138.00
Interest on savings 79.45
Gifts 1,650.46
Interest, Thomas H. Bowlus gift 27.60
3,567.50
$13,299.60
Disbursements $2,274.94
Balance, August 20, 1960:
Cash $6,024.66
U. S. bonds, Series K 5,000.00
11,024.66
$13,299.60
JONATHAN PECKER BEQUEST
Balance, August 8, 1959:
Cash $113.31
U. S. bond, Series K 1,000.00
$1,113.31
Receipts:
Interest on bond $27^60
Interest on savings account 3.81
31.41
$1,144.72
Balance, August 20, 1960:
Cash $144.72
U. S. bond, Series K 1,000.00
$1,144.72
JOHN BOOTH BEQUEST
Balance, August 8, 1959:
Cash $163.48
U. S. bond, Series K . . 500.00
$663.48
Receipts:
Interest on bond $13.80
Interest on savings account 5.09
18.89
$682.37
140 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Balance, August 20, 1960:
Cash $182.37
U. S. bond, Series K 500.00
$682.37
THOMAS H. BOWLUS DONATION
This donation is substantiated by a U. S. bond, Series K, in the amount of
$1,000. The interest is credited to the membership fee fund.
ELIZABETH READER BEQUEST
Balance, August 8, 1959:
Cash (deposited in membership fee fund) $614.44
U. S. bonds, Series K 5,500.00
$6,114.44
Receipts:
Interest on bonds ( deposited in membership
fee fund) 151.80
$6,266.24
Disbursements: books, prints, mss 430.29
Balance, August 20, 1960:
Cash (deposited in membership fee fund) $335.95
U. S. bonds, Series K 5,500.00
5,835.95
$6,266.24
STATE APPROPRIATIONS
This report covers only the membership fee fund and other custodial funds.
Appropriations made to the Historical Society by the legislature are disbursed
through the State Department of Administration. For the year ending June
30, 1960, these appropriations were: Kansas State Historical Society, including
the Memorial building, $525,332; First Capitol of Kansas, $3,425; Kaw Mission,
$4,047; Funston Home, $3,491; Pike Pawnee Village, $150; Old Shawnee Mis-
sion, $9,307.
Respectfully submitted,
MRS. LELA BARNES, Treasurer.
Kirke Mechem moved that the report be adopted. Alan W.
Farley seconded the motion and the report was accepted.
Will T. Beck presented the report of the executive committee on
the post-audit of the Society's funds by the State Division of Audit-
ing and Accounting:
REPORT OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
October 14, 1960.
To the Board of Directors, Kansas State Historical Society:
The executive committee being directed under the bylaws to check the
accounts of the treasurer, states that the State Department of Post-Audit has
audited the funds of the State Historical Society, the Old Shawnee Mission,
THE ANNUAL MEETING 141
the First Capitol of Kansas, the Old Kaw Mission, the Funston Home, and
Pike's Pawnee Village, for the period August 9, 1959, to August 20, 1960, and
that they are hereby approved.
WILL T. BECK, Chairman,
CHARLES M. CORRELL,
T. M. LILLARD,
FRANK HAUCKE.
On a motion by Will T. Beck, seconded by Mrs. Jesse C. Harper,
the report was accepted.
The report of the nominating committee for officers of the
Society was read by Will T. Beck:
NOMINATING COMMITTEE'S REPORT
October 14, 1960.
To the Board of Directors, Kansas State Historical Society:
Your committee on nominations submits the following report for officers
of the Kansas State Historical Society:
For a one-year term: George L. Anderson, Lawrence, president; Emory
K. Lindquist, Wichita, first vice-president; and James E. Taylor, Sharon Springs,
second vice-president.
For a two-year term: Mrs. Lela Barnes, Topeka, treasurer.
Respectfully submitted,
WILL T. BECK, Chairman,
CHARLES M. CORRELL,
FRANK HAUCKE,
T. M. LILLARD.
Will T. Beck moved that the report be accepted. A. Bower
Sageser seconded the motion and the officers were unanimously
elected.
There being no further business, the meeting adjourned.
Annual Meeting of the Society
The annual meeting of the Kansas State Historical Society opened
with a luncheon at noon in the roof garden of the Jayhawk Hotel.
About 180 members and guests attended.
The invocation was given by Emory K. Lindquist, dean of the
faculties at the University of Wichita and the newly elected first
vice-president.
Following the luncheon, President-elect Anderson introduced the
guests at the speakers' table. These included Gov. and Mrs. George
Docking and officers of the Society and their wives.
Governor Docking spoke briefly and presented to the Society
restorations in facsimile of the original Declaration of Independence
and the Constitution of the United States of America. These were
142 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
painstakingly produced by Theodore William Ohman of Memphis,
Tenn., whose work in documentary restorations is nationally known.
Mr. Ohman was a guest at the meeting.
President Edward R. Sloan, whose convalescence from an illness
prevented his attendance at the meeting, was represented by his son,
Eldon. Before reading the presidential address, Eldon Sloan read
the following statement which is printed here at President Sloan's
request:
Kansas is indeed fortunate in having the services of Nyle Miller as executive
secretary of its State Historical Society. Under Nyle's leadership we have
a society unmatched in the entire country.
Our state has made great progress in its struggle to the stars. In order to
build higher we must know the underlying structure. Through Nyle's efforts
an excellent record of every facet of Kansas life and growth is being assembled
and made available.
Our leaders of the future will certainly know where we have been and with
this knowledge they will be able to lead us ever higher.
Being your president is a highly cherished honor. Your greatest gift, how-
ever, was to afford me the opportunity to become better acquainted with Nyle
Miller.
ADDRESS OF THE PRESIDENT
THE SETTLEMENT OF THE SHORT-GRASS COUNTRY
EDWARD R. SLOAN
TT is an established custom for the president of the Kansas State
A Historical Society to deliver an address at the close of his term
of office on some subject relating to the history and development
of the state.
When I began to think about a subject for this address my mind
went back to the scenes of my boyhood. This may be a symptom
of childishness.
My parents brought me to Sheridan county in April, 1886, and
settled on a homestead where they built a sod house in which I
grew to adulthood. The state was then 25 years old. If I live to
celebrate the centennial, I will have lived through 75 years of
Kansas history, most of which has been in eastern Kansas.
Kansas came into being during a bitter struggle between the
North and South. The first settlements were in the eastern part
of the state, prompted by the desire not only to establish homes but
also to make Kansas a free or Proslavery state. It was in the east
therefore that this momentous issue was joined and was finally de-
cided for freedom.
THE ANNUAL MEETING 143
The western part of Kansas was not settled until years after
the war between the states. The enactment of the federal home-
stead law, which permitted the acquisition of 160 acres of land
by establishing a home thereon was the inducement for the settle-
ment of western Kansas. Many of the western Kansas home-
steaders were veterans of the Civil War, endearingly referred to
as "old soldiers." Their purpose was to own land and establish
homes.
The problems of the western homesteader differed from those of
the eastern settlers. The eastern settlers had living water in the
rivers and small streams, together with timber. This gave him the
first essentials, water, building material, and fuel. The homesteader
had none of these. He had only the broad prairies covered with
buffalo grass, without water, building material, or fuel, except as
it was provided by the buffalo grass.
It was necessary for the homesteader to have water, so he dug
a well. This was not new to pioneering. Abraham dug a well and
so did Jacob, but the wells in the prairie country were from 75
to 150 feet deep. These wells were dug with pick and shovel and
the dirt carried to the surface by bucket with rope and pulley. The
well digger, when he reached sand, curbed it. Otherwise, the well
was simply a hole in the ground without curbing. When he found
water, it was good and plentiful, slightly on the hard side, but it
was fresh and cool and had a much better flavor than some of the
cities' purified water. At first the water was drawn by bucket, but
the pump and windmill soon became the instrument of producing
water from the well. When a well was once established, water was
hauled in barrels on sleds for miles across the prairie, skidding
gently on the buffalo grass.
The prairie country is sometimes referred to as the short-grass
country. It was a sea of buffalo grass, probably the most useful
grass on God's footstool. It provided food for animals, building
material, and fuel, with the help of the animals. It was feed for
the buffalo and afterwards for cattle and other domestic animals.
It ripened in the fall on the ground and cured into hay so that it
was feed through the year. The snow was sometimes dragged off
the grass so that cattle could feed on it. Horses learned to paw
off the snow and feed on good hay. In addition to this, its sturdy
roots bound together the top soil so that it could be cut into brick
sod out of which the sod house was built.
144 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
The sod house was a direct product of the buffalo grass. The
undisturbed grass made the better sod. The sod was first cut by
an ordinary breaking plow and then cut with a spade into the
length desired. The block of sod was from 18 inches to two feet
in length, about ten inches wide and two and one-half inches thick.
The sod was laid much the same as brick, but without mortar or
cement. The walls were from eight to ten feet high and of course
provided for doors and windows. Rafters were run from wall to
wall to support the roof. The roof of the early house was con-
structed of willows covered with sod. When lumber became avail-
able the roofs were made of lumber covered with sod. The inside
of the wall was carefully smoothed with a sharp spade and plas-
tered with magnesium and sand found along the dry river. Win-
dows and doors in the early homes consisted of canvas. After the
railroad came through glass doors and windows could be had.
The floor, until lumber was available, was the ground. Most of
the homes had two rooms, some had five or six. The walls were
whitewashed and sometimes the floors were carpeted with rag
carpet. There were no oriental rugs. The rooms were light and
airy, warm in winter and cool in summer. They had only the
furniture the homesteader brought with him, until the railroads
made furniture available. Some were then quite well furnished,
including musical instruments. They were homes with all the
tender emotions of family life.
The homesteader was not troubled with plumbers or electricians.
The problem was fuel, and again he went to the prairie and gathered
cow chips, which were the direct product of the buffalo grass. They
dried on the prairie and were easily handled and served the pur-
pose of fuel.
The homesteader came to the prairie in covered wagons and
brought with him his horses and cattle and a few pigs and chickens.
He lived in his wagon or tent until he could build a house. It was
not uncommon for one neighbor to lend to another a cow to milk,
or a home cured ham, or a sack of flour or cornmeal.
When the Rock Island came through on its way from Omaha to
Colorado Springs, it was about three miles from our homestead.
The railroad established a coal chute in our town. The engine
tenders were filled with coal at this station and for some distance
out of town coal would fall from the tender. It was a common
practice for people to go along the railroad and pick up the coal.
I have heard that firemen on the engines sometimes threw off a few
THE ANNUAL MEETING 145
shovelfuls for people who were searching for coal. The dis-
carded ties of the railroad were in demand for fuel. My only ex-
perience in chopping wood was on a discarded railroad tie.
Thus, the pioneer with the use of the material nature provided
established a dwelling place and became the owner of land. Most
of these were homes in the true sense of the word. Homes are not
built with material but out of the loving hearts and hands of parents,
especially the mother whose tender touch heals the hurts of her
children. Homes are developed in log cabins, sod shanties, and
mansions, and they sometimes fail in each.
Buffalo sod as building material went out of use in the early
part of the 20th century and frame dwellings and schoolhouses
took its place. This was not due so much to the inconvenience of
the sod buildings, but to the fact that the buffalo grass was heavily
pastured and plowed into wheat fields and sod became useless as
building material. At about the same time dug wells were replaced
with drilled wells. The cow chips fell into disuse when the cattle
had other feed than buffalo grass.
During the last two decades of the 19th century school districts
were organized and sod schoolhouses dotted the prairie. They
were not only schoolhouses but also churches and community
centers. The builders of these temples of sod were acting under
no compulsion save the desire to educate their children. The
compulsory school law did not come until after the turn of the
century. Were it not for the desire of the parents to educate their
children my generation could have easily grown up in illiteracy.
The schools were taught by local teachers. There were usually
not more than a dozen children in the school. They were graded
only in the sense that they read the first, second, third, or fourth
reader. One of my teachers is still living. Her name is Winona
Douglas, now Mellick. She drove a horse and cart seven miles
across the prairie to the schoolhouse and did her own janitor work.
She was in my mind a great teacher and I have often said that
she had more influence on my life than any teacher I have ever had.
The prairie homesteader has had his ups and downs. He has
met droughts, hot winds, and crop failures, but as spring follows
the winter, rains have followed droughts and crop failures have
been followed by good crops. A little success soon heals the
wounds of hardship and disappointment. The western farmer
came to his own in the first World War when he produced the
104660
146 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
bread that was necessary to win the war. Since then he had to
cope with dust storms, but he had learned how to meet the ob-
stacles of the country and to turn the prairie into wheat fields.
Some of those who saw the open prairies and withstood its hard-
ships have lived to see its prosperity. The prairie country could
furnish bread to the hungry of the world if our statesmen were
wise enough to get it to them.
The differences between eastern and western Kansas still exist,
but it is very much tempered to what it was many years ago. The
constitution provides for a representative from each county and
the sparsely settled counties have influenced legislation. Among
the last legislative controversies between the east and the west was
the constitutional amendment authorizing the state highway system.
The west opposed it because they were afraid that the roads would
be built in the eastern part of the state. They did not realize that
the aristocracy of the east would have to have good roads across
the prairie to get to the playgrounds of the Rocky Mountains. The
state highway system has probably done more to harmonize the
people of Kansas than anything that has happened in my generation.
We are sometimes asked why would one live his life in Kansas
with its hot summers and cold winters. The beautiful springs and
magnificent falls cause us to forget the inclement weather. We
have tornadoes, hail, and dust storms, but we do not have tidal
waves or earthquakes. Wherever we are, life is struggle. Where
there is no struggle, life ceases to exist. The Creator seems to
have ordained it so. The greater the struggle, the more per-
manent are the footprints on the sands of time. Kansas has been
generous to most of us. It has been good to me. I thank my
parents, who had the courage to bring me here. I expect to spend
my remaining years a Kansan with my boyhood sweetheart from
the prairie country.
At the close of the reading of retiring President Sloan's address,
a small plaque was presented to Eldon Sloan to be transmitted to
his father in recognition of his service to the Society.
A portrait of Philip Pitt Campbell, prominent resident of south-
eastern Kansas and congressman from the third district for 20
years, was presented to the Society in the name of his daughter,
THE ANNUAL MEETING 147
Mrs. Helen Campbell Kleberg of Kingsville, Tex. In the absence
of Fred W. Brinkerhoff who was to have made the presentation,
the secretary, Nyle Miller, introduced Mrs. Jessie Munn Noel of
Pittsburg, niece of Philip Campbell, who unveiled the portrait.
Mr. Brinkerhoff 's prepared statement follows:
Philip Pitt Campbell was born in Nova Scotia, April 25, 1862. Five years
later the parents, Mr. and Mrs. Daniel A. Campbell, and family, four sons
and a daughter, traveled to Boston where a covered wagon was purchased
and outfitted. In it the Campbell family came to Kansas, stopping for a few
months in Illinois. The Campbells settled on a farm in Walnut Grove town-
ship in Neosho county, not far from the town of Walnut. Phil Campbell spent
his boyhood and young manhood on this farm. He attended the common
schools and later went to Baker University from which he was graduated in
1888. In 1889 he was admitted to the bar. And two years later he began
the practice of law in Pittsburg. He became active in Republican politics
and gained an early reputation for his oratory. He was one of the speakers
at the first dinner of the Kansas Day club in Topeka in 1893. In 1902 he
was nominated for congress at the third district Republican convention at
Winfield where 105 ballots were taken before he won. He served the next
20 years in the house of representatives, rising to the top rank of Republican
leaders. He was chairman of the rules committee in the closing years of his
service. In 1922 he was defeated for renomination by one of the three men
he defeated in the convention in 1902. Retiring from congress, Campbell
established a law practice in Washington which he continued until his death
in Washington, May 26, 1941.
This portrait, by the artist, Boris B. Gordon, was presented to the Kansas
State Historical Society by Campbell's daughter, Helen, now Mrs. Robert J.
Kleberg of Kingsville, Tex. During his long service in congress Campbell
was a picturesque figure in a stock which he wore in preference to a collar and
necktie. It was said of him that he closely resembled the poet, Robert Burns,,
and the statement did not displease Campbell, who was proud of his Scotch
ancestory. But after his retirement from congress he discarded the stock and
resumed the conventional neckwear. The artist painted the portrait in this
later period of Campbell's life.
Bob Brooks and Bill Walker, graduate students of the University
of Kansas, gave the premiere showing of their interesting motion
picture, "Six Gun to Sixty-One," which narrates the story of Kansas
through 100 years of statehood.
The report of the committee on nominations for directors was.
called for and was read by Will T. Beck:
148
KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON NOMINATIONS FOR DIRECTORS
October 14, 1960.
To the Kansas State Historical Society:
Your committee on nominations submits the following report and recom-
mendations for directors of the Society for the term of three years ending in
October, 1963:
Bailey, Roy F., Salina.
Baughman, Robert W., Liberal.
Beezley, George F., Girard.
Beougher, Edward M., Grinnell.
Bowlus, Thomas H., lola.
Brinkerhoff, Fred W., Pittsburg.
Cron, F. H., El Dorado.
Docking, George, Lawrence.
Ebright, Homer K., Baldwin.
Farrell, F. D., Manhattan.
Hamilton, R. L., Beloit.
Harper, Mrs. Jesse C., Ashland.
Harvey, Mrs. A. M., Topeka.
Haucke, Frank, Council Grove.
Hodges, Frank, Olathe.
Lingenfelser, Angelus, Atchison.
Long, Richard M., Wichita.
McArthur, Mrs. Vernon E.,
Hutchinson.
McCain, James A., Manhattan.
McFarland, Helen M., Topeka.
McGrew, Mrs. Wm. E., Kansas City.
Malone, James, Gem.
Mechem, Kirke, Lindsborg.
Mueller, Harrie S., Wichita.
Ripley, John, Topeka.
Rogler, Wayne, Matfield Green.
Ruppenthal, J. C., Russell.
Simons, Dolph, Lawrence.
Slagg, Mrs. C. M., Manhattan.
Templar, George, Arkansas City.
Thomas, Sister M. Evangeline, Salina.
Townsley, Will, Great Bend.
Woodring, Harry H., Topeka.
Respectfully submitted,
WILL T. BECK, Chairman,
C. M. CORRELL,
T. M. LlLLABD,
FRANK HAUCKE.
Motion for acceptance of the report was made by Standish Hall,
seconded by Ivan N. Hewitt. The report was adopted and directors
for the term ending in October, 1963, were elected.
The following memorial to John S. Dawson was read by C. M.
Correll:
JOHN S. DAWSON
John S. Dawson, outstanding Kansas jurist and public servant for over half
a century, died in Topeka on February 19, 1960. He had served on the board
of directors of this Society for over 50 years, on the executive committee since
1935, and as president in 1931-1932.
John Dawson was born in Spey Bridge, Scotland, June 10, 1869, and came
to the United States in 1884. After spending three years on an Illinois farm
he moved to Graham county, Kansas, where he became a teacher in the public
schools. While serving as principal of the Hill City grade school he read law
and in 1898 was admitted to the bar.
In 1899 he became bond clerk in the state treasurer's office and five years
later, although he was already a full-fledged attorney, he enrolled in the Wash-
burn law school. In 1906 he received the bachelor of laws degree but while
he was still a student he became an assistant attorney general, a job he held
until 1908.
THE ANNUAL MEETING 149
Dawson's career in state service was a distinguished one. He served as
private secretary to Governor Stubbs, was an attorney for the board of railroad
commissioners, and in 1910 was elected to the first of two terms as attorney
general. From 1915 to 1937 he was a justice of the state supreme court and
then served as chief justice until 1945, during which time he wrote more than
1,600 opinions. His retirement was short-lived for he soon returned to the
statehouse for another decade as pardon attorney in the governor's office.
Judge Dawson, who won an enviable reputation as a vigorous enforcer of
liquor and antitrust laws in Kansas, was active in the affairs of the state bar
association and received well-deserved honors and recognition from that
organization at the time of his retirement from the court. In 1927 he was
given an honorary doctor of laws degree by Washburn University, and in 1951
was awarded the 33d degree in Masonry.
John Dawson was a staunch friend of this Society. He gave generously of
his time and talent and was greatly interested in the history of his adopted
state and nation.
A memorial to Jerome C. Berryman was read by Frank Haucke:
JEROME C. BERRYMAN
The Society lost a valued member and friend when Jerome C. Berryman
died on May 23, 1960. He had been a life member of the Society since 1927,
a member of the board of directors since 1940, and was first vice-president at
the time of his death.
Jerome Berryman, a native of Kansas, was born in Ashland, May 22, 1902,
and spent most of his life there. He graduated from Centre College in Ken-
tucky in 1925 and after a brief residence in Oklahoma returned to Ashland
where he entered the banking business. His business and financial interests
were extensive, and as a banker, lumber company executive, and rancher he was
an active promoter of the agricultural and economic development of Kansas.
As a young man Berryman became interested in politics and his interest
remained strong. He was a Republican member of the Kansas legislature for
four terms beginning in 1949 and he served as a member of the state office
building commission, state board of abstractors, and as sixth district com-
missioner of the Kansas state highway commission.
In 1943 he entered the United States navy and was discharged as a lieu-
tenant commander at the end of the war, having served on the staff of Adm.
William Halsey in the Pacific. He was a member of the American Legion,
Veterans of Foreign Wars, Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity, Sons of the Ameri-
can Revolution, and Masonic bodies.
The Berryman family's interest in history stems from the earliest days of
white settlement in present Kansas. Mr. Berryman's great grandfather came
as a Methodist missionary to the Kickapoo and Shawnee Indians in the early
1830's. Therefore, it was natural for Berryman to have a deep concern for
the history of his state, and as a member of the Clark County Historical Society
and this Society he worked at preserving the story of Kansas.
Jerome Berryman's death was a loss to his family, his community, and to his
state which he served so well.
Members of several local historical societies reported briefly on
the activities of their organizations.
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.
150
KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Directors of the Kansas State Historical Society as of
October, 1960
DIRECTORS FOR THE YEAR ENDING OCTOBER, 1961
Barr, Frank, Wichita.
Charlson, Sam C., Manhattan.
Correll, Charles M., Manhattan.
Denious, Jess C., Jr., Dodge City.
Hall, Standish, Wichita.
Hegler, Ben F., Wichita.
Humphrey, Arthur S., Junction City.
Jameson, Henry, Abilene.
Jones, Horace, Lyons.
Kampschroeder, Mrs. Jean Norris,
Garden City.
Kaul, Robert H., Wamego.
Lauterbach, August W., Colby.
Lillard, T. M., Topeka.
Lindquist, Emory K., Wichita.
Maranville, Lea, Ness City.
Means, Hugh, Lawrence.
Montgomery, John D., Junction City.
Owen, Mrs. E. M., Lawrence.
Payne, Mrs. L. F., Manhattan.
Richards, Walter M., Emporia.
Riegle, Wilford, Emporia.
Robbins, Richard W., Pratt.
Roberts, Larry W., Wichita.
Scott, Angelo, lola.
Shrewder, Mrs. Roy V., Ashland.
Sloan, E. R., Topeka.
Smelser, Mary M., Lawrence.
Socolofsky, Homer E., Manhattan.
Stewart, Mrs. James G., Topeka.
Taylor, James E., Sharon Springs.
Van De Mark, M. V. B., Concordia.
Wark, George H., Caney.
Williams, Charles A., Bentley.
DIRECTORS FOR THE YEAR ENDING OCTOBER, 1962
Aitchison, R. T., Wichita.
Anderson, George L., Lawrence.
Anthony, D. R., Leavenworth.
Baugher, Charles A., Ellis.
Beck, Will T., Holton.
Bray, Mrs. Easton C., Syracuse.
Chandler, C. J., Wichita.
Clymer, Rolla, El Dorado.
Cochran, Elizabeth, Pittsburg.
Cotton, Corlett J., Lawrence.
Eckdall, Frank F., Emporia.
Euwer, Elmer E., Goodland.
Farley, Alan W., Kansas City.
Card, Spencer A., lola.
Harvey, Perce, Topeka.
Jelinek, George J., Ellsworth.
Knapp, Dallas W., Coffeyville.
Landon, Alf M., Topeka.
Lilleston, W. F., Wichita.
Lose, Harry F., Topeka.
Malin, James C., Lawrence.
Mayhew, Mrs. Patricia Solander,
Wichita.
Menninger, Karl, Topeka.
Moore, Russell, Wichita.
Rankin, Charles C., Lawrence.
Raynesford, H. C., Ellis.
Reed, Clyde M., Jr., Parsons.
Sageser, A. Bower, Manhattan.
Shaw, Joseph C., Topeka.
Stewart, Donald, Independence.
Thomas, E. A., Topeka.
von der Heiden, Mrs. W. H., Newton.
Walker, Mrs. Ida M., Norton.
DIRECTORS FOR THE YEAR ENDING OCTOBER, 1963
Bailey, Roy F., Salina.
Baughman, Robert W., Liberal.
Beezley, George F., Girard.
Beougher, Edward M., Grinnell.
Bowlus, Thomas H., lola.
Brinkerhoff, Fred W., Pittsburg.
Cron, F. H., El Dorado.
Docking, George, Lawrence.
Ebright, Homer K., Baldwin.
Farrell, F. D., Manhattan.
Hamilton, R. L., Beloit.
Harper, Mrs. Jesse C., Ashland.
Harvey, Mrs. A. M., Topeka.
Haucke, Frank, Council Grove.
Hodges, Frank, Olathe.
Lingenfelser, Angelus, Atchison.
Long, Richard M., Wichita.
McArthur, Mrs. Vernon E.,
Hutchinson.
McCain, James A., Manhattan.
McFarland, Helen M., Topeka.
McGrew, Mrs. Wm. E., Kansas City.
Malone, James, Gem.
Mechem, Kirke, Lindsborg.
Mueller, Harrie S., Wichita.
Ripley, John, Topeka.
Rogler, Wayne, Matfield Green.
Ruppenthal, J. C., Russell.
Simons, Dolph, Lawrence.
Slagg, Mrs. C. M., Manhattan.
Templar, George, Arkansas City.
Thomas, Sister M. Evangeline, Salina.
Townsley, Will, Great Bend.
Woodring, Harry H., Topeka.
Bypaths of Kansas History
REASON ENOUGH
Mrs. Lynn R. Brodrick and her sister, Iowa Jones, of Marysville,
recently presented to the State Historical Society what seems to be
the subscription list of the old Palmetto Kansan, a newspaper pub-
lished in the latter 1850*8 in a town next door to Marysville.
The town didn't last and the newspaper didn't publish long, but
the reason offered for the demise of the latter was intriguing.
Scrawled across one of the pages was the following candid state-
ment: "Palmetto Kansan Suspended for want of Brain to Edit it."
If newspapers must suspend it probably can't be denied that this
reason is as good as any.
JUVENILE DELINQUENTS, 1860 MODELS
From The Daily Times, Leavenworth, December 29, 1860.
There were an innumerable number of snow-storms on the streets yesterday
and the day before, not exactly after the manner in which they usually come,
but improvised and gotten up for the occasion by an army of about forty boys.
They arranged themselves, in military style, on one side of the street, and dis-
patched a shower of snow-balls after every team and pedestrian that passed
along. Wo to the unlucky wight who stopped and resented the sudden and
unexpected pelting which he was sure to encounter, if he came within snow-
shot of the boys. A perfect tornado of white bullets would greet him, in re-
sponse to his expostulations. We even saw some cutters containing ladies that
were assaulted by the youngsters. This was an exhibition of a want of gallantry
which a few days training in the callaboose would probably remedy. It may be
fine sport for the boys to throw snow-balls, but they should learn to be a little
more discriminating in their attacks.
"LIGHTNING SPEED" ON THE SANTA FE
From the Dodge City Times, January 19, 1878.
A special train consisting of an engine and Pullman car, left the Santa Fe
depot, Topeka, Thursday, with the right of the road to Pueblo. It carried a
gentleman who had received a dispatch that his wife was very sick and likely
to die in Colorado Springs. $350 it is said was paid for this ride.
From the Times, January 26, 1878.
Last week we referred to the charter of a special train by a gentleman
who wished to make all possible haste to the bedside of his dying wife. The
Commonwealth gives the following particulars:
Mr. Dunn, of the firm of H. B. Clafflin & Co., the heavy New York dry
(151)
152 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
goods merchants, whose wife was lying at the point of death from quick con-
sumption, at Manitou, Colorado, telegraphed Colonel Morse on Thursday,
chartering a special train from Topeka to Pueblo ahead of the regular train.
As it was a matter of life and death it was desirable to reach his destination
as soon as possible, which occasioned a very rapid run, as the figures below
indicate. The train consisted of a sleeping car drawn by engine 23, built by
the Taunton locomotive works, with 62 inch drivers and cylinders 14x24.
J. W. Griffith run the engine the entire distance, 568 miles, with John Flem-
ming to assist him as fireman.
TIME MILES
The train left Topeka at 3:05 p. m.
Left Emporia Junction 4:51 60
Arrived at Newton 7:20 135
(Coaled and supper)
Left Newton 7:38
Left Great Bend 9:54 219
Arrived at Dodge (Coaled) 12:15 a. m. 302
Left Dodge 12:30
Left Lakin 2:26 374
Left Granada 4:00 421
Left West Las Animas (Coaled) 5:35 476
Arrived at Pueblo 7:30 568
This run was made in sixteen hours and twenty-five minutes, including all
stops. Actual running time, about fifteen hours and forty minutes. Average
speed, including all stops, thirty-four and a half miles per hour. Maximum
between stations, forty-three miles per hour; minimum, twenty-seven.
For a new western road, this is rather an extraordinary run and would in-
dicate excellent condition of the track and rolling stock.
At Pueblo, the Denver & Rio Grande railroad had a special train in waiting
which conveyed Mr. Dunn to Colorado Springs, where he took a team to
Manitou, five miles distant, reaching the bedside of his wife only twenty
minutes before her death. The thoughts of the husband can be better imag-
ined than described as he dashed up the valley the long night through, at a
maximum speed of 43 miles per hour to reach the side of his dying
wife.
FAST DRAW No CONTEST
From the Dodge City Times, July 13, 1878.
The other day a wild Texan boarded the train at Ellis for Kansas City.
It was his first ride on the cars, and as the conductor reached in his pocket
for his punch, the sharp eye of the Texan caught a glimpse of its polished
handle and quick as thought he leveled a big six shooter on the conductor,
saying: "Put 'er up, or I'll blow daylight through you. No man can get
the drop on me." Hays Sentinel.
BYPATHS OF KANSAS HISTORY 153
A STATE-OF-THE TOWNSHIP REPORT FROM BURR OAK, JEWELL
COUNTY, IN THE 1885 KANSAS CENSUS
Under "General Remarks by Assessors" in the 1885 state census
of Kansas (v. 119), one assessor took the suggestion to mean what
it said, and thereupon reported the situation in Burr Oak town-
ship, Jewell county, as of March 1, 1885:
Wheat not in good condition Acreage Small it is not A Success in this
locality Oats can be raised in Abundance Average crop about 50 bu per
Acre corn in good condition Acreage large average crop 30 to 60 per
Acre the Chintz Bug is here this Season damageing Wheat allready
Peach Trees nearly all Winter Killed apples do Well all Small fruits do
Well
all Kinds of forrest trees do Well except cotonwood dont pay to Set them
out Box elder and in fact all other Kinds do Well
their is a Small Bug eating the leves of the young Cotonwood this Season
looks Somthing like Colorado Beatle
their has bin little Rheumatism or Something like it among the Horses
this Winter they get down cant get up Some dies others get Well
EVERYTHING UP-TO-DATE IN KANSAS CITY
From the Kansas City Gazette, July 29, 1895.
Saturday afternoon two young ladies from Kansas City, Mo. came across
the line on bicycles. They attracted especial attention on account of their
costume. One was dressed in bloomers and the other in tights. Their ap-
pearance was so strikingly unusual to the staid population of this city that
the town suspended business for a while to take a look at them. The young
ladies had gone but a little way along Minnesota avenue when a troop of
dudes on wheels took their trail. Finally one of the girls punctured a pneu-
matic tire on the fragment of a whisky bottle and when she alighted to examine
the damage she was heard to remark: "I thought this was a prohibition town."
As the transportation of bicycles on the cable cars is forbidden she was obliged
to walk home, pushing her wheel, with a crowd at her heels like that which
usually follows a Bohemian and his trained bear. Kansas City, Kansas, never
had so much fun since the day of the Lewelling administration. But it must
not be understood that Kansas City, Kansas, was shocked. She never gets
shocked.
ONE WAY TO BOOST TRADE
From The Brown County World, Hiawatha, June 30, 1899.
It is a good thing for the merchants of Hiawatha to have Indian prisoners
in the jail. They draw Indian trade. There have been more Indians in
Hiawatha since the Indians have been in the jail than there ever were before.
Kansas History as Published in the Press
Articles by Harry E. Chrisman in the Southwest Daily Times,
Liberal, in recent months included: "Liberalites Participated in
[George] Mulligan's Gold Rush [to Alaska in 1901]," April 30, I960;
"Phones Here Preceded by Telegraph in Early Days/' May 6; "John
E. George, Early Day Cowboy, Later Banker and Financier, Had
Part in Last SW Kansas Indian Fight," July 2; "All That Is Left of
Fargo Springs, Ghost Town, Is School Bell Now on 1st Christian
Church Patio Here," August 17; "Cattle Rustling on the Cimarron
River Harassed Pioneer Ranchmen in This Area," September 17;
and "Coyotes Once Seward Co. Official Melon Testers," September
30, October 1, 4, 5.
Among historical articles printed in the Hays Daily News recently
were: "Pleasant Old Soldier 'Cap' Craig Haunts G. A. R. Holiday
Memories," by Mollie Madden, May 15, I960; "Dodge City Points
Up Hays Mistake in Failing to Fence in Its Boot Hill," June 12;
"Agricultural Life in [Ellis] County Changed by Arrival of First
Header in 1881," June 21; "Recently Sold 'Golden Valley Farm*
[in Ellis County] a Picturesque and Historical Place," June 26; "St.
Joe [Reno County] Used To Be Ost," by Alvin Dumler, and "Stir-
ring Account of Civil War Days in Kansas by Late Resident [Mrs.
Anne Mclntosh Gilkeson] of Hays," July 24; "The Story of Jenny
Martin Records Rugged Living of Pioneers at Ellis," by Kittie Dale,
August 7; "Druggist [Terry Foltz] Recalls When Carry Nation
Wrecked Business," by Ted Blankenship, August 28; "Kansas Oil
First Sought in 1860 by Energetic Editor [G. W. Brown] at [of]
Lawrence," October 9; and "Insurance Firms Took Chance on Any
Hazard of Old West," October 23.
Hosea C. Holdredge's 35-year career as constable of Caldwell was
reviewed in an article published in the Topeka Capital- Journal,
July 10, and the Caldwell Messenger, July 18, 1960.
Beginning July 13, 1960, the Kiowa County Signal, Greensburg,
has been publishing Dr. Irven L. Corder's "A History of Kiowa
County," in serial form.
G. M. Weeks is the author of the "Story of El Dorado's First
Water Mill Replete With Other Early Day Data," which appeared
in the Butler County News, El Dorado, July 14 and 21, 1960. A
biographical sketch of Edward E. Snyder, retired El Dorado teacher,
was printed in the News, August 18 and 25.
(154)
KANSAS HISTORY AS PUBLISHED IN THE PRESS 155
Featured in the August, 1960, number of Thomas County . . .
Yesterday and Today, Colby, was a biographical sketch of Mrs.
Emily Thiel Stover who settled in Thomas county in 1887. Other
articles included: "Issac Flood Plants Many Trees Here in Early
Days/' "Measles Strike in '99, Claiming Four Member of the Eli
Anderson Family Within One Week/' and "History of Levant Cen-
ters Around Church, Schools, and Business Places/' Among articles
in the September issue were: "J. W. Hutchinson Family Makes
Home in Thomas County in 1885," "Kansas Farmers Union First
Organized in Thomas County in 1916/' "L. C. Howard Describes
Early Times," "Clyde Chelf Reminisces About Settlement Years in
County; Includes Many Interesting Facts," and an article on the
building of good roads in the area.
Early Lindsborg history and a biographical sketch of W. B. O'Con-
nor, early city marshal of Lindsborg, were included in an article by
Anton Peterson, printed in the Lindsborg News-Record, August
4, 1960.
One hundred-year-old Mrs. H. M. Halloway, Larned, was the sub-
ject of a biographical sketch published in the Tiller and Toiler,
Larned, August 12, 1960. On September 2 a biographical sketch of
Michael Sweeny, Pawnee county pioneer, appeared in the Tiller
and Toiler.
In 1885 the Rev. C. R. Robinson started the Wellsford Methodist
church. A history of the church has been appearing serially in the
Haviland Journal, beginning August 18, 1960. The early part of
the history was written by Mrs. C. E. Anderson in 1935, the re-
mainder by Mrs. Frank Meisel and Mrs. John Powell.
" 'Ballad of Nicodemus' Kansas Town's Theme," by Kittie Dale,
a history of Kansas' only all-Negro settlement, was published in the
Wichita Eagle Magazine, August 21, 1960.
Articles of historical note in recent issues of the Courtland Journal
Included: "Eight Months in Western Kansas in 1907," August 25,
1960; "The Glasgow Family Prominent in Early History," Septem-
ber 1; "Sorghum Mill an Early Industry in Courtland Township/'
September 8; "Fort Nonsense," a building erected by the Excelsior
oolony in north central Kansas for protection from the Indians, Sep-
tember 15; and "Courtland School Reaches 72nd Anniversary," by
Nina Engwall and Anona Blackburn, September 22.
On August 25, 1960, the Harper Advocate published an eight-page
liistorical supplement under the title Harper Headache. The sup-
156 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
plement is comprised largely of historical and humorous articles
from early issues of Harper newspapers.
The Arkansas Daily Traveler, September 16, 1960, printed a short
sketch of the opening of the Cherokee Strip, September 16, 1893,
by Walter Hutchison.
A history of Meade, by Lura Smith, appeared in the Meade Globe-
Press, September 15, 1960. The town was incorporated in 1885.
On September 18, 1960, the Atchison Daily Globe printed a his-
tory of St. Benedict's church, near Bendena. The church recently
celebrated its centennial.
The Weir Spectator on September 22, 1960, printed the first in a
series of articles on the history of Weir by Mrs. Ralph O'Malley.
A history of the Marysville Methodist church appeared in the
Marshall County News, Marysville, September 22, 1960. The city's
first Methodist services were held in 1857.
Histories of the Hope Methodist church were published in the
Hope Dispatch and the Herington Advertiser-Times, September 29,
1960. Although a Sunday school had existed for several years
previous, the church was not organized and chartered until 1885.
Early in 1885 the Baptist church of Simpson was organized, ac-
cording to a history of the church printed in the Beloit Gazette,
September 29, 1960.
In observance of the 75th anniversary of the Norwich Methodist
church, the Kingman Countian, Kingman, September 29, 1960, pub-
lished a history of the church.
Histories of Herndon and Ludell, 1902-1909, by Alfaretta Court-
right, were published in the Citizen-Patriot, Atwood, September
29, 1960.
William C. QuantrilTs activities in the Kansas-Missouri border
area during the Civil War are reviewed by Albert Castel in "The
Bloodiest Man in American History," which appeared in American
Heritage, New York, October, 1960. Accompanying the article
were the reminiscences of Sophia L. Bissell who was living in Law-
rence at the time of QuantruTs raid there.
"Alfred M. Landon and the Presidential Campaign of 1936," by
Donald R. McCoy, was published in the October, 1960, issue of
Mid-America An Historical Review, Chicago.
Kansas Historical Notes
A charter-member meeting of the newly formed Mitchell County
Historical Society was held July 28, 1960, in Beloit. It was an-
nounced that 82 persons had become charter members. Nyle H.
Miller, secretary of the Kansas State Historical Society, spoke to
the gathering. Alan Houghton is president of the Mitchell county
society.
Chase county's historical museum in Cottonwood Falls, a gift of
Frank and George Roniger, was formally opened to the public Au-
gust 20, 1960. The display consists largely of the Roniger brothers'
Indian relics, and the historical collections of George Miser and
the Chase County Historical Society. Miser is the museum curator.
All officers of the Chase County Historical Society were re-elected
at the annual meeting of the society in Cottonwood Falls, Septem-
ber 10, 1960. They are: Charles Gaines, president; Paul Wood,
vice-president; Whitt Laughridge, secretary; George T. Dawson,
treasurer; and Mrs. Ruth Conner, librarian. The group heard Stan-
ley Sohl, director of the Kansas State Historical Society museum,
discuss procedures in starting a museum.
U. S. cavalry and Cheyenne Indians (both portrayed by local
citizens) met again on the battlefield at Squaw's Den near Scott
City, when the last major Indian battle in Kansas was re-enacted
September 11, 1960. The original battle was fought September
27, 1878.
The first meeting of the Reno County Historical Society was held
in Hutchinson, September 22, 1960. Mrs. Vern Maupin was elected
president; Don Wyman, vice-president; and Kenneth Collins, secre-
tary-treasurer. I. N. "Jibo" Hewitt, special representative of the
Kansas Centennial Commission, was the principal speaker.
Luncheon speaker at the conference of teachers of history at the
University of Kansas, Lawrence, September 23 and 24, 1960, was
Nyle H. Miller, secretary of the Kansas State Historical Society,
whose subject was "When Kansas Became a State." Other parts
of the program relating to Kansas history included a discussion ses-
sion led by Drs. George L. Anderson and James C. Malin of the
University of Kansas, on Kansas history, and a discussion of the
Kansas centennial in the classroom by Miller, Edgar Langsdorf, and
Robert Richmond of the Kansas State Historical Society.
(157)
158 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Officers elected for the coming year at the annual homecoming at
Glenloch, Anderson county, September 25, 1960, were: Mrs. Effie
Pierce, president; Frank Bennett, vice-president; and Mrs. Libby
Dockstader, secretary-treasurer.
Harold O. Taylor was re-elected president of the Crawford
County Historical Society at the society's annual meeting, Septem-
ber 29, 1960, in Pittsburg. Robert O. Karr, vice-president, and Mrs.
J. W. Black, treasurer, were also re-elected. Mrs. A. N. Ligon was
named secretary, and Dr. Garfield W. Weede, Dr. Elizabeth Coch-
ran, and Dr. Theodore Sperry were chosen directors for three-year
terms. Henry E. Carey addressed the group on "The Crawford
County Story/'
The Norton County Historical Society was organized at Norton,
October 3, 1960. Raymond D. Bower was elected president and
Mrs. Melvin OToole secretary.
At a meeting, October 8, 1960, at Minneapolis, the Ottawa County
Historical Society elected the following officers: Paul Wilkins,
president; Fred Miller, vice-president; Mrs. Ray Halberstadt, secre-
tary; Mrs. Ethel Jagger, treasurer; Mrs. Zella Heald, reporter; and
Louis Ballou, Ray Halberstadt, and Mrs. Thomas Swart, directors.
After the business session members present inspected Ralph Fuller's
collection of antique engines and farm machinery at his home near
Minneapolis.
A. R. Bentley, Dighton, was elected president of the Lane County
Historical Society at a meeting in Dighton, October 10, 1960. Other
officers chosen include: Mrs. John Hagaman, vice-president; Mrs.
Joe Hanna, secretary; Mrs. Dale Jewett, treasurer; and Robert Jen-
nison, Mrs. H. S. Edmundson, and R. J. Tillotson, directors. Bill
Pike was the retiring president. It was reported that 886 persons
visited the society's sod house during the summer.
Mrs. Ray Livingston, Abilene, second vice-president, and Mrs.
Walter Wilkins, Chapman, treasurer, were re-elected at the annual
meeting of the Dickinson County Historical Society at the Ebenezer
Baptist church near Navarre, October 13, 1960. The program fea-
tured histories of the Ebenezer community. B. H. Oesterreich,
Woodbine, is president of the society.
Featured event of Valley Center's recent diamond jubilee anni-
versary celebration was the historical pageant presented October 13
and 14, 1960. The Valley Center Index printed a four-page special
KANSAS HISTORICAL NOTES 159
souvenir edition, featuring historical articles and pictures, Octo-
ber 13.
Officers elected at the annual meeting of the Comanche County
Historical Society in Coldwater, October 15, 1960, were: D. Jay
Overocker, president; Ward H. Butcher, vice-president; Mrs. Cliff
Sibbitt, secretary; and F. H. Moberley, treasurer. Mrs. Donald
Booth was the retiring president.
Miltonvale history was the subject of a Cloud County Historical
Society program in Concordia, October 18, 1960. At the business
session George Button was elected vice-president, and George Cald-
well a director. Robert Hanson is president of the society.
The fourth annual meeting of the Missouri Valley Conference of
Collegiate Teachers of History will be held March 24, 25, 1961, at
Omaha under the auspices of the Department of History of the Uni-
versity of Omaha. Prof. Bell I. Wiley of Emory University will be
the featured speaker of the opening session commemorating the
centennial of the Civil War. The Saturday session will give especial
attention to the subject of local history.
Included in a 70-page booklet by Fannie Palmer, entitled Mil-
tonvale, published in 1959, are histories of the town, its schools,
churches, business institutions, and biographies and reminiscences
of many of its residents and former residents.
Freedom Has a Happy Ring is the tide of a 71-page booklet, edited
by Mrs. Anna Manley Gait, and compiled and published by Irma
Doster in 1960, containing excerpts from winning essays in contests
on our constitutional freedoms. The publication was dedicated to
Miss Doster's father, Frank Doster, a former chief justice of the
Kansas supreme court.
Eugene F. Ware's The Indian War of 1864, published in 1911,
has been republished by St. Martin's Press, New York, in 1960. An
introduction and notes by Clyde C. Walton are included in the new
483-page volume. Ware was an officer in the Seventh Iowa cavalry
which in 1864 was engaged in fighting the Indians in Kansas, Ne-
braska, the Dakotas, Colorado, and Wyoming. The book is Ware's
account of the campaign.
F. W. Giles' Thirty 'Years in Topeka, 1854-1884, originally pub-
lished in 1886, has been reprinted by Stauffer Publications, Topeka,
in 1960, with illustrations, maps, and a foreword by Zula Benning-
ton Greene added.
160
KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
James H. Kyner's End of Track, first published in 1937, was re-
printed in 1960 in a 280-page paper-bound volume by the Univer-
sity of Nebraska Press, Lincoln. The book is a history of railroad
building in the Nebraska-Idaho-Colorado-Wyoming area, based on
Kyner's memoirs as a railroad construction contractor.
A 191-page biography of William Barclay "Bat" Masterson, by
Dale White, entitled Bat Masterson, was published by Julian Mess-
ner, Inc., New York, in 1960.
Many a Voyage, a 309-page historical novel based on the life of
Fannie Ross, wife of Edmund G. Ross, by Loula Grace Erdman,
was recently published by Dodd, Mead & Co., New York.
Paul W. Gates is the author of a 460-page recently published work
entitled The Farmer's Age: Agriculture, 1815-1860. Of special in-
terest to Jayhawkers is Gates' discussion of the relation of public
land policies to the settlement and development of new agricultural
areas which included Kansas. Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New
York, were the publishers.
n
THE KANSAS
HISTORICAL
QUARTERLY
THE KANSAS STATE
HISTORICAL SOCIETY,
TOPEKA
SUMMER 1961
mm'
-
NYLE H. MILLER KIRKE MECHEM JAMES C. MALIN
Managing Editor Editor Associate Editor
CONTENTS
PAGE
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875: The Rise and Fall of a Kansas
Cowtown Robert Dykstra, 161
With map of Ellsworth county, 1875, p. 187.
THE EARLY CAREER OF C. K. HOLLIDAY: A Founder of Topeka and of
the Santa Fe Railroad Frederick F. Seely, 193
With portraits of Mr. and Mrs. Cyrus Kurtz Holliday, facing p. 192.
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A Revised Annals, Part Two,
1763-1803 Compiled by Louise Barry, 201
With a George Catlin sketch of Kansa Indians, about 1831, facing p. 208,
and the reproduction of a portion of Francois M. Perrin du Lac's Carte
du Missouri, 1802, facing p. 209.
SOME NOTES ON KANSAS COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS
Continued Nyle H. Miller and Joseph W. Snell, 220
With portraits of Rowdy Joe Lowe, and William B., Edward J., and James P.
Masterson, facing p. 240; reproduction of a portion of a page of the
Delmonico Hotel register, Dodge City, and a photograph of Mr. and Mrs.
Thomas Masterson, parents of the Masterson trio of lawmen, facing p. 241.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY,
Compiled by Alberta Pantle, Librarian, 277
BYPATHS OF KANSAS HISTORY 304
KANSAS HISTORY AS PUBLISHED IN THE PRESS 305
KANSAS HISTORICAL NOTES 308
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THE COVER
Manhattan street scene of the early 1860's. A black and
white print was hand-tinted in Germany about 1910 to make
a color post card. John Ripley, Topeka, provided the copy
reproduced here.
1861 Kansas Centennial of Statehood 1961
THE KANSAS
HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Volume XXVII Summer, 1961 Number 2
Ellsworth, 1869-1875:
The Rise and Fall of a Kansas Cowtown
ROBERT DYKSTRA
Kansas cattle-market community or "cowtown" of the 1870's
JL and 1880's has long enjoyed a reputation larger than life. For
90 years the popular imagination both in this country and abroad has
fed on the image of townfuls of taut, hard-drinking men hung with
Colt's six-shooters. The cowtown homicide rate is now a legendary
statistic, and the combat in the cowtown street a classic component
of the tradition of a primitive, violent American past. 1 Yet here
and there an important cattle town has failed to receive individual
attention either in folklore or popular history. Comparatively little,
for example, has been written of Ellsworth. It remains known simply
as one of the temporary centers suspended in the cattle-trade chron-
ology between Abilene, first of the major Kansas cowtowns, and
Caldwell, the last.
Possibly one of the reasons for this lack of attention is that early
local historians declined to perpetuate the memory of Ellsworth as
a great Texas cattle center. In fact, the first writers dismissed the
cattle trade in the most derogatory terms. As an early Ellsworth
county historian summarized for the Andreas-Cutler history of
Kansas:
. . . the cattle trade commenced coming to Ellsworth, and with it came a
new element into society, which, while making business somewhat lucrative,
ROBERT DYKSTRA, native of Iowa, is currently a research assistant at the State Uni-
versity of Iowa, Iowa City, while working toward his Ph. D.
1. Most serious historians dealing with the cattle-market community, unfortunately,
have blandly fallen in step with this portrayal, offering social and economic facts only as a
backdrop for picturesque crime and punishment. The present-day concept of the Kansas
cowtown, therefore, generally remains a crude hybrid of overdone folklore and underdone
history. For examples of historians' quite uncritical acceptance of cowtown folklore see
C. C. Rister, "Outlaws and Vigilantes of the Southern Plains, 1865-1885," The Mississippi
Valley Historical Review, Lincoln, Neb., v. 19 (March, 1933), pp. 548, 549, and Ray Allen
Billington, Westward Expansion: A History of the American Frontier (2d ed.; New York,
1960), p. 678.
(161)
162 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
was rather detrimental to morality. . . . One season of such characters
satisfied the people of Ellsworth that the evils of the cattle trade, or rather
those that followed it, were more detrimental to the real interests of the place
than it was benefitted by any advantages derived from it in point of increased
trade, and when, in the following year the cattle men took their trade farther
west, the citizens of Ellsworth were very much relieved, and felt greatly re-
joiced.*
Besides asserting that Ellsworth came to abhor the cattle trade,
this writer implicitly denies that Ellsworth citizens were at all
divided on the cattle-trade question that is, that while many op-
posed the trade others favored it, giving rise to the kind of split of
community opinion, for example, that plagued the cattle-trading
years of nearby Abilene. 3 Recent writers have reinforced this
picture of a somewhat bland, solely corporate response by Ellsworth
to the trade. 4 But in reality the story of Ellsworth as a cowtown
is a dramatic study in the dynamics of frontier economic and social
antagonisms, as expressed in the bitter, complex politics of com-
munity conflict. 5
The earliest white inhabitants of Ellsworth county settled in the
east-central and southeast portions of the county just prior to the
Civil War. The war retarded additional immigration at that period,
and in 1863 Indian raids caused the evacuation of existing settlers.
At the war's end, however, settlement resumed under the protection
of Fort Ellsworth and then of Fort Harker, both located on the
Smoky Hill river in the center of the county. 6
Along the Smoky Hill southeast of Fort Harker, several rural
enterprisers of note settled in the rich bottomlands. In July of 1866
the Rev. Levi Sternberg arrived in Ellsworth county. Steinberg,
who was to become one of the county's most respected citizens, was
2. A. T. Andreas and W. G. Cutler, History of the State of Kansas (Chicago, 1883),
p. 1277.
3. For a comprehensive treatment of cattle-trade conflict in Abilene and Dickinson
county see Robert Dykstra, "Abilene and Ellsworth: Conflict and Community Power in
Two Kansas Cowtowns" (master's thesis, State University of Iowa, 1959), pp. 10-81, and
Robert Dykstra, "The Last Days of 'Texan' Abilene: A Study in Community Conflict on
the Farmer's Frontier," Agricultural History, Champaign, HI., v. 34 (July, 1960), pp.
107-119.
4. See, for examples, George Jelinek, Ellsworth, Kansas, 1867-1947 (Salina [1947]),
and Floyd Benjamin Streeter, "Ellsworth as a Texas Cattle Market," The Kansas Historical
Quarterly, Topeka, v. 4 (November, 1935), pp. 388-398, passim.
Although Streeter, the only professional historian to deal specifically with Ellsworth,
seems at first glance to have written a great deal about the community's cattle-trade years,
most of his work with the exception of the cited article deals with the Whitney-Pierce-
Crawford killings of 1873 and their aftermath (see Footnote 96 below). A work of
broader scope done under Streeter's direction is John F. Choitz, "Ellsworth, Kansas: The
History of a Frontier Town, 1854-1885" (masters thesis, Fort Hays Kansas State College,
1941); this does not focus primarily on the cattle-trade period, however.
5. The term "community" is here used as synonymous with the sociologists' definition
of "rural community," i. e., a village and its rural service area. Dwight Sanderson and
Robert A. Poison, Rural Community Organization (New York, 1939), p. 8.
6. Andreas-Cutler, op. cit., p. 1274; [Charles J. Lyon,] Compendious History of Ells-
worth County, Kansas (Ellsworth, 1879), pp. 24-30.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 163
a native of upstate New York, now in his early 50's. A Lutheran
minister and principal of a Lutheran college in Iowa, Sternberg was
induced to emigrate to Ellsworth county by his eldest son, George,
who as an officer stationed at Fort Harker was so impressed by the
region that he filed on a quarter section of Smoky Hill bottomland
south of the fort. Sternberg apparently had engaged in part-time
farming along with his ministerial duties. He noted the agricul-
tural possibilities of Ellsworth county, and took over his son's claim
when the latter was transferred elsewhere. Sternberg's other sons
soon joined him in the venture, filing adjoining claims, and the
family got its start by dairying and gardening to supply the nearby
fort. By 1869 Sternberg controlled a large acreage lying on both
sides of the river, and his "Smoky Hill Dairy" was about to begin
the production of butter on a large scale. By 1870 he estimated the
value of his real estate at $7,500 the third largest evaluation in
the county with his son Theodore, a lawyer, claiming another
$2,000 worth. Sternberg's local prestige no doubt culminated with
his appointment as pastor of the First Presbyterian church of Ells-
worth, but his state-wide reputation was as an agriculturist, and
he served on one of the early boards of regents for Kansas State
College. 7
Sternberg's neighbor, David B. Long, also came to Ellsworth
county in 1866. A native of Ohio, Long grew up on a farm, attended
Oberlin College, taught school, and just before the war went into
part-time business as a cheese merchandiser. A noncommissioned
officer during the war, he re-enlisted at its close. While waiting
at Fort Harker with his family for transportation to a new assign-
ment at Fort Wallace, Long was urged by George Sternberg to file
on a section of bottomland. Before moving on, therefore, he en-
tered a claim, and when his enlistment expired in the spring of 1868
he returned to Ellsworth county. In June of that year he began to
manufacture cheese, soon developing a thriving business. By 1869
his "Springdale Cheese Factory" was turning out 500 pounds of
cheese per week. In 1873 he completed a two-story stone cheese
factory operated by water power, and a year later was filling orders
from as far away as Hutchinson. By 1874 his 800-acre establishment
was exclusively a livestock and dairy farm. His 100 acres under
cultivation provided feed for his 40-head dairy herd and 200 head
7. Andreas-Cutler, op. cit., pp. 1274, 1278; Lyon, op. ctt. t pp. 36-37; Charles H.
Sternberg, The Life of a Fossil Hunter (New York, 1909), pp. 2-6; Times and Conserva-
tive, Leavenworth, June 5, 1869; Ellsworth Reporter, June 20, 1872, May 1, 1873; "U. S
Census, 1870," Ellsworth county, [second section,] p. 5, archives division, Kansas State
Historical Society, Topeka.
164 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
of beef cattle. Fencing protected 70 acres, and in winter Long
carefully fed his livestock instead of turning it loose to forage as
most did. 8
Adjoining Long's and Steinberg's claims was the farm of Jacob
C. Howard, who arrived in approximately 1868. A native of
Massachusetts now in his early 50's, Howard came to Ellsworth
county from Michigan. In 1869 he was reported buying dairy
cattle and "fine horses and horned stock, and will soon have one
of the best stock farms in the State." Two years later the local
newspaper termed him a "country gentleman" with "one of the best
locations for a stock and dairy farm in the country and a larger
herd of short horns than we expected to find in the county." By
1873 Howard owned a herd of 500 head, and was crossing thorough-
bred Durham bulls and longhorned Texas heifers. Unlike Long,
Howard let most of his stock run at large each winter. 9
The last of the large Ellsworth county establishments of the
period was the Powers ranch on the Smoky Hill in the southeast
corner of the county, laid out in 1869 by three related Leavenworth
businessmen, D. W., J. W., and D. B. Powers. By 1875 their ranch,
grown to 2,540 acres, was one of the largest in the county, with
over $8,000 in improvements, including board and wire fencing of
over 1,000 acres of pasture for blooded stock. Although probably
most of the 600 acres of the establishment under cultivation was
for raising forage, the owners in the winter did not feed the majority
of their stock, Texas cattle, but turned them loose. The Powers
brothers later established the first permanent bank in Ellsworth. 10
In the meantime, Ellsworth itself was born. In the fall of 1866
several businessmen of eastern Kansas conceived the idea of
founding a town west of Salina at a point near Fort Harker where
it was expected the tracks of the railroad would come to a halt for
a time, making the spot a shipping point for goods between the
States and New Mexico. 11 In January, 1867, the townsite was
platted just west of Fort Harker in roughly the center of the county
on the north bank of the Smoky Hill. The tracks of the railroad
8. Adolph Roenigk, ed., Pioneer History of Kansas ([Lincoln, Kansas,] 1933), pp. 63,
64, 67; A Biographical History of Central Kansas (2 vols., New York, 1902), v. 2,
for Mr. Long, that he provides _
Long's philosophy on wintering see, also, "D. B. L. in ibid., May 16, 1872.
9. Times and Conservative, Leavenworth, June 5, 1869; Ellsworth Reporter, December
14, 1871, March 27, April 24, May 1, 1873; "U. S. Census, 1870," Ellsworth county,
[second section,] p. 4.
10. Andreas-Cutler, op. cit., p. 1280; Ellsworth Reporter, November 7, 1872, May 8,
1873, April 16, 30, 1874, June 3, 1875.
11. John H. Edwards in Kansas Daily Commonwealth, Topeka, February 18, 1872.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 165
pushed through to Ellsworth early in May, and the town began
to boom. Fort Harker became the supply point for more westerly
military posts, and Ellsworth became a vital link in the Santa Fe
trade. 12
Several who later became leaders in Ellsworth's economic and
political life were charter members of the town's business com-
munity. Perry Hodgden, a native of Ohio, opened a dry goods
store, took on a partner three years later, and afterwards opened
a branch store outside the county. In addition to his store he held
$4,000 worth of real estate in 1870, most of it evidently townsite
holdings. 13 Ira W. Phelps, a native of New York who already had
spent some years in the West, opened as a grocery jobber with
$2,000 worth of goods. In 1872 he was paying $1,500 per month
railroad freight alone, and two years later could boast of sales
averaging $100,000 per year. 14
Arthur Larkin, also locating in Ellsworth in 1867, was the son
of a Dublin coal merchant. Immigrating at the age of 16, he served
over ten years in the army but spent the war in Leavenworth as a
restaurant proprietor and freighter. He subsequently established
the first hotel in Ellsworth, and in 1868 opened a general mer-
chandising business. From 1871 to 1873 he and Z. Jackson were
partners in this venture, first at Fort Harker and then in Ellsworth
proper. In 1870 he held $4,000 worth of real estate. With his
extensive and various commercial enterprises and his real estate
holdings, Larkin remained possibly the wealthiest member of the
community throughout the 1870's. 15 The last figure of note locat-
ing in this period was Z. Jackson. Jackson arrived in Ellsworth
county after many years on the frontier as a businessman, politician,
and soldier. In 1867 he began to supply Fort Harker with fresh
produce, and farmed a claim until 1871, in the latter year going
into a business in partnership with Larkin. After breaking with
Larkin he obtained appointment as postmaster and opened his own
general merchandising store in Ellsworth. He probably never
attained an economic position to match that of Hodgden, Phelps,
12. Daniel W. Wilder, The Annals of Kansas (Topeka, 1886), p. 452; Andreas-Cutler,
op. cit., p. 1276; Lyon, op. cit., p. 37.
13. "U. S. Census, 1870," Ellsworth county, [first section,] p. 11; Ellsworth Reporter,
December 14, 1871 ff. (advertisements of Ellsworth Town Company, P. Hodgden & Com-
pany, and T. J. Buckbee & Company), December 28, 1871, January 25, 1872, September
14. Andreas-Cutler, op. cit., p. 1280; "U. S. Census, 1870," Ellsworth county, [first
section,] p. 9; Ellsworth Reporter, January 25, 1872, June 4, 1874.
15. Andreas-Cutler, op. cit., p. 1279; A Biographical History of Central Kansas, v. 2,
pp. 791, 792; "U. S. Census, 1870," Ellsworth county, [first section,] p. 10; Ellsworth
Reporter, February 29, April 11, May 9, December 26, 1872, May 15, June 12, 1873.
166 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
or Larkin; however, he remained an articulate opinion leader
throughout the county. 16
Following the initial rush of settlers to Ellsworth in 1867 the
new town and its rural hinterlands suffered a series of sharp
setbacks in the space of a few months. First the Smoky Hill flooded
the new townsite with four feet of water, forcing the community
to relocate on higher ground and requiring a special act of the
legislature to legalize transfer of titles from the old site to the
new. Next hostile Cheyennes raided into the county. When most
of the county's settlers were camped close about Fort Harker for
protection from the Indians, Asiatic cholera broke out. Many died
within and without the fort, and many of Ellsworth's citizens fled
the area. 17
The railroad then prepared to build west, and in a desperate
move to retain the value of their town Ellsworth promoters ob-
tained a charter for the "Ellsworth & Pacific Railroad Company"
in January, 1868, then petitioned congress and the army to abandon
support of the proposed extension of the Kansas Pacific tracks to
Denver in favor of a route from Ellsworth to Santa Fe. Even with
the signature of Gov. Samuel J. Crawford on its articles of incor-
poration, the E. & P. R. R. never got rolling. The tracks moved
west from Ellsworth in 1868, toward Denver, not toward Santa Fe,
and with them went Ellsworth's dreams of becoming a great rail-
road hub. 18
A correspondent for the Lawrence Tribune, accompanying an
excursion train over the newly laid track in June of that year, sent
back a discouraging report:
One of the Agents of the [National] Land Company had already been sent
up to Pond creek, or Fort Wallace, to lay out a town near that point. Thither-
ward the people of Hays and Ellsworth, also, are already looking, and many
are making arrangements to move to that point, whenever the line of the
road is defintely settled and the town laid out. It is their only hope. There
will continue to be some little business at Ellsworth and Hays, as long as the
forts remain there, but not enough to support over one fourth the present
number of business houses. Business has been over done in these frontier
towns, and a reaction, painful, but undoubtedly healthful, is taking place. At
both places a few [wagon] trains are waiting for freight, and have been for
several weeks. The contract for shipping a large number of pounds of Gov-
ernment freight has been let, but the freight does not arrivef.]
Ellsworth is the county seat of Ellsworth county, and although in a little
16. Andreas-Cutler, op. cit., p. 1279; "U. S. Census, 1870," Ellsworth county, [second
section,] p. 11; Ellsworth Reporter, February 29, 1872, April 17, June 26, 1873.
17. Andreas-Cutler, op. cit., pp. 1276, 1277; Wilder, op. cit., pp. 457, 459; Laws
of the State of Kansas, 1869, pp. 261, 262.
18. The Ellsworth <tr Pacific Railroad ( Leavenworth, [1868]), passim.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 167
better looking country than farther west, it is by no means a farming coun[tr]y.
A little land has been cultivated along the creeks, but with indifferent success,
there not being enough rain to produce good crops, and there being not enough
water for irrigation.
The railroad company have an engine house here, with four stalls, and also
have a blacksmith shop. The trade of the fort, together with a share of the New
Mexican trade, constitute about all the business, which is by no means large.
Persons wishing to invest in real estate can do so in Ellsworth just now at
greatly reduced rates. Houses which cost twelve and fifteen hundred dollars
are awaiting purchasers at less than half those sums. 19
In Ellsworth county that year crops were miserably poor, and in
the fall the Indians returned, forcing settlers to congregate for de-
fense at Fort Marker and beg army rations. Many rural settlers
took their cue from the desertion of Ellsworth by its newspaper and
many of its merchants, and simply left the county. 20
Not surprisingly, those who remained saw their salvation in the
acquisition of the Texas cattle trade.
As early as 1867 a plan was afoot to establish a route from Indian
territory to the vicinity of Ellsworth over which Texas cattle might
be driven to the railroad; however, nothing came of this venture. 21
In 1868, in the depths of the Ellsworth bust, the town's promoters
and businessmen decided to make their influence felt where it would
do the most good at the next session of the state legislature. On
March 2, 1869, therefore, a new legislative act was approved estab-
lishing a state highway from Fort Cobb, Indian territory, to Ells-
worth for driving livestock. Texas herds brought in over this road
were specifically exempted from the regulations and penalties of
the 1867 "Spanish fever" statute. 22 Ellsworth, it appeared, was soon
to be in business as a cowtown.
The expected coming of the cattle trade spurred Ellsworth citizens
to purge their town of lawlessness. On May 12, 1869, a mob lynched
one Fitzpatrick, who was being held for murder. That night some-
one took a shot at Judge Westover, apparently in retaliation, and
respectable tempers flared. "Having an assurance of the cattle
trade," wrote Ira Phelps to the Junction City Weekly Union, "we are
JL*J* ixuitouo j-xuttc/ *nvwwj Ajawnjiiuc-, j Uiic JLCJ, J.OUQ.
20. Roenigk, op. cit., pp. 86, 87. In April, 1868, P. H.
paper named the Ellsworth Advocate, which lasted for onlj
Board of Agriculture, Firs* Biennial Report . . ., 1877-1878
19. Kansas Daily Tribune, Lawrence, June 19, 1868.
P. H. Hubbell established a news-
ily six months. Kansas State
78, p. 212.
21. Ralph P. Beiber, "Introduction" to Joseph G. McCoy's Historic Sketches of the
Cattle Trade of the West and Southwest (Glendale, Calif., 1940), pp. 52, 53.
22. Laws of the State of Kansas, 1869, pp. 217, 218. The act of 1867 allowed
summer driving of Texas cattle only into the underpopulated southwest quarter of Kansas;
anyone bringing longhorns from the free zone northeastward had to guarantee that owners
of domestic stock lost nearby as a result of contracting Spanish fever, commonly carried
by Texas cattle, would be reimbursed. Ibid, 1867, pp. 263-267. This statute, of course,
was universally ignored by drovers and buyers.
168 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
determined to have peace and order instead of rowdyism and blood-
shed, if we have to 'fight it on this line all summer/ " 23
Whether the cattle trade would contribute much to peace and
order remained to be seen, but William Sigerson & Company of St.
Louis began constructing a stockyard with a capacity for 5,000 head
and provided banking facilities to handle the finances of the trade.
Circulars and posters were dispatched to all corners of Texas, and
on May 31 agents left for that state to guide herds up the new state
road. Businessmen's spirits soared. "It was supposed," wrote a
correspondent, "that when the railroad was extended west of the
town, Ellsworth would die, but instead of that she prospered."
The town then contained several merchandising firms, four hotels, a
drugstore, four taverns, a schoolhouse, and an Episcopal church. 24
But the cattle-shipping season was a failure, perhaps due in part
to Indian raids early in the season which may have kept most Texans
from driving that far west. 25 By September, in any event, when it
should have been enjoying the height of its shipping activity, a
passing correspondent described an Ellsworth once again in the
doldrums:
It does not present a favorable appearance, but on the contrary it affords evi-
dence of being in advance of the settlements of the country. Two or three years
ago it had some importance as the temporary terminus of the railroad. When
the road was built beyond it, it ceased to be of any consequence. Its old con-
sequence will not be regained until the settlements have reached and passed
it. . . .26
Perhaps a few herds were lured to Ellsworth; at least William
"Apache Bill" Semans, county sheriff, was shot and killed that fall
by a Texas cowboy while trying to quell a disturbance in an Ells-
worth dancehall. 27
Apparently not until the overflow season of 1871 did Ellsworth
receive any substantial numbers of Texas cattle. It was 104 degrees
in the shade on July 14, 1871, and citizens were angry because the
new jail was located between the church and the schoolhouse. But
on the uplands surrounding the town cattle to the extent of 30,000
head grazed, with more arriving every day. 28 Things were looking
up at last. By the end of the year 35,000 head had been shipped
over the rails of the Kansas Pacific, in spite of low prices, and great
23. Junction City Weekly Union, May 15. 1869.
24. Times and Conservative, Leavenworth, June 5, 1869.
25. "I. P." telegraphed from Ellsworth on June 4 that "The citizens here are ready
for war to the knife." Ibid, June 6, 1869. Such reports may have frightened off many
drovers.
26. Junction City Weekly Union, September 25. 1869.
27. Kansas Daily Commonwealth, Topeka, November 24. 1869.
28. Ibid., July 16, 1871.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 169
numbers were wintered in the county. 29 Early in 1872 Dickinson
and Saline counties legally rejected the cattle trade, and as the next
major village to their west, Ellsworth prepared to receive the bulk
of the trade and its swarms of free-spending transients. 80
The year 1872 promised great things to many Ellsworth mer-
chants. Mayer Goldsoll, for example, a Russian immigrant who had
operated a general outfitting store in Ellsworth since 1867, already
had tapped some of the cattlemen's trade in Abilene. Goldsoll
boasted in the spring of 1872 the "largest stock in Western Kansas,
of Fancy and Staple Groceries and Provisions, also Liquors, Cigars
and Tobacco." In addition Goldsoll advertised clothing, footwear,
blankets, luggage, jewelry, gold and silver watches, clocks, chains,
solid and plated silverware, pistols, cutlery, accordians and other
musical instruments, and toys. The tastes of the transients were
not inexpensive. In two years the newspaper could say of Goldsoll
that "jewelry makes but a small part of his business, and yet it is
nothing unusual for him to sell $1,000 worth after business hours/'
In the three summer months of 1873 Goldsoll had sales averaging
$30,000 per month, and his take for the entire year totaled $150,000.
