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REVIEW: National World War I Museum – Captured (2022) [History Tour]
A Museum exhibition, open Oct. 28, 2022 through April 30, 2023
Aside from its world-renowned permanent collection, The National World War I Museum in Kansas City, Missouri almost always has a couple of limited engagements going on. These exhibits not only make the museum’s frequent visitors happy, but they show off some of the facilitie’s artifacts many patrons never get to see. I have tried to attend each of these since I became a member, and have found that these alone are worth the subscription. I actually attended this back around Halloween sometime, but as with many of these History Tour articles, I am behind. Luckily, unlike a few of my previous blogs in this series, this is one that can STILL be seen if one were to want to make the trip over.
National World War I Museum; Kansas City, MO
Perhaps one of the most jarring things one sees when walking through this exhibit is the number “9 Million”. That is the estimated number of prisoners of war housed at any given time during those hellacious four years between 1914 and 1918. This number almost rivals the number of casualties from the entire war. Like many aspects of The Great War, this seems incredibly bleak, and in many ways it could be. Captured, a new exhibit, tells the story of this imprisonment during World War I, and how those fortunate enough to live to tell the tale survived with their sanity intact. POW Newspapers, art pieces, repurposed supplies, and even performative theater are some of the many ways soldiers kept sane during their incarceration, showing that there is still life if one wants to live it, and for many it was somewhat “business as usual” behind enemy lines.
That is, of course, depending on where you were locked up, as survival depended a lot on which side you were being sent. Prisoners that found themselves in the UK or France almost could assume a relatively easy time, however Germany and Austria-Hungary weren’t as easy largely due to blockades or embargoes placed on food shipments going into those countries. If those Central Powers countries were having trouble feeding their own populaces, you better believe being a foreign combatant on their soil was a grim prospect.
Background:
This is the description of the exhibit from the official website:
“Nearly 9 million.During four brutal years of the Great War, nearly 9 million people were held as prisoners of war at some point during the conflict. From the shores of Southeast Asia and the Siberian tundra, to mere miles from the Western Front, they were imprisoned the world over – by both sides. Seldom told, their experiences are some of the most common during the Great War.
Captured delves into the stories of life behind the wire: relationships among the prisoners and between the prisoners and their captors, a complex and unique dynamic of mundane daily life and the arduous conditions of captivity. Bound together by suffering and uncertainty, many prisoners and guards were encountering people of different races, religions, languages and cultures for the first time. This exhibition explores how their relationships sustained hope – on both sides of the barbed wire – amid bleak and uncertain circumstances.”
I constantly go to stuff at this museum, so be sure to check out links below for a general overview of the main collection and any previous trips to special exhibits.
Reading(s):
There are numerous highly-detailed books on prisoners of war during World War I, so I had a tough time finding something accessible and on the cheaper side at the museum gift shop, finally settling on a book called Allied POWs in German Hands 1914–1918 (Images of War).
“ fully-illustrated account of the dangers, the deaths, and the hardships of the thousands of Allied men who became prisoners of war during World War I.After being forced or making the decision to surrender, the soldier, sailor, or airman was at the mercy of his captors. Here, readers will learn what it felt like to surrender, the hazards involved, and then the often-arduous journey to a prisoner camp in Germany.
Not all camps were the same; some were better than others, a situation that could easily change with the replacement of the commandant. But most were poor. Disease was rife and there was little medical care. With the arrival of parcels from home most prisoners could implement their diet, but this was not the case for Russians who received little help and relied on handouts from other prisoners. Barracks were usually cold and there were few blankets and little clothing. Men were abused, starved, denied their basic rights, sent to work in appalling conditions, and some were simply murdered. Escape was a priority for many men, but few made it home. This is the stark, unflinching true story of men who volunteered to fight for their country, only to end up in a war for survival at the mercy of the enemy.”
I figured this would be best because it kept in the spirit of the exhibit as a whole, and would reinforce some of the information within.
The Trip:
Compared to other exhibits, Captured is a bit more low-key, and as with one of the previous installation – Snapshots, relies a lot on photographs and artwork over material artifacts. That isn’t to say there aren’t any tangible items, as there are truly impressive bits of hand-crafted art including walnut shells that have been turned into mini-dioramas, improvised instruments, statues, uniforms, and other items. The focus of the exhibit is not really stuff like that anyway, it’s more about capturing a feeling or understanding a culture found within those prison camps. Soldiers pressed on when times got tough and tried to live their lives the best they could. Small items like a newspaper distributed through a camp, or pictures from various stage productions go to show that they could live somewhat of a normal life despite their surroundings. Captured is interesting in showing aspects of the war that many may not know about, which is always great about special exhibits at this particular museum.
If I had one issue with the exhibit, and this is likely fixed and only applied to the “members only” event I attended, it was that there were no markers to tell which way to start resulting in half of the patrons going though backwards (like myself) alongside others going the right way. I noticed pretty early on that I was looking at stuff talking about 1918 at the beginning, but had already committed to going the way I was going. It didn’t ruin anything, but it was very confusing.
Conclusion:
Overall, this was a very interesting exhibit covering a topic that I feel many overlook. It was, by no means some sort of earth-shattering experience, but I was not expecting anything like that. This was the first time I attended a special viewing of an exhibit since I signed up for a membership, and it was great being able to see the exhibit early. Having a tiny shred of VIP treatment, no matter how small, was just enough to get me that drop of serotonin I needed that day. I hope they do more things like that in the future! Overall, any trip to this museum is great, but if you are looking for a reason to drop back by after a long wait, this is an excellent excuse.
See More:
National WWI Museum
War remains
Snapshots
Black Citizenship
Empires at war
For more content like this, check out my History Tour page HERE
#Historical #historicalPhoto #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #museum #MuseumTrips #Museums #NationalWorldWarIMuseumAndMemorial #POW #POWs #Prisoner #PrisonerOfWar #TheGreatWar #WorldWarI #WWI
Captured
Nearly 9 million people were held as prisoners of war at some point during the four brutal years of the Great War – by both sides. Seldom told, their experiences are some of the most common.National WWI Museum and Memorial
REVIEW: National WWI Museum – Snapshots (2021-2022) [History Tour]
A Museum exhibit at the National WWI Museum in Kansas City, MO
I actually went to Snapshots, a photography exhibit at the National WWI Museum in Kansas City, at the same time that I attended the virtual reality experience called War Remains. For whatever reason, I am just now getting around to doing a write-up about this, but thankfully the exhibit has not closed. Any of my local readers should have plenty of time to take a quick road trip over. The exhibit costs $6 to $10 depending on what age the attendee is, which is a decent bargain when it comes to limited-time exhibits these days.“Faces and places frozen in time, snapped by both amateur and professional photographers, capture the resilience of humanity in the midst of the horrors of war. These photographs, sometimes blurred and grainy, bound into large albums or just solitary remnants, provide a tangible record of a fleeting moment in history that continues to shape the world we live in today. Prior to World War I, war photography was shot almost exclusively by professional photographers. Arduous and labor-intensive, it required hauling heavy equipment and creating prints onsite. That shifted in WWI. Technological advances and affordable costs allowed aspiring photographers with even modest means to own personal cameras. Their photographs chronicled more than just the devastation of war: they captured the unique, intimate perspectives of real people living moment to moment, helping shape the development of modern photojournalism.”
youtube.com/watch?v=M5br_geOHm…I was most interested in this exhibit because we often see film clippings and photographs of WWI, but it’s generally trenches or battle scenes (more on that later), and not the sort of typical candid photos that you just knew people were taking then. These photos are usually the sort of mundane slice of life material many look past when documenting a war, and for me it’s that much more interesting. When you see pilots smiling next to a plane, or a group of soldiers eating lunch, it hits home that these are just regular people trying to live their best life, sadly having to also be fed into a meat-grinder of human suffering.
I mentioned battle scenes up there, and the reason I wanted to come back was that most of the more noteworthy examples of battle scene photography are notorious frauds, usually staged photographs created when the coast was clear as to not endanger anyone involved. Some of these are laughably blatant, and other could trick a casual observer. One of my favorite areas was a quiz where you see a series of images and have to determine if they were staged or not, and how a historian can tell. This practice still happens today to a degree, whether people like it or not. For example, the famous scenes of Iraqi citizens yanking a statue of Saddam Hussein down in 2004 was basically egged on by journalists. It goes to show to potential power of photographers, and how their welding of public opinion can be a weapon of war itself.
In addition, the exhibit talks about the history of early 20th century photography as a whole – showcasing the transition from huge expensive silver-plate based rigs to relatively “portable” cameras and other equipment that moved the industry into the hands of everyone, not just photography studios. We see some of this equipment in the exhibit, we learn how photographers used it, and we see the shortfalls of certain practices. I felt like I learned a lot since I am by no means a learned photographer, nor have a really looked at the history of the artistic medium.
The only fault I saw with the exhibit was that there was no companion book available for purchase, something that usually accompanies such an exhibit at most museum engagements. Maybe in the future this will get released, as I feel such a publication would be both a valuable resource and a cool way for me to re-experience some of the better images.I overall quite enjoyed my time at Snapshots. I did this and two other exhibits the same day, which is what I would recommend for pretty much everyone to maximize your time at the museum. While the main exhibit can easily eat up a bunch of time, Snapshots would be a good way to either finish that experience up, or couple with more “smaller” exhibits as I did. I actually visited the WWI museum three time back in September in order to get all of this in, and loved every second of it!
For more information, check out the exhibit’s official website HERE, it is still open until April of 2022.
#art #Historical #historicalPhoto #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #journalism #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #military #militaryHistory #museum #Museums #photography #photos #War #WorldWarI #WWI
REVIEW: National World War I Museum – Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow [History Tour]
After becoming a member of the National World War I Museum, it seems like I’m there every few months for various events – this is a good thing because they have new exhibits up pretty often, sometimes almost quarterly. More than any other museum in the greater Kansas City area, the National World War I Museum stays “fresh” by always keeping thier collections up to date and having exciting programming all year. For the summer of 2022, the main “temporary exhibit” was Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow, a look at how racism affected black Americans during World War I, and especially the strange differences between life at war and on the homefront. many black Americans were sent overseas, some finding opportunities is a comparatively “less racist” Europe much better than their lives in the US, others however came home to absolute terror at every turn.
“Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow follows the end of the Civil War to the end of World War I, highlighting the central role played by African Americans in advocating for their rights. It examines the depth and breadth of opposition to Black advancement, including how Jim Crow permeated the North. Through art, artifacts, photographs and media, the exhibition highlights these transformative decades in American history and their continued relevance today.”
This was a powerful exhibit that really makes one think about how our government basically made it policy to reward patriotism and dedication to our country with hate and denigration. This exhibit goes all the way back to slavery itself, then chronicles the slippery slope from “freedom”, to slavery by another name in the Jim Crow era.
National World War I Museum; Kansas City, MO
As with any of these, The National World War I Museum has a specific event space for limited exhibits on the main floor, down the hall from the entrance. The space provided is not large, but it is always packed to the brim with valuable information.
Background:
According to their official website:
“Explore the struggle for full citizenship and racial equality that unfolded after the Civil War, and leading into WWI, in the newest exhibition at the National WWI Museum and Memorial, Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow.When slavery ended in 1865, a period of Reconstruction began (1865–1877), leading to achievements like the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments to the Constitution. By 1868, all persons born in the United States were citizens and equal before the law, but efforts to create an interracial democracy were contested from the start. The promise of the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments fell short as state laws chipped away at their guarantees and federal court decisions paved the way for a “separate but equal” America, ushering in the age of Jim Crow. In 1917, the United States declared war on Germany and entered World War I. At the time, African Americans made up only 10 percent of the population, but a total of 13 percent of the segregated United States armed services.
Though the American military reflected the diversity of its population, the majority of African American soldiers – nearly 80 percent – were organized into supply, construction or other non-combatant units. However, two predominately African American combat divisions were formed that proved the battlefront capabilities of African American troops. Sgt. Henry Johnson and Needham Roberts, both members of the 93rd Division, 369th Infantry Regiment – later known as the Harlem Hellfighters – were the first American recipients of the French Croix de Guerre for bravery. They were not awarded medals from the United States until after their respective deaths.”
For the webpage for this exhibit, Click HERE
This exhibit is now closed. Sorry for taking so long to do a write-up!
Reading(s):
I was unable to obtain a specific book on the relationship between military service and Jim Crow Laws at the museum, but there is a sizable chapter in Trench Dogs by Ian Densford that discusses the topic as well as some contentment in the appendix that goes over it. Trench Dogs is a textless graphic novel, but does a great job of conveying the dichotomy of men being allowed to serve for their country, then coming home to be treated far worse than during the war. I will attempt to find a more dedicated book at another time, and post a review as always.
For my review of Trench Dogs, Click HERE
The Trip:
I took my son with me for this adventure, which in hindsight was probably not a great idea. He’s a slight bit too young to comprehend what racism is, and the fact that it wasn’t too long ago that kids, like a number of his friends, would have not been allowed to play with him for an absolutely stupid reason. I tried my best to explain some of the issues presented in the exhibit in a way a small child could grasp. Something like this would be a GREAT topic for older kids to explore, as many get a rather black and white explanation of the Jim Crow era.
Conclusion:
This was a powerful and very important exhibit, largely due to the fact that many people seem to see the end of slavery or Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech as the end of racism in America, with some idiotic journalists even calling this “a post racism world”. Seeing what happened not too long ago with the George Floyd murder and the subsequent racial unrest that rightfully scared the crap out of many politicians, this is not over. Many Americans, especially white Americanas, should definitely expose themselves to stuff like this, if anything to understand the real world and build common ground across the racial divide. This was an awesome exhibit.
See More:
National World War I museum – Snapshots
National World War I Museum – Empires At war
youtube.com/watch?v=tM7GXoBpsM…
#BlackHistory #BlackStudies #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #JimCrow #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #KCMO #museum #MuseumTrips #Museums #racism #Reconstruction #Slavery #WorldWarI #WWI
Black Citizenship in the Age of Jim Crow
From the end of the Civil War to the end of WWI, explore the central role played by African Americans in advocating for their rights – and the depth of the opposition to them.National WWI Museum and Memorial
REVIEW: Trench Dogs (2018)
A Graphic Novel by Ian Densford
Continuing my delve into the stack of World War I books that I have purchased in the last year, I figured it was time for another comic to decompress since I just finished reading a HUGE book on the Belgian relief effort in 1914. The subject of this review is a book by Dead Reckoning, the comics imprint of The US naval Institute Press, called Trench Dogs. Written and illustrated by Ian Densford, this is somewhat unlike anything I’ve read by this publisher as one could almost characterize this as a horror comic in many ways. Created with war stories the author curated, this book takes a look at the absolute worst parts of “The Great War” all rolled into one fast-paced page-turner.“Inspired from assorted first-hand accounts, this fictional story of World War I is an anthropomorphic retelling of that global conflict and the soldiers who experienced the horrors of the front lines and high seas. While horse drawn carts and trains were ordinary sights, automobiles, tanks, submarines, and airplanes made their wartime debuts alongside machine guns, poison gas, and flame throwers. While the nightmares of World War I and the aftermath are sometimes forgotten, this book asks the reader to look again and remember the dead, and to weigh their number against those who would choose war. Conceived as a long, continuous camera pan through the trenches and beyond, the reader is soon buried in mud, corpses, and ruin, emerging on the other side with blurred recollections of lost comrades and a nagging sense of pointless destruction. Ian Densford’s graphic watercolors paired with a spattering of onomatopoeic utterings create an unforgiving tale of the ‘war to end all wars.'”
One of the first things that struck me from this book was how realistically the war was depicted here. We see the off juxtaposition of machine guns and horseback cavalry, armored cars and near medieval lance charges, and many weird near anachronisms that often appear on snappy Facebook historical posts. Some people forget that 1914 wasn’t too far from The Victorian era and not everything was modernized yet. Hell, a lot of Western films take place AFTER WWI during the Mexican Border Wars, and that fact is lost on many. You can tell Ian Densford did a lot of research on various “war stories” to feature in his panoramic series of interlocked vignettes. I recognized a few things from a couple of books and even Dan Carlin, so that was pretty cool.Much in the same way Art Spiegelman used animals as human stand-ins in MAUS, the author has decided to depict different nations as various creatures so that one can easily tell them apart and cause an uncomfortable feeling in the reader. In his own words, “it’s interesting to juxtapose something cute and fun with something horrible and disturbing, and it connects to a motif that runs through all of cartoon history”. We see dogs as Britain, cats as the United States, some sort of bird for France, pigs for Germany, and raccoons for Austria Hungary, just to name a few.
The artwork is chaotic and sometimes hard to read, but once you get rolling with the plot it gets easier and that much more unsettling. This book is pretty brutal, and pulls no punches whatsoever. For Example, I think one of the more shocking scenes in the book was a German gas attack on French soldiers where one man realized his gasmask had a hole in it. Out of desperation, he attacks another soldier and steals his mask only to watch him vomit and gasp for breath at his feet.
For those that read this book, It was cool to see that the author put together a study guide as some sort of citation page or index and posted it for FREE on his website. It’s about twenty pages long and shows where some of the book’s gruesome imagery comes from with side-by-side comparisons. I would have preferred this in IN the book itself, but it’s a cool idea for have extra material available for those that want it.Overall, this book definitely takes the horrific aspects of the war, ones that that are often overlooked to present tales of heroism that are palatable for the general public, and puts them front and center. Due to its graphic nature, this really is not for everyone, and could upset someone that gets it based on their being animals on the cover (I used to work retail, people due make dumb mistakes like this). The art is interesting, and the book is VERY action-packed. It makes you think about some of the social issues of the time, and paints the war as the most inhumane meat-grinder of it’s time that we should think of it as. Not everyone is a hero here, and it really makes you think about what man is capable of when backed into a corner. This is quite the feat to have such a profound story with nearly no dialogue at all. Trench Dogs is a great World War I book, and should be more well known than it is.
For more information on purchase links for this book, CLICK HERE
For more reviews from content published by Dead Reckoning, Click HERE
#comic #comicBook #comicReviews #comics #DeadReckoning #military #militaryHistory #USNavalInstitute #USNavalInstitutePress #USNI #War #WorldWarI #WWI
REVIEW: National WWI Museum – Snapshots (2021-2022) [History Tour]
A Museum exhibit at the National WWI Museum in Kansas City, MO
I actually went to Snapshots, a photography exhibit at the National WWI Museum in Kansas City, at the same time that I attended the virtual reality experience called War Remains. For whatever reason, I am just now getting around to doing a write-up about this, but thankfully the exhibit has not closed. Any of my local readers should have plenty of time to take a quick road trip over. The exhibit costs $6 to $10 depending on what age the attendee is, which is a decent bargain when it comes to limited-time exhibits these days.
“Faces and places frozen in time, snapped by both amateur and professional photographers, capture the resilience of humanity in the midst of the horrors of war. These photographs, sometimes blurred and grainy, bound into large albums or just solitary remnants, provide a tangible record of a fleeting moment in history that continues to shape the world we live in today. Prior to World War I, war photography was shot almost exclusively by professional photographers. Arduous and labor-intensive, it required hauling heavy equipment and creating prints onsite. That shifted in WWI. Technological advances and affordable costs allowed aspiring photographers with even modest means to own personal cameras. Their photographs chronicled more than just the devastation of war: they captured the unique, intimate perspectives of real people living moment to moment, helping shape the development of modern photojournalism.”
youtube.com/watch?v=M5br_geOHm…
I was most interested in this exhibit because we often see film clippings and photographs of WWI, but it’s generally trenches or battle scenes (more on that later), and not the sort of typical candid photos that you just knew people were taking then. These photos are usually the sort of mundane slice of life material many look past when documenting a war, and for me it’s that much more interesting. When you see pilots smiling next to a plane, or a group of soldiers eating lunch, it hits home that these are just regular people trying to live their best life, sadly having to also be fed into a meat-grinder of human suffering.
I mentioned battle scenes up there, and the reason I wanted to come back was that most of the more noteworthy examples of battle scene photography are notorious frauds, usually staged photographs created when the coast was clear as to not endanger anyone involved. Some of these are laughably blatant, and other could trick a casual observer. One of my favorite areas was a quiz where you see a series of images and have to determine if they were staged or not, and how a historian can tell. This practice still happens today to a degree, whether people like it or not. For example, the famous scenes of Iraqi citizens yanking a statue of Saddam Hussein down in 2004 was basically egged on by journalists. It goes to show to potential power of photographers, and how their welding of public opinion can be a weapon of war itself.
In addition, the exhibit talks about the history of early 20th century photography as a whole – showcasing the transition from huge expensive silver-plate based rigs to relatively “portable” cameras and other equipment that moved the industry into the hands of everyone, not just photography studios. We see some of this equipment in the exhibit, we learn how photographers used it, and we see the shortfalls of certain practices. I felt like I learned a lot since I am by no means a learned photographer, nor have a really looked at the history of the artistic medium.
The only fault I saw with the exhibit was that there was no companion book available for purchase, something that usually accompanies such an exhibit at most museum engagements. Maybe in the future this will get released, as I feel such a publication would be both a valuable resource and a cool way for me to re-experience some of the better images.
I overall quite enjoyed my time at Snapshots. I did this and two other exhibits the same day, which is what I would recommend for pretty much everyone to maximize your time at the museum. While the main exhibit can easily eat up a bunch of time, Snapshots would be a good way to either finish that experience up, or couple with more “smaller” exhibits as I did. I actually visited the WWI museum three time back in September in order to get all of this in, and loved every second of it!
For more information, check out the exhibit’s official website HERE, it is still open until April of 2022.
#art #Historical #historicalPhoto #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #journalism #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #military #militaryHistory #museum #Museums #photography #photos #War #WorldWarI #WWI
REVIEW: War Remains (2021) [History Tour]
An Immersive VR experience at the National WWI Museum and Memorial, Kansas City, MO
Occasionally I am on the look out for experiences that go above and beyond the normal events going on around tow at ay given time. Limited time engagements like my recent trip to Union Station for an Auschwitz Exhibit are things I try to always do. I recently visited the National World War I Museum and Memorial in Kansas City, MO and noticed an ad for a thing called War Remains. It was apparently a virtual reality experience, which in itself isn’t that impressive – you can buy a VR headset for a relatively small sum of money and do many things that used to cost an arm and a leg at the mall in the comfort of your own home. I’m not even sure I can do a lot of VR stuff, honestly due to the fact that I get car sick really easily and have become ill on one of those fake roller coaster simulators. War Remains is different – instead of just sitting around and moving around with a controller, the company that created the experience has built a 20×20 or so room that has bits and pieces of trenchworks simulated creating a augmented reality VR combination that I have never come across before. Having the images of what has got to be one of histories darkest times interlaced with the visceral feelings of being there, being able to touch and interact with items is a class above all else. Produced by legendary history podcaster Dan Carlin, War Remains is something any history buff near Kansas City needs to experience at least once.“This is not a game. This is History. Live through the war to end all wars unlike ever before. Presented by legendary “Hardcore History” podcaster Dan Carlin, War Remains is an immersive VR experience that transports viewers to the Western Front of the First World War. Witness history unfold from a soldier’s point of view in this thought-provoking, visceral encounter.Carlin’s iconic voice leads audiences into the trenches as an active battle scene rages on. Through stunning visual effects, powerfully designed sound and a custom set that allows you to feel the trench and experience the vibration of the floor as explosions surround you, audiences will undergo the annihilation of innocence caused by the First World War and bear witness to the emergence of modern warfare. Experience War Remains in the Museum and Memorial’s Memory Hall.
War Remains is a solitary experience, allowing one user through approximately every 15 minutes. VR headsets and equipment are thoroughly cleaned and sanitized between users. “
For around 25 dollars, patrons are treated to what basically amounts to a 15 or so minute short film that can be viewed from various angles and interacted with as if one is actually in the trenches of France during a German shelling at the peak of the war. The story is broken into five segments including an introduction, a narrated view of a barrage balloon high above the ground being attacked by enemy planes in the distance, a walk through a trench during a battle, taking cover in a bunker during shelling, and finally surviving a German tank raid on the very trench you were just taking refuge in only to witness mustard gas rolling in. In total you likely only walk like 20 feet in the entire thing, but you are tricked, via the vastness of the simulation, into believing you are in a wide open area full of nightmares at every turn. There are fans in front of you at various times giving the illusion of choppy wind and other sensory gimmicks that really added to the experience. being able to feel and touch things was amazing.
Perhaps touching things was the only problematic part of the experience, only because the technology is not quite perfect for immersion as of yet. For example, even though you feel things around you, one cannot see hands which causes a bit of a disconnect at times. I found it better to get really close to the walls and not look down while feeling thigs to trick my brain a bit more. perhaps future versions can add some sort of hand tracking technology, assuming they ever decide to upgrade it. There are also a few times where one reaches out to touch something, but a previous attendee that was perhaps overzealous slightly moved it at some point – this also broke the illusion a bit. That said, what was there was 1000% cooler than any VR I have ever done in the past, and I would gladly pay to do it again.youtube.com/watch?v=_vOxOk-JDf…
I’m on a big WWI kick right now, and as you can imagine, this absolutely fueled it that much more. Hearing Dan Carlin navigate you through the horrors of war was an experience I will never forget, and I hope more museums get attractions like this in the future. I was told that due to great ticket sales, this may end up becoming semi-permanent attraction at the museum, but they are trying to figure out a better place to put it rather than their Memorial Hall, which usually houses artefacts that have been somewhat pushed aside to make way for this. National World War I Museum and Memorial now owns War Remains, so I hope it becomes a fixture of the museum. Stay tuned for another entry about my trip to this museum, as I went to a handful of other exhibits during my visit.
Click HERE for more information
#AugmentedReality #DanCarlin #exhibit #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #KC #KCMO #LibertyMemorial #militaryHistory #museum #NationalWorldWarIMuseumAndMemorial #trench #VirtualReality #VR #War #WarRemains #WorldWarI #WWI
War Remains
[ARCHIVED] This is not a game. This is History. Live through the war to end all wars unlike ever before in this immersive VR experience.National WWI Museum and Memorial
REVIEW: War Remains (2021) [History Tour]
An Immersive VR experience at the National WWI Museum and Memorial, Kansas City, MO
Occasionally I am on the look out for experiences that go above and beyond the normal events going on around tow at ay given time. Limited time engagements like my recent trip to Union Station for an Auschwitz Exhibit are things I try to always do. I recently visited the National World War I Museum and Memorial in Kansas City, MO and noticed an ad for a thing called War Remains. It was apparently a virtual reality experience, which in itself isn’t that impressive – you can buy a VR headset for a relatively small sum of money and do many things that used to cost an arm and a leg at the mall in the comfort of your own home. I’m not even sure I can do a lot of VR stuff, honestly due to the fact that I get car sick really easily and have become ill on one of those fake roller coaster simulators. War Remains is different – instead of just sitting around and moving around with a controller, the company that created the experience has built a 20×20 or so room that has bits and pieces of trenchworks simulated creating a augmented reality VR combination that I have never come across before. Having the images of what has got to be one of histories darkest times interlaced with the visceral feelings of being there, being able to touch and interact with items is a class above all else. Produced by legendary history podcaster Dan Carlin, War Remains is something any history buff near Kansas City needs to experience at least once.
“This is not a game. This is History. Live through the war to end all wars unlike ever before. Presented by legendary “Hardcore History” podcaster Dan Carlin, War Remains is an immersive VR experience that transports viewers to the Western Front of the First World War. Witness history unfold from a soldier’s point of view in this thought-provoking, visceral encounter.Carlin’s iconic voice leads audiences into the trenches as an active battle scene rages on. Through stunning visual effects, powerfully designed sound and a custom set that allows you to feel the trench and experience the vibration of the floor as explosions surround you, audiences will undergo the annihilation of innocence caused by the First World War and bear witness to the emergence of modern warfare. Experience War Remains in the Museum and Memorial’s Memory Hall.
War Remains is a solitary experience, allowing one user through approximately every 15 minutes. VR headsets and equipment are thoroughly cleaned and sanitized between users. “
For around 25 dollars, patrons are treated to what basically amounts to a 15 or so minute short film that can be viewed from various angles and interacted with as if one is actually in the trenches of France during a German shelling at the peak of the war. The story is broken into five segments including an introduction, a narrated view of a barrage balloon high above the ground being attacked by enemy planes in the distance, a walk through a trench during a battle, taking cover in a bunker during shelling, and finally surviving a German tank raid on the very trench you were just taking refuge in only to witness mustard gas rolling in. In total you likely only walk like 20 feet in the entire thing, but you are tricked, via the vastness of the simulation, into believing you are in a wide open area full of nightmares at every turn. There are fans in front of you at various times giving the illusion of choppy wind and other sensory gimmicks that really added to the experience. being able to feel and touch things was amazing.
Perhaps touching things was the only problematic part of the experience, only because the technology is not quite perfect for immersion as of yet. For example, even though you feel things around you, one cannot see hands which causes a bit of a disconnect at times. I found it better to get really close to the walls and not look down while feeling thigs to trick my brain a bit more. perhaps future versions can add some sort of hand tracking technology, assuming they ever decide to upgrade it. There are also a few times where one reaches out to touch something, but a previous attendee that was perhaps overzealous slightly moved it at some point – this also broke the illusion a bit. That said, what was there was 1000% cooler than any VR I have ever done in the past, and I would gladly pay to do it again.
youtube.com/watch?v=_vOxOk-JDf…
I’m on a big WWI kick right now, and as you can imagine, this absolutely fueled it that much more. Hearing Dan Carlin navigate you through the horrors of war was an experience I will never forget, and I hope more museums get attractions like this in the future. I was told that due to great ticket sales, this may end up becoming semi-permanent attraction at the museum, but they are trying to figure out a better place to put it rather than their Memorial Hall, which usually houses artefacts that have been somewhat pushed aside to make way for this. National World War I Museum and Memorial now owns War Remains, so I hope it becomes a fixture of the museum. Stay tuned for another entry about my trip to this museum, as I went to a handful of other exhibits during my visit.
