Do You Enjoy Civil War History? Take a Trip into Kansas

Are you a civil war buff? Would you like to learn where and by whom the civil war really started before the shot at Fort Sumter? This summer plan your vacation in Kansas. Even though Kansas is not big on the battlefield lists, there are 4 battlefields you will want to visit. Don't miss visiting Lawrence, Kansas. This is where it all started.

Kansas was considered part of the Union. By 1863, it had long been the home of strife and warfare, from both sides of the slave state versus free state issues. In the summer of 1856, the first sacking of Lawrence, Kansas sparked a guerrilla war that lasted for months. Lawrence, Kansas had, by the beginning of the American Civil War, already become the target for proslavery ire, having been seen as the anti-slavery stronghold in the state.

In a bib to put down the Confederate raiders operating in Kansas, General Thomas Ewing Jr. issued a General Order No. 10, which ordered the arrest of anyone giving aid or comfort to Quantrill's raiders. This mainly meant women and children. Ewing confined those arrested in a makeshift prison in Kansas City. On August 13, 1863, this building collapsed, killing five women, including 14 year old Josephine Anderson, sister of William T. "Bloody Bill" Anderson. There was a debate as to the nature of this collapse, with some claiming that it was known that the structure was very unsound, and others claiming it was merely a tragic accident. The hostility for the attack on Lawrence may have also stemmed from lingering fury over the Union's attack on Osceola, Missouri in September of 1861, lead by James H. Lane. In this raid, nine Osceola men were executed after a farcical trial and the town was looted and burned.

From the summit of Mount Oread, leading between three and four hundred raiders, Quantrill descended on Lawrence in a fury. A four-hour session of pillaging, executions, arson, and other mayhem ensued. By the time Quantrill's men rode out of town, one in four buildings in Lawrence had been burnt to the ground, including all but two businesses. As well, most of the banks and stores had been looted. Left behind were between 185 and 200 dead men and boys. By 9 a.m., they were on their way out of town, evading the few units that came in pursuit.

Senator James H. Lane managed to escape death by racing through a cornfield in his nightshirt. However, three years late he would commit suicide. While the Battle of Lawrence was one of the bloodiest events in the history of Kansas, it was not alone. A day after the attack, the surviving citizens of Lawrence lynched a member of Quantrill's Raiders caught in the town. On August 25, General Ewing authorized General Order No. 11, evicting thousands of Missourians in four counties from their homes near the Kansas border. Virtually everything in these counties was then systematically burned to the ground.

Lawrence - located in Douglas County

It was also called Lawrence Massacre. The date was August 21, 1863.
Campaign was called: Quantrill's Raid into Kansas
Principal Commanders: No Union commander (US); Lt. Col. William C. Quantrill (CS).
Forces Engaged: No Union troops (US); Quantrill's Raiders and other guerrillas (CS)
Estimated Casualties: 204 total (US 164; CS 40)
Result: Confederate victory.

Baxter Springs - Located in Cherokee County

It was also called Baxter Springs Massacre. The date was October 6, 1863.
Campaign was called: Occupation of Indian Territory North of the Arkansas River.
Principal Commanders: Lt. James B. Pond and Maj. Gen. James G. Blunt (US); Lt. Col. William C. Quantrill (CS).
Forces Engaged: Detachments from three regiments and an escort (US); Quantrill's Raiders (approx. 400) (CS).
Estimated Casualties: 106 total (US 103; CS)

After conducting many raids in Kansas, including the massacre at Lawrence, Quantrill decided to winter in Texas. Along with other partisans, he headed south on the Texas Road and captured and killed two Union teamsters who had come from a post-called Baxter Springs. Quantrill decided to attack the post and divided his force into two columns, one under him and the other commanded by a subordinate, David Poole. Poole and his mend proceeded down the Texas Road, where they encountered Union soldiers, most of whom were African Americans. They chased and attacked the Union troops, killing some of them before they reach the earth and log fort. After the Union survivors reached the fort, the Rebels attacked, but the garrison, with the help of a howitzer, fought them off. Quantrill's column moved on the post from another direction and chanced on a Union detachment escorting Maj. Gen. James G. Blunt and wagons transporting his person items from his former headquarters of the Department of the Frontier at Fort Scott to his new one at Fort Smith. Most of this detachment, including the band and Maj. Henry Z. Curtis (son of Maj. Gen. Samuel R. Curtis), was murdered, but Blunt and a few mounted men returned to Fort Scott. Blunt was removed from command for failing to protect his column, but he was soon restored. Touted as a massacre by some, Baxter Springs was another of the events that characterized the vicious Kansas-Missouri border warfare.

Result: Confederate victory.

Marais des Cygnes - Located in Linn County

It was also called Battle of Osage, Battle of Trading Post. The date was: October 25, 1864
Campaign was called: Price's Missouri Expedition.
Principal Commanders: Maj. Gen. Alfred Pleasonton (US); Maj. Gen. John S. Marmaduke and Maj. Gen. James F. Fagan (CS).
Forces Engaged: Provisional cavalry division (US), cavalry division (CS).
Estimated Casualties: Unknown.

Maj. Gen. Sterling Price led an expedition into Missouri, which Union forces under Maj. Gen. Samuel R. Curtis and Maj. Gen. Alfred Pleasonton finally countered around Kansas City, Missouri. Price withdrew south, and Pleasonton, commanding in the field, pursued him into Kansas and fought him at Marais des Cygnes. After artillery bombardment that began at 4:00 am, Pleasonton's men attacked furiously. Although outnumbered, they hit the rebel line, forcing them to withdraw.

Result: Union victory.

Mine Creek - Located in Linn County.

It was also called Battle of the Osage. The date was October 25, 1864.
Campaign was called: Price's Missouri Expedition.
Principal Commanders: Gen. Alfred Pleasonton (US); Brig. Gen. John S. Marmaduke and Maj. Gen. James F. Fagan (CS).
Forces Engaged: Provisional cavalry division (US), cavalry division (CS).
Estimated Casualties: 1,300 total (US 100; CS 1,200).

About six miles south of Trading Post, where the Marais de Cygnes engagement had occurred, the brigades of Col. Frederick W. Benteen and Col. John F. Phillips, of Maj. Gen. Alfred Pleasonton's Provisional Cavalry Division, overtook the Confederates as they were crossing Mine Creek. These Rebels, stalled by their wagons crossing the ford, had formed a line on the north side of Mine Creek. The Federals, although outnumbered, commenced the attack as additional troops from Pleasonton's command arrived during the fight. They soon surrounded the Rebels, resulting in the capture of about 600 men and two generals, Brig. Gen. John S. Marmaduke and Brig. Gen. William L. Cabell. Having lost this many men, Price's army was doomed. Retreat to friendly territory was the only recourse.

Result: Union victory.