By 1874 his "Old Reliable House" required five full-time employees,
one for each department ( jewelry, groceries, clothing and accounts )
plus a general floorwalker. Goldsoll also maintained branch stores
in Russell and Great Bend, Kan., and Denison, Tex., further to tap
the cattle trade. 31
Not only merchants benefited from the trade. A visitor of 1873
noted that "the popular sign 'Saloon,' was over nearly every other
door." 32 Although everyone in town was enjoying a heavy volume
of sales, asserted another, "Whiskey selling seems to be the most
profitable business." 33 The brothel district, located on an addition
to the city a half-mile east of town, also did a brisk business, as did
Ellsworth's gamblers. It was easy to rationalize the presence of
organized sin in the town, since it more than paid its way. As a
Topeka correspondent observed in 1873:
The liquor saloons are licensed and gambling houses and houses of prostitu-
tion are virtually licensed. Prostitutes and gamblers are made to pay monthly
fines. The city realizes three hundred dollars per month from prostitution fines
alone. The entire municipal expenses of the city are paid from licenses and
29. Streeter, "Ellsworth as a Texas Cattle Market," loc. cit., p. 389; Streeter, The
Raw: The Heart of a Nation (New York, 1941), p. 135.
30. Abilene Chronicle, March 14, April 4, 1872.
31. Andreas-Cutler, op. cit., p. 1277; "U. S. Census, 1870," Ellsworth county, [first
section,] p. 5; Kansas Daily Commonwealth, Topeka, July 1, 1873; Ellsworth Reporter,
January 25, 1872 ff. (advertisement), July 17, 1873, May 21. 1874.
32. Toledo [Ohio?] Blade, quoted in ibid., September 18, 1873.
33. "F. A. P." in ibid., July 25, 1872.
170 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
fines; the authorities consider that as long as mankind is depraved and Texas
cattle herders exist there will be a demand and necessity for prostitutes, and
that as long as prostitutes are bound to dwell at Ellsworth it is better for the
respectable portion of society to hold the prostitutes under the restraints of law.
All of the vicious vocations are made to contribute to the maintenance of law
and order, and better order than is enforced at Ellsworth cannot be found in
any town of its size anywhere. 34
Toward the end of 1871 the eastern demand for Texas cattle
slumped. As winter approached many Texas drovers sold out at
low prices to resident farmers and stockmen, who then wintered
the cattle. It was an ideal investment for someone desiring profit
at little outlay, and it remained an Ellsworth county enterprise
until 1875. The cattle were bought cheaply, then usually were
marked and merely turned loose on the unsettled public domain to
shift for themselves until spring, when they were rounded up and
sold in town. More than 40,000 head were wintered in the county
that season. 35 No doubt many of these were simply abandoned
by Texans who could find no sale for them.
Unfortunately it was a very severe winter. Snow and sleet
buried the grass and streams froze over. Droves of longhorns
invaded settlers' claims to consume hay, strip fruit and forest trees,
and drink from waterholes. On Ash creek, for example, a herd of
2,000 head began committing depredations in the middle of No-
vember, and settlers desiring damages had a hard time identifying
the owners. In December two settlers, writing to the editor of the
newly established Ellsworth Reporter, demanded that something
be done to protect homesteaders. 36 At the same time a number
of local stock raisers and those with interests in wintered stock
met to organize the "Stock Men's Protective Association." Many
harassed settlers apparently were harming the hungry longhorns.
The association's purpose was to prosecute as a co-operative effort
"all offenders against the property of the members of this as-
sociation." D. W. Powers was elected president of the group, and
Arthur Larkin vice-president. By December 22 its membership
stood at around 30, each of whom paid a $2 initiation fee and was
taxed one penny per head owned. 37 When spring arrived most
of the wintered stock were dead from hunger, thirst, and exposure,
and great quantities of cowhides, horns, hooves, and bones were
shipped east from the county. 38 With nothing left to protect, the
stockmen's association also died.
34. Kansas Daily Commonwealth, Topeka, July 1, 1873.
35. Streeter, The Raw: The Heart of a Nation, p. 135.
36. "D. B." and "Cow Creek" in Ellsworth Reporter, December 28. 1871.
37. Ibid., December 21. 1871. January 11, 25. 1872.
38. Ibid., May 6, 1872.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 171
The winter situation only aggravated many homesteaders' aver-
sion to Texas cattle. Grazing about Ellsworth the previous summer,
herds trampled standing crops on settlers' claims, most of which
were unfenced because of the scarcity of wood and the expense
of wire, and transmitted the dreaded Spanish fever to domestic
stock. As early as February 29, an open letter from "Citizen" urged
homesteaders to start organizing to protect themselves in the 1872
Texas cattle season. "Citizen" noted the previous summer's
"disaster to our native stock." "Are we," he asked, "going to be
perfectly passive, or if we have any feeling at all, simply vent it
in words, without action, and let the ... Texas cattle men
have it all their own way?" He proposed a homesteaders' con-
vention within two weeks "to adopt means to enforce drovers to
observe the laws." 39
Five days earlier the governor of Kansas signed into law the
1872 "herd law" act which forced drovers to herd their cattle in
place of requiring settlers to fence their claims for protection from
loose stock. The new law gave county commissioners the power
to impose herd laws at will. 40
In each county of less than 30,000, as was Ellsworth, the statutes
provided for three governing commissioners elected to two-year
terms. On meeting days these received $3 per day, portal-to-portal.
Upon any commissioner's resignation, the remaining commissioners
and the county clerk appointed a replacement. The most demand-
ing qualification was that "No person holding any state, county,
township or city office . . . shall be eligible to the office of
county commissioner." 41
The powers given these boards in February, 1872, meant in
effect that two commissioners sympathetic to the interests of their
county's homesteaders even though the latter should be a minority
was the only requirement for the passage of a county herd law,
with its discouraging implications for resident livestock raisers and
Texas cattlemen. Ellsworth county's three commissioners in the
spring of 1872 had been elected the previous fall and were sched-
uled to serve through December, 1873. The board consisted of
J. C. Howard, a stock raiser who let his cattle range free each
winter, Leo Hertzig, a young immigrant tavernkeeper whose trade
flourished during the cattle season, and Z. Jackson. 42 The latter's
39. See, also, "J. W. I." in ibid., March 7, 1872.
40. Laws of the State of Kansas, 1872, pp. 384, 385.
41. Compiled Laws of Kansas, 1879, pp. 273, 274.
42. For data on Hertzig see "U. S. Census, 1870," Ellsworth county, [first section,]
p. 1; Ellsworth Reporter, December 14, 1871, May 21, 1874.
172 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
sympathies on the question were vague. On one hand, he was a
partner with Arthur Larkin in a general merchandising business
that gained by the presence of the cattle trade. On the other hand,
Jackson retained his farm even after going into business with
Larkin. Many homesteaders possibly identified him as one of
themselves. But whatever Jackson's sympathies, the other two
commissioners were definitely anti-protection, and a herd law was
not forthcoming.
On March 9, as called for by "Citizen," a large, enthusiastic con-
vention of settlers met on Thompson creek and formed the "Farmers
Mutual Protection Society of Empire Township." The Rev. Levi
Steinberg and D. B. Long were chosen officers, and a subscription
of about $100 was raised. Sternberg gave the major address. He
noted the incompatibility between farming and stock raising. One
must go, he said, for the cattle interests required, as the newspaper
paraphrased his words,
that farmers must leave their vocation, which is the life blood of every country
or community, and the germ of civilization, and give this county into the
hands of the herdsman, and make it a half civilized or barberous [sic] country
without schools or churches and controlled by a few large stock men having
many poor illiterate men dependent upon them for support. 43
A week later the group met again, with County Commissioners
Howard and Jackson in attendance. The former gave the meeting
an anti-urban flavor by commenting on unequal tax assessments and
observing that "the farmers are generally termed 'country clod-
hoppers' by the Ellsworthites." In the spirit of compromise, how-
ever, Jackson declared that the Texas cattle trade would be accept-
able in the county if not conflicting with the farming interests, but
that "a balance sheet would show a greater loss to the community
than gain." As for domestic stock raisers, he offered a resolution
"that it is not the purpose of this society to oppose the Ellsworth
Stock Association, but on the contrary to confer with them, and
if possible so to harmonize the conflicting interests of both in such
a manner as to be mutually beneficial." The motion carried and
Jackson, Long, and one other were appointed to meet with the
stockmen. 44
The members of both farmers' meetings shied away from any
serious consideration of a county herd law, probably due much to
the intervention of Howard and Jackson, assisted by such protec-
43. Ibid., March 14, 1872. The organization originally was named the "Ellsworth
County Fanners Protective Society." At the second meeting its name was changed as
given, but it continued to be termed the "Fanners Protective Sociey of Empire Township"
(as in ibid., May 9, 1872).
44. Ibid., April 4, 1872. The outcome of the liaison activity is not given in the
newspaper.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 173
tionist "moderates" as D. B. Long. Settler support for organized
political action waned as the planting season arrived. On May 10
the membership finally gave major consideration to a herd law, but
that was apparently its last meeting until fall. 45 The winter's agita-
tion resulted in no herd law to disrupt stock-raising practices or
discourage the urban trade in Texas cattle. Early in June the paper
carried a letter by Theodore Sternberg, son of the man who had
spoken so eloquently against cattle three months before. If the
Texans were careful, cautioned the younger Sternberg, there could
be no objection to their presence in Ellsworth county. Perry Hodg-
den, apparently speaking for the entire business community, curtly
endorsed the note. "I concur in the above," he wrote. "It expresses
my views to the letter." 46
Not until the end of August did the Ellsworth Reporter, com-
mitted as it was to a promotional policy, admit the presence of
conflicting interests within the town. Although these conflicts
appear at first to have little relation to the cattle trade, their signifi-
cance appears in the development of broader rural-urban antag-
onisms which increasingly served as a basic ingredient of the
cattle-trade controversy.
By 1872 two Illinois capitalists, Alfred Southwick and John Kuney,
who were also the proprietors of Abilene, held the proprietorship
of the Ellsworth townsite. Although these gentlemen were non-
residents, many of the original businessmen of Ellsworth, such as
Ira Phelps and Perry Hodgden, either were involved financially in
the Ellsworth Town Company or had bought holdings from them. 17
For some time the town proprietors had reserved a block amid their
holdings on which a permanent courthouse eventually would be
erected. This block became informally known as the "courthouse
square." Those holding properties adjacent to the square happily
awaited the day when the new courthouse elevated surrounding
land values. 48
On April 20, 1872, citizens voted bonds in the amount of $12,000
for constructing a permanent courthouse. In a rare burst of criticism
the previous December the Reporter had urged the town proprietors
to sell "to laboring men who desire to build homes" and "refuse to
sell to those who only buy to hold for a rise." This criticism ap-
parently reflected a broad public sentiment adverse to the town
45. Only the intended meeting is noted. Ibid., May 9, 1872.
46. Ibid., June 6, 1872.
47. See advertisement for Ellsworth Town Company in ibid., December 14, 1871 ff.
48. See A. Larkin in ibid., June 20. 1872.
174 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
company. After some confidential negotiations between the county
commissioners and Arthur Larkin, the board on June 7 accepted
Larkin's donation of two lots adjacent to his own properties as a site
for the courthouse. 49
Repercussions followed. On June 10 a public protest meeting
was staged, probably instigated by those with property interests
adjacent to the now defunct "courthouse square" but attended by
many, such as M. C. Davis, mayor and editor of the paper, who no
doubt thought the old location more acceptable from a community-
development viewpoint than the new downtown location. The
meeting resulted in a petition signed by 50 persons protesting the
commissioners' decision, which was presented to the board the
following morning. At second gathering of citizens Jackson and
Hertzig were on hand. Jackson defended the board's action, no
doubt citing the board's resolution that a downtown courthouse
could be sold as a business site when the time came to build a larger
courthouse. 60
At the next meeting of the commissioners the board received five
petitions carrying a total of 139 names which supported its decision.
These names included those of M. Goldsoll, Jerome Beebe, George
Relfe, Nick Lentz, Thomas Thomas, David Nagle, A. Schmidt, and
other Ellsworth businessmen. D. B. Long, A. Essick, W. M. King,
and other rural enterprisers also signed; in fact, the petitioners
were perhaps 90 per cent rural residents. The board declared an
intention to stick by its decision. 51 In the newspaper spokesmen
of each side labelled the other a selfish interest group. 52 Since the
board refused to reconsider, Ira Phelps, Perry Hodgden, Mayor
Davis, and John L. Bell, another businessman, sued out a writ of
injunction to keep the board from issuing bonds. The suit was
dismissed, however, and the board retaliated with a suit to recover
$1,500 damages for wrongful suing of the injunction. Apparently
this action subsequently was dropped, but may well have motivated
Mayor Davis' resignation and return to Iowa soon after. 53
Group conflict entered the political sphere on August 24 at the
Ellsworth precinct Republican convention called to select eight
49. Andreas-Cutler, op. cit., p. 1275; Ellsworth Reporter, December 28, 1871.
50. Ibid., June 13, 20, 1872.
51. Ibid., June 20. 1872. In its minutes, printed in this issue, the board recognized
petitions with a total of 139 names attached; for the same issue, however, Larkin submitted
to the editor one petition with 160 names attached. Presumably the latter included all
the signatures on the board's petitions. A systematic check of the 160 names against the
1870 census revealed only 40 probable correlations; however, the structure of Larkin's list
indicates that only the first 15 to 18 were Ellsworth residents with the remaining 142 to
145 apparently rural residents.
52. A. Larkin and E. G. Minnick in ibid.
53. Ibid., June 27, August 1, 29. 1872.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 175
delegates to the G. O. P. county convention. A nominations com-
mittee appointed by the chair returned with eight nominees, in-
cluding Perry Hodgden. A group of insurgents led by County
Commissioner Jackson and S. Atwood, a lawyer only lately resi-
dent in Ellsworth, proposed an alternate slate of nominees. This
slate included Atwood and four other comparative newcomers to
Ellsworth and four who had signed petitions supporting the court-
house decision, as well as Commissioner Hertzig. In the voting
the insurgent slate defeated the slate of "regulars," as they termed
themselves, by a slight margin in each case. A second meeting was
held that night by the defeated group, which denounced the insur-
gents as "Greeleyites" and approved much the same slate of dele-
gates as they formerly proposed. The new editor of the Reporter
observed that both factions were for Grant, and ascribed the fuss
to petty jealousies. 54
The county convention four days later revealed the formation
of a coalition between the insurgents and the rural wing of the local
Republican party. The coalition resembled somewhat the rural-
urban combination supporting the courthouse decision. D. B. Long,
rural leader, was called to the chair, while an insurgent became
secretary. The insurgent delegates from Ellsworth were accepted
by the committee on credentials. Four pairs of delegates and alter-
nates were selected to attend the state conventions in Topeka and
Lawrence, each pair consisting of one insurgent and one rural
member. 55
The insurgents struck again on October 5 at Ellsworth precinct's
G. O. P. meeting to select delegates to the second county conven-
tion. Judging from the votes cast, about 150 persons attended the
meeting, which adjourned to a restaurant for more room. Again
an insurgent slate of nominees, including Hertzig and three other
August 24 insurgent nominees, opposed a "regular" slate which
included Hodgden. The insurgents won again, this time by a two-
to-one margin. "The election last Saturday," observed the Reporter,
"was the most exciting we ever witnessed. . . . The spirits of
the successful party were high and it took a good many 'straights'
and a good deal of water with extract of hop in it, to cool off the
enthusiasm of the victors." The paper deplored, however, the
expression of "so much bitterness between parties." 56
Three days later the insurgent-rural coalition dominated the
54. Ibid., August 29. 1872.
55. Ibid., September 5. 1872.
56. Ibid., October 10, 1872.
176 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
the county convention called to select a slate of Republican candi-
dates for county office and to select delegates to the district sena-
torial convention. In both cases, selections were balanced between
rural members and insurgents. 67
On October 10 the district senatorial convention was held in
Ellsworth. John H. Edwards, the strongest candidate, had two
strikes against him in Ellsworth county. Edwards was until re-
cently a resident of Ellsworth. One of the original promoters of
the Ellsworth townsite, an early commissioner of the county, and
the town's first provisional mayor, he also had been an important
Ellsworth businessman. In 1870 he became the district's state
representative, and now resided in Ellis county. He was vigorously
supported by the older businessmen of Ellsworth, and hardly could
be identified with the insurgents. On September 26 he spoke in
Ellsworth, praising the Texas cattle trade as the county's greatest
asset. 58 He thereby gained the opposition of the rural wing. In
the convention the Ellsworth county delegation, led by D. B. Long,
proposed the name of County Commissioner Jackson, both a rural-
ist of sorts and something of an insurgent, to oppose Edwards. But
in the balloting Edwards gained the nomination. 59
Election day a month later held a surprise. Senatorial candi-
date Edwards, anathema to both farmers and insurgents, lost over-
whelmingly in Ellsworth county, carrying only one precinct. But
not one member of the insurgent-rural Republican ticket gained
office. The reason is clear. Urban voters failed to support rural
members of the slate and the country dwellers refused to vote for
the urban insurgent candidates. For example, ruralist Paul Curlett,
Republican candidate for state representative, carried nearly every
rural precinct but captured a mere seven votes in Ellsworth. On
the other hand, insurgent Thomas Thomas, G. O. P. candidate for
clerk of the district court, carried Ellsworth but lost every single
rural precinct. Opposed by a badly split Republican vote, a slate
of Greeley Republicans carried the day. 60
The parties to this experiment in rural-urban co-operation had
distrusted one another in the showdown. The fundamental, ap-
parently unreconcilable rural-urban split was soon to achieve a
profound expression in the politics of the cattle-trade controversy.
In August, 1872, at the height of Ellsworth's second great cattle-
57. Ibid.
58. Andreas -Cutler, op. cit., pp. 1275, 1277; "U. S. Census, 1870," Ellsworth county,
[first section,] p. 1; Ellsworth Reporter, August 8, 1872 ff. (card supporting Edwards'
candidacy signed by Ellsworth businessmen), October 3, 1872, August 28, 1873.
59. Ibid., October 17, 1872.
60. See election statistics in ibid., November 14, 1872.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 177
shipping season, the Ellsworth Reporter noted that "Some of our
farmers have been run over by herds of Texas cattle." Rural anger
was building up, but the paper observed that Ellsworth county
farmers were still "acting fairly" toward the cattlemen. 61
The old protection movement began rolling again the following
month. Just two days after John H. Edwards' speech praising the
cattle trade, settlers held a convention in Ellsworth to organize a
county-wide protective association. This time the movement was
initiated by a newcomer to Ellsworth county, W. M. King. King,
an lowan, first appeared the previous February, when he bought
1,440 acres of rural real estate and talked about building a sawmill.
By the end of March he was settled in the county as a livestock
breeder and agitator for sundry community projects. He soon made
himself obnoxious to many other stockmen. In May he ran a sar-
castic notice in the paper which criticized domestic cattlemen as
being worse than the Texans in letting their stock run free to commit
depredations and then disclaiming ownership when they did. 62
A. Essick, a Presbyterian minister and like King a prosperous stock-
raising farmer only recently come to the county, was another organ-
izer of the group. 63 A resolution was adopted that the group peti-
tion the county commissioners for a herd law. The flavor of the
meeting was reflected in the motto concluding the secretary's report:
"Protection we want. Protection we must have!" 64
On October 12 the group, still an informal one, met again. The
presentation of herd law petitions to the board of commissioners
was postponed, and a third meeting was scheduled to consider
forming a county agricultural association. This may have been a
subtle attempt to redirect the group into less radical channels. The
October 26 meeting apparently was postponed, or else broke up
over the question of whether the group was to be a protective
society or a neutral agricultural association. 65 In December the
paper noted that Essick now believed in wintering Texas cattle,
evidently in the standard way of turning it loose to forage, and the
next spring he was specifically branded as an anti-protectionist. In
1873 Essick continued to call for an agricultural association, and
was joined by the anti-protection stock raiser Commissioner Howard,
61. Ibid., August 1, 1872.
62. Ibid., February 22, 29, March 28, April 18, May 2, 1872. For examples of
King's subsequent commercial ventures see ibid., June 27, October 17, 1872.
63. Essick is not listed in the 1870 census.
64. Ellsworth Reporter, October 10, 1872.
65. Ibid., October 17, 1872. The outcome of the October 26 meeting is not noted
in the paper.
126253
178 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
as well as Levi Steinberg. The latter, who had spoken so harshly
of cattlemen less than a year previously, now was state president
of the "Stock Growers Association of Kansas" and a big cattleman
himself. 66
While the herd law agitation apparently was being redirected
by the most influential of the county's stockmen, a rural-urban
ideological tournament was fought in the columns of the
newspaper. This clash was present in J. C. Howard's observation
about "country clod-hoppers" in the spring of 1872 and in the
mutual rural-urban distrust leading to the downfall of the Repub-
lican coalition the next fall. In January, 1873, the newspaper
carried a letter from a farmer with the pseudonym "Home Interests"
who called upon the county to obtain a flour mill, a project more
important than the second railroad for which many Ellsworth
businessmen were agitating. The writer especially complained
about money fleeing the county through Ellsworth merchants who
imported flour for urban consumers. In the next issue a writer
disguised as "Go to Work" defended Ellsworth merchants, assert-
ing in addition that the county's farmers, with few exceptions,
were simply indolent complainers. "Home Interests" replied that
"Go to Work" and his fellows were "dry goods loafers" who should
get busy and do something about the shabby appearance of Ells-
worth. His urban opponent replied immediately, abusing "Home
Interests" and "his legions of thriftless, shiftless, do-nothing neigh-
bors. . . ." "Home Interests" struck back in a long letter very
critical of Ellsworth males, two-thirds of whom were described as
loafing for a living or "just carrying on a little business as a cloak for
their idleness." In a March issue "Go to Work," possibly at the
editor's insistence, tried to placate his rural opponent, but the
other's concluding argument in the same issue still pointed to the
number of loafers on Ellsworth's Main street. 67
At the same time D. B. Long, rural leader, voiced objections
of a different sort to Ellsworth's railroad project. He argued that
the county's big landowning stockmen, like himself, would bear
the tax burden for such public-subsidized projects. "This county,"
he asserted in the Reporter, "is a stock county, and not an Agri-
cultural county. When you cripple the stock interest, you cripple
the true interest and wealth of the county. . . ." Commissioner
Jackson, spokesman for the proposed railroad, replied to Long that
66. Ibid., December 19, 1872, February 13, March 6, May 1, June 12, 1873.
67. Ibid., January 16, 23, 30, February 6, 13, March 6, 1873.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 179
a second railroad would bring more settlers into the county, pro-
viding a broader tax base. He agreed that stock raising was the
primary interest of the area but claimed that a second railroad
would favor this interest by bringing "cheap fencing here to stop
the clamor in the mouths of a few for the herd law. . . ." In
March, however, Commissioner Howard proclaimed himself im-
placably against the project, and declared that as chairman of the
board of commissioners he would block all efforts to bring the rail-
road to a public vote. 68 Thus the urban project was killed by the
county's big rural landowners.
Prior to 1873 most anti-cattle agitation came from southeast of
Ellsworth, where rural settlement was thickest. The year 1872,
however, saw considerable settlement in the northwest corner
of the county around the town of Wilson, laid out in the fall of
1871. In the elections of November, 1872, Wilson was the only
precinct giving a majority to Edwards, the pro-cattle candidate for
the state senate, the reason perhaps being that the town's promoters
had temporary aspirations of the community's becoming a great
cattle-trading center. 69 By 1873, however, the Wilson area was
clearly a seat of an anti-cattle movement that sought not just herd
law protection but total exclusion of the trade from Ellsworth
county.
The 1867 Spanish fever act of the Kansas legislature fixed quaran-
tine boundaries that legally excluded Texas cattle from the more
settled portions of the state. The basis was fear by resident live-
stock raisers of Spanish fever. In 1872 the legislature, acquiescing
to the wishes of inhabitants, moved the line farther west to close
more territory to the cattle trade. Successive legislatures, meeting
in January and February of each year, threatened to shove the
quarantine line or "dead line," as it was termed farther west. 70
Now, early in 1873, a combined meeting of residents of the Wilson
area and homesteaders from nearby RusseU county resolved to
petition their representatives in the legislature "to so amend the
act regulating the driving and grazing of Texas cattle in this State
as to exclude from Ellsworth and Russell counties, through Texas
herds or those liable to impart the Spanish fever." 71 Although
nothing came of this action, the region remained a center of ex-
clusionist agitation.
68. Ibid., January 23, 30, March 20, 1873.
69. Andreas-Cutler, op. cit., p. 1280.
70. See summary of the quarantine-line legislation in Streeter, The Kaw: The Heart
of a Nation, pp. 202-207.
71. Ellsworth Reporter, February 20, 1873.
180 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
In May, 1873, the newspaper predicted another great cattle season
for Ellsworth, with prospects of 300,000 head proclaimed "a low
estimate." A kind of slogan was tucked in among the news items
"Ellsworth county farmers will not fight the Texas Cattle." 72 Varia-
tions on this theme seemed to promise that repetition would make
it so.
The very next edition, however, brought a letter from a farmer
who demanded a herd law and accused the county commissioners
of deliberately favoring the big stockmen in not passing such a
law. 73 At the same time, a few of the domestic cattle raisers were
joining the farmers to view Texas cattle with disfavor. Among
these was D. B. Long, a stockman who did not fear a protection
law because he herded and fed his own stock each winter. Not so
stockmen like Commissioner Howard, who feared Spanish fever
each summer but who turned his stock loose each winter. A writer
to the Reporter suggested that the commissioners impose a herd
law in the spring, then lift it again in the fall, but the act of 1872
made no provision for repeal after a herd law declaration. 74 So
Howard and his stock-raising constituents preferred no herd law
at all.
At least one homesteader tried to do something that spring be-
sides just protesting. Late in May he swore out a complaint on
two Texas trail drivers who allowed their cattle to invade his claim.
But without a herd law in force there were no grounds for prosecu-
tion. The case was dismissed at the request of County Attorney
P. T. Pendleton. 75
In June a letter from J. W. Ingersoll bitterly attacked what he
termed the county's anti-protection "rich men," those like the Rev.
A. Essick who owned from 75 to 400 head. These stockmen, as-
serted Ingersoll, "care no more for the success of the poor man than
for the life of a troublesome flea, . . . and it is just such men
that make a herd law necessary." He observed that farmers should
not have to trust the honor of cattlemen to reimburse damages
committed by stock, but rather should have the protection of a herd
law wherein the stockmen could trust the farmers to assess damages
fairly. "The poor man," noted Ingersoll, "may not have as many
dollars or cattle as the rich man, but on the average I am certain
he has as much honor and is governed by as generous principles."
72. Ibid., May 8, 1873.
73. "Farmer" in ibid., May 15, 1873.
74. Edward P. Paris in ibid., July 3, 1873.
75. Kansas Daily Commonwealth, Topeka, June 4, 1873.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 181
"The rights of the laboring men," he concluded, "must be protected
by our laws and respected by capital. . . ." 76
John S. Barnum, however, spoke the minds of those farmers like
himself who had been converted from protectionism to an anti-
protection view. His principal arguments were that a herd law
would frighten away the trade in Texas cattle, leaving local farmers
with greatly reduced numbers of consumers to supply. A herd law
would also frighten away the big domestic stockmen who paid
most of the taxes in the county. Anyway, claimed Barnum, Ells-
worth county farmers would do better to become stock raisers
themselves. 77
Many new arrivals to the county agreed with Barnum's conclu-
sion and dropped plans for homesteading in favor of stock raising.
Winfield S. Faris and his brother William, for example, arrived in
1872 and took up claims on Clear creek. Soon, however, they be-
came so involved in managing their small but growing herds, which
they grazed on the public domain, that they allowed their claims
to revert back to the government. 78
Although the newspaper supplies no details, two apparently con-
flicting farmers' organizations were now operating, evidently repre-
senting this dichotomy of opinion regarding protection. One was
the old "Farmers Protective Association of Empire Township/' in
which D. B. Long was active, which met as late as May 31 "to ar-
range for better protection from the ravages of Texas cattle." 79 The
other, the "Ellsworth Farmers' Independent Association," was active
near Ellsworth and met June 14 and October 17 at the home of
Thomas Thomas. 80 This Republican insurgent of the previous year
owned an 80-acre farm, but he was primarily a contractor. In 1873
Thomas was building the new Ellsworth schoolhouse, and it is un-
likely he would have antagonized the city's residents by frightening
the cattle trade away with talk of a county herd law. 81 The only
other member of the group mentioned by the paper was W. E. Fos-
not, a one-legged war veteran who came to Ellsworth county as a
76. Ellsworth Reporter, June 12, 1873. IngersolTs rural class consciousness perhaps
makes his personal data of interest. In 1870 he gave his age as 28, his birthplace as
New York, his occupation as farmer, his dependents as a wife and two children. He es-
timated the value of his real estate holdings as $200. He gave no estimate of his personal
estate. "U. S. Census, 1870," Ellsworth county, [second section,] p. 4.
77. Ellsworth Reporter, June 26, 1873.
78. A Biographical History of Central Kansas, v. 1, p. 630; Ellsworth Messenger,
September 15, 1955.
79. Ellsworth Reporter, May 29, 1873.
80. Ibid., June 12, October 9, 1873.
81. Ibid., December 14, 1871 ff. (advertisement), August 7, September 18, 1873.
182 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
farmer about 1870 but who opened a watch-repair shop in Ellsworth
in 1874. 82 He also was an unlikely protectionist agitator.
As the cattle-buying season wore on, the Ellsworth Reporter
attempted to protect the Texas cattle trade by offering local farmers
advice, much of it condescending. "Farming or Stock-Raising?"
asked one editorial, and the answer was both. For best returns,
said the paper, farmers should raise crops, feed them to livestock,
then sell the animals. The Reporter also urged settlers to raise
truck produce for Ellsworth's consumer market. Another item ob-
served that if the farmer used sound commercial practices "just as
his careful brother merchants do, he would find a spirit of business
working into all his habits, and progress and push would follow."
In September the paper reprinted from the Milwaukee (Wis.)
Commercial a long article emphasizing the lucrative returns from
stock raising with Texas longhorns. 83
The same month the board of county commissioners made prep-
arations for the election of new members. Z. Jackson had resigned
in June to become the Ellsworth postmaster and his chair was
temporarily filled by William Armstrong, a big stockman. 84 For
the coming election the county was divided three ways by popula-
tion to give one commissioner to the eastern half of the county, one
to the west, and one to Ellsworth. 85 Since 1872 the question of a
herd law had rested on the makeup of the board of commissioners.
On October 11, 1873, 33 farmers of the eastern district met to select
a candidate for commissioner who was favorable to a herd law.
D. B. Long tried to inject a note of compromise into the meeting
by proposing that the group ask for a herd law only for the sum-
mer months, but only one other besides himself was in a mood to
compromise. Henry V. Faris, one of the county's original settlers,
was selected as candidate to run against the anti-protection incum-
bent, J. C. Howard. On the same day the protectionists of the
western district selected "Captain" L. Knox as their candidate.
Knox had no opponent in that region.
Within the Ellsworth district voters were faced with a more
complex situation. Not only did Ellsworth businessmen need an
anti-protectionist to shield the cattle trade, but most also desired
someone who would continue to oppose the old landed business-
men like Hodgden. The latter person was evidently behind the
82. Ibid., October 9, 1873, November 19, 1874.
83. Ibid., August 14, 28, September 18, 1873.
84. Ibid., June 26, July 10, 1873. For a brief description of Armstrong see ibid.,
December 11, 1873.
85. See description of districts in ibid., October 2, 1873.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 183
candidature of J. C. Veatch, a hotel proprietor who had been a
vocal "regular" Republican the year before. Therefore, Leo Hert-
zig, although he had not intended to be a candidate, let it be known
that "circumstances compel him to run for another term." 86
The newspaper meanwhile observed that "There are many
farmers who have no stock but who hope to have some, that oppose
a herd law, and there are some farmers who own good sized herds
who favor the law/* 87 The editor himself opposed protection, and
almost the entire front page of an October issue was taken up by
an anti-protection article composed by Henry Inman, an influential
Ellsworth citizen, which was a masterpiece of deductive reasoning
from the premise that the act of 1872 was "obnoxious to the very
principles of justice and of right." 88 Then a week before the cru-
cial election the paper carried a letter from "Anti-Herd Law" rem-
iniscent of the views of "Go to Work" the previous winter. The
writer, a stockman, wasted no compliments on protectionists. As
he saw it,
We have all the wealth and respectability of the county on our side, and what
does their side consist of? A few sore heads who couldn't get office on our
side and have gone over so as to be first in position and honors, even if it is
among vagabonds and paupers, and the majority are composed of poor worth-
less grubber [s] of the ground, who have a little truck patch, or a few acres of
corn and no fence, or a mere pretense for a fence, so as to collect damages from
their neighbors. ... All that is necessary for the cattle men to do, is to
hire all their poor neighbors a few days before election, and keep them away
from the hungry office seekers, who try to make them believe that the herd
law will benefit them, in order to get their votes. 89
The election itself was quiet. Anti-protectionist J. C. Howard
defeated the herd law candidate in the eastern district to retain
his position on the board. Captain Knox, the western district's
herd law candidate, was unopposed. In Ellsworth, Hertzig retained
his seat. 90 With the board still two-to-one against protection, the
1873 campaign for an Ellsworth county herd law ended.
The year 1872 had seen a great cattle-buying season in Ellsworth.
By the late summer of 1873 it was apparent that the current season
86. Ibid., October 16, 23, 30, 1873.
87. Ibid., October 9, 1873. See in the same issue the rather intelligent protection
arguments of "H. A."
88. Ibid., October 16, 1873. Inman, a former army officer who prior to retirement
had been stationed at Fort Harker, later became a nationally-known writer of popular
Western nonfiction. Probably his best-known works were The Old Santa Fe Trail (New
York, 1897), illustrated by Frederic Remington, and The Great Salt Lake Trail (New
York, 1898), written in collaboration with William F. Cody. A Biographical History of
Central Kansas, v. 1, pp. 506, 507.
89. Ellsworth Reporter, October 30, 1873.
90. Ibid., November 6, 13, 1873. Only preliminary election statistics were carried
by the paper. Also losing in the elections was Perry Hodgden, candidate for state rep-
resentative.
184 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
was far less successful. "There are a large number of cattle about
Ellsworth, but as yet shipments are light/' the Reporter admitted
in September. "Drovers who can afford to, will hold their cattle
until the market is better. Many cattle will probably be wintered
here unless there should be a change in eastern prices for the
better." 91
There were those who, remembering the economic doldrums of
the pre-cowtown Ellsworth, already were becoming fearful for the
town's future as a cattle market. In mid-September the newspaper
gave the prophets of doom a talking-to:
There are some people that need to be assured daily of the good prospect
ahead. Some of these people live in Ellsworth, and we must say to them
again this week, that "all is well." Ellsworth is all right and will keep right.
It is more favorably located for becoming an important town than any other
station on the [railjroad for a distance of four hundred miles. All that is
necessary is for our citizens to keep on working, and building up the city. It
is certain that Ellsworth will retain the Texas cattle trade as long as this
county possesses such superior advantages and the drovers are welcome to
come and are well treated while here. Ellsworth has been the busiest town
in the State this summer, and now that the hurrying season is drawing to a
close it does not look well to "get sick" as Alexander is said to have been,
once upon a time, because there was not another world to conquer: after our
business men have had an immense trade for six months they can afford to be
satisfied during the other six months if they make no more than the business
men in other towns are making. 92
Unfortunately, the day this brave article went to press the 1873
financial crisis struck Wall street. By the following week its reper-
cussions were felt by Ellsworth as panic-stricken drovers threw
the cattle they had been holding all summer onto the market. A
total of 117 carloads of livestock left town September 25, and the
current loading rate at the stockyard was estimated at 800 cars per
week. "Long trains" of cattle still were being loaded daily a
month later, but by the middle of November most of the excite-
ment was over. 93 The season ended dismally. Ellsworth was the
main reception point for Texas cattle in 1872; in 1873 she received
only about 30 per cent of the cattle driven into Kansas. Only
30,540 of these were shipped east. 94 About 25,000 therefore were
wintered in Ellsworth county, Commissioner Howard alone win-
tering 1,700 head. 95 Again settlers prepared for a season of stock
depredations.
91. Ibid., September 11, 1873.
92. Ibid., September 18, 1873.
93. Ibid., September 25, October 2, 16, 1873.
94. Streeter, "Ellsworth as a Texas Cattle Market," loc. cit., pp. 395, 397.
95. Ellsworth Reporter, December 11, 1873. March 5, 1874.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 185
By mid-November only a handful of Texans remained in town.
Citizens no doubt saw them leave with mixed feelings this year.
An unusual increase in violence in July and August had culminated
in the fatal shooting by a Texan of Chauncey B. Whitney, business-
man and county sheriff. A few days later the police retaliated by
shooting Cad Pierce, a Texan. In September a troublesome ex-
policeman had to be shot, and two months later a Texan avenged
Cad Pierce by gunning Ed Crawford, his killer. The publicity
resulting from this activity gave Ellsworth state-wide notoriety. 96
In addition, it diverted business to rival cowtowns. "The recent
killings of Sheriff Whitney and Cad Pierce, at Ellsworth," wrote a
correspondent from Great Bend, "has caused a large influx of cattle
herders, buyers and others from that point, and business is much
stimulated thereby." 97 It was a trying summer all around.
By the middle of February, 1874, the Ellsworth Reporter already
was claiming optimistically that Ellsworth would obtain the bulk
of the cattle trade in the state the coming season. 98 In the same
month a farmer wrote to plead with the editor to cease inviting
the Texans to return. He urged rural-urban co-operation in the
matter. "Help us to build up the county," he implored, "and we
will not let the town go down by any means/' 99
The continuing separation of rural and urban interests was high-
lighted by the invasion of Ellsworth county by the Granger move-
ment. On March 17, 1874, the county's first Grange was organized,
with Captain Knox, the new county commissioner, as its master.
The founding of the chapter was possibly inspired by the presence
in the county of Edward P. Paris, who had been a charter member
of the national organization. 100 With a certain uneasiness the
Reporter claimed in June that Ellsworth county Grangers were
happy, and mentioned pointedly that local farmers failed to get re-
duced rates for grain shipments only because of the small quantity
raised.
No doubt it was not coincidence that six of Ellsworth's business-
men including Arthur Larkin and Perry Hodgden buried their
96. Ibid., August 21, September 11, November 13, 1873. The September 4 issue of
the Reporter was particularly critical of the Leavenworth Commercial, which had asserted
that martial law was proclaimed in Ellsworth, that the Texans threatened to "burn and sack
the town," and that citizens and police threatened to "shoot on sight" all Texans. "People
who behave themselves are [as] safe here as in Leavenworth," replied the Reporter.
For the results of Floyd Benjamin Streeter*s exhaustive research on this period of violence
see his "Tragedies of a Cow Town," The Aerend: A Kansas Quarterly, Hays, v. 5 (Spring,
Summer, 1934), pp. 81-96, 145-162; Prairie Trails and Cow Towns (Boston, 1936), pp.
115-142; The Raw: The Heart of a Nation, pp. 138-148.
97. "Alpha" in Kansas Daily Commonwealth, Topeka, August 27, 1873.
98. Ellsworth Reporter, February 19, 1874.
99. "In Earnest" in ibid., February 12, 1874.
100. Ibid., February 12, 19, March 19, June 11, 1874.
186 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
differences and tried to promote a county agricultural society five
days before a similar convention met to organize a county-wide
Grange. 101 But a drought that lasted from early June through July,
which was followed by grasshoppers, claimed the Grangers' atten-
tion. Accompanying these catastrophes were prairie fires, with a
particularly severe fire near Wilson the night of July 25, aggravated
by an intense windstorm, which devastated the area. 102 Faced with
natural crises, local Grangers were preoccupied with planning co-
operative firebreaks rather than co-operative merchandising, and
proposing railroad legislation only to the extent of requiring loco-
motives to be equipped with spark-traps. A Grange leader like
E. P. Paris might complain individually about "the politicians of
the county who have personal ambition or purposes to serve," but
no Grange-inspired radicalism seemed to threaten the status quo.
By fall the county contained seven regional Granges and a county
Grange, but the movement appeared solidly in control of prosperous
stockmen like D. B. Long, John S. Barnum, and Levi Sternberg. 103
Yet the herd law question was bound to arise again, especially
as 1874 saw a new influx of homesteaders. The eastern half of the
county, noted the paper early in the year, was "settling up quite
fast. . . ." 104 In a letter of the same month D. B. Long pointed
to the county's southern tier of townships, into which wheat farmers
from adjacent Rice county were overflowing. Although a stockman
himself, Long noted that the county badly needed a flour mill to
accommodate these immigrants. He observed matter-of-factly that
Ellsworth had only one or two seasons left as a cowtown, and that
urban businessmen might as well admit it. "It is high time our at-
tention was turned to something," he concluded, "that will be of
permanent and lasting benefit to the county." 105
In 1870 the population of Ellsworth county was 1,185. In 1873
the population stood at 2,868. In 1874 it was still only 3,273. 106 The
county did not experience an immigration boom till after 1875. By
that year the majority of its lands still lay vacant ( see map p. 187 ) .
Ellsworth county homesteaders only slowly gained enough numbers
to translate their desires into effective political action.
101. Ibid., June 11, 18, July 30, 1874.
102. Lyon, op. eft., p. 41; Francis J. Swehla, "Bohemians in Central Kansas," Collec-
tions of the Kansas State Historical Society, Topeka, v. 13 (1913-1914), pp. 476-478; Ells-
worth Reporter, July 30, August 6, 1874.
103. Ibid., October 29, December 10, 1874, January 7, 1875. For Grange leadership
see the Grange directory in ibid., November 19, 1874 ff., and article on the Grange anni-
versary celebration in ibid., December 10, 1874.
104. Ibid., February 5, 1874.
105. Ibid., February 19, 1874.
106. Kansas State Board of Agriculture, [Second Annual] Report, 1873, p. 67; Third
Annual Report, 1874, p. 142.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875
ELLSWORTH COUNTY, 1875
187
BVI
The shaded areas represent remaining lands unsettled. From the Fourth
Annual Report (1875) of the Kansas State Board of Agriculture.
The state legislature in the meantime forced upon Ellsworth
county yet another variable in the cattle-trade question. On March
7 an act was approved which seemed tailor-made for local protec-
tionists. In counties like Ellsworth, where the commissioners re-
fused to exercise their power to impose herd laws, two-thirds of
the legal voters now could require them to do so by petition. 107
Encouraged, but uncertain whether they could obtain enough
signatures for a county herd law, a group of homesteaders began
drumming up support for a "night herd law" in Empire township.
Such a law, which required all stock in a given township to be
herded or penned during the hours of darkness, needed only a peti-
tion from three-fifths of the electors of that township. 108 Probably
the reason why such measures had not been attempted previously
in Ellsworth county was that many officials considered the 1868
107. Laws of the State of Kansas, 1874, pp. 203, 204.
108. General Statutes of the State of Kansas, 1868, pp. 1001, 1002.
188 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
act on which such action was based to be voided through the
passage of the 1872 herd law act. 109 Empire farmers, however,
were desperate. The group presented its petition, only to have it
declared five or six names short of the requisite number. 110
Undaunted, Empire farmers met again on April 25 to consider a
county herd law under the new provisions. Near Wilson, at the
opposite end of the county, homesteaders also spoke emphatically
of a herd law. From that area came an effort to organize a county-
wide protection movement. 111
Ellsworth businessmen ignored all rural agitation and went
ahead with plans to make Ellsworth the leading cattle market of
the 1874 season, raising money to employ an agent to descend the
trail and divert herds from Wichita and other cowtown competitors.
By the end of May 42,572 longhorns were in the county, with an-
other 17,800 getting close. John Mueller already had sold 100
pairs of cowboy boots and Ira Phelps put on four employees in his
grocery store. 112
West of Ellsworth a group of settlers led by wealthy W. M. King
met and resolved to prosecute any drover bringing his herd across
the Smoky Hill river in their vicinity. 113 But the really bad news
came in June when the Reporters editor talked at length with vari-
ous Texans. These informed him that Ellsworth might expect only
about 60,000 head that season, or just two-fifths the total driven.
Thereafter the trade would peter out anyway as railroads pushed
into Texas itself and the state was finally drained of surplus
cattle. 114 On top of this, cattle were selling at depression prices.
Drover Sol West, for example, remained in Ellsworth all summer
in an effort to make profitable sales, but returned to Texas in the
fall with a net gain of just $1.50. 115 Only 18,500 head were shipped
east from Ellsworth, 12,000 less than the year before. 116 The cattle
season of 1874 was a depressing failure.
109. Apparently the act of 1868 in part providing for night herd laws was in practice
repealed although still on the books as late as 1879. Compiled Laws of Kansas, 1879,
p. 921, Footnote 1, states: "On examination of this chapter ["Stock"], it will be found
that many of the provisions of the general statutes have been superseded by subsequent
legislation, for which see 82 et seq. [herd law act of 1872], this chapter. The law of
1868 is nowhere repealed specifically, and parts of it only by implication; hence, we print the
whole, calling attention to this fact." Appearing opposite the first section of Article 1
(night herd law act of 1868), p. 921, is the following marginal gloss: "See 82 et seq.
this chapter; also see 91 et seq. [herd law act of 1874] this chapter; wherever there
is any conflict or where they cover the same ground, these sections supersede the provisions
of this and following sections of the general statutes."
110. Ellsworth Reporter, March 19, 26, April 16, 1874.
111. Ibid., March 12, April 16, 1874; A. O. Gibbs in ibid., March 26, 1874.
112. Ibid., April 23, May 28, 1874.
113. Ibid., May 14, 1874.
114. Ibid., June 11, 1874.
115. J. Marvin Hunter, ed., The Trail Driven of Texas (2d ed. rev.; Nashville, 1925),
pp. 128, 129.
116. Streeter, "Ellsworth as a Texas Cattle Market," loc. cit., p. 398.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 189
Fall saw the anti-cattle movement regain momentum. Late in
the summer Captain Knox, the protectionist county commissioner
from the western district, resigned from office. His successor was
to be picked in the November elections. The Rev. John Jellison
of Wilson, a protectionist, was put forth by the homesteaders of that
area. Jellison faced no opposition. "We all know what we want,"
wrote a spokesman, "and let us be in earnest to get it. We want a
herd law twelve months in the year; we want the dead line moved
from where it now is far enough west so that we shall not be
troubled with Texas cattle crossing our country." m
Elsewhere farmers' sentiments were becoming more and more
protectionist, if not exclusionist, as continuing poor prices for long-
horns negated the profits in wintering. G. A. Atwood, formerly
editor of the Ellsworth Reporter, was now candidate for state repre-
sentative, and had to explain away his previous anti-protection
stand. To accomplish this he declared himself for a herd law, but
a better one than provided in the act of 1874. "Let the impracti-
cable law of last winter be remodeled," he wrote, "so that the two
great interests, farming and stock-raising, may both prosper, and our
county will increase in wealth and population." Having neatly
straddled the issue, Atwood was elected. 118
The new editor of the Reporter, Henry Inman, also tried to be
accommodating. In October, 1873, Inman had composed anti-
protection propaganda for the Reporter. Now, in December of
1874, he noted that the herd law movement "is assuming a shape
in this county that promises protection to our much abused farmers,
at last." 119 Even the Ellsworth business community, doubtless
frightened by the growing exclusion sentiment in the county, were
giving way on the herd law. As Inman exclaimed:
At last a majority of the people of Ellsworth county, including our leading
merchants, have opened their eyes to the fact, that the basis of our wealth, and
prosperity, lies in the proper advancement of our agricultural interests. . . .
In a word, a new era is to dawn upon Ellsworth county, we are to become
revolutionized in a measure, and the grandest feature in the changes that are to
take place, is that, town and country fanner and merchant, are firmly support-
ing each other in this matter. . . . The Bete Noir that has been the means
of estranging the two classes in advancing the real interests of the county is the
"Herd Law" question. . . . With a judicious herd law there need be no
conflict of interests. . . . Let us have a herd law by all meansl 12
On January 28, 1875, the protectionists publicly warned the
117. W. T. Levitt and A. A. Jellison in Ellsworth Reporter, October 29, 1874.
118. Ibid., October 29, November 9, 1874.
119. Ibid., December 3, 1874.
120. Ibid., December 10, 1874.
190 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
board of county commissioners they were petitioning for a herd
law. The board received the petitions on March 10, but postponed
consideration. On March 23 the board finally imposed a herd law
to go into effect May I. 121 The protectionists had triumphed.
Conflict in Ellsworth county was far from over, however. De-
spite the crippling herd law Ellsworth's businessmen intended to
promote the town as a Texas cattle market for yet another season.
The Reporter protested that homesteaders should not bite the urban
hands that signed their herd law petitions, but farmers in the Wil-
son area prepared to continue agitating for total exclusion of the
trade. On February 15 the settlers of Wilson township met with
counterparts from Russell county to resolve that their representa-
tives in the legislature be "formally instructed" to press for removal
of the quarantine line farther west. A week later they met again
to form the "Farmer's Protective Union/' "to enforce the laws, and
protect ourselves against the encroachments of herds of stock of
every kind." 122
In the meantime Ellsworth prepared for the cattle drive. Perry
Hodgden and T. J. Buckbee took over management of the stockyard,
and the Reporter published the entire 1874 herd law act so that
incoming drovers would be careful to comply with its every pro-
vision. By the middle of May herds were arriving in the county
and J. C. Brown, especially hired as a guide, was attempting to
steer them clear of the Wilson vicinity. Late in May the Reporter
revealed that T. J. Buckbee owned the only land on the Arkansas
river over which the herds could pass on their way to Ellsworth
county, all other property owners along the stream refusing to let
them cross. 123
This observation was virtually a notice that the Ellsworth cattle
trade was dying hard, but dying all the same. Thereafter the
Reporters optimism dwindled to a pathetic silence on the matter.
Finally, in August, a rather obscurely placed editorial formally an-
nounced the end of Ellsworth as a cowtown:
FALL TRADE.
We predict an excellent trade in Ellsworth this fall, and the logic of the
thing is, that all the money to be spent will remain among ourselves. We are
happy in the fact that the days of the Texas trade is [sic] numbered among the
things that were. Of all the hundreds of thousands of dollars that changed
hands during the years of that erratic traffic, we fail to see where it has bene-
fited one man in the county whose determination it was to make his home
121. Ibid., January 28, February 11, 18, 25, March 25, 1875.
122. Ibid., January 28, February 25, March 11, 1875.
123. Ibid., April 8, 15, 22, May 20, 27, 1875.
ELLSWORTH, 1869-1875 191
among us. We have a herd law, and we have proved the richness of our soil,
and our wonderful pastoral possibilities beyond a peradventure, and all that
remains for us to do is to encourage a healthful immigration, devote our ener-
gies to wool growing, graded stock, and small grain, and we shall soon find
ourselves second to no county in the state in wealth and importance. 124
The four years' conflict in Ellsworth county had been essentially
a clash between an alliance of urban businessmen and a portion of
the rural settlers against the rest of the rural settlers. A serious
division thus was apparent in the latter group, between those who
primarily farmed and those who undertook stock raising. Many of
the stock raisers were not much removed from homesteaders, but
most seem to have been comparatively wealthy. Homesteaders
wanted a county herd law to protect their unfenced crops from
loose Texan and domestic cattle; the stockmen, large or small,
opposed a herd law because it would seriously cripple their mode of
operation. In the countryside, therefore, the herd law was the
issue rather than the Texas cattle trade as such. The split in the
rural settler group was finally reflected in a kind of class conscious-
ness that identified "poor" farmers and "rich" stockmen, as best ex-
pressed in the letter of J. W. Ingersoll.
An outstanding feature of Ellsworth county conflict was the
emergence of a mutual distrust and contempt between rural and
urban residents. This seemed to burst out at the least provocation.
Obviously aggravating this rural-urban split was the excessive
"urban-ness" of Ellsworth, with its economy oriented toward a
highly cosmopolitan cattle industry rather than local agriculture.
To a ruralist, all the distasteful accouterments of urban society were
present in Ellsworth drunkenness, gambling, prostitution, exces-
sive crime, and idleness. The failure of the rural-urban political
coalition in the 1872 elections exposed the depths of this cleavage.
The Reporter in late 1874 saw the healing of this as the most valu-
able benefit of resolving the herd law question.
Other sources of conflict in Ellsworth county apparently had
little or nothing to do with the existence of the Texas cattle trade.
Two cliques of businessmen fought over the location of the court-
house, and even though one clique captured a good deal of rural
support in this conflict it apparently was isolated from the cattle
issue. A certain amount of anti-cattle agitation also had other
origins perhaps. The opposition to Texas cattle in Wilson may
really have been a challenge by that community of Ellsworth's
dominance within the county. The brother and spokesman of John
Jellison, exclusionist county commissioner from Wilson, for example,
124. Ibid., August 5, 1875.
192 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
was Acy A. Jellison, soon to be the leading businessman, largest
landowner, and dominant civic leader of Wilson. 125 In addition,
many of the homesteaders of the Wilson area possibly turned to
the exclusion movement in frustration after being hit peculiarly
hard with drought, grasshoppers, and prairie fires. 126
Did leaders play significant parts in the movement to restrict
the cattle trade? Although Arthur Larkin and other Ellsworth
merchants might be termed leaders, no urban businessman appar-
ently ever became a vocal anti-cattle agitator. D. B. Long, a big
stockman who herded and fed his cattle each winter, might have
proved an effective leader for the movement in Ellsworth county.
But he remained only a critic of the status quo, never an agitator.
His own economic interests were never threatened by either the
existence of the cattle trade or the proposed herd laws, and his
criticisms were based mainly on principles rather than on felt needs.
W. M. King provided some leadership, but this wealthy newcomer
probably was too indiscriminately contentious to be an effective
organizer of the opposition. The Jellison brothers undoubtedly
provided leadership in the Wilson area by 1874, but a county-wide
leader never appeared.
In the final analysis, the anti-cattle homesteaders won without
significant leadership for two reasons. First, the Kansas legislature
finally provided an easy means for obtaining a herd law against
the wishes of entrenched interests. Second, urban businessmen
realized by late 1874 that the cattle trade was inevitably to leave
Ellsworth. They grasped the necessity of winning back the rural
settlers on whom their businesses would depend in the not-too-
distant future. They also hoped to eke out at least one more
cattle season by stifling the exclusion movement. They saw the
herd law as a compromise measure giving the majority of rural
elements satisfaction and yet keeping the cattle trade in the county.
But Ellsworth's cattle trade died in the summer of 1875. It was
already being attracted to more convenient points by that year, and
was no doubt as discouraged by the settling up of the country south
of Ellsworth county as by the latter's new herd law. In any event,
if the birth of Ellsworth's cattle trade is a study in corporate com-
munity effort, its death was at least partially the result of vicious
community conflict. In such terms can be described in short the
rise and fall of Ellsworth as a cowtown.
125. Lyon, op. cit., p. 52; Ellsworth Times, June 14, 1879; Ellsworth Reporter, March
18, 1880; Wilson World, July 15, 1948.
rity of the state aid recei\
the agricultural disasters
Reporter, January 7, 1875.
126. The majority of the state aid received by Ellsworth county for the relief of its
destitute following the agricultural disasters of 1874 went to settlers in the vicinity of
Wilson. Ellsworth Reporter, January 7. 1875.
I
Quotations from letters which newly arrived Cyrus K.
Holliday, one of the founders of Topeka and of the Santa
Fe railroad, wrote his young wife Mary, whom he tem-
porarily left back East while he sought new opportunities
in the West
From Lawrence, November 18, 1854:
/ am perfectly delighted with the Country. You may
tell those who inquire that my idea of the country is
simply this that God might have made a better coun-
try than Kansas but so far as my knowledge extends he
certainly never did. I am bound to make it my home
if I can at all succeed in making suitable business ar-
rangements. . . .
From Topeka (" 'Up the River/ K. T.," he wrote, for the
five-day-old city had not yet been named), December 10,
1854:
A more lovely country I certainly never saw and
yet it looks worse now than at any other season. I am
told by those who know that in the spring and early
summer when the grass and shrubbery and flowers
appear it is beautiful beyond conception. So I think
it must be. And in a few years when civilization by its
magic influence shall have transformed this glorious
country from what it now is to the brilliant destiny
awaiting it, the sun in all his course will visit no land
more truly lovely and desirable than this. Here, Mary,
with God's kind permission, we will make our
home.
The Early Career of C. K. Holliday
A FOUNDER OF TOPEKA AND OF THE SANTA FE RAILROAD
FREDERICK F. SEELY
KURTZ HOLLIDAY'S roots lay deep in Pennsylvania.
The Holliday family, early pioneers of Scotch-Irish Presby-
terian stock, about 1760 had settled the area of Blair county now
called Hollidaysburg and had had a rugged time doing it, for several
members of the family had been killed in Indian raids. 1 It was here
that Holliday's father, David, was born. In 1809 David Holliday
went east to Franklin county and married a Mary Kennedy; soon
thereafter he took a post as accountant in the great Carlisle Iron
Works, located at Boiling Springs five miles south of town. 2
Here, near Carlisle, Cyrus Kurtz Holliday was born April 3, 1826,
the youngest of seven children. After the death of David Holliday
about 1830, his widow followed a married daughter to Massillon,
Ohio, about 1837, taking her three youngest children with her, and
she remained in Ohio until she joined C. K. Holliday and his brother
George in Topeka, where she died in 1859.
Young Holliday's early years in Ohio remain obscure; it is likely
that he was living in the vicinity of Wooster, where his brother
David Hayes Holliday had settled, 3 and he gave Wooster, Ohio, as
his home address when he registered at Allegheny College in the
fall of 1848.
Holliday's choice of Allegheny College, 140 miles northeast of
Wooster, may have been determined by several factors. The Col-
lege of Wooster was not then in existence, and in the late 1840's
Allegheny was enjoying a fresh burst of vitality and expansion. In
1847 Pres. Homer J. Clark had retired in ill health, and a former
professor had been called back as president, John W. Barker. Bar-
ker's qualities as a great teacher and his inspiring energy seemed to
fire the college into new life. Furthermore, the Methodist church
had strengthened its support of the institution and Allegheny was
being recommended by preachers, circuit riders, and teachers
through the states lying to the south and west. The new "perpetual
scholarships" had yielded $60,000 in cash and were already bring-
DR. FBEDERICK F. SEELY, native of Iowa, is a professor and chairman of the English de-
partment at Allegheny College, Meadville, Pa.
1. A History of Blair County, Pennsylvania, eds., Tarring S. Davis and Lucile Shenk
(2 vols., Harrisburg, 1931), v. 1, p. 32.
2. C. K. Holliday, "Family Memoranda," ms., 1897.
3. "Wayne County Deed Record," v. 62, p. 143.
(193)
136253
194 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
ing scores of new students to the campus. The college was ready
to advance into one of the greatest decades in its history, the 1850's. 4
A total of 226 new students entered Allegheny that year of 1848,
though the majority of these were enrolled in the preparatory de-
partment. The total enrollment in the four college classes was
slightly over 100, and a faculty of five was responsible for their
instruction.
In those years Allegheny's entrance requirements included a read-
ing knowledge of Latin and basic groundwork in Greek. If a boy
lacked these important tools to a classical education, he might obtain
them by attending what was then called the preparatory depart-
ment before he was formally admitted to college. Holliday entered
college directly, so obviously he had already begun his classical
education before coming to Meadville. Although records are not
to be found, there were several small academies or preparatory
schools in the Wooster area in the decade of the 1840's; one or two
were in the town of Wooster itself, and two or three others were
located in nearby settlements. Undoubtedly at one of these Holli-
day prepared for college, possibly teaching at intervals in the com-
mon schools in order to save enough money for college, for he was
22 years old when he registered as a freshman at Allegheny.
When he made the journey from Wooster to Meadville in the fall
of 1848, young Holliday was evidently accompanied by a young
man named William B. Allison, later a distinguished senator from
Iowa, coauthor of the Bland- Allison act, and in 1896 a candidate for
the Republican nomination for president, which ultimately fell to
his fellow-Alleghenian, William McKinley. Allison gave his home
address as Ashland county (formerly a part of Wayne county),
Ohio, and during their freshman year the two young men roomed
and boarded themselves together. 5
The college at that time, located in a community of 2,500, was
situated on a sparsely wooded hill a little distance from the town,
with fields enclosing it, and a rail fence surrounding the college
property itself. In 1850 a new plank walk was extended up the hill
to the college. Bentley Hall, erected in 1822, was the only college
building, but by the late 1840's it was proving inadequate for the
rapidly growing student body, and in 1851, Holliday's junior year,
President Barker undertook the erection of Ruter Hall, which was
used for a chapel, library, and recitation hall.
4. Ernest Ashton Smith. Allegheny A Century of Education, 1815-1915 (Meadville,
Pa., 1916), pp. 131, 139, 140.
5. Leland L. Sage, William Boyd Allison (State Historical Society of Iowa, Iowa City,
1956), p. 6.
EARLY CAREER OF C. K. HOLLJDAY 195
The geographical distribution of students at this time is worthy
of note. Of the 22 men in Holliday's class, 1852, 11 came from
Pennsylvania, five from Ohio, four from New York state, one from
Vermont, and one from Mississippi. Many of these classmates, as
well as others of his college contemporaries, were later to make
distinguished names for themselves, and their achievements are
testimony of the kind of education which the college then furnished,
as well as a measure of the intellectual climate which helped to
mature and develop men like Holliday. A few were: Judge N. E.
Worthington '54, of the U. S. Labor Commission; Ben F. Martin '54,
congressman from West Virginia; Albert Long '52, missionary to
Bulgaria and vice-president of Robert College; Judge Christopher
Heydrick '52, of the superior court of Pennsylvania; Thomas Wilson
'52, chief justice of Minnesota; Ephraim Miller '55, dean of the Uni-
versity of Kansas; James Marvin '51, chancellor of the University of
Kansas; and James A. Gary '55, postmaster general under McKinley.
Holliday's undergraduate life seems to have been divided between
his academic work and his activities with the Allegheny Literary
Society, one of the two active organizations which flourished on the
campus before they were displaced by Greek letter fraternities. The
minute books of the society reveal that Holliday joined the Alle-
gheny Literary Society in April, 1849, and remained an active mem-
ber until his graduation. 6 His Ohio friend and roommate, Allison,
was admitted to membership at the same time, although he left
college the following summer. In the fall of his senior year Holliday
was elected speaker (the equivalent of president) of the group, and
toward the end of that year he was active in its financial affairs, for
he served as chairman of at least three committees, one of which was
formed in 1852 to consider the practicability of establishing a literary
paper in Meadville, a project which apparently did not materialize.
But if he handled the society's funds, he also contributed to them
in the form of fines, which were promptly imposed upon members
for any impropriety of conduct. On various occasions he was fined
6/4 cents for leaning his head against the wall, one shilling for leaving
the hall without permission, one shilling for wearing boots in the hall
instead of the required slippers, and 6M cents for improper posture
during the meeting. He seems not to have been guilty of one of the
most common offenses: spitting on the carpet.
At this time Allegheny was operating on a three-term plan with
a six-weeks' vacation during the summer. 7 The curriculum, char-
6. College archives, Reis library, Allegheny College, Meadville, Pa.
7. Smith, op. cit., p. 139.
196 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
acteristic of almost all colleges in this era, was based solidly upon
the classics, and Latin and Greek were studied during all four years.
Mathematics and logic accompanied the classics, and during one's
senior year the fare was varied somewhat by the inclusion of some
astronomy, mineralogy, political economy, and international law.
This was the course of study, with little flexibility permitted, which
Holliday pursued.
All five men who presided over the curriculum were Methodist
clergymen, but many religious denominations were represented in
the student body. Although the college took pride in being non-
sectarian, it was quick to defend orthodoxy when under attack by
the Unitarian forces of the Meadville Theological School, recently
founded on the town's opposite hill. Probably to bait the faculty,
in the spring of 1851 the Allegheny Literary Society extended an
invitation to the president of the Unitarian school to give the annual
commencement address at the college. It was C. K. Holliday who
introduced the resolution. The Allegheny faculty and trustees
swung into action at once, not only blocking the plan, but tem-
porarily closing down the impudent society. Holliday and a fellow
member offered to resign from the society, but their resignations
were rejected. 8
Although there may have been split feelings on the matter of
religion, the Meadville area was vigorous in its antislavery senti-
ment. Sparked by the New England Abolitionist connections of the
Unitarian Theological School and supported by the strong Whig and
Free-Soil sentiment in the northwestern corner of the state, as well
as the religious attitude of the college, Meadville had long been
ranked as an implacable foe of slavery. Undoubtedly the years
which Holliday spent in this atmosphere confirmed him in the strong
Free-State position which he was later to take in Kansas.
Holliday's graduation exercises, of a class numbering 22 men,
were held on June 30, 1852, in the Methodist Episcopal church in
Meadville. The ceremonies began soon after nine in the morning
and, with a brief intermission for lunch, concluded shortly before
five that afternoon. 9 Holliday's standing in his class is not revealed,
but in one of the obituaries published in a Topeka paper at his death,
usually a time for superlatives, we find the statement, lie was grad-
uated with highest honors." The minute books of the Allegheny
Literary Society reveal that he was elected valedictorian of that
group. 10
8. Allegheny Literary Society minute book, June 12, 1851.
9. Crawford Democrat, Meadville, Pa., July 13, 1852.
10. February 28, 1852.
EARLY CAREER OF C. K. HOLLIDAY 197
At the age of 26 then, Holliday had won his A. B. degree, and
possessed a sound foundation not only in the classics, but in par-
liamentary procedure and debate, gained from the exacting formal
exercises of the literary society.
Sometime in the months following his graduation from college
Holliday became associated with the George W. Howard Company,
a firm of contractors engaged in grading railroad rights of way.
George Howard was then a resident of Meadville and was allied in
this business with his brothers Sebra and William. Charles Howard,
a Detroit broker, was also involved in their activities. The exact
nature of Holliday's association with these men is not clear, but it is
evident that he was a copartner in their enterprises, for he is so
described in the testimony of a hearing in which the Howard com-
pany brought action against Crawford county in the controversy
concerning payment for work done for the Pittsburgh and Erie
Branch railroad. 11 It was this alliance with the Howard brothers
which introduced Holliday into railroad building and initiated him
into the difficulties with which he was later to be faced when organ-
izing the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe railroad in Kansas.
It appears that his acquaintance with George W. Howard began
soon after his graduation from college. This is established by a
photostated scrap of paper in a collection of Holliday letters and
papers preserved by the Kansas State Historical Society in Topeka.
It is a signed agreement, framed in impressively legal language,
between George W. Howard and C. K. Holliday, dated November
25, 1852. By its terms Holliday agreed to tutor the two eldest
Howard children and to hear a certain number of recitations each
day, in return for which he would be boarded at the Howard home
for the reduced rate of 87/2 cents per week. It was stipulated, how-
ever, that this amount did not include lights or fuel.
The undertaking upon which the Howard firm now embarked,
though promising at first, proved ill-fated.
The Pittsburgh & Erie Railroad Company had been chartered in
1845 to run a line from the port of Erie to Pittsburgh, but the com-
pany had been unable to obtain adequate stock subscriptions and
little work had been done. In the summer of 1852, while Holliday
was graduating from college, the company made an overture to the
people of Meadville to build a connecting line between New York
state and Ohio under the branch powers of its charter, but little
action was taken until the following summer. In August, 1853, the
11. Plaintiff's testimony in G. W. Howard v. Crawford county before D. M. Farrelly,
commissioner (August, 1857, n. d., n. p.), p. 62.
198 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
commissioners of Crawford county and the grand jury recom-
mended, subject to an expression of public opinion, a subscription
of $200,000, to be issued in bonds, toward the construction of
the road. 12 The proposal was overwhelmingly approved, and the
Howard company's estimate for the construction work was ac-
cepted. 13 Ground was officially broken August 20, 1853, for a line
which would run southwest of Meadville toward the Ohio border.
It is certain that Holliday was working with the Howards before
this date, as the testimony of one of Howard's laborers, a Philip
Mulligan, in the action against Crawford county referred to above,
states that in July, 1853, Holliday was with Howard in Ohio, where
the firm had contracted for another railroad construction job. 14
Opposition to the project arose, however; money was scarce, and
work faltered, although the Howard brothers and Holliday con-
tinued the task of grading, and constructing the embankments. In
the summer of 1854 a dispute arose concerning the amount of pay-
ment due for the work. The Howards had received $12,000 of
county bonds, $1,500 in cash, and $2,150 in stock, but claimed that
much more was due. 15 The funds of the Pittsburgh and Erie branch
company had been exhausted, so the Howards ceased work on
September 24, 1854, and the contract was formally declared aban-
doned on November I. 16
As compensation for his work with the Howards, Holliday seems
to have been paid in part by stock in the railroad and perhaps in
Crawford county bonds. James Marshall in his history of the Atchi-
son, Topeka & Santa Fe railroad states that at the termination of the
contract he possessed the sum of $20,000, which he used to finance
his ventures in Kansas. 17 Writing from Topeka in September, 1855,
to his wife in Meadville, he instructed her to sell "one of those
Bonds." 18 If he was here referring to the Crawford county bonds,
he was either fortunate or shrewd in disposing of them before they
were annulled by the Pennsylvania supreme court in 1858.
Later in Topeka, Holliday was admitted to the Kansas bar on
12. William Reynolds, History of the Atlantic 6- Great Western Railway (unpublished
ms., Reis library, Allegheny College, Meadville, Pa.), pp. 3-5.
13. Crawford Democrat, August 9, 1853.
14. Plaintiff's testimony, p. 71.
15. Reynolds, op. eft., p. 304.
16. There ensued a long and tangled series of suits and countersuits involving the
Howard company, the Pittsburgh and Erie Railroad Company, and Crawford county. The
county's bonds were eventually declared invalid. The controversy was not settled until
May, 1891, when the Howards obtained a judgment of $15,000 after 36 years in the Penn-
sylvania courts. Ibid.
17. James Marshall, Santo Fe, the Railroad That Built an Empire (N. Y., 1945), p. 24.
18. Lela Barnes, ed., "Letters of Cyrus Kurtz Holliday, 1854-1859," The Kansas His-
torical Quarterly, v. 6, p. 267.
EARLY CAREER OF C. K. HOLLIDAY 199
January 18, 1862, 19 and he was engaged in law practice with Thomas
G. Thornton. It is possible that he read law while still in Meadville,
but no positive evidence of this appears, and the Prothonotary's
records do not show that he was ever a member of the Crawford
county bar.
During Holliday's senior year in college, on January 7, 1852, he
was initiated into Crawford Lodge No. 234 of the Masonic Order, 20
and soon after his establishment in Kansas he was instrumental in
instituting Topeka Lodge No. 17. 21
Holliday's marriage occurred on June 11, 1854, immediately fol-
lowing the Sunday evening service in the Methodist Episcopal
church, with the Rev. Dr. John Barker, president of the college,
officiating. 22 The bride was Mary Jones, age 20, fourth child of
James and Susan Jones, long-time residents of Meadville. If the
faint handwriting in the U. S. census records of 1850 may be read
correctly, her father was a dairyman. 23
It was soon after his marriage that affairs between the Howard
company and the Pittsburgh & Erie Branch railroad reached a criti-
cal point. The unlikelihood that the road would be completed and
the difficulty of obtaining payment from the railroad company un-
doubtedly moved Holliday to consider other opportunities, and
Kansas, in that summer of 1854, promised to be an exciting and
profitable adventure.