Click HERE for more information
#AugmentedReality #DanCarlin #exhibit #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #KC #KCMO #LibertyMemorial #militaryHistory #museum #NationalWorldWarIMuseumAndMemorial #trench #VirtualReality #VR #War #WarRemains #WorldWarI #WWI
War Remains
[ARCHIVED] This is not a game. This is History. Live through the war to end all wars unlike ever before in this immersive VR experience.National WWI Museum and Memorial
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 14) Auschwitz: Not Long Ago, Not Far Away at Union Station
Normally when I do these, I am visiting local historical sites and talking about historical events that happened in the Western Missouri, Eastern Kansas areas. This entry is a bit different because I was able to attend a traveling exhibit at Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri. Union Station usually does one or two big exhibits per year, and they are almost ALWAYS incredible. If you head over to my other blog, I have a similar review up for an exhibit on Stonehenge from a few years ago. I wanted to see this exhibit because I was able to visit an actual concentration camp in 2001 in Munich, Germany. That experience was sobering, as being able to see the actual buildings such as ovens or a gas chamber clearly labeled “brausebad” (lit “shower bath”) over the top made it that much more real rather than reading about it in a history book. At that time, there wasn’t much of a “museum” or sorts at Dachau (to my recollection, I could be mis-remembering from 20 years ago), so I was unable to see too many artifacts. When given the opportunity to see these items leave Poland and Germany for the US for the first time ever was an experience I had to have. Seeing that Auschwitz is notoriously “the worst” of all concentration camps, I knew this was going to be heavy.Auschwitz: Not Long Ago, Not Far Away at Union Station; Kansas City, Missouri
Advice time: If you are in the area and want to see this – good luck going on a weekend prior to January of 2022 (the last month it’s open). I was able to go on a Tuesday morning without too many issues, and I see that its open on certain government holidays as well in case work makes it impossible to see during the week. I have posted the official website below for ticketing information. Also, be sure to buy the hardcover book upon ticket purchase. It’s 45 dollars, but is huge and good value for the price. It basically sums up the entire exhibit in case you miss anything. I have no idea if this can be purchased in any way other than the museum, but I do see it on Amazon, so there is that as well.Background
According to Union Station’s official site for this exhibit:This groundbreaking exhibition brings together more than 700 original objects and 400 photographs from over 20 institutions and museums around the world. Auschwitz. Not long ago. Not far away. is the most comprehensive exhibition dedicated to the history of Auschwitz and its role in the Holocaust ever presented in North America, and an unparalleled opportunity to confront the singular face of human evil—one that arose not long ago and not far away.
And general info from Wikipedia:“Auschwitz concentration camp was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschwitz I, the main camp (Stammlager) in Oświęcim; Auschwitz II-Birkenau, a concentration and extermination camp with gas chambers; Auschwitz III-Monowitz, a labor camp for the chemical conglomerate IG Farben; and dozens of subcamps. The camps became a major site of the Nazis’ Final Solution to the Jewish Question. […] In May 1940, German criminals brought to the camp as functionaries, established the camp’s reputation for sadism. Prisoners were beaten, tortured, and executed for the most trivial reasons. The first gassings—of Soviet and Polish prisoners—took place in block 11 of Auschwitz I around August 1941. Construction of Auschwitz II began the following month, and from 1942 until late 1944 freight trains delivered Jews from all over German-occupied Europe to its gas chambers. Of the 1.3 million people sent to Auschwitz, 1.1 million died. The death toll includes 960,000 Jews (865,000 of whom were gassed on arrival), 74,000 ethnic Poles, 21,000 Roma, 15,000 Soviet prisoners of war, and up to 15,000 other Europeans.[7] Those not gassed died of starvation, exhaustion, disease, individual executions, or beatings. Others were killed during medical experiments.”
Reading
Prior to this trip, I read The Commandant of Auschwitz – Rudolf Höss by Volker Koop. I wanted to look into the mindset of a man that was so ruthless that he could oversee the wholesale murder of over a million people, then claim he had no idea that was going on under his watch. It’s an infuriating and depressing read, as with anything involving The Holocaust, but I felt like it was important.
The Trip
Union Station was not too busy when I attended this exhibit – due to The Covid-19 Global Pandemic you have to arrange tickets online, and only a certain amount of people are allowed in each 30 minute increment. Masks were required, and at no time did I feel unsafe in attending. Patrons are provided with these devices that can be best described as an MP3 player of sorts and a headset, all cleaned after each use. These devices act as a guided tour for everyone during the exhibit. at various points, you will see a number on the wall or an object that coincides with an audio segment that gives more insight and background to everything. This blew me away and is easily the best guided tour thing I have ever seen in any museum. I honestly hope more adopt it as it really helps make the exhibit feel important.In total, the exhibit took me two hours and some change, but I can imagine it would be somewhere between 2-2.5 hours for most people. My only real issue were people standing in front of exhibit pieces listening to their device blocking the view. I adopted a system where I would go around an area, read all the signs the stand away from everyone and go through the videos. This seemed to help me stay away from people and ensured I wasn’t stuck in any sort of bottlenecks.
The most jarring items in the exhibit were the things about children. There is a simple child’s shoe at one point, where you can see balled up socks tucked inside as if the kid thought he was going to have a quick shower then go out an play or something. Sadly, it’s almost guaranteed that was the last thing the child did before his life was ripped from him by the monstrous regime of Adolf Hitler. I didn’t cry in this area, but I felt anxious and teared up a bit. It was very uncomfortable as it should be. I have included this in one of my pictures above.
Conclusion
This is both a VERY important exhibit and an extremely heavy one to experience. It’s well put together, and honestly has one of the best presentations I’ve ever seen. It’s on the expensive side ($25 per person) but its well worth the money considering the content and how long it takes to get through. I plan to go back with my girlfriend at some point to see what she thinks, as I feel like everyone that can see this, should. In a time when people go to YouTube to come up with all sorts of inane alternate versions of history that they can, something like this really could ground someone and show them why we do certain things like we do. Seeing people constantly equating things of slight annoyance to The Holocaust, or Nazis gets tiresome, and seeing something like this definitely shows why. Here’s hoping nothing like this EVER happens again, and if it does, hopefully we can stop it.This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#Allies #Auschwitz #Axis #ConcentrationCamp #Death #Germany #Historical #historicalPhoto #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Holocaust #jewish #Jews #kansasCity #missouri #museum #MuseumTrips #nazi #Nazis #Poland #UnionStation #WorldWarII #WWII
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 25) Bushwhacker Museum
I actually came across this museum in a rather random way – I was looking for a book on the Battle of Island Mound, and found a copy of one on the website for this museum by pure chance. I rarely go to the southern part of the state, so I was unaware of there being a museum in Nevada, MO at all, much less one purportedly full of Bushwhacker and Border Ruffian artifacts. The museum itself is housed in the basement of the Vernon County Library, and is open Thursday-Saturday each week. I had to get up very early to make it there in time to see it open, but the trip was well worth it.
Bushwhacker Museum; Nevada Missouri
If you plan to go, the site has two different museums for 6 dollars a person. If you combine this with a drive over to Fort Scott, Kansas, its a great way to spend a weekend!
Background:
According to their website:
“The Bushwhacker Museum . . .
is designed to appeal to all ages, with an informal atmosphere and many interactive exhibits. Children seem to be especially fascinated by the Native American exhibits, and enjoy playing “school” in the old child-sized classroom.With over 10,000 square feet of exhibit space, the Bushwhacker also caters to a wide range of interests. Exhibits include everything from prehistoric tools and fossils to antique medical instruments and women’s wedding finery. You will find Civil War artifacts, antique carriages, old handmade quilts, children’s toys, antique sidesaddles, early fire department memorabilia and so much more … Come take a stroll with us through Vernon County’s past!
The Bushwhacker Jail . . .
is a rare example of prison facilities in the late nineteenth century. It is the oldest structure in Nevada, and one of the few buildings spared when Federal Militia burned Nevada to the ground in 1863. You can tour the beautifully restored jailer’s family quarters, step inside a grim, dark jail cell, or marvel at the graffiti in the old drunk tank. This is an unusual adventure for the entire family.
And a note about Bushwhackers:
“Bushwhacking was a form of guerrilla warfare common during the American Revolutionary War, War of 1812, American Civil War and other conflicts in which there were large areas of contested land and few governmental resources to control these tracts. This was particularly prevalent in rural areas during the Civil War where there were sharp divisions between those favoring the Union and Confederacy in the conflict. The perpetrators of the attacks were called bushwhackers. The term “bushwhacking” is still in use today to describe ambushes done with the aim of attrition.Bushwhackers were generally part of the irregular military forces on both sides. While bushwhackers conducted well-organized raids against the military, the most dire of the attacks involved ambushes of individuals and house raids in rural areas. In the countryside, the actions were particularly inflammatory since they frequently amounted to fighting between neighbors, often to settle personal accounts. Since the attackers were non-uniformed, the government response was complicated by trying to decide whether they were legitimate military attacks or criminal, terrorist actions.”
Reading:
Something I picked up in the giftshop itself was a copy of Bushwhackers of the Border by Patrick Brophy. Brophy appears to be a prominent member of the Vernon County Historical Society (or at least in the 80’s), and I saw a number of books by him on the shelves there. As of this writing, I have yet to read all of this book, but it’s a quick read and goes over the history of the many skirmishes between Bushwhackers and Jayhawkers in the lead up and during The American Civil War. Stay tuned for my review.
The Trip:
I am going to be lazy and cut-and-paste what I posted for the Bushwhacker Jail leg of this trip here, it’s basically the same info, and there is literally no reason to type a different stuff. I guess I should have tied them together, but it’s too late now!
“Despite being over an hour and a half trip by car from my house, my drive to Nevada, MO was relatively easy. I planned out a day involving the trip to the two Vernon County museums, and a short drive over into Kansas to Fort Scott Historic Site. Since Nevada is basically directly across from Fort Scott on the border it made for a fun three hour or so adventure to visit all three places. Upon arrival at the Vernon County Library, one goes down a series of stairways into the basement to find the museum itself. Both the museum and the jail run off of the same admission system, so if you pay for one you get to do both. For both me and my son, admission totaled the whopping amount of $6.We got there just in time for a guided tour of the jail, came back, perused the museum, bought some stuff at the gift shop and were on our way. Due to my work schedule, I am unable to attend things like this during the week usually, so if you are like me and plan on going on a Saturday, be prepared for it to close early. The self-guided tour of the museum is about an hour, whereas the tour of the jail is about 30 minutes. This is of course determined by how long you want to stay at the museum, and your reading speed.”
Conclusion:
Also from my previous review:
All-in-all this was a very fun trip, and one of the better county museums I have seen during this summer. Generally, a lot of them end up being insanely cluttered with artifacts from hundreds of years of time crammed into a building way too small for the amount of stuff, while interesting – it’s almost always too much. I’m sure that the old version of this museum was probably like that, considering everything was housed in the jail for a time, but at least the people of Vernon County had the sense to expand.”
I didn’t mention it on the other review, but the main museum is probably the better portion of the two museums, it has some weird stuff like historic barbed wire that was produced in the area and other overly-specific local things that most would ignore, but for the most part it has good artifacts and exhibits to see. I would have preferred it was entirely a “Bushwhacker Museum” as the name would suggest, but I suppose branding in this way gets more people in the door. I guess just being “The Vernon County Museum” sounds less prestigious. That said, there is plenty to see related to the topic at hand, and the gift shop is easily the best one I’ve seen on this entire series aside for maybe the National Frontier Trails Museum, which was visited later.
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#AmericanHistory #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #LocalHistory #militaryHistory #missouri #museum #MuseumTrips #Nevada #NevadaMissouri
form of guerrilla warfare during the American Revolutionary War, and American Civil War
Contributors to Wikimedia projects (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.)REVIEW: Battle of Island Mound – Bates County, Missouri October 29, 1862 (2001)
A Book by Chris Tabor
For my trip to the Battle of Island Mound Historic Site, I wanted to find something to read about the battle itself, but found that easier said than done. Thankfully I found a Missouri-based storefront for a museum I have yet to attend (so far) That has TONS of localized Civil War books, and this was on there. For some Trans-Mississippi (West of the River) battles, you will rarely find full-on books about them, many are fairly small and exist merely as footnotes in a lot of cases. I was happy to find this, despite it being a self-published book that you might find at a museum bookstore. The significance of this battle is fairly substantial on one very BIG topic – this was the first battle wherein an African American regiment was allowed fight. As with the historic site itself, I can see this chapter in history becoming more studied in the future as more become aware of it.“Officially designated as the “Skirmish at Island Mound, Mo.”, the action fought by the 1st Kansas Colored Volunteers on October 29th,1862, in Bates County, Missouri, marked the first time that an African-American regiment experienced combat during the Civil War. Written by Chris Tabor.”
While a short book, This has plenty of information here, and it’s a solid alternative to simply reading the Wikipedia page. This is written like a well-researched essay in many ways, so it was cool that the author decided to publish it to fill the hole in book scholarship on the topic. If you can find this, it’s really cheap, and was a great addition for my trip to the sit itself, considering that was fairly brisk on presentation with how new the park is (no visitor’s center currently). This is my no means a GREAT Civil war book, but it’s adequate for what it is, and I’m glad I found it.This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK. If you would like a copy of this book check HERE.
#AfricanAmerican #AmericanCivilWar #battle #BlackRegiment #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #militaryHistory #MuseumTrips #skirmish #War
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 24) John Brown Museum
About a month ago, I did a John Brown double-header by visiting the site of the Battle of Black Jack and The John Brown Museum in Osawatomie, KS. It was a hot day, perhaps not a great one for walking around in spider infested forests and humid parks, but I had a blast all day. I am originally from a town near Osawatomie, KS, so going back seemed like a bit of a homecoming. Unlike Louisburg, Osawatomie somewhat looks similar to when I lived around there (Granted I left in like 1991), which gave me all sorts of nostalgia pings.
John Brown Museum; Osawatomie, KS
From Independence, MO it’s a bit of a drive, but trying to group it with other activities such as the Black Jack site, makes it worthwhile and takes up an entire day trip.
Background:
According to Wikipedia:
“When Kansas Territory was established in 1854, newspapers in the North encouraged settlement in the area to ensure that the new state would be free. The land also offered promise to families—the opportunity to cultivate fertile land, enjoy the peaceful countryside, and protect the territory from the spread of slavery. Samuel and Florella Brown Adair held such a dream. […] Samuel finished his theology program and the two were married and moved westward, where Samuel sought a position in Osawatomie, Kansas Territory. […]The freestaters and abolitionists rebelled against the controlling proslavery government. They often fought those from Missouri who came into the territory to push proslavery agendas. Osawatomie, near the Missouri border, was attacked and burned by proslavery forces on August 30, 1856. The Adair Cabin, which the family had purchased for $200 in 1854, survived the attack. The Adairs endured much hardship in the territory. As a minister, the Reverend Adair struggled to build his church, the first in Osawatomie and the third Congregational church in Kansas. He provided the walnut lumber and native stone construction materials used for the church building, which was dedicated July 14, 1861. The church still stands today. […]
The Adairs’ house was a typical rough, frontier log cabin. Its fireplace was used for warmth and cooking. It is believed that the room in back was used to hide escaped slaves. John Brown’s son, Frederick, died nearby, the first victim of the Battle of Osawatomie. Because of his activities in and around the area, John Brown became known as “Old Osawatomie Brown.” Brown stayed in the cabin with the Adairs from time to time. In 1911 the Kansas legislature named the site of the battleground John Brown Memorial Park and moved the cabin to its present site. The stone building that encloses the cabin was built in 1928. In 1963 the Kansas Historical Society became the administrator of the site.”
And Here is an entry for the Battle of Osawatomie:
” The Battle of Osawatomie occurred on August 30, 1856, near Osawatomie, Miami County. This battle was the culmination of numerous violent events in Bleeding Kansas in 1856 between free-state and proslavery forces. This battle not only bolstered the morale of John Brown and his supporters, it also earned Brown the name “Osawatomie Brown.”With continuing threats to Osawatomie most of the 200 residents had abandoned the area by August 1856. Several separate incidents increased tensions in the days before the battle. Free-state troops headed south from Osawatomie on the Fort Scott Road were met by proslavery troops on August 25, 1856. After a brief skirmish the proslavery forces fled. John Brown and his troops joined the free-state troops two days later near the Sugar Creek region in Linn County. Splitting into two smaller groups, the troops conducted raids on proslavery homesteads near Middle Creek. […]
On the evening of August 29 John Yelton, the mail carrier, warned Osawatomie citizens they must “fight or flee.” The next morning at daybreak the Reverend Martin White, a proslavery Baptist minister acting as a guide for General Reid, led the Reid’s troops into town. White shot and killed Frederick Brown who was leading an advance party of free-state men near Osawatomie. The town sounded the alarm to summon help.
When Brown heard about the death of his son he quickly rallied his troop of 40 men. He found a stone corral where his men found a vantage point to fire their Sharps rifles at the enemy. The stone corral helped to protect them from the cannon fire. One of the balls from the cannon fire raked across Brown’s back as he was crossing back and forth in the corral. […]
Failing to catch Brown’s men, the proslavery military plundered and burned nearly all of the buildings in Osawatomie. They spared a few women and children, and captured six prisoners. Reid’s forces continued to the north, attacking other towns along the way toward Topeka. […]
“God sees it,” Brown reportedly said after the battle. “I have only a short time to live—only one death to die, and I will die fighting for his cause. There will be no more peace in this land until slavery is done for. I will give them something else to do than extend slave territory. I will carry this war into Africa.” Brown began to turn his fight to the South, planning for a raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia.)”
Readings:
So far my go-to book for Bleeding Kansas has been War to the Knife, which I have recommended here a handful of times, but I have a few other things that would be worthy to check out. The history podcast American History Tellers has an amazing series on Bleeding Kansas that talked about this battle, and I would highly recommend it. I also read Bleeding Kansas: The Real Start of the Civil War, which wasn’t that great to be honest. It does, however, have plenty of information on Brown if you want the most basic outline. Honestly though Wikipedia might be better.
Finally, Another recommendation is a recent TV series that I have not finished called The Good Lord Bird, that takes an almost comedic take on the life on John Brown. The killing of Brown’s son is depicted as well as Brown’s dealings with Reverend White. This was a Showtime miniseries, but I was able to watch it on Amazon prime for a small fee.
The Trip:
There are two main components for this site: a park that contains the grounds where the Battle of Osawatomie happened, with informational placards, and The Adair Cabin, which has been enclosed in a stone outer shell since the 1920’s and has been restored to what it may have looked like when John Brown and his family used it for his headquarters during the partisan warfare period called “Bleeding Kansas”. If you are bringing kids, the park is a fully-fledged family park with playground equipment and large areas to play on. There is also a creek running through the park with cool bridges to see and walk on. Perhaps the biggest attraction is a famous statue of John Brown, something folks travel to see.
Conclusion:
This was a nice museum despite the somewhat small size of the actual cabin. If you do the walking tour, read all the signs, then visit the museum, you can honestly get done within 30 – 45 minutes without too much trouble. The only bad thing I could say about the site was that the gift shop was not really all that well-stocked with John Brown-related items. I was able to pick up a book on civilian casualties during The Civil war, but wanted to see more items actually pertaining to the museum itself. A lot of what was on-hand were things like homemade apple butter. which is awesome, but not something I am clamoring to buy at a historical site. If you are in the area, definitely recommend the double-dose of John Brown history that I did, and perhaps watching the first episode of Good Lord Bird. Having the visual aid, the museums, and the information all together is something that will really help sometime retain what happened.
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #Battlefield #BleedingKansas #civilWar #dayTrip #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #JohnBrown #Kansas #kansasCity #lawrenceKansas #missouri #museum #MuseumTrips #Osawatomie #statue
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 16) Black Jack Battlefield
In one of my mini trips to my birthing grounds (Kansas), I wanted to make sure I went back to Osawatomie to visit the John Brown Museum that is there. That particular chapter is yet to come, mostly because I haven’t finished a book about John Brown that I’d like to put in there, but today we will be talking about a place that I stopped at on the way home that was very instrumental in the story of John Brown. That is the Black Jack Battlefield which is located somewhat close to Baldwin city Kansas. I used to live in Louisburg, Kansas (in my distant youth) and trips to this area were somewhat frequent, so it’s crazy to me to see how everything has changed in these past 30 years. Every time I come over here it’s like a reunion of sorts that I’m not ready for.Black Jack Battlefield; Near Baldwin, City, Kansas
I have never been to Black Jack Battlefield, nor had I really realized it was a historical landmark until I picked up a brochure from a participating site that was a member of Freedom’s Frontier. Once I saw that it was relatively close and within driving distance for a day trip I knew I had to check it out.Background:
According to the site’s Kansapedia page:” The Battle of Black Jack was the first armed conflict between proslavery and antislavery forces in the United States. The battle near Baldwin City on June 2, 1856, had implications far beyond Kansas Territory. Some call it the first battle of the Civil War. The debate over Kansas and the events there clearly marked a turning point in the march toward the Civil War.The Kansas-Nebraska Act had opened Kansas Territory in 1854 and allowed citizens to determine whether Kansas would be a free or slave state. The territory soon became a battleground between those who supported slavery in the territory and those who opposed it.
On May 21, 1856, Sheriff Samuel Jones, who was the first sheriff of Douglas County, and a posse of 750 proslavery men raided Lawrence. In retaliation, John Brown and a small group of men—including some of his sons—violently murdered five men living on Pottawatomie Creek on May 24, 1856. These proslavery men had not been involved in the sack of Lawrence.
Articles of agreement for the exchange of prisoners after the Battle of Black JackAccompanied by proslavery militia, Henry Pate set out to find Brown. He captured two of Brown’s sons and held them prisoner. On June 2, Brown’s free-state militia attacked Pate’s men encamped on the grounds. About 100 men engaged in a three-hour battle, which led to Pate’s surrender.
The battle further divided the nation’s already-polarized abolitionist and proslavery factions. As politicians, newspapers, and citizens watched the story of “Bleeding Kansas” unfold, hints of a larger potentially violent conflict to come became increasingly evident.
Black Jack Battlefield is significant for its association with abolitionist John Brown. Both the battle and the coverage of the battle in the nation’s newspapers introduced John Brown, who called for armed insurrection to end slavery. The battlefield was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2012. “
Reading:
So far my go-to book for Bleeding Kansas has been War to the Knife, which I have recommended here a handful of times, but I have a few other things that would be worthy to check out. The history podcast American History Tellers has an amazing series on Bleeding Kansas that talked about this battle, and I would highly recommend it. Another recommendation is a recent TV series that I have not finished called The Good Lord Bird, that takes an almost comedic take on the life on John Brown – episode 1 has a segment on The Battle of Black Jack. I have yet to fully watch this show, but a full review will be forthcoming.The Trip:
If you end up in Osawatomie, Kansas it’s a fairly uneventful short drive from there to the site of Black Jack Battlefield. I think my only real annoyance was the fact that there was a little bit of road construction and I had to detour. Once you pull then you are start in front of an old farmhouse that is off limits to the public and less an event is going on. There are some signs up in front of the house and a box that contains brochures for a self-guided tour that we grabbed. I will show you now pictures from this self-guided tour where I could take some. I will say that while the site is well maintained, some of the stops numbered posts are either missing or obscured in such a way to where I could not find them. In those times I had to improvise with the approximate place where it would have been. Another tip that I will give is that the site appears to be a haven for spiders, and since it does not appear that the trails are well traveled I spent more time than I liked using a walking stick to clear the path of any spider webs that would go across.If anyone has severe arachnophobia this would definitely NOT be a place to go. The nature trails were pretty surreal as you can see in my upcoming pictures, as the entire site appears to be home to the ruins of an old farm complex from a time that I cannot determine. Walking through it, overgrown and covered in trees, gave a creepy post-apocalyptic vibe that I truly have never experienced before. In a way this would be the closest I’ve had to a urban exploring experience as I normally don’t do stuff like that.
Stop 1
Stop 2
Stop 3
Stop 4
Stop 5
Stop 6
Stop 7
Nature Trail
Conclusion:
If you decide to go to this site make sure to dress accordingly, I would not wear shorts and flip-flops or anything of that nature. This is apparently a fairly lightly treaded-on nature trail that, while maintained, has a good portion of wildlife to keep an eye out for. Make sure to bring plenty of bug spray, and maybe a walking stick if you have one. I would also decide to come in a group if you have a chance, as it appears that there have been people hiding out in the old farm area at various times as noted by the graffiti on the inside of the grain silo. That isn’t to say that I think this is an unsafe site, but considering lack of any sort of Ranger on-hand, and a few issues like rickety boards on bridges mean that it has the potential to have a few unsafe areas.With all that said, this was a fun nature trail and my son enjoyed it quite a bit considering it gave him a sense of adventure that he normally does not have walking through stagnant parks. The spiders were perhaps the only real thing that irritated me, as you could not go more than a foot without having spider webs falling on you. If that’s my only inconvenience then you can see it was well worth the drive.
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#abandonedBuildings #AmericanCivilWar #Battlefield #BleedingKansas #civilWar #hike #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #JohnBrown #Kansas #missouri #MuseumTrips #Nature #NatureTrail
REVIEW: Fort Scott: Courage and Conflict on the Border (1994)
A book by Leo E. Oliva
On my recent Trip to Fort Scott, Kansas, I wanted to make sure I nabbed a book to read about the fort itself. I have been trying to read a book for every museum trip I take this year, a feat that seems daunting, but has largely gone well. Sadly, like with Fort Osage in Sibley, MO, there were not too many well documented occurrences there that require large volumes of material in many ways, so any specialized books are fairly scant. Like, there wasn’t a battle in the actual fort itself, nor a massive catastrophe involving Native Americans. Usually it just gets mentioned in documentation of other Civil War battles as a prominent Union base and supply center. Luckily, The Kansas State Historical Society did a series of books on historic forts in the 90’s, and they are still in Print to this day. The information presented isn’t too different to that of the video that one would watch as part of the fort’s museum experience, but having a print version is preferable as I have already forgotten a lot of the video. It’s a short book, but it’s full of information and photos that give you an appreciation for Fort Scott’s place in the history of the frontier and Kansas as a whole.
“Charged with protecting Indians and settlers, Fort Scott was established in 1842 in southeastern Kansas on the border of the “permanent Indian frontier.” During the next two decades this army post engaged in dual conflicts as trouble brewed between western expansionists and eastern Indian tribes, and the “Bleeding Kansas,” dissension between proslavery and free-state forces escalated into the Civil War. Volume 1 in the Kansas Forts Series published by the Kansas State Historical Society, documents the history of eight important Kansas forts. Each book features a variety of historic photographs, illustrations, and maps.”
I think it’s most interesting to note that the Fort was only in service officially from 1842 to 1853, then abandoned and sold off literally months before these so called “Bleeding Kansas” episode of pre-Civil War history began. If there is any time in the history of Kansas that absolutely needed a military presence on hand, I find it ironic that there was none in place. This book talks about that a little bit, discussing the fact that the Fort was auctioned off and then later commandeered for use during the Civil War. Who knows what would have happened had it had continuous service the entire time? That appears to be the story of all of the forts in this area, as they were seen to be useless in the lead up to around the War of 1812, most were left completely abandoned and others sold off. It seemed that the real reason why the Fort was closed was that the Indian presence was pretty much moved out of the state in the 1840s, due to becoming more belligerent and aggressive towards settlers in the area.
I was shaken by the contrasting differences between how frontiersman and the Osage Indians built relationships in the 1830s and 40s vs the turn of the century when Fort Osage near Sibley Missouri was in operation. In my Fort Osage readings, the Indians were described as being fairly joyful people (but The Kansa not so much), ones that were excited for the cooperation between the white settlers and the natives. A lot of this probably has to do with a monetary stipend that was supposed to go to the Indian tribes on a monthly basis. This payment was to keep them out of trouble and sustain them in an effort to eventually move them into civilized society. Of course, Congress reneged on this in every way, and this money eventually dried up entirely (I’m sure President Andrew Jackson didn’t help either). Fast forward thirty years or so to this book, and suddenly the Osage Indians or ransacking towns and harassing settlers, stealing property and murdering people. It makes me wonder if they were provoked into this, or the years and years of shady dealings that the white settlers brought with them had boiled over to where it was no longer possible for the two groups to coexist. Perhaps a deeper look would be a good thing for me to do.
The type of soldier stationed at Fort Scott was a particular class of mounted infantry referred to as a Dragoon. Dragoons had the benefit of moving on horseback for mobility, but generally did most of their fighting on foot with infantry weapons. Outside of protecting frontiersman from Indians and your typical outlaws and brigands, they were usually dispatched to protect people on the various trails leading into areas such as Texas and New Mexico. As for the Dragoons at Fort Scott, the last expedition they participated in was a trip into the Rocky Mountains to basically intimidate Indians in the area. This later paved the way for an all out war with Mexico that ultimately lead in America’s conquest of modern day New Mexico and California. Note that the Mexican War was the place where many noted Civil War generals first got battle experience. This shifted the so called “frontier” drastically to the West and altered the importance of Kansas territory in the grand scheme of things in terms of American settlement.
All in all, this was a very informative book on Fort Scott, it thoroughly explained every point in the fort’s history that had any sort of importance and was chock full of beautiful photographs if available, or artist renderings to convey the information within. Considering the size of the book, it’s a very quick read; an average reader can blow through it in one or two sittings. That said, the book does not feel anemic in any way – the entire history of the Fort is explained thoroughly and there were no points where I was left looking for blanks to be filled in. This book can be purchased at the Fort or is also easily accessible via Amazon to which there are used copies that are very cheap. Truthfully, I probably paid more than I should have, but with many of these books that I’ve been reading, it was an impulse buy at the museum itself.
If you would like to purchase your own copy of this book please click HERE This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #civilWar #fort #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #kansasCity #military #militaryHistory #MuseumTrips
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 19) Fort Scott Historic Site
As I discussed in my entry for my recent trip to The Battle of Lexington State Historic Site, some of my fondest childhood memories involve my mother (and Grandparents when I was very young) taking me to a handful of historic sites near where we lived – most notably Lexington, MO and Fort Scott. Kansas. I remember really getting excited for history at this time, and especially The Civil War. It didn’t hurt that this was the time that the famous Ken Burns The Civil War docu-series on PBS, and unlike most children my age, I loved watching it every week that it was on. Fort Scott was always cool because it was relatively close to where I lived in Kansas. We didn’t go there constantly or anything, but I definitely remember more than a few trips over, and I especially enjoyed seeing the cannons and other armaments.
Fort Scott; Fort Scott, Kansas
As part of this, I ended up going to Fort Scott on a complete whim. We were in Nevada, MO, for the Bushwhacker Museum and Bushwhacker Jail trip, and my son asked if “there were any other museums nearby” – knowing we were a stone’s throw from Fort Scott, we made out way across the state line.
Background:
From Wikipedia:
“The Cherokee of Indian Territory (now Oklahoma) were upset to have Fort Wayne in their proximity. After some delay, the US Army decided to abandon Fort Wayne and move its soldiers to a new fort to be built between Fort Leavenworth and the site. The Army both wanted to placate the Cherokee (who were supervised by the Department of Defense) and provide more defense for white settlers and other Indians against the Osage, who had been conducting frequent raids in the area. On April 1, 1842, some soldiers of Fort Wayne left their fort and on April 22 arrived where Fort Scott would be built, in the Osage Cuestas section of modern-day Kansas. After haggling with the Cherokees to acquire the land, the rest of Fort Wayne’s garrison left the fort on May 26 and arrived at the Fort Scott site on May 30.Unlike most forts for military use, the fort did not have defensive walls or structures when first built; the wide-open area and the available artillery made an enclosed fort unnecessary. The soldiers concentrated on building structures for lodging the men, animals, and equipment. These buildings were on the edges of a 350-foot (110 m) parade ground.