The Kansas-Nebraska bill was finally passed by congress in May,
1854, and President Pierce signed it on May 30. Throughout the
nation debate ran high as to whether Kansas would be eventually
listed in the column of the free or the slave states. A month after
Holliday's marriage, the Crawford Democrat 24 printed the full text
of the bill and editorially urged that every reader familiarize himself
with the provisions of this vital act. Excitement in Meadville was
intense. Throughout the summer each issue of both local news-
papers carried news about Kansas, and in August a mass convention
was called in Meadville to oppose the extension of slavery and to
resist the encroachments made on free territory. 25 In the village of
19. Kansas Reports, v. 140, p. Lri.
20. For this information I am indebted to John H. Pendleton, secretary of Crawford
Lodge No. 234.
21. Topeka Daily Capital, March 31, 1900.
22. Crawford Democrat, June 13, 1854.
23. The certainty of identification of her father could be questioned when examining
William Reynolds' manuscript, "Reminiscences of Early Citizens," written in 1900, p. 26,
where Reynolds states that a Peter Jones, who died in November, 1857, had a daughter who
married C. K. Holliday. When Reynolds wrote this, however, he was at an advanced age
and it is likely that he confused Peter Jones with James Jones. The census records reveal
that Peter Jones' family could not have been that of which Mary was a member.
24. July 18, 1854.
25. Crawford Journal, Meadville, Pa., August 22, 1854.
200 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Conneautville, 20 miles northwest, a company of emigrants known
as the Western Pennsylvania Kansas Company was organizing and
departed by canal and riverboat for Kansas in October. 26 Holliday
determined to investigate the opportunities in the new land.
The journey from Meadville out to Kansas territory in 1854 was
still a long and trying adventure. Holliday's letters to his wife 27
and one long letter directed to and published January 30, 1855, in
the Crawford Democrat furnish rather complete information con-
cerning his journey out to Kansas and his early efforts to establish
himself in the new territory.
Mary accompanied him to Erie on October 30, 1854; there the
farewell took place, probably a very anxious one, for she was preg-
nant with their first child, Lillie, who was to be born the following
March. Holliday traveled by train to Cleveland, then to Chicago,
to St. Louis, and finally by riverboat to Kansas City, a crude frontier
town of 500, where he arrived on November 7 after nine days of
travel, though he broke the journey at Cleveland and again at
Chicago. It was 1,219 miles as Holliday reckoned it; the total cost
of his transportation he reported as $31.25. He was accompanied
by his brother-in-law, A. P. Ingraham, husband of Matilda Jones,
but Ingraham remained only two weeks in the new country and re-
turned to Meadville to conduct a stationery and "Yankee notions"
store.
In Kansas City, Holliday rested a few days and was perhaps im-
peded by the weather, for he wrote that rain, snow, and cold made
his stay there very disagreeable. Next he moved west about 40 miles
by stagecoach to the frontier village of Lawrence. From here, on
Christmas day, he composed a long letter to his Meadville friend,
James E. McFarland, editor of the Crawford Democrat, and which
was duly published at the end of January. Two weeks later he wrote
a second letter which almost glows with his enthusiasm for Kansas. 28
The mild climate, the richness of the soil, the abundance of water,
and the great variety of crops which could easily be raised in the
new land were the aspects which most inspired him.
"The Creator/' he declared, "might have made a better country
than the Kansas; but so far as my knowledge extends, he certainly
never did"
Here was to be his future home!
26. Crawford Democrat, November 7, 1854.
27. Barnes, ed., loc. cit., pp. 241-244.
28. Crawford Democrat, February 20, 1855.
Kansas Before 1854: A Revised Annals
Compiled by LOUISE BARRY
PART Two, 1763-1803
7763
By the treaty of Paris, February 10, France ceded to Great Britain
her territory east of the Mississippi (except the Isle d'Orleans); and
confirmed the 1762 cession of Louisiana west of the Mississippi
( and the Isle d'Orleans ) to Spain.
7764
St. Louis was founded in February. Auguste Chouteau (then 14)
headed the work party which began the settlement ( on a site chosen
in 1763 by Pierre LaClede Liguest, on behalf of Maxent, LaClede
and Company of New Orleans, operating under a French grant of
1762).
7766
Antonio de Ulloa arrived in New Orleans on March 5 as the first
Spanish governor of Louisiana.
7769
Louis Saint-Ange de Bellerive, commandant at St. Louis, report-
ing (May 2) to the Spanish on the Indian tribes who came to re-
ceive presents in the District of Illinois, named the Missouris, Little
Osages, Big Osages, Kansa, Otoes, and Panimahas from the district
of the Missouri river.
Ref: Louis Houck's The Spanish Regime in Missouri (Chicago, 1909), v. 1, pp. 44,
45; A. P. Nasatir, Before Lewis and Clark (St. Louis, 1952), v. 1, p. 70.
Capt. Francisco Riu's report ( October 29 ) revealed what knowl-
edge the Spanish, from their St. Louis headquarters, had been able
to gather about their recently acquired Missouri country. He
wrote:
. . . From the mouth of the Misuri to that of the River of the Big
Osages, there is a distance of 80 leagues. The latter river goes to the tribe
called by the same name, which is some 70 leagues from the mouth.
From the mouth of the above-named river to the tribe of the Panimahas,
is a distance, as is asserted by the voyageurs, of 170 leagues. That is the
most distant tribe to which the traders penetrate. From the above-mentioned
tribe to that of the Ayetan [Comanche], one goes overland, and it is estimated
LOUISE BARRY is a member of the staff of the Kansas State Historical Society.
(201)
202 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
to be a voyage of 6 or 8 days. From the tribe of the Ayetan to Nuevo Mejico,
the same ones calculate 6 or 8 days.
Captain Riu particularly noted the large contribution of the
Kansa Indians to the fur trade. Their country, he stated, "abounds
in castors [beaver]."
Ref: Houck's Spanish Regime . . ., v. 1, pp. 62-64; Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, p. 70.
7770
Pedro Piernas, arriving at St. Louis on May 20, took formal charge
as the first Spanish (lieutenant) governor of upper Louisiana.
( From 1770 to 1804 the Spanish controlled the Missouri river trade. )
Ref: Louis Houck's A History of Missouri (Chicago, 1908), v. 1, p. 298.
The Comanches (successors on the Plains to the power and pres-
tige formerly held by the Padoucas), were described by Athanase
de Mezieres (lieutenant governor at Natchitoches ) in a report
dated October 29:
The Comanche are scattered from the great Missuris River to the neighbor-
hood of the frontier presidios of New Spain. They are a people so numerous
and so haughty that when asked their number, they make no difficulty of
comparing it to that of the stars. They are so skillful in horsemanship that
they have no equal; so daring that they never ask for or grant truces; and in
the possession of such a territory that, finding in it an abundance of pasturage
for their horses and an incredible number of cattle [buffalo] which furnish
them raiment, food, and shelter, they only just fall short of possessing all of
the conveniences of the earth, and have no need to covet the trade pursued
by the rest of the Indians whom they call, on this account, slaves of the
Europeans, and whom they despise.
[They] . . . are obliged to follow [the buffalo herds] . . . into
the more temperate country of the south [when winter arrives], whence the
extreme heat of the summer again drives them along with the herds towards
the cold regions. From these perpetual comings and goings it arises that
the Comanches, relying upon one another, made proud by their great num-
ber, and led by their propensity to steal, let few seasons pass without com-
mitting the most bloody outrages against the inhabitants of New and Old
Mexico.
De Mezieres concluded that "since their reduction will be one
of the most costly and difficult that may be planned in this Amer-
ica" it would be good policy to encourage "to some extent, those
who are interested in the destruction of so proud and cruel an
enemy."
Ref: H. E. Bolton's Athanase de Mtzteres . . . (Cleveland, 1914), v. 1, pp. 218,
219.
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 203
7772
Writing from the Great Osage village [in present Vernon county,
Mo.], Rouquiere (one of several traders there), in a June 14 letter,
described Osage depredations on the lower Arkansas and Red
rivers (three Frenchmen killed and two young men taken captive).
He also stated that a band of Osages had left the village in early
April to make war on the Black Pawnees, and returned with two
French scalps. The victims, slain near the Paniouassa village, had
been mistaken for the enemy (so the Indians claimed). But Rou-
quiere added: "As for us, not a single trader up to now has any
cause for complaint in the village. We have traded at our will and
without any difficulty."
Ref : Lawrence Kinnaird, ed., Annual Report . . . American Historical Association,
1945, v. 2, pp. 202, 203.
7775
Pedro Piernas (lieutenant governor of Upper Louisiana) re-
ported (from St. Louis, May 19) on the "... nations with
which we are accustomed to trade in pelts in the dependency of
the Missouri River." He listed the Mahas, Panis Maha, Panis,
Hotos, Cance [Kansa], Little Osages, Missouris, Republic, and
Great Osages. (Notable is the reference to the Pawnee Republic
Indians, of whom no earlier specific mention has been found.)
Giving values of goods traded in pounds of furs, he estimated the
Kansa trade at 7,500 pounds; that of the Pawnee Republic at 3,000;
the Panis at 1,200; the Panis Maha at 1,800; the Little Osages at
7,200; the Great Osages at 15,000. In 1775 trade with the latter
two nations was "forbidden" ( evidently to punish them for depreda-
tions committed); and after both the Kansa and Pawnee Republic
entries Piernas wrote "not able to enter," but gave no explanation.
Ref: Ibid., p. 228.
7777
In June, or early July, five of a reconnoitering party of seven
Osages were killed by a large band of Panis Piquies [Wichitas]
somewhere near the Arkansas river [in present Oklahoma?]. To
avenge the murders, the Osages in force returned to that area, and
on the Arkansas river bank met "the man named Layones with two
trappers" whom they killed and robbed. This occurred between
July 15 and 18. Later in the year it was reported that the Osages
were continuing "their thefts and murders along that river."
Ref: Houck's Spanish Regime . . ., v. 1, pp. 149, 150.
204 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Francisco Cruzat (lieutenant governor of Upper Louisiana) in a
report (St. Louis, November 1) on the year's fur trade on the
Missouri, indicated that the official traders among the Kansa had
been Antonio Hubert and Luis Lacroix, who obtained 150 packs
of tanned deerskin, one of otter, seven of beaver, and three of
buckskin. The trade of the Republica [Pawnee Republic] Indians
had gone to Eugenio Pouree, but "the fur of the Republica tribe
has not been able to be brought down, as the river of the Canzes
has no water."
Cruzat stated that Auguste Chouteau, Sylvestre Labbadie, and
three others had traded among the Big Osages. (Also listed were
the traders among the Little Osages, Missouris, Mahas, Panis, and
Otoes; and the fur statistics for each.) He commented that "the
Panis Mahas tribe, where a trader is usually sent, has again become
incorporated with the tribe of the Panis Piques [Wichitas], who are
settled in the territory of Nachitoches, who [the Panis Mahas] are
threatened by the Sioux tribe, who are situated on the banks of
Misisipy. . . ."
Ref: Ibid., pp. 139, 140, 183; Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, p. 70.
In a comprehensive report on the upper Missouri river Indians
with whom the Spanish traded, Francisco Cruzat (from St. Louis,
on November 15) wrote of the "Cances" Indians:
This tribe is composed of 350 warriors. The name of the principal chief
. . . is El Corny [perhaps Le Cornmis? in French the earliest-located
name of a Kansa chief]. They are 150 leagues from this village, and are
located on the banks of the Misury river itself, at a distance of some 50 leagues
from the tribe of the Misuris. Their occupation has always been, and is, that
of the hunt; for although they generally plant a small quantity of maize, it
does not, as a general rule, suffice for their necessary support. As a general
thing, this tribe is hostile to the tribes of the said Misury river, named the
Panis and La Republica [Pawnees]. For this reason they generally cause a
great deal of harm to the traders who are sent to those tribes, for they do not
allow those traders to ascend the river in order that those tribes may be sup-
plied with guns and ammunition. This is the only harm experienced from this
tribe. However, we have heard that they were thinking this year of making
peace. This tribe has always been hostile to all those of the Misisipy. From
the work of the hunt in which they are engaged, there results the profits of the
trade which are made in the furs; for every year that trade produces 180 or 200
packs.
Cruzat stated that "La Republica" Pawnees numbered 350 to 400
warriors. Their principal chief was Escatape. They were located
about 110 leagues up the Kansas (from its mouth), and were dis-
tant 40 or 50 leagues by land from the Kansa village. Their occupa-
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 205
tion was hunting. They were hostile to the Kansa and the Big
Osages.
The Big Osages numbered 800 warriors. Their principal chief was
Cleromon [Clermont]. They lived on a Missouri tributary [*. e., the
Osage] 180 leagues from St. Louis by water, and about 110 overland
[in present Vernon county, Mo.]. They were hostile to the tribes
of "La Republica, the Hotos [Otoes], the Alkanzos [Arkansas], the
Panis, the Piquies [Wichitas], and the tribes living on the Misisipy
in the English district." They were hunters and accumulated from
500 to 550 packs of deerskins annually.
Cruzat's report also covered the Little Osages, the Missouris, the
Otoes, the Pawnees, the Mahas, the lowas, and the Sioux. The
latter two tribes, he stated, traded with persons from "the English
district." The Otoes, Pawnees, and Mahas were all enemies of
the Kansa; and the lowas were "hostile to the tribes of the Misury
River."
Ref: Houck's Spanish Regime . . ., v. 1, pp. 141-145; Bolton in his Athanase de
Mezi&res . . ., v. 2, p. 26, noted that Houck "supplied punctuation and made two
tribes out of the Panis Piquies, or Wichita."
7780
In November Lieutenant Governor Cruzat (writing from St.
Louis to his superior officer), referred to "the necessity which I
have of using the Little Osages, with our other allied nations, to
repress and punish the Kansas nation. As your Lordship knows,
the last mentioned has already committed some murders on the
Missouri River, assassinating and burning seven hunters who were
hunting on that river. . . ."
Ref: Kinnaird, op. cit., v. 2, pp. 394, 395.
7785
In New Orleans Esteban Rodriguez Miro (governor-general of
Louisiana) made a report (dated December 12) which included
the following statements:
The Cances is 108 leagues from the mouth of the Missouri, on Its right
bank. In high water one can ascend it to the village of the Republic or Panis
[Pawnee Republic]. . . .
The Cances have their villages about 140 leagues from the mouth of the
Missouri on a very high cliff about two avanzadas from the shore of that river.
They must have 200 warriors and are unquestionably the best hunters on the
Missouri. They maintain peace with the Little Osages and with the Missouris,
and make war on the Panis in order to obtain horses. Their hunting land is
up the River de Cancel as far as the River de Nimaha. . . .
206 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
The Panis are found about 27 leagues from the Chato [Platte] River, and
consist of 400 men capable of bearing arms. Their hunting grounds are on
the tongue of land between their river and the Chato and extend from their
village to the River of San Francisco de Arcanzas [the Arkansas].
The Indians of the Panis Republic, called Paniguaccy or Eyes of the Par-
tridge, live on the River Cances about 130 leagues from its mouth, and consist
of 220 men capable of bearing arms. . . .
The Pad6s [Padoucas Plains Apaches] were in former times the most nu-
merous nation on the continent, but the wars which other nations have made
against them have destroyed them to such an extent that at present they form
only four small groups, who go wandering from place to place continually which
saves them from the fury of the other nations. They number about 350
men, very skillful with the arrow and in running. . . .
The Laytanes or wandering Apaches [i. e., Comanches, not Apaches]
. . . inhabit the borders of New Mexico. . . . They dominate all the
neighboring tribes, and although divided into several war parties . . .
they all live in perfect friendship.
Of the Arkansas river Miro wrote:
. . . we find the river of San Francisco de Arkanzas on the western
bank [of the Mississippi]. . . . Twelve leagues up this river is the fort
of Carlos III [Arkansas Post], between which and the Mississippi at various
distances is found the nation of the Arkansas divided into three villages.
. . . about 100 leagues above, live the Little Osages, who are the only
nation I know in this place bordering on the Kingdom of New Spain. [In mid-
1785, a band of the Little Osages had left the Missouri and settled on the
upper St. Francis river.]
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 120, 121, 123, 125-127; Kinnaird, op. cit., v. 3, pp.
160, 162, 164, 165, 166, 170-173. Miro's report quoted from Nasatir, with a few changes
supplied from Kinnaird.
7786
Writing from New Orleans, August 1, Governor Miro told of
steps taken to punish the Osage Indians for an outbreak of de-
predations. "My prohibition against carrying goods farther than
the fort of Arkansas [Arkansas Post]," he stated, "may cause the
Osages to molest the white hunters who are established on the
upper part of the said river [in present Oklahoma, and possibly
some in Kansas] to the number of some 200."
Ref: Kinnaird, op. cit., v. 3, pp. 182-184.
Jacobo Du Breuil (brevet lieutenant colonel of infantry), com-
mandant at Arkansas Post [or, fort of Carlos III], in a report (De-
cember 16) on the rivers of his district, wrote of the Arkansas:
. . . its source [is] near the kingdom of New Mexico, according to the
report of the hunters who have navigated it for more than 400 leagues, and
it empties into the Mississippi at a point 250 leagues from the capital [New
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 207
Orleans]. It abounds in fish such as the catfish, the par go y seatrout, carp,
armado, herring, eel, and turtle of two varieties. The Arkansas has several
branches in which there are salt beds that give in summer a slightly salty taste
to the water. The territory watered by this river has a natural growth of
poplars, willows, oaks, cypress, walnut, pecans, elms, etc.
Ref: Kinnaird, op. cit., v. 3, p. 193.
7790-1791
Auguste Chouteau was granted part of the trade of the Kansa
in 1790. In pursuit of that commerce Cadet [Pierre] Chouteau
spent the winter of 1790-1791 among the Kansa, and reported in
St. Louis in the spring that they had not traded all their furs with
him because Mississippi river Indians (representing English trad-
ers ) had taken part of the pelts despite all he could do. Chouteau
also stated that about the first of March some 90 Big Osages with
all their chiefs and head men had come where he was camping on
the Kansas river to ask why traders had been prohibited from visit-
ing their villages. Angered when told it was punishment for de-
predations on the Arkansas (where they had been killing and
plundering), some of the Osages began to blame the trader, and
had to be restrained by chiefs of both nations from taking his
merchandise.
[In 1785 the Kansa were reported as still living on the Missouri river; but
in 1790-1791 Chouteau spent the winter with them on the Kansas; and in 1792
Pierre Vial was in the Kansa village on the Kansas. The evidence is persuasive,
but not conclusive, that these Indians left their Missouri river village between
1785 and 1790. Referring to this move, but not dating it, U. S. Commr. H. L.
Ellsworth, in 1833, wrote: ". . . the evidence is satisfactory that the
Otoes attacked the Kansas at their old village on the Missouri near Indepen-
dence creek drove them from their village and took possession. The Kansas
never afterward occupied that ground but pitched their tents 60 or 80 miles
distant on the Kansas River. . . ."
[The village which Chouteau and Vial visited was, presumably, the site
about two miles east of present Manhattan in what is now Pottawatomie
county; or, as it could have been described in 1794: on the Kansas river,
two miles east of the mouth of the Big Blue. (During the 1903 flood, the
Big Blue cut a new channel near its mouth and since then has flowed into the
Kansas some four miles east of Manhattan rather than at the town site.)]
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 135, 143, 144; Ellsworth's letter quoted from Off. of
Ind. Aff. Records, Gr. 75, Treaty File in Nat. Archives, as given in Waldo R. Wedel's
An Introduction to Kansas Archeology (Washington, 1959), pp. 37, 38.
7792
Pierre Vial, a Frenchman in the employ of the New Mexican
governor, set out from Santa Fe on May 21, with two young Span-
iards, and some pack horses, under orders to open a line of com-
208
KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
munication between the Spanish settlements of New Mexico and
those of upper Louisiana.
They went by way of Pecos; then set a course first eastward and
later to the northeast. On May 29 they reached the Colorado
[Canadian] river and followed down it into present Oklahoma.
On June 22 they turned northeast to look for the Napeste [Arkan-
sas]. Vial's diary entry of June 27 stated: "We journeyed through
spacious lands and reached the above-mentioned Napeste River.
We camped for the night on its shore. . . ." [They were in
present Kansas still to the southwest of the great bend of the
Arkansas]. Vial thought they had traveled about 140 leagues up
to that point.
On June 29 they followed down the river "which flowed east
northeast." In the late afternoon [perhaps near Great Bend] they
found a hunting camp of Kansa Indians on the opposite bank. The
Kansa gave them ill treatment stripped them of clothing, and took
possession of their horses and belongings. The Vial party remained
in the Indians' Arkansas river camp till mid-August when the Kansa
started back to their village. Vial estimated they traveled "about
50 leagues going through level plains" in the ten days it took to
reach their destination. The village, he wrote, "is located on the
River of the Kances" [presumably the site two miles east of present
Manhattan See preceding entry].
On September 11 a licensed French trader who came to the
village in a pirogue loaded with goods, supplied Vial and his com-
panions with clothes, a gun, and other items. On September 16
the explorers went down the Kansas in a boat with three traders
who were returning to St. Louis, and reached that place on
October 6.
Ref: Houck's Spanish Regime . . ., v. 1, pp. 350-358; Chronicles of Oklahoma,
Oklahoma City, v. 6 (June, 1928), p. 212; A. B. Hulberfs Southwest on ihe Turquoise
Trail (c!933), pp. 43-54.
7793
In the spring a band of Iowa Indians went to a camp of the
Kansa to buy horses. While the Kansa warriors were out hunting
(in order to feed their guests) the lowas "killed, and took prisoner
forty-eight women and children, and carried off all the horses."
The result was renewed warfare between two nations which had
long been enemies.
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, p. 185.
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KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 209
No traders were permitted to go up the Missouri during the year
"on account of the war which was ordered declared on the Osages"
(to punish them for depredations in Spanish Louisiana).
Ref: Ibid., v. 2, p. 530.
In the summer Pierre Vial, his two companions of 1792, and four
other young men left St. Louis bound for Santa Fe. Abandoning
the plan to try a direct overland route (because of hostile Osages)
they went up the Missouri in the pirogue of some traders as far as
the mouth of the "Chico Nimaha" (near present Nemaha, Neb.,
apparently), reaching that place on August 24. There they re-
mained through September 11 until expected Pawnee guides ar-
rived.
On September 12 they set out with the Indians (who were of the
Republic band). From Vial's journal their route across present
Kansas can be fairly well determined. 'We took the road through
a large plain, route to the southwest," he wrote on the first day.
Proceeding in the same direction and then turning more to the west
on September 15, they came on the evening of the 17th to "a little
stream [the Big Blue?] which enters the River of the Cances." Next
day their route again lay "through good prairie land," and they
camped on "an arm [the Republican, evidently] of the River of the
Cances." On the 19th they noted as they traveled, a "hill of great
height which the Indians call Blue Hill." Their camp that night
was on "a little stream [Chapman creek?] which enters into that of
the Cances." Still crossing good land and on the same course as for
several days past, they arrived in mid-afternoon of September 20
at the Pawnee Republic village. (They had been met around
noon and escorted by the chief "Sarisere" and several of his war-
riors.) According to Vial's calculations, during the nine days'
journey from the "Chico Nimaha" they had traveled 49 leagues
(about 125? miles). The village, on a river [the Smoky Hill, prob-
ably in the vicinity of present Abilene], contained some 300 war-
riors.
These Pawnees maintained friendly relations with the Spanish,
but were at war with the Osages, the "Tahuagases" [Taouaiazes
Pani Piques Wichitas] and the Comanches. Their allies were
three other Pawnee villages on the River Chato [the Platte], also
the "Majalos" and the Kansa.
146253
210 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Vial and his companions remained in the Pawnee Republic
village till October 3. They bought ten horses. On October 4,
after presenting gifts to their hosts, they started for Santa Fe with
seven Pawnee guides. Ten days later the party reached the Rio
Napeste [Arkansas], apparently west of present Dodge City. (By
Vial's calculations they traveled 68/2 leagues [about 175? miles] from
the Indian village before reaching the Arkansas.) Continuing on
a southwesterly course to the Canadian, their homeward route took
them by way of Pecos to Santa Fe on November 15.
[Early references to the Pawnee Republic Indians (see 1777 and 1785) did
not specify on which fork of the Kansas they lived. A study of Vial's journal
leaves little doubt that in 1793 they were, at least temporarily, on the Smoky
Hill somewhat east of the Solomon's mouth. Jean B. Truteau (see 1794)
indicated the Indians' presence in that area when he wrote (in 1796) that the
Republican nation was on the southwestern branch of the Kansas river, near
its source. But Antoine Soulard (see 1795) located them on his map on the
Kansas tributary which we call the Republican and which he plainly labeled
"R. de la Republica Pani." Victor Collot (see 1796) in the text of his book
stated they were on the southwest branch of the Kansas; but on his map placed
them on the Republican fork (though he did not give it a name).]
Ref: Chronicles of Oklahoma, v. 9 (June, 1931), pp. 195-208 (for Van's journal);
Nasatir, op. cit., v. 2, pp. 383-385 (for Truteau); Bolton's Athanase de Mezieres, v. 1,
pp. 246, 250, 294-296 (for the Taouaiazes); Wedel's . . . Kansas Archeology, pp.
59, 60 (for additional data on Pawnee Republic villages).
7794
Early in May, at a meeting in St. Louis, arrangements were
made for the year's Missouri fur trade. Four persons (Benito
Vasquez, Bernal Sarpy, Laurent Durocher, and the lieutenant gov-
ernor, Zenon Trudeau) were to have equal shares of the Kansa
trade. Auguste Chouteau was allotted the Pawnee Republic In-
dians. The Grand Osages' trade was divided into 12 shares ( Cerre,
Robidoux, Pierre Chouteau, Papin, and Glamorgan were five of the
allottees), and the Little Osages* traders (of whom there were four)
included Roy and Pratte.
Ref: Nasatir, op. cU. t v. 1, pp. 210, 211; Kinnaird, op. cU. t v. 4, p. 279.
At St. Louis, on May 12, an organization "La Compagnie de Com-
merce pour la Decouverte des Nations du haut du Missouri" (bet-
ter known as the "Missouri Company") was formed for the pur-
pose of exploring and trading on the upper Missouri. Among its
members were Auguste and Pierre Chouteau, Jean Papin, Benito
Vasquez, Gregoire Sarpy, Jacinto St. Cyr, Joseph Robidoux, Gabriel
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 211
Cerre, Antoine Roy, and Jacques Glamorgan (who was director of
the company).
Ref: Houck's Spanish Regime . . ., v. 2, pp. 173-178; Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, pp.
217, 218.
The "Missouri Company" sent Jean Baptiste Truteau (a 45-year-
old, Montreal-born, St. Louis school teacher) as head of its first
upper-Missouri expedition. Truteau, in a well-loaded pirogue,
manned by eight oarsmen, set out from St. Louis on June 7, and
reached the mouth of the Kansas on July 12, stopping briefly there
(it appears) to see a trader named Quenneville. "La riviere des
cansas," he noted in his journal, was navigable for about 100 leagues
in the springtime; it abounded in beavers, otters, and other fur-
bearing animals. The village of the Kansa, whose men were good
hunters and warriors, was 80 leagues [by water?] upstream; and
ten leagues beyond began the country of the Pawnee Republic.
On July 14 Truteau and party camped on the Isles des Parques
[about opposite present Leavenworth] . Next day, at 12 leagues
above the mouth of the Kansas, they came to the first old village
of the Kansas [Salt creek valley, Leavenworth co.]. On July 21
(after being delayed by a prolonged rainstorm) they reached the
second old Kansa village [the "Village of 24" at present Doniphan]
at 12 leagues above the first. By the following evening they had
ascended as far as the great bend of the Missouri, near present St.
Joseph, Mo. Between the Kansas and the Platte, wrote Truteau,
there were three rivers (the Great Nemaha, Little Nemaha, and the
Nishnabotna) which were navigable for a short distance and only in
the springtime.
(Truteau's intended destination was the Mandan villages where he was to
establish a fort and trading agency, but he got only as far as the Aricara coun-
try. His description (dated 1796) and information on the upper Missouri was
used by French travelers Collot ( 1796) and Perrin du Lac ( 1802). )
Ref: Truteau's journal in American Historical Review, Lancaster, Pa., v. 19 (January,
1914), pp. 299-333; Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 86-93, 257-263, and pp. 262, 267, for item
on "Quenneville" whose name suggests a connection with the French-Canadian A. B.
Canville who established a trading post for the Osages in present Neosho county in 1844.
But Annie H. Abel in her Tabeau's Narrative of Loisel's Expedition . . . (Norman,
Okla., 1939), p. 60, offers other identifications for the name. See, also, Stella M. Drumm's
editorial note on Francois Quenneville in John C. Luttig's Journal of a Fur-Trading Expedi-
tion ... (St. Louis, 1920), p. 60.
7794-7795
Osage-Spanish relations improved greatly following the establish-
ment in 1794-1795 of a small fort in the Osages' country. Short-lived
Fort Carondelet [in Blue Mound? tp., Vernon co., Mo.] was built
212 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
by the Chouteaus (Auguste and Pierre) in return for a six-year
monopoly (1794-1800) of the Big and Little Osages' trade. Com-
mandant Pierre Chouteau took his family there in 1795; and a few
other persons, in addition to militia troops were residents for a
time. Osage depredations dwindled due to the influence of the
Chouteaus, who enjoyed the complete confidence of the Indians.
(But in 1802 the Chouteaus lost the Osage trading rights to Manuel Lisa
and others, and all trace of Fort Carondelet quickly disappeared. Pike and
Wilkinson found only a "superior growth of vegetation" at the site in 1806.)
Ref: Houck's Spanish Regime . . ., v. 2, pp. 100-110; Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1,
pp. 214, 320, 321, 326, v. 2, pp. 530, 584; Missouri Historical Review, Columbia, Mo., v.
35, pp. 92-95; Louis Houck's A History of Missouri (Chicago, 1908), v. 2, p. 252; Z. M.
Pike's August 17, 1806, entry in the various editions of his An Account of Expeditions to
the Sources of the Mississippi. . . '.
Antoine Soulard's maps were, so far as known, the first to show
the Big Blue (tributary of the Kansas) by name; and to indicate
the location of Fort Carondelet [in present Vernon co., Mo.].
There was, originally, a 1794 map, sketched expressly for Truteau's
use on his "Missouri Company" expedition. But the 1795 versions
( French and Spanish ) are the only ones now known to exist.
On the French map, entitled "Idee Topographique des Hauts
du Mississipi et du Missouri," the Big Blue was labeled "R. Eau
bleue" ("R. Agua azuT on the Spanish map) meaning "Blue wa-
ter." The Kansas appeared as "R. de les Cans," and the Repub-
lican fork as "R. de la Republica Pani." The Kansa village (repre-
sented by four "dots" perhaps to indicate 400 warriors?) was
shown as on the north bank of the Kansas, east of the junction of
the Big Blue. The Republican Pawnees' village (represented by
three "dots") was on the north bank of the branch of the Kansas
named for them, at some distance upstream.
( Soulard, surveyor of Upper Louisiana and St. Louis resident, according to
his own statement, had once ascended the Missouri about 500 leagues. )
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, between pp. 46, 47 (for French map), v. 2, p. 760; Carl I.
Wheat, Mapping the Transmississippi West (San Francisco, 1957), v. 1, pp. 157, 158, and
facing p. 158 (for Spanish map, which, curiously, was misdated "1785").
7795
Benito and Quenache de Rouin, traders returning from the Kansa
village, were robbed and "soundly thrashed with blows of sticks"
by a party of some 160 lowas, who carried off two of their hired
men. Zenon Trudeau's report of the incident (St. Louis, March 4)
stated: "They left Benito, as well as the other on the seventh of
the month of January at the entrance of the Kansas river, without
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 213
arms, food, or clothing. . . ." The two captives were ran-
somed by English traders and returned to St. Louis.
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 316, 318.
In April the "Missouri Company" sent a man named Lecuyer with
a large, well-loaded pirogue, and oarsmen, on a journey to the
upper Missouri. This second expedition of the St. Louis company
was pillaged by the Ponca Indians. Few details of its fate are
known. Lecuyer was later blamed for the disaster.
Ref: Houck's Spanish Regime . . ., v. 2, pp. 176, 178, 187, 190.
When a distribution of medals to chiefs of the Missouri river
tribes was proposed, Zenon Trudeau (lieutenant-governor of Span-
ish Illinois) suggested (May 30) that large medals should go to
Kansa chiefs Kayguechinga (or Le Petit Chef) and Jhahoangage
(or Les grands Chevaux); and small ones to Kueehagachin (or Le
Batard ) and Whachanguia ( or Le Geur qui brule ) .
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 326, 327.
Zenon Trudeau reported (from St. Louis, July 4) that Pedro
[Pierre] Vial and four companions, earlier in the year had traveled
from Santa Fe to the Pawnee Republic village "on the bank of the
Kansas River" and spent 15 days there. He was on an official
mission for the Spanish to effect peace between the Pawnee Re-
public Indians and the Laytanes [Comanches]. Traders from the
St. Louis area who were in the village at the time said that he
accomplished his purpose (and delivered a medal, a complete
suit of clothes, and other gifts to the Pawnee chief). Vial had
taken the traders to meet the Comanches, and wished to take them
on to New Mexico, but they refused. He was reported to have
made the journey from Santa Fe to the Pawnees in eight days.
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 1, pp. 329, 330.
The "Missouri Company's" third expedition was headed by Span-
ish citizen (but Scottish-born) James MacKay. With 33 men and
four merchandise-laden pirogues he set out from St. Louis in late
August on a journey which was intended to open up commerce
in the unknown parts of the upper Missouri, and to attempt ex-
plorations as far as the Pacific. The boats, making slow progress,
probably passed along the Kansas bank of the Missouri in the latter
part of September. By October 14 (on which date MacKay began
to keep a journal) the expedition had reached only as far as the
Otoe village ( about a mile below the Platte's mouth ) . Continuing
214 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
to the Maha village some distance above, MacKay built a trading
fort where he spent the winter. But he sent his lieutenant, the
Welshman John Evans, to explore farther upstream.
MacKay compiled a table of distances "ascending from the Mis-
souri's mouth" (dated 1797) which included the following informa-
tion:
The "beautiful" Kansas river ( at 100 leagues ) was "navigable for
canoes for more than 60 leagues at all times; but not for more than
20 leagues for large boats" in times of low waters. The Kansa
lived 80 leagues up their river. On the Missouri, the "First old
village of the Kansas nation" ( at 112%2 leagues ) was "situated upon
the bare hills"; and the "Second old village of the Kansas" (at 119
leagues) was "upon the south bank," and "about a league lower
and on the same side" was an iron mine.
Wolf river (at 136%2 leagues) was a small river. The "River of
the Great Nemahas" ( at 141& leagues ) was "navigable some leagues
for pirogues." On that river the boats passed that carried on com-
merce with the Pawnee Republic nation, whose village was on a
branch of the Kansas river. The "River of the Little Nemahas" ( at
150912 leagues ) was a small river. The Platte ( at 171M leagues ) was
"as large as the Missouri but so shallow and the course so rapid"
that navigation was very difficult for any boat, except during spring-
time high waters.
Ref: Houck's Spanish Regime . . ., v. 2, pp. 181-192; and for MacKay's table:
Mississippi Valley Historical Review, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, v. 10 (March, 1924), pp. 432-
441, or Nasatir, op cit., v. 2, pp. 485-489.
7796
Victor Collot (former French general) toured Louisiana in 1796
on an information-collecting expedition for his government. The
data he gathered on die Missouri river (beyond the Osage tribu-
tary) however, was derived, not from personal observation, but
from traders (Truteau principally) whom he met at St. Louis.
Collot died in Paris in 1805. His manuscript, together with maps
and sketches ( including a "Map of the Missouri" probably drawn in
1796), was not published until 1826. An English edition of Voy-
age in Amerique Septentrionale appeared in the same year. Collot
wrote of the Kansas:
The river des Cans ... is navigable an hundred leagues for barks and
barges of every kind; it runs through very fertile lands, flat, well wooded, and
intersected by rich meadows; but the country, such as we have already de-
scribed, does not extend farther than one or two leagues from the banks. In
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 215
ascending this river fifty leagues, we find a fortified point, on which is situated
the great village of the Cans. The branch which runs to the West is called
the River of White Water; on that of the south-west the Indian nation called
Republican is established [a statement contradictory to his map location, as
noted below].
Elsewhere in his work the "Cans" Indians were said to be "On the
river Cans, where it divides, 60 leagues from its mouth/' On his
"Map of the Missouri" (1796?) Collot showed the "Can" just below
the junction of the "Blue Water" with the "R. Cans." Farther up-
stream, on the upper of two forks (neither named) of the Kansas
was the Republican village. The lower fork was shown to have
a "S. W. Branch." But the "River of White Water" (referred to
above ) did not appear on the map.
Ref: Victor Collet's A Journey in North America (1924 reprint), v. 1, pp. 279, 310,
and Plate 29 (in volume of maps and sketches); Wheat, op. cit., v. 1, p. 160, and map
facing p. 160; Abel's Tabeau's Narrative, pp. 14, 15.
7796-7797
Fur trader Francisco Derouin [Francis Dorion?], arriving from
the Platte, reported at St. Louis (on May 14, 1797) that the Kansa
and Otoe Indians had spent the winter sending war parties against
each other, and several had been killed. (The Otoe village was
at the mouth of the Platte. )
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 2, pp. 516, 517.
7798
Zenon Trudeau, the lieutenant governor of Upper Louisiana,
reported (from St. Louis, January 15) :
The Kance tribe has its village located on the banks of the river of that
name. They number about 400 men, and are all better hunters than the
Osages, and at the least as great rogues as they. This tribe would have an
easy entrance to the river of Akanzas [the Arkansas] if it were not for the
Osages who prevent them, and certainly they would commit more acts of piracy
and roguery than these latter. This is the only tribe whose trade is not ex-
clusive. It is usually divided into six equal parts, each one valued at the sum
of eight hundred pesos. These six parts are distributed by lot among all the
merchants of San Luis and Santa Genoveva. Those which have drawn the
lot one year are excluded from it the next year, and until all have shared in this
advantage. From this tribe 180 packs of furs are obtained annually.
Ref: Houck's Spanish Regime . . ., v. 2, p. 252.
7800
Gregoire Sarpy and [J. P.?] Cabanne, who had been traders
among the Kansa for two years, suggested (in a letter, April 26) to
Spanish authorities that if they were given the trade of the neighbor-
216 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
ing Panis also, they could probably mediate a peace treaty between
the two nations "for a long time enemies and always at war. . . ."
The conflict affected the hunting and trade of both. (Sarpy was
among the Kansa again in 1801. )
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 2, pp. 592, 614-616.
On October 1, by the secret treaty of San Ildefonso, Napoleon
secured Louisiana from Spain. The territory ceded was to be the
same which Spain had received from France 37 years earlier.
7802
Francois Marie Perrin du Lac (young French writer) came to the
United States in 1801 with a particular desire to visit the upper Mis-
souri and its Indians. Chapter 24 of his Voyages dans les Deux Lou-
isianes (published in Paris, 1805) described that part of his travels.
(He supplemented his own observations of the region by using ma-
terial from Truteau's 1796 description.) Also in the volume was his
Carte du Missouri (1802) a map more accurate for that country
than any published earlier.
Perrin du Lac and ten others (one perhaps Truteau), set out from
St. Louis on May 18, 1802, to trade up the Missouri. When they
reached the mouth of the Kansas they turned their boat up its chan-
nel to the Kansa village [presumably the site two miles east of
present Manhattan see 1790-1791]. For 12 days [in June?] they
traded and feasted among the Kansa, who, wrote Perrin du Lac,
"are tall, handsome, vigorous, and brave . . . active and good
hunters, and trade is carried on with them by the Whites without
danger. . . ."
On returning to the mouth of the Kansas (navigable, he stated,
at all seasons for 500 miles ) , the traders cached their furs, and pro-
ceeded once again up the Missouri. They found the first old village
of the Kansa 35 miles upstream, and the second old village 22 miles
beyond.
Continuing to the Platte they ascended it to the Great Panis vil-
lage where they spent eight days. "We were better received by the
Great Panis than we had been by the Kanses," wrote Perrin du Lac.
"They were at war with the nation called Republicans, and had only
a small number of fire-arms, without any powder. We supplied
them with some in exchange for . . . skins. . ,, . . The
Great Panis are not so tall as the Kanses. They are active, and good
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 217
hunters. . . . Their manners very closely resemble those of
the Kanses."
After visiting the Mahas and Poncas, the traders continued as far
up the Missouri as the White river (where there was a Cheyenne
village ) . On August 26 they started downstream. Stopping at the
mouth of the Kansas to pick up their cached furs, they saw a party
of Sioux approaching and re-embarked hastily, leaving the less valu-
able pelts behind. They had "hardly gained the opposite shore"
when they were "saluted with a discharge of musketry; but night
coming on, the savages abandoned their pursuit." On September
20 they reached St. Louis.
Perrin du Lac's map of the Missouri showed the "R. des Kances"
(with the "Village des Kances"); its tributary the Blue ("R. de 1'Eau
bleue"); and its Republican fork ("Fourche des Repubh'ques") with
the "Village des Republiques" located well above the 39th parallel.
Also shown were the two "Ancien" villages of the Kansa on the Mis-
souri.
[An enlarged section of Perrin du Lac's map is reproduced facing p. 209.]
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit., v. 2, pp. 706-712; F. M. Perrin du Lac's Travels . . .
(1807 English ed.); Wheat, op. cit., v. 1, map facing p. 159.
About 1802
As the Lewis and Clark expedition traveled up the Missouri in the
summer of 1804, a site several miles below the mouth of Wolf river
[in present Doniphan county] was pointed out to the explorers as
the former location of a French "settlement." William Clark's jour-
nal entry on July 9 stated:
. . . at Six Miles passed the mouth of Creek on the L. S. [leeward, or
Kansas side] called Monter's [Montains] Creek, about two miles above is some
Cabins where our Bowman & Several frenchmen Camp d . two years ago. . ;" .
And Sgt. Charles Floyd wrote in his journal on July 9:
. Passed a prarie on the South Side whare several French famileys
had setled and made Corn Some Years ago Stayed two years the Indians
Came Freckentley to See them and was verry frendley. . . .
Ref: Reuben G. Thwaites' Original Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition (New
York, 1904), v.l, p. 72.
1802-7803
The Great and Little Osage trade, in 1802, was granted for five
years to Manuel Lisa and his partners Gregoire Sarpy, Charles
Sanguinet, and Francois M. Benoit. (The new four-year contract
218 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Auguste Chouteau had received from the Spanish in 1801 for the ex-
clusive Osage trade was thus cancelled.) In 1803 Lisa acquired
Sarpy's and Sanguinet's shares.
Ref: Nasatir, op. cit. t v. 2, pp. 591, 592.
Cashesegra's band of Great Osages and some of the Little Osages
(including many of the best hunters) removed from the Osage river
[in present Vernon co., Mo.] in 1802 or 1803, to the lower Verdigris
[in northern Oklahoma, some 60 miles above the Arkansas-Verdigris
junction]. Pierre Chouteau induced them to move in order to re-
gain part of the trade he had lost to Manuel Lisa.
[Lt. James B. Wilkinson, of Pike's 1806 expedition, reported that Cashesegra
(Big Track) was the nominal leader, but Clermont was the "greatest warrior
and most influential man" among them.]
Ref: Ibid., pp. 539, 592, 680, 688; Lt. J. B. Wilkinson's report, April 6, 1807, Ap-
pendix to the various editions of Z. M. Pike's Expeditions . . .; Stella M. Drumm's
editorial note in John C. Luttig*s Journal . . ., p. 50.
With two companions, James Purcell (once of Bardstown, Ky.)
trapped on the Osage headwaters in 1802. They were perhaps in
what is now east central Kansas when some Kansa stole their horses.
Purcell and his friends cached their furs and pursued the thieves
into the Kansa village. The "mad Americans" (so called by the
Indians ) got all but one horse back, only to lose the animals again,
when near the Osage river, to unknown robbers. Later their make-
shift canoe overturned and the trappers' furs were lost near the
mouth of the Osage. His companions then continued homeward,
but Purcell joined a trader going up the Missouri to the Mandan
country. After trapping and trading with the Padoucas and Kiowas,
he arrived in the upper South Platte area. (While in present Colo-
rado he made perhaps the first gold discovery by the whites there. )
In June, 1805, he reached Santa Fe and remained for 19 years.
Capt. Z. M. Pike who met "Pursley" there in 1807 recorded some of
his adventures.
Ref: Z. M. Pike's . . . Expeditions . . ., Appendix to pt. m, pp. 18, 17;
H. M. Chittenden's The American Fur Trade of the Far West (New York, 1935), v. 2,
pp. 492, 493.
7803
In January President Jefferson sent a confidential message to
congress urging the establishment of Indian trading houses on the
United States frontier. Also, he proposed that an exploring party
be sent "to trace the Missouri to its source, to cross the Highlands,
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 219
and follow the best water communication which offered itself from
thence to the Pacific Ocean." Congress approved and voted $2,500
"for the purpose of extending the external commerce of the United
States/' Jefferson chose Meri wether Lewis to head the expedition,
and Lewis suggested William Clark as coleader.
Ref: W. P. Webb's The Great Plains (Boston and New York, 1936), p. 143; L. R.
Hafen and C. C. Rister's Western America (New York, 1941), pp. 174, 175.
Napoleon sold Louisiana (acquired just three years earlier from
Spain) to the United States on April 30. Formal transfer cere-
monies took place on December 20, at New Orleans.
(Part Three Will Appear in the Autumn, 1961, Issue.)
Some Notes on Kansas Cowtown Police Officers
and Gun Fighters Continued
NYLE H. MILLER AND JOSEPH W. SNELL
MASTERSON, EDWARD }.
(1852-1878)
ED MASTERSON, the oldest of the famous Masterson brothers,
became a member of the Dodge City police force June 5, 1877.
He made his first arrest, that of Bobby Gill, on June 6. 1
It is not certain whether Ed Masterson was originally appointed
assistant marshal or merely policeman. On June 9, 1877, the Dodge
City Times said: "Ed. Masterson has been appointed Assistant
Marshal of this city. He is not very large, but there are not many
men who would be anxious to tackle him a second time. He makes
a good officer." Elsewhere in that same issue and again on June
16, the paper referred to him as policeman. On the latter date the
Times said: "The new policemen, Ed Masterson and Joe Mason,
are covering themselves with glory, and their prompt and efficient
action cannot be too highly commended."
By July 3, at least, Ed Masterson had been named assistant mar-
shal to serve under Marshal L. E. Deger and over Policeman Joe
Mason. Deger, Masterson, and Mason each earned $75.00 a
month. 2
Ed Masterson was instrumental in easing the trouble between
Marshal Deger and Mayor James H. Kelley when the two broke
into open conflict on July 20. This story was reported in the sec-
tion on Deger.
By this time followers of these sketches doubtless have become ac-
customed to the frequent eruptions of lurid journalese so charac-
teristic of several of the cowtown editors. Therefore, this account
of a session of the Dodge City police court, as described by the
Times, August 11, 1877, should measure up to the expectations of
even the most sanguine:
THE JUDGE AND THE C S.
"The Marshal will preserve strict order," said the Judge. "Any person
caught throwing turnips, cigar stumps, beets, or old quids of tobacco at this
Court, will be immediately arranged before this bar of Justice." Then Joe
[Policeman J. W. Mason] looked savagely at the mob in attendance, hitched
NYLE H. MILLER and JOSEPH W. SNELL are members of the staff of the Kansas State
Historical Society.
NOTE: These articles on Kansas cowtown officers and gun fighters, with additional
information and an index, are expected to be reprinted and offered for sale under one
cover, upon completion of the series in the Quarterly.
(220)
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 221
his ivory handle a little to the left and adjusted his moustache. "Trot out the
wicked and unfortunate, and let the cotillion commence," said his Honor.
City vs. James Martin. But just then a complaint not on file had to be
attended to, and Reverent John Walsh, of Las Animas, took the Throne of
Justice, while the Judge stepped over to Hoover's [George M. Hoover, pur-
veyor of wines, liquors and cigars!]. "You are here for horse stealing," says
Walsh. "I can clean out the d d court," says Martin. Then the City
Attorney [E. F. Colborn] was banged into a pigeon hole in the desk, the table
upset, the windows kicked out and the railing broke down. When order
was restored Joe's thumb was "some chawed," Assistant Marshal Masterson's
nose sliced a trifle, and the rantankerous originator of all this, James Martin,
Esq., was bleeding from a half dozen cuts on the head, inflicted by Master-
son's revolver. Then Walsh was deposed and Judge [D. M.] Frost took his
seat, chewing burnt coffee, as his habit, for his complexion. The evidence was
brief and pointed. "Again," said the Judge, as he rested his alabaster brow
on his left paw, "do you appear within this sacred realm, of which I, and
only I, am high muck-i-muck. You have disturbed the quiet of our lovely
village. Why, instead of letting the demon of passion fever your brain into
this fray, did you not shake hands and call it all a mistake. Then the lion
and the lamb would have lain down together and white-robed peace would
have fanned you with her silvery wings and elevated your thoughts to the
good and pure by her smiles of approbation; but no, you went to chawing
and clawing and pulling hair. It is $10.00 and costs, Mr. Martin."
"Make way for the witnesses," says Joe, as he winks at the two c s that
comes to the front, and plants one on each side of Mr. [W. N.] Morphy, who
appears for defendant "A thorn between two roses." It was the City vs.
Monroe Henderson, all being "n s" except the City Attorney and Mr.
Morphy. The prosecuting witness, Miss Carrie, looked "the last rose of sum-
mer all faded and gone" to . Her best heart's blood (pumped from her
nose) was freely bespattering the light folds which but feebly hid her pal-
pitating bosom. Her starboard eye was closed, and a lump like a burnt bisquit
ornamented her forehead. The evidence showed that the idol of her affections,
a certain moke named Baris, had first busted her eye, loosened her ribs and
kicked the stuffing generally out of Miss Carrie. That Carrie then got on the
war path, procured a hollow ground razor, flung tin cans at defendant, and
used such naughty, naughty language as made the Judge breathe a silent
prayer, and caused Walsh to take the open air in horror. But the fact still
remained that defendant had "pasted" her one on the nose. The City Attorney
dwelt upon the heinousness of a strong giant man smiting a frail woman. Mr.
Morphy, for defendant, told two or three good stories, bragged on the Court,
winked at the witnesses and thought he had a good case, but the marble jaws
of justice snapped with adamantine firmness, and it was $5.00 and costs.
Appeal taken.
It was Carrie's turn next to taste the bitter draughts brewed in our Police
Court. She plead "Guilty, your Honor, just to carrying that razor in my
hand. 'Deed, 'deed, your Honor, I never had it under my clothes at all."
Carrie received an eighteen dollar moral lecture and a fine of $5.00 and costs,
and Court stood adjourned.
In all of the above excentricities, and during the exciting scenes that broke
222 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
into the stillness of "that hour of nights black arch the key stane" at divers
evenings of the week, the city was not wanting in an efficient peace officer,
and as a coincidence worthy of mention, assistant marshal Edward Masterson
seemed to be always on time to quell the disturbance, and to bear away to that
home of the friendless ( the dog house ) the noisy disturbers of the peace. Mr.
Masterson has made a remarkable record during the month as the docket of
the Police Court will bear testimony.
The Times editor was still in a playful mood when, on August 18,
1877, he reported:
Mr. Evans, of Quindaro, Mr. Webster, of Wyandotte, Mr. Evarts, of Ann
Arbor, and Messrs. [M. W.] Sutton, [D. M.] Frost and Ed. Masterson, of
this city, held a moonlight picnic at Fort Dodge Thursday evening. Their
conveyance was a four horse ambulance, decked with bunting and drawn by
four horses. They sang songs, acted charades, held moot court, the evening's
exercises closing with prayer by the deacon and a song called "put me in my
little bed," all the musicians joining in the chorus.
On September 3, 1877, Masterson, with Marshal Deger and a
citizen named Anderson pursued and captured a horse thief. This
Times article was included in the section on L. E. Deger.
About September 15, Ed Masterson was reported to have dis-
couraged a couple of the boys from fisticuffs:
Stonewall Jackson and Kinch Riley disagreed this week as to the proper
mode of dividing certain "winnins," amounting to the enormous sum of $2.00.
After discussing the matter fully they concluded to resort to the dog method
of deciding quarrels, and prepared to fight. But just as they were about to
begin Ed. Masterson informed them that the most peaceable place to fight
was down on the reservation, owing to the stringency of the city laws. The
rightists went down to the reservation, followed by a large crowd, but when
they got face to face on the battle field their courage weakened and neither
would strike the first blow. Thus a good item was spoiled. 8
Ed's younger brother, Bat, who had been under sheriff during
the summer and who was now also on the city police force, helped
the assistant marshal attempt to arrest A. C. Jackson, a fun-loving
Texas cowboy, on September 25. The story of Jackson's escape
may be found in the section on Bat Masterson.
Late in September Ed Masterson was involved in another unsuc-
cessful pursuit. This time the lawman was after the culprits who
had robbed the Union Pacific at Big Springs, Neb., on September
18, 1877. The article reporting the attempt was included in the
section on C. E. Bassett.
On October 2, 1877, the police force was reduced so that only
Marshal Deger and Assistant Marshal Ed Masterson remained. 4
On November 5 half of the police force was put out of commission
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 223
when the assistant marshal was shot by Bob Shaw. This gun play
was described in the Dodge City Times of November 10:
FRONTIER FUN.
FRANK SHAW TRIES TO REMEDY His GRIEVANCES WITH A REVOLVER,
AND GETS LEFT.
A DEPUTY MARSHAL'S PLUCK.
Last Monday afternoon one of those little episodes which serve to vary the
monotony of frontier existence occurred at the Lone Star dance hall, during
which four men came out some the worse for wear; but none, with one ex-
ception, being seriously hurt.
Bob Shaw, the man who started the amusement, accused Texas Dick, alias
Moore, of having robbed him of forty dollars, and when the two met in the
Lone Star the ball was opened.
Somebody, foreseeing possible trouble, and probable gore, started out in
search of Assistant City Marshal Ed. Masterson, and finding him hurried the
officer to the scene of the impending conflict.
When Masterson entered the door he descried Shaw by the bar with a
huge pistol in his hand and a hogshead of blood in his eye, ready to relieve
Texas Dick of his existence in this world and send him to those shades where
troubles come not and six shooters are not known.
Not wishing to hurt Shaw, but anxious to quiet matters and quell the dis-
turbance officer Masterson first ordered him to give up his gun. Shaw re-
fused to deliver and told Masterson to keep away from him, and after saying
this he again proceeded to try to kill Texas Dick. Officer Masterson then
gently tapped the belligerent Shaw upon the back of the head with the butt of
his shooting iron, merely to convince him of the vanities of this frail world
and to teach him that all isn't lovely even when the goose does hang anti-
tudilum. The aforesaid reminder upon the back of the head, however, failed
to have the desired effect, and instead of dropping, as any man of fine sensi-
bilities would have done, Shaw turned his battery upon the officer and let
him have it in the right breast, the ball striking a rib and passing around
came out under the right shoulder blade, paralyzing his right arm so that it
was useless, so far as handling a pistol was concerned. Masterson fell, but
grasping his pistol in his left hand he returned the fire giving it to Shaw in
the left arm and the left leg, rendering him hors du combat.
During the melee Texas Dick was shot in the right groin, making a painful
and dangerous, though not necessarily a fatal wound, while Frank Buskirk,
who, impelled by a curiosity he could not control, was looking in at the door
upon the matinee, received a reminiscence in the left arm, which had the
effect of starting him out to hunt a surgeon. Nobody was killed, but for a
time it looked as though the undertaker and the coroner would have something
to do. The nerve and pluck displayed by officer Masterson reflects credit
both upon himself and the city, which has reason to congratulate itself upon
the fact that it has a guardian who shirks no responsibility and who hesitates
not to place himself in danger when duty requires.
On another page the paper reported: "Assistant City Marshal
Ed. Masterson, who was shot last Monday while attempting to
make an arrest, has so far recovered as to be up and around. To-
224 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
morrow evening he will start to Wichita to spend a week or two
visiting his parents."
The shootout caused Bob Shaw to forsake the West for his
native Georgia:
Mr. Bob Shaw, whom we noticed last week in connection with the shoot-
ing scrape, in which Officer Masterson was wounded, had so far recovered
as to be able to start for his home in Georgia a few days ago. Shaw is not
a desperado as would seem from this incident. Parties who have known him
say he never was known to make a six-shooter play before this. Dr. Galland,
under whose medical treatment he so rapidly recovered, has a high regard
for him. Mr. Shaw's family are highly respectable people, and he has con-
cluded to quit the far west and go back to live under the parental roof. 5
Masterson made a rapid recovery from his wound and about
November 19 returned to Dodge City. The Times, November 24,
1877, reported: "Assistant Marshal Masterson returned from Wich-
ita the first of the week. He is recovering from the wound received
in the recent shooting affray, and will soon be able to resume his
duties as an officer." On page four the Times said: "Ed. Master-
son's wife has returned, she came from Hays on a horse."
At the December 4, 1877, meeting of the city council of Dodge
City Larry Deger was discharged as city marshal and Ed Mas-
terson promoted to the position. The Times, December 8, re-
ported the council's actions:
On motion of John Newton the office of City Marshal was declared vacant,
the Mayor thereupon appointed Edward J. Masterson to the said Marshal-
ship, which appointment the Council confirmed.
The petition of D. M. Frost, F. C. Zimmermann, S. Keller, P. G. Reynolds
and others protesting against the removal of L. E. Deger was upon motion
laid upon the table. . . .
The following bills were presented and allowed: Edward J. Masterson
salery as asistant Marshal and medical treatment of wounds received in the
arrest of Shaw, $93.00. . . .
Editorially the Times had this to say of the change:
City Marshal Edward Masterson receives the congratulations of his many
friends without a show of exhultation. Notwithstanding the fact that con-
siderable feeling was manifested against the removal of Mr. Deger, no one
accuses Mr. Masterson of seeking the position. In fact he preferred to retain
his old position as Assistant, which gave him the same salary and engendered
less responsibilities. As an officer his reputation is made, and it is a good
one. . . .
Charles E. Bassett, sheriff of Ford county, was named assistant
to Masterson. 6
The arrest of an army deserter netted the marshal spending money
in January. The Times, January 19, 1878, reported: "Marshal
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 225
Masterson, Monday last, arrested a deserter by the name of A. J.
Brusten, who was delivered to the commanding officer at the Fort.
Ed. will receive $30 for this neat work/'
Horse thieves, deserters, and drunken cowboys were not the
only trouble makers with whom the city marshal had to contend.
The Ford County Globe, January 29, 1878, reported a less exciting
type of delinquency:
Several of our over grown-babies emulated themselves, at the theatre last
week, by throwing beans at some of the colored people present. If they have
no respect for the colored population, they ought to have for themselves.
Marshal Masterson stopped some nonsense at the theater, Saturday night,
by calling out the names of the participants, and telling them to stop. Correct
Edward, repeat the dose.
In February "Marshal Masterson and Adam Jackson attended a
court-martial at the Fort this week," and "Marshal Masterson took
advantage of the pleasant weather and dried his lime kiln [city
jail] blankets last Tuesday/' 7
As an opposition paper the recently established Ford County
Globe felt constrained to criticize the police force:
THE FESTIVE REVOLVER.
Some of the "boys" in direct violation of City Ordinances, carry firearms
on our streets, without being called to account for the same. They do it in
such an open manner, that it don't seem possible that our City officers are
ignorant of this fact.
There must be some reason for it. What is it? Is it because they belong
to the "gang," or because they intend to harm none but anti-gang men? An
honest man attending to his own business, doesn't require the constant com-
panionship of a six-shooter, to make him feel easy and safe. We think there
is something rotten with a man's conscience when he parades the streets with
an exposed six-shooter, knowing that he is violating law with impunity, simply
because he is a friend of the marshal or policeman. We understand that
Mayor Kelley has instructed the police force to rigidly enforce the ordinance
against the carrying of firearms, for which he deserves great credit. 8
However, the Globe was capable of encouragement as well as
criticism. On March 12, 1878, it said: "Some of our officers dis-
played great courage, and justice, in raising h-11 in the south side
dance hall, last Sunday/' But criticism still received more type
space:
We have heard more complaint during the past few days about parties
being "held up" and robbed, on our streets, than ever before. How long
is this thing to continue? We have one more policeman on the force now
than ever before at this season of the year. It therefore seems strange that
midnight robberies should be more prevalent than ever before. There is
156253
226 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
something wrong somewhere, and the people are beginning to feel that there
is no legal remedy. We would like to see the town smell worse of dead
highway robbers than hell does of sinners.
If there is any place in this country that needs the attention of our officers
of the law, its the robbers roost across the dead line.
Also on March 12 the Globe printed this pathetic story:
Thursday last, a poor bare-footed girl, came tramping into Dodge; with a
year-old babe in her arms. Her garments were tattered and torn, her babe
naked; and her story such as would ring tears from the heart of a stone, it
ran thus: "I have since I was five years old, been living with my uncle Mr.
Smith, who now resides on the Pawnee, about thirty-five miles north of
Dodge. My uncle has since my earliest recollections ill treated and abused
me, he has always kept me isolated from other society than that of himself
and family. About nine months ago I gave birth to a child, my uncle was the
father of the child; he having by coercion seduced me; on the day before my
arrival in Dodge, my uncle was absent from home, I took my babe in my
arms; and started for Dodge. I am afraid of my uncle, because he threatened
to kill me if I ever ran away from him."
On Saturday morning, the uncle arrived in Dodge searching for the girl.
He says that the girl's story from beginning to end is false, and stated that
she stole from him when leaving his house, $180, which was done up in a
newspaper, and placed under the floor for safe keeping.
The Police arrested Mr. Smith, on a charge of disturbing the peace, but
on promise of his leaving the girl alone in her glory, and departing from
Dodge at once, he was permitted to go.
The sympathy of our people are decidedly with the girl, who is a buxom
young woman, aged seventeen. Strong talk was made on the streets against
Smith, "tar and feathers," "black-snake whips" and "cold water baths," were
among the remedies advocated for his application. He, however, made good
his departure, and all is now quiet on the "Rackensack," so far as the Smith
family is concerned.
On March 15, 1878, Ed Masterson teamed with Bassett and
brother Bat, who by then was sheriff of Ford county, to capture
two train robbers. The articles reporting this will be found in
the section on W. B. Masterson. Ed went along with the prison-
ers to Emporia where they were taken for safety's sake. He re-
turned on March 17: "City Marshal Masterson returned home last
Sunday morning, after conducting the two train robbers to Em-
poria, where they were safely lodged in jail. At all the stations
along the road crowds assembled to see the robbers." 9
Things began to get lively as spring came on. "Our police force
were kept jumping till three o'clock yesterday morning, corraling
disturbers of the peace. The result was a full calaboose of soldiers
for Police court yesterday," said the Globe, March 26, 1878. The
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 227
Times, March 30, reported: "A prize fight was indulged in by two
pugilists in the outskirts of the city this week. Three rounds were
fought when both pugilists weakened and fled at sight of the City
Marshal. The one-armed slugger received a slight scratch under
his left blinker. Victory, in dispute." And on April 6 the Times
stated: "A tall man with a hooked nose was placed in the calaboose
yesterday by Marshal Masterson. Having nothing else to do he
amused himself cremating the blankets/'
Masterson wanted to put Dodge's vagrants to work on the city
streets. The Dodge City Times, March 30, 1878, reported his in-
tentions :
UTILIZING TRAMPS.
City Marshal Masterson contemplates organizing a tramp brigade for the
purpose of clearing the streets and alleys of the filth and rubbish that has
been accumulating for a year or so. There are about thirty tramps now so-
journing among us, all of whom have no visible means of support and are
liable to arrest under the vagrant act.
On April 9, 1878, calamity struck the cowtown. Twenty-six-
year-old Marshal Edward J. Masterson was shot and killed while
trying to disarm a cowboy in accordance with city ordinance. The
Ford County Globe, in its somberly black-lined edition of April 16,
1878, reported:
SAD NEWS.
MARSHAL MASTERSON HURRIED HENCE BY A MURDERER'S HAND.
A PUBLIC CALAMITY.
On the evening of the 9th inst, at 10 o'clock P. M., six pistol shots "rang
out/' on the night, on the south side of the R. R. track in Dodge City. Hur-
rying to the spot to ascertain the cause and result of the shooting, we found
them to be as follows: A party of six "cow-boys" who had arrived in town
in the evening, had been enjoying themselves with dancing and drinking,
some of them evidently getting too much liquor for their own and the City's
good. Marshal Masterson and Policeman [Nat] Haywood, being the cus-
todians of the public peace of the City, were present, prepared to prevent
any disturbance or trouble among the boys. One of the boys named Jack
Wagner, becoming more intoxicated than the others, got to be very noisy.
About this time the City Marshal observed that he was carrying a six-shooter,
contrary to a City Ordinance, and proceeded to disarm him, which he ac-
complished without much trouble, and turned the pistol over to Wagner's
Boss, A. M. Walker.
The dance went on and all appeared to be peace and harmony. The Mar-
shal stepped out the front door to the side-walk where he again met Wagner,
and saw that Wagner was again in possession of his pistol. He at once
attempted to take it from him, a scuffle ensued, a general rush was made from
inside the Hall to the sidewalk; Policeman Haywood stepped forward to
assist the Marshal, but just as he did so, two other "cow men" drew their
228 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
pistols upon him and held him in position. One of them snapped a pistol in
his face, which fortunately missed fire.
About this time a pistol was discharged, and Marshal Masterson was shot
through the abdomen.
Five shots followed in quick succession. A general rush was made from
the scene, and all was over.
Wagner being shot ran into [A. J.] Peacock's saloon and fell upon the
floor, where he remained until carried away by his friends. He was fatally
shot through the abdomen. He died on the evening of the 10th, and was
burned on the hill near town at 4 P. M., on the eleventh.
Walker, the Boss herder, ran through Peacock's Saloon, and fell some dis-
tance in the rear of the saloon, from whence he was carried by his friends to
a room over Wright, Beverly & Go's store, where he now lies in a very pre-
carious condition, shot once through the left lung and twice through the
right arm.
Marshal Masterson walked across the street and entering [George M.]
Hoover's saloon, in the agonies of death he said to George Hinkle, "George,
I'm shot;" and sank on the floor. His clothes were still on fire from the dis-
charge of the pistol, which had been placed against the right side of his ab-
domen and "turned loose." Making a hole large enough for the introduction
of the whole pistol. The ball passed completely through him, leaving him
no possible chance for life. He was carried to his brother's room, where
in half an hour he died.
Everyone in the City knew Ed. Masterson and liked him. They liked
him as a boy, they liked him as a man, and they liked him as an officer.
Promptly at 10 o'clock on the morning of the 10th every business house in
the City closed its doors which remained so until 6 o'clock, P. M. Crape
draped almost every door in the City. Never before was such honor shown
in Dodge, either to the living or dead.
The Dodge City Fire Company, of which Edward J. Masterson was a
much respected member, took charge of the remains, and refused to permit
any of the friends or relations of deceased to sustain any of the funeral ex-
penses. Every vehicle in the City was employed for the use of the funeral
attendants. Funeral services were had at the Fireman's Parlor, where the
ladies discoursed appropriate music, and the Rev. O. W. Wright delivered
a sermon. The funeral procession started from town at 3 o'clock P. M. and
was formed as follows: The City Council in a body; next, came the hearse
containing deceased; next Sheriff [Bat] Masterson, the only living relative
of the deceased who could be present at the funeral, because of the family
residing in the Southern part of the State and not having time to get here to
attend; next, came the Fire Company, sixty strong, uniformed and in mourn-
ing; next, came buggies and wagons containing ladies and gentlemen; then
came many horsemen. The procession marched to the Military Cemetery, at
Fort Dodge, where the last sad rites were performed to one of the best and
most generous men that God ever fashioned. Rev. O. W. Wright performing
the burial services.
Four "cow boys" were arrested as accessories to the murder of our Mar-
shal, but all were after the fullest and most complete investigation discharged
by Judge R. G. Cook, as it was established that they were to blame only for
being in bad company.
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 229
Wagner when dying said that he shot Marshal Masterson, and there is
now but little doubt in the minds of any but that it was he who killed our
Marshal.
Our Fire Company met in their new parlor, on the evening of the 12th
inst., for the purpose of paying their respects in an appropriate manner to
the memory of their deceased brother. After due consideration, the following
preamble and resolutions were unanimously adopted, and spread upon the
Journal:
WHEREAS, One of the most beloved of our number, Brother Edward J. Mas-
terson, has been called from us by the voice of Death. Sadly, and with hearts
filled with deep sorrow do we mourn the loss of our brother. Now that he is
no more we vividly call to mind his many noble and generous qualities. In
the bosom of man the Creator never caused a more true and brotherly heart
to beat; ever ready to perform a kind act, he bore malice toward none and
held the firm friendship of all. We feel that his death is a calamity that can
never be repaired. His place among us cannot be filled. Long will we
cherish him in memory as one who was near and dear to us all. And be it
RESOLVED, That as a mark of our high esteem and universal respect for
our deceased brother, our place of meeting and our fire implements be draped
in mourning, and that we wear a badge of crape for thirty days from the date
of his death. This we do in honor of the dead. Also
RESOLVED, That we extend our heart felt sympathy to the afflicted relatives
of our deceased brother and instruct the Secretary of this Company to forward
copies of the foregoing preamble and resolution to their address. And to
furnish both City papers with a copy thereof for publication.
The Dodge City Times, April 13, 1878, also carried a story and
an editorial about the murder on its front page:
THE PISTOL.
MURDER OF EDWARD J. MASTERSON CITY MARSHAL.
THE ASSAILANTS SHOT ONE OF THEM DEAD.
DODGE CITY IN MOURNING.
On Tuesday evening, about 10 o'clock, Edward J. Masterson, Marshal of
Dodge City, was murdered by Jack Wagner and Alf Walker, two cattle
drivers from near Hays City. The two cow boys were under the influence of
bad whisky and were carrying revolvers. Early in the evening Marshal Mas-
terson disarmed Wagner; later Marshal Masterson and Deputy Marshal Nat
Haywood tried the second time to disarm Wagner. While in die act Master-
son was shot in the abdomen. Walker in the meantime snapped a pistol in
the face of Officer Haywood. Masterson fired four shots, one of them striking
Wagner in the bowels from the left side. Walker was struck three times, one
shot in the lungs and his right arm horribly shattered with the other shots.
The shooting occurred on the south side of the Railroad track. Marshal
Masterson cooly walked over to the business side of the street, a distance of
about 200 yards, and upon reaching the sidewalk he fell exhausted. He was
taken to his room where he died about 40 minutes afterwards.
Wagner and Walker were removed to Mr. Lane's room, where the former
died at about 7 o'clock Wednesday evening. Walker is lying dangerously
wounded, with no hopes of his recovery.
230 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Some of the flying shots grazed the faces of one of our citizens and a
cattle man. The shots were fired almost simultaneously, and the wonder is
expressed that more death and destruction did not ensue, as a large crowd
surrounded the scene of the shooting.
The officers were brave and cool though both were at a disadvantage, as
neither desired to kill the whisky crazed assailants.
The death of Marshal Masterson caused great feeling in Dodge City. The
business houses were draped in mourning, and business on Wednesday gen-
erally suspended.
Elsewhere we give the expression of sympathy and ceremonies following
this terrible tragedy.
THE MURDER.
An Officer has been stricken down in the discharge of his duty. The deep
feeling of gloom that pervades this community over this sad affair, leaves us
opportunities for calm reflection and judgment. A life that periled itself,
that others might enjoy safety from the assassin's bludgeon, while in the dis-
charge of duty, has been slain in cold blood. The avenging hand though
too struck back that the penalty might be swift and unerring.
The loss of Edward J. Masterson, the late murdered City Marshal, has
cast a gloom through which is felt the realizing sense of buckling on the armor
unto death. The general sympathy and respect for the deceased is deep and
heartfelt. As an officer he was vigilant, courageous and conscientious of the
important trust in his hands. As we knew him he was land, civil and stead-
fast combined with those qualities that make a brave man, the true friend
and good citizen.
While we commend the good qualities that possessed our deceased friend,
and deplore the tragic end that so summarily disposed him and through our
sorrows and reverence for the departed, let us go forth girdled with common
fraternity for our bodily protection; armed with resoluteness and courage;
and guided solely in the axiom: Self-preservation is the first law of human
nature.
A frontier life stimulates all the qualities of manhood the true, the good
and the bad. The reckless denizen of the plains is at the mercy of an out-
raged people. As we see the draped doors, the solemn faces, and the cold,
quiet air of remorse, we see depicted that steady determination to give no
quarter to the ruthless invader of our lives, peace and prosperity. While we
give utterance to our feelings in kindly sentiment, we shall find no mawkish
sentimentality in guarding the future conduct of those whose utter disregard
of their own lives jeopardize those whose lives are worth living for.
We can forget the animosities engendered through the ordinary courses
of Me, that we may doubly arm ourselves, by strengthening the picket lines,
and filling to the maximum the ranks of the reserves.
There will be no slow work in protecting the lives of this people against
cold-blooded assassination.
On an inside page of the same issue the Times ran Masterson's
obituary:
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 231
EDWARD J. MASTERSON.
DIED In this city, on Tuesday, April 9th, in the 26th year of his age, Ed-
ward J. Masterson, City Marshal.
The subject of this sketch was born in Henryville, Canada East, on Sep-
tember 22d, 1852, and removed to Wichita, Kansas with his parents in 1869,
where he continued to reside until attaining his majority when he left his
home and became one of the first inhabitants of this city.
In May 1876 [June 5, 1877] he accepted the appointment of Assistant
Marshal, and in the December following [December 4, 1877], having dis-
played marked adaptability for the position, he was promoted to the Mar-
shalship, in the discharge of the duties of which he continued until his un-
fortunate death.
Possessed of a geniality of temperament, a kindness of heart and a richness
of personal bravery, he had many warm friends and admirers.
As an officer he followed the dictation of duty, striving at all times for its
honest and complete discharge and gaining for himself the dignity and respect
that of necessity followed from his determined intrepidity.
He died in the service he performed so well, and has added one other to
the list of those who, living, were so many representatives, each of his day
and generation, but who dead, belong to all time, and whose voices ring down
the ages in solemn protest against the reign of violence and blood.
The city council passed a resolution of respect and sympathy:
PROCEEDINGS OF THE COUNCIL.
Now on this 10th day of April, 1878, at the City of Dodge City comes
D. D. Colley, C. M. Beeson, James Anderson, Walter Straeter and John New-
ton Councilmen thereof, and, whereas the Mayor of said city being absent,
and there being no President of the Council; on motion of John Newton D. D.
Colley was chosen acting President of the Council; and on motion of James
Anderson D. D. Colley was elected President of the Council.
The following resolutions were presented by C. M. Beeson and unanimously
adopted:
WHEREAS, Edward J. Masterson, Marshal of the City of Dodge City, was on
the night of April 9th, 1878, killed in the lawful discharge of his duties, be it
RESOLVED by the Council of the City of Dodge City, that in his death the
city has lost an officer who was not afraid to do his duty, and who never shrank
from its faithful performance; a worthy servant and an upright citizen.
RESOLVED that we offer our heartfelt sympathy to his many friends both here
and abroad; and that these resolutions be spread upon the journal of these
proceedings; and that the Clerk be directed to forward a copy of the same
when printed to his parents at Wichita.
D. D. COLLEY, Pres't. of the Council.
E. F. Colborn, City Clerk. 10
The April 13, 1878, edition of the Times was filled with items of
interest concerning the shooting:
Marshal Masterson lived about forty minutes after he was shot and died
surrounded by many of his warmest friends. He remained conscious to the
last and passed away apparently without pain or dread.
232 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
When prepared for burial his remains were visited by many of our most
worthy ladies. His face was that of one who had been called away in the
midst of his slumber.
The parents of Marshal Masterson reside near Wichita.
INCIDENTS OF THE SHOOTING.
After Wagner was shot he rushed into the saloon and fell to the floor in an
almost senseless condition. Walker, upon receiving his wound, ran out back
of the saloon and fell to the ground. The excitement was so great and the place
where the shooting occurred (out on the sidewalk) being dark, no one hardly
knew what was the matter until after the firing ceased. Marshal Masterson
talked but very little after he was shot.
SUPPOSED ACCOMPLICES.
An hour after the shooting warrants were issued and Sheriff Masterson
arrested the four associates who accompanied Walker and Wagner into the city.
They were examined Wednesday and Thursday before Justice Cook, a large
number of witnesses were sworn but no evidence was brought out of sufficient
strength to convict them as accomplices in the killing of Marshal Masterson,
and they were released. Their names were John Hungate, Thomas High-
lander, Thomas Roads and John Reece. The examination was ably and
thoroughly conducted by County Attorney Sutton, assisted by his partner Mr.
Colborn. Messrs. [H. E.] Gryden, [D. M.] Frost and [W. N.] Morphy de-
fended the prisoners. Although there was a crowd of people standing within
a few feet of the shooting when it occurred, not one of them saw the affair
from beginning to end.
JOHN WAGNER.
Mr. John Wagner, who received his death wound at the time Masterson was
killed, died on Wednesday evening about sundown. He was 27 years old and
about the average size, blue eyes and light complexion. Before he arrived in
town he informed some of the men with him that he had been lost from his
mother for eight years. Some time ago he received a fall from his horse, which
it is thought rendered him partially insane. He was buried Thursday evening
on the hill west of the city.
ALFRED WALKER, who was shot at the time of the killing of Marshal Master-
son, is still lying very low at Mr. Lane's rooms. There is a prospect of his
recovery.
Bat Masterson and his friend, Attorney M. W. Sutton, spent sev-
eral days with the Masterson family in Sedgwick county. The Times,
April 20, 1878, said:
County Attorney Sutton and Sheriff Masterson arrived home from Wichita
last Wednesday morning. The Sheriff spent several days with his parents and
brothers and sisters, who received the news of the death of Edward who was
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 233
the eldest son, and greatly beloved with great grief; they have the sympathy
of this entire community.
The Dodge City Times kept the town informed of Walker's prog-
ress. On April 20, 1878, it reported: "Alfred Walker, who was
wounded at the time of the shooting of Marshal Masterson, is still
in a critical condition, but will probably recover if mortification can
be prevented," and on June 1:
Alfred Walker, who has been confined to his bed ever since the unfortunate
shooting scrape last April, was removed to Kansas City last Friday, where he is
still under medical treatment. We learn that his father, who accompanied him,
took suddenly ill this week and died at Fort Scott. He had left his son at Kan-
sas City and started for his home in Texas when something like cramp seized
him and the result was fatal. He was a highly respectable old gentleman and
had many friends among those who knew him.
A year after Ed Masterson was killed Dodge City had obtained a
respectable cemetery of its own and the body of the slain marshal
was brought back "home." The Times, April 19, 1879, reported:
The body of Ed. Masterson, the city marshal, who was murdered in this city
a year ago, was removed from the Fort Dodge Cemetery, Monday, and placed
in Prairie Grove Cemetery. A monument will be erected over his grave. The
disinterment was conducted by P. L. Beatty, the Dodge City Fire Department
foreman. 11
1. Dodge City Times, June 9, 1877. 2. Ibid., July 7, August 11, September 8, October
6, November 10, December 8, 1877; January 5, February 9, March 9, April 6, May 11,
1878. 3. Ibid., September 15, 1877. 4. Ibid., October 6, 1877. 5. Ibid., November 17,
1877. 6. Ibid., December 15, 1877. 7. Ibid., February 9, 23, 1878. 8. March 5, 1878.
9. Dodge City Times, March 23, 1878. 10. Ibid., April 13, 1878. 11. Prairie Grove
cemetery later was converted into a residential section and the bodies were for the most
part removed to Maple Grove cemetery. Local residents of Dodge City say (1960) that
the body of Edward J. Masterson was not identified when the move was made, and
further that Bat Masterson, then a New York newspaperman, had tried to locate Ed's
grave so that a monument could be erected but it could not be found.
MASTERSON, JAMES P.
(1855-1895)
James Masterson, third in age of the Masterson brothers, was also
the third member of the family to serve on the Dodge City police
force. Jim was not a newcomer to Dodge when he was appointed.
He had been in the town at least as early as October, 1877. In Feb-
ruary, 1878, he was in Dodge again, back from a long buffalo hunt.
The Dodge City Times, February 23, 1878, mentioned his return:
"Jim Masterson, brother of Bat and Ed, returned from a buffalo hunt
this week. He had been absent nearly four months."
The younger Masterson was hired as a policeman in early June,
1878; his first salary payment indicating June 1 to be the exact date
of his appointment. 1 The local newspapers, however, did not report
234 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
his employment until June 11, when the Ford County Globe stated
that "Policeman Trask has resigned and Jim Masterson has taken
his place on the force." In any event, within two months of the
death of Jim's brother Ed, city marshal of Dodge, another Masterson
was wearing a badge.
The Dodge City police department in the summer of 1878 con-
sisted of Marshal Charles E. Bassett, Assistant Marshal Wyatt Earp,
Policeman John Brown, and Policeman Jim Masterson. The mar-
shal's salary was $100 while all the others earned $75 a month. 2
The first activity in which Jim Masterson is reported to have par-
ticipated occurred in the early morning of July 26, 1878. There is
an even chance that it was Jim Masterson and not Wyatt Earp who
shot George Hoy that night. Both of the officers emptied their
pistols at the fleeing cowboy making it impossible to state posi-
tively which fired the bullet that dropped the herder. The Times
article reporting the scrape has been reprinted in the section on
Wyatt Earp. The Globe, July 30, 1878, said:
SHOOTING AFFRAY.
On Friday morning about three o'clock two Texas boys, having saddled their
horses and started for camp, passed down Bridge street by the Comique Hall.
As they arrived at the rear end they commenced shooting into the hall, firing
about five or six shots, all of which passed across the stage or into the ceiling
of the room. At the time the shooting commenced there were at least 150
people in the house all enjoying themselves immensely. Fortunately no one
was, as usual, in the boxes of the Theater, everybody being down on the dancing
floor, and owing to this fact no person inside the house was hurt, because the
balls all passed too high to hit anyone on this floor. A general scamper was
made by the crowd, some getting under the stage, others running out the front
door, and behind the bar; in the language of the bard, "such a gittin up stairs
never was seed."
Our police force was promptly on hand, and they, together with several
citizens, turned their pistols loose in the direction of the flying horsemen, who
by this time had nearly reached the bridge.
In the morning the fruit was gathered in and consisted of Geo. Hoyt [most
newspaper articles reported his name as Hoy] with his arm broken in two
places. He, it appears, was one of the horsemen who did the first shooting, and
was wounded by one of the many bullets fired after him, while fleeing from
the disturbed peace of the community which at that time was "up on its ear."
He claims not to have done any shooting; be that as it may he was in bad com-
pany and has learned a lesson "he wont forget soon." We learn from Dr. T. L.
McCarty, his physician, that amputation will not be necessary.
Hoy died from his wound on August 21, 1878. 3
John Brown was relieved from the police force on August 6, 1878,
leaving Bassett, Earp, and Masterson, 4 all of whom may have been
involved in this Dodge City episode:
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 235
Another shooting affair occurred on the "south side" Saturday night. It ap-
pears that one of the cow boys, becoming intoxicated and quarrelsome, under-
took to take possession of the bar in the Comique. To this the bar keeper
objected and a row ensued. Our policemen interfered and had some difficulty
in handling their man. Several cattle men then engaged in the broil and in the
excitement some of them were bruised on the head with six shooters. Several
shots were accidentally fired which created general confusion among the crowd
of persons present. We are glad to chronicle the fact that none were seriously
hurt and nobody shot. We however cannot help but regret the too ready use
of pistols in all rows of such character and would like to see a greater spirit of
harmony exist between our officers and cattle men so that snarling cayotes and
killers could make their own fights without interesting or draging good men into
them. 5
Officer Jim Masterson, along with Assistant Marshal Earp, was
on duty the night Dora Hand was shot. Though the two were soon
at the scene the killer escaped. The story of Dora Hand's death is
included in the section on Bat Masterson.
On December 3, 1878, the city council of Dodge City, probably
in keeping with the fact that the end of the year's cattle season had
arrived, reduced the expenses of the police force from $250 to $200
a month. The salaries of Earp and Jim Masterson were cut to $50
while Bassett's remained at $100. 6
Jim Masterson was concurrently a deputy sheriff of Ford county,
serving under his brother Sheriff Bat Masterson. A Times article,
January 11, 1879, which commended his efficiency in that position,
was printed in the section on C. E. Bassett.
As a deputy sheriff Jim aided Bat in guarding seven Cheyenne
prisoners which the sheriff brought from Fort Leavenworth to stand
trial for certain atrocities they were alleged to have committed in
September, 1878, during the last Indian raid in Kansas. The com-
plete story of the Cheyenne prisoners will be covered in the section
on Bat Masterson.
During Jim Masterson's absence at Leavenworth J. J. Webb filled
his position on the police force. 7
On April 9, 1879, the city council, in anticipation of the coming
cattle season, raised the salaries of the assistant marshal and the
policeman, effective April 12, to $100 a month each. In addition an
officer was allowed $2 for each arrest he made. 8
Jim took a week's vacation in May. The Times, May 10, 1879,
reported: "Officer James Masterson spent a week at his home, near
Wichita."
One day in May Masterson and Earp faced down seven drovers
in order to collect a bill for a colored man. The Times article cover-
236 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
ing this has been included in the section on Wyatt Earp.
Another shooting scrape between cowboys and police rent the air
on the night of June 9, 1879:
THE WORK OF THE PISTOL.
Last night the police undertook to disarm a squad of cow boys who had
neglected to lay aside their six-shooters upon arriving in the city. The cow
boys protested and war was declared. Several shots were fired, and one of the
cow boys was wounded in the leg. The balance of the cow boys made their
escape. 9
Much of the wild life in Dodge had its locale in that portion of
the city south of the Santa Fe tracks. The editor of the Ford County
Globe, June 24, 1879, described a typical "good time" in that place:
A HIGH OLD LONESOME.
The boys and girls across the dead line had a high old time last Friday. They
sang and danced, and fought and bit, and cut and had a good time generally,
making music for the entire settlement. Our reporter summed up five knock
downs, three broken heads, two cuts and several incidental bruises. Unfor-
tunately none of the injuries will prove fatal.
Apparently the police often considered such goings on routine and
did not interfere.
Although a Las Vegas, N. M., correspondent of the Globe, Octo-
ber 28, 1879, reported that Jim Masterson was in that town on Octo-
ber 16 the salary record of the policeman did not indicate an absence
from duty in Dodge City. 10
Wyatt Earp left Dodge City early in September, 1879, and about
the first of November Marshal Bassett also resigned. On November
4 Policeman Jim Masterson was promoted to the chief marshalship.
Neil Brown was named assistant marshal and the two earned $100
a month each. 11
Dodge City police activities did not make die newspapers during
the winter of 1879-1880. On May 8, 1880, the Dodge City Times
mentioned that both Masterson and Brown had been reappointed
to their respective positions by the newly elected council at a
meeting held on May 4. Their salaries remained at $100.
The tenth United States census was enumerated in Dodge as of
June 22, 1880. Jim Masterson's name appeared on page 19 of the
Dodge City section. He was listed as being 24 years old, employed
as city marshal, and living with one Minnie Roberts, a 16-year-old
concubine.
Things remained quiet in Dodge all during the cattle season of
1880. Not one incident involving the city marshal was reported
by the papers for the remainder of the year. Apparently the town
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 237
was so tranquil that the city fathers thought $100 a month was too
much salary for services received so on October 5, 1880, a reduction
was ordered. From November 1, 1880, Marshal Masterson and
Assistant Marshal Neil Brown each received $50 a month salary. 12
At last, on January 4, 1881, the quiet of Dodge was broken, not
by drunken cowboys, hot headed gamblers or vociferous dance-
hall girls but rather, because of a home triangle situation. The
Times, January 8, 1881, reported:
A SHOOTING SCRAPE.
The still air of Tuesday evening, about 8 o'clock, was broken by the report
of pistol shots; and it is well to add the affair created little or no excitement.
J. Q. Stultz is a painter by trade, and eighteen months ago, with his wife,
domiciled under the same roof with A. H. Snyder, a carpenter. There was a
family rupture, Stultz leaving for Nebraska, and Mrs. Stultz for Illinois. They
both returned to this county some weeks ago, Mrs. Stultz instituting suit for
divorce. The wife came into town Tuesday, and her appearance brought both
Snyder and Stultz to her stopping place. Words brought out pistols, both men
firing, when the injured and enraged Stultz chased Snyder up the street east of
the signal office; and while the trembling form of Snyder lay prostrate on the
ground the outraged and indignant Stultz fired several shots over the disturber
of his family relations. No shot took effect but Snyder had a close call, the
powder blackened his face. Both men were arrested.
As the causes which led to this trouble wiU probably be shown at the present
term of the District Court we forbear making further comment.
The police and Mayor Kelley staged their own show on March
30, according to the Globe of April 5, 1881:
The agent of the Adams Express Co., at this place, Mr. Ruby, was taken out
to the railroad water tank last Wednesday, and drenched with water by Mayor
[James H.] Kelley and his policemen, for writing an article to an Iowa news-
paper reflecting discreditably upon said officials.
Mayor Kelley and the entire city council (W. C. Shinn, W. H.
Harris, C. S. Hungerford, Mike Sutton, and T. J. Draper) were de-
feated for re-election on April 4, 1881. The defeat cost Masterson
and Brown their jobs for within two days the new administration
declared their positions vacant and proceeded to appoint new
police officers. 13
A few days after he had been discharged from the police force
Jim Masterson became involved in a slight shooting scrape with
bartender Al Updegraff. Masterson, along with A. J. Peacock,
owned the Lady Gay saloon where Updegraff plied his trade. Pea-
cock had sided with Updegraff in a controversy concerning one of
Jim's friends and ultimately Al and Jim took ineffective pot shots
at each other.
238 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Either Jim or a friend is said to have telegraphed Bat Masterson,
who was then in the Southwest, to come to his brother's aid. The
former sheriff of Ford county arrived in Dodge City a few minutes
before noon, April 16, 1881, and immediately went gunning for
Peacock and Updegraff. A lively Front street battle ensued in
which Updegraff and several noted buildings were perforated.
Bat was arrested and fined $8 for disturbing the peace. He was
told, however, to leave the town and and return no more. The
complete story will be told in the section on Bat Masterson.
As a postscript to the affair the Dodge City Times, April 21, 1881,
said: "Jim Masterson and Charley Ronan [who was also involved
in the incident] have gone west to grow up with the country."
Jim Masterson returned to Dodge sometime later. In January,
1889, he was one of the Dodgeites involved in the Gray county
seat war. This action will be included in the section on William M.
Tilghman.
1. Dodge City Times, July 6, 1878. 2. Ibid., July 6, August 10, September 7, October
5, December 7, 1878. 3. Ibid., August 24, 1878; Ford County Globe, August 27, 1878.
4. Dodge City Times, August 10, 1878. 5. Ford County Globe, August 20, 1878.
6. Dodge City Times, December 7, 1878; January 11, April 12, 1879; Ford County Globe,
April 15, 1879. 7. Ford County Globe, February 17, 1879. 8. Ibid., April 15; Dodge
City Times, April 12, May 10, June 7, July 12, August 9, September 6, October 11, No-
vember 15, 1879. 9. Ford County Globe, June 10, 1879. 10. Dodge City Times, No-
vember 15, 1879. 11. Ibid., November 15, 1879; January 17, February 14, March 6,
April 10, May 8, July 10, August 7, September 11, October 9, 1880; Ford County Glcb*,
November 18, 1879. 12. Dodge City Times, October 9, December 11, 1880; April 14,
1881. 13. Ibid., April 7, 1881.
MASTERSON, WILLIAM BARCLAY
(1853-1921)
Available Dodge City history of William Barclay "Bat" Masterson
begins with his enumeration in the second Kansas state census. On
March 1, 1875, Bat was listed as being 24 years old, a teamster who
had been born in Kansas but who had moved to this state from
Illinois. Obviously the census was in error. Most historians agree
that Bat was born on November 24, 1853, and in Illinois, not Kansas.
The family moved to Sedgwick county about 1870.
What Bat did between March, 1875, and April, 1877, cannot be
traced because of the lack of contemporary information. On April
28, 1877, however, the Dodge City Times reported a Masterson
(who was probably Bat but who could have been brothers Ed or
Jim) as owning a saloon:
Dodge City is bracing herself up for the cattle trade. Places of refreshment
are being gorgeously arrayed in new coats of paint and other ornaments to
beguile the festive cow boy. Masterson & Springer's place can scarcely be
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 239
recognized since the bar has been moved and operated upon by Mr. Weaver's
brush. The graining is finely executed. Charley Lawson's orchestra are
mounted on a platform enclosed by and tastefully ornamented with bunting.
On M ay 6, 1877, the Times reported that the city council had, on
May 1, approved certain saloon licenses. Master/son's name ap-
peared again:
Petitions properly signed and recommending the following parties as suitable
persons to engage in the keeping of dram shops were presented and accepted:
Garis & Tilghman, McGinty & Deger, Dunham & Dawson, Beeson & Harris,
Springer & Masterson, A. J. Peacock, Beatty & Kelley, G. M. Hoover, Rule &
Smith, Cox & Boyd, Langton & Newton, H. J. Fringer, H. B. Bell, Colley &
Manion, Chambers & Foster, Henry Sturm.
The first definite identification of Bat Masterson in available local
newspapers concerned some trouble he had with the Dodge City
police force. On June 6, 1877, he tried to prevent the arrest of
Bobby Gill (Robert Gilmore), a persistent and ubiquitous cowtown
character. The Times, June 9, described Bat's attempt:
THE GANG CORRALED.
THE OPENING or THE CATTLE TRADE CELEBRATED IN THE Doc HOUSE.
Bobby GiD done it again. Last Wednesday was a lively day for Dodge.
Two hundred cattle men in the city; the gang in good shape for business;
merchants happy, and money flooding the city, is a condition of affairs that
could not continiie in Dodge very long without an eruption, and that is the
way it was last Wednesday. Robert Gilmore was making a talk for himself
in a rather emphatic manner, to which Marshal Deger took exceptions, and
started for the dog house with him. Bobby walked very leisurely so much
so that Larry felt it necessary to administer a few paternal kicks in the rear.
This act was soon interrupted by Bat Masterson, who wound his arm affec-
tionately around the Marshal's neck and let the prisoner escape. Deger then
grappled with Bat, at the same time calling upon the bystanders to take the
offender's gun and assist in the arrest. Joe Mason appeared upon the scene at
this critical moment and took the gun. But Masterson would not surrender yet,
and came near getting hold of a pistol from among several which were strewed
around over the sidewalk, but half a dozen Texas men came to the Marshal's
aid and gave him a chance to draw his gun and beat Bat over the head until
blood flew upon Joe Mason so that he kicked, and warded off the blows with his
arm. Bat Masterson seemed possessed of extraordinary strength, and even"
inch of the way was closely contested, but the dry dungeon was reached at
last, and in he went. If he had got hold of his gun before going in there
would have been a general killing. . . .
Ed. Masterson accomplished his first official act in the arrest of Bobby
Gilmore the same afternoon.
Next day Judge [D. M.] Frost administered the penalty of the law by
assessing twenty-five and costs to Bat ... and five to Bobby.
The boys are aD at liberty now.
240 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
James H. Kelley, then mayor of the town, returned some of Bat's
money. The Times, July 7, 1877, said: "The Mayor, with the con-
sent of the Council, remitted the fine of $10.00 assessed against the
defendant in the case of city vs. W. B. Masterson."
During the summer of 1877 Bat served as under sheriff of Ford
county, his superior being Charles E. Bassett, sheriff. On August 2
the county officers pursued one William Samples who had just
killed Enos Mosley up on the Saw Log. The Times, August 4,
1877, reported their failure:
Sheriff Bassett, Under-sheriff Masterson, Al. Updegraff [with whom Bat
was to have a near fatal altercation in just four years] and one of the herders
started out soon after the news came to town, and spent two days scouring
the country in search of Samples but failed to get trace of him.
Samples, however, was finished off next day by cowboy friends of
Mosley.
There is little doubt that a degree of enmity existed between Bat
and Larry Deger, especially since the affair in June when Deger
had given Bat a pistol whipping. It seems probable, then, that this
was the reason Bat used his authority as under sheriff to force
Deger to resign as deputy sheriff, a job he held concurrently with
the position of city marshal. The Times, August 4, 1877, simply
stated: "Marshal Deger resigned his position of Deputy Sheriff
this week, at the request of Under Sheriff Masterson/'
In early August Bat visited John "Red" Clarke at his ranch on
the Cimarron river. 1 In September he arrested a horse thief. The
Times, September 8, 1877, stated: "Under Sheriff Masterson ar-
rested a man this evening who had stole a horse near Granada last
week and sold him to a man near Offerle. The prisoner 'put up*
and was released."
Nine days later, September 17, Bat was instrumental in prevent-
ing bloodshed which might have resulted through mistaken identity.
The protagonists, of all people, were a Dodge City policeman and
the sheriff of Edwards county, neither of whom recognized the
other. Let the Dodge City Times, September 22, 1877, tell the
involved story:
SWINDLERS.
THEY COME FROM KINSLEY AND TRY TO SWINDLE THE
GOOD PEOPLE OF DODGE.
Last Monday three men came up from near Kinsley with a wagon and team.
They stopped at Rath & Go's, store and ordered a supply of provisions, saying
they were going out hunting. Having no gun, they wanted to trade a gold
watch and chain to Mr. Wright for a gun in his store. Mr. Wright, in the
goodness of his nature, told them all right, he would take the watch just to
William B. "Bat" Masterson, sheriff of Edward J. Masterson, Bat's older brother
Ford county, 1878-1880, as he appeared who, as a Dodge City marshal, was killed
during his Dodge City days. by drunken cowboys on April 9, 1878.
James P. Masterson, city marshal of
Dodge, 1879-1881, and a principal in the
Peacock -Updegraff- Masterson difficulty of
April, 1881.
Rowdy Joe Lowe, the notorious Wichita
dance hall proprietor (see pp. 98-109).
Photo courtesy Frontier Book Co., Ruidoso,
N. Mex.
DELMONICO HOTEL
(HAS. HEINZ.
Portion of a page from the Delmonico Hotel register, Dodge City, bearing the signature of
Bat Masterson. Note also the signature of Ed. Prather, a victim of Bill Tilghman's six-gun
accuracy on July 4, 1888.
f
Thomas and Catherine Masterson, parents of Bat, Ed, and Jim Masterson. The Masterson
family settled in Sedgwick county about 1870, and in 1875 the parents bought a farm in
Garden Plain township, west of Wichita.
All Masterson photos, except that of Bat, courfesy of Mrs. Cora Land, Fort Scott, and C. B.
Masterson, Rockaway Beach, Mo.
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 241
accommodate diem and help them get outfitted. They took the goods and
gun and loaded them in the wagon, the whole purchase amounting to about
$120. But instead of calling around at the office to settle and turn over the
watch, they silently drove out of town taking a southerly direction. As soon
as their absence was discovered at the store, and that they had really skipped
out, one of the employees Mr. Strauss, was sent to overtake and remind them
of the little bill they had left behind unpaid. He overtook them several miles
south of here and asked them to come back or give him the amount due. They
asked him if he was an officer, and he said he was not. They were not very
obedient; did not like to come back and would not give up any money. After
fooling for some time they said they would give him the watch, which they
did, and he returned home.
Being positive that they did have money, and being convinced that they
had not done exactly the square thing, Mr. Wright sent Under-Sheriff Master-
son out to overhaul them again. Masterson overtook them, and in his amiable
manner bulldozed them out of all the money they had, amounting to about
$25. The watch and chain being worth about $75, the $25 in cash added
left Rath & Co. out only $20, which they concluded to look out for when the
hunters returned. They could have taken the gun, but this would have left
the hunters without means of hunting, so they were allowed to keep it.
But the joke of this transaction if joke it be was the fact that on this
same evening Sheriff McCanse, of Edwards county, arrived with two deputies,
after this same party of hunters, charging them with having taken the watch
and chain and the wagon in about the same manner as they took the goods
from Rath & Co. As McCanse and his men came riding up the road on their
way here, they passed the residence of Mr. J. E. Van Voorhis, who has been
searching for some horse thieves of late. Mr. Van Voorhis saw the sheriff and
his men riding rapidly, and it being about dark he immediately took them to
be the thieves he was looking for, and hitching his horse to his buggy gave
chase, following close at their heels until he reached this city, where he im-
mediately informed our sheriff and police, and pointed out the supposed thieves,
who were then putting up their horses at Anderson's livery stable. Under
Sheriff Masterson and Policeman Mason immediately rushed over to the stable.
Masterson met one of the men, took his pistol and made him a prisoner. Mason
pointed two ivory-handled guns at another, and completely covered him. The
last man they met was Sheriff McCanse. Mason seized his revolver, but Mc-
Canse did not like the idea of losing his gun, and held on to it. It was very
opportune that Masterson came up just then and recognized McCanse, as our
Joe might have had trouble in arresting him. But we firmly believe that if
McCanse had not been identified, our Dodge City "braves" would have cap-
tured the Edwards county crowd without losing a man. It was all a mistake,
and the principal part of the joke is on Mr. Van Voorhis.
That same evening McCanse and his men went on south after the hunters,
whom they captured without any resistance a few days drive south of here, and
took them back to Kinsley.
One of the hunters gave him name here as Samuel Miller, but other parties
say his name is Gooddale. There were two others with him.
In spite of the not too amiable feelings between the under sheriff
and City Marshal Deger the former was appointed a special police-
166253
242 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
man on the city force on September 17. The Dodge City police
department then consisted of Marshal L. E. Deger, Assistant Mar-
shal Edward J. Masterson, and Policemen Joseph W. Mason, and
William Barclay Masterson. The terminal date of Bat's employment
as a city officer is not known, although on October 2, 1877, he was
paid $25 for his services. At the rate of $2.50 per day, based on
Mason's salary, this would mean that Bat served ten days or from
September 17 to September 27. 2
The only recorded action in which Bat participated as a city
policeman was the attempted arrest of A. C. Jackson, a "gay and
festive" cowboy. The Dodge City Times, September 29, 1877, re-
ported the gunplay as follows:
RANDOM SHOTS.
Mr. A. C. Jackson is a gay and festive Texas boy, and like all true sons of
the Lone Star State, he loves to fondle and practice with his revolver in the
open air. It pleases his ear to hear the sound of this deadly weapon. Aside
from the general pleasure derived from shooting, the Texas boy makes shooting
inside the corporate limits of any town or city a specialty. He loves to see
the inhabitants rushing wildly around to "see what all this shooting is about;"
and it tickles his heart to the very core to see the City Marshal coming towards
him at a distance, while he is safe and securely mounted on his pony and
ready to skip out of town and away from the officer.
The programme of the Texas boy, then, is to come to town and bum around
until he gets disgusted with himself, then to mount his pony and ride out
through the main street, shooting his revolver at every jump. Not shooting
to hurt any one, but shooting in the air, just to raise a little excitement and
let people know he is in town.
In order to put a stop to this, the carrying of concealed weapons within the
city limits has been prohibited, but this has only partially stopped the practice.
Several times this summer the town has been thrown into excitement by the
firing of revolvers in the middle of the streets, and the marshals have become
very much aggravated over the matter, and determined to put a stop to it if
possible.
Last Tuesday [September 25] the sound of the revolver was heard several
times in quick succession. The police were on the alert in a moment, and
everybody rushed toward where the sound came from. Men hatless and
women with their back hair down hastened to see whether their absent friends
were safe. But all this excitement was caused by Jackson indulging in his
favorite amusement of shooting. However, he came out loser, and that
is some consolation. He was riding down Front street, and about opposite
Beatty & Kelley's he commenced to shoot. He had shot two or three times,
when the police got their eyes on him. Bat Masterson ordered him to halt,
but nary a halt would he. He says, 'I am going to skip out for camp," and
bang! bang! went his gun. Bat had a gun too, and he immediately brought
it to bear on the festive cow-boy's horse. Instantly after Bat shot Ed. got in
a shot. The horse seemed to scringe, but being spurred on dashed out of
town and off toward camp. Two more shots were fired after him, but without
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 243
effect. Bat then mounted a horse and gave chase, but when he was about to
hail the shootist again, he found that his own revolver had not a load in its
chambers. So what else could he do but return? Jackson's horse proved to
be mortally wounded, but the noble animal carried its rider a mile or two
from the city at a rapid gait, and then fell to the ground and rose no more.
Jackson "hoofed it" the balance of the way to the camp. This will probably
serve as a slight check to the practice of shooting "just for fun" inside the
city limits.
On September 27, Bat, as under sheriff, accompanied Bassett and
J. J. Webb in a futile search for Sam Bass and his Union Pacific
train robbers. The Dodge City Times story of this chase was in-
cluded in the section on Bassett.
With the approach of election time Bat became interested in the
office of sheriff of Ford county. His friend and the current
holder of the position, Charley Bassett, was prohibited by the
state constitution from succeeding himself for a third term. His
enemy (or at least not a friend), Larry Deger was also interested
in the job. What better chance, then, not only to add to his already
impressive laurels as a peace officer but also to humble his Dodge
City foe by winning the race for sheriff?
So it was that in the Dodge City Times, October 13, 1877 (the
same issue in which Deger announced himself as a candidate), Bat
placed this announcement:
At the earnest request of many citizens of Ford county, I have consented to
run for the office of Sheriff at the coming election in this county. While
earnestly soliciting the suffrages of the people, I have no pledges to make,
as pledges are usually considered before election to be mere clap-trap. I
desire to say to the voting public that I am no politician, and shall make no
combinations that would be likely to in anywise hamper me in the discharge
of the duties of the office, and should I be elected will put forth my best
efforts to so discharge the duties of the office that those voting for me shall
have no occasion to regret having done so.
Respectfully,
W. B. MASTERSON.
The Shinn brothers, W. C. and Lloyd, who owned and edited
the Dodge City Times, threw Bat a plug in that same issue. October
13, 1877:
Mr. W. B. Masterson is on the track for Sheriff, and so announces himself
in this paper. "Bat" is well known as a young man of nerve and coolness in
cases of danger. He has served on the police force of this city, and also as
under-sheriff, and knows just how to gather in the sinners. He is qualified to
fill the office, and if elected will never shrink from danger.
On October 27 the Lady Gay Saloon was the scene of a "Peoples'
Mass Convention." The purpose was to nominate candidates for
244 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
the coining election. Both Larry Deger and Bat were suggested
for sheriff, but when the vote was taken, Masterson was the choice.
This, however, did not discourage Deger and he ran anyway. When
the ballots were counted after the polls closed on November 6,
1877, Bat had beaten his opponent by three votes. 3 (For more
information on this election see the section on Lawrence E. Deger. )
D. M. Frost, a political opponent of Bat's, was at that time police
judge of Dodge City. On December 4, 1877, Bat, R. M. Wright,
P. L. Beatty, H. M. Beverley and others presented a petition to the
city council asking that Frost's office be declared vacant since the
judge no longer resided in the city and consequently was not eligible
for the position. The Times, December 8, noted:
At the last meeting of the Council a petition was presented asking that the
office of Police Judge be declared vacant, by reason of the fact that Judge
Frost resided on his claim and not in the city, but the Judge informed the
council that he had ceased to reside on his claim and was a resident of the
city, whereupon the petition was laid upon the table.
It was at this same council meeting that Bat's brother, Ed, was
appointed city marshal.
Though Bat did not assume the duties of his office officially until
January 14, 1878, he did act as sheriff of Ford county in opening the
January term of the district court on January 2. 4 After Masterson
was sworn the Times January 19, 1878, reported:
NEW OFFICERS.
W. B. Masterson on the 14th assumed the duties of the office of Sheriff, to
which he was elected last November, succeeding Chas. E. Bassett who has
held the office for a period of four years, and who has made many friends. Mr.
Masterson, on assuming the duties of his office appointed Chas. E. Bassett
under-Sheriff, Simeon Woodruff, a respectable and trustworthy citizen and
formerly of the East End, Deputy Sheriff, also our old friend Col. John W.
Straughn for Jailor. These appointments will meet with the approbation of
our people, and indicates that Bat intends to do his duty and that to with a
view to the best interests of the county.
Within two weeks fate gave the young sheriff an opportunity to
rise toward glory, and resourceful Bat Masterson was not found
wanting. It all started at four o'clock, Sunday morning, January 27,
1878, at the Santa Fe railroad station in Kinsley, 37 miles up the
line from Dodge. Five men, with faces blackened to avoid recogni-
tion, stepped out of the darkness and confronted young Andy Kin-
kade, the night operator, ordering him to throw up his hands. But
let the Kinsley Valley Republican tell the story:
At a few minutes before 4 o'clock this (Sunday) morning, five desperadoes
having faces blackened entered the office of the R. R. depot at this place, sa-
luting the night operator, Andrew Kinkade, who was at his post, with a "good
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 245
morning," at the same instant "covering" him with revolvers, and demanding
the money in the office. Mr. Kinkade with a remarkable presence of mind
replied that there was no funds at his command, at the same time opening an
empty money drawer. The leader of the gang ordered Mr. K. to "open that
safe, d d quick, too," at the same time shoving two cocked revolvers in
his face. Mr. Kinkade informed the party that he did not have the key
Gardner had charge of it and they could go to him at the hotel adding that
the funds had gone east on the train a few hours before. Mr. Kinkade bravely
stood at his post defending two thousand dollars in hard cash of the company's
funds, which had he faltered would have been taken. The west bound Pueblo
express was approaching, and something must be done. The five well armed
highwaymen, confronted by a boy, were foiled. They threatened to blow his
brains out if he did not open the safe. Kinkade had a small derringer in his
hip pocket, and cocking it attempted to draw it, when one of the highwaymen,
noticing his move said: "No, you don't hand that over," and he laid it down
on the counter. Kinkade knew the hotel men would be there to meet the
train in a few moments, but when he was ordered outside and marched down
the platform his only fear was that he could not inform the conductor of the
danger. Shouting to Blanchard, of the Eureka [hotel], to "go back, these
men are armed," one of them attempted to strike him. As the train drew up
Mr. Kinkade escaped, crossing the track in front of the engine, followed by a
shot. Running down the train he informed conductor Mallory of the danger.
Blanchard was taken in charge, but made his escape and armed himself. A
dozen shots were fired into the train, which the robbers stopped after it had
pulled out 100 yards. Again the train started and was stopped two miles up
the track, where it was detained 20 minutes and 20 shots exchanged. The
town was aroused. In company with eight or ten others we boarded a hand
car and started to the rescue. The train moved off before we reached it, and
we saw the mounted robbers, six or eight in number, well mounted, approach-
ing. They crossed the track toward the river, and three or four shots were
fired at them. A large party well mounted started in pursuit at once. A tele-
gram from Dodge City at 6 a. m. states that conductor Mallory, engineer
Anderson and expressman Brown held the fort and lost nothing. 5
Monday, January 28, the Republican issued a second extra in
which this appeared:
REPUBLICAN OFFICE,)
Monday, 5 p. m., Jan. 28. )
Supt. Pettibone, who arrived this morning from the east, received a tele-
gram from Dodge City stating that Lieut. Gardner with a detactment of U. S.
troops from the Fort, captured six of the train robbers on Mule creek yesterday,
killing one. We present the report for what it is worth, and will add that we
believe it to be sensational. It was ascertained yesterday that the robbers
crossed the river 12 miles above Kinsley, and went south through the hills.
C. L. Hubbs, ex sheriff McCanse, E. A. Noble and N. Billings have just
returned from the pursuit. They crossed the river at daylight yesterday
morning, after which they saw no trail, riding to the head of the Kiowa. The
fog was so dense this morning they returned after riding 115 miles. Sheriff
Fuller, Clute, Welles and "Calamity Bill" were in Dodge City at 3:30, con-
sulting with Pettibone. A party of eight well mounted and armed left here
246 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
at 4 o'clock this morning, determined to follow the trail. It has transpired
that the robbers left the train near the depot, and conductor Mallory stopped
two miles out to ascertain if the messenger was safe and examine the train.
The firing was signals of rejoicing over the escape. The robbers had left their
horses near the tank at midnight, intending to rob the 1:30 express east,
when it stopped for water. It did not stop. Thus foiled they planned the
robbery of the Company's safe at the depot, and as a forlorn hope attacked
the express car of the train west. Then in the darkness they ran two miles
to their horses, closely pursued by the hand car party, when they mounted
and escaped. We received orders this morning from Supt. Morse to strike
posters offering $100 reward each for the capture of the masked robbers
"dead or alive."
LATER. Sheriff Fuller just returned on a special train from Dodge. Lieut.
Gardner with a detactment of U. S. troops in hot pursuit of robbers south of
the river. 6
The Republican issued a third extra on Tuesday, January 29:
At this writing the highwaymen have not been captured, neither do we
harbor faith equal to a grain of mustard seed that they will be taken in. There
was perhaps a blunder on the part of our officials and posse in not mounting
in hot haste and pursuing the disappointed night riders immediately. Yet we
cannot censure, for the surroundings offer a broad margin of justification. The
attack was unexpected as an earthquake. The excitement ran high. It
required time for men of nerve to realize the situation and act intelligently.
Sheriff Fuller started in pursuit with a well armed party as early as possible.
The blunder in not crossing the river was perhaps excusable, as no trail could
then be traced. The failure of the sheriff of Ford County to co-operate with the
Kinsley party was as it appears to us inexcusable, and the excuse assigned is
"too thin." The attempt feeble indeed on the part of certain parties to
implicate citizens of Edwards county in the diabolical plot is contemptable,
and we hurl it back. The deliberate and well planned scheme of the foiled
robbers signally failed, and our officials and citizens including the brave
boy who firmly stood at his post at the depot did nobly. Without the hope
of reward further than the performance of duty, a score of our best citizens
have for three days and nights been in pursuit, exposed to the wintry storm.
We congratulate the Santa Fe Company on the result of the raid, and that
the masked marauders failed in their efforts is due in the main to the
excellent discipline and moral courage of the employees and the fact that the
company has wisely prepared for emergencies. If these frontier night
marauders have any ambition to raise a stake in the future, they are advised
to give the Santa Fe a wide berth if they don't want to get hurt. 7
Referring to the Republican's censure of Sheriff Masterson the
Ford County Globe, February 5, 1878, had this to say:
The Kinsley Republican extra of Jan. 29th, says that the failure of our
Sheriff to co operate with the Kinsley posse, in hunting the train robbers, was
inexcusable; and the excuse he assigned is a little "too thin." Now Mr.
Republican, we don't know what you mean by his excuse, but have this to
say: Our Sheriff is not in circumstances that will warrant him in incurring
the expense necessary to hire horses, employ a posse of men, and pay their
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 247
expenses, even to hunt train robbers whose crime was committed in a neigh-
boring county; unless, those expenses are guaranteed by somebody. We are
personly not on squeezing terms with our sheriff, but when as an officer he
is unjustly assailed, we feel it our duty to defend him, as well as any other
officer in our county. We know that he has the stuff in his make up to be a
good officer, and when he does right we will be found telling him so with the
same spirit of justice that will guide us to tell him he is wrong, when we con-
sider him so. We think that our Sheriff's hunt for the train robbers has ac-
complished more than the hunt of all the other possees, even if his departure
was not heralded with blasts of trumpets, news paper extras, &tc.
The Globes last sentence referred to Bat's successful pursuit of
two of the robbers. The Dodge City Times, February 2, 1878, first
told of his achievement:
TWO KNIGHTS TAKEN IN.
AND FURNISHED QUARTERS IN FORD COUNTY JAIL.
THEY ARE CAPTURED BY STRATEGY, MY BOY.
SHERIFF W. B. MASTERSON AND His HEROIC POSSE BAG THE
GAME WITHOUT A SHOT.
PERILOUS ADVENTURE WITH GRATIFYING RESULTS.
THE DETAILS OF THE PURSUIT AND CAPTURE.
There was a slight ripple which disturbed the usual quiet of Dodge City
yesterday evening about 6 o'clock, and increased in volume as the startling
announcement spread over the city bearing the gratifying intelligence that
W. B. Masterson, Sheriff of Ford county, and posse had returned from a four
days hunt, bringing with them two of the gang that made the raid on the
town of Kinsley and attempted the robbery of the railroad agent and the
western bound express train. The programme for this successful capture
was well laid, and what may have appeared as indifference and tardiness has
since shown to be a matured and well devised effort to follow a successful
capture. The prudence and strategy is highly commendable. The nerve
skill and energy of Sheriff Masterson and gallant posse is recorded as a brilliant
achievement and is receiving just tribute for so daring a venture accomplished
so adroitly and maneuvered with the skill of a warrior.
Sheriff Masterson started on this trail Tuesday afternoon from Dodge City,
and went as far as Crooked creek, 27 miles, the first day. The party was
snowed in and had to lay over one day. Next day went 35 miles further to
LovelTs cattle camp, on mouth of Crooked creek, 55 miles from Dodge City,
arriving there at sundown, and remained there next day until afternoon. The
storm was terrible about 5 p. m. when four men approached the camp, two
of them being the subsequently arrested parties. When within a few hundred
yards of the camp they discovered the Sheriff's buggy and horses, and asked
the other two, who were cattle men, what strange outfit that was. One of the
cattlemen recognized a horse from Anderson's stable, and told them so. They
hesitated, the boss herder telling them to come on, which they finally did,
when [John J.] Webb, one of the Sheriff's men, went out to meet them,
and told them he was on his way to Geo. Anderson's. They came in with
Webb, and were decoyed to a dug out where the Sheriff and his party were
concealed. Bat stood up behind a post, and came out from his concealment
248 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
and presenting his pistols told the two outlaws to throw up their hands,
which they did, when Kinch Riley, one of the Sheriff's posse, searched them,
and took away a Colt's 45, Smith & Wesson's improved. After Riley had
taken a pistol from each and supposed that was all, Sheriff Bat Masterson saw
that one of the men had another, and when he went to take it the prisoner
tried to hold on to it. They also had guns, one a 40 Sharp's sporting rifle and
the other a 45 calibre Government carbine.
The prisoners wanted to know what was the matter. The Sheriff replied that
they were arrested on a charge of attempting to rob the train. They made
no answer nor did they deny what was charged.
The arrested parties are two well known desperadoes, but quailed under
the intrepid, cool and daring movements of Sheriff Bat Masterson. Ed. West,
the older of the two, is about twenty-six years old, and is a notorious thieving
character; Dave Ruddebaugh is about twenty-three years of age, and has
lead a wild career in crime. They may have to answer to a catalogue of
crimes. The prisoners are safely secured in the Ford county jail, but will
be placed to the charge of the authorities of Edwards county.
The sheriffs party composed himself, J. J. Webb, Dave Morrow and Kinch
Riley. They were under the direction of the Adams Express Company, by
whom the pursuit was arranged, and the well devised and executed capture
reflects credit, good judgment and bravery upon all who engaged in it.
There are four others who were engaged in the train robbery. Their capture
is only a question of time.
Harry Lovell had three good horses stolen Wednesday night, and his
cattle men were on the return of a search for them, accompanied by those
two robbers whom they met on the way, when they were apprised by the
Sheriff and his posse.
The prisoners will be conveyed to Kinsley tonight, and a preliminary trial
had immediately.
Bat's "intrepid" posse was composed of an interesting group.
John Joshua Webb served as a Dodge City policeman, as a Ford
county deputy sheriff, and as a leader in the struggle between the
Santa Fe and the Denver & Rio Grande for control of the right of
way through the Grand Canyon of the Arkansas. In 1880 he was
made marshal of Las Vegas, N. M., and in that capacity shot and
killed a man for which act he was arrested, tried, and sentenced to
die. Peculiarly enough one of the several attempts Webb made to
escape was abetted by Dave Rudabaugh, the man he had helped
Bat Masterson capture.
Dave Morrow, or "Prairie Dog Dave," as he was known, was an
old timer in Dodge. He also served as a Dodge City policeman as
well as a Dodge township constable. Prairie Dog Dave and Bat
Masterson continued their Dodge City friendship for many years.
Kinch Riley had been a companion of Bat's in the Adobe Walls
fight in June, 1874. The Dodge City Times, September 20, 1879,
said of him: "He had been wounded and bruised in a
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 249
number of personal encounters. He has undergone many severe
trials and exposures, and made many narrow escapes. . , ".
He was brave and kind. . . ."
The Ford County Globe, February 5, 1878, gave some more par-
ticulars of the capture:
THE TRAIN ROBBERS!
FORD COUNTY TO THE FRONT As IT SHOULD BE.
AND W. B. MASTERSON MAKES A GOOD BEGINNING.
The attempted train robbers spoken of in our last issue, caused a number
of parties to start in pursuit. Sheriff Masterson of our county, with J. J. Webb,
David Morrow and Riley having struck a "scent" ambushed themselves on
last Thursday at Mr. Lovells cattle camp, some 65 miles south of Dodge City.
After some hours waiting two horsemen cautiously approached from the north
east. Their motions indicating their fear of coming up. Mr. Webb with con-
cealed revolver went out to meet them, after some talk they came within shoot-
ing distance when Masterson springing out with leveled rifle sang out his well
known "throw up your hands." West at once complied, but Reudebaugh
reached for his revolver; the click of Webb's gun at close quarters changed
his mind, however, and both surrendered and were disarmed. Each carried a
rifle and two revolvers, all best quality. The party arrived in Dodge City about
6 o'clock P. M. Friday evening, having stopped all night during the storm in
camp. Capt. J. M. Thatcher, the general agent of Adams Express Company,
and who has been managing the pursuits, with his attorney, interviewed them
the same night. The result we are not at liberty to divulge but it was conclusive
to Messrs. Thatcher and Gryden. A special train at once went to Kinsley re-
turning at 11 A. M. on Saturday with necessary documents and the prisoners
were at 3 P. M. in charge of a large posse conveyed to Kinsley by special train.
Kinsley was reached at 4:30 P. M., the town having turned out en mass to re-
ceive them. We have forgotten to mention that Wm. Tilghman was also ar-
rested just before the train left. The three prisoners were brought into the
spacious court room, which was densely filled with the curious. Reudebaugh
and West being shackled together. Justice Willey presided. The prisoners
having been promptly turned over to the court, Mr. Gryden opened by explain-
ing his connection with the case, and asked that Reudebaugh be first put on
trial. Reudebaugh (who is positively identified by Mr. Kingkade the operator,
as the man who disarmed him and who conversed with him over five minutes, )
was perfectly cool, and with the tact of an old hand waived a preliminary ex-
amination, and was held in $4,000 bail for his appearance at the June Term of
Dist. Court. Reudebaugh is a good looking specimen of the border ruffian, and
was cool and collected throughout the arguments of the attorneys on the ques-
tion of amount of bail.
Edgar West was next brought in, he is tall, and low browed, with black
mustache and hair and "looks the villain" he too waived an examination and
was held in $4,000 bail.
Wm. Tilghman who is we believe, merely held on suspicion of being a "wire
puller" for the party, declared himself ready for trial. The State not being
ready his case was continued ten days, and his bail fixed at $4,000. The prison-
250 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
ers were all remanded to the jail of Ford County where they were safely lodged
in charge of jailor Strong [Straughn] at 10:30 P. M.
Sunday afternoon Messrs. Gryden and Phillips, took a special for Kinsley
and returned during the night with warrants for three more of the party, but
whose names we are unable to obtain. There are no new developments up to
the hour of going to press. 8
On February 5, 1878, Sheriff Masterson arrested one James Mc-
Duff accused of horse thievery. The Times, February 9, stated:
ARREST OF A HORSE THIEF.
The successful efforts of Sheriff W. B. Masterson, in his recent capture, has
been followed by another arrest remarkable in skill and judgment. The unan-
imous accord of praise, in speaking of Sheriff Masterson, as being the right
man in the right place, evinces also the hope that the career of crime will not
stalk naked hereafter in this section of the Arkansas Valley. The feeling is
indulged in a better security of life and property through the vigilance of our
officers. The spell has been broken and the heretofore difficult task of appre-
hending outlaws regarded out of the question, since the band of outlaws has
been shattered.
We mentioned a few days ago that Mr. Miles Mix had lost a span of horses.
Obtaining clue, Sheriff Masterson boarded the train Tuesday morning for Las
Animas, where he found one James McDuff, a notorious character, and promptly
arrested him, having searched for his man under the bed in a dance house. To
accomplish this purpose Sheriff Masterson took in tow another well known char-
acter, who, to avoid incarceration, disclosed the hiding place of McDuff.
The stolen horses were disposed of by McDuff for small sums of money. The
recovery of only one of the horses seems probable, the other have been run off.
Sheriff Masterson and Mr. Mix returned Wednesday night with the prisoner,
who has been furnished accommodations in the Hotel de Straughn.
This is but the prelude of the interesting drama on the boards, and the
sequel will develop some startling characters in the clutches of the officers. 9
The Kinsley Valley Republican thought McDuff was connected
with the attempted train robbery. On February 9, 1878, it said:
The notorious MacDuff, known as "Duffy/* was arrested by Sheriff Master-
son's party in a cellar at West Las Animas Tuesday evening, and brought to
Dodge yesterday. The network of evidence has been so ingeniously thrown
around the entire gang that they can't escape. Important developments are
pending which will be made public at the earliest moment consistent.
The Dodge City Times, February 9, 1878, reported:
BOUND OVER.
James McDuff, arrested on a charge of horse stealing, was bound over in
the sum of $2,000, in default of which he was returned to jail. The prisoner
is charged only with horse stealing, but an attempt was made to take him to
Kinsley, and Sheriff Masterson, acting under advice of the County Attorney
M W Sutton, refused to give up the prisoner. The "interview" was had as well
in Ford county, inasmuch as the prisoner was arrested on a warrant issued in
this county, and his detention here frustrates any cheap notoriety, as the law
will take its course, thieves ferreted, and justice prevail.
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 251
Receiving a lead that more of the robbers were holed up on the
Llano Estacado, Bat recruited another posse and rode south on
February 10. The Ford County Globe, February 12, 1878, said:
Sheriff Masterson, Chas. E. Bassett, J. J. Webb, John Clark and H. Lovell,
started Sunday morning, for the prairie in quest of more of the gang of train
robbers. We don't know that our boys will be successful in capturing any more
of the gang, but we do say that no better posse ever undertook such a duty.
We know that every man in the party has the sand and nerve to go where any
other man on earth dares to go. If the robbers are not captured it will not be
for want of bravery, coolness or strategy, on the part of Sheriff Masterson or his
posse. Wishing them success, we await further developments.
In reply to the Ford County Globe's February 5 defense of Bat's
actions, the Kinsley Republican merely stated: "We give Sheriff
Masterson of Ford due credit for his activity in pursuing and captur-
ing the brigands. He did his duty finally and no more." The Globe,
which reprinted the item February 12, 1878, merely appended a
polite "thank you."
By February 9 the Republican appeared ready to bury the hatchet
with the Dodge City newspapers. On February 16 it said:
THE ROBBERS' RAID.
Sheriff Masterson of Ford county started for the staked plains last Sunday
with a well armed posse for the purpose of capturing the raiders yet at large,
where it is reported they are fortified in a "dug out" determined to resist arrest.
Masterson can and we believe he will bring them back dead or alive it matters
little which. Reudebaugh and West, two of the brigands, are now behind the
bars of the Emporia dungeon, thanks to the efficiency of Ford county officials.
Much light has been thrown on the diabolical scheme of the raiders which will
yet be ventilated. Let every official or agent do his whole duty until the end
is reached. The question is not whether the officials or attorneys of Edwards
or Ford counties shall receive the major part of credit for their efforts, but
rather shall any guilty man escape? We confess that we were disposed to think
ten days ago that justice would be cheated but the raiders have been hunted
to their dens, and if they are gathered in as we now have reasons for believing
they will be, faithful officials will receive due credit no less than our brave
citizens who generously went forth in pursuit, and we shall not stop to inquire
what the means used to accomplish the end. It is enough for us to know that
the guilty are to be brought to justice and the good name of our own county
vindicated from aspersions from sources of questionable reliability. . . .
On February 15 G. H. Syburt came into Dodge with news of Mas-
terson's progress. The Times, February 16, 1878, reported:
PURSUING THE ROBBERS.
SHERIFF MASTERSON HEARD FROM.
WITHIN Two HOURS RTDE OF THE BRIGANDS.
A PROBABLE DEADLY ENCOUNTER.
G. H. Syburt came in yesterday evening from LovelTs camp, having left there
two days ago. Sheriff Masterson and posse arrived there on the 12th. Three
252 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
of the attempted train robbers, Mike Roarke, a fellow named Mack, and one
name unknown, had left the vicinity of Lovell's camp only two hours before the
arrival of the Sheriff. The Sheriff and party immediately followed [in] pursuit,
trailing the robbers to Beaver creek, Sybert went with the Sheriff twelve miles
out from Lovell's, where the Sheriff and party intended staying all night, when
Syburt returned yesterday as we have stated.
The Sheriff and posse had kept in advance of their provision wagon, and so
closely were they on the trail of the robbers that they were 30 hours without
provisions.
Roarke said at the camp that he understood he was charged with the at-
tempted train robbery, and that officers were in search of him, but he was ready
for them at any time. Would meet them at any place. They might send the
whole city of Dodge and he would fight them anywhere.
Beaver river is about 80 miles south of Dodge City in the stock range, in a
strip between Kansas and Texas, the neck of the Indian Territory.
Sheriff Masterson and party, C. E. Bassett, J. J. Webb and Miles Mix, left
here Sunday. They were well armed and equipped.
Roarke is a desperate character, and may give Sheriff Masterson a severe
struggle. A capture without a bloody encounter, seems almost improbable. 10
The sheriff and his posse returned home on February 22. Next
day the Dodge City Times described their unsuccessful chase:
RETURN OF THE SHERIFF.
THE ROBBERS SCATTER AND HIDE IN THE BREAKS OF THE CANADIAN.
The party started from Dodge City on the J Oth, consisting of Sheriff Master-
son, C. E. Bassett, J. J. Webb and Red Clarke; went to Walker's Timber, on
Crooked creek, the first day, then to Lovell's camp. On the way to Lovell's
they met one of Lovell's men, who told them that Mike Roark and Dan Web-
ster had been at the camp that morning, and had only left three or four hours
before, for Shepherd's camp, fifteen miles further south. The posse at once
started for Shepherd's camp, and when they arrived there found that Roark
and Webster had left a few hours before for their own camp, on a tributary of
the Beaver, about thirty-five miles further. The boys took a hasty dinner and
hurried after the robbers, their trail being plainly visible. Night overtook the
party on the Cimaron river, and it was impossible to see the trail, but they still
traveled in the direction the robbers had taken until they reached a branch of
Beaver creek, about midnight. Here they expected to find the robbers en-
camped and alighting from their horses they cautiously made their way down
the stream to Beaver, about five or six miles further, but failed to discover any
sign of the robbers.
Keeping on down the Beaver they soon struck the robber's trail again, and
followed it in a southeasterly direction for about fifteen miles; here they
found a deserted camp in a plumb thicket. From this camp the robbers had
taken a wagon and more stock, making a much plainer trail. The trail
seemed to indicate that two more men had joined the gang here. Following
this trail they went through the head breaks of the Kiawa or Medicine Lodge
creek, then west to Jones & Plummer's ranche on Wolf creek, where the
robbers, feeling themselves too closely pursued, had left their wagon, harness
and camp equipage and struck out on horseback. The robbers had left this
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 253
camp about fifteen hours before our party arrived. They had gained one night's
travel owing to the fact that the Sheriff and party could not follow their trail
at night, while the robbers traveled both day and night. After leaving Jones
and Plummer's ranche, the robbers were trailed some distance to where they
entered the breaks of the Canadian river, in Texas, and here they seemed to
have seperated as their trail was lost. The Sheriff and his men after a fruitless
search had to give up their game. The place where the robbers have taken
refuge is one of the wildest and most broken countries in the world, and affords
a perfectly safe retreat for the robbers. They can here find hiding places
where all the advantage is on their side in such a search. The Sheriff and his
posse were absent thirteen days and did some hard riding, traveling between
five and six hundred miles. 11
As luck would have it Bat was soon able to capture two more of
the robbers. The arrests were made right in Dodge City, March 15,
the Times reported on March 16, 1878:
GATHERING THEM IN! !
Two MORE TRAIN ROBBERS CAPTURED! !
THEY COME INTO DODGE CITY TO GET "INFORMATION."
SHERIFF MASTERSON, UNDER SHERIFF BASSETT
AND MARSHAL MASTERSON KINDLY TAKE THEM IN.
THEY ARE ARRESTED AFTER A SHORT CHASE.
Tom Gott alias Dugan, and Green, two of the gang who attempted the
robbery of the train at Kinsley some weeks ago, were arrested at about nine
o'clock last night, on the bottom just on the outskirts southwest of Dodge City,
by Sheriff Masterson, Under Sheriff Bassett and City Marshal Ed. Masterson.
At about nine o'clock, Officer Nat Haywood, returning from his rounds on
the south side of the railroad track, reported to Sheriff Masterson that he had
seen Tom Gott alias Dugan, at one of the dance houses, the officer not then
knowing that Dugan was charged with the attempted railroad robbery.
Sheriff Masterson immediately summoned Under Sheriff Bassett and Marshal
Masterson, who were at his side, and the three officers started in quest of the
two fugitives. Arriving at Anderson's stable the officers were informed that
two men had just passed by on the south side of the stable and were making
their way up the bottom. The officers proceeded in haste and were soon within
sight of the robbers, who, observing they were being tracked, put out on a
brisk run. The clear moonlight night afforded an easy chase, and the officers
soon pounced upon their victims and which proved to be a desired catch. The
robbers showed some resistance, but one of them found his revolver entangled
in his clothing.
The prisoners were taken to the jail and locked up. Dugan stated that they
had left three horses hitched to a tree about a mile west of the city. Subse-
quently the three officers above named made a scour of the country and found
two horses and a mule, all saddled, and strapped to each was a carbine, and
a Creedmore rifle.
There were evidently four in the party, the other two being the notorious
characters Mike Roarke and one Lafeu. It is said that all four were in town
during the evening, and they came to ascertain the condition of affairs, having
so long been uninformed, and little fearing a capture they boldly ventured to
254 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
a less frequented part of the city. But the officers of this city and county are
vigilant and quick to do their duty. They know no fear and will beard the
lion in his den.
The officers scoured the surrounding country for Mike Roarke and Lafeu,
but these worthies with their well known sagacity eluded the pursuit, having
made a dash in and out of the environs of Dodge City in their stealth, and
stillness of the night.
Marshal Masterson took the two prisoners Gott and Green to Kinsley this
afternoon, where they will have a preliminary examination. Gott or Dugan is
about 22 years of age and Green is 25 years old. Last year they were engaged
in driving on the plains, and are well known to the citizens of the city.
A party under charge of Sheriff W. B. Masterson, consisting of himself,
Under Sheriff C. E. Bassett, J. J. Webb and Jas. Masterson, left this city to-day
and will follow the supposed trail of Roarke and Lafeu. Their capture is
highly probable. These two are the remaining ones of the gang of six who
attempted the train robbery. In all events their capture is but a question
of time. 12
Unfortunately "the Sheriffs posse, that went out last Saturday,
hunting for Mike Roarke, who was supposed to be in the neighbor-
hood, returned without success/' 13
On March 23, 1878, the Dodge City Times described the trip to
Kinsley and the disposition of the prisoners:
THE TRAIN ROBBERS.
BOUND OVER AND TAKEN TO EMPORIA FOR SAFE KEEPING.
Last Saturday afternoon a special car, with Superintendent W. H. Pettibone
as conductor, and Frank B. Lowe as engineer, left the Dodge City depot for
Kinsley carrying Greene and Gott, the two train robbers, and James Duffy, a
prisoner bound over on the charge of horse stealing. The officers in charge
of the prisoners were City Marshal Edward J. Masterson, Col. D. D. Colley
and Ben Springer, special deputies. Accompanying the officers and prisoners
were M. W. Sutton, County Attorney and attorney for the railroad company,
Major Dick Evans, Ex-Mayor Hoover and Lloyd Shinn of the TIMES.
Duffy was taken along more on account of the opportunity the trip afforded
for giving him a good airing than anything else, his confinement being very
close and dark in the county jail.
As the people at Spearville had not yet learned of the capture of the rob-
bers, and did not know what the special car contained, no demonstration was
made. At Offerle the train was compelled to wait half an hour to allow the
west bound freight to pass, during which time several parties visited the car
and took a look at the prisoners this being the first news they had received of
the capture.
Arriving at Kinsley everything was quiet about the depot, the Agent having
apprized no one of the expected arrival. But as the prisoners were being
marched up to the Justice's office, handcuffed together, a crowd gathered
round to "see what they could see." The Justice's office being very small but
few spectators were allowed inside.
Justice Willy read the complaint to the prisoners and they both waived an
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 255
examination and plead not guilty. We understand they agreed to do this
before the hearing came on, so as not to make any trouble on the part of
the prosecution.
County Attorney McArthur, and Sheriff Fuller of Edwards county were
there promptly to attend to their duties, and both seem to be good, honest
officers.
The two prisoners, Greene and Gott, are men of more than ordinary natural
intelligence especially Greene. It is said that he ranks next to Mike Roarke
as a leader of the organized gang. He has an intellectual countenance, eyes
rather sunken, protruding forehead and rather a stupid disposition. Gott is
more boyish and talkative.
Not a particle of doubt exists as to their guilt, as Sheriff Masterson, from
descriptions &c., has had them spotted ever since the robbery.
To prove the daring of their character we give the following:
Immediately after their examination they were placed in an upstairs room
and a Deputy Sheriff left to guard them; Duffy was also in this room, but was
not handcuffed as the other two were. One of the robbers seeing the Deputy
Sheriff near the window, ordered Duffy to slip up and pitch him out, thus
giving them a chance to escape. Duffy refused, whereupon the two men who
were handcuffed to-gether by one arm approached the officer to perform the
act themselves, but he was on the alert and foiled the attempt.
The Dodge City party remained in Kinsley only about an hour just long
enough to see what a busy, growing, beautiful town it is, and to greet a few
old friends, such as Flick, Brewer Clute, Hubbs' Milner and others. We re-
turned by moonlight all roosting on Frank B. Lowe's engine, and had a jolly
ride.
Marshal Masterson and Sheriff Fuller took Green and Gott on down to the
Emporia jail the same evening.
On March 28 "Sheriff Masterson of Ford county, was in the city
[Kinsley] . . . consulting with Mr. Herrington, attorney of
the alleged train robbers, in reference to disposition of property that
he captured with them." 14
The trial of the four accused prisoners was to be held in Kinsley
on June 17, 1878. But first they had to be brought from Emporia
where they had been taken for safety's sake. Bat left Dodge on
June 14 to perform that deed. The Times, June 15, 1878, reported:
TRIAL OF THE TRAIN ROBBERS.
Sheriff W. B. Masterson left last night for Emporia. He will be followed by
Jos. Mason, Al. Updegraff, Thomas Campbell and Frank Richards, who will
act as guard in conveying the attempted train robbers from the Emporia jail
to Kinsley. The District Court meets at Kinsley Monday. Dave Ruddebaugh,
Ed. West, Tom Gott and J. D. Green, charged with the attempted train rob-
bery at Kinsley, on the night of January 27th, 1878, will be tried at this term
of the court in Kinsley. The prisoners have been confined in the Emporia
jail since their preliminary examination.
256 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Because of flooding in the Arkansas valley the trial was not com-
menced until June 19. The Kinsley Graphic, successor to the Re-
publican, reported the proceedings on June 22, 1878:
EDWARDS CO. DISTRICT COURT.
"GRAPHIC" REPORT OF PROCEEDINGS OF THE JUNE TERM OF COURT
TRIAL OF THE RAILROAD ROBBERS
CONFESSION OF DAVE RUDABAUGH
WEST, GREEN AND GOTT PLEAD GUILTY AND SENT UP FIVE YEARS
A "BiG WEEK" OF EXCITEMENT IN KINSLEY.
By reason of the floods down the Valley Judge [S. R.] Peters did not arrive
until late Tuesday evening. . . .
State of Kansas vs. David Rudabaugh et al. Issue robbery first degree. The
following motions were made: By defendants for State to elect which of two
counts they would go to trial on. Stood on first, Robbery of Kingkade of pistol.
Motion by defendants to strike information from files on account of there having
been no preliminary examination for offence charged in information. Overruled,
Def ts excepted. Defendants motion that information be stricken from files
because it had not been sworn to. Overruled and exceptions noted.
Thomas Gott brought into Court. Affidavit for continuance filed on account
of the absence of material witnesses. Affidavit adjudged sufficient and admitted
as deposition. Separate trial demanded as to Thomas Gott, who was arraigned
and plead not guilty. After some delay a jury was secured composed of the fol-
lowing citizens: J. E. Crane, A. L. Kendall, G. W. Wilson, J. F. White, W. L.
Hunter, Walter Robley, J. T. Carter, S. S. Hart, J. D. Verney, Geo. N. Wear,
S. T. Reed, N. L. Mills. The prosecution was ably conducted by County At-
torney MacArthur, assisted by Capt. J. G. Waters, and M. W. Sutton of Ford
county, and the defense well managed by B. F. Herrington of the Edwards
county bar, and A. A. Hurd of Great Bend. The following witnesses were
called to the stand and testified: Andrew Kingkade, David Rudabaugh, W.
H. Pettibone, J. W. Mallory, James Duffy, Charles Palmer, J. M. Anderson, H.
A. Brown, W. F. Blanchard, Thomas Palmer, John Slatterly and James Ham-
mond. The story of the 'raid/ as related by the several witnesses was the same
that we published through 'extras' at the time, but there was a sensation when
Dave Rudabaugh's confession was given in testimony, and the confessed outlaw
related the story of how the brigands deliberately planned their diabolical
scheme on Wolf Creek, in the Pan Handle country, to come to Kinsley and
rob the Santa Fe train. The preparations made to carry out their plans; the
route they came; the places assigned each man by their leader Rourke; how they
were foiled in their original plan of robbing the east bound train; their attack
on the night operator and attempt to rob the express car, their escape, wander-
ings and final capture, as told, would make an interesting chapter of crime on
the frontier.