[…]
Due to the rising tensions that escalated in the Mexican–American War, the US Army redeployed troops to the Southwest. With Fort Scott still uncompleted, officials decided on April 25, 1850, that no more construction would be done there, after eight years and $35,000. By the time it was finished, it was obsolete; three years later, it was abandoned by the military in favor of the more western Fort Riley.
[…]
During the American Civil War, the fort was renewed as a US military post. In August 1861, the Union Army took command of Fort Scott, and readied it for the war times. The United States Army also took over several blocks within the town for commissary and quartermaster functions. The Union Army rented the properties from the current civilian owners. Troops from Indiana, Iowa, Colorado, Ohio, and Wisconsin would come to the fort, and either stayed by the fort, or traveled farther, to subjugate Missouri, Arkansas, or the Indian Territory. Fort Scott was one of the few installations that recruited and trained black soldiers for the United States Colored Troops of the Union Army.
A major supply depot was situated at the fort. Confederate general Sterling Price hoped to capture the town, but the closest the Confederate force came to the garrison was 10 miles (16 km) away at Battle of Dry Wood Creek. The site was strategically important as it was within a Southern-sympathizing area and close to the Confederate state of Arkansas and the “unstable” Indian Territory (present-day state of Oklahoma), where many of the members of the Five Civilized Tribes were allied with the Confederates. The fort served as a “general hospital” (large military hospital) and prison until after the war. Following the end of the war, in October 1865 the US Army left the facilities and sold off by auction what they controlled.”
Reading:
At fort Scott, I found a book in the gift shop about the fort by Leo E. Oliva. While nothing earth-shattering, it basically does a great job of summarizing the history of the fort as well as what life on the frontiers on Antebellum Kansas was like. This book is a volume in a series of books about various Kansas Forts, so I may end up having to get some others and perhaps plan some excursions further out. That is assuming they aren’t too far away! Feel free to check my review of the book out and consider a purchase on the linked Amazon page.
“All in all, this was a very informative book on Fort Scott, it thoroughly explained every point in the fort’s history that had any sort of importance and was chock full of beautiful photographs if available, or artist renderings to convey the information within. Considering the size of the book, it’s a very quick read; an average reader can blow through it in one or two sittings. That said, the book does not feel anemic in any way – the entire history of the Fort is explained thoroughly and there were no points where I was left looking for blanks to be filled in.”
The Trip:
It’s been probably a decade since I’ve been to Fort Scott, so there have definitely been more than a few changes. The museum/exhibition component has definitely been modernized, featuring audio/visual presentations and living history dramatizations. With Covid-19 in mind, I was sort of weary of this, considering people were handling an earpiece that anyone shared that visited the exhibit, so be sure sure to bring some hand sanitizer if you are going when all this is still happening. That said, certain areas of the park were blocked off due to Covid-19 concerns, masks were mandatory indoors, and seating in the video auditorium was spread out. It seems that precautions were definitely in place.
We particularly enjoyed a prairie “nature trail” area that has been added to the grounds. The groundskeepers have allowed a large area of the grass to grow naturally, and then cut a large path in it allowing patrons to walk through wild flowers and see all sort of wild bugs hopping around and such. This was pretty gorgeous and gave plenty of photo opportunities.
Conclusion:
While no huge battle or anything happened at Fort Scott, it’s still an awesome historical site to see, containing a huge assortment of military artifacts and other items made to look of the period. I would love to be able to come when there are re-enactors participating in something on the parade grounds, as the sight alone would be incredible. If you are in that area of Kansas, you can’t beat a free park with such a wonderful history and definite care for maintaining all aspects of the grounds. I’ve seen so many historic sites this summer that are sadly falling into disrepair, some on either side of the state line – so seeing this so well-kept is great.
#AmericanCivilWar #civilWar #dayTrip #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #kansasCity #missouri #MuseumTrips
national Historic Site of the United States
Contributors to Wikimedia projects (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.)2021: History Boy Summer (Part 2) Battle of Lexington State Historic Site / Oliver Anderson House
Here we are again, yet another entry into my project “History Boy Summer” which is just an excuse for me to blog about my recent attempt to visit a bunch of museums this year. Last time, we looked at a War of 1812 era military fort and trading post, this week we are shifting forward to a Civil War battlefield.One thing that has always bothered me about how many discuss the American Civil War is the complete and utter downplaying of anything that happened west of the Mississippi River. Being from Kansas originally, but spending near 30 years in Bushwhacker territory (That’s Missouri), it’s crazy how important this area was to the war in the beginning, an ultimately it’s end as well. One can argue that The Civil War STARTED in Kansas in the mid 1850s. One of my future incursions will hopefully be to the John Brown Museum in Osawatomie, Kansas where I will go into more detail about the period of time called “Bleeding Kansas“, and if you are unaware what that is, please look it up – the story is wild!
Battle of Lexington State Historic Site / Oliver Anderson House: Lexington, MO
Today I will be looking at one of my favorite historic sites, and Civil War battles for that matter – The Battle of Lexington a.k.a. “The Battle of the Hemp Bales“. lasting from September 13-20 1861, this siege always fascinated me because of the ingenuity of the Missouri State Guard (aligned with the secessionists). Instead of bum-rushing a Federal Fortress repurposed from an old College building owned by the Freemasons (and likely getting massacred), a call was made to create a moving bulwark of wet hemp bales to slowly get closer and closer to the fortress rendering any sort of defensive measure worthless. It was a tactic that impressed people so much, that random people often gushed about it. Many years later, in his book The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government, Southern president Jefferson Davis opined that “The expedient of the bales of hemp was a brilliant conception, not unlike that which made Tarik, the Saracen warrior, immortal, and gave his name to the northern pillar of Hercules.”I always loved visiting The Oliver Anderson house as a kid. It’s riddled with bullet holes and cannon shot, when most would have patched any damage up soon after the war. Being able to see things like the physical scarring of a battlefield makes it that much more real for me. When I was a kid, there wasn’t any sort of visitor’s Center like they have today. From what I understand, it was built in 1994 or so, and is a great addition to the grounds with the sole exception being that you can no longer see the house from the road. This was another nostalgic trip for me, I honestly don’t think I’ve been here for upwards of 20+ years or so.
Background:
According to our old buddy Wikipedia:“The siege of Lexington, also known as the Battle of First Lexington, was a minor conflict of the American Civil War. The siege took place from September 13 to 20, 1861 between the Union Army and the pro-Confederate Missouri State Guard in Lexington, county seat of Lafayette County, Missouri. The victory won by the Missouri Guard bolstered the considerable Southern sentiment in the area, and briefly consolidated Missouri State Guard control of the Missouri River Valley in the western part of the state.Prior to the American Civil War, Lexington was an agricultural town of over 4,000 residents that served as the county seat of Lafayette County and enjoyed a position of considerable local importance on the Missouri River in west-central Missouri. Hemp (used for rope production), tobacco, coal and cattle all contributed to the town’s wealth, as did the river trade. Though Missouri remained in the Union during the war, many of Lexington’s residents were slaveowners, and several openly sympathized with the Southern cause. Lafayette County had a high ratio of slaves to free persons, with slaves comprising 31.7% of its population.”
There was a “Second Battle of Lexington, MO in 1864 that kind of flies under the radar a bit due to how minor it is on it’s own. As part of Major-General Sterling Price’s ill-fated Missouri expedition, a brief skirmish happened in Lexington between Price and Federal Major General James Blunt. If anything, Blunt used the exercise more to size-up Price’s forces as he marched towards the state line, allowing time for people to prepare for battle in Jackson County and slow Price down. Price was ultimately forced to leave the state after back-to-back defeats in Westport and Mine Creek, ultimately taking Missouri off of the Confederate table.Reading:
For this trip, I read a book by Larry Wood entitled: The Siege of Lexington, Missouri: The Battle of the Hemp Bales Which is part of a series of books based on various Civil War Battles released during the 150th anniversary. I had mentioned in my previous article:” I want to know what’s going on, just in case they are either closed, the guided tours don’t happen, or its slanted in one direction or another for political reasons. I was really worried about the latter in regards to my next topic (Battle of Lexington), but I will get to that next time.”Me
I said this because I clearly remember visiting The Oliver Anderson House as a kid, and watching the obligatory video in the visitor’s center, to get a one-sided account of the events as told through the lens of “Lost Cause” mythology. It was very much “Here we were, all chivalrous and Southern, and these evil Yankees took the town over and did bad stuff”. As a kid, it seemed at odds with things I knew about the Civil War in Missouri, but I left it at that. As I got older, I realized what was going on and took it with a grain of salt. I wanted to read this book to get all the facts BEFORE I went in, and I think it helped me a lot. Even before I took one of my tours, I had a long discussion with one of the living history interpreters, and I feel like my knowledge from this book made it that much more special.While, I will suggest reading my full book review HERE, I will say briefly that this was a very well-done book (as are most in this series), and I want to read more by Mr. Wood. If you would like your own copy, check this link out.
The Trip:
Lexington is a short-ish drive from the majority of Kansas City, traffic isn’t an issue and I had no trouble finding it with my GPS. My only issue was that there is currently some sort of road construction going on that resulted in a detour, so if you plan to follow my lead, be prepared for that. As I stated before, the facility is comprised of three parts 1) The Battle of Lexington Battlefield, The Visitor’s Center, and the Oliver Anderson House. While you pass some of the battlefield markers on the way in, the site offers a tour for five dollars a head that will walk a patron through the Anderson House or the Battlefield itself. One ticket is good for both. On my particular trip, it looked likely for rain, so I decided to forgo the battlefield tour, with a hope that I will be back again at some point. I did however stop off on the road and look at some of it myself.The visitors center is a large building with a theater for the video presentation, a gift shop area, and a museum filled with battlefield artifacts and exhibits. It’s a smaller museum that would take anywhere from 10-30 minutes to get through depending on how much you stop to read. I mentioned my wariness of the video, and to my surprise, there was a new presentation that was not at all as slanted as the 1990’s version. One of the interpreters even mentioned that they took great care to make it a lot less one-sided. The gift shop actually has a decent selection of items specifically related to the site itself, sometimes you go to these things and you see a bunch of books about Gettysburg or something, while cool it doesn’t really reflect why you are where you are. I of course, went with a stack of facsimile steamboat tickets and fake Civil-War era money as I collect stuff like that from time-to-time.
Since I decided to forgo the main battlefield tour (sadly it never rained so I could have done it) I spent some time chatting with a few interpreters that were handling the gift shop at the time. The information was very interesting and I learned a lot about some planned upcoming events and general history of the area that you wouldn’t really get on either tour.My time came to finally go into the Oliver Anderson House, which is located behind the visitor’s center. When the Union army came into town and took over the Masonic College, the huge plantation field around the Anderson House ended up becoming the battlefield. The house itself sat smack-dab in the middle of this field, so it was seized by Union troops and converted into a field hospital. Oliver Anderson, and his family, were made to answer questions on their loyalty to the Federal Government, since he had not signed his card and held slaves, he was unwilling to say he denounced the Confederates. As a result, he was evicted.
The house itself became a focal point of the battle with claims that the Union troops were using it to shoot from, which is unfortunate because using a hospital to fire from is an offense on the supposed “rules of warfare” of the day. State Guard troops successfully took the house over, then planted sharpshooters on the rooftops and windows, basically doing the same questionable thing. Finally the Federals were able to re-capture the house, executing many of the soldiers inside. As you can see The house’s history is mired in controversy, and many aspects of the battle had to be deliberated on in court after the fact.
Due to this fighting, the house is riddled with scars of the battle. All of the windows on the second floor have bullet holes around all of the walls. It’s quite jarring to walk around seeing places where soldiers likely died in battle, such as the outsides of almost all of the windows. Surprisingly, this is all preserved because the owners of the house, at the turn of the century, made a deliberate call to not fix any of the war damage in any way. The rest of the house is filled with furnishings, most of which from that second family, of the time. Nothing is temperature controlled and nothing is behind glass – its as if you are going back in time to the exact way the house was being used in the past.
Probably one of my favorite areas to explore is the second floor. One of the main rooms became the “operating room” of the hospital. Doors were pulled from hinges and tossed on sawhorses as men were hacked to pieces in the name of primitive medicine. There was so much blood involved, holes were drilled into the floor and the grisly fluids were allowed to drain into a basin on the first story. I can’t imagine how morbid such a sight would be.
The tour was very informative, and gave lots of information on the day-to-day like of people during the mid 1800s. If you are there, you are truly missing out on not taking it.
Conclusion:
This is yet another great way to spend a summer day here in Missouri. If you are a lover of Civil War History, antebellum architecture, local history, or even macabre things, this is a cool place to visit. Granted, a lot of my love for visiting this comes from the nostalgia I get going back to places I loved as a kid, but this site seems to be a complete package and can fill out a full day with activities if one plans it right. My recommendation – take the tours, especially if you don’t know anything about the battles or the site itself. Its really cheap and well-worth it. Join me again very soon, as I visit a site that I’ve actually never been before, it’s another Civil war battlefield, this time much later in the war.This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #Battlefield #civilWar #dayTrip #Historical #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #KansasCityMissouri #Lexington #LexingtonMissouri #missouri #museum #MuseumTrips #War
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 18) Lecompton, Kansas
One of the more interesting places that I have traveled to during this project it would have to be a small town in Kansas named Lecompton. Nestled off of I-70, not too far from Lawrence KS, this has been one of my greatest surprises of the entire summer. Driving into Lecompton, you definitely get that incredibly small town vibe let you get in smaller places like Arrow Rock, Missouri. I went on a Sunday, but that said it appeared that there were not that many people up and around town at all. I would do a group of entries for each of the four main sites in the town, but frankly I think it’s best to plan your trip according to trying to hit all four of the sites in one day. It can easily be done in just a few hours without too much driving. Just make sure you check museum times on their website to ensure you do not miss anything.
Lecompton, Kansas
Right away, I was impressed with how maintained the historical sites were. The entire city has matching signage for all of the areas of interest, making the entire town almost like a museum in of itself. Even driving in, you know you’re in for something special when visiting Lecompton.
Background:
According to Wikipedia:
“Lecompton was the de jure territorial capital of Kansas from 1855 to 1861, and the Douglas County seat from 1855 to 1858. However, anti-slavery Lawrence was the de facto capital during the latter part of this period, which is when the county seat was moved to Lawrence. This time period was known as Bleeding Kansas, due to the violence perpetrated by the pro-slavery, and to a lesser extent the anti-slavery, factions in the eastern part of the state. Lecompton was a hotbed of pro-slavery sentiment during the mid-1800s.In August 1855, the city became the capital of the Kansas Territory after President Franklin Pierce appointed Andrew Horatio Reeder as governor and charged him and his officials with establishing government offices in Lecompton. The city soon became a stronghold of pro-slavery politics and Southern sympathy, which put it in conflict with nearby Lawrence, which had been founded by Free-Staters from Massachusetts.
In the fall of 1857, a convention met in Constitution Hall and drafted the Lecompton Constitution, under which Kansas would have been a slave state. The constitution was rejected by Congress after intense national debate and was one of the prime topics of the Lincoln-Douglas debates. The controversy contributed to the growing dispute soon to erupt in civil war. The Lecompton Constitution failed, in part, because the antislavery party won control of the territorial legislature in the election of 1857. The new legislature met at Constitution Hall and immediately began to abolish the pro-slavery laws of what they called the Bogus Legislature, the territory’s pro-slavery lawmakers since July, 1855.
In 1865, the United Brethren Church established a university in Lecompton. Occupying the Rowena hotel that was originally built for the Territorial Legislature and visitors, the university later built a stone building in 1882 on the foundation of the started, but not completed, capitol building. Named “Lane University” after the free-stater James H. Lane […] Today it is used as the Territorial Capital Museum, maintained by the Lecompton Historical Society. Two blocks away is Constitution Hall, where the infamous Lecompton Constitution was written in 1857. Today Constitution Hall is a museum operated by the Kansas Historical Society.
Reading
Normally, I have a book that I try to read for each stop on this project. Truthfully I have been unable to find an actual book about Lecompton, Kansas that isn’t some sort of a book for the modern history of the town made for townspeople by the local Historical Society. The good news is this information is mentioned in a number of the Bleeding Kansas books I’ve been reading, and the town itself has a very robust website with as much information as I need with a possibly trip to the Wikipedia page I mentioned. I would honestly recommend just looking at that. I plan to use excerpts from their website on this article.
The Trip
Below you will find a blurb for each of the four main sites that I came across during my adventure as well as numerous pictures that I took during the trip.
Constitution Hall
“The Lecompton Constitutional Convention met that fall in this same second-floor assembly room. The purpose of the convention was to draft a constitution to gain statehood for Kansas. Newspaper correspondents from across the country gathered to report on the meetings. Many Americans feared a national civil war if the convention could not satisfy both pro slavery and antislavery forces. Regrettably, compromise proved impossible because pro slavery men dominated the convention. They created a document that protected slavery no matter how the people of Kansas Territory voted. This was intolerable for their antislavery opponents, who refused to participate in what they considered to be an illegal government. Eventually the Lecompton Constitution was defeated at the national level. It never went into effect.”
First up, was a stop at Constitution Hall, however due to hours of operation I would actually recommend visiting it second if you are going on a weekend. The old building is reconstructed from as close to old materials as it could be, utilizing original floorboards, and many artifacts of the time. The site itself is a two-story museum with the history of Bleeding Kansas and the events that led up to the attempted pro-slavery Constitutional Convention that, in many ways, led Abraham Lincoln that much closer to the presidency. You see, had there not been such a strong push towards making Kansas a slave state, the Democratic Party would not have fractured as much, perhaps not paving the way for a Republican in office.
Territorial Capital
“Here is where the Kansas Capitol Building was to be built. This building was started with an appropriation of $50,000 from the United States Congress. It was completed to the bottom of the first floor windows when the United States House of Representatives defeated the Lecompton Constitution by only eight votes. (The U.S. Senate and President James Buchanan encouraged its adoption.) This meant that Kansas failed to enter the Union as a slave state with Lecompton as its capital.”
The Territorial Capital Museum has an enormous amount of artifacts to look at from the period of Bleeding Kansas, all the way up to modern times. In many ways this is the Douglas County Museum, as a large percentage of the artifacts are for the county as a whole. As with other county museums that I have visited, the Clay County museum for example, it is somewhat cluttered and hard to navigate but well worth a visit. It’s interesting to see how the site was used over the last 170 or so years, saying that it went into this world attempting to be in capital building, was converted into a church, then a college, then a church again, and later a museum. You can see small hints of each one of these evolutions of the building wherever you look. For presidential fans, this building was the place where Dwight D Eisenhower’s parents were married.
Fort Titus
“On August 16, 1856, some fifty Free State men under Captain Samuel Walker attacked Ft. Titus. After a brief battle, Ft. Titus and its thirty-four defenders, including Colonel Henry Titus, surrendered. Also surrendered were 400 muskets, a large number of knives, 13 horses, several wagons, a large stock of household provisions, farm equipment and $10,000 in gold and bank drafts. Slaves and servants owned by Titus were set free and instructed to go to Topeka. Two proslavery men defenders were killed and Titus and five other combatants were seriously injured. Eight free state men were wounded, Captain Henry Shombre mortally. The fort was then burned to the ground.”
Outside of The Territorial Capital Museum lies a recreation of Fort Titus, the site of one of the very first battles and Bleeding Kansas, and perhaps one of the very first battles in The Civil War if you consider that timeframe the same period. The actual fort was burned to the ground, and not located exactly where it sits now, but it is cool to have a remembrance of the site on the grounds.
Democratic Headquarters
“This stone building was the headquarters of the Democratic Party during the Kansas Territorial period (1854-61). The cabin was used during a time when Lecompton, known as “The Birthplace of the Kansas Democratic Party,” was the territorial capital and stood at the center of national attention. Within these walls ambitious and influential men gathered to discuss issues, plot strategies, and make decisions that helped to shape the destiny of Kansas politics and government.Built in the 1850s by Italian stonemason Mark Migliario, this structure was attached to a log cabin that has since disappeared. It may have been the residence of William Simmons and his son Thomas. In 1853 the Simmons traveled from Indiana to this place where they “squatted” a year before Kansas Territory legally was open for settlement. The Simmons made their living on the Kaw River, where they fished and operated the Fairy Queen, a twenty-foot ferry made from hollowed-out sycamore logs.”
On the final leg of my trip, I drove a couple of blocks away to the side of the Democratic Headquarters. only the stone portion of the building still exists today, but it’s still cool to see a building with so much history still maintained an available for people to view. It’s interesting to me that in areas more densely populated, a lot of these old historic buildings were torn down and replaced with modern buildings. So it’s cool to see structures like this still standing just as they were hundreds of years ago.
Misc.
Conclusion
Lecompton, Kansas was perhaps one of my favorite day trips in this entire project. The trip itself is very easy, with only the ordeal of dealing with toll road booths to deal with. Everyone was very nice, and I felt like there was good value for my time spent considering multiple attractions, two museums, and historical signage throughout the town giving an out-of-stater like me the helping hand that I needed to navigate such a place. My only issue with the town itself is that it does not appear to have any restaurants or gas stations within the city limits, or at least any that I saw. Because of that, make sure that you plan accordingly and stop on the way in or bring your own food in the car. As with any trip on a toll road the opportunities to go outside of the ordained path is very limited, and make sure to bring come cash to pay tolls easily. If you have not been there, I would highly recommend visiting Lecompton, Kansas.
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #AmericanHistory #BleedingKansas #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #Lecompton #LecomptonKS #MuseumTrips
Lecompton Kansas | Learn about the History of Lecompton
Historic Lecompton : “The Birthplace of the Civil War, Where Slavery Began to Die.” Lecompton was founded in 1854 and platted on a bluff on the south bank o ...LecomptonKS (Lecompton Kansas)
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 16) Black Jack Battlefield
In one of my mini trips to my birthing grounds (Kansas), I wanted to make sure I went back to Osawatomie to visit the John Brown Museum that is there. That particular chapter is yet to come, mostly because I haven’t finished a book about John Brown that I’d like to put in there, but today we will be talking about a place that I stopped at on the way home that was very instrumental in the story of John Brown. That is the Black Jack Battlefield which is located somewhat close to Baldwin city Kansas. I used to live in Louisburg, Kansas (in my distant youth) and trips to this area were somewhat frequent, so it’s crazy to me to see how everything has changed in these past 30 years. Every time I come over here it’s like a reunion of sorts that I’m not ready for.
Black Jack Battlefield; Near Baldwin, City, Kansas
I have never been to Black Jack Battlefield, nor had I really realized it was a historical landmark until I picked up a brochure from a participating site that was a member of Freedom’s Frontier. Once I saw that it was relatively close and within driving distance for a day trip I knew I had to check it out.
Background:
According to the site’s Kansapedia page:
” The Battle of Black Jack was the first armed conflict between proslavery and antislavery forces in the United States. The battle near Baldwin City on June 2, 1856, had implications far beyond Kansas Territory. Some call it the first battle of the Civil War. The debate over Kansas and the events there clearly marked a turning point in the march toward the Civil War.The Kansas-Nebraska Act had opened Kansas Territory in 1854 and allowed citizens to determine whether Kansas would be a free or slave state. The territory soon became a battleground between those who supported slavery in the territory and those who opposed it.
On May 21, 1856, Sheriff Samuel Jones, who was the first sheriff of Douglas County, and a posse of 750 proslavery men raided Lawrence. In retaliation, John Brown and a small group of men—including some of his sons—violently murdered five men living on Pottawatomie Creek on May 24, 1856. These proslavery men had not been involved in the sack of Lawrence.
Articles of agreement for the exchange of prisoners after the Battle of Black JackAccompanied by proslavery militia, Henry Pate set out to find Brown. He captured two of Brown’s sons and held them prisoner. On June 2, Brown’s free-state militia attacked Pate’s men encamped on the grounds. About 100 men engaged in a three-hour battle, which led to Pate’s surrender.
The battle further divided the nation’s already-polarized abolitionist and proslavery factions. As politicians, newspapers, and citizens watched the story of “Bleeding Kansas” unfold, hints of a larger potentially violent conflict to come became increasingly evident.
Black Jack Battlefield is significant for its association with abolitionist John Brown. Both the battle and the coverage of the battle in the nation’s newspapers introduced John Brown, who called for armed insurrection to end slavery. The battlefield was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2012. “
Reading:
So far my go-to book for Bleeding Kansas has been War to the Knife, which I have recommended here a handful of times, but I have a few other things that would be worthy to check out. The history podcast American History Tellers has an amazing series on Bleeding Kansas that talked about this battle, and I would highly recommend it. Another recommendation is a recent TV series that I have not finished called The Good Lord Bird, that takes an almost comedic take on the life on John Brown – episode 1 has a segment on The Battle of Black Jack. I have yet to fully watch this show, but a full review will be forthcoming.
The Trip:
If you end up in Osawatomie, Kansas it’s a fairly uneventful short drive from there to the site of Black Jack Battlefield. I think my only real annoyance was the fact that there was a little bit of road construction and I had to detour. Once you pull then you are start in front of an old farmhouse that is off limits to the public and less an event is going on. There are some signs up in front of the house and a box that contains brochures for a self-guided tour that we grabbed. I will show you now pictures from this self-guided tour where I could take some. I will say that while the site is well maintained, some of the stops numbered posts are either missing or obscured in such a way to where I could not find them. In those times I had to improvise with the approximate place where it would have been. Another tip that I will give is that the site appears to be a haven for spiders, and since it does not appear that the trails are well traveled I spent more time than I liked using a walking stick to clear the path of any spider webs that would go across.
If anyone has severe arachnophobia this would definitely NOT be a place to go. The nature trails were pretty surreal as you can see in my upcoming pictures, as the entire site appears to be home to the ruins of an old farm complex from a time that I cannot determine. Walking through it, overgrown and covered in trees, gave a creepy post-apocalyptic vibe that I truly have never experienced before. In a way this would be the closest I’ve had to a urban exploring experience as I normally don’t do stuff like that.
Stop 1
Stop 2
Stop 3
Stop 4
Stop 5
Stop 6
Stop 7
Nature Trail
Conclusion:
If you decide to go to this site make sure to dress accordingly, I would not wear shorts and flip-flops or anything of that nature. This is apparently a fairly lightly treaded-on nature trail that, while maintained, has a good portion of wildlife to keep an eye out for. Make sure to bring plenty of bug spray, and maybe a walking stick if you have one. I would also decide to come in a group if you have a chance, as it appears that there have been people hiding out in the old farm area at various times as noted by the graffiti on the inside of the grain silo. That isn’t to say that I think this is an unsafe site, but considering lack of any sort of Ranger on-hand, and a few issues like rickety boards on bridges mean that it has the potential to have a few unsafe areas.
With all that said, this was a fun nature trail and my son enjoyed it quite a bit considering it gave him a sense of adventure that he normally does not have walking through stagnant parks. The spiders were perhaps the only real thing that irritated me, as you could not go more than a foot without having spider webs falling on you. If that’s my only inconvenience then you can see it was well worth the drive.
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#abandonedBuildings #AmericanCivilWar #Battlefield #BleedingKansas #civilWar #hike #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #JohnBrown #Kansas #missouri #MuseumTrips #Nature #NatureTrail
REVIEW: American History Tellers – Bleeding Kansas (2021)
A five part podcast miniseries by Wondery
How fortunate for me this year that it seems like “Bleeding Kansas” has become a supremely popular topic as of late. I noticed a new TV show on Amazon called The Good Lord Bird, and random podcasts like Last Podcast on the left and the topic of today’s review all referencing it. I don’t normally review podcats largely due to their ephemeral nature – like how would one review random episodes where somebody tells news articles? While entertaining, its not really art in any way. But then I ran across American History Tellers and their overview of Bleeding Kansas and fell in love. Much like with a Dan Carlin podcast, AHT is more of an audiobook than a typical podcast. Narrated by Lindsay A. Graham, each episode includes dramatizations of various historical topics as well as the normal scripted narration.Episode one starts out with an aside from the point of view of a runaway slave and his brother delivered in the second-person i.e. “Imagine you and your brother are hiding in a barn that is part of the underground railroad.” these sections are fully voice-acted and help one understand various situations that the main part of the podcast is addressing. These parts are what sets this podcast far and away from others and made me instantly love it.
“In the 1850s, the United States was lurching toward a crisis over slavery — and abolitionist John Brown stepped into the fray. Brown believed it was his God-given destiny to destroy slavery. His crusade took him from abolitionist meetings in the Northeast, to the Underground Railroad in Ohio, to the bloody plains of Kansas. In 1854, a fierce conflict erupted over whether the territory of Kansas would join the Union as a free state or slave state. As tensions escalated, Brown would rush to the center of the gathering storm and hatch a violent plan for striking back against proslavery forces.”
The Bleeding Kansas episodes go all the way from the beginnings to the John Brown raid on Harper’s Ferry – largely making it more of a John Brown podcast, but the information is still great and a solid alternative to reading a book if you only have time for stuff like this during a commute or something. Other great episodes include one on Kentucky Blood Feuds, Coal wars, Various rebellions of the 18th and early 19th century, and much more. I love how they seem to take these important yet largely ignored points in history and elaborate on them.If this sounds like something you’d want to listen to, click HERE This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#abolishionists #AmericanCivilWar #audiobook #BleedingKansas #civilWar #HarpersFerry #Historical #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #JohnBrown #Kansas #missouri #MuseumTrips #Podcast #Review #Slavery
American History Tellers: S31 E1: Bleeding Kansas | John Brown's Crusade
In the 1850s, the United States was lurching toward a crisis over slavery -- and abolitionist John Brown stepped into the fray. Brown believed it was his God-given destiny to destroy slavery.Wondery
REVIEW: Battle of Island Mound – Bates County, Missouri October 29, 1862 (2001)
A Book by Chris Tabor
For my trip to the Battle of Island Mound Historic Site, I wanted to find something to read about the battle itself, but found that easier said than done. Thankfully I found a Missouri-based storefront for a museum I have yet to attend (so far) That has TONS of localized Civil War books, and this was on there. For some Trans-Mississippi (West of the River) battles, you will rarely find full-on books about them, many are fairly small and exist merely as footnotes in a lot of cases. I was happy to find this, despite it being a self-published book that you might find at a museum bookstore. The significance of this battle is fairly substantial on one very BIG topic – this was the first battle wherein an African American regiment was allowed fight. As with the historic site itself, I can see this chapter in history becoming more studied in the future as more become aware of it.
“Officially designated as the “Skirmish at Island Mound, Mo.”, the action fought by the 1st Kansas Colored Volunteers on October 29th,1862, in Bates County, Missouri, marked the first time that an African-American regiment experienced combat during the Civil War. Written by Chris Tabor.”
While a short book, This has plenty of information here, and it’s a solid alternative to simply reading the Wikipedia page. This is written like a well-researched essay in many ways, so it was cool that the author decided to publish it to fill the hole in book scholarship on the topic. If you can find this, it’s really cheap, and was a great addition for my trip to the sit itself, considering that was fairly brisk on presentation with how new the park is (no visitor’s center currently). This is my no means a GREAT Civil war book, but it’s adequate for what it is, and I’m glad I found it.