THE PLEA OF GUILTY.
On the convening of Court yesterday morning, it was whispered that the
prisoners West, Green and Gott had been advised to plead guilty. They were
brought into Court, the charge read, and each of them responded "guilty." The
Judge then interrogated each of them regarding their past lives, their families,
etc., after which he addressed them directly for half an hour upon the lives
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 257
they had led, the laws they had violated, and the sentence it was his duty to
pass upon them. The Judge stated that the most unpleasant duty he as an
officer had to perform was that of passing sentence upon young men. The
punishment though severe would cause other hearts to suffer. That mother
whose love could not be fathomed, which could not be expressed in words;
those loving sisters and brothers they would be disgraced. The disposition
in our society to encourage crime among our young men who are thrown on
their own resources here in the West, and from whom a kind word is with-
held ofttimes, was severely condemned by the Judge. After speaking words
of encouragement, importuning the prisoners to despair not but then to resolve
to lead different lives and be men, each of them was sentenced to five years at
hard labor in the State penitentiary at Leavenworth. At 1 p. m. Sheriff Fuller,
assisted by A. Menny, W. Barkman and V. D. Billings, started for Leavenworth
with the prisoners on a special train. Rudabaugh was taken as far as Newton,
where he was released. Thus endeth the first chapter.
In the same issue of the Graphic some incidentals of the trial were
given:
The handsome young Sheriff of Pawnee, Mr. Christy, and Sheriff Masterson
of Ford, the brave and popular young official of the frontier, have been with
us this week.
Kingkade's story of the 'raid' implicated Rudabaugh as the ringleader.
Rudabaugh testified that he was promised entire immunity from punishment
if he would 'squeal/ therefore he squole.
Some one has said there is a kind of honor among thieves. Rudabaugh
don't think so.
There was less difficulty in securing a jury in the robbery case than was
anticipated.
Rudabaugh explained that he did not pursue Kingkade and 'the other man/
as they seemed to be needing no help to get out of the way.
While the three prisoners sentenced were doubtless the least guilty of the
six engaged in the raid, yet their punishment was just.
In answer to the question of the Judge, 'Had you a pleasant home?* two
answered 'yes/ one 'no/ two have mothers living, one a father who was present,
and all had brothers and sisters.
Mike Rourke and two companions, one of whom was named
Tilman (which might have been the cause for the arrest of Dodge
City's William M. Tilghman) were discovered 11 miles south of
Ellsworth in October, 1878. Rourke was promptly captured and
placed in jail at Junction City but no record was found of his ulti-
mate fate. 15
Rudabaugh, who by turning state's evidence against his former
comrades, secured his own release, turned up in Dodge City in
March, 1879. The Ford County Globe, March 18, reported:
Dave Rudebaugh, who was arrested as one of the Kinsley train robbers,
but turned state's evidence and was discharged, arrived in this city last week
176253
258 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
from Butler county, where he was a witness against Mike Roarke. Rudebaugh
is looking for a job of work and intends to earn his living on the square.
In April, 1880, Rudabaugh attempted the rescue of J. J. Webb
from a Las Vegas, N. M., jail and then turned to riding witb Wil-
liam "Billy the Kid" Bonney. The year 1882 saw him ambushing
Wyatt Earp in Arizona. By 1885 he was in Mexico, soon to die,
beheaded, at Parral. For more information see the sections on J. J.
Webb and Wyatt Earp.
If one may judge from notices in the newspapers, the Kinsley
train robbery crowded nearly everything else out of Sheriff Master-
son's schedule. However, the Dodge City Times, March 2, 1878,
hinted that Bat and his friend, County Attorney Mike Sutton, would
shortly make a number of other arrests:
LOOK OUT.
Recent developments indicate that Sheriff Masterson and County Attorney
Sutton will soon fasten the clutches of the law upon a band of unsuspecting
horse thieves. "Let no guilty man escape."
If the arrests were made they were not reported in either of the
town's newspapers.
On March 16, 1878, the Times reported that "Sheriff Masterson
returned last Sunday from a trip to Topeka and other points East."
The Topeka Commonwealth, March 6, 1878, merely stated that
"W. B. Masterson, sheriff of Ford county, and Harry E. Gryden, of
Dodge City, are at the Tefft." The reason of the visit remains
unknown.
The sheriff found a stolen horse on March 23. The Times, March
30, 1878, reported:
CAPTURE OF STOLEN HORSES.
Mr. H. Spangler, of Lake City, Comanche county, arrived in the city
last Saturday in search of two horses that had been stolen from him last
December. He described the stolen stock to Sheriff Masterson who im-
mediately instituted search. On Monday he found one of the horses, a
very valuable animal, at Mueller's cattle camp on Saw Log, it having been
traded to Mr. Wolf. The horse was turned over to its owner. The Sheriff
has trace of the other horse and will endeavor to recover it.
The Ford county board of commissioners awarded Bat $78.25
travel fees on April 8, 1878, possibly reimbursing him for expenses
incurred chasing the train robbers. 16
Death threw a punch which left Bat Masterson reeling on the
night of April 9 when his brother Ed, city marshal of Dodge, was
shot by drunken cowboys. Though contemporary sources do not
state that Bat avenged his brother by firing the shot that killed
John Wagner or the one which wounded Alfred Walker he did
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 259
respond promptly by arresting four supposed accomplices of the
cowboys. For the story of Ed Masterson see the section devoted
to him.
Griefstricken, the young sheriff, accompanied by his friend
Mike Sutton, headed for Sedgwick county to visit the Masterson
parents. Within five days the peace officer was back at his post
in Dodge City, 17 and within hours of his arrival was on the
prowl for some stolen horses. The Dodge City Times, April 20,
1878, reported:
MORE HORSE STEALING.
THE THIEF CAPTURED AND COMMITTED TO JAIL.
Last Wednesday Mr. M. A. Couch and three other gentlemen arrived in
this city from Walnut creek, forty miles north of here, in search of four
horses that had been stolen from them on the day previous. They immediately
applied to the County Attorney for information and assistance, stating that
they had tracked the horses to this city. Sheriff Masterson was sent for, and
in company with Couch and party instituted search for the stock, which,
luckily, they succeeded in recovering. Two of the horses were found in the
river bottom southwest of the city and the other two were found in Mr. Bell's
livery stable, where they had been placed the night before. The owners of the
horses were very much pleased upon recovering their stock, and proposed
starting immediately for home without making any search for the thief;
but the Sheriff with an eye to giving his thief ship punishment for his wrongs,
made search and discovered men whom he supposed to be guilty. Swearing out
a complaint himself he arrested Henry Martin and William Tilghman. Henry
Martin was brought before Justice Cook on Wednesday and examined. There
being strong evidence against him he was bound over in the sum of $2,000,
in default of which he was sent to jail. Mr. Tilghman's examination took
place Thursday before Justice Cook. It was generally supposed he would
be bound over also, but he was released by the court. He was defended by
Mr. Gryden, assisted by Mr. Frost. Both prisoners were ably prosecuted by
County Attorney Sutton, and we are glad to observe the interest manifested
by both the County Attorney and Sheriff in bringing horse thieves to justice. 18
Thursday, May 16, was a busy day for Bat. First he and John
Straughn prevented a proposed jail break by discovering and
confiscating the tools of escape. The Times, May 18, 1878, re-
corded:
NIPPED IN THE BUD.
Sheriff Masterson and Jailor Straughn have been unearthing some imple-
ments of jail delivery. Thursday a brace, a rod of iron and some small
wedges were found in one of the cells of the jail supposed to have been
passed in the night previous. There is a poor chance to make a break under
the present official management. The officers have argus eyes.
Thursday night Bat captured a horse thief. The same issue of
the Times (May 18, 1878) reported:
260 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
HORSE THIEF CAUGHT.
Sheriff Bat Masterson Thursday night arrested one Geo. Foster, charged
with stealing a horse belonging to J. W. Duncan, living on Smoky river,
at Hays crossing, on the 29th of April. The horse was not recovered. The
prisoner has been placed in charge of a couple of officers and taken to Ellis
county for examination. Horse thieves find hospitable reception at the hands
of Sheriff Masterson. He is an excellent "catch" and is earning a State
reputation.
Law enforcement did not occupy all of Sheriff Masterson's time.
For instance he was active in the Dodge City Fire Company and at
one time served as a member of that organization's finance com-
mittee along with Chalk Beeson and Deputy U. S. Marshal H. T.
McCarty. Bat's under sheriff, Charles E. Bassett, was first assistant
marshal of the volunteer fire fighting unit. 19 Other and more
frivilous social activities attracted the young sheriff also. On June
8, 1878, the Dodge City Times recorded that Bat and a local belle
had attended a grand ball at Spearville along with several other
well known Dodgeites:
THE SUMMIT HOUSE OPENING.
Our Spearville neighbors gave a grand entertainment last night, it being
the occasion of the formal "warming" of the magnificent hotel at that place,
the Summit House, J. McCollister, proprietor. There was gayety and beauty
there, the staid bachelor and the festive young man, the buxom lassie, the
comely maid and the village belles. A sumptuous board was spread to which
the guests responded with alacrity and avidity especially those from Dodge
City. Major McCollister demonstrated his ability to keep hotel.
The merry dance was kept up until a late hour. Music was furnished by
Beeson's Orchestra, and was pronounced excellent by the Spearvillians. The
following Dodge City people were present and tipped their light and heavy
pedestals:
Mayor [James H.] Kelley and lady; Mr. and Mrs. M. Collar; Mr. and Mrs.
[Chalkly E.] Beeson; Mr. and Mrs. [S. E.?] Isaacson; Mr. and Mrs. J. Collar;
Sheriff Masterson and lady; D. M. Frost and Miss Lutie Chambliss; Mr. and
Mrs. C. S. Hungerford; John B. Means and lady. Our home folks arrived this
morning much elated from the night's revelry.
But where news of Bat's activities was concerned business pre-
dominated. On June 15, 1878, the Times reported that he had cap-
tured two more suspected horse thieves:
Two suspicious characters named Andy Payne and E. W. Qilleur [sic],
charged with stealing stock from the estate of Sanders & Couch in the Pan
Handle, were arrested this week by Sheriff Masterson. They will have their
preliminary trial next week. Col. Straughn entertains them.
Being an "opposition" paper, the Ford County Globe often cen-
sured Bat and County Attorney Sutton for alleged misuse of their
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 261
positions. Such an opportunity knocked with the arrest of Quillin
[?] and Payne [?]:
W. E. Quillin and Henry Pagne who have been held here since the 12th
inst., by the arbitrary exercise of power by our county officers, were turned loose
yesterday because there never existed any cause for holding them. They were
compelled to pay $18 livery bill on their stock before they got it from the
custody of the Sheriff who had taken possession of the same at the time they
were arrested. We are surprised that the boys were not retained in custody
till they paid their board during the time of their incarceration. 20
To its credit, the Globe also noticed the good work. In the same
issue, June 25, 1878, it reported:
Messrs Sutton and Masterson compelled two of the show case institutions
to disgorge some of their ill gotten gains last week, and recovered the same
to the parties who had been robbed. We cannot understand how any of our
county farmers can be so green as to come to Dodge and go up against those
cut throat games, yet they do it nearly every day.
The Dodge City Times, being pro-Sutton and Masterson, was
quite outspoken in its praise of the two county officers: "We quite
agree with the generally expressed opinion that 'Judge Sutton and
Bat Masterson are the right men in the right place/" "County
Attorney Sutton and Sheriff Masterson are using all fair and hon-
orable means as officers to bring criminals to justice. All law abid-
ing people commend them for the honest discharge of their
duties." 21
In July Bat used a slick ruse to capture another wanted man. The
Times, July 27, 1878, reported:
Sheriff Masterson captured a fugitive from justice from Ft. Lyon this week
after the most approved style. He received a telegram from the authorities
asking him to look out for a man named Davis on the eastward bound train.
Masterson went down to the train, and among the crowd of passengers singled
out a suspicious looking man, and approaching him said: "Hello, Davis; how
do you do?*' The stranger was completely off his guard, and answered to the
name at once, thinking he had met an old friend. The Sheriff immediately
gave him lodging in jail until he could be sent back to Lyon, where he had
been sentenced to the penitentiary for three years.
The furnace-like weather of southwest Kansas began to have a
telling effect on Bat as the summer dragged on. Finally he de-
cided to visit the spa at Hot Springs for relief. The Times, August
3, 1878, told of his going:
Sheriff Masterson, who has not had good health during the late hot weather,
having at times been confined to his bed with attacks of something like vertigo,
started last Thursday morning for a visit to Hot Springs, Arkansas, where he
will remain three or four weeks. We hope he will have a pleasant time and
return restored to perfect health.
262 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Bat was back on the job by August 12. The Times, August 17,
1878, told of his capturing a horse thief that day. For a reprint of
the item and of another Masterson commendation see the section on
William Duffey.
During the whole of its career as a cowtown, Dodge was bothered
with confidence men whose numbers must have been legion. The
year 1878 was no exception and as fast as one group was run out of
town another was there to take its place. Toward the end of sum-
mer Sheriff Masterson arrested two such operators on complaint of
a man named E. Markel. As luck would have it, a deputy allowed
the two to escape which prompted this long statement in the Dodge
City Times, September 14, 1878:
THE CONFIDENCE OPERATORS.
SHOVING THE QUEER
ARREST OF Two "LAND AGENTS"
THE SUBSEQUENT FLIGHT.
For sometime past Dodge City has been cursed with a class of confidence
operators, who have plied all the arts of deceit in gulling the unsophisticated
and unwary. A batch of these bold operators fled the town during the sum-
mer, but their places were occupied by another class who resorted to other
means to fleece the unsuspecting stranger. The class who have lately been
carrying on their nefarious schemes in Dodge suddenly came to grief Tuesday
night.
Their manner had been to represent themselves as land agents. To pursue
this purpose they were present upon the arrival of all railroad trains. By
graceful and winning ways and tolerably fair representations they gained the
confidence of the credulous stranger. Once in their toils the poor deluded
victim was at their mercy. The straw that broke the camel's back was laid
Tuesday evening. The confidence men succeeded in roping in one E. Markel,
an illiterate gentleman from some backwoods, and inducing him to exchange
greenbacks for what purported to be $20 gold pieces. Upon discovering the
cheat, Markel caused the arrest of one Harry Bell, the leader of the gang, and
a bold and successful guy that sailed under the sobriquet of "Kid." The war-
rant was placed in the hands of Sheriff Masterson, who arrested the men and
placed them under charge of Deputy [William] Duffy. Duffy had been on
service the night previous, and feeling the need of rest turned the prisoners
over to an incompetent guard. The guard was not vigilant, and while in-
dulging in nature's sweet restorer, the prisoners saw the opportunity to escape
justice, and boldly "lit out," taking the 5 o'clock morning train for the west.
The citizens of Dodge City naturally felt indignant Wednesday morning
when they learned that the birds had flown, and were free to express feelings
of censure against the Sheriff for a direlection of duty, in either not placing
the prisoners in jail or else putting them under a proper and sufficient guard
until a preliminary trial should be had. Bell made the most solemn protesta-
tions against the charge of guilt, and assured the Sheriff that he would make
no attempt at escape if not placed in jail.
The pieces purporting to be gold were made of some base metal, plated,
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 263
and did not resemble gold or the device of gold coin. A person with ordinary
intelligence would not have been gulled with such a trick. It matters not,
the pieces were represented to be gold, and a charge of obtaining money
under false pretenses could have been sustained.
The people of Dodge City have borne with these outrages long enough.
There has been an under current of sentiment working and the climax had
been reached when no mild measures would have been used to rid the com-
munity of this intolerable nuisance. By these operations it had become known
abroad that 'land agents" and "business men" of Dodge City were robbing
the innocent straggler in the modern Nineveh. It was in this manner, by
falsely representing themselves as "land agents" and "business men" that
these robbers succeeded in gaining the confidence of their victims. Various
swindling operations have occurred lately, but the parties victimized rarely
"squealed," and hence the operators have gone on unmolested.
We haven't much sympathy for the man who permits himself to be duped
by a stranger; but we presume it is a misfortune not to know all the wiles and
tricks in human ingenuity. Again, the unsophisticated and probably better
knowing ones, tempt the hidden hand to feather their own nests.
But these swindling operations were bringing the town into greater dis-
credit, and forebearance was ceasing to be a virtue. It is therefore necessary
for the honor, credit and character of Dodge City that a solemn protest be
entered against such practices. We hasten the conclusion by stating that cir-
cumstances have probably done the best thing to further the riddance of these
men, and cannot regret the course of the bold confidence operator in his flight
west if he will only stay away, and we believe he will. It would be "warm"
to return.
The Ford County Globe, September 17, 1878, used the escape as
an opportunity to chastise not only the sheriff and his men but also
the Dodge City Times:
CAPTURE AND ESCAPE.
On Tuesday evening last, two of those notorious and well known confidence
men, Bill Bell and "The handsome Kid," who have been for the past few
months working the unsophisticated land seekers who visited Dodge, were cap-
tured upon the complaint of E. Markel ( a respectable and honest man who had
come here for the purpose of securing a home), charging them with passing
off upon him something purporting to be a $20 gold piece, which in reality was
a gilded "spiel marke." The evidence was so conclusive, and witnesses so nu-
merous to the transaction, that Bell and "The Kid" were "booked" for the
Penitentiary if they stood trial. They tried to compromise, but without avail;
then they tried to talk Judge Cook into a small bail bond, but the Judge, seeing
his duty in the premises, said, "$2,000 each with the best of security." A com-
mitment was made out and placed in the hands of the Sheriff, who, instead of
listening to the commands of the commitment, or the mandates of the law, "to
put his prisoners in jail," placed them in care of his Deputy, Duffey, who per-
mitted them to walk the streets in his charge. Next morning the prisoners
were gone! without any explanation except that they had escaped from "Red,"
who had been employed to guard them. Who is "Red?" Does anybody know
him? The only information that we can get concerning him is that he is one of
264 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
the "confidence gang." If this is true he was evidently the right kind of a
man to guard his pals from justice. We have now told the facts as they
are understood, by us, we do not wish or desire to censure anybody unjustly,
our aim in the premises is to lay bare the facts as they exist, knowing well that
our readers are competent to form their own opinions, arrive at their own con-
clusions and censure those who deserve it. The GLOBE has and will always be
found, commending an officer when he does his duty, but it will not praise an
officer for not doing his duty, it is not that kind of an institution. Dodge City
is already cursed with an institution of that character, which, in its existence of
two and a half years, has never dared to question the correctness of the doings
of any officer in Ford county, and God knows it has had many an opportunity
to do so. We know it is the duty of any journal, that expects the people's
patronage, to labor for the best interests of the community wherein it exists,
by exulting over the good deeds of its officers and condeming their official faults,
and we believe that a journal that will not do so, is tainted with a hankering
after the "flesh pots" of office, or is controlled and managed by cowardice.
A meeting of the citizens was held in the school house, on Thursday evening,
for the purpose of discussing the confidence question, at which there was not
a very general attendance of citizens, but confidence men and their sympathizers
were on hand in full force. Messrs [F. C.] Zimmerman and Collar being called
upon, said, that the officers had not and were not doing their duty in relation
to the confidence men. W. N. Morphy [editor of the Ford County Globe] said
that the officers could stop the nuisance if they desired to do so. Messrs. [Ed-
ward F.] Colborn (City Attorney), Bobby Gill [Robert Gilmore] and E. O.
Parish defended the officers by saying that they were the best officers whom God
in His wisdom had ever created, (for which, oh, Lord, make us truly thank-
ful). The meeting very nearly broke up in a row but didn't, and finally a
peaceable adjournment was had. The citizens of the town at present feel that
legally they are helpless, because they cannot have the law enforced; they also
feel that they ought to take the law in their own hands and drive confidence
men from the town. What will be done we cannot tell but we hope that the
question will soon solve itself. The officers claim that they have always lacked
the support of the citizens. We cannot understand how they can expect the
support of the citizens unless they show themselves more worthy of it than
they have heretofore done. What Ford county needs is a complete change
in judicial officers and the ballot box is the place to get it. Remember this,
voters of Ford county, and vote against any and every man who has not done
his duty in driving out the confidence curse from our midst.
Perhaps to escape from it all temporarily, Bat took in the fair at
Kansas City. With him were A. B. Webster, W. H. Harris, A. J.
Anthony, Robert M. Wright, and Charley Bassett. They were gone
during the week ending September 24, 1878. 22
In its 14 years as a rough frontier town Dodge never had a better
year in the accepted TV Western tradition than it did in 1878. First
there was the success of Sheriff Bat Masterson and his posse in cap-
turing two of the Kinsley train robbers. Then two others were ar-
rested right in town. The shooting and death of City Marshal Ed-
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 265
ward J. Masterson quickly followed in April. Deputy United States
Marshal H. T. McCarty was shot and killed in the Long Branch
saloon in July and Cowboy George Hoy died at the hands of Police-
men Wyatt Earp and Jim Masterson a few days later. In September
the flight of Dull Knife and his small band of Cheyennes across
western Kansas toward their former home in the north threw Dodge
City into a panic. It was all there plenty of cowboys, Indians, train
robbers, killers, sheriffs, and marshals. The climax, or perhaps the
anticlimax, of it all came early in the morning of October 4, 1878.
On that day Actress Fannie Keenan, or Dora Hand as she was some-
times called, was mistakenly shot and killed by an unknown per-
son.
Fannie's Dodge City story begins with this item from the Ford
County Globe, July 30, 1878:
COMIQUE.
This favorite place of resort is at present giving to its patrons the best show
or entertainment ever given in Dodge. They have Billy and Nola Forrest, Dick
Brown and Fannie Garretson, May Gaylor, Belle Lament, Fannie Keenan,
Jennie Morton, and that unequalled and splendidly matched team [Eddie] Foye
and [Jimmie] Thompson. All the members of this troupe are up in their parts
and considerable above the average in ability. . . .
Two weeks later Fannie was at Ham Bell's. The Dodge City
Times, August 10, 1878, reported: "Hattie Smith and Fannie
Keenan take a benefit at Ham Bell's Varieties next Wednesday night.
They are general favorites and will be sure to draw a crowded
house."
Miss Keenan apparently did not rejoin the troupe at the Comique
as her name did not appear in the almost weekly notices given the
theater by the Globe. If she remained at Bell's that fact is not in-
dicated by the papers. After the August mention in the Times, Miss
Keenan's name did not reappear in the local papers until October
5, 1878, when the Times reported her death:
ANOTHER VICTIM.
THE PISTOL DOES ITS WORK.
THE KILLING OF DORA HAND,
ALIAS FANNIE KEENAN.
At about half past four o'clock this (Friday) morning, two pistol shots
were fired into the building occupied by Dora Hand, alias Fannie Keenan.
The person who did the firing stood on horseback at the front door of the little
frame [house] south of the railroad track. The house has two rooms, the back
room being occupied by Fannie Keenan. A plastered partition wall divides
the two rooms. The first shot went through the front door and struck the
facing of the partition. The remarkable penetration of a pistol ball was in the
second shot. It passed through the door, several thicknesses of bed clothing
266 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
on the bed in the front room occupied by a female lodger; through the
plastered partition wall, and the bed clothing on the second bed, and striking
Fannie Keenen on the right side under the arm, killing her instantly. The
pistol was of 44 calibre, nearly a half inch ball.
The deceased came to Dodge City this summer and was engaged as
vocalist in the Varieties and Comique shows. She was a prepossessing woman
and her artful winning ways brought many admirers within her smiles and
blandishments. If we mistake not, Dora Hand has an eventful history. She
had applied for a divorce from Theodore Hand. After a varied life the
unexpected death messenger cuts her down in the full bloom of gayety and
womanhood. She was the innocent victim.
The pistol shot was intended for the male occupant of the bed in the
front room, but who has been absent for several days. The bed however
was occupied by the female lodger at the time of the shooting, and narrowly
escaped the ball that went through the bed covering. The cause for the
shooting is supposed to be for an old grudge. The officers are in pursuit of the
supposed murderer, to whom circumstances point very directly.
Three days later, October 8, 1878, the Ford County Globe
printed its version of Fannie's death:
MIDNIGHT ASSASSIN.
DORA HAND, ALIAS FANNIE KEENAN,
FOULLY MURDERED WHILE m BED AND FAST ASLEEP.
JAMES KENNEDY, THE SUPPOSED MURDERER, ARRESTED AFTER
RECEIVING A DANGEROUS WOUND AT THE HANDS OF THE OFFICERS.
On Friday morning, about 4 o'clock, two shots were fired in a small frame
building, situated south of the railroad track and back of the Western
House, occupied by Miss Fannie Garretson and Miss Fannie Keenan. The
building was divided into two rooms by a plastered partition, Miss Keenan
occupying the back room. The first shot, after passing through the front
door, struck the floor, passed through the carpet and facing of the partition
and lodged in the next room. The second shot also passed through the door,
but apparently more elevated, striking the first bed, passing over Miss Garret-
son, who occupied the bed, through two quilts, through the plastered partition,
and after passing through the bed clothing of the second bed, struck Fannie
Keenan in the right side, under the arm, killing her instantly.
The party who committed this cowardly act must have been on horseback
and close to the door when the two shots were fired. From what we can
learn the shots were intended for another party who has been absent for a
week and who formerly occupied the first room. Thus the assassin misses
his intended victim and kills another while fast asleep who never spoke a
word after she was shot.
James Kennedy, who it is supposed did the shooting made good his
escape, and the following morning the officers went in pursuit of him, returning
Saturday night with their prisoner, whom they met and on refusal to surrender
shot him through the shoulder and with another shot killing the horse he was
riding, thus capturing him. What evidence the authorities have that Kennedy
is the man who did the shooting we are unable to learn. Below we give the
verdict of the coroner's inquest:
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 267
STATE OF KANSAS, FORD COUNTY, ss.
An inquisition holden at Dodge City, in said county, on the 4th day of
October, A. D. 1878, before me, a justice of the peace for Dodge township,
said county (acting as coroner) on the body of Fannie Keenan, there lying
dead, by the jurors, whose names are hereunto subscribed. The said jurors,
upon their oath, do say: That Fannie Keenan came to her death by a gunshot
wound, and that in their opinion the said gunshot wound was produced by a
bullet discharged from a gun in the hands of one James Kennedy.
In testimony whereof, the said jurors have hereunto set their hands the
day and year aforesaid.
P. L. BEATTY, Foreman.
JOHN B. MEANS,
J. H. CORNELL,
W. STRAETER,
THOS. MdNTTRE,
JOHN LOUGHEED.
ATTEST: R. G. Cook, justice of the peace, acting coroner, for Dodge
township, said county.
Fannie Garrettson, Miss Keenan's housemate the night of her
death, also had performed in St. Louis. Knowing their Missouri
friends would want to hear the details, Miss Garrettson almost
immediately wrote J. E. Esher, their former employer. Her letter,
and some explanatory material, were published in the St. Louis
Daily Journal, October 11, 1878:
FANNIE KEENAN.
How A VARIETY SINGER MET HER DEATH IN KANSAS.
DELIBERATE CRIME BY A COLD-BLOODED ASSASSIN.
AN INTERESTING LETTER GIVING THE DETAILS OF THE TRAGEDY.
On Saturday morning last the telegraph brought the news of the accidental
killing at Dodge City, Kan., of Fannie Keenan, a variety actress, well known
in this city. For the past two years she had been employed at Esher's
varieties, on Fifth street, at various times, and her last engagement in St.
Louis was at the Tivoli varieties. About two weeks ago she left for Dodge
City for the purpose of making arrangements for her approaching marriage.
She was formerly married to a musician named Theodore Hand, but ob-
tained a divorce from him in Indiana. Hand arrived in St. Louis on Tuesday
morning, and for the first time heard of the death of his former wife. Fannie
Keenan was thirty-four years of age at the time of her death, and was well-
known to the variety profession throughout the country. She had appeared
in every variety theater in the south, and came to this city two years ago
from Memphis. She was universally popular among her associates, and,
as one of her acquaintances remarked, "had not an enemy in the world/'
When she arrived in Dodge City she went to live with Fannie Garrettson, also
a variety performer, who recently appeared in Esher's varieties, and met her
death as stated in the following article taken from the Dodge City Times
[the article printed on pp. 265, 266 of this section, from the Times of October 5,
1878, was here reprinted by the Journal] :
268 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
The following letter was received on Tuesday by J. E. Esher, from Fannie
Garrettson, who is referred to in the above report as the "female lodger:"
DODGE CITY, KAS., October 5, 1878.
MESSRS. ESHERS:
DEAR FRIENDS: No doubt ere this you have heard of the very sad and
fatal end [of Fannie Keenan, one of the most] fiendish assassinations on record.
Although the bullet was not intended for poor Fannie, yet she was the innocent
victim, and so it is invariably. Any one gets it but the one for whom it is
intended, and particularly in this wretched city. This is now the third or fourth
instance and still nothing is done. But the man who perpetrated this deed will
never exist for a judge or a jury, as the officers have sworn never to take him
alive. They were offered a big reward to get him but they declined to
accept it, for they were only too well pleased to get the order to start after
him. He is either a half breed or half Mexican; but let him be what he may
I know him to be a fiend in human form or some one else who will go at such
an hour, and attempt to take the life [of] any individual, and knowing at
the same time there were other occupants in the same house and occupying the
same bed. It shows what a fiend he must be and that he regarded no one's
life. The party he was after is the mayor of Dodge City [James H. Kelley] I
have written to you about. My room was the front one and Fannie occupied
the one back of me. Both our beds stood in the same positions, mine being a
higher bedstead than hers. There were four shots fired, two in the air and
two penetrating through the door leading into my room. One was fired very
low, hitting the floor and cutting two places in the carpet. It then glanced up
striking the inside side piece of the bedstead, the one I occupied. It penetrated
through these and through the plastering and lath and part of the bullet was
found on the floor. They said it was a forty-five caliber. The one that did
the horrible work was fired directly lining for my bed and had the one whom
they were after been there, the probability is there would have been three or
four assassinated. Certain there would have been two, probably Fannie and my-
self. But I was alone. The mayor has been very sick for two or three weeks,
and last Monday he was obliged to go to the hospital to the post [Fort Dodge]
where he could be under the best of treatment.
There is no very good doctor in town, and consequently people who have
any means go to the post, as the doctor there [W. S. Tremain] is considered
the best. But these parties who were in search of the mayor were not aware
of that, as they had been away from town, and only came in that evening. Of
course he did not dare to make any inquiries, as they all knew he held a grudge
towards the mayor. But you can rest assured his aim was a good one. The
death-dealing messenger penetrated through the bed clothes that covered
me, and so close to me that it went through the spread, then the heavy
comforter that covered me, and the sheet that was next to me, cutting
a hole through all, and again passing through the clothes the same way only
nearer to the wall, and then penetrating through the wall and passed between
Fannie's fifth and sixth ribs. I suppose tearing her heart into atoms.
Poor Fannie, she never realized what was the matter with her. She never
spoke but died unconscious. She was so when she was struck and so she died.
She closed her eyes as though she was going to sleep. The only indication
of any pain were the moving of the head once or twice on the pillow, a few
gasps and her sufferings were over in this world. Peace to her soul. I think
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND (SuN FIGHTERS
she died happy, as her look was such; but what a horrible death! To go to
one's bed well and hearty and not dream of anything and be cut down in such
a manner, without a chance to breathe a word. She was killed between the
hours of 4 and 5 and was buried yesterday between the same hours, everything
being done that could be, and every respect and honor shown her to the last,
the leading gentlemen of the city officiating at her funeral and following to
her lonely grave.
They have gone in search of the fellows who committed the deed and
yesterday evening were within five or six miles of them, but I am afraid the
trouble has not ended, as some twenty of the Texas men went out after the
officers and there were only six of them. This man has been allowed more
privileges than the rest of them because he has plenty of money, and now he
has repaid their liberality. Well, I want to leave here now, while my life
is safe; I think I have had enough of Dodge City.
With kindest wishes and rembrance to all, I will close, hoping you will
write on receipt.
Very respectfully,
FANNIE GARRETTSON.
The posse that captured Jim Kennedy consisted of some of the
West's most famous lawmen. The Dodge City Times, October 12,
1878, told of the chase in detail:
THE CAPTURE OF JIM KENNEDY.
THE SUPPOSED ASSASSIN OF DORA HAND alias FANNIE KEENAN.
THE PRISONER WOUNDED IN THE LEFT SHOULDER.
In last week's TIMES we detailed the circumstances of the killing of Dora
Hand alias Fannie Keenan, at about half past four o'clock Friday morning.
There were few persons up at this unseasonable hour, though all night walkers
and loungers are not uncommon in this city, and the somber hours of that
morning found one James Kennedy and another person gyrating in the dim
shadows of the flickering light of the solitary opened saloon. Four pistol shots
awakened the echoes in that dull misty morning, and aroused the police force
and others. Pistol shots are of common occurrence, but this firing betokened
something fatal. Assistant Marshal [Wyatt] Earp and Officer Jim Masterson
were soon at their wits' end, but promptly surmised the upshot of the shoot-
ing. Shortly after the firing Kennedy and his companion were seen in the
opened saloon. The arrival of the officers and the movements of the two morn-
ing loungers threw suspicions in their direction. Kennedy mounted his horse
[and] was soon galloping down the road in the direction of the Fort.
It was believed the other person knew something of the firing though he had
no connection with it. He was arrested and placed in jail; in the meantime
expressing his belief to the officers that Kennedy did the shooting. There
were some other reasons why the officers believed that Kennedy did the shoot-
ing, and accordingly a plan for his capture was commenced, though the officers
did not start in pursuit until 2 o'clock in the afternoon. The party consisted
of Sheriff Masterson, Marshal Basssett, Assistant [Marshal] Wyatt Earp, Deputy
[Sheriff] Duffy and Wm. Tilghman, as intrepid a posse as ever pulled a trigger.
They started down the river road, halting at a ranch below the Fort, thence
going south, traveling 75 miles that day. A heavy storm Friday night delayed
270 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
the pursued and pursuers; but Saturday afternoon found the officers at a ranch
near Meade City, 35 miles south west of Dodge City, one hour in advance of
Kennedy who said he was delayed by the storm in his proposed hasty exit to his
cattle ranch at Tuscosa, Texas. The officers were lying in wait at Meade City,
their horses unsaddled and grazing on the plain, the party avoiding the appear-
ance of a Sheriff's posse in full feather, believing that they were in advance
of the object of their search, but prepared to catch any stray straggler that
exhibited signs of distress.
Their patient waiting was rewarded about 4 o'clock Saturday afternoon,
when a solitary horseman appeared on the distant plain approaching the camp.
The officers had apprised certain parties to give no heed of their presence, and
from them it was afterwards learned that Kennedy had made diligent inquiries
concerning the whereabouts of supposed horsemen. To these inquiries Ken-
nedy received negative replies. The cautious manner in which he approached
the camp led the officers to believe that he snuffed the danger from every
movement forward. He halted when within a few hundred yards of the camp,
apparently dreading to proceed further. Seeing that he would approach no
nearer, the officers thrice commanded Kennedy to throw up his hands. He
raised his arm as though to strike his horse with a quirt he held in his hand,
when several shots were fired by the officers, one shot striking Kennedy in the
left shoulder, making a dangerous wound; three shots struck the horse killing
him instantly. Kennedy was armed with a carbine, two revolvers and a knife.
He was brought in Sunday and placed in jail, where he is receiving medical
treatment, though he lies in a low and critical condition.
A preliminary examination will be had as soon as the prisoner is able to ap-
pear in court.
Kennedy's examination was held about two weeks later. The
Globe, October 29, 1878, reported the results:
FREE AS AIR.
Kennedy, the man who was arrested for the murder of Fannie Keenan, was
examined last week before Judge [R. G.] Cook, and acquitted. His trial took
place in the sheriff's office, which was too small to admit spectators. We do not
know what the evidence was, or upon what grounds he was acquitted. But
he is free to go on his way rejoicing whenever he gets ready.
On December 9 Jim Kennedy's father arrived in Dodge to take
his boy back home. The Globe, December 10, 1878, said:
Yesterday morning's train brought to our city Capt. M. Kennedy, of Corpus
Christi, Texas, father of J. W. Kennedy, who received a severe wound at the
hands of our officers some time ago, and has since that time been confined to
his room at the Dodge House. Mr. Kennedy came here with a view of taking
his son back home with him should he be able to endure such a long journey.
Before he was able to return to Texas Kennedy had to undergo a
serious operation which the Globe described on December 17, 1878:
SURGICAL OPERATION.
On yesterday quite a difficult as well as a dangerous surgical operation was
performed on J. W. Kennedy, who had been shot through the shoulder some
two months ago, which necessitated the taking out of a piece of bone some four
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 271
or five inches in length before the wound could be successfully healed. Mr.
Kennedy was taken to Fort Dodge about a week ago, at which place he would
have better attention. Dr. B. E. Fryer of Fort Leavenworth was brought here
to assist in this operation, and on last Saturday he, assisted by Drs. Tremaine
and T. L. McCarty, took from the left shoulder of Mr. Kennedy several shat-
tered bones, one being nearly five inches in length. The doctors experienced
considerable difficulty in stopping the blood but finally succeeded. Though
considerably exhausted from the slight loss of blood as well as from the shock
experienced, Mr. Kennedy showed remarkable fortitude and nerve and said
afterward that he would not die from the effects of the operation. Just how
the case will result is hard to conjecture, but life is hanging on a very slender
cord. But as he is receiving the best of medical attention we predict for him
a speedy recovery. 23
Jim Kennedy undoubtedly lived for in November, 1880, it was
rumored that he had shot and killed Wyatt Earp on Sand creek, in
Colorado. The Times' notice of this rumor was reprinted in the
section on Earp.
While Kennedy was still in jail the Dodge City Times, October
12, 1878, listed the prisoners which the sheriff was then holding as
evidence that he and Mike Sutton were more than doing their duty:
STRAUGHN'S BOARDERS.
Sheriff Masterson, Deputy Sheriff Duffy and County Attorney Sutton, and
the officers "everybody" "damns" are assisting Jailor Straughn in keeping a
boarding house. There are six prisoners boarding at public expense. They are
charged, as follows:
Thos. O'Hara, charged with murder in the first degree; the killing of H. T.
McCarty.
H. Gould, alias Skunk Curley, assault with intent to kill; on Cogan, of Great
Bend.
Dan Woodward, the same charge, made on Frank Trask.
James Skelly, robbery.
James Kennedy, murder in the first degree; killing of Fannie Keenan.
Arthur Baldwin, in default of a fine.
On October 15, 1878, the Ford County Globe mentioned that
"Sheriff W. B. Masterson has taken up quarters in the front room of
the GLOBE building" on the corner of Bridge avenue and Chestnut
street.
Bat was quite interested in Republican politics and on several
occasions attended local conventions as a delegate. On November
5, 1878, the Globe, a political opponent of Bat's, noticed that he
and several other Dodgeites had been campaigning in eastern Ford
county:
Messrs. Wright Sutton, Masterson, Duffey, Mueller, Straeter and a half
dozen others, returned Sunday morning from an electioneering tour through
the east end of the county. We presume they told the dear people exactly how
to vote.
272 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
A state, county, and township election was held on November 5,
1878, an election at which a sheriff was not to be elected since that
officer was chosen in odd numbered years. The "gang" to which
Bat belonged walked off with most of the local offices. The Globe,
November 12, 1878, summarized:
CAPTURED.
On Tuesday a "gang" took possession of the good ship "Ford" at a well-
known landing on the Arkansas river, with the intention of going upon a piratical
voyage of two years. The victory of the pirates was an easy one. Some of the
owners had been chloriformed, some were bought, some were scared; the true
men were overpowered. Amid "lashins" of free whisky the following officers
were unanimously elected:
Pirate Captain Mike Sutton [re-elected county attorney].
Sutler and paymaster Bob Wright [elected state representative].
Chaplain "Old Nick" Klaine [elected probate judge].
The crew was then sworn in as follows : John O'Haran, James Scully, Kinch
Riley, James Dalton, under the charge of Boatswain Bat Masterson.
The ceremonies were celebrated by a grand Cyprian ball. After which
Chaplain "Old Nick" Klaine [editor of the Dodge City Times] closed the exer-
cises by giving out the following from the "Gospels Hymns,":
"Free from the law, O happy condition."
Bat arrested another horse thief on November 22 at Pierceville, a
small town in present Finney county near the Gray county line. The
Times, November 30, 1878, reported the capture:
HORSE THIEF CAUGHT.
Sheriff Masterson, on Friday last, at Pierceville, 40 miles west, arrested one
W. H. Brown, having in his possession a horse stolen from John N. Stevenson,
six miles north of Speareville, on the 19th. The prisoner had a preliminary
examination Saturday and was bound over in jail. There are seven prisoners in
jail charged with various offenses. This looks like business on the part of the
officers.
Bat's career as a peace officer soon suffered a setback, through no
fault of his own, when four county prisoners escaped from jail on
December 6. The Ford County Globe, December 10, 1878, told of
the flight:
JAIL DELIVERY.
FOUR PRISONERS ESCAPE FROM CUSTODY
ONE OF THE PRISONERS CAPTURED "ON THE FLY."
For the first time in over a year we are called upon to chronicle the escape
of prisoners from our county jail. The particulars of the manner in which
the escape was effected are as follows: At the last meeting of the Board of
County Commissioners the jailor was authorized to alter the door of the jail,
by cutting one of the bars and making a small hole that food and water could
be handed in to the prisoners, without making it necessary to unlock and
open the jail. This the jailor undertook to do last Friday.
The work of sawing the iron bar was commenced, and one of the prisoners,
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 273
on the inside, was allowed to assist, which is a very common thing when work
is to be done about the jail. After the sawing had been partially completed,
the jailor found something lacking in the completion of the work which neces-
sitated his visiting the blacksmith shop. He took the saw away from the
prisoners, and examined the bar that had been partially sawed, striking it with
his hammer to see that it was not too weak to be safe. It seemed to be only
sawed about a third off, and confident that all was secure, the jailor went to
the blacksmith shop, where he was detained some time. This gave the cun-
ning prisoners the opportunity they desired, for instead of sawing the bar as
the jailor supposed, and as it appeared from the outside, they had, when-
ever opportunity offered, drawn the saw across the inside of the bar, cutting it
more than half into from the inside.
As soon as the jailor had gone one of the prisoners procured a heavy piece
of board, which he had managed to get hold of, and using this as a lever, suc-
ceeded in breaking the bar where it had been sawed. This done, it was only
the work of a moment to bend the bar and break it at the other end. Thus a
means was afforded of escape, and four of the prisoners silently and cautiously
availed themselves of the opportunity. Their names were H. Gould, awaiting
trial for murder, and W. H. Brown, Frank Jennings and James Bailey, charged
with horse-stealing. They immediately "struck out for tall timber," each
taking the course that suited him best. The alarm was, however, given in a
short time, strange to say, by one of the prisoners in jail, who with his com-
panion, John O'Haran, made no attempt to escape, both being lame, and
not very good roadsters.
On hearing the disastrous news the sheriff and his deputy immediately
mounted horses and scoured the country around town in search of the fugi-
tives. Their prompt search proved partially fruitful in the capture of Gould,
about a mile from town, hid in a buffalo wallow on the prairie. Had it not
been for the approach of darkness, the escape being in the afternoon, the
officers would probably have secured all the prisoners. They, however, con-
tinued their search through the night and the next day, but the prisoners hav-
ing taken to the prairies and hills, no trace could be found. The search is still
in progress and we hope for success.
The officers feel the misfortune keenly. The sheriff, whose conduct in the
capture and detention of horse-thieves, has been so frequently complimented of
late, was greatly exercised over the news of the escape and made every effort
to regain the prisoners. The feelings of the jailor can be better imagined than
described, as this is the first misfortune he has had since he has held the office.
He blames himself for not having used more care or left some one to guard
the door during his absence. While every citizen deplores this occurrence,
no suspicion of complicity rests upon the officers.
The jailor, Col. Straughn, who was immediately in charge of the prisoners
at the time of the escape is a man of undoubted honesty and fidelity to his
office, and although this outbreak might have been avoided by greater care,
yet a thousand other men in a like position would probably have thought
and acted just as he did. It will be a warning for the future.
LATER. Another of the prisoners, Frank Jennings, was captured this morn-
ing at Kinsley, and sheriff Masterson has gone down to secure the baffled
fugitive.
186253
274 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
The Dodge City Times, December 14, 1878, gave the credit for
recapture of Gould to Bat's brother Jim:
A JAIL DELIVERY.
Notwithstanding the caution used in guarding the jail, through a careless
and unguarded moment last Friday afternoon, four prisoners made their
escape, one of them, Skunk Curley, being captured that evening by Officer
James Masterson.
Jailor Straughn had sawed one of the iron bars of the jail door, intending
to arrange an aperture through which to hand the prisoners their food. While
absent "down town" for a bolt to complete his job, the prisoners slipped the
sawed bar and made their escape, though there were several parties in the
jail building. The remaining prisoners gave the alarm which was not heeded
in time. As soon as Sheriff Masterson was informed of the jail delivery he
and a large party started in pursuit and search, which was keep [sic] up that
night and until Sunday; but without success, excepting the early capture we
have above stated.
The three prisoners evidently concealed themselves in some of the breaks
nearby, for that night two men attempted to raid the corral of Nichols & Cul-
bertson. A mare belonging to C. S. Hungerford was stolen from Wolfs camp
several miles north of the city. The mare was probably stolen by W. H.
Brown, one of the escaped prisoners, as a person answering his description
was seen in that vicinity early in the evening.
The names of the escaped prisoners are: W. H. Brown who was charged
with stealing Mr. Stevenson's horse near Speareville; Frank Jennings and
James A. Bailey were charged with stealing horses from Hardesty and Smith,
and were arrested by Geo. Pease at Fort Elliott.
Two more of the escapees were captured by the sheriff of Ed-
wards county. On December 11 Bat journeyed to Kinsley and
brought them back to Dodge. The Times, December 14, 1878, said:
CAPTURED.
Frank Jennings and James A. Bailey, two of the prisoners who escaped from
the jail on Friday last, were captured at Kinsley by Officer Cronk, and brought
to this city Wednesday by Sheriff Masterson, and placed in the Ford county jail.
W. H. Brown is the only fugitive.
Our officers felt considerably hurt over the jail escapade. We believe no
one censures them; and we trust that double caution will be used on the part
of the jailor. 24
Wednesday night, the same day he brought Jennings and Bailey
back to Dodge, Bat embarked on another man hunt. This time,
accompanied by a few soldiers from Fort Dodge, he was after
brigands who had stolen eight mules from a government supply
train. The Times, December 14, 1878, reported:
GOVERNMENT TRAIN RAIDED.
A Government train of two wagons and eight mules was "raided" Tuesday
night at their camp on Bluff creek, 37 miles south, and eight mules stolen.
The train was en route to Camp Supply, and was in charge of soldiers.
Sheriff Masterson and Lt. Guard, of Fort Dodge, with a couple of men, left
COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS 275
Wednesday night in search of the stolen property and the capture of the thieves.
Horse thieving is a little too bold and frequent to be longer endured without
more stringent measures than a short term in the penitentiary. Some of these
bold operators will some fine evening be taken in the most approved and
summary style.
"Some of these bold operators" did not include the men Bat and
the lieutenant were chasing, for the next week the Times, Decem-
ber 21, 1878, told of their unsuccessful pursuit:
Sheriff Masterson and posse returned this week from a fruitless search after
the thieves who raided the government train. The snow storm caught them
the next day after they were out.
Lieutenant Guard, with whose detachment Bat traveled in search
of the thieves, made this detailed report upon his return to Fort
Dodge:
FORT DODGE KANSAS.
Dec 24" 1878
TO THE
POST ADJUTANT: SIR:
In compliance with Special Orders No 156 dated Fort Dodge, Ks. Dec 11"
1878, 1 in charge of a detachment of one Non Com Officer and six privates, Co.
"G," 19" Inf and one private Co. "F," 19" Inf, mounted and with three pack
mules, left this post at sunset on the 11" instant in pursuit of horse thieves.
We proceeded up the Arkansas river to a point about twelve miles from this
post, then crossed the river and travelled in a southerly direction to near the
head of Mulberry Creek, where a dry camp was made at 2 oclock A. M. on
the 12" instant, distance travelled 25 miles. At day break on the 12" inst. we
marched to Gantz Ranch on Crooked Creek, a distance of fifteen miles from
the Camp, a halt was made for the purpose of cooking breakfast, after break-
fast every thing was prepared for a start, when a severe wind and snow storm
prevented our leaving, as there was no timber or shelter on the course I wished
to take, within thirty miles, of the place where we then were. I thought it
unsafe to start until the storm had ceased.
The storm continued all the remainder of the 12" inst and until 11 P. M. on
the 13" inst. On the morning of the 14" inst we started for Lovells Cattle
camp on Crooked creek a distance of thirty miles from Gantz, in a southeasterly
direction. We found the country covered with snowdrifts which made it almost
impossible to search ravines on the way. Camped at Lovells that night. The
next day the 15" marched to a point on Beaver Creek, I. T. about forty five
miles west of Camp Supply.
Ravines, on Crooked Creek, Cimmaron River, and Beaver Creek were
searched as well as the snow drifts would permit. Distance traveled on the
15" thirty miles, direction West of South.
On account of rations and forage giving out, I was compelled to go into
Camp Supply. We arrived at that Post on the night of the 16" inst. having
travelled forty five miles.
The horses being tired and stiff with cold and the long march, a rest of two
days became necessary. Left Camp Supply for Fort Dodge on the 19" inst
276 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Marched to Cimmaron River, distance travelled thirty seven miles. On the 20"
inst marched to Bluff Creek, distance twenty eight miles. On the 21" inst
arrived at Fort Dodge Distance travelled twenty two miles.
The weather was intensely cold throughout the march.
Distance travelled two hundred and thirty two miles.
Very respectfully
Your obedient servant
A. M. C. GUARD
2" Lieut 19" Inf.25
The Dodge City Times, December 21, 1878, reported that Bat had
appointed another deputy sheriff:
DEPUTIES APPOINTED.
County Attorney Sutton has appointed L. W. B. Johnson Deputy County
Attorney. Sheriff Masterson has appointed A. S. Tracy Deputy Sheriff of Ford
County. The new appointees are residents of Foote township, Foote county
[now Gray county], attached to Ford county for municipal and judicial pur-
poses. These gentlemen are well qualified to fill the responsible positions.
Bat attended a gay social event on Christmas day. The Ford
County Globe, January 1, 1879, described the festivities:
THE BAL MASQUE.
The first masquerade ball of this season was given on Christmas night by the
Dodge City Social Club. The grotesque masquers assembled at the Dodge
House, where the ball was given, and participated in the amusements laid out
for them, unknown to each other, until 12 o'clock, when the order was given
to "show up" which occasioned a considerable amusement, as many had so com-
pletely disguised themselves that even their most intimate friends failed to rec-
ognize them. This was one of the most real enjoyable dances given for a
long time, and was attended by a very harmonious class of our society. Messrs.
Webster, Marshall, Connor and Willett were the committee on management
and the music was under the superintendence of Mr. Geo. Hinkle. Messrs.
Cox & Boyd, the proprietors of the Dodge House, made themselves particularly
agreeable and their guests correspondingly comfortable. Champagne and wine
flowed freely, but not to excess, and a merrier Christmas night was never en-
joyed in Dodge. As near as our reporter could distinguish the following is
a list of those who were present and participated: . . . W. B. Masterson
and Miss Brown. . . .
(This Section on William Barclay "Bat" Masterson Will Be
Continued in the Autumn, 1961, Issue. )
i
Recent Additions to the Library
Compiled by ALBERTA PANTLE, Librarian
N ORDER that members of the Kansas State Historical Society
and others interested in historical study may know the class of
books the Society's library is receiving, a list is printed annually of
the books accessioned in its specialized fields.
These books come from three sources, purchase, gift, and ex-
change, and fall into the following classes: Books by Kansans and
about Kansas; books on American Indians and the West, including
explorations, overland journeys, and personal narratives; genealogy
and local history; and books on United States history, biography,
and allied subjects which are classified as general. The out-of -state
city directories received by the Historical Society are not included
in this compilation.
The library also receives regularly the publications of many his-
torical societies by exchange, and subscribes to other historical and
genealogical publications which are needed in reference work.
The following is a partial list of books which were received from
October 1, 1959, through September 30, 1960. Federal and state
official publications and some books of a general nature are not in-
cluded. The total number of books accessioned appears in the re-
port of the Society's secretary printed in the Spring, 1961, issue of
The Kansas Historical Quarterly.
KANSAS
ACKERMAN, SPENCER C., I Remember. [Lamed, Tiller and Toiler Print} c!958.
38p.
AGRA, METHODIST CHURCH, A Short History of the Agra Methodist Church, by
Mrs. Leonard Womer. N. p., 1960. Mimeographed. 6p.
ANDERSON, GEORGE L., ed., Issues and Conflicts, Studies in Twentieth Century
American Diplomacy. Lawrence, University of Kansas Press, 1959. 374p.
ARGONIA, FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, History of the First Baptist Church, Argonia,
Kansas, May 20, 1883, to May 25, 1958. No impr. [12]p.
ARKANSAS CITY, FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, First Baptist Church, Arkansas City,
Kansas, 1928-1948. Twenty 'Years of Progress. No impr. [12]p.
ATCHISON, METHODIST CHURCH, 100 Years of Methodism in Atchison, Kansas
. . . 1857-1957. No impr. 19p.
BAUER, EVELYN, Through Sunlight and Shadow. Scottdale, Pa., Herald Press
[c!959]. 221p.
BAXTER SPRINGS CENTENNIAL, INC., The Baxter Springs Story . . . 100
Years, 1858-1958 [Compiled by Claude H. Nichok]. N. p. [1958?]. Un-
paged.
BEATTY, MARION, Labor-Management Arbitration Manual. New York, E. E.
Eppler and Son [c!960]. 186p.
(277)
278 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
BELOIT, PLEASANT VIEW METHODIST CHURCH, History of Pleasant View Meth-
odist Church, Prepared by Carldon H. Broadbent . . . [Salina, Arrow
Print] 1959? 32p.
BERGER, WILHELMTNA, Beginnings of Catholicity in Kansas City. A Thesis Sub-
mitted to the Faculty of the Creighton University in Partial Fulfillment of
the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in the Department of
History. Omaha, 1934. Typed. 63p.
BIBLE, N. T., MATTHEW, SHAWNEE, The Gospel According to Saint Matthew.
Translated Into the Shawanoe Language by Johnston Lykins . . .
Aided in Revising and Comparing With the Greek by James Andrew Chute,
M.D. Shawanoe Baptist Mission, Shawanoe Baptist Mission Press, J. G.
Pratt, Printer, 1842. 116p.
BLOSS, ROY S., Pony Express the Great Gamble. Berkeley, Gal., Howell-
North, 1959. 159p.
BRANTFORD, EVANGELICAL COVENANT CHURCH, Diamond Jubilee, 1882-1957
., . . Brantford, n. d. 28p.
BROME, VINCENT, Frank Harris, the Life and Loves of a Scoundrel. New York,
Thomas Yoseloff [c!959]. 246p.
BROOKS, GWENDOLYN, The Bean Eaters. New York, Harper & Brothers [c!960].
Tip.
BURBRIDGE, CLARENCE BENJAMIN, The Fountain of Strength, a Practical Plan
for Everyday Thought and Action. New York, Exposition Press [c!959].
45p.
BURLINGTON, METHODIST CHURCH, History Burlington Methodist Church, Bur-
lington, Kansas, 1857-1957 . . . Arranged by Mrs. A. N. Gray . . .
Burlington, Daily Republican, n. d. 47p.
BYRON, NEB., ST. PAUL LUTHERAN CHURCH, Fiftieth Anniversary, St. Paul Luth-
eran Church, Byron, Nebraska, April 7, 1957. [Bruning, Neb., Bruning Ban-
ner] n. d. [19]p.
CARSON, GERALD, The Roguish World of Doctor Brinkley. New York, Rinehart
& Company [c!960]. 280p.
CARSON, L. B., Introduction to Our Bird Friends, Illustrations by Orvttle O.
Rice. [Topeka, Capper Publications, c!960.] [54]p.
CHAMBERLAIN, MARY L., History of the Lowman Memorial Methodist Episco-
pal Church, Topeka, Kansas, 1886-1926. No impr. 35p.
COBBLE, ALICE D., Wembi, the Singer of Stories. St. Louis, Bethany Press
[c!959]. 128p.
COWAN, CHARLES H., Piquant Poems. First Edition. Emporia [Gazette Print-
ers], c!960. 64p.
CROSS REFERENCE DIRECTORY, Greater Topeka, July, 1960. Independence,
Kan., City Publishing Company, c!960. Unpaged.
CUTLER, BRUCE, The Year of the Green Wave. Lincoln, University of Ne-
braska Press, 1960. 64p.
DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, DANA CHAPTER, COLUMBUS,
Notes on the Amos West (1766-1819) of Sumner County, Tennessee, and
Logan County, Kentucky, Compiled by Isabel Stebbins Giulvezan. St.
Louis, 1960. Mimeographed. [31]p.
, FORT SUPPLY TRAIL CHAPTER, ASHLAND, Clark County, Kansas
. . . Marriage License Record Book 1, Pages 1-387. No impr. [25]p.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 279
, KANSAS SOCIETY, Proceedings of the Sixty-Second Annual State Con-
ference, March 8, 9, 10, 1960, Hutchinson, Kansas. No impr. 160p.
, LUCRETIA GRISWOLD LATIMER CHAPTER, EUREKA, Tombstone Inscrip-
tions, Greenwood County, Kansas ... No impr. Unpaged.
DAVIS, KENNETH SYDNEY, Flight to Glory; the Story of Charles A. Lindbergh
and the Spirit of St. Louis. Garden City, N. Y., Garden City Books [c!960].
56p.
, The Hero; Charles A. Lindbergh and the American Dream. Garden
City, N. Y., Doubleday & Company, 1959. 527p.
DAVIS, MABLE EIGHMY, A Kansas Schoolmaam (1898-1951). Chicago, Adams
Press, c!960. 153p.
DILLER, NEB., ZION EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH, Fiftieth Anniversary
Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church, State Line Road, Diller, Nebraska,
Sunday, May 1, 1960. N. p., 1960. Unpaged.
DOUGLAS, Louis H., and others, Readings and Projects in American Govern-
ment. New York, American Book Company [c!960]. 196p.
EDWARDS, RALPH W., A History of the Western Dental College. (Reprinted
from Bulletin of the History of Medicine, Vol. 33, No. 2, March-April,
1959.) [8]p.
EL DORADO, FIRST METHODIST CHURCH, Diamond Jubilee, 1869-1944, Our
75th Anniversary. El Dorado, n. d. 39p.
ENGLISH, E. Lois, Golden Stairway. New York, Exposition Press [c!959].
95p.
ERDMAN, LOULA GRACE, Many a Voyage. New York, Dodd, Mead & Com-
pany [c!960]. 309p.
EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN AUGUSTANA SYNOD, WEST CENTRAL CONFERENCE,
90th Anniversary, 1870-1960. N. p., 1960. Unpaged.
FAIRVIEW, ST. PAUL'S LUTHERAN CHURCH, Seventy-Fifth Anniversary, 1882-
1957, St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Fairview, Kansas. [Hiawatha, Hiawatha
World Print] n. d. 20p.
FAST, HENRY A., Jesus and the Human Conflict. Scottdale, Pa., Herald Press
[c!959]. 209p.
FIELDER, MILDRED, Wandering Foot in the West. Boston, Bruce Humphries
Publishers [c!955]. 114p.
FLORA, FLETCHER, Killing Cousins. New York, Macmillan Company, 1960.
153p.
FOSTER, JAMES R., ed., Lovers, Mates, and Strange Bedfellows; Old World
Folktales. New York, Harper & Brothers [c!960]. 208p.
FREDONIA, FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, First Baptist Church, 75th Anniversary,
1882-1957. Fredonia, n. d. 28p.
FREEMASONS, A. F. & A., MANHATTAN, LODGE No. 16 ... Centennial An-
niversary Observance, October, 1959. N. p. [1959]. 112p.
CARD, WAYNE, Great Buffalo Hunt. New York, Alfred A. Knopf, 1959.
[336]p.
GAYLORD, CHRIST LUTHERAN CHURCH, 75th Anniversary of Christ Lutheran
Church, Gaylord, Kansas, 1883-1955. N. p., 1958. [ll]p.
GENESEO, FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, Seventy-Fifth Anniversary, 1885-1960.
N. p. [I960?]. 31p.
280 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
GILES, F. W., Thirty Years in Topeka, a Historical Sketch. [Topeka, Capper
Special Services] 1960. 167p.
GOENEY, WILLIAM M., Moment of Truth. New York, Henry Holt and Com-
pany [c!959]. 279p.
GRANT, JOSEPH PETTIE, Jotham Meeker, Orthographer, Pioneer Printer and
Missionary. A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Central Baptist
Theological Seminary, Kansas City, Kansas, in Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Theology. N. p., 1952. Typed.
109p. Microfilm. 1 Vol. on 1 Reel.
GRAVES, ALFRED M., Form, Field, Fireside. Grand Island, Neb., Poole's Litho
Service, c!959. 55p.
HARRIS, FRANK, Oscar Wilde . . . [East Lansing] Michigan State Univer-
sity Press, 1959. 358p.
HARTFORD, METHODIST CHURCH, Hartford Centennial, 1857-1957. Hartford,
n. d. [7]p.
HARTMAN, EMILY L., The F. B. and Rena G. Boss Natural History Reservation.
Emporia, Kansas State Teachers College, 1960. 40p. (The Emporia State
Research Studies, Vol. 8, No. 4.)
HAZELET, JOHN C., Police Report Writing. Springfield, III., Charles C. Thomas
[c!960]. 238p.
HETDERSTADT, DOROTHY, Knights and Champions. New York, Thomas Nelson
& Sons [c!960]. 166p.
HENNON, HELEN, History of Washington. N. p. [Washington Centennial, Inc.,
I960]. 58p.
HERRICK, RALPH EARL, History of the First Baptist Church of Emporia, Kansas.
A Thesis Submitted to the Department of Social Science and the Graduate
Council of the Kansas State Teachers College of Emporia in Partial Fulfill-
ment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science. [Emporia,
Emporia Times Print] 1959. [54]p.
HIBBARD, CLAUDE W., and DWIGHT W. TAYLOR, Two Late Pleistocene Faunas
From Southwestern Kansas. Ann Arbor, University of Michigan, 1960.
223p. (Contributions from the Museum of Paleontology, Vol. 16, No. 1.)
HILLSBORO, JOHANNESTAL MENNONiTE CHURCH, Sixtieth Anniversary of the Jo-
hannestal Mennonite Church, 1882-1942. Hillsboro, n. d. 32p.
HOEHLING, MARY, Girl Soldier and Spy, Sarah Emma Edmundson. New York,
Julian Messner [c!959]. 192p.
HOFFMAN, HENRY A., Weaving on Paper; or, Draw-Down Made Easy . . .
Shawnee, c!959. 16p.
In Memoriam and Dedication to Charles Trescott Ripley, the Citizen. No
impr. 41p.
IRVING, BLANCHE M., So Long. New York, Pageant Press [c!959L 63p.
Jesse James; the Life and Daring Adventures of This Bold Highwayman and
Bank Robber . . . Philadelphia, Barclay & Company [1882]. [96]p.
JOHNSON, KEN, The Hystery of Kansas, Bennie Bullflower as Told to Ken John-
son. Norton, Author, c!960. [43] p.
JONES, HORACE, Story of Early Rice County. [Lyons, Paul E. Jones] 1959.
141p.
[KANSAS AUTHORS CLUB], Freedom Has a Happy Ring, a Kansas Bulletin for
Kansas Schools [Edited by Mrs. Anna Manley Gait]. Topeka, Burge Print-
ing Company, c!960. Tip.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 281
KANSAS CITY, RUBY AVENUE CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, Diamond Jubilee,
May, 1882 May, 1957. No impr. [4]p.
, ST. MARY'S CATHOLIC CHURCH, A Glorious Century of Faith. Kansas
City, 1958. Unpaged.
KANSAS CITY Kansan, Kansas City, Kansas, Profiles, Vol. 2. [Kansas City,
Kansas City Kansan] n. d. 232p.
Kansas Magazine, 1960. [Manhattan, Kansas Magazine Publishing Association,
c!959.] 104p.
KEATON, BUSTER, with CHARLES SAMUELS, My Wonderful World of Slapstick.
New York, Doubleday & Company, 1960. 282p.
KELLEAM, JOSEPH E., The Little Men. New York, Avalon Books [c!960]. 226p.
KLAUDT, BETTY GRABER, Candle Flickers; Sayings for Savants; Sez Liz. No
impr. 40p.
KLIEWER, WARREN, Red Rose and Gray Cowl. Washington, D. C. [c!960].
63p.
KNIGHT, EDWARD, Wild Bill Hickok, the Contemporary Portrait of a Civil War
Hero. Franklin, N. H., Hillside Press, 1959. 61p.
KRAUSS, BOB, Here's Hawaii. New York, Coward-McCann [c!960]. 288o.
KRUEGER, KARL, The Way of the Conductor, His Origins, Purpose and Pro-
cedures. New York, Charles Scribner's Sons [c!958]. 250p.
LANE, NEOLA TRACY, Grasshopper Year. Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott Com-
pany [c!960]. 149p.
[LANE COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY], Pioneer Days in Lane County. N. p.
[Society, 1959]. Unpaged.
LAWLESS, RAY M., Folksingers and Folksongs in America . . . New York,
Duell, Sloan and Pearce [c!960]. 662p.
LAWRENCE, FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, Our First One Hundred fears,
1858-1958. Lawrence [1958?]. 32p.
LINDGREN, IDA (NIBELIUS), Beskrifning Ofver Var Resa till Amerika, 1870.
Stockholm, 1958. 49p.
, Brev Fran Nybyggarhemmet i Kansas, 1870-1881. [Goteborg, Elanders
Boktryckeri Aktiebolag, I960.] 86p.
LUCIA, ELLIS, Saga of Ben Holladay, Giant of the Old West. New York,
Hastings House [c!959]. 374p.
MCCALLUM, JOHN, Six Roads From Abilene; Some Personal Recollections of
Edgar Eisenhower. Seattle, Wood & Reber, 1960. 132p.
MCCLINTOCK, MIKE, David and the Giant. New York, Harper & Brothers
[c!960]. Unpaged.
McCLURE, MICHAEL, Hymns to St. Geryon and Other Poems. San Francisco,
Auerhahn Press, 1959. 54p.
MCNEILL, Lois JOHNSON, The Great Ngee, the Story of a Jungle Doctor. N. p.
[Commission on Ecumenical Mission Relations of the United Presbyterian
Church in the United States of America, c!959]. 189p.
MANNING, JACK W., John Gitt Pratt, Missionary Printer f Physician, Teacher and
Statesman. A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Central Baptist
Theological Seminary, Kansas City, Kansas, in Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Theology. N. p., 1951. Typed.
144p. Microfilm. 1 Vol. on 1 Reel.
MARTIN, DOUGLAS D., Earps of Tombstone. Tombstone, Ariz., Tombstone
Epitaph [c!959]. 65p.
282 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
MAYO, ELIZABETH (HALL), A Missionary Outlook, and Other Poems. [Leaven-
worth, Ketcheson & Burbank, 1889.] 47p.
MENNINGER, KARL, A Psychiatrist's World . . . New York, Viking Press,
1959. 931p.
, Theory of Psychoanalytic Technique. New York, Basic Books [c!958].
206p.
MILLER, HELEN MARKLEY, Benjamin Bonneville, Soldier-Explorer, 1796-1878.
New York, Julian Messner [c!957]. 192p.
MILLER, MARY, A Pillar of Cloud, the Story of Hesston College, 1909-1959.
North Newton, Mennonite Press, 1959. 260p.
MITCHELL, GRANT, comp., Mitchell Map of Harvey County, Kansas. Newton
n. d. 15p.
MITCHNER, STUART, Let Me Be Awake. New York, Thomas Y. Crowell Com-
pany [c!959]. 305p.
Mix, KATHERINE LYON, A Study in Yellow, the Yellow Book and Its Contribu-
tors. Lawrence, University of Kansas Press, 1960. 325p.
MOHL, EVANGELINE LOUISE, Lyrics of the Night, Poems; and, The Moonlight
Sonata, a Play in Two Acts. New York, Pageant Press [c!959]. [205]p.
MONAGHAN, JAY, Custer; the Life of George Armstrong Custer. Boston, Little,
Brown and Company [c!959]. 469p.
MOORE, JOHN HENRY, Horizon and Zenith of the Great Rebellion; or, The
Kansas Troubles, and the Taking of Vicksburg . . . Cincinnati, Elm
Street Printing Company, 1870. 409p.
MORDELL, ALBERT, comp., World of Haldeman-Julius. New York, Twayne
Publishers [c!960]. 288p.
MOSER, INEZ, Remember; Meditations Based Upon Communion Services in Six
Different Countries. New York, United Presbyterian Church in the United
States of America, 1959. 50p.
Mum, LEONARD ERLE, Elam Bartholomew, Pioneer, Farmer, Botanist. A Thesis
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master
of Science, Department of History, Government, and Philosophy, Kansas
State University of Agriculture and Applied Science. N. p., 1959. Typed.
115p.
NELSON, TRUMAN, The Surveyor. Garden City, N. Y., Doubleday & Company,
1960. 667p.
NICHOLS, LOUISE ELLEN (BENSON), The Life of Mrs. Louise E. Nichols. N. p.
[I960?]. Mimeographed. [8]p.
NORTHWEST PUBLISHING COMPANY, Plat Book of Pawnee County, Kansas. Min-
neapolis, Minn., Northwest Publishing Company, 1902. 49p.
NORVELL, FLORENCE GAIL, Little Store in Sandtown. Boston, Christopher
Publishing House [c!960]. 79p.
[OBERLIN DIAMOND JUBILEE, INC.], Decatur County Then and Now . . .
1885-1960. Oberlin, 1960. Unpaged.
OLATHE, FIRST METHODIST CHURCH, Our New Home for the Second Century ;
First Methodist Church, Olathe, Kansas, Founded 1858. [Olathe, Burns
Publishing Company] n. d. [12]p.
OVERTON, RICHARD K., Thought and Action, a Physiological Approach. New
York, Random House [c!959]. 117p.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 283
PEASA & COLE, CHICAGO, Complete Guide to the Gold Districts of Kansas 6-
Nebraska Containing Valuable Information With Regard to Routes, Dis-
tances, etc. etc. Chicago, Wm. H. Rand, 1859. 20p. (Mumey Reprint,
1959.)
PERRTNGS, MYRA, Music in December. Dallas, Triangle Publishing Company
[c!959]. 40p.
PETERSEN, SIGURD D., Retarded Children: GocTs Children. Philadelphia, West-
minster Press [c!960]. 156p.
PLACE, MARIAN (TEMPLETON), Fast-Draw Tilghman. New York, Julian Mess-
ner [c!959]. 191p.
PLETCHER, VERA EDITH (CROSBY), A History of Smith County, Kansas, to
1960. A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fiilfillment of the Requirements for
the Degree Master of Arts, Department of History, Political Science, and
Philosophy, Kansas State University of Agriculture and Applied Science.
Manhattan, 1960. Typed. [267]p.
Folk's Topeka (Shawnee County, Kansas) City Directory, 1960, Including
Shawnee County Taxpayers . . . Kansas City, Mo., R. L. Polk and
Company, c!960. [1570]p.
POPENOE, PAUL, and DOROTHY CAMERON DISNEY, Can This Marriage Be
Saved? New York, Macmillan Company [c!960]. 299p.
PRATT, LAURENCE, New American Legends. Mill Valley, Cal., Wings Press,
1958. 79p.
REED, J. W., Map of and Guide to the Kansas Gold Region . . . New
York, J. H. Colton, 1859. 24p. (Mumey Reprint, 1959.)
RICH, EVERETT, Heritage of Kansas, Selected Commentaries on Past Times.
Lawrence, University of Kansas Press, 1960. 359p.
RICHARDSON, ELMO R., and ALAN W. FARLEY, John Palmer Usher, Lincoln's
Secretary of the Interior. Lawrence, University of Kansas Press, 1960.
152p.
RILEY, JAMES FRANCIS, Recollections . . . Independence, Mo., John R.
James, c!959. 82p.
RISSER, EMMA KING, History of the Pennsylvania Mennonite Church in Kan-
sas. Hesston, Pennsylvania Mennonite Church, 1958. 95p.
RUCHAMES, Louis, ed., A John Brown Reader . . . Edited With Intro-
duction and Commentary . . . London, Abelard-Schuman [c!959].
431p.
RUGGLES, ELEANOR, The West-Going Heart, a Life of Vachel Lindsay. New
York, W. W. Norton & Company [c!959]. 448p.
Salemsborg, 1869-1959. N. p., 1959. Unpaged.
SALINA, FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, Centennial, 1860-1960. Salina [Con-
solidated], 1960. Unpaged.
SHOEMAKER, RALPH J., The Presidents Words, an Index. Vol. 6, Eisenhower,
1959. Louisville, Elsie DeGraff Shoemaker and Ralph J. Shoemaker
[c!960]. 162p.
SLUSSER, DOROTHY MALLETT, Bible Stories Retold for Adults. Philadelphia,
Westminster Press [c!960]. 128p.
SMITH COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY, Banner Township History. N. p. [1959].
Typed. Unpaged.
, Historical Notes of Smith County; Lebanon-Salem, by Judge C. Clyde
Myers ... No impr. Typed. 123p.
284 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
[ ], History of Lebanon 6- Oak Townships, 1959. N. p., 1959. Various
paging.
, History of Salem Methodist Church. N. p., 1959. Typed. Unpaged.
[ ], History of White Rock Township, 1959, Volume 1. N. p., 1959.
Various paging.
, Logan Township [by] Elmer Spurrier. No impr. Typed. Unpaged.
SNOW, DONALD CLIFFORD, The Justicer. New York, Rinehart & Company
[c!959]. 255p.
[SNYDER, JOHN W.], The Scrap-Book of Monrovia, Kansas. [Pasadena, Cal.]
1959. Unpaged.
SONS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, KANSAS SOCIETY, Roster, March, 1892
August, 1959. No impr. Mimeographed. [62]p.
STAHL, FRANK M., One-Way Ticket to Kansas . . . as Told to Margaret
Whittemore. Lawrence, University of Kansas Press, 1959. 146p.
STERNBERG, MARTHA L., George Mitter Sternberg. Chicago, American Medical
Association, 1920. 331p.
[STRANGE & HETZEL PUBLISHING COMPANY], "Howdy" This Is Your Official
Dodge City Greeter 6- Guide . . . [Dodge City, c!958.] 7Qp.
THOMPSON, HARLAN, We Were There With the California Forty-Niners. New
York, Grosset & Dunlap [c!956]. 175p.
TILGHMAN, ZOE A., Spotlight; Bat Masterson and Wyatt Earp as U. S. Deputy
Marshals. San Antonio, Tex., Naylor Company [c!960]. 21p.
TILLER AND TOILER, pub., Atlas and Plat Book of Pawnee County . . .
Lamed, 1916. 49p.
TOLBERT, AGNES, Log Cabin Days Along Salt Creek. Chicago, Adams Press,
1959. 60p.
TOPEKA, FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, Centennial, 1860-1960. Topeka, 1960.
27p.
UNRUH, OTTO D., How To Coach Winning Football. Englewood Cliffs, N. J.,
Prentice-Hall [c!960]. 179p.
WATERS, FRANK, The Earp Brothers of Tombstone; the Story of Mrs. Virgil
Earp. New York, Clarkson N. Potter [c!960]. 247p.
WATHENA, FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH, The Future Is Now; Centennial Yearbook
of First Baptist Church, Wathena, Kansas . . . [Wathena, Wathena
Times, 1958.] [21]p.
WEAVER, JOHN D., As I Live and Breathe. New York, Rinehart & Company
[c!959]. 247p.
WEDDLE, ETHEL H., Walter Chrysler, Boy Machinist. Indianapolis, Bobbs-
Merrill Company [c!960]. 192p.
WELLINGTON, FmsT METHODIST CHURCH, Seventy-Five Years of Methodism in
Wellington, Kansas, . . . 1873-1948. [Wellington, Daily News, 1948.]
27p.
WELLMAN, MANLY WADE, Candle of the Wicked. New York, G. P. Putnam's
Sons [c!960]. 317p.
, Rebel Songster, Songs the Confederates Sang . . . Music Scores
by Francis Wettman. Charlotte, N. C., Heritage House [c!959]. 53p.
, They Took Their Stand, the Founders of the Confederacy. New York,
G. P. Putnam's Sons [c!959]. 258p.
WELLMAN, PAUL ISELJN, The Fiery Flower. Garden City, N. Y., Doubleday
& Company, 1959. 285p.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 285
, Stuart Symington, Portrait of a Man With a Mission. Garden City,
N. Y., Doubleday fit Company, 1960. 283p.
WERSTEIN, IRVING, Marshal Without a Gun, Tom Smith. New York, Julian
Messner [c!959]. 192p.
WESTERN PUBLISHING COMPANY, Plat Book of Finney County, Kansas . . .
Ashland, Western Publishing Company, c!910. [101]p.
WESTERNERS, KANSAS CITY POSSE, Good Bye, Jesse! Kansas City, Mo., 1959.
20p.
WESTWOOD, ETHEL PAGE, Footloose. New York, Vantage Press [c!958]. 210p.
WHITE, ALTA BAKER, The Pageant of the History of Clifton, Kansas, 1859-1944.
[Clifton, News Print] n. d. Unpaged.
WICHITA, COMMUNITY PLANNING COUNCIL, Directory of Social Services of
Wichita and Sedgwick County. Wichita, Community Planning Council,
n. d. Mimeographed. lOOp.
WIEBE, DAVID V., They Seek a Country, a Survey of Mennonite Migrations
With Special Reference to Kansas and Gnadenau. Hillsboro, Mennonite
Brethren Publishing House, 1959. 222p.
WILLIAMS, JOHN, Butchers Crossing. New York, Macmillan Company, 1960.
239p.
WINFIELD, FIRST METHODIST CHURCH, Eightieth Anniversary of the First Meth-
odist Church, Winfield, Kansas, June 11, 1950. No impr. Unpaged.
WOMAN'S KANSAS DAY CLUB, History of Early Banks in Kansas . . .
Presented 29 January, 1960 . . . N. p., 1960. Unpaged.
YOUNGS, ROBERT W., What It Means To Be a Christian. New York, Farrar,
Straus & Cudahy [c!960]. 192p.
AMERICAN INDIANS AND THE WEST
ADAMS, RAMON F., A Fitting Death for Bitty the Kid. Norman, University of
Oklahoma Press [c!960]. 310p.
, The Rampaging Herd, a Bibliography of Books and Pamphlets on Men
and Events in the Cattle Industry. Norman, University of Oklahoma Press
[c!959]. 463p.
AMERICAN HERITAGE, Book of the Pioneer Spirit. New York, American Herit-
age Publishing Company [c!959]. [400]p.
ARMTTAGE, MERLE, Pagans, Conquistador es, Heroes and Martyrs. N. p., Man-
zanita Press [c!960]. 99p.
ATHEARN, ROBERT G., High Country Empire, the High Plains and Rockies.
New York, McGraw-Hill [c!960]. 358p.
BELL, ROBERT E., Guide to the Identification of Certain American Indian Pro-
jectile Points. N. p., Oklahoma Anthropological Society, 1958. 104p.
BERG, W. A., Mysterious Horses of Western North America. New York.,
Pageant Press [c!960]. 298p.
BISHOP, ISABELLA LUCY (BIRD), A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains.
Norman, University of Oklahoma Press [c!960]. 252p.
[BowE, RICHARD J., ed.], Historical Album of Colorado; an Official Souvenir
Rush to the Rockies Centennial, 1859-1959. [Denver, Editor, c!959.]
Unpaged.
BRISBIN, JAMES S., Beef Bonanza; or, How to Get Rich on the Plains . .
Norman, University of Oklahoma Press [c!959]. 208p.
286 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
BRYAN, JERRY, An Illinois Gold Hunter in the Black Hills. The Diary of Jerry
Bryan, March 13 to August 20, 1876, With an Introduction and Notes by
Clyde C. Walton. Springfield, Illinois State Historical Society, 1960. 40p.
CARTER, KATE B., Utah and the Pony Express. [Salt Lake City] Utah Pony Ex-
press Centennial Commission [c!960]. 88p.
CATLIN, GEORGE, Episodes From Life Among the Indians, and Last Rambles
:.;.' ..; '. Edited by Marvin C. Ross. Norman, University of Oklahoma Press
[c!959]. 357p.
CHANDLER, MELBOURNE C., Of Garry Owen in Glory; the History of the Seventh
United States Cavalry Regiment. N. p. [cl960]. 458p.
CHASE, DON M., He Opened the West and Led the First White Explorers
Through Northwest California, May-June, 1828. Crescent City, Cal, Del
Norte Triplicate Press, c!958. [40]p.
CHISHOLM, JAMES, South Pass, 1868; James Chisholm's Journal of the Wyo-
ming Gold Rush . . . Edited by Lola M. Homsher. N. p., University
of Nebraska Press, 1960. 244p.
CLAIRMONTE, GLENN, Calamity Was the Name for Jane. Denver, Sage Books
[c!959]. 215p.
CLARK, THOMAS D., Frontier America, the Story of the Westward Movement.
New York, Charles Scribner's Sons [c!959j. 832p.
CRAIG, REGINALD S., Fighting Parson, the Biography of Colonel John M. Chiv-
ington. Los Angeles, Westernlore Press, 1959. 284p.
CROCCHIOLA, STANLEY FRANCIS Louis, The Alma (New Mexico) Story, F. Stan-
ley. No impr. 18p.
, The Civil War in New Mexico, by F. Stanley. N. p. [c!960]. 508p.
, The San Marcial (New Mexico) Story, by F. Stanley. N. p. [I960].
18p.
DALE, EDWARD EVERETT, Frontier Ways, Sketches of Life in the Old West.
Austin, University of Texas Press [c!959]. 265p.
, Range Cattle Industry, Ranching on the Great Plains From 1865 to
1925. Norman, University of Oklahoma Press [c!960]. 207p.
EBERHART, PERRY, Guide to the Colorado Ghost Towns and Mining Camps.
[Denver] Sage Books, 1959. 479p.
ELLIS, H. HOLMES, Flint-Working Techniques of the American Indians: an
Experimental Study. Columbus, Ohio Historical Society, 1957. 78p.
EVARTS, HAL G., Jedediah Smith, Trail Blazer of the West. New York, G. P.
Putnam's Sons [c!958]. 192p.
FERGUSSON, ERNA, Murder and Mystery in New Mexico. Albuquerque, Merle
Armitage [c!948]. [198]p.
FIELD, MATTHEW C., Matt Field on the Santa Fe Trail, Collected by Clyde and
Mae Reed Porter .".<*. Norman, University of Oklahoma Press [I960].
322p.
FURNISS, NORMAN F., The Mormon Conflict, 1850-1859. New Haven, Yale
University Press, 1960. Slip.
GOETZMANN, WILLIAM H., Army Exploration in the American West, 1803-1863.
New Haven, Yale University Press, 1959. 509p.
HAFEN, LEROY R., and ANN W. HAFEN, eds., Fremont's Fourth Expedition; a
Documentary Account of the Disaster of 1848-1849 . . . Glendale,
Cal., Arthur H. Clark Company, 1960. 319p. (The Far West and the
Rockies Historical Series, 1820-1875, Vol. 11.)
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 287
, Handcarts to Zion, the Story of a Unique Western Migration, 1856-
1860 . . . Glendale, Gal., Arthur H. Clark Company, 1960. 328p.
(The Far West and the Rockies Historical Series, 1820-1875, Vol. 14.)
HALL, MARTIN HARDWICK, Sibley's New Mexico Campaign. Austin, University
of Texas Press [c!960]. 366p.
HANSON, CHARLES E., JR., The Plains Rife. Harrisburg, Pa., Stackpole Com-
pany [c!960]. 171p.
HARRINGTON, M. R., Ozark Bluff-Dwellers. New York, Museum of the Ameri-
can Indian Heye Foundation, 1960. 185p.
HOLIDAY MAGAZINE, American Panorama, West of the Mississippi .
Garden City, N. Y., Doubleday & Company [c!960]. 405p.
HORAN, JAMES D., Desperate Men; Revelations From the Sealed Pinkerton
Files. New York, G. P. Putnam's Sons [c!949]. 296p.
HOWBERT, IRVING, Indians of the Pike's Peak Region . . . New York,
Knickerbocker Press, 1914. 230p.
HUNGERFORD, JOHN B., Narrow Gauge to Silverton, Centennial Edition. [Re-
seda, Cal., Hungerford Press, c!959.] 36p.
KURD, C. W., Bents' Stockade, Hidden in the Hills. [N. p., Bent County Demo-
crat, c!960.] [92]p.
HYDE, GEORGE E., Indians of the High Plains, From the Prehistoric Period to
the Coming of Europeans. Norman, University of Oklahoma Press [c!959].
231p.
KNIGHT, OLIVER, Following the Indian Wars . . . Norman, University of
Oklahoma Press [c!960j. 348p.
KNOBLOCK, BYRON W., Banner-Stones of the North American Indian. La-
Grange, 111., Author, 1939. 596p.
KYNER, JAMES H., End of the Track, as Told to Hawthorne Daniel. [Lincoln]
University of Nebraska Press, 1960. 280p.
MCCRACKEN, HAROLD, George Catlin and the Old Frontier. New York, Dial
Press, 1959. 216,
MCDERMOTT, JOHN FRANCIS, George Caleb Bingham, River Portraitist. Nor-
man, University of Oklahoma Press [c!959], 454p.
MACDONALD, RANALD, Narrative of His Early Life on the Columbia . . .
With a Sketch of His Later Life on the Western Frontier, 1824-1894. Edited
. . . by William S. Lewis and Naojiro Murakami. Spokane, Eastern
Washington State Historical Society, 1923. 333p.
MADSEN, BRIGHAM D., The Bannock of Idaho. Caldwell, Idaho, Caxton Print-
ers, 1958. 382p.
MARCY, RANDOLPH B., The Prairie Traveler, a Hand-Book for Overland Expedi-
tions . . . New York, Harper & Brothers, 1859. 340p. (Mumey Re-
print, 1959.)
MILLER, JAMES KNOX POLK, Road to Virginia City . . . Edited by An-
drew F. Rotte. Norman, University of Oklahoma Press [c!960]. 143p.
MITCHELL, S. H., The Indian Chief, Journeycake. Philadelphia, American
Baptist Publication Society, 1895. 108p. Microfilm. 1 Vol. on 1 Reel.
MORGAN, LEWIS HENRY, Indian Journals, 1859-62, Edited With an Introduc-
tion, by Leslie A. White . . . Ann Arbor, University of Michigan
[c!959j. [231]p.
288 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
O'CONNOR, RICHARD, Pat Garrett; a Biography of the Famous Marshal and the
Killer of Billy the Kid. Garden City, N. Y., Doubleday & Company, 1960.
286p.
O'KEEFFE, CHARLEY, Western Story; the Recollections of Charley O'Kieffe,
1884-1898. N. p., University of Nebraska Press, 1960. 224p.
POTAWATOMI MUSEUM, ANGOLA, IND., Ancient American Indian Projectile
Point Flint Type Bulletin . . . Angola, 1958. [7]p.
REA, RALPH R., Sterling Price, the Lee of the West. Little Rock, Ark., Pioneer
Press [c!959]. 229p.
REID, MAYNE, Scalp Hunters: or, Adventures Among the Trappers. New York,
Carleton, 1874. 358p.
ROUSTIO, EDWARD, A History of the Life of Isaac McCoy in Relationship to
Early Indian Migrations and Missions as Revealed in His Unpublished Manu-
scripts. A Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Central Baptist
Theological Seminary, Kansas City, Kansas, in Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Theology. N. p., 1954. Typed.
234p. Microfilm. 1 Vol. on 1 Reel.
RUSSELL, VIRGIL Y., Indian Artifacts, Completely Revised and Enlarged.
[Boulder, Colo., Johnson Publishing Company, 1957.] 170p.
SANDOZ, MARI, Son of the Gamblin' Man, the Youth of an Artist. New York,
Clarkson N. Potter [c!960]. 333p.
SANFORD, MOLLIE DORSEY, Mottie; the Journal of Mollie Dorsey Sanford in
Nebraska and Colorado Territories, 1857-1866 . . . Notes by Donald
F. Danker. [Lincoln] University of Nebraska Press, 1959. 201p.
SETTLE, RAYMOND W., Pony Express, Heroic Effort Tragic End. (Reprinted
from Utah Historical Quarterly, Vol. 27, No. 2, April, 1959.) [23]p.
SHIELDS, G. O., Hunting in the Great West . . . Chicago, Belford, Clarke
& Company, 1884. 306p.
SONNICHSEN, C. L., Tularosa, Last Frontier of the West. New York, Devin-
Adair Company, 1960. 336p.
Southwestern Historical Quarterly Cumulative Index, Vols. 41-60, July, 1987
April, 1957. Austin, Texas State Historical Association, 1960. 574p.
SPELL, LESLIE DOYLE, and HAZEL M. SPELL, Forgotten Men of Cripple Creek.
Denver, Big Mountain Press, 1959. 160p.
STOUTENBURGH, JOHN L., JR., Dictionary of the American Indian. New York,
Philosophical Library [c!960]. 462p.
SUNDER, JOHN EDWARD, Bill Sublette, Mountain Man. Norman, University of
Oklahoma Press [c!959]. 279p.
TINKLE, LON, and ALLEN MAXWELL, eds., The Cowboy Reader. New York,
Longmans, Green and Company, 1959. 307p.
U. S. BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS, Final Roll Wyandotte Tribe of Oklahoma,
Prepared Pursuant to the Act of August 1, 1956. No impr. 65p.
WARD, HARRIET SHERRTLL, Prairie Schooner Lady, the Journal of Harriet Sherrill
Ward, 1853, as Presented by Ward G. De Witt and Florence Stark De Witt.
Los Angeles, Westernlore Press, 1959. 180p.
WESTERNERS, DENVER, 1958 Brand Book of the Denver Westerners, Edited by
Nolie Mumey. Boulder, Johnson Publishing Company, 1959. 361p.
, Los ANGELES, Brand Book, Book Eight. [Los Angeles] Los Angeles
Corral [c!959]. 229p.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 289
WHEAT, CARL I., 1540-1861 Mapping the Transmississippi West. Volume 3,
From the Mexican War to the Boundary Surveys, 1846-1854. San Francisco,
Institute of Historical Cartography, 1959. 349p.
GENEALOGY AND LOCAL HISTORY
[ABELS, MARIE (ROBINSON)], Heraldic Art of a Few of Our Families . . .
No impr. 59p.
AMERICAN CLAN GREGOR SOCIETY, Year Book Containing the Proceedings of
the 1958 Annual Gathering. Washington, D. C., The American Clan Gregor
Society [c!959]. 61p.
American Genealogical-Biographical Index . . . Vols. 29-32. Middle-
town, Conn., Published Under the Auspices of an Advisory Committee
Representing the Cooperating Subscribing Libraries . . . 1959-1960.
4 Vols.
AMERICAN SOCIETY OF GENEALOGISTS, Genealogical Research Methods and
Sources, Edited by Milton Rubincam. Washington, D. C., 1960. 456p.
ARTHUR, GLENN DORA (FOWLER), Annals of the Fowler Family . . . Aus-
tin, Tex., Ben C. Jones & Company, 1901. 327p.
ASSOCIATION FOR THE PRESERVATION OF VIRGINIA ANTIQUITIES, JOSEPH BRYAN
BRANCH, GLOUCESTER, Epitaphs of Gloucester and Mathews Counties in
Tidewater, Virginia, Through 1865. Richmond, Virginia State Library, 1959.
168p. ( Virginia State Library Publications, No. 9. )
BABER, ADIN, Nancy Hanks of Undistinguished Families, a Genealogical, Bio-
graphical and Historical Study of the Ancestry of the Mother of Abraham
Lincoln. Kansas, 111., Privately Printed, 1960. [386]p.
BALL, ROY HUTTON, Pioneer Heritage, Geneology of One Branch of the Hutton
Family. Oklahoma City, 1960. 33p.
BANKS, WAYNE, History of fell County, Arkansas. [Van Buren, Ark., Press-
Argus, 1959.] 298p.
BASS, CORA, Abstracts of Sampson County, North Carolina, Witts, 1784-1895.
Clinton, N. C., Bass Publishing Company, c!958. 175p.
, Marriage Bonds of Duplin County, North Carolina, 1749-1868. [Clin-
ton, N. C., Bass Publishing Company, c!959.J 144p.
Biographical and Genealogical History of Cass, Miami, Howard and Tipton
Counties, Indiana. Chicago, Lewis Publishing Company, 1898. 2 Vols.
Biographical History of Shelby and Audubon Counties, Iowa . . . Chicago,
W. S. Dunbar & Company, 1889. 826p.
BLAKE, WILLIAM P., ed., History of the Town of Hamden, Connecticut, With an
Account of the Centennial Celebration, June 15, 1886 . . . New Haven,
Price, Lee & Company, 1888. 350p.
BLAKEMORE, MARY STEWART, A Narrative Genealogy of the Stewarts of Sequat-
chie Valley, Tennessee, and Allied Families. Richmond, Dietz Press, 1960.
227p.
BLOSS, RICHARD R., Bloss Genealogy; Edmund and Mary Bloss and Their Des-
cendants in North America. Beaumont, Tex., 1959. 89p.
BODDIE, JOHN BENNETT, Historical Southern Families. Redwood City, Cal.,
Pacific Coast Publishers [c!958]. 3 Vols.
BRADSBY, H. C., History of Bradford County, Pennsylvania, With Biographical
Sketches. Chicago, S. B. Nelson & Company, 1891. 1320p.
196253
290 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
CAMERON, VIOLA ROOT, Emigrants From Scotland to America, 1774-1775,
Copied From a Loose Bundle of Treasury Papers in the Public Record Office,
London, England . . . Baltimore, Southern Book Company, 1959.
117p.
CAPPON, LESTER J., and STELLA F. DUFF, Virginia Gazette Index, 1736-1780.
Williamsburg, Va., Institute of Early American History and Culture, 1950.
2 Vols.
CARTER, ETHELMAE EYLAR, Our family History, Descendants and Ancestors
of Our Great Grandparents . . . Minneapolis, Burgess Publishing
Company, 1958. 459p.
CARTER, W. C., and A. J. GLOSSBRENNER, History of York County [Pennsyl-
vania] From Its Erection to the Present Time (1729-1834). New Edition.
With Additions Edited by A. Monroe Aurand, Jr. Harrisburg, Pa., Privately
Printed, 1930. 221p.
CHAMBERLAIN, GEORGE WALTER, The Spragues of Maiden, Massachusetts.
Boston, Privately Printed, 1923. 317p.
CHAPPELEAR, GEORGE WARREN, Families of Virginia, Volume 2; Chappelear.
Dayton, Va., Shenandoah Press, 1932. 23cm.
CLAGHORN, WILLIAM CRUMBY, comp., The Barony of Cleghorne, A. D. 1203,
Lanarkshire, Scotland, to the Family of Claghorn, A. D. 1912, United States
of America. [Philadelphia, Lyon & Armor Printers, 1912.] Microfilm.
132p. on 1 Reel.
CLENDENING, A. ELIZABETH, Dunaways of Virginia. Ogunquit, Me., S. Judson
Dunaway, 1959. 156p.
COFFMAN, FLOYD WILMER, The Conrad Clan; Family of John Stephen Conrad,
Sr., and Attied Lines. Harrisonburg, Va., Joseph K. Ruebush, 1939. 355p.
COLKET, MEREDITH B., comp., Jenks Family of England, Compiled Under the
Terms of the Will of Harlan W. Jenks, Deceased. (Reprinted from New
England Historical and Genealogical Register, Vol. 110, Nos. 437-440, 1956.)
55p.
COLLINS, CARR P., Jr., Royal Ancestors of Magna Charta Barons . ; .
the Collins Genealogy . . . Dallas, Tex., c!959. 297p.
Combined History of Randolph, Monroe and Perry Counties, Illinois . * .
Philadelphia, J. L. McDonough & Company, 1883. 510p.
Commemorative Biographical Encyclopedia of the Juniata Valley, Comprising
the Counties of Huntingdon, Mifflin, Juniata and Perry, Pennsylvania
. . . Chambersburg, J. M. Runk & Company, 1897. 2 Vols.
Commemorative Biographical Record of the Counties of Sandusky and Ottawa,
Ohio . . . Chicago, J. H. Beers & Company, 1896. 854p.
CORN, SILAS ANDREW, and SHIRLEY CORN, Our Family Tree. Beaverton, Ore.,
1959. Various paging.
CORNWALL, EDWARD E., William Cornwall and His Descendants, a Genea-
logical History . . . New Haven, Turtle, Morehouse and Taylor, 1901.
178p.
CROSSON, FRANK E., History of Taylor County, Iowa, From the Earliest Historic
Times to 1910. Chicago, S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1910. 699p.
DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, KENTUCKY SOCIETY, KENTUCKY
RECORDS RESEARCH COMMITTEE, comp., Kentucky Cemetery Records,
Volume 1. N. p., 1960. 471p.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 291
, OHIO SOCIETY, Official Roster III, Soldiers of the American Revolution
Who Lived in the State of Ohio. N. p., 1959. 448p.
, OKLAHOMA SOCIETY, Roster, 1909-1959, and Register of Ancestors
. . . N. p., Oklahoma Society Daughters of the American Revolution
[c!959]. 199p.
DAVIS, BAILEY FULTON, comp., Amherst County, Virginia, Courthouse Minia-
tures; an Abstract of All Items in Deed Book A, 1761-1765, Amherst County,
Virginia. Amherst Courthouse, Va., Compiler [c!960]. 50p.
DES COGNETS, ANNA (RUSSELL), William Russell and His Descendants.
[Princeton, N. J., c!960.] 152p.
DICKORE, MARIE, Hessian Soldiers in the American Revolution; Records of
Their Marriages and Baptisms of Their Children in America . . .
Cincinnati, 1959. 25p.
DICKSON, LURA M., Ancestry and Descendants of David Carton of New Jer-
sey and Ohio. Montezuma, Iowa, n. p., 1952. Mimeographed. 67p.
, Descendants of Joseph Francis of Maryland and Virginia. Monte-
zuma, Iowa, 1949. Various paging.
DUTCH SETTLERS SOCIETY OF ALBANY, Yearbook, Vols. 34 and 85, 1958-1960.
Albany, N. Y. [Society I960]. 70p.
DUTCHESS COUNTY [NEW YORK] HISTORICAL SOCIETY, Year Book, Vol. 43,
1958. N.p. [c!960]. 59p.
EAST TENNESSEE HISTORICAL SOCIETY, Publications, No. 31, 1959. Knoxville,
Society, 1959. 157p.
EISENBERG, WILLIAM EDWARD, This Heritage; the Story of Lutheran Beginnings
in the Lower Shenandoah Valley, and of Grace Church, Winchester. Win-
chester, Va., Trustees of Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church, 1954. 395p.
ELLSBERRY, ELIZABETH PRATHER, comp., Macon County, Missouri, Will Records
1838-1880 ... and Marriage Records . . . Chillicothe, Mo.,
Compiler, n. d. 72p.
, comp., Marriage Records, 1820-1850, and Will Records, 1824-1849,
of Ray County, Missouri. Chillicothe, Mo., Compiler, n. d. 74p.
EVANS, CHARLES W., comp., Biographical and Historical Accounts of the Fox,
Ellicott, and Evans Families . . . Buffalo, Baker, Jones and Company,
1882. [310]p.
EVANS, MRS. MABLE E. ADAMS, Kimble and Elvina (Smith) Adams and Some
of Their Descendants. Manhattan, 1958. [18]p.
FAUQUIER COUNTY, VIRGINIA, BICENTENNIAL COMMITTEE, Fauquier County,
Virginia, 1759-1959. Warrenton, Va., Committee [c!959]. 335p.
FISHER, GEORGE D., History and Reminiscences of the Monumental Church,
Richmond, Virginia, From 1814 to 1878. Richmond, Whittet & Shepper-
son, 1880. 508p.
[FORD, JAMES EVERETT], A History of Grundy County . . . Trenton, Mo.,
News Publishing Company, 1908. 875p.
[FREEMAN, IRA S.], History of Montezuma County, Colorado, Land of Promise
and Fulfilment . . . [Boulder, Johnson Publishing Company, c!958.]
323p.
FRIENDS, SOCIETY OF, WEST BRANCH QUARTERLY MEETING, WEST MDLTON,
OHIO, History . . . 1807-1957. No impr. 74p.
292 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
GEORGIA, DEPARTMENT OF ARCHIVES AND HISTORY, Revolutionary Soldiers'
Receipts for Georgia Bounty Grants. Atlanta, Foote and Davies Company,
1928. 85p.
GIULVEZAN, ISABEL STEBBENS, Collection of Letters Written by the Schott
Family and Their Kin (1836-1897). St. Louis, n. p., 1959. Mimeo-
graphed. 54p.
GOTT, JOHN K., A History of Marshall (Formerly Salem), Fauquier County,
Virginia. N. p., Denlinger's [1959?]. 94p.
GRABOWSKH, BESSIE BERRY, DuVal Family of Virginia, 1701; Descendants of
Daniel DuVal, Huguenot and Allied Families. Richmond, Va., Dietz
Printing Company, 1931. 253p.
HADDAM, CONN., FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, Two Hundredth Anniver-
sary of the First Congregational Church of Haddam, Connecticut . . .
Haddam, 1902. 360p.
HADLER, MABEL JACQUES, Towner County North Dakota Families, Volume 2.
Long Beach, CaL, 1959. Mimeographed. [506]p.
, Towner County, North Dakota, Families, Volume S. Long Beach,
Cal., 1959. Mimeographed. Various Paging.
HANES, B. E., Doak Family History and Genealogy. [Clarksburg, W. Va., Ex-
ponent Job Shop] n. d. lOOp.
[HARRIS, VERA SPEER], comp., History of Pulaski and Bleckley Counties, Geor-
gia, 1808-1956. [Hawkinsville, Ga.] Daughters of the American Revolu-
tion, Hawkinsville Chapter [c!957, c!958]. 2 Vols.
HARTLEY, RACHEL M., The History of Camden, Connecticut, 1786-1959. Ham-
den, Shoe String Press, 1959. 506p.
HATCH, VERNELLE A., ed., Illustrated History of Jamestown, Chautauqua
County, N. Y. . . . Jamestown, C. E. Burke, 1900. 297p.
HEALD, EDWARD THORNTON, The Stark County Story, Volume 4, Part 3, the
American Way of Life, 1917-1959. Canton, Ohio, Stark County Historical
Society, c!959. 1065p.
HECK, EARL LEON, History of the Heck Family of America With Special At-
tention Given to Those Families Who Originated in Indiana, Kentucky,
Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Englewood, Ohio, c!959. 50p.
HEISS, WILLARD, comp., Indiana Quaker Records, Milford Monthly Meeting,
1823, Wayne County, Indiana. Indianapolis, Compiler, 1960. 92p.
History of Clayton County, Iowa . . . Chicago, Inter-State Publishing
Company, 1882. 1144p.
History of Johnson County, Iowa . . . 1836-1882 . . . Iowa City,
1883. 966p.
History of Menard and Mason Counties, Illinois . . . Chicago, O. L.
Baskin & Company, 1879. 871p.
History of Poweshiek County, Iowa . . . Des Moines, Union Historical
Company, 1880. 975p.
History of Tama County, Iowa . . . Springfield, HI., Union Publishing
Company, 1883. 1081p.
History of the Counties of Woodbury and Plymouth, Iowa, Including an Ex-
tended Sketch of Sioux City . . . Chicago, A. Warner & Company,
1890-91. 1022p.
History of the First Presbyterian Church of Belle fontaine, Ohio . . .
Bellefontaine, Index Printing & Publishing Company, 1900. 278p.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 293
History of the Upper Ohio Valley . . . Madison, Wis., Brant & Fuller,
1891. 826p.
History of Waukesha County, Wisconsin . . . Chicago, Western Historical
Company, 1880. 1006p.
History of Wyandot County, Ohio . . . Chicago, Leggett, Conaway &
Company, 1884. 1065p.
HITZ, ALEX M., comp., Authentic List of All Land Lottery Grants Made to
Veterans of the Revolutionary War by the State of Georgia ... At-
lanta, By Authority of Ben W. Fortson, Jr., Secretary of State, 1955. 78p.
HOES, ROSWELL RANDALL, Index to the Baptismal and Marriage Registers of
the Old Dutch Church of Kingston, N. Y. New York, Privately Printed,
1890. 475p.
HOLLON, CLAY, comp., Genealogy of Hollon and Related Families, Early
Settlers of Eastern Kentucky, and Their Descendants. Chicago, Compiler,
1958. 108p.
HOLM, JAMES B., ed., Portage Heritage, a History of Portage County, Ohio
. . . Sesqui-Centennial Edition, 1957. N. p., Portage County Historical
Society, 1957. 824p.
HUGUENOT SOCIETY OF SOUTH CAROLINA, Transactions, No. 64. Charleston,
Society, 1959. 45p.
HUNTER, STEPHEN BEN, and MARY AMANDA MEDLEY HUNTER, The Joseph
Hunter and Related Families . . . of Southeast Missouri . . .
Edited by Felix Eugene Snider. Cape Girardeau, Mo., Ramfre Press, 1959.
[374]p.
HUXFORD, FOLKS, History of Brooks County, Georgia. Quitman, Ga., Daughters
of the American Revolution, Hannah Clarke Chapter, 1948. 607p.
JUDY, E. L., History of Grant and Hardy Counties, West Virginia. Charleston,
W. Va., Charleston Printing Company [c!951]. 466p.
KANE, JOSEPH NATHAN, American Counties . . . New York, Scarecrow
Press, 1960. 500p.
Kenton County, Kentucky, Cemeteries and Bible Records, 1753-1957. Cov-
ington, Ky., Christopher Gist Historical Society, 1958. Mimeographed.
[KNAPP, ALFRED AVERELL, comp.], A Knapp Line Back to Adam With Hugue-
not, Crusade and Magna Charta Connections. [Winter Park, Fla., Compiler,
I960.] Mimeographed. lOp.
KNAPP, SHEPHERD, Personal Records of the Brick Presbyterian Church in the
City of New York, 1809-1908 . . . New York, Published by the Trus-
tees of the Brick Presbyterian Church, 1909. 262p.
KNISKERN, WALTER HAMLIN, comp., Some of the Descendants of Johann Peter
Kniskern of Schoharie County, New York .>>.>; Petersburg, Va., Plum-
mer Printing Company, 1960. 470p.
KNORR, CATHERINE LINDSAY, comp., Marriage Bonds and Ministers' Returns
of Chesterfield County, Virginia, 1771-1815. N. p., Compiler, 1958. 159p.
_ , comp., Marriages of Orange County, Virginia, 1747-1810. N. p., Com-
piler [c!959]. 122p.
LADD, HORATIO OLIVER, Origin and History of Grace Church, Jamaica, New
York. New York, Shakespeare Press, 1914. 441p.
LEA, REBA FITZPATRICK, The Lea Family in Nelson County, Virginia . ;. .
[Lovingston, Va., 1946.] 245p.
294 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
LEATHAM, Louis S., Letham or Leatham Family Book of Remembrance . . .
Ann Arbor, Mich., Edwards Brothers, 1955. 1072p.
LEBANON, ME., Vital Records of Lebanon, Maine, to the Year 1892. N. p., Pub-
lished Under the Authority of the Maine Historical Society, 1923. 149p.
Lineage and the Descendants of Tarpley Early Taylor, Prepared by His Chil-
dren and Grandchildren. N. p. [1959?]. 15p.
LINES, ELIZA J., Marks-Platt Ancestry. Sound Beach, Conn., 1902. 98p.
[LuziER, ATHLYN LUCILLE, comp.], As the Conard Family Tree Grows, Volume
1. Colorado Springs, Rose Printing Company, n. d. 345p.
MCALLISTER, ANNABELLE C., and EDWARD N. MCALLISTER, comps., Brasfield-
Brassfield Genealogies. [Cranford, N. J., Compilers, c!959.] 720p.
MCMAHON, HELEN G., Chautauqua County, a History. Buffalo, N. Y., Henry
Stewart [c!958]. 339p.
MACON, ALETHEA JANE, Gideon Macon of Virginia and Some of His Descend-
ants . . . Macon, Ga., J. W. Burke Company [c!956]. 267p.
Mayflower Descendant, 1620-1937, Index of Persons, Volumes 1-34, A-G. Bos-
ton, Massachusetts Society of Mayflower Descendants, 1959. 275p.
MILLER, BESS TOMPKTNS, comp., Our Folks, a Genealogy of the Ancestors and
Descendants of Reuben Tompkins. Corvallis, Ore., Compiler [c!953]. Un-
paged.
MILLER, EDWARD THOMSON, Richard Brown, One Line of Descendants. Plym-
outh, Mich., Miller Publishers, 1959. 80p.
[MILLSPAUGH, FRANCIS C.], MiUspaugh Milspaw. [Swampscott, Mass., 1959.]
312p.
MISSISSIPPI GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY, comp., Cemetery and Bible Records, Vol.
6. Jackson, Society, 1959. 223p.
MOORE, ADELLA BRECKENRIDGE, History of the Bettevue Presbyterian Cemetery
at Caledonia, Missouri. Farmington, Elmwood Press Print, n. d. 55p.
MOORE, LILLIAN (STEINMEYER), and MILDRED C. STEINMEYER, Steinmeier or
Steinmeyer, 1857-1957; One Hundred fears in Kansas and the Neighboring
States. No impr. Unpaged.
MORROW, J. D. A., and MARY MORROW HAYS, Family and Descendants of Wil-
liam Barnes Adams and Martha Larimore Adams of Laurel, Indiana . . .
N.p. [c!958]. 180p.
NATIONAL SOCDZTY OF THE COLONIAL DAMES OF AMERICA, MASSACHUSETTS,
Register of Ancestors Accepted Since 1944, Compiled by Marion Charlotte
Reed. Boston, 1959. 15p.
NATIONAL SOCIETY OF THE DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN COLONISTS, KNOX-
VJLLE CHAPTER, Bible Records of Families of East Tennessee and Their Con-
nections From Other Areas, Vols. 1-2. N. p., Daughters of the American
Colonists, Knoxville Chapter, and Daughters of the American Revolution,
James White Chapter, 1959-1960. 2 Vols.
NEFF, LEWIS EDWIN, comp., Lineages of the Society of Mayflower Descendants
in the State of Oklahoma. [Tulsa, Oklahoma Society of Mayflower Descend-
ants, c!959.] 174p.
NEW HANOVER COUNTY, N. C., INFERIOR COURT OF PLEAS AND QUARTER SES-
SIONS, New Hanover County Court Minutes, 1788-1769. Abstracted, Com-
piled and Edited by Alexander McDonald Walker . . . Bethesda, Md.,
A. M. Walker, 1958. 123p.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 295
PANCAKE, FRANK ROBBINS, Historical Sketch of the First Presbyterian Church
[Staunton, Virginia]. Richmond, Va., Whittet & Shepperson [1954?]. 92p.
Panhandle-Plains Historical Review, Vol. 32. Canyon, Tex., Panhandle-Plains
Historical Society, 1959. 120p.
PARSONS, MARGARET WELLINGTON, Index (Abridged) to the New England His-
torical and Genealogical Register, Volumes 51 Through 112 . . . [Marl-
borough, Mass.] Privately Printed, 1959. 406p.
PECK, DARIUS, A Genealogical Account of the Descendants in the Male Line
of William Peek, One of the Founders in 1688 of the Colony of New Haven,
Conn. Hudson, Bryan & Goeltz, 1877. 253p.
PETERSON, CLARENCE STEWART, Known Military Dead During the American
Revolutionary War, 1775-1783. Baltimore, Md., c!959. Mimeographed.
187p.
PHELPS, RICHARD H., History of Newgate of Connecticut, at Simsbury, Now
East Granby . . . Albany, J. Munsell, 1860. I51p.
PORTER, WILL, Annals of Polk County, Iowa, and City of Des Moines. Des
Moines, George A. Miller Printing Company, 1898. 1064p.
Portrait and Biographical Album of Jo Daviess County, Illinois . . .
Chicago, Chapman Brothers, 1889. [802]p.
Portrait and Biographical Record of Allen and Putnam Counties, Ohio . . .
Chicago, A. W. Bowen & Company, 1896. [1181]p.
Portrait and Biographical Record of Berrien and Cass Counties, Michigan
. . . Chicago, Biographical Publishing Company, 1893. 922p.
RAPHAEL, EVELYN HUBER, History of the Haslett-Lake Lansing Area, Meridian
Township, Ingham County, Michigan. [Haslett, Mich., c!958.] 94p.
ROY, NANCY REBA, Descendants of William Duncan, the Elder. San Diego,
Cal., Citizen Printing and Publishing Company, 1959. 267p.
SCARBOROUGH, JEWEL DAVIS, Southern Kith and Kin. Volume 4, Family Pot-
pourri. [Abilene, Tex.] n. p. [c!958]. 421p.
SEYMOUR, NADA, comp., Marriage Records, Perry County, Ohio, 1818-1878.
Washington, D. C., n. d. 535p.
SHARPLES, STEPHEN PASCHALL, Records of the Church of Christ at Cambridge
in New England, 1632-1830 . . . Boston, Eben Putnam, 1906. 578p.
Short History of the Moon Family With Records of the Family of James and
Sarah Moon. N. p. [I960]. 55p.
SHRINER, CHARLES A., Paterson, New Jersey, Its Advantages for Manufactur-
ing and Residence . . . Paterson, Press Printing and Publishing Com-
pany, 1890. 326p.
SHULTS, CHARLES J., ed., Historical and Biographical Sketch of Cherry Creek,
Chautauqua County, New York . . . N. p., Charles J. Shults, 1900.
[180]p.
SLOAN, MARY RAHN, History of Camp Dennison [Ohio], 1796-1956. N. p.
[Camp Dennison Historical Committee, c!956]. 175p.
[SMALLEY, MATTHEW F.], John Smalley and His Descendants in America,
June 5, 1632 January 1, 1960. N. p., 1960? 122p.
SMITH, JAMES H History of Duchess County, New York, With
Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and
Pioneers. Syracuse, D. Mason & Company, 1882. [592]p.
296 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
SMITH, SARAH QUINN, Early Georgia Wills and Settlements of Estates, Wilkes
County. [Washington, Ga., 1959.] Mimeographed. 81p.
SOCIETY OF COLONIAL WARS, Publications Nos. 3-5, 8-9, 1897-1899, 1906-
1908. Boston, Printed for the Society, 1897-1908. 5 Vols.
SOCIETY OF INDIANA PIONEERS, Year Book, 1959. Published by Order of the
Board of Governors, 1959. 146p.
SOCIETY OF THE CINCINNATI, Roster [Washington, D. C.] Society, 1959.
126p.
STONE, CHARLES H., comp., Stones of Surry, Revised Edition 1955. Char-
lotte, N. C., Observer Printing House [c!955]. 499p.
Stroebe Story; the Descendants in America of Wilhelm Wolfgang Gerhardt
Strobe and Anna Catherina Shubelin . . . N. p. [1959]. 42p.
SUMNER, EDITH BARTLETT, comp., Ancestry and Descendants of Amaziah Hall
and Betsey Baldwin. Los Angeles, 1954. 255p.
SWEENY, LENORA HIGGINBOTHAM, Captain Alexander Fleming and Joyce, His
Wife, of Westfalia, Rappahannock County, Virginia. (Reprinted from
Americana, the Quarterly Historical Magazine, Vol. 33, No. 3, July, 1939.)
31p.
TAINTOR, CHARLES M., Genealogy and History of the Taintor Family, From
the Period of Their Emigration From Wales . . . Greenfield, Merriam
and Mirick, 1847. 82p.
TEG, WILLIAM, History of Porter. Kezar Falls, Me., Parsonsfield-Porter His-
torical Society [c!957]. 315p.
TOOLE, K. Ross, Montana, an Uncommon Land. Norman, University of Okla-
homa Press [c!959]. 278p.
Town of Hertford Bi-Centennial, 1758-1958, and Historic Data of Perquimans
County, North Carolina. No impr. 63p.
TRAYLOR, JACOB L., Past and Present of Montgomery County, Illinois. Chicago,
S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1904. 770p.
TRIGGS, J. H., History and Directory of Laramie City, Wyoming Territory
. . . Laramie City, Daily Sentinel Print, 1875. 91p. [Facsimile Copy,
1955.]
, History of Cheyenne and Northern Wyoming, Embracing tlie Gold
Fields of the Black Hills . . . Omaha, Herald Steam Book and Job
Printing House, 1876. 132p. [Facsimile Copy, 1955.]
TUCKER, E., History of Randolph County Indiana . . . Chicago, A. L.
Kingman, 1882. 512p.
TULLJDGE, EDWARD W., History of Salt Lake City and Its Founders . . .
Salt Lake City, Author, n. d. [1275]p.
U. S. CENSUS, 1800, 1800 Census of Kent County, Delaware, Transcribed and
Edited by Ellen Stanley Rogers and Louise E. Easter. Bladensburg, Md.,
Genealogical Recorders, 1959. 104p.
, 1810, Virginia, 1810 Census Population Schedules, Accomack-Buck-
ingham Counties. Microfilm. 1 Reel.
, 1850, Jackson County, Missouri, Census of 1850, Abstracted by Hattie
E. Poppino. Kansas City, Mo., Hattie E. Poppino [1959]. Mimeographed.
141ft
VANDERVELDE, CONRAD, comp., Saape Van der Velde Wopkje Dykstra De-
scendants. Emporia [I960]. 33p.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 297
VANDERVELDE, KATE AMELIA CROSS, comp., Cross-Howell, Glover-Stoddert and
Related Families. Emporia, 1959 [125]p.
VAN WINKLE, DANIEL, Old Bergen [New Jersey], History and Reminiscences
. . . Jersey City, N. J., John W. Harrison [c!902]. 319p.
VOTH, MARICHA BALZER, comp., The Heinrich Baltzer Genealogy, 1775-1959.
North Newton, Kan., n. d. 180p.
WALLACE, GEORGE SELDEN, Carters of Blenheim, a Genealogy of Edward and
Sarah Champe Carter of "Blenheim" Albemarle County, Virginia. [Hunt-
ington, W. Va.] George Selden Wallace, 1955. 139p.
WALLER, ALEXANDER H., History of Randolph County, Missouri. Topeka,
Historical Publishing Company, 1920. 852p.
WASHINGTON COUNTY MUSEUM ASSOCIATION, Pioneer Book of Washington
County, Colorado. Akron, Colo., Washington County Museum Association
[c!959]. 392p.
WELLMAN, MANLY WADE, The County of Warren, North Carolina, 1586-1917.
Chapel Hill, University of North Carolina Press [c!959]. 282p.
WHITTEMORE, HENRY, History of Montclair Township, State of New Jersey
,n*vi.-'i New York, Suburban Publishing Company, 1894. 320p.
WILLIAMS, KATHLEEN BOOTH, comp., Marriages of Louisa County, Virginia,
1766-1815. [Alexandria, Va.] Compiler [c!959]. 143p.
WILLIAMS, RUTH SMITH, and MARGARET GLENN GRIFFIN, Bible Records of
Early Edgecombe. Rocky Mount, N. C., Dixie Letter Service, 1958. 364p.
, Marriages of Early Edgecombe County, North Carolina, 1733-1868.
Rocky Mount, N. C., Dixie Letter Service, 1958. 320p.
, Tombstone and Census Records of Early Edgecombe. Rocky Mount,
N. C., Dixie Letter Service, 1959. 353p.
WILLSON, RICHARD EUGENE, comp., The Willson Family, 1672-1959. Kent,
Ohio, 1959. 324p.
WINSLER, FRANCES (WOOLVERTON), comp., Woolverton History, 1660-1959,
Inclusive. Lawrence, Kan., 1959. 56p.
WINSLOW, ME., Vital Records of Winslow, Maine, to the "fear 1892; Births,
Marriages and Deaths. N. p., Published Under the Authority of the Maine
Historical Society, 1937. 325p.
GENERAL
ADDINGTON, HENRY UNWIN, Youthful America; Selections From Henry Unwin
Addingtons Residence in the United States of America, 1822, 23, 24, 25,
Edited With Introduction and Notes by Bradford Perkins. Berkeley, Uni-
versity of California Press, 1960. 115p. (University of California Publica-
tions in History, Vol. 65. )
AMERICAN ANTHROPOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION, Memoirs, No. 89. [Menasha, Wis.]
Association, 1959. 165p.
AMERICAN ANTIQUARIAN SOCIETY, Proceedings at the Annual Meeting Held in
in Worcester, October 21, 1959. Worcester, Mass., Society, 1960. [305]p.
Americana Annual, an Encyclopedia of the Events of 1959. New York, Ameri-
cana Corporation [c!960]. 912p.
ARNADE, CHARLES W., The Siege of St. Augustine in 1702. Gainesville, Uni-
versity of Florida Press, 1959. 67p.
298 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
ASCHMANN, HOMER, Central Desert of Baja California: Demography and
Ecology. Berkeley, University of California Press, 1959. 315p. (Ibero-
Americana: 42.)
AYER, N. W., and SON'S, Directory of Newspapers and Periodicals, 1960. Phila-
delphia, N. W. Ayer & Son [c!960]. 1571p.
BARROW, W. J., Deterioration of Book Stock; Causes and Remedies . . .
Edited by Randolph W. Church. Richmond, Virginia State Library, 1959.
70p. (Virginia State Library Publications, No. 3.)
BELL, JACK, Splendid Misery, the Story of the Presidency and Power Politics at
Close Range. Garden City, N. Y., Doubleday & Company, 1960. 474p.
BLAIR, GEORGE S., Cumulative Voting, an Effective Electoral Device in Illinois
Politics. Urbana, University of Illinois Press, 1960. 145p. (Illinois Studies
in the Social Sciences, Vol. 45.)
BOATNER, MARK MAYO, III, Civil War Dictionary. New York, David McKay
Company [c!959]. 974p.
, Military Customs and Traditions. New York, David McKay Company
[c!956l. 176p.
BOGUE, MARGARET BEATTIE, Patterns From the Sod; Land Use and Tenure
in the Grand Prairie, 1850-1900. Springfield, Illinois State Historical Li-
brary, 1959. 327p. (Collections, Vol. 34, Land Series, Vol. 1.)
BORAH, WOODROW, and S. F. COOK, Population of Central Mexico in 1548
. . . Berkeley, University of California Press, 1960. 215p. (Ibero-
Americana: 43.)
BORHEGYI, STEPHAN F., and ELBA A. DODSON, comps., A Bibliography of
Museums and Museum Work, 1900-1960. Milwaukee, Milwaukee Public
Museum, 1960. 72p.
BOWEN, ELBERT R., Theatrical Entertainment in Rural Missouri Before the
Civil War. Columbia, University of Missouri Press [c!959]. 141p.
BREBNER, J. BARTLET, Canada, A Modern History. Ann Arbor, University of
Michigan Press [c!960]. [571]p.
BRODERICK, ROBERT C., Historic Churches of the United States. New York,
Wilfred Funk [c!958]. 262p.
BROOKS, EMERSON M., Growth of a Nation . . . New York, E. P. Dutton
& Company, 1956. 320p.
BROWN, DEE ALEXANDER, Bold Cavaliers; Morgan's 2nd Kentucky Cavalry
Raiders. New York, J. B. Lippincott Company [c!959]. 353p.
CALHOUN, JOHN C., Papers, Volume 1, 1801-1817; Edited by Robert L. Meri-
wether. N. p., University of South Carolina Press, 1959. 469p.
CAMPBELL, JOSEPH COOKE, Methodism in Bronson. [Marceline, Mo., Wals-
worth, 1959?] 53p.
CAPERS, GERALD M., Stephen A. Douglas, Defender of the Union. Boston,
Little, Brown and Company [c!959]. 239p.
CARPENTER, FRANK G., Carp's Washington, Arranged and Edited by Frances
Carpenter. New York, McGraw-Hill Book Company [c!960]. 314p.
CATTON, BRUCE, Grant Moves South. Boston, Little, Brown and Company
[c!960]. 564p.
CAUGHEY, JOHN W., Their Majesties the Mob. [Chicago] University of Chicago
Press [c!960]. 214p.
CLEMENT, ARTHUR W., Our Pioneer Potters. New York, 1947. 94p.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 299
COLTON, RAY C., Civil War in the Western Territories . . . Norman, Uni-
versity of Oklahoma Press [c!959]. 230p.
CONNOISSEUR, THE, Concise Encyclopedia of Antiques, Vols. 1, 3-4. New York,
Hawthorn Books [1954]. 3 Vols.
, Handbook of Antique Collecting, a Dictionary of Furniture, Silver,
Ceramics, Glass, Fine Art, Etc., Edited by Helena Hayward. New York,
Hawthorn Books [c!960]. 320p.
COOK, SHERBURNE F., and WOODROW BORAH, The Indian Population of Central
Mexico, 1531-1610. Berkeley, University of California Press, 1960. 109p.
( Ibero-Americana: 44. )
CRAVEN, AVERY O., Civil War in the Making, 1815-1860. Baton Rouge, Louisi-
ana State University Press [c!959]. 115p.
CROCKER, GEORGE N., Roosevelt's Road to Russia. Chicago, Henry Regnery
Company, 1959. 312p.
DAVIS, FRANK, A Picture History of Furniture. London, Edward Hulton
[1958]. 160p.
DEGRAFF, HERRELL, Beef Production and Distribution. Norman, University
of Oklahoma Press [c!960]. 252p.
DORSON, RICHARD M., American Folklore. [Chicago] University of Chicago
Press [c!959]. 328p.
Dos PASSOS, JOHN, Prospects of a Golden Age. Englewood Cliffs, N. J., Pren-
tice-Hall [c!959]. 271p.
Downs, JAMES IVERNE, Prairie Grass Dividing. Rock Island, 111., Augustana
Historical Society, 1959. 262p. (Augustana Historical Society Publications,
Vol.18.)
DUFF, JOHN J., A. Lincoln, Prairie Lawyer. New York, Rinehart & Company
[c!960]. 433p.
DULLES, FOSTER RHEA, United States Since 1865. Ann Arbor, University of
Michigan Press [c!959]. [565]p.
ELVTLLE, E. M., Paperweights and Other Glass Curiosities. London, Country
Life Limited [1954]. 116p.
Encyclopedia of American Biography. New Series, Vol. 30. New York, Amer-
ican Historical Company, 1960. 407p.
EVANS, CHARLES, The American Bibliography, Vol. 14 Index. Worcester,
Mass., American Antiquarian Society, 1959. 450p.
EVANS, MARY, Costume Throughout the Ages. Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott
Company [c!950]. 360p.
FERM, VERcrLius, Brief Dictionary of American Superstitions. New York,
Philosophical Library [c!959]. 259p.
FURNAS, J. C., Road to Harpers Ferry. New York, William Sloane Associates,
1959. 477p.
GERHARD, PETER, Pirates on the West Coast of New Spain, 1575-1742. Glen-
dale, Gal., Arthur H. Clark Company, 1960. 274p.
GLAD, PAUL W., The Trumpet Soundeth; William Jennings Bryan and His
Democracy, 1896-1912. N. p., University of Nebraska Press, 1960. 242p.
GRANT, ULYSSES S., Mr. Lincoln's General, U. S. Grant, Edited by Roy Mere-
dith. New York, E. P. Dutton and Company, 1959. 252p.
GRIFFIN, JAMES B., ed., Archeology of the Eastern United States. [Chicago]
University of Chicago Press [1958], 392p.
300 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
GYLES, MARY FRANCIS, Pharaonic Policies and Administration, 663 to 323 B. C.
Chapel Hill, University of North Carolina Press, 1959. 120p.
[HALL, MRS. EMILY A.], History of the Fan, an Offering for the Benefit of
Charitable Organizations. Providence, Sidney S. Rider, 1886. 18p.
HAMMOND, JOHN HAYS, Autobiography. New York, Farrar & Rinehart [c!935].
2Vols.
HEAPS, WILLARD A., and PORTER W. HEAPS, Singing Sixties, the Spirit of the
Civil War Days Drawn From the Music of the Times. Norman, University
of Oklahoma Press [c!960]. 423p.
HEIMANN, ROBERT K., Tobacco and Americans. New York, McGraw-Hill Book
Company [c!960]. [278]p.
HERRICK, RUTH, Greentown Glass; the Indiana Tumbler and Goblet Company
and Allied Manufacturers. [Grand Rapids, Mich.] Author [c!959]. 40p.
HERTZ, Louis H., Handbook of Old American Toys. Wethersfield, Conn.,
Mark Haber & Company [c!947]. 119p.
, Messrs. Ives of Bridgeport, the Saga of America's Greatest Toymakers.
Wethersfield, Conn., Mark Haber & Company, 1950. 159p.
HEYERDAHL, THOR, Aku-Aku, the Secret of Easter Island. Chicago, Rand Mc-
Nally & Company [c!958]. 384p.
HILSCHER, HERB, and MIRIAM HILSCHER, Alaska, U. S. A. Boston, Little, Brown
and Company [c!959j. 243p.
HILTON, GEORGE W., and JOHN F. DUE, Electric Interurban Railways in Amer-
ica. Stanford, Cal., Stanford University Press, 1960. 463p.
HOKE, HELEN, and JOHN HOKE, Music Boxes, Their Lore and Lure . . .
New York, Hawthorn Books [c!957]. 94p.
HUMMEL, RAY O., ed., A List of Places Included in 19th Century Directories.
Richmond, Virginia State Library, 1960. 153p. (Virginia State Library
Publications, No. 11.)
JACOBS, CARL, Guide to American Pewter. New York, McBride Company
[c!957]. 216p.
JOHNSON, DONALD BRUCE, The Republican Party and Wendell Wtllkie.
Urbana, University of Illinois Press, 1960. 354p. (Illinois Studies in the
Social Sciences, Vol. 46.)
JOHNSON, JAMES RALPH, and ALFRED HOYT BILL, Horsemen Blue and Gray,
a Pictorial History. Pictures by Hirst Dillon Milhotten. New York, Oxford
University Press, 1960. 236p.
JOSEPHSON, MATTHEW, Edison. New York, McGraw-Hill Book Company
[c!959]. Slip.
KANE, JOSEPH NATHAN, Facts About the Presidents, a Compilation of Bio-
graphical and Historical Data. New York, H. W. Wilson Company, 1959.
348p.
KELLEY, ROBERT L., Gold vs. Grain, the Hydraulic Mining Controversy in
California's Sacramento Valley . . . Glendale, Cal., Arthur H. Clark,
1959. 327p.
KNOWLES, RUTH SHELDON, Greatest Gamblers . . . New York, McGraw-
Hill Book Company [c!959]. 346p.
KRANZ, HENRY B., ed., Abraham Lincoln, a New Portrait. New York, G. P.
Putnam's Sons [c!959l. 252p.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 301
KRATVILLE, W. W., and HAROLD E. RANKS, Union Pacific Locomotives, Vol-
ume 1. [Omaha, Barnhart Press, I960.] Unpaged.
KRAUS, MICHAEL, United States to 1865. Ann Arbor, University of Michigan
Press [c!959]. [540]p.
LASKI, VERA, Seeking Life. Philadelphia, American Folklore Society, 1958.
176p.
LINCOLN, ABRAHAM, In the Name of the People; Speeches and Writings of
Lincoln and Douglas in the Ohio Campaign of 1859, Edited by Harry V.
Jaffa and Robert W. Johannsen. Columbus, Ohio State University Press
[c!959]. 307p.
LORANT, STEFAN, Life and Times of Theodore Roosevelt. New York, Double-
day & Company [c!959J. 640p.
MASSACHUSETTS HISTORICAL SOCIETY, Proceedings, Vol. 71, October, 1953
May, 1957. Boston, Society, 1959. 557p.
MAXWELL, ROBERT S., Emanuel L. Philipp, Wisconsin Stalwart. Madison,
State Historical Society of Wisconsin, 1959. 272p.
MAZO, EARL, Richard Nixon: a Political and Personal Portrait. New York,
Harper & Brothers [c!959]. 309p.
Mennonite Encyclopedia, a Comprehensive Reference Work on the Anabaptist-
Mennonite Movement, Vol. 4, O-Z, Supplement. Scottdale, Pa., Mennonite
Publishing House, 1959. [1179]p.
MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY, WILLIAM L. CLEMENTS LIBRARY, Guide to the Manu-
script Maps in the William L. Clements Library, Compiled by Christian
Brun. Ann Arbor, University of Michigan, 1959. 209p.
MILLER, FRANCESCA FALK, "1812" the Story of the War of 1812 in Song and
Story. Chicago, Walter D. Bauman, 1935. 153p.
MITCHELL, JAMES L., Colt, a Collection of Letters and Photographs About the
Man the Arms the Company. Harrisburg, Pa., Stackpole Company
[c!959]. [269]p.
MOORE, GLOVER, The Missouri Controversy, 1819-1821. [Lexington] Univer-
sity of Kentucky Press [c!953]. 383p.
MOORE, POWELL A., The Calumet Region, Indiana's Last Frontier. [Indian-
apolis] Indiana Historical Bureau, 1959. 654p. (Indiana Historical Col-
lections, Vol. 39. )
NASH, HOWARD P., Third Parties in American Politics. Washington, D. C.,
Public Affairs Press [c!959]. 326p.
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY, America's Wonderlands, the Scenic National
Parks and Monuments of the United States. Washington, D. C., Society
[c!959]. [512]p.
NORTH, HENRY RTNGLING, and ALDEN HATCH, The Circus Kings, Our Ringling
Family Story. Garden City, N. Y., Doubleday & Company, 1960. 383p.
NUTTING, WALLACE, Furniture Treasury (Mostly of American Origin) . . .
New York, Macmillan Company, 1948. 2 Vols.
NYVALL, CARL JOHAN, Travel Memories From America, Translated From the
Swedish by E. Gustav Johnson. Chicago, Covenant Press [c!959]. 126p.
PATAI, RAPHAEL, and others, ed., Studies in Biblical and Jewish Folklore.
Bloomington, Indiana University Press [c!960]. 374p. (Memoirs of the
American Folklore Society, Vol. 51.)
302 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Patterson's American Education, Vol. 56. North Chicago, Educational Direcx
tones [c!959]. [705]p.
PATTON, JAMES G., The Case for the Fanners. Washington, D. C., Public
Affairs Press [c!959]. 62p.
PETERSON, HAJROLD L., American Knives, the First History and Collector's
Guide. New York, Charles Scribner's Sons [c!958]. 178p.
PLAUT, W. GUNTHER, Jews in Minnesota, the First Seventy-Five Years. New
York, American Jewish Historical Society, 1959. 347p.
POETRY SOCIETY OF AMERICA, The Golden Year; the Poetry Society of America
Anthology (1910-1960), Edited by Melville Cane . . . New York, Fine
Editions Press, 1960. 368p.
PRATT, FLETCHER, Civil War in Pictures. Garden City, N. Y., Garden City
Books [c!955]. 256p.
RAYBACK, ROBERT J., Millard Fittmore, Biography of a President. Buffalo,
Buffalo Historical Society, 1959. 470p.
READ, OLIVER, and WALTER L. WELCH, From Tin Foil to Stereo, Evolution of
the Phonograph. Indianapolis, Howard W. Sams & Company [c!959]. 524p.
REINFELD, FRED, The Story of Civil War Money. New York, Sterling Publish-
ing Company [c!959]. 93p.
ROSCOE, THEODORE, Web of Conspiracy, the Complete Story of the Men Who
Murdered Abraham Lincoln. Englewood Cliffs, N. J., Prentice-Hall [c!959].
562p.
Ross, ISHBEL, Generals Wife; the Life of Mrs. Ulysses S. Grant. New York,
Dodd, Mead & Company, 1959. 371p.
SALOUTOS, THEODORE, Farmer Movements in the South, 1865-1933. Berkeley,
University of California Press, 1960. 354p. ( University of California Publi-
cations in History, Vol. 64. )
SPECIAL LIBRARIES ASSOCIATION, PICTURE DIVISION, Picture Sources, an Intro-
ductory List, Helen Faye, Editor. New York, Association [c!959]. 115p.
SPRING, AGNES WRIGHT, First National Bank of Denver; the Formative Years,
1860-1865. Denver, n. p., n. d. [48]p.
STAGEY, C. P., ed., Records of the Nile Voyageurs, 1884-1885; the Canadian
Voyageur Contingent in the Gordon Relief Expedition. Toronto, Champlain
Society, 1959. 285p. (Publications of the Champlain Society, Vol. 37.)
STECK, FRANCIS BORGIA, Marquette Legends, Edited by August Reyling. New
York, Pageant Press [c!960]. 350p.
SULLIVAN, WILLIAM GEORGE, English's Opera House . . . Indianapolis,
Indiana Historical Society, 1960. [45]p. (Indiana Historical Society Pub-
lications, Vol. 20, No. 3.)
TAYLOR, ARCHER, Dictionary of American Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases,
1820-1880. Cambridge, Mass., Belknap Press of Harvard University Press,
1958. 418p.
THURBER, JAMES, Years With Ross. Boston, Little, Brown and Company
[c!959]. 310p.
TYRRELL, WILLIAM G., Champlain and the French in New York. Albany,
University of the State of New York, 1959. 56p.
VILLIERS, MARC DE, La Decouverte du Missouri et THistoire du Fort ^Orleans
(1673-1728). Paris, Librairie Ancienne Honore Champion, 1925. 138p.
RECENT ADDITIONS TO THE LIBRARY 303
VOGT, EVON Z., and RAY HYMAN, Water Witching, 17. S. A. [Chicago] Univer-
sity of Chicago Press [c!959]. 248p.
WALKER, THOMAS CALHOUN, Honey-Pod Tree, the Life Story of Thomas Cal-
houn Walker. New York, John Day Company [c!958]. 320p.
WARNER, EZRA J., Generals in Gray; Lives of the Confederate Commanders.
[Baton Rouge] Louisiana State University [c!959]. 420p.
Who Was Who in America . . . Volume 3. Chicago, Marquis Who's
Who, 1960. 959p.
Who's Who in America, Vol. 31, 1960-1961. Chicago, Marquis Who's Who
[c!960]. 3356p.
WILLEM, JOHN M., JR., The United States Trade Dollar, America's Only Un-
wanted, Unhonored Coin. New York, Privately Printed, 1959. 194p.
WILLIAMS, KENNETH P., Lincoln Finds a General, Volume 5, Prelude to Chat-
tanooga. New York, Macmillan Company, 1959. 395p.
Bypaths of Kansas History
Two CROPS AT ONCE
From the Inland Tribune, Great Bend, July 13, 1878.
No one but an experienced granger would attempt to raise a crop of wheat
and corn on the same piece of ground at the same time. Mr. R. T. Ewalt,
Deputy Grand Master of the Grange in this county, thought the thing feasible.
He sowed a spring crop of wheat, and believing it a failure, planted the ground
in com. About the time the corn needed plowing, the wheat had concluded
to grow and was overshadowing the corn. Right here Mr. Ewalt began to
scratch his head, whether to wait developments, or plow the corn. To culti-
vate one would destroy the other. He however waited a few days. The wet
weather was bringing both crops right along; first the wheat and then the
corn being ahead. The result is that he has a fine crop of both, but his wheat
is ready for the sickle, and how to cut it without injuring the corn is the ques-
tion. This point was not considered till it was too late. The last we saw of
Dick he was sitting on a stump and chewing his quid mighty fast, racking
his brain to invent a Corn Row Header.
How's THAT?
From the Elk Falls Signal, October 22, 1880.
Some low-down, vile, sneaking son of an unvirtuous canine of the female
persuasion cut the flag rope on the Garfield and Arthur liberty pole last Friday
night, and as it is about a hundred feet up to the pulley and as no one could
be found who would attempt the feat of climbing the pole, it was feared for a
while that the Republicans would have to forego the pleasure of seeing the
stars and stripes fly from their handsome flag pole during the rest of this cam-
paign. But it happened that Mr. Truby had an eye to something of this kind
when the pole was being raised, so he had a little iron hook fastened on the
side of the pole a few feet from the top, and last Monday, by the aid of a kite,
a string was carried over the hook and a new rope drawn into position in less
than no time. And now wonder if the sneak who cut the rope don't feel a
little mean.
BUCKET BRIGADES WITH STICKY FINGERS
From the Columbus Courier, February 28, 1884.
The city marshal complains that after every fire we have had in the city
that the council have had to pay for a lot of buckets given out by the merchants
and carried away by some one during the fire. Anyone that would steal a
bucket under such circumstances would purloin the coppers from a dead man's
eyes. It is surprising that we have such miserable contemptible thieves
around us.
(304)
Kansas History as Published in the Press
"Pioneer Remedies From Western Kansas," an article by Amy
Lathrop, was published in the July, 1961, issue of Western Folklore,
Berkeley, Cal. It was based upon some of the folk cures found by
the author, a doctor's wife, over a period of 55 years in the Norton
county area.
Articles included in the July, 1960, Bulletin of the Shawnee
County Historical Society, Topeka, were: "Miss Karolyn B. Whit-
tlesey and Her School of Music," by Nancy Veale Galloway; an-
other installment of George Root's "Chronology of Shawnee County";
"Grange Wedding," from The Commonwealth, Topeka, March 8,
1882; part three of Russell K. Hickman's "Early Elections in Shaw-
nee County"; "That's What Mr. [Thomas A.] Edison Said," by John
Ripley; "How Did They Travel?" by Lois Johnson Cone; "Who
Were They? Incidents From the Old Days," by Edna Becker;
"Origin of Mission Township," by Mary Davis Sander; "One Hun-
dred Years Ago Drouth in Kansas," by Lois Johnson Cone; "The
Ice Business [in the 1880's]," excerpts from the memoirs of C. C.
Nicholson; and "First Passenger Train to Reach Topeka," by Nancy
Veale Galloway.
Alfaretta Courtright's articles on Rawlins county history have
continued in the Atwood Citizen-Patriot during recent months.
Elizabeth Barnes* column "Historic Johnson County," continues
to appear regularly in the Johnson County Herald, Overland Park.