This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK. If you would like a copy of this book check HERE.
#AfricanAmerican #AmericanCivilWar #battle #BlackRegiment #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #militaryHistory #MuseumTrips #skirmish #War
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 12) Battle of Island Mound State Historic Site
In my tour of both Kansas and Missouri sites including The Battle of Mine Creek and The Marais Des Cygnes Massacre Memorial, the final stop was Butler, Mo for The Battle of Island Mound State Historic Site. As I stated in the previous posts, I would recommend grouping these together to maximize your day, and even add a quick stop at the cemetery at Trading Post, Kansas (something I regretfully did not know about). The Battle of Island Mound is a fairly important Civil War battle, not for the size, casualty rate, or even a big defining moment that tipped the war one direction or another. The reason for it’s importance is that it is the VERY first battle where a majority black regiment saw actual fighting, and we’re talking before the Emancipation Proclamation went out.
Battle of Island Mound State Historic Site; Butler, MO
Background
According to the sites website:
The peaceful setting at Battle of Island Mound State Historic Site is in dramatic contrast to the battle that occurred here in 1862 – a battle that marked a significant milestone in the history of the Civil War. This minor skirmish has national significance because it was the first time Black soldiers engaged in combat during the Civil War.Battle of Island Mound State Historic Site preserves the site of the Toothman Farm, which the First Kansas Colored Volunteer Infantry used as its headquarters and renamed “Fort Africa.” Exhibits at the site interpret the Battle of Island Mound and its significance in the history of the state, the nation and the Civil War. Courage Trail, a 0.5-mile trail around the site, includes wayside exhibits with more information about the battle.
An open picnic shelter provides a shaded area to have a picnic lunch or a comfortable place to contemplate what occurred on this site in 1862.
Battle of Island Mound State Historic Site is a partner site in Freedom’s Frontier National Heritage Area and the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom, both operated by the National Park Service. The heritage area is a consortium of parks, sites and museums in eastern Kansas and western Missouri that interpret the community, regional, and national stories of the journey to freedom. The National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom is a national effort to coordinate education efforts about the Underground Railroad and its role in assisting enslaved individuals seeking freedom.
Reading
Before my visit, I purchased a rather thin book from the Bushwacker Museum online store (even before I visited that site!) about the Battle of Island Mound. Despite the battle’s historical significance, it’s one of those civil war periods that is very overlooked much like a lot of Missouri Civil War battles. Since there wasn’t a lot of detailed analysis of the battle in other books, so I figured that there would be no better source than this, at least until I can find something else. The book itself is basically a longform essay on the battle written about 20 years ago for the Bates County Historical Society. While it’s no classic of literature or anything, I enjoyed the book and it educated me quite a bit on the battle. Check my review out for more information.
The Trip
This is one of the newest historic sites in the State of Missouri, so it doesn’t yet have all the “Bells and whistles” that most local historical sites have. As of this writing, there is not a visitor center of any sort, assuming that that’s even in the plans for the future. The site itself consists of a gazebo with interpretive signs a couple of monuments and a nature shrill through the battlefield with a guided tour presented with more signs. One of the highlights is a window feature to which one can gaze through and see a framed look at the Prairie and the old zigzag fence around it.
Conclusion
This is one of those sites that is still in its infancy, so it will be very interesting to see what happens moving forward. I’d love to see a visitor center go in with artifacts and perhaps information about the first African American volunteer regiment in Kansas, and the first nationwide to see battle in the name of preserving the Union. As it stands right now, I’m not sure I would make a trip to this particular site on its own, as there really isn’t much to see or do there. But, in conjunction with a visit to the aforementioned other sites, it was a nice ending to a wonderful day of historical sightseeing. I kind of wish that I had gone at a different time, and perhaps I could have visited the Bates County Museum which I assume has the artifacts I’m talking about. Maybe next time!
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #BlackHistory #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #MuseumTrips
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 10) Battle of Mine Creek Historic Battlefield
Shortly after my trip to Lexington, Missouri, early on in this series, I purchased a couple of kindle books related to the American Civil War in Missouri and Kansas – one being a book on the Battle of Mine Creek. This book gave me numerous ideas for places to go and ultimately was probably the actual catalyst for me doing this history series. Truthfully, I was somewhat unaware of exactly how many Civil War battles had gone on near me. As a child, we went to Lexington quite a bit and Fort Osage, and that was about it. Even my college class relating to the Civil War was entirely about the typical top ten large scale battles including Shiloh and Gettysburg with everything else largely ignored. In fact, I think that particular professor ONLY talked about Wilson’s Creek, regarding Missouri, as if that was the only important battle we had. That was, if he wasn’t ranting in some manner about how he didn’t particularly like Ken Burns, or the PBS Civil War documentary series that he was apparently forced to show us clips from against his will. What a missed opportunity that he had, he could have easily booked extracurricular trips to a number of these sites, or assigned it to us for extra credit, but alas the past is in the past. I’m glad that I had the will to start up this project and educate myself on all of this. I feel that I have a greater appreciation for the content and a firmer understanding.Ever since reading that book on the Civil War Sesquicentennial Collection, I have wanted to take a car trip down to Pleasanton, Kansas and visit Mine Creek, it was just hard to find the time until recently. To maximize my trip, I planned a short detour to the site of the Marai Des Cygnes massacre site, and the Battle of Island Mound Historic Battlefield all in one trip. All three of these are within 20 miles of each other, making it beneficial to attempt multiple stops to maximize your time. So, was the wait worth it?
Battle of Mine Creek Historic Battlefield; Near Pleasanton, Kansas
Background
According to the website for the Battlefield:“On October 25, 1864, on the banks of Mine Creek, two Union brigades of approximately 2,500 troops defeated approximately 7,000 Confederates from General Sterling Price’s Army of Missouri. Federal Colonels Frederick W. Benteen and John H. Philips led the attack in one of the largest cavalry battles of the Civil War and a major battle fought in Kansas. Their dramatic story comes alive at Mine Creek Civil War Battlefield.”
And now our old buddy Wikipedia:The Battle of Mine Creek, also known as the Battle of the Osage, was fought on October 25, 1864, in Linn County, Kansas as part of Price’s Missouri Expedition during the American Civil War. Major General Sterling Price of the Confederate States Army had begun an expedition in September 1864 to restore Confederate control of Missouri. After being defeated at the Battle of Westport near Kansas City, Missouri on October 23, Price’s army began to retreat south through Kansas. Early on October 25, Price’s army was defeated at the Battle of Marais des Cygnes. After Marais des Cygnes, the Confederates fell back, but were stalled at the crossing of Mine Creek while a wagon train attempted to cross.Union cavalry commanded by Colonel John F. Philips and Lieutenant Colonel Frederick W. Benteen caught up to Price’s army while it was stalled at the creek crossing. Confederate cavalry commanded by Major General James F. Fagan and Brigadier General John S. Marmaduke attempted to defend against the Union assault, but were soundly defeated. Many Confederate soldiers were captured, including Marmaduke. Later on the 25th, Price was again defeated at the Battle of Marmiton River. After Marmiton River, Price destroyed many of his wagons. On October 28, the Union defeated Price again at the Second Battle of Newtonia, and the shattered Confederate army reached Texas in December. The site of the battle was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 as the Battle of Mine Creek Site, and the Kansas Historical Society created the Mine Creek Battlefield State Historic Site in 1974. Mine Creek is considered to be one of the largest battles between mounted cavalry during the war.
Reading
I’m sure you’ve noticed that I’ve referenced this Battle of Mine Creek book for practically every later Kansas or Missouri-related Civil war Battlefield that I’ve gone to so far. That is because it is one of the most informative short books that I have come across detailing Major-General Sterling Price’s ill-fated Missouri campaign in its entirety. I do have a more specialized book on sterling price that I plan to read in the future, but honestly who knows when that’s going to happen? Until then, I will keep using what I would characterize is the best $10 I’ve ever spent on my kindle this year so far. It discusses The Battle of Independence, the Battle of Little Blue River, The Battle of Westport, and finally the Battle of Mine Creek all in one. If information like that is something you’re looking for, please click above for my review which has purchase information within. If you have another book that you would recommend regarding this battle, please let me know – I’d love to read it.
The Trip
There isn’t really one particular good route to get to this area for me, if I go across the city into Kansas and then South that route usually takes longer than it should due to large amounts of road construction. If I drive South through Missouri, it’s usually a little less crazy but it takes longer. As I stated before, if one is going to go to Pleasanton, I would recommend multiple stops on a coordinated trip to visit a handful of sites in the area. Had I known about it, I would have stopped in the former town of Trading Post, Kansas, which is very near this site and boasts a cemetery containing the people that died in the Marais Des Cygnes Massacre and a museum. As far as I can tell, this site was closed when I drove past, and I was unaware of the notorious nature of the cemetery itself. Perhaps another day!I did get a little nostalgic driving through Kansas, considering I was originally from Louisburg, and noticed a lot of town names that I remember from childhood. Sadly my former hometown looks absolutely nothing like what it did when I was younger, so visiting usually just makes me irritated nowadays. it makes me sound like some kind of Luddite angry about the March of progress or something, but I miss the small town vibe that I grew up with.
The only bad part of my trip was the fact that this area of Kansas had obtained unseasonably large amounts of rain in the past few weeks prior to us visiting. the actual battlefield, which has a nature walk component leading a patron to the actual Creek itself, was basically submerged in water when we got there. I initially attempted to go out there, not realizing exactly how bad it was, only to see that there was about a foot of standing water in most of the prairieland. While an unfortunate thing, it did not ruin the trip as I was still able to enjoy witnessing the battlefield and looking at the maps on these self-guided tour placards.
It was also interesting to note that the video component of the trip was actually a history channel documentary from a television show called investigating history entitled “The Lost Battle of the Civil War”. While that title is blatantly silly, insinuating that the battlefield was discovered by The History Channel or something, it was pretty informative and I was able to track down a copy for myself on Amazon. It was interesting to see that it was filmed at the actual battlefield itself, using local reenactors.
Conclusion
Considering the site contained all the bells and whistles that a modern museum should generally have, including a video component, a Fairly robust museum collection, and the promise of a guided tour of the battlefield itself (that we were sadly unable to do) I would consider this one of the more well-kept and well-maintained Civil War battlefields that I have gone to on this series of trips.Some of the Battle Sites in Missouri are sadly much less well-kept and are noticeably struggling with funds in comparison to this Kansas one. I can only imagine that this is the difference between the site being a federal win versus a confederate win, with the former getting more tourism and money and the latter being the target of scorn from numerous people. While that fact is a shame, I was glad to see such a well put together museum in such a relatively short distance to me. And for the notoriety of this site being one of the largest cavalry battles in all of the American Civil War, and ultimately the reason that Missouri did not become a slave state nor a member of the Confederacy makes this site pretty important in my opinion. Yeah, it didn’t have hundreds of thousands of soldiers in it with an insane body count, but I wish more Civil War scholarship would get away from that anyway.
Definitely recommended!
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #Battlefield #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #missouri #MuseumTrips #War
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 11) Marais Des Cygnes Massacre Memorial Site
I’m currently on a big John Brown and “Bleeding Kansas” kick, so a handful of my next entries will be about a few of those sites. I obtained a map of Kansas historical sites towards the beginning of this project, and discovered that I could tackle two birds with one stone by visiting both Marai Des Cygnes and Mine Creek in one trip. I’ve read a bit about this site in a rather bad book about “Bleeding Kansas”, one that did a great job of getting me ideas of where to go and not much else sadly. As a quick stop, this site was somewhat hard to find, but well worth it if one is in the area.
Marais Des Cygnes Massacre Memorial Site, Near Amoret, MO and the Marais Des Cygnes River
Background
According to the official Kansas website for the self-guided installation:
“Missouri border ruffians like Charles Hamilton led raids into Kansas to steal goods and harass freestaters. Linn County was the site of some of the raids, including a particularly deadly one May 19, 1858. Hamilton and some 30 other men rode through the village of Trading Post, captured 11 free-state men, and marched them into a ravine where they opened fire upon them. Five of the men were killed, five were seriously injured, and one escaped unharmed.The community was drawn together in the face of these events even as they were unfolding. Sarah Read, wife of the captured Reverend Benjamin L. Read, set off on foot, spyglass in hand, to chase down Hamilton and his men. She came upon the victims, some still alive, and tried to render aid. Word of the massacre spread quickly and by afternoon freestaters from around the area had gathered to treat the wounded, collect the dead, and help James Montgomery’s Jayhawkers ride into Missouri in fruitless pursuit of Hamilton’s gang.
Locally, wrathful indignation accompanied feelings of shock. John Brown, arriving at the scene toward the end of June, built a “fort” some 220 yards south of the ravine. It was reported to have been two stories high, walled up with logs and with a flat roof. Water from a spring ran through the house and into a pit at the southwest corner.
The land on which the fort was built belonged to Eli Snider, a blacksmith. Later he sold it to Brown’s friend Charles C. Hadsall, who agreed to let Brown occupy it for military purposes. Brown and his men withdrew at the end of the summer, leaving the fort to Hadsall.
In later years Hadsall built a stone house adjoining the site of Brown’s fort, enclosing the spring within the walls of the first floor. In 1941 the Kansas legislature authorized acceptance of the massacre site, including Hadsall’s house, as a gift to the state from the Pleasanton Post, Veterans of Foreign Wars. In 1961 it provided funds for the restoration of the building, and in 1963 the entire property was turned over to the Kansas Historical Society for administration. A museum was established in the upper floor of the building in 1964. Today the park is operated as Marais des Cygnes Massacre State Historic Site, a drive-through interpreted setting.”
Reading(s)
This episode is spoken about briefly in the book, War to the Knife by Thomas Goodrich – a book that seemingly has polarized some readers, but I enjoyed immensely. It seems some (going by Amazon reviews) think Goodrich treats abolitionists as “the bad guys” in the book, but honestly neither side were the fabled “good guys”. It becomes a tough ethical debate when considering the actions of men that do bad things for a good reason. Are they still good?
Another book is Bleeding Kansas: The Real Start of the Civil War, which I did not particularly enjoy, although it does talk about this event, and was a solid list of historic sites despite the sparse information on anything else.
Finally, Bushwhackers of the Border details some of the exploits of various Bushwhacker groups running in Missouri, and there is an entire chapter devoted to the Marais Des Cygnes Massacre.
The Trip
This was one of the more harrowing adventures I’ve had trying to get to one of these sites – I mean nothing happened, but it seemed like I was routinely on the cusp of something. After leaving the site of the Battle of Mine Creek, Marais Des Cygnes Massacre is something like 7 miles north, so far so good. You have to cross the state line into Missouri for a brief moment and drive through a small town called Amoret, then take a series of gravel roads back into Kansas to get to the museum. Most of these were full of “DO NOT ENTER PRIVATE PROPERTY” signs and were lined with barbed wire fences – I honestly wasn’t sure if I was going to find the location or get shot by a moonshiner and left for dead in rural Kansas. Luckily the events of Wrong Turn did not materialize, and I finally made it to the outdoor museum. One can fully enjoy most of the museum without even leaving their car – I stopped a couple of times to look at things such as the memorial and the ravine used to dump the townspeople after they were shot.
I’m not sure if it’s all in my head due to the heaviness of the subject matter that made such a historical site necessary or something paranormal, but maaaan, is this place creepy. Whether or not one believes in that stuff, I still couldn’t handle the absolute stillness I felt while walking around or the strange “somebody is watching you” feeling I was getting the entire time. It would be interesting to see if anyone with paranormal activity equipment (EVPs and the like) would have any luck out there.
Conclusion
I enjoyed my visit to this site, and liked that it was a self-contained drive-through experience. I had not done anything like that yet, so it’s cool to see a different wat to experience a historical site. My only reservation was the fact that I was unaware that the victims of this massacre are buried at a nearby ghost town called Trading Post that is basically just a museum and cemetery. I drove by it, realized it was closed and moved on – now I’m kicking myself that I missed it. Perhaps the next time I go down there, I will make sure to stop. As I stated before, if you make this trip, I would plan on hitting Mine Creek, Marais Des Cygnes, and Island Mound in Butler, MO all at once as all three are with 15 miles of each other. Factoring in a stop at Trading Post and you would have a full historical day trip on your hands! Ghosts or sketchy gravel roads be damned – definitely check this place out.
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #BleedingKansas #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #Massacre #Memorial #missouri #MuseumTrips
REVIEW: Bleeding Kansas: The Real Start of the Civil War (2013)
A Book by Robert C. JonesSometime this summer, I plan to go over into Kansas and visit some sites related to the “Bleeding Kansas” border wars timeframe ( of the 1850’s). For those unaware, an argument can be made that the American Civil War actually started in the 1850’s along the Kansas – Missouri border with such names as William Quantrill, Frank and Jesse James, and even John Brown stirring the pot so bad that the fighting had no other way to go other than to spill out into full-blown warfare. To prep for this, I grabbed a couple of books on the subject for my Kindle, and started out with this one. Due to its short length and narrow focus, I figured this would be a great starting point, but unfortunately this was a mediocre book at best.
The Civil War started in Kansas in 1856. It was initially fought in towns like Lecompton, Lawrence and Osawatomie. It was fought on battlefields like Black Jack. It was fought along creeks such as the Pottawatomie and the Marias des Cygnes. This book will discuss the background of Bleeding Kansas, and examine the various battles and massacres that were part of it. It will then view the aftermath of the conflict and its effect on the United States. It will use both contemporary photographs and maps (mostly from the Library of Congress), as well as modern photos of the sites described herein. There are 19 color photos and maps, and 17 black and white.
This book is alright as a general overview of this time period and not much else unfortunately. A further examination would have been better, but this at least gives you broad topics that you can branch off from. I, at least, used the battle descriptions to consider future museum trips I plan to make as the author gives information of modern day monuments and such. I was unfamiliar with the specific battle sites such as Marias des Cygnes or Lecompton Kansas, so this information was very helpful.Sadly the book goes on tangents such as talking about John Brown’s non-Kansas exploits for entire chapters, things that would be cool if the book wasn’t 40 pages long and supposedly about Kansas rather than The Raid of Harper’s Ferry. This fluff holds far too much real-estate here. In many ways, this is more of a book about John Brown than The border wars themselves. To show my confusion with this book, I recently read another book about the Battle of Mine Creek that has WAAAY more actual information about what led up to “Bleeding Kansas” as a whole, and that was merely the introduction to set the scene of how Missouri was prior to that battle. If I am completely honest, Bleeding Kansas: The Real Start of the Civil War has the same problem that a series of books called “Hourly History” has – they all remind me of a reformatted online encyclopedia entry or a high school paper.
If you would like a copy of this book, please check HERE, It is currently free for Kindle Unlimited users. This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #BleedingKansas #bookReview #books #BorderWar #civilWar #Historical #historicalPhoto #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #JohnBrown #Kansas #missouri #MuseumTrips
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 10) Battle of Mine Creek Historic Battlefield
Shortly after my trip to Lexington, Missouri, early on in this series, I purchased a couple of kindle books related to the American Civil War in Missouri and Kansas – one being a book on the Battle of Mine Creek. This book gave me numerous ideas for places to go and ultimately was probably the actual catalyst for me doing this history series. Truthfully, I was somewhat unaware of exactly how many Civil War battles had gone on near me. As a child, we went to Lexington quite a bit and Fort Osage, and that was about it. Even my college class relating to the Civil War was entirely about the typical top ten large scale battles including Shiloh and Gettysburg with everything else largely ignored. In fact, I think that particular professor ONLY talked about Wilson’s Creek, regarding Missouri, as if that was the only important battle we had. That was, if he wasn’t ranting in some manner about how he didn’t particularly like Ken Burns, or the PBS Civil War documentary series that he was apparently forced to show us clips from against his will. What a missed opportunity that he had, he could have easily booked extracurricular trips to a number of these sites, or assigned it to us for extra credit, but alas the past is in the past. I’m glad that I had the will to start up this project and educate myself on all of this. I feel that I have a greater appreciation for the content and a firmer understanding.
Ever since reading that book on the Civil War Sesquicentennial Collection, I have wanted to take a car trip down to Pleasanton, Kansas and visit Mine Creek, it was just hard to find the time until recently. To maximize my trip, I planned a short detour to the site of the Marai Des Cygnes massacre site, and the Battle of Island Mound Historic Battlefield all in one trip. All three of these are within 20 miles of each other, making it beneficial to attempt multiple stops to maximize your time. So, was the wait worth it?
Battle of Mine Creek Historic Battlefield; Near Pleasanton, Kansas
Background
According to the website for the Battlefield:
“On October 25, 1864, on the banks of Mine Creek, two Union brigades of approximately 2,500 troops defeated approximately 7,000 Confederates from General Sterling Price’s Army of Missouri. Federal Colonels Frederick W. Benteen and John H. Philips led the attack in one of the largest cavalry battles of the Civil War and a major battle fought in Kansas. Their dramatic story comes alive at Mine Creek Civil War Battlefield.”
And now our old buddy Wikipedia:
The Battle of Mine Creek, also known as the Battle of the Osage, was fought on October 25, 1864, in Linn County, Kansas as part of Price’s Missouri Expedition during the American Civil War. Major General Sterling Price of the Confederate States Army had begun an expedition in September 1864 to restore Confederate control of Missouri. After being defeated at the Battle of Westport near Kansas City, Missouri on October 23, Price’s army began to retreat south through Kansas. Early on October 25, Price’s army was defeated at the Battle of Marais des Cygnes. After Marais des Cygnes, the Confederates fell back, but were stalled at the crossing of Mine Creek while a wagon train attempted to cross.Union cavalry commanded by Colonel John F. Philips and Lieutenant Colonel Frederick W. Benteen caught up to Price’s army while it was stalled at the creek crossing. Confederate cavalry commanded by Major General James F. Fagan and Brigadier General John S. Marmaduke attempted to defend against the Union assault, but were soundly defeated. Many Confederate soldiers were captured, including Marmaduke. Later on the 25th, Price was again defeated at the Battle of Marmiton River. After Marmiton River, Price destroyed many of his wagons. On October 28, the Union defeated Price again at the Second Battle of Newtonia, and the shattered Confederate army reached Texas in December. The site of the battle was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973 as the Battle of Mine Creek Site, and the Kansas Historical Society created the Mine Creek Battlefield State Historic Site in 1974. Mine Creek is considered to be one of the largest battles between mounted cavalry during the war.
Reading
I’m sure you’ve noticed that I’ve referenced this Battle of Mine Creek book for practically every later Kansas or Missouri-related Civil war Battlefield that I’ve gone to so far. That is because it is one of the most informative short books that I have come across detailing Major-General Sterling Price’s ill-fated Missouri campaign in its entirety. I do have a more specialized book on sterling price that I plan to read in the future, but honestly who knows when that’s going to happen? Until then, I will keep using what I would characterize is the best $10 I’ve ever spent on my kindle this year so far. It discusses The Battle of Independence, the Battle of Little Blue River, The Battle of Westport, and finally the Battle of Mine Creek all in one. If information like that is something you’re looking for, please click above for my review which has purchase information within. If you have another book that you would recommend regarding this battle, please let me know – I’d love to read it.
The Trip
There isn’t really one particular good route to get to this area for me, if I go across the city into Kansas and then South that route usually takes longer than it should due to large amounts of road construction. If I drive South through Missouri, it’s usually a little less crazy but it takes longer. As I stated before, if one is going to go to Pleasanton, I would recommend multiple stops on a coordinated trip to visit a handful of sites in the area. Had I known about it, I would have stopped in the former town of Trading Post, Kansas, which is very near this site and boasts a cemetery containing the people that died in the Marais Des Cygnes Massacre and a museum. As far as I can tell, this site was closed when I drove past, and I was unaware of the notorious nature of the cemetery itself. Perhaps another day!
I did get a little nostalgic driving through Kansas, considering I was originally from Louisburg, and noticed a lot of town names that I remember from childhood. Sadly my former hometown looks absolutely nothing like what it did when I was younger, so visiting usually just makes me irritated nowadays. it makes me sound like some kind of Luddite angry about the March of progress or something, but I miss the small town vibe that I grew up with.
The only bad part of my trip was the fact that this area of Kansas had obtained unseasonably large amounts of rain in the past few weeks prior to us visiting. the actual battlefield, which has a nature walk component leading a patron to the actual Creek itself, was basically submerged in water when we got there. I initially attempted to go out there, not realizing exactly how bad it was, only to see that there was about a foot of standing water in most of the prairieland. While an unfortunate thing, it did not ruin the trip as I was still able to enjoy witnessing the battlefield and looking at the maps on these self-guided tour placards.
It was also interesting to note that the video component of the trip was actually a history channel documentary from a television show called investigating history entitled “The Lost Battle of the Civil War”. While that title is blatantly silly, insinuating that the battlefield was discovered by The History Channel or something, it was pretty informative and I was able to track down a copy for myself on Amazon. It was interesting to see that it was filmed at the actual battlefield itself, using local reenactors.
Conclusion
Considering the site contained all the bells and whistles that a modern museum should generally have, including a video component, a Fairly robust museum collection, and the promise of a guided tour of the battlefield itself (that we were sadly unable to do) I would consider this one of the more well-kept and well-maintained Civil War battlefields that I have gone to on this series of trips.
Some of the Battle Sites in Missouri are sadly much less well-kept and are noticeably struggling with funds in comparison to this Kansas one. I can only imagine that this is the difference between the site being a federal win versus a confederate win, with the former getting more tourism and money and the latter being the target of scorn from numerous people. While that fact is a shame, I was glad to see such a well put together museum in such a relatively short distance to me. And for the notoriety of this site being one of the largest cavalry battles in all of the American Civil War, and ultimately the reason that Missouri did not become a slave state nor a member of the Confederacy makes this site pretty important in my opinion. Yeah, it didn’t have hundreds of thousands of soldiers in it with an insane body count, but I wish more Civil War scholarship would get away from that anyway.
Definitely recommended!
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #Battlefield #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #missouri #MuseumTrips #War
1864 battle of the American Civil War
Contributors to Wikimedia projects (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.)REVIEW: The Battle of Mine Creek: The Crushing End of the Missouri Campaign (2011)
A Book by Jeffrey D. Stalnaker
Continuing on with my quest to learn as much as I can about historical sites in the general vicinity of where I live, I decided that I will visit the Battle of Mine Creek State Historical Site sometime in the future, and figured that reading another one of these Civil War books from around a decade ago would help me out a lot. So far, I have really enjoyed these as they are well-written, well-researched, and are generally quick reads, a fact that is a BIG plus for me considering my work schedule. Sometimes Civil War books end up being huge monotonous tomes that, while good sources of information, are not meant for general consumption – so something like this series is greatly appreciated.“In 1864, Union troops controlled much of the South, Sherman’s men marched with impunity through Georgia and defeat at Gettysburg was a painful and distant memory. The Confederacy needed to stem the tide. Confederate major general Sterling Price led an army of twelve thousand troops on a desperate charge through Missouri to deliver the state to the Confederacy and dash President Lincoln’s hopes for reelection. This daring campaign culminated with the Battle of Mine Creek. A severely outnumbered Union army crushed the Confederate forces in one of the war’s largest and most audacious cavalry charges. Historian Jeff Stalnaker puts the reader in the saddle with the Union troopers as they destroy all hope for Rebel victory in the Trans-Mississippi.”Book description
In many ways, this book somewhat summarizes the ill-fated Missouri Campaign of Major-General Sterling Price, at least for the first 40 or so pages. Having this background information for battles such as Independence. Lexington II, Kansas City, Westport, Bryam’s Ford and more really gets you prepared for the detailed description of the battle that would ultimately shoot down any dreams of a Confederate Missouri for Price and his superiors alike. I actually though this introductory section was well-done and did not seem tacked on like some other books that deviate down a path that has no bearing on the topic at hand. In many ways, the Battle of Mine Creek was the last shot that Price had to hold onto his “Goldenboy” status gained much earlier in the war, and with that seeming to be more and more in jeopardy due to the string of defeats across the state, it was the only thing keeping him from obscurity as well.“St. Louis and Jefferson City had been abandoned. The Pro-Union government still reigned in Jefferson City, and Leavenworth became impossible as a target because of the crushing defeat at Westport. This wagon train represented, at this late stage of the campaign, the only tangible evidence that the march through Missouri had experienced any modicum of success. Despite please from many of his subordinates, Price was determined to keep moving with this wagon if for no other reason but to justify his existence. “Excerpt, page 55
Once we get to the battle itself, it’s a textbook case of allowing the weakest links in your leadership bring everything crashing down, as just about every mistake imaginable was made. Not only did the troops cross the river putting themselves in a spot where they could not escape easily, but they stood in place and just took a full-on cavalry assault until everyone freaked out and started running away. This battle was a decisive win for the Union to such a degree that Price had to leave most of his wagon train there and run away to rebel held territory. Missouri would quietly fade away as a hotspot for the war and everything moved East.Stalnaker does a great job of telling the tale of this battle in a narrative way that keeps the reader on the edge of their seat. There’s a fine line between “just the facts” and embellishing so much that it becomes historical fiction, and he has found a way to keep the story action-packed and exciting without losing site of the information he needs to convey. Out of all of these I’ve read so far, this is probably the best one both from a writing standpoint, and for the amount of information in the book.
I can’t wait to drive back to my homelands (I’m actually from Kansas originally) and visit the State Historical Site for this battle. I feel that this book has armed me with plenty of information that I will need to really be able to appreciate the various things I will see. As with many of these books, I plan to seek additional publications by this author, as he did an excellent job on this and I hope he has written more – whether Missouri/Kansas related or not. Definitely a recommendation from me.
If you would like a copy of this book, please check HERE. This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK. Stay tuned for a future installment where I visit the very sites that this book was talking about!
#AmericanCivilWar #BleedingKansas #civilWar #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #militaryHistory #missouri #MuseumTrips #War
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 9) Bushwhacker Jail
One of the running jokes that I have with one of my friends on Facebook is that I have gone to more historic jails this year during this project than anything else. Joking aside, it is somewhat true as I have gone now to upwards of four different jails during this project. At this point it almost seems like a cliché that every town I go to has relatively the same setup for their downtown area, almost identical courthouses, and some sort of a jail museum with a vague tie into either the Bushwackers or Jesse James and his family. Since it’s been a few jail-free weeks I figured, hey! What the hell let’s go to another one! So, I packed up my car and headed down South to Vernon County, Missouri – specifically the town of Nevada.
Nevada (pronounced Nuh-vay-duh because Missouri does that with town names lol) is the home of a couple of museums – first and foremost the Bushwacker Museum (which is basically The Vernon County Museum), and secondly the nearby Bushwhacker Jail which is today’s topic. I will be writing up an entry for the museum itself at a later time, I’m currently reading a book about “Bleeding Kansas”, detailing the war between the Missouri Bushwhackers (or Border Ruffians) and the Kansas jayhawkers, and I figure it would be more appropriate to do that then. Originally, the jail was the site of the museum itself, but a call was made some 20 years ago to separate the two leaving more room for artifacts that pertains to the jail within the jail itself.
Bushwhacker Jail; Nevada Missouri
Background
According to their website:
“The Bushwhacker Jail is Nevada’s oldest surviving building. It was one of the few buildings not destroyed by federal militia, when they burned the town in 1863. This building functioned as a jail from 1860 until 1960. It was restored for use as a museum in 1965, and entered on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. Constructed of native sandstone, the building is Federal in design. It consists of living quarters for the jailer’s family, as well as cells for both men and women, and an exterior summer kitchen and garden.The jail cells are a sobering reminder of times when even basic comforts could not be taken for granted, and the keyword for prisoners was containment, not rehabilitation. The only heat for the cell block was from a pot bellied stove, and the shadows were hardly kept at bay by the single light bulb hanging in the center of the room. The old jail has been described by some as a place of “medieval malevolence.“ Is it haunted? Draw your own conclusions as you tour the iron cell block, and view the yard where Nevada’s last hanging took place. Fascinating, frightening, and not to be missed.
Reading
The reading for this adventure just happens to be a souvenir book that I bought at the museum itself called Bushwhacker Jail Tales. For a mere $5 USD, I was able to acquire a small booklet produced by the Vernon County Historical Society detailing the history of the jail itself and notable stories from it. The tone of the book is rather humorous, which was kind of a shock knowing what sort of book this was going in. Most of the stories included were of the nature of detailing ridiculous prison escape schemes that convicts might have attempted during the 100 years that the jail was in service. Stories run the gamut of the typical people trying to kick blocks out of the wall or men dressing up as women and trying to sneak out the door. Perhaps my favorite section detailed an escape attempt by a veritable Laurel and Hardy of the time, wherein the slighter of the two men was able to get out the freshly de-barred window easily, however the more rotund man found himself stuck screaming for help. if you head on over to my review, linked above, I have given a rundown of the book, and provided links on where you could purchase it. Or if you’re more inclined, visit the jail itself and buy your own copy in person.
The Trip
Despite being over an hour and a half trip by car from my house, my drive to Nevada, MO was relatively easy. I planned out a day involving the trip to the two Vernon County museums, and a short drive over into Kansas to Fort Scott Historic Site. Since Nevada is basically directly across from Fort Scott on the border it made for a fun three hour or so adventure to visit all three places. Upon arrival at the Vernon County Library, one goes down a series of stairways into the basement to find the museum itself. Both the museum and the jail run off of the same admission system, so if you pay for one you get to do both. For both me and my son, admission totaled the whopping amount of $6.
We got there just in time for a guided tour of the jail, came back, perused the museum, bought some stuff at the gift shop and were on our way. Due to my work schedule, I am unable to attend things like this during the week usually, so if you are like me and plan on going on a Saturday, be prepared for it to close early. The self-guided tour of the museum is about an hour, whereas the tour of the jail is about 30 minutes. This is of course determined by how long you want to stay at the museum, and your reading speed.
Conclusion
All-in-all this was a very fun trip, and one of the better county museums I have seen during this summer. Generally, a lot of them end up being insanely cluttered with artifacts from hundreds of years of time crammed into a building way too small for the amount of stuff, while interesting – it’s almost always too much. I’m sure that the old version of this museum was probably like that, considering everything was housed in the jail for a time, but at least the people of Vernon County had the sense to expand. The jail itself isn’t glamorous in any way, covered in graffiti with paint chips galore signifying the 100 years of use by hapless men that made all sorts of wrong decisions. But, it’s a good glimpse into a time long ago, when punishment meant punishment and people that were locked up behind bars were not always fortunate enough to have the basic necessities that one would need to live, not even heat during the winter or sunlight.
My only real quibble with the museum itself, is the fact that it’s called the Bushwhacker Jail, and not historic Vernon County jail or some such. The entire title comes from the fact that Nevada Missouri was considered the “Bushwhacker capital of Missouri”, thus the reason why it was targeted by an arson attack during the “Bleeding Kansas” tit-for-tat battles. The main museum makes sense, considering there are plenty of Bushwacker items on display, but now the jail is just a jail with a confusing name. If you were to have come here looking for a jail that historically housed outlaws and vigilantes during the American Civil War, you might be disappointed. Going into the jail, I knew this wasn’t the case so I wasn’t bothered. Stay tuned for a future article talking about the Bushwhacker Museum!
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #BleedingKansas #Bushwhackers #civilWar #guerillas #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Jail #missouri #MuseumTrips #NevadaMissouri #VernonCountyMissouri
REVIEW: Bushwhacker Jail Tales (2002)
A book by Patrick Brophy
One of my recent trips for my history project took me to Nevada Missouri, home of The Bushwhacker Museum and Bushwhacker Jail, previously known as the Vernon County Jail from 1860-1960. In the well-stocked gift shop, I was looking for something about the attraction, and came across this novella-sized booklet detailing the history of the jail and some stories pertaining to it throughout the years. This was produced by the Vernon County Historical Society using information from historical records, edited together into a narrative structure. The latter half of the book are basically news clippings related to the jail.“Bushwhacker Jail Tales is a pamphlet providing a brief history of the old Vernon County Jail, which was used from 1860 to 1960. It includes many short stories about occurrences at the jail which have been culled from local newspaper articles and oral legend.”
My favorite story is of two prisoners who attempted a very much ill-fated jailbreak. You see, the pair were had a little too much in common with the likes of Laurel and Hardy, seeing that one was very thin, the other fat. Bars were cut from a window with a hacksaw allowing the skinny man to escape. Sadly, his comrade was not so lucky. aroused by painful wails of terror, the Sherriff found the man lodged in the opening unable to budge either direction Winnie-The-Pooh style. There’s also a story of a a man trying to escape dressed in drag, and another that made the sheriff so mad he strung him up by his thumbs, with the string still visible today (can confirm!),All-in-all this book isn’t something that will blow you away, but as a companion to a museum visit it was well put together, and had information that was not part of the tour. This was also insanely cheap, which is appreciated for somebody not wanting to drop tons of money on these museum road trips at every stop (although I do like to support the sites). This was a quick read, and I enjoyed it due to it’s overall humorous tone. if you ever find yourself in Nevada, Missouri make sure to stop at the Bushwhacker Museum/Jail and pick this up if you want to remember your visit!
If you would like your own copy of this book, please click HERE.
This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #book #bookReview #books #Bushwhackers #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Jail #museum #MuseumTrips #NevadaMissouri
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 6) Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead
My son is now at that age where he can attend events and go to big activities and actually enjoy it, and even remember it down the road. Because of this, I have been bringing him to a handful of these museums and events so that perhaps he will get an interest in History and get a chance to explore things other than our house and the PlayStation. Covid-19 made my family a bunch of shut-ins for the past year, so its been tough not doing things! One of his favorite things are petting zoos, and more importantly seeing goats, which he fell in love with due to the game Goat Simulator. Any chance we get to see farm animals, he is all about, so I definitely wanted to take him to, perhaps, the best petting zoo in the area.
Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead; Overland Park, Kansas
I’ve actually been to Deanna Rose once before, for a family reunion, and it has expanded quite a bit since then. I don’t recall there being nearly as many animals or attractions at that time, so if you are a person that hasn’t been in a while, it will probably seem like a new place for you as well.
Background
The Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead is a family attraction in Overland Park, Kansas. The facility shows farm animals, birds of prey, show gardens, butterfly gardens, a nature trail, a Kanza Native American display, and a full-scale one-room schoolhouse. The facility also provides playgrounds, a fishing pond, horse-drawn wagon rides, and pony rides. Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead is the perfect place to learn, grow, and have fun.
Reading
This one was tough. I’m not going to lie. With historical aspects of this theme part, I figured that I wanted to do an entry on it, but going with my tradition of having a book read to accompany it was tough. I wanted something that would accompany a place that has aspects of Nineteenth Century farmstead life as depicted with the Indian Camp, Mining Camp, and one room schoolhouse. It would have been easy to do Laura Ingalls Wilder’s popular book Little House on the Prairie, but I wanted to go more obscure. I recalled a series by Rhoda Wooldridge that I came across when I was looking for a physical copy of a book on Fort Osage that I had read. Rhoda is a local author from where I live (now deceased) and as far as I can tell, her books are all about this area. With it being a book about the hardships of that time period, local, and specifically about running a farm, I knew it was the one. For a full review of this book, please click HERE.
The Trip
Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead is located in Overland Park, Kansas – despite being from Kansas I generally don’t go there due to my distaste for overly aggressive driving. That said, I have found that driving on a Saturday isn’t so bad, as most of my woes come from people driving to and from work. We went on the 3rd of July and it was the perfect weather for it. warm, but not too hot and a bit overcast so no sun blaring down on us. The facility is ostensibly a hybrid of a zoo and a “theme park”, but lacks the rides that many think of when that term comes up. Instead Deanna Rose contains attractions related to both history and agriculture including an extensive petting zoo, playgrounds, and teaching areas.
This would be a perfect place to take your child to teach them about how life was in the past, and as with my reading, sometime in the middle to late nineteenth century. Granted, this isn’t a living history museum, there aren’t people in period dress or anything, but the feeling you get from the area is a much simpler time long long ago. As I stated there are a handful of educational areas to visit, I wanted to talk about each one that we were able to see. Due to Covid, not everything was open, sadly, but we got the most of it. And with $3 admission, we will definitely be back.Attractions Map
One-room Schoolhouse
An actual one room schoolhouse was picked up and moved to the farmstead from the turn of the century. Decked out with period materials such as chalkboards and desks, as well as dunce caps, and even old-timey lunch pails are there for children to see. Most kids don’t realize how school used to be so this is an interesting opportunity to open their eyes a bit. When we went the tour guide was dressed like an old time teacher (so I guess a few people are technically in costume) and delivered a child friendly lecture on some notable things in the room.
Blacksmith Demonstration
We were able to catch a bit of a blacksmith demonstration where the man delivering the lecture made a spoon for us and explained different ways it could be done. Seeing craftsmen like this is always pretty cool, so it was interesting to witness.
Kansa Indian camp
The Farmstead contains a recreated Kansa Native American camp with a dug-out mound-house and a teepee to show the way indigenous people may have lived in the past. Full of artifacts and another child-friendly tour guide, this was a cool opportunity.
Historical Storefronts
Sadly, with the spectre of Covid-19 still looming large on this area, a lot of the re-created historical shops, such as an old barbershop, and old bank, and an old photography parlor had restricted access with long lines or were entirely closed. Perhaps our next trip will yield better results. One thing we were able to see was an old ice cream parlor, where we had lunch!
Mining Camp
For a small fee, kids are able to pretend to be gold miners during the turn of the century. In lieu of gold, children get a bag filled with polished colorful rocks of various minerals from the area. These get dumped into a sifting tray in a running mining sluice until all the sand is gone and only the treasure stands.
Conclusion
The Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead is a wonderful place to take kids. The animals, historical items, wagon rides, and even the food is a blast for young and old alike. My little dude worse himself out from all of the fun was having, so I’d definitely recommend it. Admission is really inexpensive, and the park itself is huge. If you are looking for something different, and don’t want to deal with how packed the Kansas City Zoo can be, maybe this is a good option.
This is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#children #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #kansasCity #MuseumTrips #OverlandPark #ThemePark
REVIEW: Fort Osage–opening of the American West (1983)
A book by Rhoda WooldridgeTo prepare for a trip to historic Fort Osage in Sibley, Missouri, I actually tracked down an old book from around the time I was born, seemingly one of the only ones on the actual Fort Itself called Fort Osage–opening of the American West. I did this because I wasn’t sure if the tour guides would be present at all during the tail-end of the Covid-19 Global Pandemic, and wanted to ensure that I would enjoy my trip. I’m sure there are other books out there, such as diaries published from George C. Sibley (The fort’s commander), but tracking these down are equally crazy and likely written in a manner that is not as palatable as this paperback.
It’s a quick read at 140 pages, and doesn’t spend all that much time going into gross details about the people involved. You can tell that the contents were constructed from diaries and logs related to the operations of the Fort itself, as the narrative seems to be mostly about Mr. Sibley and his business transactions.
When Lewis and Clark, on their expedition of 1804 marked the promontory at the bend of the Missouri River near the present-day town of Sibley in Jackson county for the first site west of the Mississippi, our national hold on the West was feeble. The boundaries of the Louisiana purchase were undefined. England, with its large fur trading companies, was encroaching from the north; Spain was moving in on the southwest; and the Pacific coast was up for grabs to any country who would take it. Even Congress and men in Washington considered it a matter of not so quiet desperation.The war of 1812 and the subsequent treaty of Ghent that followed the building of Fort Osage settles the danger of English encroachment on the old Northwest Territory. A treaty with Spain in 1819 defined the boundaries of the Southwest. These boundaries, which the opening of the Santa Fe trade in 1821 more or less obscured, became recognized boundaries. American trappers and traders looked forward to the West – to the Pacific in the north, the west, and the south. All this was opened with the building of Fort Osage in 1808 and there it stood for 16 years as a citadel between the Mississippi and the Rocky mountains.
Back of the book that I painstakingly transcribed since this book is so rare lol
There are some VERY interesting tidbits inside including descriptions of customs performed by the handful of Indian tribes mentioned. For example, at one point Mr. Sibley was confused as to why Kansas Indians had painted their faces black and were wailing in unison with tears streaming down their faces. He had assumed it was some kind of funeral rite, but was alarmed when his Osage advisor Sans Oreilles (lit “No Ears” in French) told him that they do this as a dark ritual as penance for something bad they are about to do. In this case, that was try to rob the trading post by cover of nightfall, a situation that got their tribe banned for a time.Another interesting aside, was a story of the discovery of an Indian burial mound wherein the grave of an esteemed British officer had been buried by a tribe that Great Britain had ties with. He was mummified sitting upright in a chair in full-uniform and buried with grave goods befitting royalty. This puzzled everyone, and they wondered who this man was that he got such a lavish burial. How I wish they actually kept this as a verifiable record, as it sounds very cool.
The book is full of these little chapters, you can tell the author went through the original documents looking for interesting items, as the pages are peppered with them. Rather than being a dull slog through the everyday bookkeeping of a trading post (as I’m sure she read), we get the “greatest hits”.
It’s a shame this book isn’t available in digital format nor left in print at all since 1983, as it seems to be pretty good. The local publisher seems to only print books related to Alcoholics Anonymous and other rehabilitation plans, and whilst being a noble cause, its sad to see local history go by the wayside. Thankfully, this book doesn’t appear to be impossible to find. This copy was around ten dollars on Ebay, and I’ve seen brand-new and still shrink-wrapped copies up for grabs for around 20 dollars.
If you have an interest in frontier history or The War of 1812, this might be something to track down, but I’m sure people that live locally or around this area would likely enjoy it a bit more. While a bit outdated in vernacular and lacking any sort of footnotes, the book is far from a scholarly text in any way, but its enjoyable and helped me learn a lot more about the area I live, and some of the history of a time that most American schooling seems to entirely bypass.
This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #LocalHistory #missouri #MuseumTrips #Sibley #warOf1812
2021: History Boy Summer – Post-Mortem
That’s it – it’s over! And what a success it was!
At the beginning of 2021 I decided to go on an undertaking that I knew was likely going to make me busy for no reason, and possibly stress me out. That may sound bad, but truthfully it’s a good thing simply because I spent the better part of 2020 staying inside and laying around in a depressing malaise due to the Global Covid-19 Pandemic. In 2019 I went to TONS of concerts only to have that entire thing ripped away the following year. I needed something to keep my mind busy, keep me from reading the news, and keep me from letting depression take me over.
As I stated in my very first post – “My two goals […] that have stuck for this year have been: “I have a bunch of unread books, I need to read more this year” and “I haven’t been to any local historical sites in a LONG time, maybe I should go to them.” Both are easy to do and both are relatively inexpensive.” So I set out, made a plan and did it. At the beginning, I figured I’d go to like 5-10 sites, and here we are after finishing 28!
I decided to read a book that correlated to each place, as stated here:
“During this project, I have decided to give myself homework of sorts. I plan to read something, a book preferably, on the subject at hand for each excursion. The reason for this being, I want to know what’s going on, just in case they are either closed, the guided tours don’t happen, or its slanted in one direction or another for political reasons. I was really worried about the latter in regards to my next topic (Battle of Lexington), but I will get to that next time.”
I know some sites like to use Lost Cause stuff or revisionist history at times, so I wanted to come in armed with all the knowledge I could. This was especially useful at the handful of Mormon sites I visited.
This was very fun, but my tip for anyone wanting to do something like this is to make a plan using your state historical websites, and try to group sites together that are relatively close together. You can easily turn this into a great learning experience for children. I probably wont do this exact thing next year, but be on the lookout for more museum trips on my site!
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 1) Fort Osage State Historic Site
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 2) Battle of Lexington State Historic Site / Oliver Anderson House
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 3) Lone Jack Civil War Battlefield and Soldier’s Cemetery and Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 4) 1859 Jail, Marshal’s Home and Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 5) Second Battle of Independence Historic Markers Driving Tour
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 6) Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 7) Historic Liberty Jail
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 8) Clay County Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 9) Bushwhacker Jail
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 10) Battle of Mine Creek Historic Battlefield
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 11) Marais Des Cygnes Massacre Memorial Site
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 12) Battle of Island Mound State Historic Site
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 13) Missouri Town 1855
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 14) Auschwitz: Not Long Ago, Not Far Away at Union Station
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 15) Frank James Gravesite
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 16) Black Jack Battlefield
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 17) First Battle of Independence Walking Tour
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 18) Lecompton, Kansas
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 19) Fort Scott Historic Site
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 20) Jesse James Bank Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 21) Truman Library and Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 22) Santa Fe Trail Markers
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 23) The Grave of “Bloody” Bill Anderson
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 24) John Brown Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 25) Bushwhacker Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 26) National Frontier Trails Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 27) Chicago & Alton Depot
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 28) The Bingham-Waggoner Estate
To see all of the links, click HERE
#Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #missouri #MuseumTrips
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 1) Fort Osage State Historic Site
I don’t normally put a lot of emphasis on New Year’s Resolutions, as most are unattainable and end up going by the wayside like 30 days after you start doing them. Honestly, going into 2021 my goal is hopefully “go outside a bit” which stands in stark contrast to last year when I, like many, lived as a cavemen holed up in my Covid-19 safety shelter watching the exploits of a mulleted redneck that dabbles in tigers and attempted murder. My two goals (I like that better) that have stuck for this year have been: “I have a bunch of unread books, I need to read more this year” and “I haven’t been to any local historical sites in a LONG time, maybe I should go to them.” Both are easy to do and both are relatively inexpensive. The latter gets me outside a bit – usually I go to conventions and live music shows throughout the year, without those I need something to clear the cobwebs. So, History Boy Summer begins!FORT OSAGE: Sibley, MO
I laid out a plan that started in Fort Osage, a small rebuilt fortress built near the Missouri River in what is now Sibley, MO. When I was a child, one of my fondest memories was going there with my Mother and Grandparents. I clearly recall an episode wherein my grandfather was about to head downstairs into the basement of some building (in hindsight this must have been the storehouse under the trading post) he came back upstairs with a worried look on his face, and basically said “hey, we’re not going in there”, as I guess there was a black Cornsnake dangling from the ceiling. It’s one of those memories that really sticks with me for whatever reason. My grandfather died when I was very young, so I don’t recall a lot of his true personality, but one thing I can recall was his Indiana Jones level hatred of snakes. I also recall briefly thinking the living history staff were ghosts, because why else would old-timey soldiers be walking around. My Mother had to ease my worries by saying “those guys are just in costumes!” Four year old me was very relieved.So, here I am 34 years out wondering why I haven’t returned. I lived in Warrensburg, MO for a long time, and did not have a car until my mid to late twenties. Due to this, arranging a trip to go to a living history museum hours away was going to be hard. I do have some friends into history as well, but not as much as myself. in 2014 I moved to Independence, MO – literally a few miles from Fort Osage and I still never went because time just never seemed to line up and I had it in my head that I absolutely had to go with somebody to things like this. I’ve changed a lot in the last 5 years, for good and bad reasons, but one of my new mantras is: if I want to do something I will do it, no matter if I’m alone or not. Life is too short for me to worry about unwanted shared experiences. If it’s cool, maybe I can take them there later. Tomorrow is never guaranteed, it’s time to live life. So, the plan was laid – I was off to Fort Osage.
Background:
Fort Osage was an early 19th-century trading post run by the United States Government. At that time, it sat on the literal edge of the united states overlooking native lands and untamed wilderness gained through the Louisiana Purchase. The Treaty of Fort Clark, signed with members of the Osage Nation in 1808, called for the United States to establish Fort Osage as a trading post and to protect the Osage from tribal enemies as well as provide money to said Natives. Of course, our very own Congress bumbled a lot of this treaty up as they historically always do, and the general mistreatment of the Indians was in full effect.
While the fort never succumbed to any fighting during the War of 1812, it was relatively close to some battles with British-led Natives on similar US forts, an example being Fort Madison in present day Iowa. had the tide of that battle gone differently, who knows. According to Wikipedia, Archaeologists rediscovered the foundations of Fort Osage in the 1940s. The station was reconstructed to portray Fort Osage as it was in 1812 by using the preserved surveys created by William Clark and others. This made restoration to exact specifications possible.
Reading:During this project, I have decided to give myself homework of sorts. I plan to read something, a book preferably, on the subject at hand for each excursion. The reason for this being, I want to know what’s going on, just in case they are either closed, the guided tours don’t happen, or its slanted in one direction or another for political reasons. I was really worried about the latter in regards to my next topic (Battle of Lexington), but I will get to that next time.
To prepare for Fort Osage, I actually tracked down an old book from around the time I was born, seemingly one of the only ones on the actual Fort Itself called Fort Osage–opening of the American West by Rhoda Wooldridge. I know there are diaries published from George C. Sibley out there, but I’m sure these will be even harder to get, or be chained to a library. Its lack of Footnotes aside, the information seems to be a narrative of the aforementioned diaries of the various people involved, so it’s got to be pretty accurate, and its a quick read. If you’d like to read my full review of this book, please click HERE.
It’s a shame this book isn’t available in digital format nor left in print at all since 1983, as it seems to be pretty good. The local publisher seems to only print books related to Alcoholics Anonymous and other rehabilitation plans, and whilst being a noble cause, its sad to see local history go by the wayside.
The Trip:For this trip, the Covid-19 global pandemic was still in full effect and vaccinations were just starting to get rolling on a large scale. As a result, a lot of the living history stuff that is normally going on here was absent, and a mask mandate was in place. That said, everything was very enjoyable nonetheless. Upon arrival at the grounds, one first goes into a large, modern, visitor’s center. As of this writing, it costs eight dollars to enter the fort itself, and four for children. Be sure to check their website for current prices and other promotions. There is the obligatory informational video available to park patrons that tells the history of the time period and the park itself.
After hitting the giftshop, yeah I did it first for some reason, I walked through their large museum collection within the visitors center. These exhibits consisted of artifacts of the time such as items sold at the trading post, military uniforms, native artifacts, a full sized canoe, and even cannons. This museum is decently sized and takes around ten to thirty minutes to get through depending on the speed that one can read, and I’d assume walk. I had a little one with me, and he especially enjoyed seeing the cannons, a theme that would carry-on into the heart of the Fort itself. My personal favorite was probably the uniforms as I will admit I am not the most well-versed on War of 1812 history, as I’m sure are most other Americans likewise. It’s a shame that I hope to rectify soon.
Now that the introduction is out of the way, it was time to move through a doorway and head up to the grounds of the actual fort itself. While the main part of the fort is missing a bit of the original structure, including the entire outer wall, the part that we do have in very impressive. The major locations include guard towers (think castle turrets), Commander’s quarters, barracks, the trading post, an area where people got whipped as punishment, and a huge flag pole. While the majority of the buildings are repetitive (a barrack is a barrack etc.), exploring some of the larger buildings such as the trading post was awesome. stocked with facsimile items for sale, and manned by a living history interpreter, this was probably my favorite part of the trip. Hearing some anecdotes about the fort and some information of the river was cool, and he took time to point out some interesting things I should do (like a path to the river through the woods) that I probably would not have done otherwise.
I was worried that bringing a five year old was a bad call at first, but he really enjoyed exploring the fort. running up stairs to see if there were cannons and looking out the windows to see the river was exiting for him. I’d like to go back the next time a big event is going on, as I think seeing more volunteers and getting the idea of how old this place was would benefit him. He’s still a bit young to understand exactly what was happening, but he had fun.
Conclusion:
All-in-all this was a great quick weekend trip if you live in or around the Kansas City area. It’s inexpensive, fun, and educational. Sitting a few months out from my trip, I kind of wish I would have waited a bit longer now that mask mandates are going away, but I had set aside this time in April, and the last thing I needed was yet another excuse as to why I needed to not go. If I go back for any sort of event, I will be sure to do some kind of an update.
Stay tuned next time, for part 2 of History Boy Summer, where I go to the site of one of the more interesting Civil War battles, local or not. For another museum exhibit I really enjoyed, check out my review of Stonehenge: Spirit and Science of Place from a few years ago. Also, keep up with this series by looking at the tag for History Boy Summer. And yes, the title is making fun of that cringe Chet Hanks song that I will undoubtedly forget about the existence of a few years down the road and wonder why I went with this as the header.
#19thCentury #dayTrip #Featured #fort #FortOsage #Historical #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #Kansas #kansasCity #KS #livingHistory #military #missouri #MissouriRiver #MO #museum #MuseumTrips #nineteenthCentury #Sibley #travel #warOf1812
Candlelight Tour of Fort Osage
Experience how the holidays were celebrated at the historic Fort in the early 19th century. Authentically attired interpreters lead guests through this unique evening event inspired by the winters at Fort Osage.The Society of Friends of Fort Osage
REVIEW: The National World War I Museum [History Tour]
In 2021 I did a feature called History Boy Summer that was a lot of fun. It forced me to go out and try to experience a lot of awesome historical sites rather that sit at home and waste away as Covid-19 kept everything I find fun closed up. It was an educational tool for both my son and I, and I think we both learned a lot from it when it was all said and done. For a specific example, I honestly learned more about the Missouri and Kansas part of The American Civil War than any college level class I had, and that was simply from visiting sites and reading books. For me, “doing the research” myself (God that phrase has been ruined hasn’t it?!) works better for me because it allows be to absorb the information and draw my own conclusions without parroting an authority’s opinion on the matter.
I wanted to figure out a way to continue the project without constraining myself to such a short timeframe to complete my adventures, perhaps even changing this into a ongoing feature on my blog. Continuing to call it “History Boy Summer” is somewhat silly considering I didn’t even clearly remember the meme that I based the title on by the time I finished the first project! So, I think moving forward, I will call this project “History Tour”, largely keeping a lot of the premise the same, at least at first. I guess, for the most part, one could consider this a museum review of sorts, however, rather than simply talking about a particular historical site or museum, I want to show you how to group this along with other activities and perhaps readings to get a more enriching and fulfilled experience. Perhaps I’m in the minority here, in that I don’t particularly like just going and looking at something and leaving, so having this additional material makes the experience more fun for me.
Now for the topic at hand! FINALLY! This is a museum that I have been an fan of for over fifteen years, and even more so now since I became a card-carrying member – The National World War I Museum in Kansas City, MO. Ever since the first time I attended, right after it opened, I have loved that a museum as exquisite as this lies in Kansas City. I have been to two of the many Smithsonian Museums in Washington D.C., and I would suggest that this is at least on par with them when it comes to quality and size. I find it hard to “see everything” on a single visit, which is especially true when the numerous special exhibits and attractions come into play. For a list of some of those that I’ve seen so far, I have them at the bottom.
National World War I Museum; Kansas City, MO – Visited in 2022
I have always had a fascination with World War I; largely due to the way that it upended the world and the utterly baffling way it started and persisted. The war was a case study on why having rich guys, largely untrained to actually command military units, in command positions was a colossally bad idea. One would think that after the utter debacle of the Crimean War (purchased commissions everywhere), Britain would have a better hand at getting their act together. However, the famous phrase “lions commanded by donkeys” was borrowed from Plutarch to describe the dichotomy between heroic conscripts and the buffoonery of their officers. This was not only an issue for the UK, as just about every other army was led in utterly crazy ways, especially The German obsession with going to war with France or Austria-Hungary under the military leadership of Franz Conrad von Hötzendorf, a man one could say was basically the cause of the war.
Aside from issues related to the command structure, World War I was the turning point in military tactics for many nations. Technological advances with weaponry and logistics made this the war for many to show off their wares of death, but many were slow to adopt it whole-heartedly. While The United States learned that using Napoleonic battle tactics were largely obsolete back in the 1860s, the very start of the war saw armies trying to do just that, leading to an insane death toll.
Horseback spear charges, suits of armor, and and other things that seem anachronistic were commonplace as many tried to do whatever they could to get an upper-hand and see “what stuck”. Countries like France rode into battle with garish uniforms that made soldiers stand out like ducks at a shooting range. All of this had to change and it had to change fast. Sadly, the answer was digging down into trenches and pushing into a prolonged stalemate for over four years, slogging through poisonous mud and pushing corpses aside to get a clear shot. It was a dire period in history, and for that reason I LOVE reading about it.
Background:
For more information on how this museum came into being, click HERE.
““It [The Liberty Memorial] has not been raised to commemorate war and victory, but rather the results of war and victory which are embodied in peace and liberty…. Today I return in order that I may place the official sanction of the national government upon one of the most elaborate and impressive memorials that adorn our country. The magnitude of this memorial, and the broad base of popular support on which it rests, can scarcely fail to excite national wonder and admiration.””Liberty Memorial Dedication Speech, President Calvin Coolidge, November 11, 1926
Kansas City seems like an unlikely place to house THE National World War I Museum, considering just about every other major war memorial is in Washington D.C. That said, The National World War II Museum is actually in New Orleans, which is also somewhat surprising. The reason The museum lies where it does has a lot to do with a widely popular fundraising campaign shortly after the war ended. “Kansas City leaders formed the Liberty Memorial Association (LMA) to create a lasting monument to the men and women who had served in the war. In 1919, the LMA and citizens of Kansas City raised more than $2.5 million in just 10 days. The equivalent of more than $35 million today, this staggering accomplishment reflected the passion of public sentiment for the Great War that had dramatically changed the world.”
youtube.com/watch?v=eY3PZ_Q-s1…
After falling into disrepair throughout the years, Liberty Memorial was closed in 1994 for safety concerns. The call went out again to the citizens of Kansas City and other nearby towns and astounding amount of money came in, not only to repair the near 100 year-old monument, but create a museum so that visitors could enjoy the large amount of artifacts that the LMA had amassed. Opening in 2006, the modern version of this complex’s mission is remembering, interpreting and understanding World War I and its enduring effect on the world and its citizens. Visitors will enjoy artifacts such as a Renault FT-17 tank, armaments and planes, a series of life-size war trenches, and interactive exhibits.