"Highlights of Johnson County History," appeared in the issues
of July 14 and 21, 1960; a biographical sketch of Vernon Campbell,
Merriam postmaster, September 1; a history of Johnson county
schools, September 8; Overland Park history, September 15; a bio-
graphical sketch of the Nail family of Johnson county, September
22 and 29; and the story of George W. Franklin, I, and the home
he built in 1861, November 17, 24, and December 1.
"It's Worth Repeating," Heinie Schmidt's weekly column in the
High Plains Journal, Dodge City, included the following articles
in recent months: "Western Kansas Tools Included Cattle and
Oxen," July 14, 1960; "Modern Dodge City a Credit to Pioneer
Marshals," July 21; "Pioneer Woman [Gladys Putt] Tells Story of
Prairie Fire," July 28; "Sleeping Lawyer [Colonel Kowalsky] De-
feats Guns of Wyatt Earp," August 4; biographical sketch of Her-
cules Juneau, pioneer Kansas businessman, August 18 and 25;
(305)
206253
306 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Town Rises and Falls in Story of Achilles [Rawlins County],**
excerpts from a story by Lois Erickson, September 1; "Death, De-
spair Left in Path of Prairie Fire/' by Mrs. E. E. Beck, September
8; " 'The Run* Took Kansans to Oklahoma Territory," September 17;
"Early Day Newspaper [Stanton Telegram] Tells of Town of
Goguac [Stanton County]/' October 1; "Dodge City Named for Ft.
Dodge Colonel," October 8; "Fighting Frontier Dentist Was Doc
Holliday," October 15; "Heroine of the Prairie Was Pioneer Mother,"
October 22; "Ford County Ghost Town Was City of Ryansville,"
November 5, 12, and 19; "Early Meade County History in the X-I
Ranch," November 26; "Fist Fight [Between James 'Dog' Kelley
and Tom Riley] Was Talk of Old Dodge City," December 3; "Early
Dodge City Character Was Horse Thief Ben [Benjamin F. Hodges]/'
December 17; "Early West Tradition Was Old 'Hoss Trader/"
January 7, 1961; "Mystery of Early West Was the Prairie Circles,"
January 14; "Pioneer [Archie Keech] Captures Last Herd of Wild
Horses," January 21; and "Dodge City Makes History With the
Bull Fight," January 28.
Zoe Myers Siler is the author of an article on early Cherryvale
history printed in the Cherryvale Republican, August 3, 1960. In
the issue of August 30 a story of Cherryvale as a rough and lawless
town in 1880, by the Rev. and Mrs. M. Q. Stevenson, was published.
Historical notes on Grant school, District 16, Montgomery county,
appeared in the Republican, October 18.
On August 5, 1960, the Hanover News began publication of a
series of articles on the life of G. H. Hollenberg, builder of the
Hollenberg Ranch Pony Express station and founder of Hanover.
"Law on the Frontier," by Paul E. Wilson, was the feature of
the September, 1960, number of The Trail Guide, published by the
Kansas City Posse of the Westerners.
Great Bend's Morrison Hotel, now being razed, was opened
March 15, 1888. An article on the history of the hotel was pub-
lished in the Great Bend Tribune, October 9, 1960.
The Friedens Lutheran church, Home, which recently celebrated
its 75th anniversary, was the subject of a historical article in the
Marysville Advocate, October 13, 1960.
In observance of Valley Center's 75th anniversary, the Valley
Center Index printed a four-page special souvenir section in its
issue of October 13, 1960.
KANSAS HISTORY IN THE PRESS 307
Homer Singley is the author of a history of Plains and Meade
county published in the Plains Journal, October 20, 1960. Accord-
ing to Singley, Plains was started in 1884 and Meade county was
organized in 1885.
Histories of Kansas churches published recently in the news-
papers included: First Methodist, Winfield, Winfield Daily Courier,
October 26, 1960; Mary Queen of Angels, Fort Scott, Fort Scott
Tribune, October 28; Hamilton Methodist, Eureka Herald, Novem-
ber 3; Wakefield Methodist, Clay Center Dispatch, November 4,
and Times, November 10; Phillipsburg Methodist, Phillipsburg
Review, November 10; Burns Methodist, Burns News, November
11; Faith Mission, Clay Center, Clay Center Dispatch, November
12; Frankfort Presbyterian, Frankfort Index, November 17; Memo-
rial Covenant, Courtland, Courtland Journal, November 17; St.
Paul's Lutheran, Valley Falls, Valley Falls Vindicator, November 23;
Luctor Reformed, near Prairie View, Phillipsburg Review, Novem-
ber 24, and the Downs News, December 1; and Sts. Peter and Paul
Catholic, near Ellinwood, Great Bend Daily Tribune, January 22,
1961.
The Harper Advocate, October 27, 1960, printed a special Nor-
wich Herald historical supplement on the occasion of Norwich's
75th anniversary.
The Martin Van Buren Parker family and home in Olathe were
the subjects of an article by Mrs. Ruth Ann Hackler in the News,
Olathe, October 28, 1960. The house was built 100 years ago.
"Some Place Names of Kansas/' by Anniejane H. Cover, com-
prised the November, 1960, issue of Heritage of Kansas, published
by the Department of English, Kansas State Teachers College,
Emporia. The February, 1961, issue featured "Some Ghost Towns
of Kansas," by W. M. Richards.
Archaeology in Kansas was reviewed in an article entitled "The
Plains Indians Left Records of Their Being Written in Stone," in
The Kansas Teacher, Topeka, November, 1960.
A history of Otter Creek Grange No. 1493, Coffey county, by
Otto Bowman, was printed in the Burlington Daily Republican,
November 1, 1960. The grange recently celebrated its 50th anni-
versary. On December 14 the Republican published a history of
Strawn.
Kansas Historical Notes
Current officers of the Southwest Kansas Historical Society, with
headquarters at Dodge City, are: Mrs. Ida Ellen Rath, president;
R. Roy Taylor, vice-president; Mrs. C. R. Harner, secretary; and
Fred Swart, treasurer. Plans have been made to change the name
of the organization to the Ford County Historical Society.
Citizens of Scandia are constructing a replica of the old Colony
House, the town's first house, erected in 1868, in observance of the
state's centennial. Early day furnishings for the building are in-
cluded in the project.
A log cabin built in 1859 near Princeton by Jacob Dietrich has
been moved to the Ottawa city park. Donated by Mrs. Robert
Gault, Richmond, a granddaughter of Dietrich, the old building will
be reconditioned and used for a museum by the Franklin County
Historical Society.
Mementos of the Osage (Black Dog) trail and related areas are
on display in the Black Dog Trail Museum recently opened at the
Parker grocery and service station in Chautauqua. The items were
largely collected and arranged by the Joe Parker family.
A. W. Schlagle, Mankato, has donated a two-story brick building
in the business district of Mankato to the Jewell County Historical
Society. The gift was in memory of Mr. Schlagle's wife, the late
Anna Colson Schlagle. The building will house the historical
society's museum.
A re-enactment of the Pony Express mail service, between St.
Joseph and Sacramento, was staged July 19-29, 1960, with about
1,000 riders participating. The run was planned and directed by
the national Pony Express Centennial Association.
Valley Center observed its 75th anniversary with a celebration
October 12-15, 1960. Events included a parade, a barbecue, and
a historical pageant.
Organization of the Argonia and Western Sumner County His-
torical Society was started and temporary officers chosen at a meet-
ing in Argonia, October 18, 1960. The society again met in Argonia,
January 16, 1961, adopted a constitution and elected the following
officers for 1961: Mrs. Esther Wulf, president; Orie Cleous, first
vice-president; Leon Ammann, second vice-president; Mrs. Carl
(308)
KANSAS HISTORICAL NOTES 309
Earles, third vice-president; Mrs. Grace Handy, recording secretary;
Mrs. James Hart, treasurer; Verna Lee Coleman, publicity chair-
man; Etta Le Ford, co-ordinator; Mrs. Ira Harper, historian; Harley
Pearce, photographer; and Kenneth Briggs, Carl Earles, and N. C.
Muhlenbruch, directors.
Dr. George L. Anderson, chairman of the history department at
the University of Kansas and president of the Kansas State His-
torical Society, addressed the newspapermen attending editors' day
at the University of Kansas, Lawrence, November 5, 1961. Dis-
torted concepts of history are too often recreated by centennial
observers Dr. Anderson pointed out in speaking of the approaching
Kansas centennial.
Mrs. L. H. Rumsey, Council Grove, was elected president of the
Morris County Historical Society at its organizational meeting in
Council Grove, November 14, 1960. Other officers chosen were:
R. W. Hunter, White City, vice-president; Mrs. Lester Payne, White
City, secretary; Mrs. Bob Oleen, Dwight, treasurer; and Mrs. L. E.
Mahon, White City, public relations. Neosho Fredenburg, who
served as chairman of the group before the election, announced that
memberships totaled 951, plus 75 junior memberships.
Homer Cardwell was named president of the Republic County
Historical Society at a meeting in Belleville, December 5, 1960.
Other officers elected included: Mrs. Annona Blackburn, first vice-
president; Mrs. Agnes Tolbert, second vice-president; Mis. Madge
Dickerhoof, third vice-president; and Mrs. Victor Berggren, secre-
tary.
Purchase of the former Carnegie library building in El Dorado by
the Butler County Historical Society was completed at ceremonies
attending the signing of the contract December 20, 1960. The
building will be used for museum purposes.
An organizational meeting of the Rawlins County Historical
Society was held in Atwood, January 14, 1961. Officers elected
were: Mrs. Irven Hayden, Jr., president; Mrs. Alfaretta Court-
right, vice-president; Mrs. Robert Creighton, secretary; Mrs. Ivy
Yoos, treasurer; and Anselm Sramek, historian.
Officers of the Arkansas City Historical Society, elected at a
meeting January 17, 1961, are: Guy Ecroyd, president; Glenn
Wheat, vice-president; Mrs. Kenneth Hill, secretary; and Mahlon
Force, treasurer.
310 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Wilford Riegle was elected president of the Lyon County His-
torical Society at its annual meeting January 26, 1961, in Emporia.
John Atherton was elected first vice-president; Walter Butcher,
second vice-president; Myrtle Buck, secretary; Earl Lord, treasurer;
Lucina Jones, historian; and F. L. Gilson, Mabel Jones, Mrs. J. C.
McKinney, W. W. Parker, Warren Morris, Mrs. Jay Sullivan, Mrs.
Arthur Childears, Maude Jackson, Dr. Thomas Butcher, F. J. South,
Edward H. Rees, Conrad Vandervelde, Ernest Fowler, Frank Lo-
stutter, and Elmer Siedhoff, directors. Dr. O. W. Mosher was the
retiring president, having held the office for 12 years. He continues
as curator of the museum.
Early day education was the theme of the 54th annual meeting
of the Woman's Kansas Day Club in Topeka, January 27, 1961.
The president, Mrs. Marion Beatty, Topeka, presided at the meet-
ing and luncheon. New officers elected at the business session in-
clude: Mrs. Claude R. Stutzman, Kansas City, president; Mrs.
Frank A. Huffman, Topeka, first vice-president; Mrs. Roy S. Gibson,
Chanute, second vice-president; Mrs. Paul Wedin, Wichita, record-
ing secretary; Mrs. F. Sharon Foster, Ellsworth, treasurer; Mrs.
Roscoe Mendenhall, Emporia, historian; Mrs. Russell Dary, Man-
hattan, auditor; and Mrs. Joe Henkle, Great Bend, registrar. Dis-
trict directors are: Mrs. Ray Schirkofsky, Topeka; Mrs. Thomas H.
Finigan, Kansas City; Mrs. Albert Siler, Cherryvale; Mrs. Harold
Trusler, Emporia; Mrs. J. Arthur Kevins, Dodge City; and Mrs.
John O'Leary, Luray. Historical data and objects relating to
pioneer education, collected by the historian and district directors,
were presented at the meeting and later given to the Kansas State
Historical Society.
The annual dinner of the Native Sons and Daughters of Kansas
was held in Topeka, January 28, 1961. The meeting was enlarged
this year to provide the opening for Kansas' centennial festivities,
and several notable out-of-state native Kansans were present as
special guests. The Kansan-of-the-Year award was presented to
Maurice Fager of Topeka. The Olive Ann Beech award in the
pioneer factual story contest went to Joan Jewell of Lawrence.
The Haucke oratorical contest was won by Marilyn Snell of St.
John, a student at Fort Hays State College. Floyd R. Souders,
Cheney, was elected president of the Native Sons, and Mrs. Chester
Dunn, Oxford, of the Native Daughters. Other officers chosen by
the Native Sons were: Emery E. Fager, Topeka, vice-president;
KANSAS HISTORICAL NOTES 311
Marshall G. Gardiner, Leavenworth, secretary; and Glenn E. Cogs-
well, Topeka, treasurer. Other officers of the Native Daughters
are: Lela Hough, Topeka, vice-president; May E. Oliver, Topeka,
secretary; and Mrs. Glenn Henry, Oskaloosa, treasurer.
On February 22, 1861, President Abraham Lincoln spoke at
Independence Hall, Philadelphia, and raised a new 34-star flag,
symbol of Kansas' admission to the Union. This ceremony was
re-enacted February 22, 1961, as a part of Kansas' centennial cele-
bration. Alan Farley, Kansas City, was chairman of the project,
with Rolla Clymer, El Dorado, in the Lincoln role.
Current officers of the Shawnee Mission Indian Historical Society
of northeast Johnson county, include: Mrs. Tom Davis, president;
Mrs. George Cox, first vice-president; Mrs. O. N. Eggleson, second
vice-president; Mrs. C. L. Curry, corresponding secretary; Mrs.
Ethyl M. Satterfield, recording secretary; Mrs. Sarah A. Lewis,
treasurer; Mrs. G. W. McAbee, historian; and Mrs. Roy Boxmeyer,
curator.
Decade of Decision is the title of a 57-page booklet published
by the Kansas City Life Insurance Co. in 1960, describing persons
and events in Kansas and Missouri history during the 1855-1865
period.
South Haven's early history as compiled by Ann Jacobs Failing
and Maurice Robinson, was recently published by the Oxford
Register in a 109-page booklet entitled Shoo Fly City. The town
was founded in 1871 as Shoo Fly City.
The Rev. A. H. Jacobson has related his experiences as a minister
in Kansas and neighboring states for almost 50 years, in a 115-
page, paper-bound volume entitled The Adventures of a Prairie
Preacher, published recently by the Covenant Press, Chicago.
Nebraska Place-Names by Lilian L. Fitzpatrick, including portions
of J. T. Link's The Origin of the Place-Names of Nebraska, edited
and with an introduction by G. Thomas Fairclough, has recently
been republished in a 227-page, paper-bound volume by the Uni-
versity of Nebraska Press, Lincoln.
Indians, Infants and Infantry, by Merrill J. Mattes, the story of
Andrew and Elizabeth Burt, is a 304-page volume published in 1960
by the Old West Publishing Co., Denver. After service in the Civil
War, Andrew Burt served at such frontier forts as Bridger, C. F.
312 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Smith, Laramie, Omaha, D. A. Russell, Bidwell, McDowell, Robin-
son, Washakie, and Missoula. Elizabeth followed her husband and
shared the hardships and hazards. Also she recorded the story
of their lives in a manuscript entitled "An Army Wife's Forty Years
in the Service," which, with data from official records, forms the
"documentary vertebrae" of the book.
Free Grass to Fences, the story of the Montana cattle industry
from the beginning to the present, by Robert H. Fletcher and with
illustrations by Charles M. Russell, was recently published for the
Historical Society of Montana by the University Publishers, Inc.,
New York, in a 236-page volume.
A 214-page biography of Luke Short, the Dodge City gambler
whose celebrated argument with city officials in 1883 brought on
the Dodge City war and its resultant peace commission, was a recent
publication of Doubleday & Co., Garden City, N. Y., under the title,
Luke Short and His Era. William R. Cox, the author, based his
account almost entirely on contemporary documents and newspaper
stories and for the first time this interesting Dodge City episode
has reached the printed page in what may be considered its true
light.
The World of Witta Gather, by Mildred R. Bennett, originally
published in 1951, has been reissued in 1961 by the University of
Nebraska Press, Lincoln, in a 286-page, paper-bound volume.
Kansas in Maps, by Robert W. Baughman, a 104-page volume in-
cluding more than 90 maps and 16 pages of color, was published by
the Kansas State Historical Society through the Baughman Founda-
tion in February, 1961. The book presents this space called Kansas
in selected maps dating from 1674. Words, maps, and pictures,
especially pictures, tell the Kansas story in another book also pub-
lished in February. It is the 320-page Kansas: A Pictorial History,
by Nyle H. Miller, Edgar Langsdorf, and Robert W. Richmond.
This book was copublished by the Kansas Centennial Commission
and the State Historical Society. Both volumes were printed by
the McCormick-Armstrong Co., Wichita.
n
NYLE H. MILLER KIRKE MECHEM JAMES C. MALIN
Managing Editor Editor Associate Editor
CONTENTS
PAGE
ENLISTMENT AND CONSCRIPTION IN CIVIL WAR KANSAS .... Albert Castel, 313
THE LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT, JACKSON COUNTY PIONEER:
First Installment, 1854-1861,
Edited by Donald M. Murray and Robert M. Rodney, 320
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A Revised Annals, Part Three,
1804-1818 Compiled by Louise Barry, 353
With portrait of Capt. Zebulon M. Pike and sketch of his probable route,
facing p. 360; portrait of George C. Sibley, with sketch of his route, and
reproduction of a Pawnee pictograph of a Pawnee-Kansa battle', between
pp. 360-361; and portrait of Auguste P. Chouteau, facing p. 361.
SOME NOTES ON KANSAS COWTOWN POLICE OFFICERS AND GUN FIGHTERS
Continued Nyle H. Miller and Joseph W. Snell, 383
With bird's eye sketch of Dodge City, 1882, facing p. 408, and a photograph
of seven Cheyenne survivors of the last Indian raid in Kansas, facing
p. 409.
BYPATHS OF KANSAS HISTORY 448
KANSAS HISTORY AS PUBLISHED IN THE PRESS 449
KANSAS HISTORICAL NOTES 453
The Kansas Historical Quarterly is published four times a year by the Kansas
State Historical Society, 120 W. Tenth St., Topeka, Kan. It is distributed
without charge to members of the Society; nonmembers may purchase single
issues, when available, for 75 cents each. Membership dues are: annual, $3;
annual sustaining, $10; life, $20. Membership applications and dues should be
sent to Mrs. Lela Barnes, treasurer.
Correspondence concerning articles for the Quarterly should be addressed to
the managing editor. The Society assumes no responsibility for statements made
by contributors.
Second-class postage has been paid at Topeka, Kan.
THE COVER
Confederate charge on Col. G. W. Veale's Union battery,
Second Kansas militia, at the Battle of the Big Blue, east of
Kansas City, Mo., October 22, 1864. Pastel by Samuel J. Reader,
Topeka, 1895.
1861 Kansas Centennial of Statehood 1961
THE KANSAS ;
HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Volume XXVII Autumn, 1961 Number 3
Enlistment and Conscription in Civil War Kansas
ALBERT CASTEL
NORTHERN victory seemed assured as the fourth year of the
war drew to a close. It was not, however, to be won without
a final determined exertion of will and power. Lee's ever-dangerous
Army of Northern Virginia still stood steadfast in the trenches about
Richmond and the forces of Johnston in the Carolinas and of
Kirby-Smith in Texas remained intact. Furthermore, the enlist-
ments of thousands of Grant's and Sherman's veterans were expiring,
and they had to be replaced if the Union armies were to maintain
their superiority. Accordingly, on December 19, 1864, President
Lincoln issued his last call of the war for troops, this time for
300,000. 1
Sen. Samuel C. Pomeroy of Kansas, always glad to be of service to
his constituents, sent word from Washington that the War Depart-
ment had informed him that Kansas "is found to owe no troops"
under the new call. 2 Kansans welcomed this news with great re-
lief. Already they had provided a larger number of soldiers than
any other Northern state in proportion to population. Therefore
they felt that it would be unfair of the government to require still
more. Besides, they knew that if additional troops were raised
in the state, it would have to be by means of the dreaded and un-
popular draft, for there remained very few men of military age who
were both willing and able to volunteer.
Then, less than two weeks after Pomeroy 's message, there came
a startling announcement from the federal provost marshal of Kan-
sas, Sidney Clarke, to the effect that the "revised quota" of the state
DR. ALBERT CASTEL, native Kansan, is author of the Beveridge Award Honorable Men-
tion book, A Frontier State at War: Kansas, 1861-1865 (Ithaca, N. Y., Cornell University
Press, 1958). He now teaches at Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Mich.
1. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and
Confederate Annies (Washington, Government Printing Office, 1881-1901), Ser. HI, v.
5, pp. 639, 640. Hereafter this source shall be cited as Official Records.
2. Leavenworth Daily Times, January 14, 1865.
(313)
314 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
under Lincoln's call was 1,222! 8 The press at once indignantly
criticized both the federal and state authorities, the first for assign-
ing a quota to Kansas, the other for not preventing the assignment.
Col. John Martin, editor of the Atchison Freedoms Champion and
veteran of three years' active service with the army, objected es-
pecially to the War Department saying that Kansas "owed" troops:
"If the Government wants them without regard to credits and
deficits, let the Provost Marshal General say so, and our State can
fill his demands. But it is an insult and an outrage to proclaim
that we owe troops, or ever did." 4
Gov. Samuel J. Crawford agreed with Martin and perhaps feared
the political repercussions of a draft. He therefore had State Adj.
Gen. Cyrus K. Holliday prepare a report on the number of men
who so far had enlisted in Kansas. The report showed that the
state had exceeded its general quota of enlistments based on popu-
lation by about 10,000, and that it had oversubscribed all specific
requisitions by large margins, with the exception of the July 18,
1864, call, from which it had been excused because of surplus cred-
its.
Crawford communicated these figures on January 31 to Federal
Provost Marshal Gen. James B. Fry in Washington and requested
that an "unjust and oppressive" draft not be imposed on the state. 5
Shortly thereafter he asked Sen. James H. Lane and Clarke to
"demand credit for all troops furnished," as it was "a great in-
justice to be disgraced by a draft after having furnished more
troops in proportion to our population than any other state in the
union." 6 Lane, however, replied that Fry refused to cancel the
call on Kansas or to suspend the draft, which went into operation
on February 20. 7
On that day the state legislature adjourned and Crawford im-
mediately started for Washington. Upon arriving there he showed
the state's enlistment records to the adjutant general's office. After
much delay and haggling he obtained credit for 3,039 more men
than had been previously allowed Kansas. This additional credit
placed the state about 2,000 in excess of all calls, including that of
December 19, 1864.
Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton, however, refused to suspend
3. Ibid., January 25. 1865.
4. Freedom's Champion, Atchison, February 9, 1865.
5. Senate Journal of the Legislative Assembly of the State of Kansas, 1865, pp. 54-57;
ibid., 1866, pp. 20-23.
6. Crawford to Clarke, February 9, 1865, "Governor's Correspondence (Samuel J.
Crawford)," 1865. Kansas state archives, Memorial building.
7. Leavenworth Daily Times, February 19, 1865; Kansas Weekly Tribune, Lawrence,
February 23. 1865.
CIVIL WAR ENLISTMENT AND CONSCRIPTION 315
the draft in Kansas or to order drafted Kansans released from
service. He maintained that to do so would create dissatisfaction
in other states which were likewise claiming surpluses of recruits.
Crawford then went to Fry, who as an "act of justice" ordered the
draft halted in Kansas and telegraphed the assistant provost mar-
shal at Leavenworth to discharge all conscripts and allow them to
return home.
But when Crawford arrived back in Leavenworth in April he
was astonished to find that a portion of the drafted men were still
being retained in service. He immediately telegraphed Fry re-
questing that they be released. Fry complied, but before his order
reached Leavenworth the draftees were sent to St. Louis, then as-
signed to the Eighth and Tenth Kansas regiments in Tennessee.
Political enemies accused Crawford of having made no real effort
to stop the draft and of having caused the draftees to be imprisoned
by the army at Fort Leavenworth. Nettled by these charges he re-
turned to Washington in June and procured an order from Stanton
discharging all conscripts from Kansas. 8
Probably most of the difficulty and misunderstanding as to Kan-
sas' quota under the President's December 19 call stemmed from
the fact that Fry adopted a new and somewhat complicated formula
for assigning state quotas under the call, and from the fact that the
War Department records originally credited Kansas with only 15,563
troops instead of the nearly 18,000 to which it was entitled. 9 The
War Department's inaccurate records, in turn, were probably a
reflection of the poor condition of enlistment records in Kansas.
During 1863 and early 1864 Provost Marshal Clarke engaged in a
heated controversy with the then state governor, Thomas Carney,
over the accuracy of these records. Clarke charged that the state
adjutant general's office was a "jumble of confusion." Carney and
his defenders replied that if the office lacked an accurate record of
the number of troops enlisted in Kansas it was because Clarke's
political friends, Senator Lane and Maj. Gen. James G. Blunt, had
failed to report the number of enlistments made by them while
acting as federal recruiting agents in the state. 10
8. Kansas Senate Journal, 1866, pp. 22-24; Crawford to Lt. Col. Charles S. Wills (?),
June 14, 1865, "Governor's Correspondence (Samuel J. Crawford)," 1865-1867, Kansas
state archives; Leavenworth Daily Times, March 16. 1865; Kansas Weekly Tribune, Law-
rence, April 27, 1865. Crawford, in his memoirs, Kansas in the Sixties (Chicago, 1911),
pp. 208-210, gives a vague account of his efforts to prevent a draft which is at variance
with the contemporary records on many points.
9. See Official Records, Ser. Ill, v. 4, pp. 1002, 1003, 1264-1269; ibid., v. 5, pp.
640-645, 719, 720; and draft of letter from Crawford to Fry, February 10, 1865, "Gov-
ernor's Correspondence (Samuel J. Crawford)," 1865-1867, Kansas state archives.
10. See Official Records, Ser. Ill, v. 3, pp. 569, 570, 1098, 1156-1158; Kansas Senate
Journal, 1864, pp. 280-286; The Kansas State Journal, Lawrence, August 6, 1863; White
Cloud Kansas Chief, January 7, 1864; Leavenworth Daily Conservative, April 9, 10, 1864.
316 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
As a result of Crawford's efforts the draft was in actual operation
in Kansas only a few weeks. During that period 1,420 men had
their numbers drawn, 419 of these failed to report, 616 were ex-
amined, 208 furnished substitutes, two paid commutation money,
and 119 were actually conscripted. 11 These last were the only men
to be drafted in the state throughout the war. In the spring of
1864 Fry had proposed to draft men from deficient subdistricts
in the state, but Governor Carney convinced him that there were
no such districts. 12
For the most part Kansans cheerfully submitted to the draft, al-
though they felt it to be unjust. But in some areas at least the
state had reached the bottom of the manpower barrel by the spring
of 1865. Sol Miller, editor of the White Cloud Kansas Chief, re-
ported that many of the men assigned draft numbers were elderly,
blind, cripples, idiots, or invalids. 13 Elsewhere, especially in the
Leavenworth region, the provost marshal's agents had little trouble
finding plenty of eligible young men. 14 Some communities raised
bounty money to induce men to enlist, thus avoiding the "disgrace"
of a draft. The average bounty was about $200, and a total of
$57,405 in bounties was paid, $53,207 of it in the northern district,
which included Leavenworth and Atchison, the state's two most
populous cities. 15 According to the official records these were the
only bounties to be paid in Kansas during the war, but the Leaven-
worth Daily Conservative of February 6, 1864, reported that a
$402 bounty was being offered to recruits in Leavenworth at that
time.
While the 1865 draft was in progress a "Kansas Draft Exemption
and Substitute Company" issued insurance policies to prospective
draftees, who if drafted were furnished by the company with a
substitute. 16 In Leavenworth some of the draftees allegedly even
shanghaied or bullied Negroes into serving in their stead, and a
Negro "protege" of the radical abolitionist newspaper correspondent
Richard Josiah Hinton was stated to have engaged in the business
of furnishing his fellows as substitutes. 17 The heads of the draft
11. Official Records, Ser. Ill, v. 5, p. 737. Under the Civil War draft legislation
men whose numbers had been drawn could avoid being conscripted by furnishing substitutes
to serve in their place, or by paying a sum of money to the government "commutation
money."
12. See correspondence between Carney and Fry, White Cloud Kansas Chief, July 28,
1864.
13. Ibid., March 2, 9. 1865.
14. Leavenworth Dotty Conservative, February 21, 22, 1865.
15. Official Records, Ser. HI. v. 5, p. 749.
18. Leavenworth Daily Times, February 24, 1865. When a draft threatened in the
spring of 1863 a number of men left Kansas to avoid it. going to Colorado, Nebraska, and
other territories. Kansas State Journal, Lawrence. July 30, 1863.
17. White Cloud Kansas Chief, March 23. 1865.
CIVIL WAR ENLISTMENT AND CONSCRIPTION 317
insurance company and the "substitute brokers" were the sole ones
not to rejoice when the draft came to an end. Nevertheless, charged
Sol Miller in the Kansas Chief, they made "fortunes" from their ac-
tivities, and there was a demand in the legislature that they be
investigated. 18
Counting conscripts, Kansas raised 829 men under the December
19 call. This gave the state a grand total of 20,097 troops furnished
in the course of the war. A portion of these men, however, en-
listed for only three months. 19 Moreover, a high percentage of
them were in fact from other states, principally Missouri. Exactly
how many is unknown, owing to the Civil War practice of crediting
recruits to the locality where they enlisted, not to the place of their
actual residence. Immediately after the war the Kansas adjutant
general reported that there were 3,190 men in Kansas regiments who
were from outside the state, 20 but there is good reason to suspect
that this figure is much too low.
In 1863 Brig. Gen. Thomas Ewing, Jr., commander of the District
of the Border, expressed the opinion that 1,000 was a "very low
estimate" of the number of men who had entered Kansas regiments
from western Missouri alone. Most of these men, he added, were
from Kansas City, and had joined Kansas units at Wyandotte (now
a part of Kansas City, Kan. ) . 21 That this was the case is borne out
by the fact that Wyandotte county which had a population of only
2,609 at the beginning of the war, was credited with 1,127 recruits
by the summer of 1863. 22
According to its historian, the majority of the Union men of
Vernon county, Missouri, served in Kansas regiments, mainly the
Sixth and 14th. 23 The 15th and 16th Kansas regiments consisted
almost entirely of Missourians. Indeed, these regiments, which
were raised late in the war, could not have been formed at all had it
not been for Missouri recruits. 24 Most of the Missourians in Kansas
regiments were of course Unionists, but a large proportion were
former Confederate troops who preferred to serve in the Union
18. Leavenworth Daily Conservative, March 16, 1865; White Cloud Kansas Chief,
March 30, 1865.
19. Reduced to a three-year standard the number was 18,706. Official Records, Ser.
Ill, v. 4, pp. 1264-1269. The Kansas adjutant general's report of 1866, in Kansas Senate
Journal, 1866, pp. 20, 21, claimed a grand total of 22,774.
20. Ibid.
21. Ewing to Col. J. B. Fry, December 28, 1863, Official Records, Ser. I, v. 22, pt. 2,
p. 753.
22. Freedom's Champion, Atchison, August 15, 1863, quoting the Wyandotte Gazette.
23. R. I. Holcombe, History of Vernon County, Missouri (St. Louis, 1887), p. 342.
24. Official Records, Ser. I, v. 34, pt. 2, p. 759. See, also, Governor Carney to Brig.
Gen. Thomas J. Bartholow, August 5, 1863, "Kansas Adjutant General's Correspondence:
15th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry," Kansas state archives. In this letter Carney declared
that "our State has been pretty well drained. . . ."
318 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
army rather than rot in a Yankee prison. These last were usually
"faithful, good soldiers/' 25 The 14th Kansas, in addition to Mis-
sourians, contained a whole company of Indians and perhaps one of
Texans. Other Kansas regiments also had unspecified numbers of
Indians. 26 The Seventh Kansas obtained several companies from
Illinois and Ohio. 27 Two Colored regiments, which were credited
to Kansas, were recruited from refugee Missouri slaves and Negroes
in Arkansas. They alone gave the state some 2,000 soldiers who
could not be truthfully called Kansans on the basis of the 1860
census. 28
All in all, probably not more than two-thirds of the Kansas
troops were Kansans.
But if Kansas received credit for a greater number of soldiers
than actually derived from its population, the same was equally true
of other Northern states, many of which offered rich bounties, im-
ported Europeans, and recruited Negroes in the South. 29 More-
over, quite a few Kansans joined Missouri regiments, although not
to the extent that Missourians enlisted in Kansas. 30
Neither should it be overlooked that the actual population of
Kansas in 1861, as the result of emigration occasioned by the drought
of 1860, was probably considerably lower than the official census
figure of 107,206. 81 Therefore, if the state contributed even half
as many men as it was supposed to have done, it did exceedingly
well. Thus it would seem that the favorite boast of Kansans after
the Civil War, that their state furnished a higher percentage of
troops to the Union army than any other state, was well-founded.
Kansas troops suffered 8,498 casualties from all causes, of which
1,000 were battle fatalities and 2,106 deaths resulting from disease
and exposure. Kansas led all other Northern states in the number
of mortalities per 1,000 among its troops, 61.01, and the ratio of
desertions, 117.54 per 1,000. The first record the provost marshal
25. Gen. J. M. Schofleld to Lincoln, November 9, 1863, Official Records, Set. I, v.
22, pt. 2, p. 698. Many of the Confederates captured at the Battle of Prairie Grove joined
the llth Kansas regiment. Leavenworth Daily Conservative, January 15. 1863.
26. H. M. Moore to James L. McDowell, October 9, 1863. "Adjutant General's Cor-
respondence: 14th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry," Kansas state archives; Mai. Gen. James G.
Blunt to Maj. H. Z. Curtis, August 10, 1863, "Thomas Moonlight Papers," Kansas State
Historical Society; Kansas Senate Journal, 1865, pp. 55-57.
27. Simon M. Fox, "The Story of the Seventh Kansas," Kansas Historical Collections,
v. 8 (1903-1904). pp. 21-26.
28. See Dudley T. Cornish, "Kansas Negro Regiments in the Civil War," Kansas
Historical Quarterly, v. 20 (May. 1953), pp. 417-429.
29. Fred A. Shannon, The Organization and Administration of the Union Army, 1861-
1865 (Cleveland, Ohio, i928), v. 2, pp. 67. 68. 76-79.
30. White Cloud Kansas Chief, January 7, 1864; Kansas State Journal, Lawrence.
February 25. 1864.
31. Leavenworth Daily Times, February 2, 1861: George W. Click, "The Drought of
1860," Kansas Historical Collections, v. 9 (1905-1906), p. 481; A. T. Andreas and W. G.
Cutler, History of the State of Kansas (Chicago. 1883). p. 178.
CIVIL WAR ENLISTMENT AND CONSCRIPTION 319
general of the United States in his post-war report attributed to the
"peculiarly pugnacious" nature of Kansans, which "increased their
exposure to the casualties of battle"; the second to there being "an
unusually large percentage of men" in the state's regiments "whose
presence was necessary to the subsistence and protection of their
families," and to the "lax state of discipline natural in border regi-
ments serving ... in a somewhat irregular defense of their
own frontiers." 32
Nearly three-fourths of the Kansans who served in the Union
army joined during the first two and one-half years of the war. 33
The heavy enlistments of this period reflected the fervent patriotism
of most Kansans, their fear of being invaded by the Missouri Con-
federates, the presence of a large number of "foot-loose young
men" in the state, and the efforts of various political leaders whose
military ambitions and patronage rivalries led them in some in-
stances to raise regiments which the War Department did not even
want. 84
After 1862 the readily available military manpower was practically
exhausted, and the citizens felt that their state had furnished more
volunteers than "in reality she was able to spare." 35 This attitude,
a general waning of martial enthusiasm, and the belief prevalent
by the end of 1864 that the war was about over, caused Kansas
to respond far differently to Lincoln's last call for troops than it
did to his first.
32. Official Records, Ser. Ill, v. 5, pp. 667-669; Report of the Adjutant General of the
State of Kansas, 1861-1865 (Topeka, 1896), pp. 17. 18.
33. Ibid., p. 11.
34. See Albert Castel, A Frontier State at War: Kansas, 1861-1865 (Ithaca, N. Y.,
1958), pp. 47-49, 86-94, 114, 115, 117-121, 151, 175, 176.
1862
35.
5. "Report of the Quarter-Master General of Kansas," Kansas Public Documents,
, p. 161.
The Letters of Peter Bryant,
Jackson County Pioneer
Edited by DONALD M. MURRAY and ROBERT M. RODNEY
I. INTRODUCTION
TJETER BRYANT, an original settler of Kansas territory and a citi-
* zen of Kansas during its first half century of statehood, lived from
1837 to 1912. The son of Cyrus and Julia Everett Bryant, who had
left Cummington, Mass., in the early 1830's to pioneer in northern
Illinois, Peter himself caught the "westering" fever in 1859. After
a brief army career during the Civil War, he returned to his land
claim near Holton, where he became a struggling pioneer and then,
finally, a prosperous farmer and civic leader in northeastern Kansas.
Through his entire life Peter Bryant took a keen interest in the
economic and political problems of his times, both local and na-
tional. In many ways an average man, he was gifted with a great
curiosity about the new land and its people, the tenacity to endure
the adversities of its pioneer stage, and a strong, healthy enthusiasm
for life itself. Happily for us, he also had a flair for interesting and
informative letter writing, and in consequence his vigorous letters
and several occasional poems make a very readable contribution
to the history of the Civil War and the settlement of the Trans-
Mississippi West. Here we may read about "sod-busting," and
"jayhawking," about crops and battles and elections, as well as
domestic problems. Throughout this personal record, we are made
aware of the Bryant family 1 as a whole: its roots in Massachusetts
as deep as the founding of the nation; its firm transplantation to
Illinois; and its sturdy offshoot in Kansas. Peter Bryant's life is a
part of the Bryant family chronicle, and that chronicle is part of the
westward movement.
The correspondence here brought together 2 consists of 54 letters,
DONALD M. MURRAY and ROBERT M. RODNEY are professors of English at Northern
Illinois University, DeKalb, 111.
1. Peter's paternal grandfather, after whom he was named, was Dr. Peter Bryant ( 1767-
1820) of Cummington, Mass., who in 1792 married Sarah Snell (1768-1847) of Cumming-
ton. Their children were Austin (1793-1866); William Cullen, the famous poet (1794-
1879); Cyrus, Peter's father (1799-1865); Sarah Snell (1802-? ); Peter Rush, later called
Arthur (1803-1883); Louisa Charity (1807-1868); and John Howard (1807-1902). Austin,
Cyrus, Arthur, Louisa, John Howard, and Sarah Snell, the matriarch of the family, emi-
grated to Illinois in the early 1830's with the Hampshire colony from Cummington. See
Frank T. Heinl, "The Bryants at Jacksonville," Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society,
Springfield, v. 18 (1925), pp. 218-227, and George V. Bohman, "A Poet's Mother: Sarah
Snell Bryant in Illinois," in ibid., v. 31 (1933), pp. 166-189.
2. The present editors are indebted to Mrs. Frank L. Davis of Holton, the granddaughter
of Peter Bryant, for permission to publish this correspondence, and to Mrs. Christian G. Heck,
chairman, and Mrs. F. R. Bryant of the Bureau County (Illinois) Historical Society Museum
committee for their indispensable aid in reproducing the correspondence. The letters used are
preserved in the Bureau County (Illinois) Historical Society Museum at Princeton, 111., and
in the New York Public Library, both of which institutions have given valuable assistance as
well as permission to publish.
(320)
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 321
written between the years 1854, when Peter completed his formal
schooling in Princeton, 111., and 1906, a few years before his death
in Holton. The present editors have divided the letters into groups
representing three distinct periods of his life:
1854-1861: Illinois boyhood, migration west, pioneering in northeastern
Kansas, jayhawking in Missouri.
1862-1864: Return to Illinois, service in the Vicksburg campaign, conva-
lescence.
1865-1906: Farming and civic leadership in Jackson county, Kansas.
Born on June 2, 1837, Peter Bryant grew up on his father's farm
in Princeton, Bureau county, 111. The few early letters and school
compositions that have been preserved from this period show that
he enjoyed an active, outdoor boyhood. "I like to hunt first rate,"
he wrote at the age of 14. "Sometimes I have seen wild turkies
[sic] 3 and deer while hunting cattle, and very often when I chased
them they would lead me to the cattle, and if I had a gun with me,
I would have shot at them." 4
He attended a private school in Princeton, the "Smith Institute,"
from which he graduated in the spring of 1854 at the age of 16.
It was perhaps from his teacher here, as well as from his very
literate father and uncles, 5 that he first acquired a taste for writing.
Naturally enough, boys who were in school during the years just
following the Compromise of 1850 wrote essays on the slavery issue.
Peter wrote at least two conservative pieces on the effects of emanci-
pation in the British West Indies 6 and participated in a lively dis-
cussion of slavery with his abolitionist Aunt Melissa of Massachu-
setts.
3. As an adult, Peter wrote with very creditable accuracy in spelling and grammar,
generally speaking. In all the subsequent letters, however, the present editors have found it
advisable to regularize his spelling (except in proper names), to provide minimum and
modern punctuation whenever necessary, and to make certain paragraph divisions for the
sake of clarity.
4. "The Pleasure of Hunting," a school composition dated Princeton, HI., January 2,
1851, in the Manuscript room of the New York Public Library, hereafter referred to as
5. Peter's father Cyrus (1799-1865) was educated at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
( Rensselaer Academy ) at Troy, N. Y., and lectured for a time at Round Hill school at
Northampton, Mass. According to a Bureau county historian, he was well versed in the
sciences and "natural philosophy": "Probably no one in Illinois at the time of his arrival
here had as broad a knowledge of those subjects as Cyrus Bryant." He was also something
of a musician and a writer of verse. George B. Harrington, Past and Present of Bureau
County, Illinois (Chicago, 1906). His 700-volume library at Princeton, HI., which was
inspected by the present editors, was remarkably extensive, in both science and belles-lettres.
The literary work of William Cullen Bryant needs no explanation, but it should be men-
tioned that other members of the family did some writing. John Howard Bryant was the
author of three books of verse. Arthur Bryant wrote an authoritative book on tree culture
and a long poem entitled "Emigration." Other Bryants wrote various pieces of occasional
verse and prose which may be seen in The Bryant Record (Princeton, 111., 1898). Peter's
own literary efforts consist of the letters here published, certain pieces in The Bryant Record,
and a long poem entitled The Old Oak's Story (Holton, 1897), which is mentioned in con-
nection with his letter of September 13, 1906.
6. "The Effects of the Emancipation of Slavery in the British West Indies," undated;
and another untitled, undated essay on the same subject, both in N. Y. P, L. Peter appar-
ently depended on Henry Nelson Coleridge's Six Months in the West Indies in 1825 (Lon-
don, 1826) for information and opinion.
322 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Naturally enough, too, he dreamed of adventure on the frontier.
A composition written in 1850 mentioned the wildcat killer, Davy
Crockett, and the charms of Oregon and the Indian territory. "It
is very mountains [sic] and abounds in horse thieves and catfish."
The composition began with these verses, entitled "The Far Off
West":
Away, Away to the far off West
To the land of the prairie all so blest,
There lives the wolf and the grizzly bear
That will a man in pieces tear.
Of white men only a few,
Only the brave and the true
Have ventured to the far off West,
To the land of the prairie all so blest. [N. Y. P. L.]
Although these lines did not presage a poetic career like that of
Peter's famous uncle, William Cullen Bryant, they are evidence of
literary stirrings within the boy and a certain indication of his ro-
mantic interest in the West.
From the Smith school, Peter went to Knox College, in Gales-
burg, 111. There are only two letters, both of 1854, written from
the college, and how long he was a student there is not certain.
There is no doubt, however, that the far-off West continued to lure
him.
On April 6 or 7, 1859, Peter Bryant set off for Pike's Peak, prob-
ably accompanied by his Princeton friends Frank Pomeroy and
Henry and Frank Dee. 7 He at first intended to become a miner
in the gold "diggings," located in what was then western Kansas
territory, but shortly after the end of May he and Frank found
themselves no further on their journey than eastern Kansas terri-
tory, where the two young Illinoisans decided to file claims in Jack-
son county. For many months Peter labored on the land with his
friend Frank, meanwhile feeling keenly the excitement of the
times and sharing his Kansas friends' animosity toward the Mis-
sourians. Then, in May, 1861, just over two years after he had
said goodby to his brother Cullen in Bulbona Grove west of
Princeton, Peter joined a volunteer rifle company in Holton, and
was off "jayhawking."
The first letter of this period of Peter's life (1854-1861) is ad-
dressed to a cousin, presumably Emily Maria Everett, who was two
7. J. Frank Pomeroy's son is living in Holton at the present time (1958). Frank and
Henrv Dee (see letters of Mav 25, 1859, and April 13, 1882) may be among the seven sons
of Elijah Dee, a prominent Princeton, 111., citizen mentioned in H. C. Bradsby, History of
Bureau County, Illinois (Chicago, 1885), p. 706, and in Harrington, op. cit., p. 104.
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 323
years Peter's junior and the daughter of Dr. Oliver and Emily
Everett, of Dixon, 111. "Em" was to write to Peter frequently, in
later years, until her death, of consumption, in 1863. The two other
cousins mentioned are Elijah (1836-1892), son of John Howard and
Harriet Wiswall Bryant, and Julian, son of Austin and Adeline
Plummer Bryant. Born November 9, 1836, less than a year before
Peter, Julian was to have a brilliant career as an officer in the 33d
regiment, Illinois volunteers, and afterward as a colonel of a colored
regiment. He was drowned in the Brazos river, Texas, May 14,
1865.
II. THE LETTERS, 1854-1861
PRINCETON, March 20th, 1854
DEAR COUSIN [EMILY]
I received your letter in due time and was well pleased with it. There is but
little news here. Our school was out last week on Friday afternoon. We had
the "grand finale." We had two papers or written pamphlets containing the
compositions of the scholars, one edited by the ladies called the "Guiding Star,"
and the other by the gentlemen named "Echo from Luckesdom." I thought
they were pretty good. We also had several declamations all of which were
very well spoken. For my part, I spoke "Mazzini's 8 proclamation to the Italian
people."
I believe the examination proved satisfactory both to teacher, scholars, and
parents; at any rate, all seemed well pleased. We gave one teacher a present
of Shakespeare's works & Byron's Poems with two or three other large books
all of which cost about ten dollars. Julian Bryant 9 made a farewell speech; a
large part of the school was affected to tears. The school had on badges; the
girls wore a boro knot on the side of their heads, and the boys a triangle on
the left breast. You say in your letter that you take Harper's Magazine; Cullen
and I also take it; I think the best story is about the fellow setting down in the
paint: the "Sword of Mauley" 10 in the January number. Father takes Putnam's
Monthly, but I think I had rather have Harper's.
As for shooting, there is not much game around now but geese and ducks,
and we have to go five or six miles out on the prairie; then they are sometimes
very shy, and we can't tell when we are going to get any. It is pretty near time
for pigeons if they come around this spring. I saw a deer yesterday, and Cousin
Elijah shot at one the other day. The blackbirds have just begun to come
around. We will have glorious fun popping them over.
The weather is and has been very fine for the past two weeks. The man that
we have on the farm is one of the laziest fellows that ever was. He has run in
8. The Italian patriot Guiseppi Mazzini (1805-1873). Peter probably used the popular
treatise entitled "An Essay on the Duties of Man, Addressed to Workingmen," of which parts
1-4 were available in translation by 1854. William Cullen Bryant's last public address, de-
livered just before his death in 1878, was a tribute to Mazzini, at the unveiling of the Italian's
statue in Central Park, New York City.
9. Julian, Peter's classmate, later reveals his eloquence in several forthright and moving
letters to the boys' uncle William Cullen Bryant, editor of the New York Evening Post, in a
denunciation of the debasement of Colored troops by Northern officers during the Civil War.
10. "The Sword of Mauley," Harper's New Monthly Magazine, New York, v. 8 (Janu-
ary, 1854), pp. 239-248. It is a rather gothic tale, reminiscent of Hawthorne's The House
of Seven Gables. The incident that caught Peter's fancy is a minor one: a young man inad-
vertently sits down on a painter's palette and gets paint all over his "pantaloons."
324 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
debt to a merchant in town and has got mad at him and will not pay him.
He has taken advantage of the law, which allows him $60, and has nothing
that the merchant can get hold of. Father has turned him off and got another
man by the name of Davis. I guess he is rather smarter than the other one,
for he has got his wheat in, and Hinres did not get his oats in until the 12th
of April, and he had no wheat. I had quite a tumble yesterday. I went to
take a colt over to a Mr. Clapps, 11 who lives about 3 miles. I rode the colt
and led another horse which I was going to ride home. When I had got about
a mile, the horse which I led broke the halter and got away. I could not catch
her, so I thought I would take the colt along down there, but it would not go
& I had no switch and could do nothing but cluck. Finally he reared up and
fell over backwards on to me, which stunned me, and the first thing I knew
there I was flying along rail road speed, heels upwards. One of my feet had
stuck in the stirrup, and the colt dragged me about 10 rods when the girth band
broke and I felt him kick me twice. I tried to get up and saw the colt about
% of a mile off "homeward bound" going at "pretty big licks." I picked up the
saddle and started off towards home. Pretty soon a boy who had seen my
performance came up with a buggy and took me home. I am not very badly
hurt and intend to go to work again tomorrow if it don't rain, though there
are pretty strong signs of it now.
[Letter unsigned, remainder presumably lost.]
The letter by Peter which follows is to his aunt, Melissa Everett
Dawes, sister of Peter's mother, Julia Everett, and wife of Francis H.
Dawes, of Cummington, Mass. Aunt Melissa took a great deal of
interest in Peter and his younger brother Marcus, and made at least
one visit to Princeton, 111. In a letter of April 28, 1854, she had pro-
vided Peter with an extensive and ardent lecture on abolition. "You
probably know, Peter, that I have from my childhood been an out
and out Abolitionist, and I glory in the name, for I know it is the
cause of Christ. It is a cause allied hard on to the bleeding Calvary.
Every bone and sinew of my body is anti-slavery, and I wax stronger
and stronger in the cause every hour I live/' Judging from Peter's
school compositions on emancipation and from this letter by Melissa,
the boy was at this time no radical. Melissa's letter had continued:
"You said some things in your letter which you probably did not
mean. Now I would not allow myself ever to speak a word favor-
ing that corrupt system, be it said ever so thoughtlessly."
In his answering letter, given below, Peter stated his position on
slavery as of the year 1854 and then gave the news on Princeton's
latest participation in the great debate of the time. The Joshua R.
Giddings whom he referred to was the prominent antislavery
leader from Ohio. A biographer of Greeley, speaking of the year
1860, calls Giddings "the messiah of the abolitionists . . . ven-
11. H. C. Bradsby, op. cit., pp. 482, 483, mentions a Seth C. Clapp (1812-1871) and
a John Clapp (1814-1880), both of whom were farmers in Bureau county.
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 325
erable with age." "Little Dug" was, of course, Stephen A. Douglas.
Owen Lovejoy (1811-1864) was the brother of Elijah P. Lovejoy, the
abolitionist martyr of Alton, 111. Owen, who shared his brother's
principles, was a free-soil statesman, Congregational minister, and
"underground railroad" operator in Princeton. He was much ad-
mired by the Bryants.
PRINCETON [!LL.], Nov. 10th, '54
[Presumably to AUNT MELISSA DA WES]
It has been some time since I wrote to you, and I sometimes think you have
got angry "because forsooth I tossed not on high my ready cap" upon hear-
ing your glorious sentiments on the subject of slavery, but I believe you prom-
ised to not get angry if I would not. I don't think I am much more cross-
grained than usual about it. As I wrote in my last that I was not in favor
of slavery, I suppose you thought that I was well enough off, that there was
no need of writing to me any more. If that is the case, I think I shall have
to turn pro-slavery again. There are some good things in the Whig party
and some in the Democratic, but if the fugitive slave bill is a test of the Whig
party and the Nebraska Bill a test of the Democratic party, I belong to neither.
They call all that are not Democrats, abolitionists, out here, but I am not an
abolitionist not because I don't like the name, but because I am not in favor
of the abolition of slavery, neither am I in favor of the extension. If the
masters can be paid for their slaves, then let them go; if not, work God's own
good time to overthrow it.
Our town has got to be "considerable pumpkins." It has got a rail road
and has lately been honored with the visits of two great and mighty men;
namely, Old Josh Giddings and Little Dug. Mr. Giddings made a very able
speech, denouncing, of course, the Nebraska Bill, Giant, and all of his followers.
Little Dug came here escorted by his half dozen worshipers (all there is in
Princeton). They had arranged seats in front of the court house, where
Giddings spoke (probably to deceive the people) as if they were going to
have great times. As soon as the little fellow got here from the cars, he went
into an office and held a short consultation while one or two of his party
went and drummed up all the rowdies they could find. They then rushed
up into the court room and filled up as much space as they could. Then
Col. Thompson, 12 the main prop, stuck his head out of the window and gave
notice that the Giant was too unwell to speak out of doors. Before beginning
his speech, he offered to let the "black Republicans" send out their David to
battle with him.
First he would speak % of an hour, then our man (Lovejoy) might speak
%, of an hour. After that he would answer him. The first speech he talked
pretty decent with as good argument as might be expected. L[ovejoy] then
commenced and knocked over all opposition and was going on at a great rate
when tap, tap, went the chairman's hammer and he must stop. Then up
jumped our little man, and such a volume of billingsgate as issued from his
mouth for two hours and a half I never heard before. When he had got
12. J. V. Thompson, a Bureau county farmer who was at one time sheriff and who was
quite prominent in civic affairs. Douglas was his political idol. Bradsby, op. cit., pp. 297,
326 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
through, his friends set up a demoniacal howl of triumph which I never wish
to hear again. I think the Anti-Nebraska army is stronger than before. They
will certainly elect all the officers on that side. But I must stop writing poli-
tics, or like you I won't get in any news.
Uncle Arthur's house was burnt down lately. They are fitting it up again.
They stay at Uncle Austin's now. They saved most of their furniture. There
is considerable sickness about here now.
Our folks are all well. [Unsigned]
This particular correspondence between Peter and Aunt Melissa
ended inconclusively with a letter from Melissa dated November
24, 1854. She was still attempting to convert her young nephew to
the righteous cause:
You say you think you will have to turn pro-slavery again in order to get a
letter from me. What does that mean? That you have once been pro-slavery?
From present appearances I should judge that you were not very thoroughly
converted from it yet. Rather a curious jumble one is in, to be denouncing the
old parties that are all festered and rotten in the corruption of slavery. You
denounce these parties . . . and then you say you are not abolitionist.
Peter's conversion to the abolitionist cause was to await his arrival
in "bleeding Kansas" five years later.
In the meantime Peter was corresponding with various school
friends in a lighter vein and on subjects of more immediate and
probably of more emotional interest than slavery. One of these
letters was to his "Smithsonian" classmate, Z. S. Hills, who later be-
came a teacher, then a school principal, and finally a lawyer. At
the time, Hills was probably working as a store clerk in Lamoille,
Bureau county, 111.
PRINCETON [ILL.] Aug. 6th '54
FRIEND HELLS.
I wrote to you about four or five weeks ago and have received no answer, so
I concluded that my letter must have been miscarried. I have not got any news
to tell you as there is no school, so I certainly can't tell you about the girls.
There is no blackberries down to the lake. If there was, I don't know but we
might possibly drum up a load to go a blackberrying.
By the way, I am coming up there one of these days to see you and those
pretty girls that you write of, probably this week or next. But I have some
news yet. I understand that some of our Princeton girls are counterfeit. They
paint themselves and daub on rouge. I hope there are not many such, for I
know that you don't like to kiss cheeks that are more bitter than sweet, if they
are redder, than I do.
This is a short letter, but my time is up and I must stop. Please write as
soon as you secure this so as to let me know if you are alive and "stomping."
Your truly
PETER BRYANT
[On left-hand margin, in Peter's hand: "Not Sent."]
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 327
Although existing college records do not list his name, the follow-
ing two letters indicate that Peter Bryant was enrolled at Knox Col-
lege, in Galesburg, 111., for at least a part of the academic year
1854-1855. Founded a year after Peter's birth, the college was lo-
cated about 70 miles southwest of his Princeton home. Inasmuch
as this distance would entail a two- to three-day journey by horse-
back in those days, Peter was effectively isolated from home and
friends from the beginning to the end of a school term, even at
Christmas. As noted in his first letter, the westward extension of
the railroad from Chicago had just reached Galesburg during his
fall term via the Central Military Tract railroad, which extended
from Galesburg to Mendota, 111., where it connected with the Au-
rora extension of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy.
The Charles Bryant mentioned in the first letter was Peter's first
cousin, the son of Peter's Uncle Austin and Aunt Adeline Plummer
Bryant, of Princeton. The college records show that Charles gradu-
ated from Knox, with a degree of bachelor of arts, in 1858. The
cosigner of the two letters, who appears to have been Peter's col-
lege roommate, probably was Calvin E. Winship of Princeton, who
later served in the 33d regiment of Illinois volunteers during the
Civil War and died at Memphis in 1862.
KNOX COLLEGE [GALESBURG, ILL.] Dec. 8th 1854
DEAR FRIEND
I received your letter last evening. Was gkd to hear from you. I have re-
ceived two letters from Henry Martin since I have been here. They laid the
C M T RR into town today. It was fun to see some of the people here who
never saw a locomotive before scatter when the old gentleman whistled. The
school is very full this winter, nearly three hundred in it. There are about
twenty in my class, Charles Bryant among them. Ch wanted me to tell you
to write to him and tell Cullen 13 to write, too. Tell him I want him to write
to me, too. I like the company here very well. There is not so much rowdy-
ism going on here as there is in Princeton. But I do not like the situation near
so well. It is so far from the woods. I like to have a place near the woods
where we can take a walk once in a while in the shade. Write soon and tell
me how all the folks are getting along. For instance, Elijah 14 and Sylesta,
Henry 15 and Pauline. When their weddings are coming off, for I want to
13. Peter's younger brother Cullen Bryant (1839-1909). Cullen entered West Point
Military Academy in 1860, where he graduated in 1864. He served in the Ordnance de-
partment of the United States army during the last year of the Civil War and for some time
thereafter, was promoted to major in 1891, retired in 1894, and died in Alameda, Calif
Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society, v. 35 (1942), pp. 344, 346. Peter cor-
responded regularly with Cullen in later years.
14. Presumably Peter's cousin Elijah Bryant, son of John Howard and Harriet Wiswall
Bryant.
15. The Henry Martin referred to in the letter of Christmas, 1854, below. Henry Martin
and the girls here mentioned have so far proved unidentifiable. Henry apparently put off
matrimony until 1862 (see letter of April 13, 1862, below), and Elijah married Laura Smith
not "Sylesta."
328 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
be [sic] to them. Tell Elijah I want him to write and tell me all about it. Give
my love to all inquiring friends.
Yours truly
PETER BRYANT C. E. WINSHIP
P. S. I will insert the following lines for Henry's benefit:
Lest Henry think he is supreme
There is a stage line runs between
And many a line may o'er it fly
And turn his gladness into woe
KNOX COLLEGE [GALESBURG, ILL.] Christmas /64
DEAR FRIEND,
I wish you a Merry Christmas. I received your letter of the 15th inst. last
Saturday eve. I am well and hope you are the same. I received a letter from
Henry Martin the same day I received yours. He said he had a first-rate time
on Thanksgiving day; spent the evening with Dear Paulina. I have just
answered his letter. Gave him a lecture on using tobacco. Did not let him
know that I had heard that he had commenced chewing tobacco. Told him
that no lady would admire a tobacco chewer and smoker, and I knew Paulina
did not. Told him I hoped he would prove worthy of her company.
I hope your Princeton Institute will prosper and become a great and flourish-
ing institute and send out men to fill the seats of the legislature and Congress
and also to fill the President's chair. Tell Lucien Smith that I am beginning
to think he don't care anything about me. I wrote a letter to him when I first
came down here, and he has not answered it yet, or if he has the letter did not
come here. I am not going to write till he answers that, but think as much of
him as ever. Tell H. Elliott w to write and all others of my old friends. Mr.
Goodrich (that went to school there last winter) is down here, is going to
commence with the Prep class next term.
Write soon
Yours with much respect
PETER BRYANT C. E. WINSHIP
For approximately three years following his Knox College ex-
perience, Peter remained in Princeton, 111., working on his father's
farm. Letters written to him by his cousin Emily Everett and
various friends 1T indicate that he was enjoying an active social life,
particularly in exchange visits with his Everett cousins of Dixon,
111. These letters, moreover, show that he had a continuing desire
to go west.
16. Presumably Isaac H. Elliott, one of Peter's more illustrious friends. Elliott was bom
in 1837, graduated from the University of Michigan in 1861, was made captain of Princeton's
E Company of the 33d Illinois volunteers (in which Julian Bryant enlisted), and was pro-
moted Brevet Brigadier General in 1865. After the war Elliott was elected treasurer of
Bureau county, ran for congress in 1872, was a Garfield elector in 1880, and was adjutant
general of Illinois, 1881-1884. In 1884 he went into the cattle business in New Mexico.
He married Elizabeth Denham, stepdaughter of Owen Lovejoy, referred to above. See Isaac
H. Elliott, History of the Thirty-Third Regiment Illinois Veteran Volunteer Infantry (Gibson
City, 111., 1902), pp. 11, 12, and Bradsby, op. cit., p. 513. Peter kept in close touch with
Elliott's war career. See his letters of January 3, and March 2, 1862, below.
17. N. Y. P. L. has letters covering the period January 1, 1855, to July 25, 1858, ad-
dressed to Peter by the following persons: Melissa E. Dawes, Z. S. Hills, Emily Everett, E. T.
Carpenter, Elijah Bryant, Robert H. Davis, and Bentley GUI.
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 329
As early as the fall of 1856, Peter apparently planned to seek his
future in the Western territories, with an inclination particularly
toward the strife-torn but promising region west of Missouri. On
October 23, 1856, his cousin Emily wrote: "Do you expect to go to
Kanzas soon? You seem to be so anxious to go." The reasons for
his delay can only be supposition, but the fact that he was only 19
and still a minor might have prevented him from taking such a bold
step at that time. A romantic reader might detect a wistful note
in Emily's letter, and even unsentimental readers must allow for
the strong emotional ties of home, family, and the many Princeton
friends.
Whatever his reasons, Peter waited three more years, correspond-
ing meanwhile with friends like Robert H. Davis, who wrote to
Peter on April 20, 1857, about plowing and hunting on a Minnesota
claim. Then, in the spring of 1859, Peter's plans finally took shape.
On April 6, just two months before his 22d birthday, he started out
with three friends for Pike's Peak in western Kansas territory. The
many letters that he wrote home, especially those to his two
brothers, provide his own first-hand narrative of experiences that
were crucial not only in his own life but in the development of the
Trans-Mississippi region and in the national history.
The following group of 22 letters, written between May 26, 1859,
and October 13, 1861, forms a fairly coherent and self-explanatory
account. In these letters, Peter describes vividly the hazards and
frustrations of homesteading on the Middle Border, and the eco-
nomic and political conditions under which he strove. Of particular
interest to the student of national and regional history are his ex-
uberant outburst on the election of Lincoln in his letter of November
11, 1860; his ironic account of the political machinations of James H.
Lane and Samuel C. Pomeroy in the letters of March 10, 1861, ff.; his
observations on the gathering of volunteer troops in Kansas, in his
letters of April 21, 1861, #.; and the fast-paced little narrative of his
"jayhawking" experiences in his letters of September 1, 1861, ff.
This first phase of Peter's new life in the West ends with his reali-
zation that border-state guerrilla excursions were not going to decide
the national issue, and his resolution to return to Illinois and join the
volunteer forces being recruited from his old home county. By
January 3, 1862, he was back in Princeton, preparing for the second
phase of his life as a Northern soldier in Grant's Western campaign.
The first letter finds Peter Bryant in one of the new settlements
beyond the Missouri:
228670
330 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
TOPEKA, K[ANSAS] TERRITORY] May 26 [1839]
DEAR FATHER
Our Pikes Peak operation has "gin out." We traveled about 80 miles west
of St. Jo. During this travel we met about a thousand teams returning towards
the diggings 18 with very unfavorable reports, so we concluded to go south
and have got thus far. We are trying to get a job of breaking now. We can
find a great plenty if we will take land or stock 19 for pay.
Cash money is very scarce here, and if we can find a job, we can get
$3.00 per acre for it or $7.00 in trade.
There are some splendid prairie claims 20 to be had about here, but no
timber. The best timber that I have seen is not half as good as that of
Bureau Co. It sells from $5.00 to $20 per acre.
I want to take a claim but have not money enough to pay for it. I have
$36 in cash and my cattle and provisions and want to make all I can.
If you will buy me a land warrant for a quarter section, I will pay you up
with ten per cent interest as soon as I can. Land is to be sold here on the
15th of August at auction, and they will not take warrants for pay, so if [I]
get one I will have to preempt. They are worth $165 here. I am going to
look around a little as soon as we get the teams to work. I think I shall go
to Emporia and see what the Judge 21 can tell me.
We are all well. Henry Dee talks of going home if we will buy him out,
and I think we will. Greeley 22 spoke here last night. I did not hear him.
I am writing this in the Post Office and must stop for the mail is going out.
Yours
PETER BRYANT
Direct to Topeka K T
TOPEKA [KANSAS TERRITORY] July 3rd 1859
DEAR BROTHER [presumably MARCUS]
I received your letter of June 12th some time ago and was so confounded
glad to hear from home again. Yours and fathers were the first letters that I
had after I came here, and it was so long that I didn't know but you had all
forgotten me. I have been laying up for ten or twelve days with the typhus
fever, but am about well now. We are having some pretty warm weather
here nowadays. I believe this country is a little ahead of 111. in that line.
Corn about here looks pretty well. There is a field in sight of my window
18. Probably an error for "from the diggings," i. e., the mining camps along Cherry
Creek, Colo., where gold had been discovered in 1858. See another reference by Peter to his
original intention of going to Pike's Peak, in his first letter dated April 7, 1861.
19. In his Information for Kanzas Immigrants (Boston, 1856), p. 8, Thomas H. Webb,
of the New England Emigrant Aid Company, informed prospective settlers in 1856 that
"the price of good working cattle, horses, cows, &c., is nearly the same in Kanzas and its
vicinity as in New England; perhaps rather cheaper. The price of cows has heretofore ranged
from $25 to $35; oxen per yoke from $50 to $100; horses from $75 to $100 each; common
sheep from $1.50 to $2.50 each."
20. Methods by which Kansas land could be acquired during this period included: pub-
lic land sales, pre-emption under the act of 1841, the sale of Indian lands, and land
warrants issued under military bounty acts.
21. The "Judge" is C. F. Eichaker (often translated to "Oakfield"), a German immi-
grant befriended and financially aided by Peter's father. Eichaker settled on the Neosho
near Emporia, at the same time, approximately, that Peter settled in Jackson county. Six
letters (1862-1864) by Eichaker are preserved in N. Y. P. L. and one in the museum of the
Bureau County Historical Society, at Princeton, 111.
22. In 1859 Horace Greeley took a long-contemplated trip to California, making po-
litical speeches as he went west. In Kansas he aired one of his favorite ideas the abolition
of a standing army. Glyndon G. VanDeusen, Horace Greeley: Nineteenth-Century Crusader
(Philadelphia, 1953), p. 230. Greeley is reported to have said, after his visit to Kansas,
"The twin curses of Kansas, now that Border Ruffians have stopped ravaging her, are Land
Speculators and One Horse Politicians." Alice Nichols, Bleeding Kansas (New York, 1954),
p. 258. For Peter's views on Greeley as a politician, see letter of August 28, 1872.
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 331
where it is as high as a man's shoulders just as it stands without stretching
the leaves. Wheat is about all ripe, and some of the farmers have got done
cutting. They have not got to raising such thundering fields yet as they do
in the old country, but they generally have 15 or 20 acres. Farming is not
carried on very largely yet, but I think it will be some time. At any rate,
they have got a mighty soil to back them. All the objection I see is that there
is not half timber enough, although what there is, is pretty well scattered and
generally not of the best quality.
Game is very scarce right about here with the exception of rabbits, prairie
chickens, and quails. They are plenty as any one could wish. There are some
wolves, but we can hardly ever get a sight of them. The Pottawattamie Indian
Reservation bounds the town on the north and west, and we see considerable of
the Indians. They lounge around town a good deal, and most of them are will-
ing to drink all the whiskey they can get. The Squaws are just as fierce as any
of them for it. I met a drove of Squaws the other day. Three of them were
girls and tolerable good looking, and they hailed me with "How." I said "how,"
then "Where goin?" "Up creek." "Where from?" "Topeka. Any tobac?"
"No." "Any Whisk?" "No." "Ugh, ugh," and they went on.
I suppose if I had had the "whisk" I could have lit on their fections like a
hot pancake, but as it was I was "no good," and they didn't care anything
about me. There is going to be a circus in town this week, and they say
the whole tribe will turn out then. If they do, I will bet we will see some fun.
Every Indian has his pony, and some of the old coves have thirty or forty.
The Squaws ride straddle, but with short stirrups so as to bring their knees
nearly up to their chins. The little Indians can shoot the bow and arrow pretty
well. I have seen the whites split a stick and put in the edge of a five-cent
piece and stick it up four or five rods off, and they would generally knock it
out within five shots. The one that shot it had it.
You ask if there are any strawberries here. Well, I only lit on two or three
good patches, but the Squaws bring in lots of them. You can buy a six-quart
pailful for 15 cents. I saw more mulberries when I went down on the Cotton-
wood than I ever saw in my life before, but they have all gone long ago.
Blackberries are getting ripe now. Strawberries are about gone on the 1st of
June. We are going buffalo hunting this fall. We would like to have some of
you fellows along, for instance Lige and Kit and the rest of you
Pete
Tell Lige to kick Helen's starn and bid her good bye [insertion at top of
last pagel
Give us all the news and girl affairs when you write. Your last was first-
rate in that respect Frank sends his respects and Chet 23 his. Tell Lige to
write to Peter [insertion at top of first page]
HOLTON [KANSAS TERRITORY] Aug. 21st 1859
DEAR BROTHER [presumably MARCUS]
Your letter of July 24th has been on hand a good while, but I have only
just got on hand to answer it. It is awful hot weather just now, and we work
about as hard as we "darn please," but that takes all the time, so I cen't get
much to write.
23. "Chet," Chet's sister, and his girl are mentioned frequently in subsequent letters.
See below, letters of February 12, 1860, and March 2, 1862. Possibly this is Chester Tracy,
who was wounded in the battle of Yazoo Pass. See letter of April 19, 1863, and note.
332 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
We are cutting hay now-a-days. I tell you, when it comes to swinging an
old grass-hook all day and then to rake it up with a hand rake, it is as old
Mother Eaton said about the sage, "tryin* to one's soul," especially in this
frying weather, and Lord knows my embryo farm can't begin to sport a mower
yet. There have lots of other things got to come first. Yet, far away in the
dim vista of the future methinks I see the scarcely visible outlines of a mower
hard at work sawing down the prairie grass, and and and me a-driving
but hold on, who is that out there breaking his back over that crooked stick
ah, that is different, that is Pete today.