One of the main attractions is The Paul Sunderland Bridge, a glass walkway over a symbolic field of poppies. This bridge is a nightmare for those (like me) that are afraid of heights, but it’s definitely a cool thing to see (glad they put a rug on it!).
Reading(s):
I have read many books on World War I so far this year, and honestly many more are likely on the way! It’s hard to recommend just one as the all-encompassing “best book” on the topic that I have come across, but I would say that The World Undone by G.J. Meyer has been pretty close. Unlike a book such as The First World War, it stays away from “hot takes” on established facts about the war and tried to be somewhat concise as one can be regarding an insanely detailed conflict. I am currently reading a book called The War that Ended Peace by Margaret McMillan that is an exceptional account of the lead up to the war that has been pretty awesome so far. A review for that will be incoming, however it is a 700 page book! I have also enjoyed numerous comics, with The Stretcher Bearers being a candidate for one of the best comics I’ve read this year so far. For more reviews, look to the bottom on this post for a link to other WWI things and you will see them.
I have also included the book of the museum itself that can be purchased at the site, something that is a solid look into the collection and nature of the museum.
The Trip:
Located in downtown Kansas City, this museum is relatively easy to find and has ample parking as long as it’s not some sort of special event (I’m sure Memorial Day is a nightmare!). The prices are pretty good for such a large museum and feature a lot of stuff one can do. You can take an elevator ride to the top of the Liberty Memorial Tower for $5.00 by itself, or group it with a general admission ticket for a slight discount. For me, becoming a member was the best deal, since the cost is roughly the same as two trips, something I generally do every year. That also comes with perks for special engagements and member-only attractions.
Here are the prices for that combo pack and without:
There are numerous exhibitions available including a new one regarding Black Soldiers in the era of “Jim Crow”, a complete list is HERE.
Conclusion:
This is easily the best museum in the greater Kansas City area, at least in my opinion. It’s well developed and well maintained and always has plenty of activities to keep busy with. They rotate multiple special exhibits in and have weekly guest speakers, making it one of the more lively museums I’ve been to. Typically, it’s a sad state of affairs with Missouri/Kansas historical sites and the general lack of funding means many are pretty much falling apart and almost seem dangerous at times, thankfully this museum is maintained through grants and private funding and can dodge a number of those shortfalls. If you are in the area, there are 4-5 museums that really exemplify the city, and this is definitely my favorite.
See More:
Other visits to this museum:
For more WWI-related books and material, please click HERE
#HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #missouri #museum #MuseumTrips #Museums #WorldWarI
Our Story
Soon after World War I ended, Kansas City leaders formed the Liberty Memorial Association to create a lasting monument to the men and women who had served in the war.National WWI Museum and Memorial
2021: History Boy Summer – Post-Mortem
That’s it – it’s over! And what a success it was!At the beginning of 2021 I decided to go on an undertaking that I knew was likely going to make me busy for no reason, and possibly stress me out. That may sound bad, but truthfully it’s a good thing simply because I spent the better part of 2020 staying inside and laying around in a depressing malaise due to the Global Covid-19 Pandemic. In 2019 I went to TONS of concerts only to have that entire thing ripped away the following year. I needed something to keep my mind busy, keep me from reading the news, and keep me from letting depression take me over.
As I stated in my very first post – “My two goals […] that have stuck for this year have been: “I have a bunch of unread books, I need to read more this year” and “I haven’t been to any local historical sites in a LONG time, maybe I should go to them.” Both are easy to do and both are relatively inexpensive.” So I set out, made a plan and did it. At the beginning, I figured I’d go to like 5-10 sites, and here we are after finishing 28!
I decided to read a book that correlated to each place, as stated here:
“During this project, I have decided to give myself homework of sorts. I plan to read something, a book preferably, on the subject at hand for each excursion. The reason for this being, I want to know what’s going on, just in case they are either closed, the guided tours don’t happen, or its slanted in one direction or another for political reasons. I was really worried about the latter in regards to my next topic (Battle of Lexington), but I will get to that next time.”
I know some sites like to use Lost Cause stuff or revisionist history at times, so I wanted to come in armed with all the knowledge I could. This was especially useful at the handful of Mormon sites I visited.This was very fun, but my tip for anyone wanting to do something like this is to make a plan using your state historical websites, and try to group sites together that are relatively close together. You can easily turn this into a great learning experience for children. I probably wont do this exact thing next year, but be on the lookout for more museum trips on my site!
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 1) Fort Osage State Historic Site
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 2) Battle of Lexington State Historic Site / Oliver Anderson House
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 3) Lone Jack Civil War Battlefield and Soldier’s Cemetery and Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 4) 1859 Jail, Marshal’s Home and Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 5) Second Battle of Independence Historic Markers Driving Tour
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 6) Deanna Rose Children’s Farmstead
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 7) Historic Liberty Jail
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 8) Clay County Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 9) Bushwhacker Jail
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 10) Battle of Mine Creek Historic Battlefield
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 11) Marais Des Cygnes Massacre Memorial Site
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 12) Battle of Island Mound State Historic Site
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 13) Missouri Town 1855
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 14) Auschwitz: Not Long Ago, Not Far Away at Union Station
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 15) Frank James Gravesite
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 16) Black Jack Battlefield
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 17) First Battle of Independence Walking Tour
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 18) Lecompton, Kansas
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 19) Fort Scott Historic Site
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 20) Jesse James Bank Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 21) Truman Library and Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 22) Santa Fe Trail Markers
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 23) The Grave of “Bloody” Bill Anderson
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 24) John Brown Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 25) Bushwhacker Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 26) National Frontier Trails Museum
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 27) Chicago & Alton Depot
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 28) The Bingham-Waggoner Estate
To see all of the links, click HERE
#Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #missouri #MuseumTrips
REVIEW: Historic Communities – Fort Life (1994)
A book by Bobbie Kalman, David Schimpky
One of the many pick-ups I grabbed in the gift shop of Fort Osage in Sibley, Missouri was this Children’s book about what it was like to live in an Eighteenth Century fort. I say “Children’s” , but honestly this is a pretty decent little history book despite the size, and almost is akin to Osprey Military books, that are basically large monographic pamphlets. This is a great item from that particular historic site, largely because the area I’m in doesn’t have a lot of War of 1812 era things aside from Fort Osage and perhaps a bit in St. Louis, so getting a feel for what life was like back then is probably something most people are unaware of. Hell, most people have no idea what that war even was! I may have to seek more of these books out out, as apparently Bobbie Kalman is a very prolific writer in this area, with two acclaimed series about pioneer life, The Early Settler Life Series (15 titles) and The Historic Communities Series (31 titles), both published by Crabtree Publishing.
“Coveted for their strategic military locations, forts often changed hands many times. Forts played a vital role in the settlement of the New World and were a means of refuge for soldiers and settlers. The difficult life of the soldier is detailed from the harsh living conditions to the primitive medical care they received. Children will enjoy reading about:* the different types of fort, including the fur fort and the military fort* the day-to-day lives of the community of men, women, and children who lived there* the businesses that sprang up in a fort* the “war of the forts” between Fort Niagara and Fort George.”
While the photographs in this book were taken in numerous east coast forts such as Fort Niagara and Fort George, the information still stands for the majority of what fort life would have been like back then. The only real thing missing was the fact that Missouri had to deal with trading goods between the French and Natives on top of everything else, rather than being predominantly a military fortress. This is a fun quick read and something young history fans should enjoy a lot. There are tons of photographs and quite a bit of information for such a small book.
#Colonial #FortOsage #Frontier #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #missouri #warOf1812
REVIEW: Missouri Town, 1855: A Program in Architectural Preservation (1981)
A book by Lavoone B. Moore
The previous time I went to Missouri Town 1855, a trip I documented for last year’s History Boy Summer Series, I somehow missed this book in the giftshop. Upon my return this year at and around the fourth of July, I snagged it immediately. Written in 1981 as a college thesis, Missouri Town, 1855: A Program in Architectural Preservation by Lavoone B. Moore is a well-documented and researched history of the initial creation and upkeep of the popular historical site located in Jackson County, Missouri from the eyes of someone that basically watched it unfold. This long-form essay is not only about the various buildings that make up the site, and their histories, but a look at Antebellum-Era American plains frontier architecture as a whole. There are not too many big insights on any of the buildings, as most were just normal houses and old stores that had been long abandoned and left to differing levels of mis-care until the idea to preserve our architectural past was brought up, but the process that went into the preservation is interesting nonetheless.
“Missouri Town–1855 is a preservation project located in Jackson County, Missouri. The log and frame houses and other buildings comprising it date from ca.1820-1855. These structures, originally located within an approximate seventy-five mile radius of their present site, were threatened by the ravages of time or modern construction. Beginning in 1963 they were relocated and restored in the context of a hypothetical, mid-nineteenth century, western Missouri crossroads village. The purpose of the thesis is to assemble information dealing with the history of the project from its inception, to discuss some of the problems unique to the major structures during the dismantling and restoration, and to present a catalog of the major structures. Measured drawings and floor plans have been prepared as well as several maps, including an original sites map and a guide map of the village. Photographs, many of which were made by the restorer of the buildings at the time of their dismantling, are included. These visually record the various nineteenth century building methods employed in the major structures. Research methodology included, in addition to a review ofo published literature relating to nineteenth century architecture, identification of early references to the houses, and interview with the key figures in the development of Missouri Town–1855.”
Overall, I wish more historic sites would do books like this – some of them do, but the large majority of them in my area lack any sort of official informational guide that people can use as sources discussing the sites or simply remember their trips. While the information here is over forty years old, it is still a great overview of the origins of Missouri Town and a way to look at just how far it has come through the decades. This was an excellent purchase, and a great addition to my library.
#Historical #HistoricalHouse #historicalPhoto #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #kansasCity #missouri #MissouriRiver #MissouriTown
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 13) Missouri Town 1855
When I was a kid, a staple of the handful of field trips that a student would go on in the general Kansas City metropolitan area, was Missouri town 1855. I recall making such a trip sometime in, I believe, 5th grade and absolutely loving it due too the amount of living history staff that were there. Granted, for a school trip upwards of 30 years ago, I’m sure that it runs completely different now if they even do this anymore. When I started this project, I realized that I had not been to Missouri town for a long time and it was something that I would really like to take my son to. So, on a day that was probably too hot we loaded up and drove to Lee summit to travel back in time more than 100 years.Missouri Town 1855; Lee’s Summit, MO
Missouri town is tucked away inside of Fleming Park, a large park that contains a lake and multiple picnic sites and campgrounds. One bonus of attending is that it’s almost directly next to a wild Buffalo preserve that one can stop at before or after you finish your journey.Background
According to their webpage:Experience the sights, sounds, and smells of a small Missouri town on the eve of the Civil War. Missouri Town 1855 is a living history museum with more than 25 buildings dating from 1822 – 1860 spread across nearly 30 picturesque acres. Original structures from seven western Missouri counties are filled with historic tools and furnishings, setting the stage for life in the mid-1800s.During your self-guided tour, our living history interpreters, heirloom crops, and heritage breed livestock will tell the story of daily life in the small 19th century towns of this region. Special events throughout the year focus on particular aspects of the community, from politics to music to life on the farm.
The museum is situated on rolling, grassy land, with a gravel lane through the center of the site. Please traverse with care. For the safety of our livestock and interpreters, pets are not permitted in the village.
Reading
I know, I know, I’ve already read this book for a previous article, haven’t I? But the truth is it’s a perfect book to depict what town life would have been like in the early antebellum period in Missouri. It was kind of a stretch when I used it for Deanna Rose Farmstead, considering that park doesn’t really have a set time frame to which it exists in. Missouri Town, however, neatly fits within this time. In this book there are depictions of town life including visits to blacksmiths, churches, getting supplies at the market, tending livestock etc. Pretty much anything that Missouri Town stands for. As I stated before, I prefer this book a little bit more then something like Little House on the Prairie because I’m a sucker for unknown underground stuff and I can’t say I’ve ever heard of the book prior to me starting this project. If you plan to do something like this with your kids, I would definitely recommend some sort of a book like this, as it will help your child get into the mindset of someone living in this time period. I have a review up if you’re interested.
The Trip
If you plan to visit Missouri Town 1855, I would recommend not going on a very hot day. Unfortunately, when I planned this trip I did not realize it was going to be something like 91 degrees outside. I say this for many reasons, with COVID-19 still raging in my state one has to wear a mask in most of the indoor areas karma and things like water fountains are blocked off as to not help spread the virus. This is a problem if you are walking around the large park and you are not prepared with enough water. For kids the massive size of the land you can tire them out and make them very thirsty so be prepared for this. Also, in extreme heat some of the animals smell very bad-I honestly don’t care because I used to live on a farm when I was younger, but for others the smell of, let’s say, a group of hogs can be a bit much. If you have the opportunity to do so I would recommend going to the park sometime in the late spring or possibly fall depending on if they’re open or not. A nice 65 to 75 degree weather span would be perfect.I also was a bit bummed that COVID-19 limited the amount of staff that could be on hand at any given time. When we went, I only saw a handful of people in costume maybe three or four volunteers and most of them were wrangling various animals. This was by no means a deal breaker, nor did it make the experience bad, but being able to interact with the living history staff is definitely one of the highlights of a trip to this.
Conclusion
That said, this was a very fun experience and it brought back a lot of nostalgia for when I was younger. I honestly don’t remember what it really looked like back then, and I only remember some of the staff members talking for the most part, but I still got the nostalgic feeling that you get in situations like this. If you come prepared, like stated above, there’s a lot of cool stuff to see at Missouri Town 1855. while it’s designed as a learning tool for young children, it can be enjoyed by young and old end is one of the better living history museums I’ve gone to. I think my only quibble was that I accidentally went on a day when they did a driving history thing, probably for people that can’t get around very well, and seeing a random Honda Civic kicking it around in front of a blacksmith shop sort of killed the illusion a tad. All-in-all it was a very enjoyable day and I would definitely recommend it.This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#animals #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #LeeSSummit #livingHistory #missouri #MuseumTrips #Zoo
Missouri Town Living History Museum
Experience life in mid-19th Century Missouri! This living museum, featuring more than 25 buildings dating from 1820 to 1860 and interpreters in period clothing, depicts the daily life of a Missouri farming community.www.makeyourdayhere.com
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 13) Missouri Town 1855
When I was a kid, a staple of the handful of field trips that a student would go on in the general Kansas City metropolitan area, was Missouri town 1855. I recall making such a trip sometime in, I believe, 5th grade and absolutely loving it due too the amount of living history staff that were there. Granted, for a school trip upwards of 30 years ago, I’m sure that it runs completely different now if they even do this anymore. When I started this project, I realized that I had not been to Missouri town for a long time and it was something that I would really like to take my son to. So, on a day that was probably too hot we loaded up and drove to Lee summit to travel back in time more than 100 years.
Missouri Town 1855; Lee’s Summit, MO
Missouri town is tucked away inside of Fleming Park, a large park that contains a lake and multiple picnic sites and campgrounds. One bonus of attending is that it’s almost directly next to a wild Buffalo preserve that one can stop at before or after you finish your journey.
Background
According to their webpage:
Experience the sights, sounds, and smells of a small Missouri town on the eve of the Civil War. Missouri Town 1855 is a living history museum with more than 25 buildings dating from 1822 – 1860 spread across nearly 30 picturesque acres. Original structures from seven western Missouri counties are filled with historic tools and furnishings, setting the stage for life in the mid-1800s.During your self-guided tour, our living history interpreters, heirloom crops, and heritage breed livestock will tell the story of daily life in the small 19th century towns of this region. Special events throughout the year focus on particular aspects of the community, from politics to music to life on the farm.
The museum is situated on rolling, grassy land, with a gravel lane through the center of the site. Please traverse with care. For the safety of our livestock and interpreters, pets are not permitted in the village.
Reading
I know, I know, I’ve already read this book for a previous article, haven’t I? But the truth is it’s a perfect book to depict what town life would have been like in the early antebellum period in Missouri. It was kind of a stretch when I used it for Deanna Rose Farmstead, considering that park doesn’t really have a set time frame to which it exists in. Missouri Town, however, neatly fits within this time. In this book there are depictions of town life including visits to blacksmiths, churches, getting supplies at the market, tending livestock etc. Pretty much anything that Missouri Town stands for. As I stated before, I prefer this book a little bit more then something like Little House on the Prairie because I’m a sucker for unknown underground stuff and I can’t say I’ve ever heard of the book prior to me starting this project. If you plan to do something like this with your kids, I would definitely recommend some sort of a book like this, as it will help your child get into the mindset of someone living in this time period. I have a review up if you’re interested.
The Trip
If you plan to visit Missouri Town 1855, I would recommend not going on a very hot day. Unfortunately, when I planned this trip I did not realize it was going to be something like 91 degrees outside. I say this for many reasons, with COVID-19 still raging in my state one has to wear a mask in most of the indoor areas karma and things like water fountains are blocked off as to not help spread the virus. This is a problem if you are walking around the large park and you are not prepared with enough water. For kids the massive size of the land you can tire them out and make them very thirsty so be prepared for this. Also, in extreme heat some of the animals smell very bad-I honestly don’t care because I used to live on a farm when I was younger, but for others the smell of, let’s say, a group of hogs can be a bit much. If you have the opportunity to do so I would recommend going to the park sometime in the late spring or possibly fall depending on if they’re open or not. A nice 65 to 75 degree weather span would be perfect.
I also was a bit bummed that COVID-19 limited the amount of staff that could be on hand at any given time. When we went, I only saw a handful of people in costume maybe three or four volunteers and most of them were wrangling various animals. This was by no means a deal breaker, nor did it make the experience bad, but being able to interact with the living history staff is definitely one of the highlights of a trip to this.
Conclusion
That said, this was a very fun experience and it brought back a lot of nostalgia for when I was younger. I honestly don’t remember what it really looked like back then, and I only remember some of the staff members talking for the most part, but I still got the nostalgic feeling that you get in situations like this. If you come prepared, like stated above, there’s a lot of cool stuff to see at Missouri Town 1855. while it’s designed as a learning tool for young children, it can be enjoyed by young and old end is one of the better living history museums I’ve gone to. I think my only quibble was that I accidentally went on a day when they did a driving history thing, probably for people that can’t get around very well, and seeing a random Honda Civic kicking it around in front of a blacksmith shop sort of killed the illusion a tad. All-in-all it was a very enjoyable day and I would definitely recommend it.
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#animals #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #LeeSSummit #livingHistory #missouri #MuseumTrips #Zoo
Missouri Town Living History Museum
Experience life in mid-19th Century Missouri! This living museum, featuring more than 25 buildings dating from 1820 to 1860 and interpreters in period clothing, depicts the daily life of a Missouri farming community.www.makeyourdayhere.com
REVIEW: Hannah’s Brave Year (1964)
A book by Rhoda Wooldridge
I’m doing a project for by blog where I visit historical places, do a reading from a book on the topic, and write about it. When it came time to visit a place designed to look like a nineteenth century farmstead, I wasn’t sure where to go. On one hand, books like the Little House on the Prairie series are widely known and generally used for something like this. I wanted to go a different way, so I recalled a series by Rhoda Wooldridge that I came across when I was looking for a physical copy of a book on Fort Osage that I had read. Rhoda is a local author from where I live (now deceased) and as far as I can tell, her books are all about this area. With it being a book about the hardships of that time period, local, and specifically about running a farm, I knew it was the one. I’m not even mentioning the book being about the tail end of an epidemic, considering the world we live in now in 2021. I was able to get a library copy of it online, and here we are.This book has a bleak outlook from the onset. It takes place in the antebellum period in Western Missouri, sometime in the 1840s. A family of farmers is ripped asunder when a local Cholera outbreak sadly kills the family’s mother and father and one of the children. The oldest daughter, Hannah, is left to basically become the “new mother” to all of the other young children. With her brothers taking on tasks their father used to, nobody really has time to grieve and rest. Hannah, through sheer determination tries her hardest to keep everyone together when the locals consider breaking the family apart.
When the six Harelsons are left orphans after their parents die in a cholera epidemic, the general feeling among the neighbors is that the children must be separated and farmed out to various families in the area. But twelve-year-old Hannah has different ideas. The farm that their father homesteaded is a productive one; with the help of her younger sister, Marty, the girls can manage the household; and if Joel goes fur trapping to raise money to pay off the mortgage and Nat runs the farm – why, then, perhaps they can save their home and keep the family together. Reflecting Hannah’s courage, the youngsters all join in the effort.But life on the Missouri frontier was not easy, even for adults, and the children find themselves beset with thieving Indians, a severe blizzard and illness. Further grief is brought upon them when a couple entrusted with the temporary care of their baby sister, Angie, disappears into the Osage country. With a true pioneering spirit, Hannah learns to cope with a variety of hardships and experiences a well-deserved sense of pride when, with the coming of spring, she realizes that their struggles has been worthwhile.
Synopsis
As with all of Rhoda Wooldridge’s books, they are all sadly out of print, although not impossible to find secondhand. This book, being from 1964, was especially tough to find and I had to settle for “checking out” a library copy of it online. I really wish some company locally would republish them, as they could help a new generation of children understand what life was like back then. This would be especially cool for the local area seeing that the book is about it. I didn’t find anything particularly ahistorical or offensive about the material, so it’s not like the book holds anything like politically incorrect baggage or anything.If you can track this down, its an interesting book, and I may ultimately try to read some more of them if I can find them. I believe there are seven books in the series, so it will be fun to see where the story of this family goes. Despite all of the baggage of the deaths in the beginning of the book, it’s not a sad book, but one that is pretty uplifting. I can’t say this is for everyone, as this is basically a kid’s book, but if you can enjoy it without that ruining the experience for you, it’s entertaining.
This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#1840S #book #bookReview #books #Cholera #farming #farmstead #hardship #Historical #historicalFiction #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #missouri #MissouriRiver #MuseumTrips #orphan #orphans #RhodaWooldridge #Sibley #SibleyMO
Rhoda Wooldridge
Author of Hannah's Brave Year, Fort Osage--opening of the American West und Johnny Tread Waterwww.goodreads.com
REVIEW: Historic Fourth of July around Kansas City in 2022 [History Tour]
In 2022, I wanted to do something “different” during the Independence Day weekend. In the past we have done the tried and true fireworks and BBQ weekend, which while being a classic way to celebrate, gets somewhat boring after a while. Yes, I did do some fireworks, but that was the icing on the proverbial cake in terms of what all we did that weekend. I am, of course, writing this WAY after the fact, but I figured I’d get this out there to help potentially get some ideas for people in 2023. I wanted to show that there are MANY things for folks to do in and around the general Kansas City Metro area that aren’t cramming into crowded high school parking lots to watch a fireworks display. Being a HUGE history guy, This all sort of fell into my lap when we visited Fort Osage to get a stamp for my son’s Jackson County Young Historian Passport. This was actually the week before the fourth, so we were sure to come back again to see what was happening. Missouri Town was recommended to me by Facebook, and there were even more festivities around (including Shoal Creek) that I was unable to squeeze in, maybe next time!
Historic Fort Osage; Sibley, MO & Missouri Town 1855; Lee’s Summit, MO
Since this is sort of an “add-on” to my previous entries, The following are some links for the “main” articles for these sites:
Background:
I’m assuming most that read my blog are from the United States, but I occasionally do get random waves of international readers, so I will go ahead and drop a block of Wikipedia info here on what exactly Independence Day is:
“Independence Day (colloquially the Fourth of July) is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the Declaration of Independence, which was ratified by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing the United States of America. The Founding Father delegates of the Second Continental Congress declared that the Thirteen Colonies were no longer subject (and subordinate) to the monarch of Britain, King George III, and were now united, free, and independent states. The Congress voted to approve independence by passing the Lee Resolution on July 2 and adopted the Declaration of Independence two days later, on July 4. Independence Day is commonly associated with fireworks, parades, barbecues, carnivals, fairs, picnics, concerts, baseball games, family reunions, political speeches, and ceremonies, in addition to various other public and private events celebrating the history, government, and traditions of the United States. Independence Day is the national day of the United States.”
The next two are from the Jackson County Parks and Rec website, and highlight information for last years festivities:
Frontier Fourth at Fort Osage
“Experience Fort Osage as a young republic celebrating its nation’s founding. Cannon, musket firing, military drill along with stirring patriotic speeches make for a fun-filled day.
- 10:00 – 4:00 Historic Cooking (Factory Kitchen)
- 10:00 – 10:30 Flintlock Musket Firing Demonstration (Factory Veranda)
- 11:15 – 11:45 US Army Recruitment by Surgeon’s Mate (Factory Veranda)
- 12:00 – 12:30 Ink and Quill Writing Demonstration (Factory Dining Room)
- 1:00 – 1:30 Reading the Declaration of Independence, Speeches and Toasts (Factory Veranda)
- 2:00 – 2:30 Flintlock Musket Firing Demonstration (Factory Veranda)
- 3:00- 3:30 Cannon Firing Demonstration (Block House 3)
- 3:45 – 4:15 Medical Presentation (Officer’s Quarters)
- 4:15 15-Star Flag Lowering (Fort Parade Ground Flagpole)”
More info HERE
Independence Day at Missouri Town 1855
“Experience how Missourians celebrated our nation’s independence in the 19th century. Patriotic speeches, children’s games, period cooking and dancing are just a few of the many interpretive activities you’ll find as you explore the mid-19th century village. All are invited to join in the traditional Missouri Town Independence Day Parade at 12:00 noon.”
More Info HERE
Reading(s):
In terms of book recommendations, I suppose I should try to find a book about colonial Independence Day celebrations or something, but I feel that it may be too narrow of a topic for this. With that in mind, I already have read a number of books that cover both of these sites, all of which I will list below.
- REVIEW: Missouri Town, 1855: A Program in Architectural Preservation (1981)
- REVIEW: Fort Osage–opening of the American West (1983)
- REVIEW: Hannah’s Brave Year (1964)
- REVIEW: War of 1812: A History From Beginning to End
- REVIEW: Historic Communities – Fort Life (1994)
The Trip:
Fort Osage
Fort Osage has a very structured program with numerous activities that can be seen above. While we were unable to see everything, we particularly loved the rifle firing demonstration, the cooking demonstrations, the reading of the Declaration of Independence, and the firing of the cannon, which doesn’t happen very often at the site. The park was not very busy, and was full of historic re-enactors in full costume and in character. If there was one day to visit Fort Osage, a day like this definitely what you should look into. I think they have a few “festivals” like this, and I’d imagine they are always well worth the time and miniscule amount of admission money it takes to get in.
Missouri Town 1855
Missouri Town was a lot more freeform, and had the largest amount of re-enactors I have ever seen in a place like this. Normally, one only sees a handful of volunteers, and I’d estimate something like 50 were on-site on this day. What was especially humorous was that some of the volunteers were previously at Fort Osage, so they must have had a very busy weekend. My son especially liked the antique toy tent which had a large array of toys that children would have played with in the early nineteenth century – his personal favorite was a game called “Graces” that he immediately excelled at. It’s that game with ribbon covered hoops that you shoot at each other with long sticks. Animal feeding are care discussions were numerous, and there was seemingly always something to do. Sadly, it was INSANELY hot on the Fourth of July itself, and we were unable to endure the heat for much more than an hour and a half, and had to leave somewhat early. Nonetheless it was an awesome experience despite the heat.
Conclusion:
I feel like stuff like this is largely overlooked in most places, save for a place like Colonial Williamsburg, and I’m sure most towns with similar living history museums likely do something akin to this every year. I love seeing people in costume educating children (and adults) on what life was like in the past, and a weekend like this was packed full of those sort of opportunities. For 2023, if you are bored of the typical Fourth of July celebration, I’d recommend trying a historical site visit if they have this sort of programming. We absolutely loved it, and if you are a history buff, I’m sure you will as well!
See More:
For more content like this, check out my History Tour page HERE
#FourthOfJuly #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #IndependenceDay #IndependenceMo #kansasCity #KC #KCMO #LeeSSummit #MO #Sibley #SibleyMO
Frontier Fourth at Fort Osage
Experience Independence Day as the young republic celebrates our nation's founding.www.makeyourdayhere.com
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 1) Fort Osage State Historic Site
I don’t normally put a lot of emphasis on New Year’s Resolutions, as most are unattainable and end up going by the wayside like 30 days after you start doing them. Honestly, going into 2021 my goal is hopefully “go outside a bit” which stands in stark contrast to last year when I, like many, lived as a cavemen holed up in my Covid-19 safety shelter watching the exploits of a mulleted redneck that dabbles in tigers and attempted murder. My two goals (I like that better) that have stuck for this year have been: “I have a bunch of unread books, I need to read more this year” and “I haven’t been to any local historical sites in a LONG time, maybe I should go to them.” Both are easy to do and both are relatively inexpensive. The latter gets me outside a bit – usually I go to conventions and live music shows throughout the year, without those I need something to clear the cobwebs. So, History Boy Summer begins!FORT OSAGE: Sibley, MO
I laid out a plan that started in Fort Osage, a small rebuilt fortress built near the Missouri River in what is now Sibley, MO. When I was a child, one of my fondest memories was going there with my Mother and Grandparents. I clearly recall an episode wherein my grandfather was about to head downstairs into the basement of some building (in hindsight this must have been the storehouse under the trading post) he came back upstairs with a worried look on his face, and basically said “hey, we’re not going in there”, as I guess there was a black Cornsnake dangling from the ceiling. It’s one of those memories that really sticks with me for whatever reason. My grandfather died when I was very young, so I don’t recall a lot of his true personality, but one thing I can recall was his Indiana Jones level hatred of snakes. I also recall briefly thinking the living history staff were ghosts, because why else would old-timey soldiers be walking around. My Mother had to ease my worries by saying “those guys are just in costumes!” Four year old me was very relieved.So, here I am 34 years out wondering why I haven’t returned. I lived in Warrensburg, MO for a long time, and did not have a car until my mid to late twenties. Due to this, arranging a trip to go to a living history museum hours away was going to be hard. I do have some friends into history as well, but not as much as myself. in 2014 I moved to Independence, MO – literally a few miles from Fort Osage and I still never went because time just never seemed to line up and I had it in my head that I absolutely had to go with somebody to things like this. I’ve changed a lot in the last 5 years, for good and bad reasons, but one of my new mantras is: if I want to do something I will do it, no matter if I’m alone or not. Life is too short for me to worry about unwanted shared experiences. If it’s cool, maybe I can take them there later. Tomorrow is never guaranteed, it’s time to live life. So, the plan was laid – I was off to Fort Osage.
Background:
Fort Osage was an early 19th-century trading post run by the United States Government. At that time, it sat on the literal edge of the united states overlooking native lands and untamed wilderness gained through the Louisiana Purchase. The Treaty of Fort Clark, signed with members of the Osage Nation in 1808, called for the United States to establish Fort Osage as a trading post and to protect the Osage from tribal enemies as well as provide money to said Natives. Of course, our very own Congress bumbled a lot of this treaty up as they historically always do, and the general mistreatment of the Indians was in full effect.
While the fort never succumbed to any fighting during the War of 1812, it was relatively close to some battles with British-led Natives on similar US forts, an example being Fort Madison in present day Iowa. had the tide of that battle gone differently, who knows. According to Wikipedia, Archaeologists rediscovered the foundations of Fort Osage in the 1940s. The station was reconstructed to portray Fort Osage as it was in 1812 by using the preserved surveys created by William Clark and others. This made restoration to exact specifications possible.
Reading:During this project, I have decided to give myself homework of sorts. I plan to read something, a book preferably, on the subject at hand for each excursion. The reason for this being, I want to know what’s going on, just in case they are either closed, the guided tours don’t happen, or its slanted in one direction or another for political reasons. I was really worried about the latter in regards to my next topic (Battle of Lexington), but I will get to that next time.
To prepare for Fort Osage, I actually tracked down an old book from around the time I was born, seemingly one of the only ones on the actual Fort Itself called Fort Osage–opening of the American West by Rhoda Wooldridge. I know there are diaries published from George C. Sibley out there, but I’m sure these will be even harder to get, or be chained to a library. Its lack of Footnotes aside, the information seems to be a narrative of the aforementioned diaries of the various people involved, so it’s got to be pretty accurate, and its a quick read. If you’d like to read my full review of this book, please click HERE.
It’s a shame this book isn’t available in digital format nor left in print at all since 1983, as it seems to be pretty good. The local publisher seems to only print books related to Alcoholics Anonymous and other rehabilitation plans, and whilst being a noble cause, its sad to see local history go by the wayside.
The Trip:For this trip, the Covid-19 global pandemic was still in full effect and vaccinations were just starting to get rolling on a large scale. As a result, a lot of the living history stuff that is normally going on here was absent, and a mask mandate was in place. That said, everything was very enjoyable nonetheless. Upon arrival at the grounds, one first goes into a large, modern, visitor’s center. As of this writing, it costs eight dollars to enter the fort itself, and four for children. Be sure to check their website for current prices and other promotions. There is the obligatory informational video available to park patrons that tells the history of the time period and the park itself.
After hitting the giftshop, yeah I did it first for some reason, I walked through their large museum collection within the visitors center. These exhibits consisted of artifacts of the time such as items sold at the trading post, military uniforms, native artifacts, a full sized canoe, and even cannons. This museum is decently sized and takes around ten to thirty minutes to get through depending on the speed that one can read, and I’d assume walk. I had a little one with me, and he especially enjoyed seeing the cannons, a theme that would carry-on into the heart of the Fort itself. My personal favorite was probably the uniforms as I will admit I am not the most well-versed on War of 1812 history, as I’m sure are most other Americans likewise. It’s a shame that I hope to rectify soon.
Now that the introduction is out of the way, it was time to move through a doorway and head up to the grounds of the actual fort itself. While the main part of the fort is missing a bit of the original structure, including the entire outer wall, the part that we do have in very impressive. The major locations include guard towers (think castle turrets), Commander’s quarters, barracks, the trading post, an area where people got whipped as punishment, and a huge flag pole. While the majority of the buildings are repetitive (a barrack is a barrack etc.), exploring some of the larger buildings such as the trading post was awesome. stocked with facsimile items for sale, and manned by a living history interpreter, this was probably my favorite part of the trip. Hearing some anecdotes about the fort and some information of the river was cool, and he took time to point out some interesting things I should do (like a path to the river through the woods) that I probably would not have done otherwise.
I was worried that bringing a five year old was a bad call at first, but he really enjoyed exploring the fort. running up stairs to see if there were cannons and looking out the windows to see the river was exiting for him. I’d like to go back the next time a big event is going on, as I think seeing more volunteers and getting the idea of how old this place was would benefit him. He’s still a bit young to understand exactly what was happening, but he had fun.
Conclusion:
All-in-all this was a great quick weekend trip if you live in or around the Kansas City area. It’s inexpensive, fun, and educational. Sitting a few months out from my trip, I kind of wish I would have waited a bit longer now that mask mandates are going away, but I had set aside this time in April, and the last thing I needed was yet another excuse as to why I needed to not go. If I go back for any sort of event, I will be sure to do some kind of an update.
Stay tuned next time, for part 2 of History Boy Summer, where I go to the site of one of the more interesting Civil War battles, local or not. For another museum exhibit I really enjoyed, check out my review of Stonehenge: Spirit and Science of Place from a few years ago. Also, keep up with this series by looking at the tag for History Boy Summer. And yes, the title is making fun of that cringe Chet Hanks song that I will undoubtedly forget about the existence of a few years down the road and wonder why I went with this as the header.
#19thCentury #dayTrip #Featured #fort #FortOsage #Historical #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #Kansas #kansasCity #KS #livingHistory #military #missouri #MissouriRiver #MO #museum #MuseumTrips #nineteenthCentury #Sibley #travel #warOf1812
Candlelight Tour of Fort Osage
Experience how the holidays were celebrated at the historic Fort in the early 19th century. Authentically attired interpreters lead guests through this unique evening event inspired by the winters at Fort Osage.The Society of Friends of Fort Osage
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 22) Santa Fe Trail Markers
NOTE: Yeah, I know it’s technically Fall now – truth is, I have about 5 more of these in my drafts because I am behind on reading the books that go along with them! I may rebrand this if I keep going to more museums as the air gets cooler, but for right now, I doubt many will mind if I scoot the goalpost a tad. Hey, maybe it’s still summer somewhere?!
This is a quick edition of history boy summer, as it was a bonus find from my Second Battle of Independence Driving Tour Review all those weeks ago. In a small park near an area I used to live in, I noticed that The Daughters of the American Revolution had upgraded a small gravestone shaped marker that denotes one of the many places in this area where the Santa Fe Trail once sat. Now accompanied by historical placards, Salem Park is now a veritable small-scale outdoor museum with no less than 7 or 8 things to read.
Santa Fe Trail Markers; Salem Park – Independence, MO
It has been a few years since I lived near this park, and honestly I don’t drive over there too much, so it was a surprise to find it!
Background:
According toWikipedia:
“The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century route through central North America that connected Franklin, Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1821 by William Becknell, who departed from the Boonslick region along the Missouri River, the trail served as a vital commercial highway until 1880, when the railroad arrived in Santa Fe. Santa Fe was near the end of El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, which carried trade from Mexico City.The route skirted the northern edge and crossed the north-western corner of Comancheria, the territory of the Comanche. Realizing the value, they demanded compensation for granting passage to the trail. American traders envisioned them as another market. Comanche raiding farther south in Mexico isolated New Mexico, making it more dependent on the American trade. They raided to gain a steady supply of horses to sell. By the 1840s, trail traffic through the Arkansas Valley was so numerous that bison herds were cut off from important seasonal grazing land. This habitat disruption, on top of overhunting, contributed to the collapse of the species. Comanche power declined in the region when they lost their most important game.
The American army used the trail route in 1846 to invade New Mexico during the Mexican–American War.
After the U.S. acquisition of the Southwest that ended the war, the trail was integral to the U.S. opening the region to economic development and settlement. It played a vital role in the westward expansion of the US into these new lands. The road route is commemorated today by the National Park Service as the Santa Fe National Historic Trail. A highway route that roughly follows the trail’s path, through the entire length of Kansas, the southeast corner of Colorado and northern New Mexico, has been designated as the Santa Fe Trail National Scenic Byway.”
Reading:
When I was at the National Frontier Trails Museum (a future installment), I had a choice of hundreds of books on the Santa Fe Trail, but ultimately picked this one. I felt that it would be interesting to read some of the first-hand accounts of people that actually travelled on the trail, and what hardships they may have faced. Stay tuned for a review soon.
The Trip:
This was another quick excursion that doesn’t warrant much information on any roadside adventures I may have had. This park is located in East Independence on 24 highway and Blue Mills Road. If you are traveling towards Buckner or Lexington away from Independence, this is one of the last parts of the main part of town before you hit the rural area.
Conclusion:
By no means would I base an entire trip on visiting this particular park in independence unless you are looking for a place to have a picnic or something and you already live nearby. If you are traveling on 24 highway and have a little bit of time to spare, it is a nice little stop off before you head out of town. If you’re looking to venture into an actual museum that discuss is the various trails that started in independence MO, I would actually recommend visiting the National Frontier Trails Museum which will be in upcoming article. Side note: it’s nice to see that this park was updated, it had suffered some vandalism around the time when Pokémon Go got really big. People would stand around in the park because it was a Pokémon Gym, and eventually all the signs and up being defaced like most historical markers sadly do. I’m glad somebody spent some money to clean everything up and add more value to it.
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #KansasCityMissouri #missouri #MissouriRiver #MuseumTrips #SantaFeTrail #Trail
transportation route through central North America that connected Franklin, Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico
Contributors to Wikimedia projects (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.)2021: History Boy Summer (Part 5) Second Battle of Independence Historic Markers Driving Tour
I was kind of sad that no local museum really goes over the majority of Price’s Raid of Missouri, I assume The Battle of Westport State Historic Site might concentrate on it, or even Mine Creek, but as of this chapter of my little summer project, I have yet to visit either. Digging through one of the tourism pages for Independence, MO and a site I found to catalogue historic markers called HMdb, I discovered that there were in fact markers for the Independence portion of this. I originally was going to do an old driving tour that they had up in brochure form, but it appeared to consist of stopping at residential houses, and I wasn’t a fan of that – historic markers are fine! I knew about one of these markers since I used to live about 100 feet from it (marker B), but the rest were a mystery. I have pieced together a list for you, if anyone would like to do this, so that you don’t have to research this like crazy like I did. You see also see some of my continuing frustration with how this area takes care of their historic markers, literally right off the bat.Second Battle of Independence Historic Markers Driving Tour; Independence, MO
For this chapter, I plan to give you all some pictures of the markers, directions to them, and a transcription of what they say if they are unreadable. Sadly, it seems that this area has a bit of an issue with keeping these up, you will notice that markers A and B are especially in bad shape. Luckily a few of them have been overhauled considerably, like C – so there’s hope.Background:
According to our buddy Wikipedia:“The Second Battle of Independence was fought on October 22, 1864, as part of Price’s Raid during the American Civil War. In late 1864, Major General Sterling Price of the Confederate States Army led a cavalry force into the state of Missouri in the hopes of creating a popular uprising against Union control, drawing Union Army troops from more important areas, and influencing the 1864 United States Presidential Election. Price was opposed by a combination of Union Army and Kansas State Militia forces positioned near Kansas City and led by Major General Samuel R. Curtis. In addition, Union cavalry under Major General Alfred Pleasonton followed Price from the east. While moving westwards along the Missouri River, Price’s men made contact with Union troops at the Little Blue River on October 21. After forcing the Union soldiers to retreat in the Battle of Little Blue River, the Confederates occupied the city of Independence, Missouri.On October 22, part of Price’s force pushed Curtis’s men across the Big Blue River, while Pleasonton drove back Confederate defenders from the Little Blue. Confederate troops from the divisions of Major General James F. Fagan and Brigadier General John S. Marmaduke resisted Pleasonton’s advance. Two Union brigades forced the Confederates through Independence, capturing two cannons and 300 men in the process. While Pleasonton brought up two fresh brigades, the Confederates regrouped southwest of town. Further Union pressure drove the defenders back, and fighting continued until after dark. By the end of October 22, almost all of the Confederate forces had fallen back across the Big Blue. The next day, Price was defeated in the Battle of Westport, and his men fell back through Kansas, suffering further defeats on the way before reaching Texas. The Confederates suffered heavy losses during the campaign. The battlefield has since been covered over by the growth of Independence.”Reading:
My reading for this trip is confusingly Jeffrey Stalnaker’s The Battle of Mine Creek, a book I have already covered at this point. I will likely use this a few times, as the first third of the book (about 50 pages) summarizes the tensions in Missouri and Kansas as well as the entirety of the ill-fated raid that Major General Sterling Price attempted in Missouri. There is a separate book on The Battle of Westport, that I need to read before I eventually go to that site, for all I know it will add even more to my knowledge of the situation. For a link to purchase a copy of this book, click that review link for details.Honestly the above linked Wikipedia page is also very detailed considering the status of either of these as “minor battles”.
Price’s ill-fated raid, the attempt to take over Missouri ends in a crushing defeat in Westport, and later in Mine Creek in Kansas.
The Trip:
GPS Waypoints:Marker A: N39 08.211 W94 18.756
Marker B: N39 08.044 W94 18.824
Marker C: N39 08.094 W94 20.495
Marker D: N39 05.529 W94 24.939
Marker E: N39 05.481 W94 25.636
Marker F: N39 05.239 W94 25.941
Or here’s a map I put together using Google Maps:
Marker A:
This was was terrible to get to. I never realized there was a historical marker here and I can see why. This marker is hidden on the side of the highway, with no way to stop at it, and around fifteen feet of thick Brush between the road and the marker itself. I had to pull up to a driveway for a tree farm near the bridge across the Little Blue River, walk along the side of the highway for about 100 yards, crossing the bridge (not something I like to do on foot), and the best shot I could get was a blurry unreadable one. I borrowed a clear picture from HMdb if you want to see what it actually looks like. The fact that there is literally no way to get to this without likely trespassing is somewhat annoying, I wish a small park could be made (Like Marker C) or at least make it accessible through a trail or something.“Here on the morning of October 21, 1864 General Marmaduke’s Confederate forces attacked Union troops under Colonel Moonlight drawn up on the hill to the west. Federal resistance was fierce until 10 A.M. When General Shelby’s Confederate cavalry moving up on the main road caused Moonlight to fall back to Independence.”
I honestly don’t recommend trying to stop at this marker, I went on an observed holiday and the highway wasn’t very busy. I’m also pretty sure I pissed off the tree farm by using their driveway to park in. There was another pull-off before that I did not see until it was too late, but it would have resulted in a blind reverse situation that would also be not very safe. You can get an Idea of what the Little Blue River may have looked like at Marker B, so there’s that. Please be careful out there! If you do decide to stop, travel East on 24 towards the exit for 7 highway and Fort Osage High School, turn around at the exit, and travel a few miles back. The marker is on the right side just before the bridge over the Little Blue River.Marker B:
Marker B sits in the parking lot in a small park on Old Lexington Road. The site consists of a covered picnic area, a bike/walking trail (although I saw a ton of bikers there) and two placards – one is marker B, and one is a sign for Price’s Raid. Pictures are both above, and I will post transcriptions.The Marker:
“Approximately 15,000 troops of Confederate General Sterling Price’s Army of Missouri, including guerrilla leader George Todd, engaged 3,500 Union soldiers under the command of Major General James G. Blunt on the western bluffs of the Little Blue River. With Blunt was Senator James H. Lane and Kansas ‘Red Legs’ under Colonel Charles R. Jennison.The six hour engagement ended between four and five in the afternoon, with Union forces forced to retreat eight miles west to Independence where a final attempt was made by the Kansas Eleventh Cavalry to hold the town. Price’s Confederate Army of Missouri occupied Independence o the evening of October 21st.”
The Placard for Price’s Raid currently has the appearance of being intentionally broken by somebody – a better version of this same one stands at marker point C. If you walk along the railroad tracks for a bit, you can get a pretty good look at the Little Blue River, in a state pretty close to what I imagine it would have been like then. If you are heading East on 24 towards Buckner, Old Lexington road is a right turn just after you pass Little Blue Parkway. follow it to the end (across railroad tracks) and you will come to the park.Marker C:
I used to live about two houses down from this marker, I remember when Pokémon Go became a big hit the traffic around this area became somewhat crazy, and it was vandalized or bumped by a car or something at one point. Luckily, since I’ve lived at my current house a chapter of the Missouri State Historical Society and the Daughters of the American Revolution have erected a new versions of everything and cleaned the site up well – currently it looks awesome! As an added bonus, the site is also where the Santa Fe Trail started and there are placards for that as well. To reach marker C, head west on 24 highway from Marker B, and turn right onto Blue Mills Rd then immediately left into the park. It’s right across from a church and cemetery.
Historic Site C“Moonlight’s Union cavalry brigade, with five guns and 1000 men, was driven from the Little blue River by Marmaduke’s and Shelby’s 5000 Confederates of Price’s Army. Moonlight stopped here and was joined by Jennison’s and Ford’s brigades of Blunt’s division with 10 guns and 2000 men. A defensive line was formed running north and south for a mile. Charges and counter charges continued until 2 PM, when Blunt withdrew. Ford fought a series of delaying actions back into Independence, pursued by Shelby’s dismounted troops.”
Price’s Raid Placard:“By 11 a.m. on Oct. 20, 1864, Col. Thomas Moonlight had made his first movement after the Little Blue crossing. Maj. Gen. James Blunt received permission from Maj. Gen. Samuel Curtis to engage the Confederate and made a rapid movement to this position, deploying the Federal line starting at the Independence-Lexington Road and stretching for about a mile to the south. Blue dismounted his troops, sending every fourth man to the rear to hold the horses. Maj. Gen. John S. Marmaduke and Brig. Gen. Joseph O. Shelby, also dismounted, were just 60 yards over the hill. A cannonade signaled the beginning of the last movement for the battle of the Little Blue. Almost simultaneously Confederate and Federal forces swept forward into the attack. On the Confederate left Marmaduke charged into Col. Charles R. Jennison’s 15th Kansas, the 3rd Wisconsin and 2nd Colorado and Shelby on the right charged the 16th and 11th Kansas. Back and forth along these slopes the fighting was fierce and often hand to hand. After an hour Blunt had pushed the Confederates about a half mile east, but recognizing that his flanks were about to be engulfed,Blunt ordered a withdrawal back to the heights. Gen. Curtis and staff now came upon the battle and immediately shifted forward Col. W. D. McClain’s artillery, U.S.A., and 2 cannons from the 11th Kansas to a recently ploughed field, leaving them exposed to Rebel sharpshooters. Maj. R. H. Hunt, chief of artillery, U.S.A., shifted 2 more 11th Kansas cannons in support. They opened fire on the Confederates and drove them back, but exposed their left flank. The Confederates increased pressure on the Federal line and further exposed the Federal left flank. Shelby sent Col. Sidney Jackman on the attack. May. Hunt, U.S.A., seeing the attack forming, searched for help and sent for the 11th Kansas Cavalry who were beginning to pull back to Independence.
At about 3 p.m. the fight here had been going on for 4 hours. Gen. Curtis understood that he could not hold Gen. Sterling Price until Federal help could arrive from the east and so he returned to Independence, taking the ammunition wagons with him. Blunt was glad to see him go. Sometime during this fight, Moonlight realized his troops were nearly out of ammunition, but still holding them in line began the troops singing “Rally ‘Round the Flag” in order to bolster their courage. Jennison, with the 15th Kansas, 3rd Wisconsin, and Barker’s Artillery, was holding back Marmaduke on the right in a series of charges and counter charges from rock wall to rack wall, ravine to ravine.
Blunt also realized he must begin his retreat to Independence or face surrender. Forming one line while a second took up a new position, they leap-frogged line this and made stands at the Saunders and Massey farms. Blunt took up his last line of defense on the eastern edge of Independence.
“The Battle continued in Independence on oct. 22, 1864, 6 miles west, and then on to the Battle of the Big Blue at 63rd and Manchester.”
(sidebar)
Lawson Moore House 20309 E. Blue Mills Rd. (private residence)
This home was built in 1856 by Lawson Moore, a prosperous slave owner. In August of 1863 following Order No. 11 Mrs. Moore fled with her children, the oldest 19, the youngest 18 months, to Clay County, never to return. The house had survived several fires and was empty at the time of the battle. On the day of the battle it would serve as the rallying point for Shelby’s command. It was here that he took time to care for this wounded, utilizing the Moore house as a hospital. Surviving accounts would indicate that buried on the property is a mass grave of 18 Confederate soldiers and in a separate location 6 to 8 officers. It is from the draw behind this property that Shelby launched his final attack of the day.(sidebar)
“About two and one half miles from where the first attack was made, we saw the Second Colorado battery of six fine Parrott guns crossing a field on out right as we were retreating. The rebel advance was within 400 to 500 yards of the battery. Quick work must be done to save the guns, worth a thousand men to us. Colonel Moonlight commanding our brigade came galloping down the line to my company. We were the rear guard. He ordered me to countermarch and charge the enemy with my eighty-eight men in column of eight front. We charged down the road, passing the Little Blue church, straight for the enemy. I saw ahead of me a brick house, just where the road turned from a northerly course straight east, a stone fence dead head of us, and a brick house and stone fence on the right. The rebel cavalry fell back, but a line of infantry occupied the house and were down behind the fence. About 150 yards south of the house between us and the enemy, was a hollow that for a moment or two kept us out of sight and range of their guns.“As we reached the brow on the hill, a thought flashed through my mind that the first line, in which I was riding, with seven soldiers to my left, would be shot as soon as we came in sight. I clutched the pommel of my saddle and threw myself almost flat on the horse. the volley of bullets came, as I expected. I felt my horse going down, swung my feet clear of the stirrups, and fell on my horse’s neck, unhurt. Geo. W. Edwards, who fired the first shot when we were charging through Lexington the day before, fell on my back, dead. My men saw me fall and thought I was killed. They retreated back into the hollow. I jumped up and ran after them, a perfect hailstorm of bullets buzzing past me. I ordered the men to dismount. every man left his horse in the road. We then jumped the fence into an orchard and charged the brick house, and took it, driving the enemy out; then charged the stone fence and took that. At this moment I heard the yells of 400 to 500 men. Maj. J. Nelson Smith with the first and third battalions of the Second Colorado cavalry, was charging the enemy to save us, and right before us this gallant officer fell dead at the head of his command. I had a chance now to fall back, and found my horses in the hollow where I had left them. The animals showed “horse sense” enough to remain where they were safe from the bullets. This little diversion, costly to my company, saved the Colorado battery.”
Captain Henry E. Palmer, Company A, 11th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry
Erected by Civil War Round Table of Western Missouri.”
Marker D:
Marker D is in downtown Independence on the Historic Square. It sits basically at the intersection of Main Street and Truman Road, on the left when traveling north on Main Street. I parked at the Courthouse and walked over. If you are there, there are numerous other historical markers in the general vicinity including one for the First Battle of Independence, Andrew Jackson, The Oregon Trail, and even Harry S Truman.
“After heavy fighting at the Little Blue River on the 21st, Price’s Confederate Army forced Blunt’s cavalry to retreat to the Big Blue River, leaving a rear guard in town. Shelby’s Confederates reached town in the late afternoon. After a brisk fight Union troops were driven to the west end of town. Price’s army and wagon train then camped in and around Independence. On the 22nd Pleasonton’s Union Cavalry, pursuing Price from the east, made a mounted charge through town driving Fagan’s Confederates to the west.”
Marker E:
From Marker D, drive on Lexington towards all of the various LDS temples in that area. You can’t really miss it since the Community of Christ building is such an imposing figure in the Independence skyline. The marker sits right in from of that building along the series of flags near the intersection of Lexington and River blvd. I parked in the parking lot of the church across the street from it.
“On the 22nd Fagan’s Division of Price’s Army was defending against the advance of Union Gen. Pleasonton from the east. Two of Fagan’s Brigades were driven from the Little Blue River to the eastern edge of town. The Union attack was made first from the NE with Philips’ Brigade and the Second Arkansas (Union) both on foot. McNeil’s Brigade then charged through town mounted. Cabell’s Brigade came up to stop the Union advance. He was driven back and many of his men were surrounded. Near this spot two of his guns were captured and he barely escaped.”
Marker F:
Finally, we have Marker F, if you turn around and go back West on Lexington towards it’s intersection with Chrysler Ave. Its on the side of the road in the middle of this island that the two roads make, stay right and park in the abandoned restaurant parking lot across from the sign.“During the Battle of Independence on October 21 ad 22, 1864, this was an unfinished railroad cut. As darkness approached on the 21st, the Confederates advancing from the east stopped here. Union troops withdrew to the Big Blue river during the night. The Confederate Divisions of Marmaduke and Shelby and Price’s wagon train advanced to Rock Creek and camped. On the 22nd Pleasonton’s Union cavalry pursued the Confederates through town and were confronted by Marmaduke’ Division. Fighting continued during the night as the Confederates withdrew to Byram’s Ford on the Big Blue River.”
Conclusion:
That’s it! I’ve never done one of these driving tours before, so this was an interesting excursion on a lazy holiday weekend. I will say that I was irritated with the state of Markers A and B, both in upkeep and travel ability, but the whole experience was cool. It’s hard sometimes to think about where a Civil War battle had taken place until you go around and actually look at the battlefields themselves. I may do another one of these for the first Battle of Independence, so stay tuned. I honestly would prefer a museum to see stuff like this, but having this as an option is better than nothing. The trip also gave me ideas for future installments and I pre-took some pictures for them. With time to stop and look around as well as fumbling with my GPS, the entire thing took about an hour. I picked an insanely hot day to do this, I’d recommend not doing that!This is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #civilWar #DrivingTour #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #JacksonCounty #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #LocalHistory #militaryHistory #missouri #MuseumTrips
The Historical Marker Database
Public history cast in metal, carved on stone, permanently marked.www.hmdb.org
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 27) Chicago & Alton Depot
Located directly across from the National Frontier Trails Museum is a “blink and you missed it” rebuilt train station dating back to the late nineteenth century. You can gain admission for it along with a visit to the previous museum, so it’s a bad call NOT to stop by seeing that you get more bang for your buck. While not explicitly designed for children, most kids have somewhat of a fondness for trains, so this would be a perfect place to take the kiddies, just as long as you can ensure they don’t try to play with the antique toys in the upstairs exhibit rooms. I recommended planning a three stop day trip with my previous review, and that still stands.
Chicago & Alton Depot; Independence, MO
I was greeted by a volunteer tour guide that was more than happy to show me around, easily making this stop very special.
Background:
From their website:
“Believed to be the only completely restored two story train depot in Missouri, the Chicago & Alton Depot was built in 1879.In 1996, the Depot was moved from its original location in spectaular fashion, being lifted from its original foundation and paraded down the street in front of hundreds of spectators and news media, to its current location on West Pacific Ave. From 1992 to 2002 members of the community worked hard to bring the decaying historical wonder back to life.
The two-story depot contains three rooms on the first floor which are the waiting room, stationmaster’s room, and baggage room. On the second floor, four rooms, which were formerly the stationmaster’s residence, are the kitchen, dining room, bedroom, and the parlor. An additional bedroom and storage room have been converted to an artifacts room. The entire Depot is furnished to appear as it did in the late 1800’s.”
Reading:
From my review:
“This book not only tells the history and background of the actual physical building that has become the museum, but also the overall history of railroads in Independence, and even the of The Chicago and Alton Company. The book is quite small, so these blobs of information are just general overviews, but establish a foundation if the reader would want to seek further information elsewhere. I honestly could not say whether there is more scholarship of the topic at hand, but it might be interesting to look around. All-in-all this is by no means much more than a souvenir book, but I enjoyed the information found within and wanted to support the museum in whatever meager way I could that day.”
arcadiapod.com/2021/12/02/revi…
The Trip:
My recommendation for this trip is to bundle it with two other museums. The Chicago & Alton Depot is situated right next to [em][strong]The National Frontier Trails Museum[/strong][/em], a museum devoted to the three trails that make Independence so famous. It is also directly across the street from an old turn of the century mansion called the Bingham Waggoner Estate. All three should take a total of four hours and will be a great idea for kids.
Conclusion:
This is a quick little museum that is definitely different to the usual suspects in Western Missouri history. Seeing all of the old artifacts was cool, and getting a chance to look at some old switchboards and telegraph systems was interesting. There is a decently stocked gift shop, just make sure to bring cash with you as they do not have a cash register – all purchases are technically gifts you get from doing donations.
This is part of my series for 2021, History Boy Summer, to read more click HERE.
For more information on the site itself, click HERE.
#Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #LocalHistory #missouri #MuseumTrips #Train #Trains #Trainspotting
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 26) National Frontier Trails Museum
NOTE: I know it’s no longer Summer (LOL), I have a couple of these I have yet to write up that I am trying to get through followed by a final ending article. I plan to get all of these done ASAP.Right from the get-go, when I first started this project, I wanted to go to the National Frontier Trails Museum in Independence, MO with my son because I knew it was largely tailored for younger museum goers. There are many things an adult would enjoy, but the interactive aspects are definitely something for kids. The last time I went was a number of years ago for one of my ex-wife’s family reunions, and I was blown away by the amount of merchandise in their gift shop and the overall quality of the museum. Would that still be true? We almost never found out as the Global Covid-19 Pandemic made sure that this particular museum stayed closed for well over a year and a half, only opening at the beginning of August. With Summer nearing completion, I knew I wanted to make this my final stop, and finally made it happen.
National Frontier Trails Museum; Independence, MO
This is one of those reviews, where I won’t have a whole ton of travel-related stories to tell, as I live pretty close to this museum, but if you are in or around the general Kansas City Metropolitan area, this is easy to find and well-worth a quick drive.Background:
From their very own website:“One of the most fascinating epics in American history is the overland migrations across the western United States during the mid-nineteenth century. Thousands of wagon trains slowly snaked their way along rugged trails, crossing wind-swept prairies, barren deserts, and formidable mountain ranges. The pioneer adventurers faced severe weather, accidents, deadly plagues, and many other dangers to seek trade, new homes and opportunities in the West. This extraordinary saga ranks as the largest voluntary, overland mass migration in the history of the world.Exploration of the West began in the early nineteenth century with the Corp of Discovery led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. The three principle trails which crossed the West were the Santa Fe, Oregon, and California. The Santa Fe Trail, which began in 1821, was a 900-mile foreign trade route unique in American history due to its overland, rather than seafaring, commerce. The 2,000-mile Oregon Trail began to be heavily traveled in 1843 by settlers wanting to establish new homes in the northwest, while others split off on the equally long and grueling California Trail to seek their fortunes in the gold fields. Still others went west to pursue religious freedom, like the Mormons who traveled to Utah beginning in 1846. Together, these rugged pathways and their pioneers changed the face and history of America.
Independence, Missouri, a frontier village of only a few hundred people poised on the edge of American civilization, was the principle “jumping-off” point for three of the western trails. Founded in 1827, the town first became the eastern terminus for the Santa Fe Trail, and later as an outfitting post for emigrants heading to Oregon and California as well. Every spring, the center of present-day Independence was blanketed by thousands of emigrants, complete with wagons, teams, other livestock, tents, cargo, and supplies. Commotion, confusion, and excitement reigned as wagons were purchased, loaded, and organized into trains.”
Reading:
For this trip, I decided to pick up On the Santa Fe Trail (1986) by Marc Simmons. This book compiles a number of first-hand accounts of life on the Santa Fe Trail from people that made the trip in the late nineteenth century. There are a number of books like this, so I had trouble making the choice, but due to the cost and cool old-school cover art, I went with this. If you ever travel to this museum they have hundreds of different books to choose from, it’s hard to choose!