Now say that "you should think one claim would be rather small for two of
us.*' It is, but I had rather have fifty acres and thirty of timber in one lot
than a whole quarter of prairie without a stick within three or four miles of
it. 80 acres will be as much as I want to farm at present, and when I want
more there is lots of it close by. There is always somebody willing to sell.
Things must look pretty sleek about home, now that you have got a new
fence, if you keep the weeds down, which of course you do. Mother will see
to that.
About that school Instead of getting Green meyered [?] myself, I have
performed the operation on them.
I afterwards found out that it was a real Missouri border ruffian den, and
they have fusses there every little while, so I told them I didn't want it.
Their wages at present are $25 per month and board. I am going to try
to get a school about here if I can. The one I spoke of is down by the river.
I am well acquainted with the school commissioner for this county, and he will
want my vote for circuit clerk, so I think there is a pretty good chance if I
am in time, and 111 see to that. 24
Buffaloes can be found 100 miles west of here on the Republican Fork.
I was talking about it with an Indian the other day, and here is what he said
"Ugh, heap, heap Ingen kill heap one, two, tree, hunner heap white man
no Pawnee." That means that he saw lots, his party killed 300, he saw a
great many white hunters, but no Pawnees. It looks mighty "jubus" about
our getting off this fall, there is so much work to do. Still, I am in hopes we
may. A hundred miles probably looks a good ways to you, but it is noth-
ing after you get out here. You can see 25 of it at one stretch. When a
man has got 30 or 40 miles to go, he makes nothing of trotting it out on shanks
hosses. Still, I think it is considerable easier to ride.
I wish you would send me some receipts for making different lands of
sauce, or tell the girls to We haven't had any in all summer, and to go all
winter without is most too hard. We can get tomatoes and grapes and cu-
cumbers and I don't know what all. We have the darndest kind of living
here. Sometimes it is all pancakes, sometimes all something else. Once we
lived for three weeks on nothing but mush and milk. We have tried most
everything, codfish not excepted, and I can go it as well as anybody. I think
it would do you good in the feed line to come out here. They have the
nastiest women here that I ever saw, and I can beat half of them cooking.
Not all the women are nasty, but a "heap."
PETE
24. Peter did eventually do some school teaching, for a time at least. See Frank Pome-
roy's letter of February 11, 1861, and Peter's letter of March 10, 1861.
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 333
HOLTON KfANSAS] T[ERRITORY] Sept 25th /59
DEAR BROTHER [presumably MARCUS]
I received your letter of Sept. llth. I was very glad to hear from home
again. It seemed almost an age since I had a letter. I was thinking about go-
ing to meeting today, but as it was a wet, misty kind of a day and the preaching
is a mile and a half off, I think I won't go. We don't have any regular preach-
ing here, but once in a while a Methodist comes along, and now and then a
"local" will get up and spout. It would be a good place for a smart young
man to get a start. The preachers here are generally rather poor, dry concerns
and, like Charles, would do well to "go and leave their bones" somewhere.
I am glad you have got the work so well along. It certainly is something
strange to get done haying before the 1st of Sept. We have got about 16 tons
cut, and I think we will cut a little more. We are engaged in building a log-
cabin now, and it is awful on breeches. Frank has filed a prairie claim one
mile west of us, and by paying half I can have the benefit of his preemption
right, as he did of mine, and we have a year's time to pay it in, and I hope by
that time to be able to pay up all I owe on this claim. I wish you would ask
father if he wants my note for the amount of that land warrant, or does he
think I am trustable without it. I should think it would be better to have it,
so if I should happen to "go by Davy" he would be all right.
Our new claim has got a stone quarry on one corner, has plenty of stock
water, and is on the whole a very good claim.
There are several claims taken in this neighborhood after the sales, though
there was only one lost by an actual settler, and that was through carelessness.
We are having fine weather, no frost yet. We have had some little of the
ague. 25 At one time all three of us were shaking. I suspect it would kind
o' tickle you to see us shake some of these hot days, but come to the stern
reality of the thing and it ain't quite so funny.
However, we took a dose of quinine each and got a bottle of Ayers Ague
Cure 26 and have got bravely over it now, and you may bet we ain't sorry. Our
"Sass" 27 operation I think are done for. We have nothing to keep it in, and
we can't get jars this side of Leavenworth.
We live pretty high now. We have taters, beans, tomatoes, corn dodgers,
and all the melons we want to roll in. We have got about 1& bushels of shucked
hazel nuts (the benefits of ague). And on our claim there are more than fifty
bushels of black walnuts. Then besides we have got a lot of dried grapes and
about a bushel of pickled cucumbers. I think we will manage to get through
the winter. Frank and I have a fair prospect of boarding out. I think we will
burn a lime kiln this fall. We can get plenty of rock, and if we can engage a
hundred bushels beforehand, we will go at it. It is worth 25tf. Perhaps we can
get some dimes in that way. We can get lots of work, but no money. They've
all got something to trade. Our cattle are all "hog fat." They play now-a-
days. Write soon.
P. BRYANT
25. The ague, which produced chills with "the shakes," burning fever, yellowing of the
skin, and sometimes loss of hair, began in this region about August 1 and lasted until October.
Newcomers feared it, with reason, and its terrors sometimes prevented immigrants from
moving into new territories. A good account of how this malarial fever plague affected the
Illinois immigrants appears in Earl Wiley Hayter, "Social and Economic Conditions in Illinois,
1800-1824" (unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Department of History, Northwestern Univer-
sity, 1834), pp. 200, 201.
26. A patent medicine manufactured by Dr. J. C. Ayer and Company, of Lowell, Mass.
27. Presumably a home-made preparation from sassafras bark.
334 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
HOLTON K[ANSAS] TERRITORY] Feb 12th/60
DEAR BROTHER [MARCUS]
I received your letter of the 29th ult. I dated one the same day which I
presume you must have got before this. I have been washing today. Perhaps
you may think it is big business for Sunday, but we have had a little fall of
snow, and it was thawing very fast today, so I had to pitch in and get some or
else use hard water.
Frank is trying to have the ague again. He had quite a shake today. We
are making rails in old Rays timber for half. Some of it is pretty tough. We
have taken a job of making 700 for another man for town property in Holton.
We get six lots for the job and have our choice of three. I think we will do
some fencing this spring, though I can't tell whether we will stay here or not.
We are going where we can make the most. Merchants in Leavenworth offer
S10 per cwt. for hauling goods to Pikes Peak. We think we could make $300
at that. Then two of us could get a job of driving team for Uncle Sam to some
of the forts on the frontier.
We have had the finest weather this winter that I ever saw, but very little
snow and no rain since the first of Sept. and not much cold weather. Wolves
are pretty thick, but so wild that we cannot get a shot at them.
Chet and I went out the other morning after it snowed and caught 7 rabbits
in about an hour. Rackley 28 is boarding with us and has his law office in our
cabin, so you may imagine justice is duly meted out. He is going to Holton
tomorrow to pettifog a case before a justice of the peace.
He takes the Princeton Republican, so I did not get any news in the one
Cullen sent me. We have a pretty good stock of papers now. We take the
Leavenworth Times and N. Y. Tribune, and Rackley has the Topeka Record
and Princeton paper, and we get along a good deal better than we did last
summer without any.
There is any amount of land here that can be bought for the taxes, principally
what is called Delaware Trust land, that is land that was sold in trust for the
Delaware Indians in 1857, and it is mostly very fine land.
There is some talk of sectionizing the Pottawatomie Reserve and letting the
Indians sell it themselves if they choose. If this is done, I think there can be
farms bought very cheap, and they have some of the best land in the territory.
In fact, all of the reserves made by the Indians throughout the territory are of
the best land.
Chet's sister writes him of lots of chaps being spliced back there, amongst
them being Jim Vanatta. There has been but one case of the land about here
since I have been here.
PETER BRYANT
HOLTON, JACKSON Co., K[ANSAS] TERRITORY],
Feby 20th 1860
DEAR FATHER
I received your letter of Feby 9th, enclosing a ten dollar bill. I am always
very thankful for such letters and would not object to their coming every day.
I think the bill is current here, for almost everything that bears the form of
money is; but not having had occasion to use it, I have not enquired. In re-
28. David Rackley (1834-1863), son of F. D. and Dorothy Kenny Rackley, of Bureau
county, Illinois. Bradsby, op. cit., p. 625. Rackley is frequently referred to in subsequent
letters. He died of disease contracted during the Civil War. See Peter's letter of March
1, 1863.
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 335
gard to the farm trade, Frank offered to sell to me for the same that he paid,
with 12 per cent [interest] added. We have looked over the books and find that
each of us have paid on the claim, and for improvements, the sum of $211.35;
and 12 per cent on that for six months would be a trifle less than $225. It is
true I would like the land very well, and it would make a very fine farm
altogether, but I do not want you to run yourself short nor hire any money for
me. I can do that out here by paying interest enough, but I am unwilling to
run into debt without seeing some way to get out again; and if you let me
have the money and I stay here on my place, as you and Mother seem to want
I should, you will have to lay out of it for some time, three or four or perhaps
five years; for I suppose you know by experience that in opening up a new
farm, it is all outgo and no income.
In regard to your never calling on me for it, I do not want it on those terms,
for if I cannot get along in the world now at my age [22], the sooner I am out
of it the better. There is still one payment of $75.00 to make on the land,
for which the man is bound by contract to take 25 acres of prairie-breaking.
It is due by the first of August. This I will have to pay myself in case I buy
out Frank. It will be about two weeks' work with team. If you should con-
clude to send me money, I think I can make $175.00 do. I can manage to pay
the other fifty without much trouble by next fall, and perhaps have enough left
to get me some hogs and a cow. As to the transmission of the money of
which you speak, I think the best way will be to send it to Leavenworth City
by express. Dee had a land warrant sent in that way and got it without any
trouble. Frank intends to improve the claim that he filed on after the sales.
It is all prairie and a medium claim. If I should buy here, I will sell him my
interest, in that our quarters would then lay in a body, and not one 80-a-mile
from the other as now.
I will send you a rough map that I have drawn up, by which you can
perhaps get some idea of how the land lays. Since I got your letter, I have
about given up the idea of going across the plains, though it does seem as
though I had [not] seen half enough yet.
Frank and Dee have been having a little touch of the ague lately. My health
is excellent, and by feeding on corn dodger beef and potatoes I have got quite
fat and now only lack a few ounces of weighing 180 Ibs.
We are having very fine weather now and have had all winter. There was
a shower the other day and the first rain that has fallen for five months. I am
glad to hear that Cullen is going to West Point, though it seems to me that it
will be a pretty tight squeeze if he gets in. I received a "Republican" a day
cr two since. Young Rackley is boarding with us at $2.00 per week. I don't
know whether he will settle here or not.
PETER BRYANT
HOLTON, JACKSON Co., K[ANSAS] TERRITORY],
March 4th 1860
DEAR BROTHER [MARCUS]
I have received your letter of Feb. 16th. I had gone to Atchison when
it came and didn't get back till day before yesterday and don't suppose I can
get anything there on time for your paper which comes off in four days, so
I guess I had better drop it. But if you get into such a snap again, just let
me know in time and I will try to do what I can for you, if unless like this
336 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
time I happen to be away from home. I went down to Atchison to help haul
up a saw mill to Holton and made $20 in five days, but have to take my pay
in sawing when they get in operation. Lumber is very high here. Oak and
walnut lumber sells for $25 per thousand.
So you have got a lyceum going again, have you? What has become of
the reading circle? We have a mock legislature in our neighborhood, and
Frank is speaker. We bring in bills and discuss them, and make laws with
all the dignity imaginable. 29 I have been to meeting today, the third time
since I have been here. The Methodists are going in largely just now. They
have about as brilliant a preacher as the hard shell Baptist of the "Harp of
A Thousand Strings" notoriety. He said that when his hearers shuffled off
this Mortal Coil, he wanted them to die "Revered with glory," and again that
his motto was that he had "always had a kind heart/' and in a prayer he
said, "Lord, thou knowest we are great sinners, the chief among ten thou-
sand and the one altogether lovely." The Methodist are quite numerous in
the territory, and they say that before three years they are going to rule Kansas.
I got a letter from Cullen yesterday. I wrote to Sarah Olds 30 a while ago,
but have got no answer yet. It is getting dark, and I must wind up. I am
sorry that I didn't get your letter in time to write a piece for your paper.
PETER BRYANT
HOLTON, JACKSON Co., K[ANSAS] T[ERRITORY]
May 1st 1860
DEAR BROTHER [CULLEN]
Yours of April 6th came to hand today. It has been on the road a good
while. I dated one the same day to Marcus and Father and have received an
answer from Father. I expect to go down to Topeka in the course of a week
or fortnight. We are breaking [ground] some about now, at present for De-
cember. We have bought a cow and paid for her in breaking. I traded for a
pony yesterday. It will cost me about $50 when I get it paid for. I pay $15
down, $5 when the chap gets back from off the plains where he is going this
summer, and ten acres of breaking to be done by the middle of May 1861.
It is a pretty good price for a pony, but it is the best that I can do, and I
had rather pay it for horse-flesh than for quinine or "Ayers," which I certainly
would have to do if I "toted" around in the wet grass after the bulls every
morning. It is very easy catching the ague here. If a fellow is a little unwell,
it is mighty apt to turn into shakes. It is pretty easily cured now, but won't be
after it gets to be hot weather. I have had one chill since last fall, and Frank
and Chet have it every little while.
It is very dry here. We have had but one or two slight sprinkles this spring.
Prairie breaks pretty hard, but we have got a thundering team, and the old sod
has to roll, dry or not.
Rackley has left our shanty and is now stopping in Holton, waiting for a
chance to go to Leavenworth. He was admitted to the bar last week. He is
going to leave his books with us and see a little of Kansas.
The grass here is first rate, notwithstanding the dry weather. Cattle fat on
it the quickest here of any place that I ever saw. Bully was sick this spring
29. This training in practical politics anticipates Peter's service, six years later, in the
Kansas legislature of 1867. Information from Mrs. F. L. Davis of Holton.
30. Daughter of Justin Olds and Louisa Bryant Olds, the sister of Cyrus Bryant. Sarah
lived 1839-1860.
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 337
and got quite poor, so that I began to think he would visit "San hedrin" and I
would have to buy another ox, but he has got fat again and my fears have
departed.
In regard to snakes, they don't bother anyone here but Chet. Jove! you
ought to see him jump when a "garter" gets into the furrow. I think I have
seen him leap 8 feet right straight up in the air at sight of one's tail. Rattle-
snakes are about as thick here as in Illinois. I don't think we killed over twenty
last summer.
John Ritchie, 31 one of the "Topeka Boys," has just killed a U. S. Marshal
who was trying to arrest him on some of the old scores of '56, and Old Buck's
men 32 were all around the territory trying to find him. He is probably stowed
away somewhere near home. The Governor has offered $300 reward for him,
and the people of Shawnee County have held a meeting and resolved that Mr.
Governor could not have him. He has got the "get up and git" to him a good
deal like Lovejoy. By the way, Lovejoy has acquitted himself nobly. We could
not have asked more of him. I hope he carries his "iron" so as to be ready if
any of those Southern scamps jumps on him. 83
PETER BRYANT
I have not received that money yet. I wrote to the Express agent and told
him where I lived and to let me know when the package arrived. The river is
very low. It takes a good while for boats to come from St. Louis. [Inserted
at top of first page.]
TOPEKA, K[ANSAS] T[ERRTTORY],
May 13th 1860
DEAR FATHER
I have received your note of April 13th and also a letter of April 17th in-
forming me that you had forwarded the money. I have received it and just
returned from Leavenworth. The agent did not like to let me have it on the
strength of that duplicate, but when I showed your letter and an answer that he
wrote to my inquiry, I got it without any further trouble. They are very par-
ticular who they let have packages. This man was civil, but the agent here
last summer was far from it.
I enclose my note for the amount. It will probably be three or four years
before I can pay it all up, but I will try and get it off my hands as soon as
possible.
We came here yesterday and are going to work for the same man that we
did last year. He told us a while ago that he wanted us to break 75 acres for
him, but I do not know whether we will do it or not. There is no grass here
for the cattle. Everything in that line is dried up. The grass at Holton is
very good, and I was surprised at the difference that there is in thirty miles.
II is very dry in Holton, so much so that the winter wheat will not amount to
anything. Here it is not three inches high. Spring wheat will be in the same
fix if it does not rain soon. There was wheat enough sown in the territory to
31. John Ritchie of Topeka who was mustered in July 16, 1861, as captain of Company
A, Fifth regiment, Kansas cavalry; was promoted to lieutenant colonel September 10, 1861,
in the same regiment; and was promoted to colonel, Second Indian home guards, March
28, 1862.
32. The federal officers of President Buchanan.
33. Both Peter and F. H. Dawes (the husband of Peter's aunt, Melissa) comment on
Loveioy's sturdy defense of abolitionist principles in congress. See Dawes* letter of May 18,
1862, inN.Y.P.L.
338 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
supply the home demand if it had come to anything. But very few have
planted any corn here. They are mostly done at Holton. 34
I do not know how long we will stay here. We bought a yoke of cattle, for
which we break 23 acres. If we do any more, we get the money for it. We
get $3.00 per acre and board ourselves. That is as cheap as anyone can afford
to do it and pay Kansas prices for provisions.
When I was down to the river, I went to the Land Office and found that
Frank's claim had been entered by a speculator. He intends to contest it.
Gen. Whitfield 35 says there is no doubt but what he can get it. It will make
him some cost. There are one or two others about there in the same way.
Henry Dee entered one that had been filed on but no improvements made.
He need not be alarmed about it. He can hold it without any trouble.
If you come out here this summer, as Marcus told me you anticipated, I
wish you would bring out my riding bridle and martingale. I can't get one here
without paying two prices. I should be very glad to see you out here, and
would take great pleasure in showing you the "elephant" and my place.
The Missouri River is very low. Steamboats do not run any higher up than
Atchison, and they all wear "grasshoppers" to lift them off from the sand bars. 36
I waded the Kaw yesterday and drove across four yoke of cattle. Deepest spot
3& feet.
Yours affectionately
PETER BRYANT
TOPEKA, K[ANSAS] TERRITORY],
May 20th 1860
DEAR BROTHER [MARCUS]
I received your letter of several dates (the latest of which was May 10th)
yesterday, and today I feel in about the same fix that you say that you did;
i. e, darned lazy. I went to town today and got the papers and found that
"Old Abe" was the nominee, and I was awfully tickled. I thought that Seward
would be nominated. Didn't think that Abe had a ghost of a chance, but I
am glad that he has got it. I believe that he will be President. At any rate,
if we are admitted you may bet the last hat that you have got in the world that
"Bleeding Kansas" will roll up 10,000 majority for him, and if you don't win
every time, I will give you two for each one you lose.
I don't know as there is much home news here. We are tearing along as
usual with our old breaking plow and five yoke of cattle. We make things
come, but it is awful hard work. It is very dry. There comes a shower once
in a while, but not enough to do any good. The old chaps around here shake
their heads and say they are afraid that they are not going to make any crop,
and I tell you it looks mighty billions and very much as though those that had
been in the habit of living on hog and dodger would have to take the hog clear
this time.
34. This was the year of a disastrous drought. Leverett Spring wrote: "For more than
a year little or no rain fell, and crops failed everywhere. Probably fifteen or twenty thousand
people were thrown upon public charity. Again Kansas put out signals of distress, to which
the public made a quick and generous response." Kansas: The Prelude to the War for the
Union (Boston, 1899), p. 271. See Peter's further comments on the drought, in letters of
May 20, July 22, November 11, and November 14, 1860; and March 10, 1861.
35. John W. Whitfleld, delegate to congress from Kansas territory.
36. In Roughing It (New York, 1913), p. 17, Mark Twain described a difficult six-day
trip by steamboat from St. Louis to St. Joe. There were sandbars "which we roosted on
occasionally, and rested, and then got out our crutches and sparred over."
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 339
Topeka goes on with her improvements as fast or faster than ever, and how
they do it I don't see, for there is very little money afloat. I suppose they trade
around and everybody makes something. There is hardly a man here but is
ready to trade anything that he has got, from a jack-knife to a quarter section
of land.
It seems to me that there has been an awful smashing up of things in Prince-
ton lately: seven weddings right straight along. By jove, I will have to hurry
back if I am going to get a woman there. There is, however, some consolation
in Lige's old saying that "there are as good fish in the sea as ever were caught
out," and you may have a mortgage on my hat if I bach' much longer.
I am sorry that the apples are all killed, for I was in hopes that I would have
a chance to get some next winter. How do you work it about the farm now
that Cullen has gone? Do you keep a hired man, or do all the work yourself?
I suppose you double bossee now, ain't you
As to your shaking while on a buffalo hunt, there is no danger of that. You
could not get the hang of it in so short a time. It will be worth quite a pile to
go, for you can wear home your moccasins and greasy overshirt and be a pretty
big man when you get back.
You may send along all the papers that you have a mind to now. I don't
get any except what I buy at the news office. We take one apiece in Holton,
and Frank has all the benefit now. Why don't you and Chat [Charity] write
once in a while.
PETER BRYANT
HOLTON, JACKSON Co., K[ANSAS] TERRITORY],
July 22nd 1860
DEAR BROTHER [CULLEN!
I have received your letter of June 25th. We left Topeka about four weeks
ago, but I have been there since and happened to come across your letter or
else I should still be in the dark in regard to your operations. I should think
from your description that you must have some tall old times there.
I suppose there is about as much fun in lugging a musket as there is in
"bullwhacking" 37 all day with a prairie team. As to "yanking out," 38 I
should think your class would get the hang of it after a while, so that you
could come it over some of the older chaps.
There is not much going on here. Since Congress adjourned without ad-
mitting us [i. e., Kansas territory as a new state], everybody gets mad if a
word is said about politics, and they fall to cursing Old Buck [President James
Buchanan] and the democracy generally, in a manner that would make a
Christian's hair stand on end. There are some Douglas democrats here. There
are to be three county commissioners and an assessor to be elected this fall,
but they won't make much of a hurrah.
We have broken up about 90 acres of prairie this summer. We broke 50
at Topeka. We quarrelled with the boss down there, and he won't pay us.
I am going to build a house this fall, dig a well, and fix up generally; that is,
get ready for the woman. We are having an awful drouth here. Everything
37. Peter here refers to the Western practice of driving a team of oxen with a short-
handled, long, heavy whip.
38. It is uncertain what Peter is alluding to here, but it is possible that "yanking put"
might have been a contemporary expression for taking unauthorized leave from the military
academy. The term "Yankee leave" was used by the American military services in the 19th
century as an equivalent to "French leave."
340 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
is drying up. The prairie got afire yesterday in sight of my cabin and burnt
over more than a thousand acres. You can get some idea by that of how dry
it is. The old settlers say that they are in the habit of having such seasons
here every three or four years. If that is the case, there is no use of trying
to raise grain for a living.
You must have had some great times running around to Conventions,
visiting, &c. Did you find any pretty girls in your travels? What kind of a
looking piece is Amanda Towers? I have heard great boasts concerning her
beauty. I would be devilish glad to learn that I had one good-looking cousin.
Do you know why Sarah Olds never answered my letter? Did she ever get
wind of my shooting her parting sermon at the ducks? I feel a little curious
in regard to it, but as to the feelings that they bear towards me, I don't care
a d n what they are. If they don't like me, they are not under the least
necessity of "putting."
I suppose that none of the teachers or professors ever get hold of your
letters, do they? If not, I can tell you some yarns once in a while that I didn't
like to write home where the women would see them. I don't know whether
I will get back home this winter or not, but if I do, you may bet your hat
that I won't come back here again without a "frow," for I have a notion of
having some "bark" a little different from squaw. Write me soon.
PETER BRYANT
I have been trying to get Mark and Lige out here on a buffalo hunt this
fall, but hardly think I will succeed. Cyrus did not come out as he talked.
The Judge has got a "darter." [Insertion on side of first page.]
KICKAPOO [KANSAS TERRITORY], Aug. 12 [1860]
DEAR FATHER
I have received the land warrant and located it. It came by express to
Topeka, and I left there with it on Wednesday morning. I have traveled
about 80 miles since and 50 of it with an ox team.
It kept me dodging to get around here in time, but "the deed is did," and
I feel a good deal better now. Tomorrow the Land Office is closed to pre-
emptors.
Here they don't seem to think there will be much sold, but after the sales
they will lay warrants to a large extent. Warrants are worth today $157.00.
PETER BRYANT
I will write again when I get home.
PB
HOLTON, JACKSON COUNTY, K[ANSAS] T[ERRTTORY],
November llth, 1860
DEAR BROTHER [presumably CULLEN]
I have just received your letter of the 21st ult. First and foremost, I con-
gratulate you on the election of "Honest Old Abe." It makes me feel good
all over. Tis true I've been expecting it for some time, but when I heard the
news from New York and Penn. and right from home, from the "Old Sucker
State," I just "hollered" loud as I could put in for two hours and a half, away
out here by myself on the prairie with nobody but "Deacon" and "Bully"
to hear me, and I have not got over it yet. The fit comes on occasionally,
and I yell out Hurrah for Old Abel in a way that makes the heavens ring,
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 341
and the echo from the hills on either side catches it up and sends back, Hur-
rah for Old Abel Old Abel Abe! All nature rejoices. The sun shines clearer
and warmer, and I actually believe on this occasion the grass will sprout.
Evening before last the northern lights gave a grand display, and last night
during the shower, lightning played strange antics across the sky, and old
thunder bellowed Hurrah for Abel
I tell you, if Kansas isn't glad nobody is. But this is not the end of good
news. Last spring Jackson County went Democratic by 17 majority. Last
Tuesday our side had 23 majority. I say, Hurrah for old Jackson! Altogether
we will have a tearing up of tilings before this time next year. No more Land
sales. Lots of money, and lots of grub. Hurrah for Old Abe!
Times are very hard, to use the words of the "Judge," hard as the lime-
stone that underlies our real estate. And I think down on the Neosho, where
"His Honor" lives, they are still worse. They are sending provisions and
money here from the States. The headquarters are at Atchison. Gen. Pom-
eroy [is] commander, and if he does not make a good thing of it, you may
have my hat. He was agent for the Massachusetts Emigrant Aid Society
and made $20,000 out of that, and you may bet that he has not forgotten
how it was done. 39 Still, I hope for the best. I do not ask any thing for
myself. I can get along well enough, but there are many poor men with large
families that will have to have some help some way or other, and I do not
think it is fair that speculators should pocket what the good people of Illinois
give, as they think, to relieve the poor.
I have been digging a well lately. I had to go 50 feet. It was no small
job. I have not got my house done yet. Money is so scarce that building is
very slow work. I have made but $15 in cash for the last three months,
though I have been at work principally for myself. As to going home, that is
out of the question. And when the woman that I used to talk about so much
will be forthcoming, God only knows. We did not go on our buffalo hunt
as we anticipated. This fall we had too much business to attend to. A great
many went from here and brought in large quantities of meat. Buffaloes
came in quite close to the Settlement this fall within 80 miles of here. There
was one killed about five miles from here the other day, but he had got
strayed away and lost.
Rackley is still in Holton and says that he will not leave until he makes
enough to take him off. How did you dispose of your stock at home, or did
you just leave it to take care of itself? They write me that they are still riding
"Sal." We are all well.
PETER BRYANT
HOLTON, K[ANSAS] TERRITORY], Nov. 14, 1860
DEAR BROTHER [MARCUS]
Yesterday I received from you two papers and a letter. One had been on
the road five days, another eight, and the letter nearly three weeks. Therefore,
I don't see as it will be of any use for me to write anything for your paper.
Besides, I am cross as a bear tonight and couldn't write anything pleasant if I
should try.
I suppose Old Abe is elected and I am very glad of it. I hope we will have
39. Pomeroy was the model for the unscrupulous Senator Dilworthy in the novel The
Gilded Age (1873), by Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner.
342 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
better times now. Jackson County gave 17 Democratic majority last spring.
This fall our side had 23 majority. Last night they had a great jollification in
Holton. They made some big speeches and devoured quite a number of apples.
The Democrats are a good deal down in the mouth.
You say that the folks talk of sending me some provision and other things.
Well, if they send along a barrel or two of flour, they need not be afraid but
what it will be accepted, and you say that you "have no doubt but what they
would send along a little "Spondulix" if needed." I am very much afraid that
it will be needed, though I had almost as soon be hung as ask father for any
more. I owe Frank $50 on that land yet, and he has finally got his arrange-
ments made so that he has got to pay for his right off, and he wants the money.
I have got $25 salted down that I calculated to go home with along towards
spring, but that plan will be knocked on the head. But what troubles me most
is where I am going to get the rest. I have tried to sell a yoke of cattle, but I
cannot do it for money. Then I tried to borrow. One man offered to lend me
$50 and take a mortgage on my place and 20 per cent interest.
I tell you I am devilish sick of this buying land on tick, and if I ever do it
again, I want you to take your gun and shoot me. My place has cost me nearly
$600 besides the work I have done on it, and if anybody should offer me $500
for it tonight, they would not have to offer but once. Here I am paying 10
per cent for money to buy land with that won't pay 2 per cent. Almost as good
a bank to put money in as Binghams Mill dam. But if I get out once, see if I
get in again, and if I don't have better luck, tell father he may expect another
begging letter in the course of a week.
As to that grub, if they take a notion to send any, tell them to send it as
Kansas Relief, directed to Gen. H. C. Pomeroy, Agent Atchison, K. T. Put on
a private mark, and direct a letter to him stating the facts. By this means I
will get it for 12& cents per cwt. freightage. Otherwise it will be $1.25 per cwt.
I believe Dee has sent for some, and it would be well to have it come together.
We did not go to Iowa. A man went from Holton and found it didn't pay.
I see by the papers that folks are giving money quite liberally in the eastern
cities. I wish they would send some to a poor boy in this neck-o'-woods. I got
a letter from Cullen a few days ago. He talks as though he had to work. I
want you to get me four bushels of seed wheat, and I will try and get the money
to pay you before you send it. I will send you the sermon in a day or two.
All well.
PETER BRYANT
During early February of 1861 Peter Bryant made a trip from
Holton to some place unknown. This may have been one of his
frequent business trips to one of the Kansas "settlements," but it
appears that he combined business with social pleasures, and it is
possible that he was on a courting mission at this time. As indicated
by previous letters, the need of a wife to establish a real home on
the Kansas prairies was much on his mind during these days. In
his absence, his friend and farming partner Frank Pomeroy took
care of the farm and looked after Peter's livestock. Frank wrote
to Peter as follows:
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 343
HOLTON [KANSAS]^ Feb. llth, 1861
DEAR PETER
Your letter I have neglected to answer until the present time. I am at the
old cabin, but there has a decided change come over things here. As they are
for the better, I have no fault to find. Chet, with his better part, arrived today.
The "thing was did" one week ago today. The past week he has been around
among the bretheren. The boys have followed him faithfully with their Band,
but have not succeeded in bringing him out. They are expected here tonight.
If they come, I suppose Brother Dee will invite them in. If he don't, they swear
they (darn the word, I can't spell it) 41 him two weeks.
You are undoubtedly having fine times with your little woman, if the sleigh-
ing is as good there as it is here. It has been fine sleighing for five weeks. Yes-
terday and today has been warmer. If it does not change before tomorrow,
there will not be much snow left. Your money I sent all right the next day
after I sent the note to Lewis. He refused to take it. I took it to Holton and
got the gold but have not paid him yet. Consequently I can't send the note
but presume I can next time I write. I have not received any money yet, but
I presume I shall before long, as the boys have been paid and Eph. Parks has
gone after the money. Gov has not been home, nor will he at present for the
reason that they can't get a furlough. The Blacksmith's bill is paid, and Gordon
says nothing, so I guess there will be no trouble with any bills outstanding.
The school goes along all right.
Dave is almost the best friend I have on the Creek. He will pay his tax
without any fuss now. Your rail maker I have not heard from. He has not
made any rails, and I presume will not. Your stock does pretty well, though
I think it does not do as well as it did last year. The reason, I think, is that
the hay was cut too late. Rachel looks well. She will not calve before March,
perhaps not before middle of that month. Large Jake had the diarrhea after
you left, which made him very weak, but he recovered and is doing well. The
rest of your stock is all right. I think we will feed them all corn before long.
I have two weeks longer to teach. Thrashed my wheat today. Had 48 bushels.
Chet says that he has not received his paper yet. He wishes me to tell you to
send for it right away, if you have not. Write again to me. Tell all the news,
not forgetting the girls.
Yours,
FRANK
HOLTON, JACKSON Co., KANSAS
March 10th 1861
DEAR BROTHER [presumably MARCUS]
I received your letter of February 17th several days ago, and I believe I
had one before that was not answered, although I cannot find it now. My
reason for not answering that is that I was so full of business that I could not
find time. While I taught school I was at home only a little while Sunday,
and then I generally had something else to attend to. My school is out now,
and nobody is more glad of it than I. I am now engaged in the exciting
game of a race for the Presidency; i. e., mauling rails, and you may take my
40. Although neither Frank nor Peter takes note of the event in these letters, Kansas was
now no longer a territory, having been admitted to the Union on January 29, 1861.
41. Frank probably intends the word "charivari," the old custom of a noisy mock sere-
nade on a couple's wedding night. Peter later refers to this same matter in his comments on
Chet and his bride.
344 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
word for it, it is a "heap" more satisfactory than mauling sense into young
ones' heads.
Judge Oakfield was here to see me last week. He got here Monday night
about nine o'clock. He was pretty well fagged out and hungry as a bear.
He had footed it from Grasshopper Falls [later, Valley Falls] ( about 20 miles )
that afternoon. He stayed until Wednesday morning. He could not reconcile
himself to bachelordom and advised me to quit it as soon as possible His
talk about the apples and cider made me wish I was back home again He
thinks Emporia is a long ways ahead of Holton in every point of view and
wanted I should sell out and go down there. I told him that I was far enough
off from civilization now, and didn't care about shaking all the year round.
He however made me promise to come down there on a visit next winter if
I didn't marry before. I do not see as famine makes any alteration in him.
He is the same jolly fellow that he always was.
We are having very fine weather now. Farmers that can get seed are very
busy putting in their wheat. I never saw winter wheat look better than at
present. Our cattle live on the prairie without hay. Some have not fed any
for three weeks. I predict a smashing crop this year, and if you of Suckerdom
are likely to starve, send to us for aid Perhaps, though, it will be well
enough not to count chickens until they are hatched.
There is considerable excitement just now in regard to who will be our
U. S. Senators. There are a good many applicants, and it is very hard telling
who is ahead. Jim Lane 42 stock was very high, but it seems to be falling.
Pomeroy, I think, is gaining slowly. There is only one reason why I should
like to see him senator. That is that he would work for our interest in regard
to the Pacific R. R. I believe the old cove is a good deal of a knave. Our
Representative favors Lane and Delehay. 43 I rather prefer Lane and Judge
Ewing 44 or Col. Phillips. 45 However I have no favorite that I wish to
bet on.
We have just received Old Abe's inaugural address. Its high tone and firm
resolve smell strong of war.
Have you seen Thadeus Hyatt's letters to Gov. Andrews, Greeley, Sumner
Conway, and others? 46 They are a pack of lies. Thadeus ought to be put
in jail again, or sent to the Lunatic Asylum. The State is bad enough without
lying about it. The scamp has kept thousands of emigrants from coming in
here this spring.
Ten to one if we have a drouth again in twenty years.
P. BRYANT
42. James Henry Lane, the "grim chieftain/' who came to Kansas in the spring of 1855
and played a spectacular role in territorial, state, and even national politics. He committed
suicide in July, 1866.
43. Mark W. Delahay, whose political stock was high during this period because of a
distant family connection with President Lincoln.
44. Thomas Ewing, Jr., who was on the Republican state ticket as chief justice.
45. Col. William A. Phillips, who came to Kansas in 1855 as correspondent for Greeley's
New York Tribune. He was an ardent free-soilcr.
46. Thaddeus Hyatt was head of the Kansas Territorial Relief Committee set up to aid
needy Kansans during the famine of 1860-1861. Andrews was Gov. John A. Andrew of
Massachusetts; Sumner was Charles Sumner, Massachusetts senator; Conway was Moncure
Daniel Conway, Massachusetts clergyman and emancipationist.
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 345
HOLTON, JACKSON Co., KANSAS
April 7th, 1861
DEAR BROTHER [MARCUS]
I received your letter of March 26th yesterday. I am not in the habit of
answering letters quite so soon after their arrival, but I got my hand in today
and concluded that I would clean up the whole list, hence it is [remainder
undecipherable]
I am just as full of work as I can stick nowadays, and it keeps coming
thicker and faster and more of it all the time. I have no idea that I will
ever get through.
We are having fine spring weather now. It was quite dry until about a
week ago, when it commenced raining and has rained every other day since.
My wheat is up and looks first-rate. I got two bushels of Club wheat and
sowed it last week. I think it was the handsomest wheat that I ever saw.
There is any amount of wheat in the country now; every farmer has some. I
think Kansas will be fully tested this year in regard to her wheat-raising quali-
ties. I am going to put in ten acres of corn and some potatoes. This, with
the wheat, will be the extent of my farming this year. We are going to run
a Company breaking team as heretofore, but will probably break mostly for
ourselves. We have contracted for about fifty acres don't get any cash and
unless someone should happen to come full of dollars, the prospect is rather
poor.
It was just two years ago yesterday that I left Princeton to go to Pikes Peak
and have not got there yet, but for the past month I have had the greatest
notion in the world of going; but driving team 47 is a dog's life, and God knows
I have lived hard enough as it is. If I could only get the pay, I would be
perfectly satisfied to let them go to Satan with the work.
You have probably heard of the election of our U. S. Senators. Jim Lane
was ahead, and old tub-of-guts Pomeroy followed, as I was afraid he would.
I don't know of any way except to grin and bear it, but there is one consola-
tion: that is that Jackson County did not help elect him. The old cove hired
a big house in Topeka and fitted it up in grand style and lived like a king,
and those representatives who voted for him went there and boarded free
gratis for nothing without paying a cent until election was over. Then
S. C.(amp) vamosed and left the unfortunate reps to hunt other lodgings.
There has been a change in our post office affairs, and it is said that we
will get our mail directly from Atchison after 1st of June.
It is rumored that there is a wild man in this neighborhood. Those who
have seen him say that he is a heavy, thick-set man with red hair and whiskers
and can run like a cuss. He sometimes gets after women and makes them
scratch gravel as though they were running for a wager. The other day a
couple of girls were out in a field driving up some cows. The chap saw them
and made a break and caught one, and in a scuffle she bit off one of his fingers.
The next day the girl's father hunted all day for the fellow without success.
47. After the Atchison and St. Joseph railroad was finished, in 1860, the freighting busi-
ness from Atchison (the westernmost point of railroad connections with the East) enjoyed a
definite boom. In 1865 "vacant ground around the town was dotted with the encampments
of emigrants and freighters, and the levee was crowded with goods for the mines/' Peter
Beckman, "The Overland Trade and Atchison's Beginnings," Territorial Kansas, p. 156. By
"driving team," Peter apparently means working in this freighting business.
238670
346 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
He don't wear any clothes except a coat. This is the yarn, and it is current
here. However, you may do as you please about believing it.
Now in regard to your question about Chet's "gal." Well, in the first
place, she is a Methodist and chock full of Jesus just like himself, fair com-
plexion, medium size, shows her teeth a good deal, dresses pretty neat, tolerably
good looking, and has a good-sized ankle, higher, deponent knoweth not.
P. BRYANT
HOLTON, JACKSON COUNTY, KANSAS.
April 7th 1861
DEAR BROTHER [CULLEN]
I have not had a letter from you for a long time, but that matters not. I
have got time to write today, and the devil only knows when I will have again.
I am chock full of work now, and every day it comes thicker and faster and
more of it. I had an idea token I was a boy that after I got to be twenty-one
I wouldn't work so devilish hard as I did at that time, but I find that I was sadly
mistaken. I believe that I have done more work since I left home than I ever
did all put together on Cyrus's farm, and yet when I look around I can hardly
see where I have made a mark. If a fellow comes here without anything and
expects to make a farm without doing a good deal of hard work, he slips up
on it like thunder.
In regard to my matrimonial prospects, they are not half as bright as they
were three years ago. Gods! I thought then that I should certainly have some
bark long ere this, but as Burns says, "The best laid plans of mice and men,
gang aft agley." And now I don't know as I shall have any for three years to
come. By the bye, 'tis just two years ago today since we bid each other
good-by at Bill Bony Grove. 48 It seems to me as though it was but yesterday.
Still, when I look back, what a h 1 of a mess I have waded through: some
of the toughest times and hardest grub that ever I saw However, 'Grin &
Bear It' is the firm I deal with, and I wouldn't flunk out and go home a poor
devil as I am now, if Cyrus would give me his whole farm.
We are going to run our breaking team again this year and farm it a little.
I have got in four acres of wheat and shall put in 10 or 12 of com. The other
boys each about the same as myself. The weather has been quite dry until a
week past. Since then it has rained nearly every day. The grass is not as
forward as it was last year.
The senatorial contest is ended, and our two pompous 'Generals' Lane and
Pomeroy have been chosen. It is said there was any amount of wireworking
and "skulduggery" performed. Pomeroy moved to Topeka and fitted up an
elegant mansion and boarded free gratis all the representatives that voted for
him. Whether he fed them on "Aid" 49 or not, deponent knoweth not.
What do you think of Old Abe's plan of evacuating Forts Sumter and
Pickens? 50 I don't like it at all. I can't endorse it in him any more than 1
48. Bulbona Grove, in the western port of Bureau county, Illinois.
49. Pomeroy was Hyatt's assistant in the Kansas Territorial Relief Committee (see Foot-
note 46). There is evidence that some of the funds contributed to the committee for relief
in Kansas found their way into Pomeroy's own pocket.
50. President Buchanan had left unsolved the problem of what to do about the Atlantic
Coast forts, the "return" of which had been demanded by the Southern states. After con-
sulting with military advisers and the cabinet, Lincoln had apparently decided, by March 16,
that the forts should be evacuated. He. gave no order, but the newspapers, as a result of
unofficial announcements made by his friend Ward Lamon, were stating that the evacuations
had been definitely decided upon. Peter no doubt read the newspaper statements and of
course could not know that by the date of this letter Lincoln had changed his mind and had
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 347
could in Old Buck. It seems to me that they might be reinforced. If he has
not got the power, let him take the responsibility, the whole North will back
him. When it comes to getting down and licking spittle for the d d hounds,
I am greatly opposed to it. My way would be to "coerce" them and hang
every d d traitor if I had to clean out the whole country.
Judge Oakfield was here to see me not long since. He said that a few
days before that Peter Sweet, while starting out of Leavenworth for Texas,
was kicked by a horse and had his leg broken. He had been living pretty
high . . . and had got his blood in a bad state, and his leg began to
mortify, and they didn't know but it would have to be amputated. Chet is
chock full of Jesus and is running a Methodist girl pretty hard. . . .
P. BRYANT
HOLTON, JACKSON COUNTY, KANSAS
April 21st 1861
DEAR FATHER
I received your letter of March 31st several days since.
We are having very fine weather now although rather warm for hard work.
The grass grows very fast and our cattle got fat as hogs. In that respect
I think we have the advantage over Northern Illinois, for we feed our cattle
a little corn during winter and turn them out and get them fat on grass and
get them into market before you get done feeding hay.
We have not planted any corn yet. In fact, we are rather behind hand with
our farm work in consequence of having so much fence to build. We are
going to put in about 10 acres each. I have got nearly four acres of as hand-
some wheat as I ever saw.
We put in our garden stuff some time ago and have got corn, onions, peas,
potatoes, and melons up and nicely growing. My cow has got well and quite
fat. She gives about eight quarts of milk per day. I think you do her great
injustice in calling her an "old cow," for she is but very little over two years
old.
Secession is the all-absorbing topic here, and the capture of Ft. Sumter
produces a good deal of sensation. We have organized a military company in
Holton, and it is said there are about to be two more organized in the County.
Every man that is capable of lugging a musket is itching for a fight. We
have two or three secessionists among us, but they have to keep pretty still or
they would get their walking papers. The troops have all withdrawn from the
frontier, and the Kiowas range within a hundred miles of us. There is no
telling what day they may be in here. Besides that, we are somewhat sus-
picious of the loyalty of Missouri. There are three secession military companies
at St. Jo and several others along down the river. They threaten to tear
up the H. & St. Jo R. R. 51 to prevent the troops from Ft. Kearney from going
to Washington. In case Missouri should go with the South, Ft. Leavenworth
is in a rather precarious situation. The troops are gone, and there is no one
there except the quartermaster and a few laborers who have charge of about
sent the ill-fated expedition under David D. Porter to reinforce Sumter and Pickens. Sumter
was fired on April 12 and surrendered April 14. David M. Porter, Lincoln and His Party in
the Secession Crisis (New Haven, Conn., 1942), pp. 336-366.
51. The Hannibal and St. Joseph railroad. Begun in 1857, it was, up to 1860, "the
only road to reach the Missouri River," and it "secured a monopoly on the carrying of goods
from the Mississippi to the Missouri on the way to the Far West." Robert Edgar Riegel
The Story of the Western Railroads (New York, 1926), p. 276.
348 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
thirty pieces of artillery and a thousand stand of small arms. Last Thursday
a boat came up to Leavenworth with the secession flag flying at the masthead.
This roused the ire of the Union boys, and they sent to the captain a desire
that he should take it down. He refused. They then got out the "Kickapoo
Baby," planted it on the levee, and loaded it, and told the captain that "if he
didn't haul that d d thing down and run up the stars and stripes in less
than ten minutes, they would blow him to h 1." This was argument enough.
Cap. improved his time, and in less than three minutes the Union flag was
unfurled and floated proudly in the breeze, and such a hurrah as burst from
that crowd never greeted the vile rattlesnake. Hoping we may soon have
a fight, I am
Yours affectionately
P. BRYANT
HOLTON, JACKSON Co., KANSAS
May 9th 1861
DEAR BROTHER [CULLEN]
I received your letter of Apr. 7th about a week ago. Today we are having
a rainy day, and I am squaring up my correspondence, and this letter is a
part of the proceeds.
This is a great country, but things are apt to be carried to extremes; this
morning the weather was delightful, balmy and warm; about the middle of the
forenoon a little cloud about as big as your hand made its appearance in the
northwest, and in less than an hour it rained and hailed and poured down
water which ran on the prairies in streamlets large enough to turn a small
mill. It would have made us grin to have seen the like last summer. I do
not anticipate any trouble by drouth this season, but if we are not drowned
out we will be fortunate.
There is nothing talked about here except war, and the boys of '56 fairly
itch for a fight. They have got a grudge against Missouri and the South that
they will never forget until it is wiped out in blood. We have organized a
Volunteer Rifle Company in Holton and are awaiting orders from Gov. Robin-
son. 52 It is said that the President issued a requisition to him for two regiments.
If that is the case, I should not be surprised if we had to march soon.
Our Capt. is Wm. F. Creits, 53 a captain in the troubles of '56 and the
prince of devils in a fight and of good fellows in a frolic, and as much of an
abolitionist as Lovejoy or John Brown dare be. Your dear brother has the
honor of being first lieutenant, a d d ticklish place in time of a charge,
and he may find some chewed bread in his boots afterward, but never-the-less
would like to see how it would seem. Dave Rackley is 2nd Lieutenant and
Frank 3rd.
52. Dr. Charles Robinson, of Fitchburg, Mass., who became governor when the state
entered the Union early in 1861.
53. William F. Creitz, captain of the Holton volunteer rifle company, shortly afterward
raised recruits for the Kansas cavalry forces being organized. Peter was too poor to buy a
horse to follow his idol into state service (see letter of September 1, 1861), but Creitz was
commissioned first lieutenant of Company A, Fifth regiment, Kansas volunteer cavalry, on
long and dangerous march to join the Army of the
supply-train escort of 150 men, Captain Creitz overthrew an Arkansas cavalry regiment,
routed the 15th Texas cavalry rangers, captured a tjuerrilla company and supplies, and eluded
a large body of pursuing Confederate cavalry. Creitz's detachment had been given up as
lost, but because of its "gallant fight," the regiment was congratulated by General Osterhaus.
division commander, for remarkable bravery and skill. Creitz was wounded at the Battle of
Helena, Ark., on July 4, 1863. He was mustered out August 11, 1864, at Leavenworth.
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 349
I don't want you to feel bad in the least because I have got a lieutenancy
before you have, but you must remember that I am the oldest.
Do you think the Cadets have a chance to see any active service? What
do you suppose Mother would say if both of her boys should become fighting
cocks? Have you seen the Princeton [111.] papers? I tell you old Bureau
[county] shelled out the volunteers with a vengeance. She raised seven com-
panies, and I presume some of them are in Washington before now. I have
not seen the muster rolls and don't know who has gone. I hardly know what
to think of M. [Missouri], whether she will secede or not. They are or-
ganizing and arming a great many companies just across the river, and you
may bet we are not behind them in that respect. I will wager my hat that
there are 10,000 men in military organizations in Kansas today, and if Mis-
souri thinks she would like to thrash us, just let her go in. The Big Muddy
[Missouri river] wouldn't stop us this time. Are any of the Southern Cadets
in the Academy [West Point] now? Father writes me that he is going east this
summer. He will probably give you a call. I am devilishly in hopes that our
company will be sent east. I would manage to stop at Princeton an hour or two.
Our crops look first-rate, but I don't know as they will do us any good,
for all three of us are "stuck."
P. BRYANT
HOLTON, JACKSON Co., KANSAS
Sept. 1st 1861
DEAR BROTHER [CULLEN]
I received a letter from you a good while ago dated June 17th, but I've been
so busy ever since that I have not answered it. Perhaps you would like to
know what I find to do. There is enough to do if a fellow has a mind to take
hold of it.
I didn't go into the army as you probably expected, and as I expected to
one while. I'll tell you why. When we first organized a company here, we
offered our services to the Governor, and he wouldn't have us. Then our
Captain got authority to raise recruits for the 3rd regiment, and two days before
we were to report at headquarters, it was changed into a cavalry company, and
I was too d d poor to buy a horse, so I was out again. There was about
30 went from here. Dfave] Rackley went with them. I was as mad as h~l
because I couldn't go, but perhaps it is all for the best. The fellows have to
stick to it devilish close, and there is no dodging off to run home to see the
babies.
But I suppose you've heard of "Jayhawkers," haven't you? (The secesh in
S. W. Missouri have.) They are curious 'cusses.' I tell you what 'tis, Cull.
It is a nice things to hear the bullets whistle provided they don't get near enough
to cut the hide. It is nice to make them whistle so they do cut the bark. Again
it affords infinite pleasure to be straddle of something that will get over ground
like h-1 greased if the Texas devils are after you at the ratio of 200 to 25. But
the best of all is for about fifty of said "Jay-hawkers" to get after three or four
hundred Missourians, then to see them "skeedaddle." I tell you 'tis royal fun.
It is fun, too, to stampede a big drove of horses for some jolly old "Secesh."
It is a good idea, too, once in a while to get one or two of "Butler's contra-
band" 54 if you can get good. The two latter come under the head of "press-
54. Negro slaves. Gen. Benjamin Franklin Butler reasoned that since slaves were
considered property, he was authorized to keep, as contraband of war, those Negroes who
escaped from their owners to Union lines.
350 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
ing." Of course, we don't "press" much, but then we calculate to make the
institution support itself. I hardly think it will be carried so extensively as it
has heretofore. Our General (Jennison) 65 has received a colonelcy in the
army, and a good many of the boys will go into his regiment. He is an inde-
pendent sort of a fellow. He wouldn't go into the army and be under the
command of any brigadier. What orders he don't make himself, he receives
directly from Fremont. 56 His regiment are all mounted, called the Kansas
Rangers. He finds horses (1000 that were pressed) and equipment. It is a
d -d good place if a fellow wants to fight. He is always ready for a skirmish,
and I never saw anyone so careful about losing his men. Many a cursing he
has given the boys for being so reckless. No, say I, they will all get to hell
a d d sight sooner than they want to.
You think we don't know anything about drill. I don't suppose we could vie
with you West Point boys, but by G-d we can shoot. What d d asses they
made of themselves at Bull Run. 57 I swear 'tis a shame to our cause. I didn't
think the North had so many d d cowards. I like McClellan. I think he
is grit. Sigel is bully, but he made a h-1 of a mistake at Springfield. 58
I am at home cutting hay now and attending to my fences. Don't know
whather I shall go back again or not. When you write, send to Holton as usual.
I may get it sometime if some "Secesh" don't force me to take passage in Old
Charon's dugout to the Shades.
PETER
HOLTON, JACKSON Co., KANSAS
Oct. 13th, 1861
DEAR BROTHER [CULLEN]
I have just received your letter of Sep. 22nd. I am sorry that you should
suppose that I would be "going up the spout" at this interesting time. I in-
tend no such thing, but mean to live and see the thing through if possible.
You say that I was ambiguous in my last letter. I was not aware of it,
though I swear I've forgotten what I did write.
Perhaps I didn't tell you that I had been to Missouri to see the country
6-c.; that my old gun had made rebels bite the dust; that I didn't get killed,
and maybe other things; but I believe I hinted at them pretty d d strong.
That's all I'm going to do. Suppose I should be brought to trial here or here-
after for shooting a man, and you should come in as witness with papers stat-
ing over my signature that I did shoot him. Wouldn't I be in a d d pretty
mess! But I'll try and be plain this time.
Last May I received from Gov. Robinson a commission as 1st Lieutenant
of Jackson County Union Guards. In July our Captain raised a company
and went into the army, and I mustered about 50 men and went into Missouri.
All the difference between us [was] he jayhawked under cover of Uncle Sam
and I under a lieutenancy from Governor R[obinson]. I marched when I
d d pleased; he, when he was told to. I kept my plunder (if I chose); he
55. Charles R. Jennison, a guerrilla leader, became colonel of the Seventh Kansas volun-
teer regiment.
58. Gen. John C. Fremont, since July commander of the Department of the West.
57. The Union defeat at the first battle of Bull Run, July 21, 1881.
58. The Battle of Wilson's Creek, near Springfield, Mo., on August 10, 1861. Peter
refers to Union Maj. Gen. Franz Siegel.
LETTERS OF PETER BRYANT 351
didn't. I took my pay as I went along; he, when he could get it. I have
disbanded my squad; he has got to stick her till war is over.
I tell you Missouri has a d -d desolate look. Now settlers south of the
river are very scarce. We cleaned out one side, and old Price 59 the other.
He has about 15,000 that organized expressly for plunder. They are mostly
d d cowards. My boys have whipped them many a time where they
outnumbered us two to one. I never ran but once. Then I was scouting
with 25 men and ran into an ambush of 200 Texans. Then spurs came into
play. Four of my men went under and seven or eight were wounded
but got away. It is a wonder that we were not annihilated. They fired a
volley of more than a hundred shots, and we were within 5 rods of them.
Their horses were in a ravine about 20 rods back, else I probably would not
be writing now. But I've got my pay.
I suppose you'd like to know what I think of war. I think it is a d d
hard way to make a living, and if a fellow has not got a constitution of iron,
it will kill you. As to pecuniary matters, I didn't bring home a d d red.
Well, I didn't go to make money. I went to fight. When we disbanded, I
gave up all that I had except a mule and pony to the Government boys.
When I got to Leavenworth, I was out of money and hungry as the devil,
and I had my mule put up and sold at auction. He brought $17.50. I
expected to get a hundred dollars for him when I took him, but jayhawkers
were too plenty.
I've been home nearly a week now. I am going to Illinois in a fortnight
if I can get money to take me there. I never saw money so d d hard in
my life. I have not written home since July, and they don't know where I
am. If you write to any of them, don't say anything about my coming. I
think I shall go with the army afterward if I can get into a cavalry company
that suits me.
I don't like what you say about Fremont. Influential parties at Washington
have tried their d dest to cripple him and have well nigh succeeded.
With few arms and little money, what could the man do that he has not?
Then to take away 6 of his best regiments, to guard Washington when they
already had 300,000 men wasn't it d d smart! I think you would do
well to look to the Capital a little before you condemn Fremont. 60 As to
Lexington, I know 'tis bad, but if Mulligan wanted reinforcements he should
not have sent word to Fremont that he could hold it against all hell. 61 The
59. Maj. Gen. Sterling Price (1809-1867) of the Confederate forces. Price was governor
of the State of Missouri 1853-1857; was made commander of the Missouri State Guard July
30, 1861; commanded the Army of the West July 2 to September 28, 1862. Francis T.
Miller, ed., Photographic History of the Civil War (New York), v. 10, p. 276.
60. As to where to put the blame for the Union defeats in the West during these months,
there is a difference of opinion. Early historians, unlike Peter Bryant, tended to blame
Fremont. Allan Nevins, however, in his biography of the Pathfinder, has this to say: "The
difficulties of his [Fremont's] position, tossed as he suddenly was into a Department without
organization, money, arms, or stores, without anything but raw recruits, asked not merely to
raise and use armies but to equip them, left to shift largely for himself by an Administration
intent upon the eastern front . . . can hardly be exaggerated. . . . Grant himself
might have failed." Fremont: Pathmarker of the West (New York, 1939), pp. 548, 549.
Fremont relinquished his command, by order of President Lincoln, November 2, 1861.
61. At the Battle of Lexington, Mo., September 12-20, 1861, Col. Tames A. Mulligan
of the 23d Illinois regiment, took command as senior colonel of the Union forces. With 3,500
men he held out for eight days against Confederate Gen. Sterling Price and 30,000. When
reinforcements failed to arrive from Jefferson City, Mexico, Mo., or northwest Missouri, and
the outnumbered garrison of the supply depot were surrounded and faced with annihilation
by the closely besieging Confederates, Mulligan surrendered on honorable terms. R. U. John-
son and C. C. Buel, Battles and Leaders of the Civil War (New York, 1884-1887), v. I, pp.
307-313.
352 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
troops have not lost their confidence in the man yet [i. e. t Fremont]. When I
left, there was talk of his being removed, and it caused great excitement, and
they swore if he was turned out they would disband and go home. If the
administration wants to see this thing go on, for God's sake let them help him
a little. Don't write again until you hear from me.
PETER BRYANT
(The Concluding Installment, Including Letters of 1862-1906, Will
Appear in the Winter, 1961, Issue.)
Kansas Before 1854: A Revised Annals
Compiled by LOUISE BARRY
PART THREE, 1804-1818
1804
C Upper Louisiana was transferred, officially, from France to the
United States in ceremonies at St. Louis on March 9. Next day,
Amos Stoddard (as U.S. agent) proclaimed the establishment of
American authority in the district.
The newly-acquired Louisiana territory west of the Mississippi
was divided (by act of congress, March 26) into the Territory of
Orleans (which later became the state of Louisiana) and the District
of Louisiana (which, effective October 1, was placed under the juris-
diction of the Territory of Indiana).
Ref: Clarence E. Carter, camp, and ed., The Territorial Papers of the United States,
v. 13, pp. 8, 9; Missouri Historical Review, Columbia, v. 48, p. 10.
C The Lewis and Clark expedition (45 men in a 55-foot keelboat
and two pirogues) which, on May 14, had started up the Missouri
from near St. Louis, encamped on June 26 "at the upper point of the
mouth of the river Kanzas," and remained for three days. In his
journal, William Clark wrote:
[The Kansas river] . . . receves its name from a Nation which dwells
at this time on its banks & [has?] 2 villages one about 20 leagues & the other
40 Leagues up, [The explorers' report made clear that the Kansa were in one
village (near the Big Blue's mouth), the location "20 leagues" up being a former
village site.] those Indians are not verry noumerous at this time, reduced by
war with their neighbours, &c, [Their population was estimated at 300 warriors
and 1,300 in all, in the report.] they formerly lived on the South banks of the
Missourie 24 Leagues above this river in a open & butifull plain, and were
verry noumerous at the time the french first Settled the Illinois, I am told they
are a fierce & warlike people [and, according to the report, a "dissolute, lawless
banditti"], being badly Supplied with fire arms, [they] become easily con-
quered by the Aiauway [Iowa] & Saukees [Sacs] who are better furnished with
those materials of War, This Nation is now out in the Plains hunting the
Buffalow. . . ._
Continuing up the Missouri on June 29, the explorers camped on
the north bank. On the 30th, after a ten-mile journey, they stopped
for the night on the south (Kansas) side where Sgt. Patrick Gass
recorded in his journal "there were the most signs of game I ever
saw." On July 1 camp was on one of the "Isles des Parques or field
LOUISE BARRY is a member of the staff of the Kansas State Historical Society.
(353)
354 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
IslW near the south bank facing a (Kansas) prairie [about op-
posite present Leavenworth]. The following evening, Sgt. Charles
Floyd wrote in his journal:
. . . Campt on the N Side, on the South Side was a old French fort
[Fort Cavagnolle of the 1740's and *50's] who had setled hear to protect the
Trade of this [Kansa] nation in the valley the Kansas Had a village between
tow pints of High Praria Land a Handsome Situation for a town. [This was in
Salt creek valley, northeast Leavenworth county,]
On July 3 they passed Isle au Vache (Cow Island), negotiated a
stretch of sand bar, and stopped overnight on the south (Kansas)
bank, half a mile beyond an old, deserted trading post [above pres-
ent Oak Mills, Atchison county].
At sunrise on July 4 one shot was fired from the keelboat's swivel
gun. When the travelers came to a creek flowing in from the south
( Kansas ) side, they named it "Fourth of July creek." Above was
a high mound where three Indian paths centered, and from which
there was "a very extensive prospect" [at present Atchison]. Some
miles farther on they stopped on the north side, about a mile above
a stream flowing in from the Kansas side a stream which they
named "Independence creek." Their camp was opposite the second
old Kansa village [i. e., across the river from present Doniphan].
Wrote William Clark: "... we closed the [day] by a Descharge
from our bow piece [and] an extra Gill of whiskey."
On July 5 the explorers spent the night on the Kansas side, and
Clark recorded:
I observe great quantity of Summer & fall Grapes, Berries & Wild roases on
the banks. Deer is not so plenty as useal, great Deel of Elk Sign.
On the seventh and again on the ninth of July [on which date they
passed several miles beyond Wolf river, Doniphan county] their
camps were on the Kansas bank of the Missouri.
Meriwether Lewis' ". . . Summary View of Rivers and Creeks,
Etc.," presumably prepared at Fort Mandan (N. D.) where the
Lewis and Clark expedition wintered in 1804-1805, included these
notes on the Kansas river:
... it takes it's course nearly East about 300 leagues [750 miles] through
fertile and leavel, plains & praries, intersperced with groves of timbered land.
..,,.$ . it has been navigated 200 leagues [500 miles] and there is good reason
to believe . . . that it is navigable for perogues much further perhaps
nearly to it's source.
Of more consequence was the summary's table of distances on the
Kansas, which named (and gave distances, width, and direction of)
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 355
a number of its tributaries in addition to the already-known Repub-
lican and "Bluewater" (Big Blue) rivers among them "Wor-rah-
ru za" (Wakarusa) river, "Grasshopper Creek" (now Delaware
river), and "Solomon's Creek" (Solomon river). But the distances
(from the mouth of the Kansas) as listed in the table were notably
inaccurate.
Nicholas King prepared a manuscript map of the Missouri country which
was available to several government offices early in 1806. Its data (including
the Kansas tributaries' names) came from a sketch map William Clark had
drawn during the winter of 1804-1805 and sent to Washington.
Ref: R. G. Thwaites ed., Original Journals of the Lewis and Clark Expedition . . .
(New York, 1904-1905), v. 1, pp. 60-68, v. 6, pp. 35, 36 (table of distances), 84, 85;
The Kansas Historical Quarterly (KHQ), v. 21, pp. 402-405 (for comment on the Kansas
river data). See, also, under 1814.
C Pierre Chouteau, of St. Louis, was appointed agent of Indian
affairs for the District of Louisiana on July 17, by President Jefferson.
He was charged to give particular attention to the Osage Indians.
Ref: Territorial Papers of the U. S., v. 13, pp. 31-33.
C Outfitted with trading goods by William Morrison ( a Kaskaslda,
111., merchant), Jeannot Metoyer and Jean Baptiste Lalande [La-
barde?] went up the Missouri to the Pawnee villages on the Platte
in the summer [?]; and followed up the Platte to its headwaters, it is
said, before making their way to Santa Fe, accompanied by some
Pawnees and guided by Joseph Gervais (who was reported to have
made an earlier 1804 trip to New Mexico, and to have taken a party
of Pawnees to Santa Fe in 1803). So far as known, these traders
were the first to take goods overland from the American settlements
to Santa Fe. "Lalande" remained in Santa Fe.
Experienced voyageurs Lorenzo Durocher and Jacques d'Eglisse
also went up the Missouri in 1804 intending to go overland to New
Mexico. Both reached Santa Fe but perhaps not together. (Du-
rocher is on record at Santa Fe in early 1805; d'Eglisse is not placed
there definitely till late 1806.)
It may be that none of these adventurers crossed present Kansas
in traveling to Spanish territory.
Ref: Ibid., pp. 182, 183; A. P. Nasatir, Before Lewis and Clark (St. Louis, 1952), v.
1, p. 113, v. 2, pp. 755, 756; Annie H. Abel's Tabeau's Narrative of Loisel's Expedition
(Norman, Okla., 1939), pp. 240-245; Houck's The Spanish Regime in Missouri (Chicago,
1909), v. 2, pp. 356, 357, 360; New Mexico Historical Review, Santa Fe, v. 2 (October,
1927), pp. 370, 371.
7805
C Gen. James Wilkinson (commander in chief of the army) was
appointed governor of the Territory of Louisiana by President Jeffer-
son on March 11. ( By a March 3d act of congress, the District of
356 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Louisiana had been changed to the Territory of Louisiana which was
to operate under a governor, secretary, and three judges. )
Ref : Territorial Papers of the V. S., v. 13, pp. 98, 99.
C On September 2 the "Arkansas band" (see 1802-1803) of Osages
(400 warriors; 1,500 persons in all) living on the Verdigris [near
present Claremore, Okla.] arrived at the Great Osage village [on
the Little Osage river in present Vernon county, Mo.]. Next day,
Lt. George Peter (emissary of General Wilkinson) counciled with
assembled chiefs and warriors about the upcoming Indian peace
council, a proposed visit of Indians to Washington, and Wilkinson's
plan to place a military post in Osage country. Indian Agent Pierre
Chouteau tried, unsuccessfully, to reconcile and reunite the two
bands.
Lieutenant Peter estimated there were 2,000 persons, a fourth of
them warriors, in the 120-house Great Osage village; and 1,400
people, 400 of them warriors, in the 85-house Little Osage village
five miles to the northwest (visited by him on September 5 ) . By his
calculation the Osages had a fighting force of 1,300 men.
Ref: Ibid., pp. 231, 232. When Capt. Z. M. Pike took a census of the "grand village"
in 1806, he reported there were 502 men, and a total of 1,695 persons in the 214 lodges.
(Pike's letter of August 30, 1806, in Appendix to editions of his An Account of Expeditions
to the Sources of the Mississippi. . . . )
C At St. Louis, on October 18, through the efforts of William Henry
Harrison (governor of Indiana territory) and Gen. James Wilkinson
(governor of Louisiana territory), a reconciliation-and-peace treaty
was effected between the Delawares, Miamis, Pottawatomies, Kicka-
poos, Sacs & Foxes, Kaskaskias, Sioux (of Des Moines river), and
lowas, of the one part, and the Great and Little Osages of the other
part.
Ref: Ibid., pp. 245-247.
C One or two Kansa were among a delegation of Indian leaders
making a visit to Washington in the latter part of the year. On
October 22, General Wilkinson wrote ( from his St. Louis headquar-
ters):
The Deputation destined to visit the President, will commence their journey
this day under the conduct of Capt n [Amos] Stoddard, and will consist of twenty
six persons from eleven Nations, (to-wit) The Ottos, Missouri, Panis, Canzes,
Osage, Sacque, Reynard [Fox], Ayoua [Iowa], Kickapoo, Pottowattomee, and
Miamis, eight of these nations are strangers to us, and the seven last embrace
the belligerents among whom we have been making Peace. . . .
Ref: Ibid., p. 243.
C Lt. James B. Wilkinson's party, convoying a homeward-bound
chief of the Aricaras up the Missouri in the late fall, encountered
KANSAS BEFORE 1854: A REVISED ANNALS 357
hostile Kansa about 20 leagues below the mouth of the Kansas river
and returned the chief to St. Louis on December 8. Gov. James Wil-
kinson reported:
This body of Canzes after their first, very rude and unfriendly interview in
which both Parties took arms, marched up the River and took Post at a difficult
and narrow pass, where they decoyed two American hunters on shore who were
descending the River, one of whom they killed, and the other after shooting an
Indian made his escape, but unfortunately fell in with our Camp in the night,
and not answering the challenge was fired upon and mortally wounded. . . .
I am fearful this disposition of the Canzes, may be excited by agents from
St Afee, but the nation has not more than three hundred warriors and a word
to our friends the Osages would destroy them. . . .
Ref : Ibid., pp. 297, 298.
7806
C In the spring the Spanish learned of the impending American
expedition (Pike's) to the western frontier, and quickly assembled
an imposing cavalry force (100 dragoons, 500 militia; more than
2,000 horses and mules ) equipped for six months. Under command
of Lt. Facundo Melgares, this company left Santa Fe about mid- June
to accomplish several objectives: to intercept any American parties
found in Spanish-claimed territory; to explore the northeast frontier
of New Spam; to visit the Comanches, Pawnees, and Kansa.
As Pike heard the story from Melgares, the expedition descended
the Red river [i. e., the Canadian] for 233 leagues; met, and counciled
with, the great bands of Comanches ( following a ceremonial meet-
ing at which three Spanish officers on jet black horses, attended by
500 men on white horses, rode out on a prairie to be received by
1,500 colorfully arrayed and well-mounted Comanche warriors);
then moved northeastward.
Changing course to the northwest in what is now south-central
Kansas ( judging from Melgares's route as traced on Pike's map ) , the
Spaniards reached the Arkansas [perhaps near present Lamed] in
August. Melgares left part of his force at the river crossing, and
continued northward with some 350 horsemen to the Pawnee Re-
public village on the Republican river, arriving in late August, or
early September. He held councils with assembled Grand, and
Republic band, Pawnees and presented gifts (flags, commissions,
grand medals, and four mules each for the head chiefs). The In-
dians were much impressed by the size ( and the gifts ) of the Spanish
expedition.
The Pawnee Republic village [whether located, in 1806, in present
Republic county, Kansas, or in Webster county, Nebraska, or else-
358 KANSAS HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
where, remains a controversial issue] was the farthest point reached
by Melgares and his men. Having no news of Americans in the area,
the Spaniards turned back to the Arkansas. The reunited force then
followed up the river to the mountains before turning southward.
In October the expedition reached Santa Fe.
Ref: Z. M. Pike's journal (1806-1807), under entries of September 25, and November
11, 1806; also Pike's map; and has letter of October 1, 1806 (in Appendix to editions of his
work).
C Capt. Zebulon M. Pike, with a company of 22 (Lt. James B. Wil-
kinson, Dr. John H. Robinson; three noncoms; 16 privates; and
Baronet Vasquez, interpreter ) set out from near St. Louis August 9,
on an expedition to the West which began with a journey up the
Missouri and Osage (by boat), convoying 51 Osages to their villages
[in present Vernon county, Mo.] (There were, a