The Trip:
My recommendation for this trip is to bundle it with two other museums. The National Frontier Trails Museum is situation right next to The Chicago & Alton Depot, a rebuilt train station and museum restoring artifacts of turn of the century rail travel. It is also directly across the street from an old turn of the century mansion called the Bingham Waggoner Estate. All three should take a total of four hours and will be a great idea for kids.Conclusion:
I was glad to re-visit this wonderful museum with my son, and am glad he had so much fun. There is a part where kids have to load a wagon with supplies to see how much they could take before going over-weight. There is a store-room full of items and a wagon with a weight button. Kids drop items into the wagon until it says it is over-weight. He had a blast, and his smile made the trip well worth it. highly recommended.This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#CaliforniaTrail #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #kidsActivities #missouri #MissouriRiver #museum #MuseumTrips #Museums #OregonTrail #SantaFeTrail
National Frontier Trails Museum
Contact information, hours of operation, and directions for the National Frontier Trails Museum.www.ci.independence.mo.us
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 26) National Frontier Trails Museum
NOTE: I know it’s no longer Summer (LOL), I have a couple of these I have yet to write up that I am trying to get through followed by a final ending article. I plan to get all of these done ASAP.
Right from the get-go, when I first started this project, I wanted to go to the National Frontier Trails Museum in Independence, MO with my son because I knew it was largely tailored for younger museum goers. There are many things an adult would enjoy, but the interactive aspects are definitely something for kids. The last time I went was a number of years ago for one of my ex-wife’s family reunions, and I was blown away by the amount of merchandise in their gift shop and the overall quality of the museum. Would that still be true? We almost never found out as the Global Covid-19 Pandemic made sure that this particular museum stayed closed for well over a year and a half, only opening at the beginning of August. With Summer nearing completion, I knew I wanted to make this my final stop, and finally made it happen.
National Frontier Trails Museum; Independence, MO
This is one of those reviews, where I won’t have a whole ton of travel-related stories to tell, as I live pretty close to this museum, but if you are in or around the general Kansas City Metropolitan area, this is easy to find and well-worth a quick drive.
Background:
From their very own website:
“One of the most fascinating epics in American history is the overland migrations across the western United States during the mid-nineteenth century. Thousands of wagon trains slowly snaked their way along rugged trails, crossing wind-swept prairies, barren deserts, and formidable mountain ranges. The pioneer adventurers faced severe weather, accidents, deadly plagues, and many other dangers to seek trade, new homes and opportunities in the West. This extraordinary saga ranks as the largest voluntary, overland mass migration in the history of the world.Exploration of the West began in the early nineteenth century with the Corp of Discovery led by Meriwether Lewis and William Clark. The three principle trails which crossed the West were the Santa Fe, Oregon, and California. The Santa Fe Trail, which began in 1821, was a 900-mile foreign trade route unique in American history due to its overland, rather than seafaring, commerce. The 2,000-mile Oregon Trail began to be heavily traveled in 1843 by settlers wanting to establish new homes in the northwest, while others split off on the equally long and grueling California Trail to seek their fortunes in the gold fields. Still others went west to pursue religious freedom, like the Mormons who traveled to Utah beginning in 1846. Together, these rugged pathways and their pioneers changed the face and history of America.
Independence, Missouri, a frontier village of only a few hundred people poised on the edge of American civilization, was the principle “jumping-off” point for three of the western trails. Founded in 1827, the town first became the eastern terminus for the Santa Fe Trail, and later as an outfitting post for emigrants heading to Oregon and California as well. Every spring, the center of present-day Independence was blanketed by thousands of emigrants, complete with wagons, teams, other livestock, tents, cargo, and supplies. Commotion, confusion, and excitement reigned as wagons were purchased, loaded, and organized into trains.”
Reading:
For this trip, I decided to pick up On the Santa Fe Trail (1986) by Marc Simmons. This book compiles a number of first-hand accounts of life on the Santa Fe Trail from people that made the trip in the late nineteenth century. There are a number of books like this, so I had trouble making the choice, but due to the cost and cool old-school cover art, I went with this. If you ever travel to this museum they have hundreds of different books to choose from, it’s hard to choose!
The Trip:
My recommendation for this trip is to bundle it with two other museums. The National Frontier Trails Museum is situation right next to The Chicago & Alton Depot, a rebuilt train station and museum restoring artifacts of turn of the century rail travel. It is also directly across the street from an old turn of the century mansion called the Bingham Waggoner Estate. All three should take a total of four hours and will be a great idea for kids.
Conclusion:
I was glad to re-visit this wonderful museum with my son, and am glad he had so much fun. There is a part where kids have to load a wagon with supplies to see how much they could take before going over-weight. There is a store-room full of items and a wagon with a weight button. Kids drop items into the wagon until it says it is over-weight. He had a blast, and his smile made the trip well worth it. highly recommended.
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#CaliforniaTrail #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #kidsActivities #missouri #MissouriRiver #museum #MuseumTrips #Museums #OregonTrail #SantaFeTrail
National Frontier Trails Museum
Contact information, hours of operation, and directions for the National Frontier Trails Museum.www.ci.independence.mo.us
REVIEW: Mill Office and Pioneer Spring Cabin [History Tour]
Last weekend, I was briefly able to attend an event that I suspect was a fundraiser/open house to drum up attention for the restoration of an old building that holds some pretty big significance to the city of Independence, Missouri. This property is being called “The Mill Office” and was open to visitors for the first time in many years during the event. The organizers also opened up an old cabin nearby to allow foot traffic as well, something I knew I could not miss as it was closed off when I was last here. Both of the highlighted buildings could end up being something pretty special one of these days, but a lot of work has to be done to make them “good” for tourists and historians. I say that because they are at varying stages of the preservation process, and aren’t much to look at right now.
I did not have much time, and sadly missed live music that was planned, but the organizers were very generous with their time nonetheless.
Mill Office and Pioneer Spring Cabin; Independence, MO
Both buildings are located on the original grounds of the Gates-Waggoner Milling Company, a former flour mill that produced Queen of the Pantry Flour for many years. A large mansion across the street, The Bingham -Waggoner Estate, was the home of the very same Waggoner family that ran the flour mill. Most of what I know of this family and their history is housed at said mansion, as is a lot of Queen of the Pantry Flour memorabilia. As you can guess, “The Mill Office” was the administrative office for this company, and many of the buildings in the area a former parts of this factory complex. Sadly, The Mill Office has fallen into disrepair after many years, as the company ceased operation many years ago, with the building even being used as some sort of tavern in the past.
youtube.com/watch?v=-15cbLQ2wP…
The Pioneer Spring Cabin was previously located in an entirely different part of the city, but was recently moved to the same general area. It was felt that it could be better preserved, and protected in an area of historic sites and it “fit better” in its current position. This building, the Mill Office, The Frontier Trails Museum, and the Chicago and Alton Depot buildings are starting to become a pretty slick little historical complex that I hope many people enjoy for many years to come, especially after renovations are completed. Having these all next to each other, and the mansion across the street makes the site a popular stop for travelers driving through, and I can only imagine these new additions will help that as well.
Reading(s):
I normally recommend a book, but sadly I don’t have one since this is such a new site, I suppose you could go back and read about the book for The Bingham-Waggoner Estate, as it talks about the flour company. More information can be found in the links above or by visiting the Mansion’s website. As for the cabin, The Jackson County Historical Society has a page detailing the restoration as it stands as well as some information on how the site looked in the past.
Mill Office:
Pioneer Spring Cabin:
Conclusion:
I will definitely be keeping an eye out on these projects, as both appear to be the start of some really cool historic sites. As you can see, the Pioneer Spring Cabin is largely nearing completion and will get some furnishings at some point according to the museum staff. Since it’s original restoration was a project some fifty years ago, I wonder how much of that will carry over? On the flipside, The Mill Office is pretty rough, but has no obvious structural damage and is only hampered by a drainage issue from modern sidewalks. It will take some work and money to get everything going, but saving the building will be amazing rather than allowing it to decay and collapse as other cities allow their historic buildings.
Stay tuned for more, I’m sure this isn’t the first time I will visit these.
UPDATE: 1-7-23
A reader sent me an E-mail (thank you Giovanni!) with some unfortunate news:
“I just happened across your blog while looking for pictures of the Historic Mill Office of the Waggoner-Gates Mill in Independence, MO. Unfortunately, and unbeknownst to the residents beforehand, the city bulldozed the Mill this past weekend.”
This is, of course, unfortunate news and not something I expected considering that the project seemed to have some people interested in helping out. He provided me with a heartbreaking photograph:
#and #Cabin #GatesWaggonerMillingCompany #Historical #HistoricalHouse #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #kansasCity #local #mill #missouri #Office #pioneer #PioneerSpringCabin #Review #spring #tour
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 28) The Bingham-Waggoner Estate
NOTE: I know it’s no longer Summer (LOL), I was behind on compiling these for whatever reason. This is the last one, and will be followed by a final ending article.There are a couple of old mansions in Independence, Missouri and prior to this summer I had never visited any of them. I still need to go to the Vaile Mansion and do some research on whether some of the other ones offer tours. I would say that The Bingham-Waggoner Estate is perhaps the most well-known and well-loved of all of them from what I can gather. I bundled this with my trip to the other two museums it sits next to, which is what I would recommend for you as well, as I am always trying to bundle these excursions together to maximize your time.
The Bingham-Waggoner Estate; Independence, Missouri
At time of posting, it is actually around Christmas time, and I really should have made plans to visit then, as they apparently have gorgeous Christmas decorations. Perhaps next year. Be sure to walk the nature trail before you head to the gift shop, and see a series of ruts in the ground made over 100 years ago by wagons heading west on the numerous trails running through Independence.Background:
From their website:“The Bingham-Waggoner Mansion & Estate, sitting on over 19 acres near the Independence Square is truly a one-of-a-kind gem in Independence, Missouri. Near the Truman Presidential Library, Harry and Bess Truman’s home, the 1859 Jail & Marshall’s home, the National Frontier Museum, the Chicago & Alton Depot and the Vaile Mansion, the Bingham-Waggoner Mansion & Estate offers its own special look into an earlier era. This well preserved museum home, with more than 90% original furnishings, carpets and paintings, provides insights into the lifestyle of its wealthy 19th century residents.”
Reading:
This was a souvenir booklet from the sites giftshop that I purchased. A lot of sites around here have books like this, and they are pretty solid despite being very short.From my review:
“There isn’t a ton to say about this item that hasn’t been said basically. This book is basically all of the stuff my tour guide told me on the tour, including a general rundown of the family histories of occupants of the mansion, as well as information on basically every room of the house. I would not be surprised if volunteers use this book to prepare for their tours. All-in-all it’s well done for a cheap booklet and has quite a bit of information as well as pictures. If you happen to be at this museum, I’d easily recommend picking a copy up.”
arcadiapod.com/2021/12/02/revi…
The Trip:
My recommendation for this trip is to bundle it with two other museums. The Chicago & Alton Depot and [em][strong]The National Frontier Trails Museum[/strong][/em]. The latter is devoted to the three trails that make Independence so famous. The former is a museum devoted to turn of the century railroad operations in this area. All three should take a total of four hours and will be a great idea for kids and are located right next to each other with the mansion across the street from the other two.Conclusion:
This site has an amazing guided tour that I loved. The lady that did it was VERY knowledgeable and loved answering questions. If I had more free time, something like that would be a dream job for me, I just need to win the lottery or something! The site can be rented for events like weddings, and other functions which would also be an amazing experience.This is part of my series for 2021, History Boy Summer, to read more click HERE.
#Historical #HistoricalHouse #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #Mansion #missouri #MuseumTrips
Bingham-Waggoner Mansion & Estate
Wedding Venue, Reception Venue Historical House Tours, Luncheons, Meeting rooms, amily reunions, parties,The Bingham-Waggoner Estate
REVIEW: Bushwhacker Jail Tales (2002)
A book by Patrick Brophy
One of my recent trips for my history project took me to Nevada Missouri, home of The Bushwhacker Museum and Bushwhacker Jail, previously known as the Vernon County Jail from 1860-1960. In the well-stocked gift shop, I was looking for something about the attraction, and came across this novella-sized booklet detailing the history of the jail and some stories pertaining to it throughout the years. This was produced by the Vernon County Historical Society using information from historical records, edited together into a narrative structure. The latter half of the book are basically news clippings related to the jail.
“Bushwhacker Jail Tales is a pamphlet providing a brief history of the old Vernon County Jail, which was used from 1860 to 1960. It includes many short stories about occurrences at the jail which have been culled from local newspaper articles and oral legend.”
My favorite story is of two prisoners who attempted a very much ill-fated jailbreak. You see, the pair were had a little too much in common with the likes of Laurel and Hardy, seeing that one was very thin, the other fat. Bars were cut from a window with a hacksaw allowing the skinny man to escape. Sadly, his comrade was not so lucky. aroused by painful wails of terror, the Sherriff found the man lodged in the opening unable to budge either direction Winnie-The-Pooh style. There’s also a story of a a man trying to escape dressed in drag, and another that made the sheriff so mad he strung him up by his thumbs, with the string still visible today (can confirm!),
All-in-all this book isn’t something that will blow you away, but as a companion to a museum visit it was well put together, and had information that was not part of the tour. This was also insanely cheap, which is appreciated for somebody not wanting to drop tons of money on these museum road trips at every stop (although I do like to support the sites). This was a quick read, and I enjoyed it due to it’s overall humorous tone. if you ever find yourself in Nevada, Missouri make sure to stop at the Bushwhacker Museum/Jail and pick this up if you want to remember your visit!
If you would like your own copy of this book, please click HERE.
This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #book #bookReview #books #Bushwhackers #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Jail #museum #MuseumTrips #NevadaMissouri
REVIEW: Chicago & Alton Depot History (2007)
A book by chicagoalton1879depot.org/ authors
One of the very last stops on my grand History Boy Summer series was The Chicago & Alton Depot, a museum in Independence, MO. Once a 100 year old building falling into disrepair, it has been reconstructed and filled with wonderful items that are a must for both history buffs and railroad aficionados alike. Once there, I definitely wanted to snag some sort of memento in order to learn more about the site, and saw one of these inexpensive booklets there available to anyone that donated money to the site (The Bushwhacker Jail had a similar one). This book is not long, largely consists of pictures and somewhat re-treads what one learns during the guided tour of the site, but as a way to remember the museum, I felt that it was a must-purchase for me.
“Believed to be the only completely restored two story train depot in Missouri, the Chicago & Alton Depot was built in 1879.In 1996, the Depot was moved from its original location in spectaular fashion, being lifted from its original foundation and paraded down the street in front of hundreds of spectators and news media, to its current location on West Pacific Ave. From 1992 to 2002 members of the community worked hard to bring the decaying historical wonder back to life.
The two-story depot contains three rooms on the first floor which are the waiting room, stationmaster’s room, and baggage room. On the second floor, four rooms, which were formerly the stationmaster’s residence, are the kitchen, dining room, bedroom, and the parlor. An additional bedroom and storage room have been converted to an artifacts room. The entire Depot is furnished to appear as it did in the late 1800’s.”
This book not only tells the history and background of the actual physical building that has become the museum, but also the overall history of railroads in Independence, and even the of The Chicago and Alton Company. The book is quite small, so these blobs of information are just general overviews, but establish a foundation if the reader would want to seek further information elsewhere. I honestly could not say whether there is more scholarship of the topic at hand, but it might be interesting to look around. All-in-all this is by no means much more than a souvenir book, but I enjoyed the information found within and wanted to support the museum in whatever meager way I could that day.
This is part of my series for 2021, History Boy Summer, to read more click HERE.
For more information on the site itself, click HERE.
#Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #missouri #museum #MuseumTrips #Railroad #Railroads #Train #Trains #Trainspotting
REVIEW: Bushwhacker Jail Tales (2002)
A book by Patrick Brophy
One of my recent trips for my history project took me to Nevada Missouri, home of The Bushwhacker Museum and Bushwhacker Jail, previously known as the Vernon County Jail from 1860-1960. In the well-stocked gift shop, I was looking for something about the attraction, and came across this novella-sized booklet detailing the history of the jail and some stories pertaining to it throughout the years. This was produced by the Vernon County Historical Society using information from historical records, edited together into a narrative structure. The latter half of the book are basically news clippings related to the jail.“Bushwhacker Jail Tales is a pamphlet providing a brief history of the old Vernon County Jail, which was used from 1860 to 1960. It includes many short stories about occurrences at the jail which have been culled from local newspaper articles and oral legend.”
My favorite story is of two prisoners who attempted a very much ill-fated jailbreak. You see, the pair were had a little too much in common with the likes of Laurel and Hardy, seeing that one was very thin, the other fat. Bars were cut from a window with a hacksaw allowing the skinny man to escape. Sadly, his comrade was not so lucky. aroused by painful wails of terror, the Sherriff found the man lodged in the opening unable to budge either direction Winnie-The-Pooh style. There’s also a story of a a man trying to escape dressed in drag, and another that made the sheriff so mad he strung him up by his thumbs, with the string still visible today (can confirm!),All-in-all this book isn’t something that will blow you away, but as a companion to a museum visit it was well put together, and had information that was not part of the tour. This was also insanely cheap, which is appreciated for somebody not wanting to drop tons of money on these museum road trips at every stop (although I do like to support the sites). This was a quick read, and I enjoyed it due to it’s overall humorous tone. if you ever find yourself in Nevada, Missouri make sure to stop at the Bushwhacker Museum/Jail and pick this up if you want to remember your visit!
If you would like your own copy of this book, please click HERE.
This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #book #bookReview #books #Bushwhackers #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Jail #museum #MuseumTrips #NevadaMissouri
REVIEW: Bingham-Waggoner Estate History
A book made available to museum Patrons, no author listed, undated
Another great educational travel idea for anyone around the Kansas City and Independence, Missouri area is a trip down to the Bingham-Waggoner Estate located near downtown Independence. Furnished with gorgeous furniture and intact belongings of the time, this is one of the best ways to see how people lived in the past, by seeing the actual items they used on display. Granted, every single person that lived in the Estate was very wealthy, so it’s a one-sided view of history, but sometimes visiting places with such grandeur is good. This book was an informational booklet purchased in the gift shop. Much like the Chicago & Alton Book and the Bushwhacker Jail book, these are cheaply done and exist as a precursor to something like a Wikipedia article or such. I like to pick them up both as a memento and as a way to show off places I’ve been. Rather than collect shot glasses or spoons when I travel, I will always opt for books.
“The Bingham-Waggoner Mansion & Estate, sitting on over 19 acres near the Independence Square is truly a one-of-a-kind gem in Independence, Missouri. Near the Truman Presidential Library, Harry and Bess Truman’s home, the 1859 Jail & Marshall’s home, the National Frontier Museum, the Chicago & Alton Depot and the Vaile Mansion, the Bingham-Waggoner Mansion & Estate offers its own special look into an earlier era. This well preserved museum home, with more than 90% original furnishings, carpets and paintings, provides insights into the lifestyle of its wealthy 19th century residents.”
There isn’t a ton to say about this item that hasn’t been said basically. This book is basically all of the stuff my tour guide told me on the tour, including a general rundown of the family histories of occupants of the mansion, as well as information on basically every room of the house. I would not be surprised if volunteers use this book to prepare for their tours. All-in-all it’s well done for a cheap booklet and has quite a bit of information as well as pictures. If you happen to be at this museum, I’d easily recommend picking a copy up.
This is part of my series for 2021, History Boy Summer, to read more click HERE.
For more information on the site itself, click HERE.
#Historical #HistoricalHouse #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #KansasCityMissouri #LocalHistory #Mansion #missouri #museum #MuseumTrips #Museums
Bingham-Waggoner Mansion & Estate
Wedding Venue, Reception Venue Historical House Tours, Luncheons, Meeting rooms, amily reunions, parties,The Bingham-Waggoner Estate
REVIEW: Chicago & Alton Depot History (2007)
A book by chicagoalton1879depot.org/ authors
One of the very last stops on my grand History Boy Summer series was The Chicago & Alton Depot, a museum in Independence, MO. Once a 100 year old building falling into disrepair, it has been reconstructed and filled with wonderful items that are a must for both history buffs and railroad aficionados alike. Once there, I definitely wanted to snag some sort of memento in order to learn more about the site, and saw one of these inexpensive booklets there available to anyone that donated money to the site (The Bushwhacker Jail had a similar one). This book is not long, largely consists of pictures and somewhat re-treads what one learns during the guided tour of the site, but as a way to remember the museum, I felt that it was a must-purchase for me.“Believed to be the only completely restored two story train depot in Missouri, the Chicago & Alton Depot was built in 1879.In 1996, the Depot was moved from its original location in spectaular fashion, being lifted from its original foundation and paraded down the street in front of hundreds of spectators and news media, to its current location on West Pacific Ave. From 1992 to 2002 members of the community worked hard to bring the decaying historical wonder back to life.
The two-story depot contains three rooms on the first floor which are the waiting room, stationmaster’s room, and baggage room. On the second floor, four rooms, which were formerly the stationmaster’s residence, are the kitchen, dining room, bedroom, and the parlor. An additional bedroom and storage room have been converted to an artifacts room. The entire Depot is furnished to appear as it did in the late 1800’s.”
This book not only tells the history and background of the actual physical building that has become the museum, but also the overall history of railroads in Independence, and even the of The Chicago and Alton Company. The book is quite small, so these blobs of information are just general overviews, but establish a foundation if the reader would want to seek further information elsewhere. I honestly could not say whether there is more scholarship of the topic at hand, but it might be interesting to look around. All-in-all this is by no means much more than a souvenir book, but I enjoyed the information found within and wanted to support the museum in whatever meager way I could that day.This is part of my series for 2021, History Boy Summer, to read more click HERE.
For more information on the site itself, click HERE.
#Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #missouri #museum #MuseumTrips #Railroad #Railroads #Train #Trains #Trainspotting
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 28) The Bingham-Waggoner Estate
NOTE: I know it’s no longer Summer (LOL), I was behind on compiling these for whatever reason. This is the last one, and will be followed by a final ending article.
There are a couple of old mansions in Independence, Missouri and prior to this summer I had never visited any of them. I still need to go to the Vaile Mansion and do some research on whether some of the other ones offer tours. I would say that The Bingham-Waggoner Estate is perhaps the most well-known and well-loved of all of them from what I can gather. I bundled this with my trip to the other two museums it sits next to, which is what I would recommend for you as well, as I am always trying to bundle these excursions together to maximize your time.
The Bingham-Waggoner Estate; Independence, Missouri
At time of posting, it is actually around Christmas time, and I really should have made plans to visit then, as they apparently have gorgeous Christmas decorations. Perhaps next year. Be sure to walk the nature trail before you head to the gift shop, and see a series of ruts in the ground made over 100 years ago by wagons heading west on the numerous trails running through Independence.
Background:
From their website:
“The Bingham-Waggoner Mansion & Estate, sitting on over 19 acres near the Independence Square is truly a one-of-a-kind gem in Independence, Missouri. Near the Truman Presidential Library, Harry and Bess Truman’s home, the 1859 Jail & Marshall’s home, the National Frontier Museum, the Chicago & Alton Depot and the Vaile Mansion, the Bingham-Waggoner Mansion & Estate offers its own special look into an earlier era. This well preserved museum home, with more than 90% original furnishings, carpets and paintings, provides insights into the lifestyle of its wealthy 19th century residents.”
Reading:
This was a souvenir booklet from the sites giftshop that I purchased. A lot of sites around here have books like this, and they are pretty solid despite being very short.
From my review:
“There isn’t a ton to say about this item that hasn’t been said basically. This book is basically all of the stuff my tour guide told me on the tour, including a general rundown of the family histories of occupants of the mansion, as well as information on basically every room of the house. I would not be surprised if volunteers use this book to prepare for their tours. All-in-all it’s well done for a cheap booklet and has quite a bit of information as well as pictures. If you happen to be at this museum, I’d easily recommend picking a copy up.”
arcadiapod.com/2021/12/02/revi…
The Trip:
My recommendation for this trip is to bundle it with two other museums. The Chicago & Alton Depot and [em][strong]The National Frontier Trails Museum[/strong][/em]. The latter is devoted to the three trails that make Independence so famous. The former is a museum devoted to turn of the century railroad operations in this area. All three should take a total of four hours and will be a great idea for kids and are located right next to each other with the mansion across the street from the other two.
Conclusion:
This site has an amazing guided tour that I loved. The lady that did it was VERY knowledgeable and loved answering questions. If I had more free time, something like that would be a dream job for me, I just need to win the lottery or something! The site can be rented for events like weddings, and other functions which would also be an amazing experience.
This is part of my series for 2021, History Boy Summer, to read more click HERE.
#Historical #HistoricalHouse #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #Mansion #missouri #MuseumTrips
REVIEW: Bingham-Waggoner Estate History
A book made available to museum Patrons, no author listed, undated
Another great educational travel idea for anyone around the Kansas City and Independence, Missouri area is a trip down to the Bingham-Waggoner Estate located near downtown Independence. Furnished with gorgeous furniture and intact belongings of the time, this is one of the best ways to see how people lived in the past, by seeing the actual items they used on display. Granted, every single person that lived in the Estate was very wealthy, so it’s a one-sided view of history, but sometimes visiting places with such grandeur is good. This book was an informational booklet purchased in the gift shop. Much like the Chicago & Alton Book and the Bushwhacker Jail book, these are cheaply done and exist as a precursor to something like a Wikipedia article or such. I like to pick them up both as a memento and as a way to show off places I’ve been. Rather than collect shot glasses or spoons when I travel, I will always opt for books.“The Bingham-Waggoner Mansion & Estate, sitting on over 19 acres near the Independence Square is truly a one-of-a-kind gem in Independence, Missouri. Near the Truman Presidential Library, Harry and Bess Truman’s home, the 1859 Jail & Marshall’s home, the National Frontier Museum, the Chicago & Alton Depot and the Vaile Mansion, the Bingham-Waggoner Mansion & Estate offers its own special look into an earlier era. This well preserved museum home, with more than 90% original furnishings, carpets and paintings, provides insights into the lifestyle of its wealthy 19th century residents.”
There isn’t a ton to say about this item that hasn’t been said basically. This book is basically all of the stuff my tour guide told me on the tour, including a general rundown of the family histories of occupants of the mansion, as well as information on basically every room of the house. I would not be surprised if volunteers use this book to prepare for their tours. All-in-all it’s well done for a cheap booklet and has quite a bit of information as well as pictures. If you happen to be at this museum, I’d easily recommend picking a copy up.This is part of my series for 2021, History Boy Summer, to read more click HERE.
For more information on the site itself, click HERE.
#Historical #HistoricalHouse #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #KansasCityMissouri #LocalHistory #Mansion #missouri #museum #MuseumTrips #Museums
Bingham-Waggoner Mansion & Estate
Wedding Venue, Reception Venue Historical House Tours, Luncheons, Meeting rooms, amily reunions, parties,The Bingham-Waggoner Estate
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 21) Truman Library and Museum
I somehow never managed to go to the “old” version of the Truman Library – this is despite the fact that my Grandfather actually worked for some of his family in Kansas, and the fact that I’ve lived in Independence for a few years now. Then again, I wasn’t taken on too many crazy car trips when I was super young, so there is that. I knew that when I moved to Independence, I needed to rectify the situation, but no sooner than I planned to go, they ended up rebuilding the whole thing! So here it is, after a multi-million dollar renovation that took a couple of years to complete, I was able to secure some tickets to the newly re-opened museum during the first few weeks of it’s re-opening. In hindsight, I probably should have waited a few months, because it was somewhat crowded, and the giftshop was not completed. Granted I’m not really in the market for a Truman Coffee mug or anything, but you all know I like to read books in conjunction with these. Thankfully masks were encouraged, and I was able to avoid being too close to people – it was less packed than the Auschwitz exhibit.
Truman Library and Museum; Independence, MO
It honestly looks like I picked a great time to visit, as it may have closed yet again due to my states willingness to keep Covid-19 raging on and on :/
Background:
According to their official page:
The Truman Library is a Presidential Library operated by the Federal government. Presidential Libraries are administered by the National Archives and Records Administration as part of the nation’s record-keeping system.The Harry S. Truman Presidential Library & Museum is a dynamic educational resource that inspires life-long learning, spurs discussions about democracy and service, and supports local, national, and global citizenship. The Library uses President Truman’s life and legacy to inform, inspire, educate, and engage modern audiences about his timeless wisdom and significant contributions from which the world continues to benefit.
Established in 1957, the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library & Museum preserves and provides access to President Truman’s historical materials. Through engaging exhibits and programs, the Library aspires to reach a broad and diverse audience in a continuous effort to keep President Truman’s life and legacy alive, emphasizing his ideals of citizenship, learning, and service.
And President Truman according to Wikipedia:
Harry S. Truman[b] (May 8, 1884 – December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953, succeeding upon the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt after serving as the 34th vice president in early 1945. He implemented the Marshall Plan to rebuild the economy of Western Europe and established the Truman Doctrine and NATO to contain communist expansion. He proposed numerous liberal domestic reforms, but few were enacted by the Conservative Coalition that dominated Congress.Truman grew up in Independence, Missouri, and during World War I fought in France as a captain in the Field Artillery. Returning home, he opened a haberdashery in Kansas City, Missouri, and was later elected as a Jackson County official in 1922. Truman was elected to the United States Senate from Missouri in 1934 and gained national prominence as chairman of the Truman Committee, which was aimed at reducing waste and inefficiency in wartime contracts. Soon after succeeding to the presidency, he authorized the first and only use of nuclear weapons in war. Truman’s administration engaged in an internationalist foreign policy and renounced isolationism. He rallied his New Deal coalition during the 1948 presidential election and won a surprise victory that secured his own presidential term.
After the onset of the Cold War, Truman oversaw the Berlin Airlift and Marshall Plan in 1948. When North Korea invaded South Korea in 1950, he gained United Nations approval to intervene in the Korean War. He did not ask for Congressional approval, and as the war stalemated his popularity fell. His administration successfully guided the U.S. economy through the postwar economic challenges; the expected postwar depression never happened. In 1948, he submitted the first comprehensive civil rights legislation. It did not pass, so he instead issued Executive Orders 9980 and 9981 to begin racial equality in federal agencies and the military.
Reading:
For this trip, I am reading President Truman by Jonah Goldberg. I will be honest, I don’t have time to read a 500 page book on Harry S. Truman at the moment, so I have likely chosen a mediocre book to read, considering its free on Kindle Unlimited. This book, however, has good reviews and generally seems to be much more than your typical “let’s copy Wikipedia” affair. Stay tuned for when I get the chance to complete the book and post a review.
The Trip:
I live literally down the street from this museum, so I don’t have a harrowing tale about getting there and what to watch out for. If you live in the general Kansas City or Independence, MO areas, this museum is insanely easy to get to, and is attached to a nice well-maintained park with statues and other things to look at.
Conclusion:
This stop was well worth the wait that I had to get tickets, and the somewhat past my comfort zone crowd inside. You can tell that a lot of time and money has gone into the renovation, however its sad to see it only lasted four weeks before closing yet again. If we are taking into account other local museums, this one is the most similar to the National World War I museum located in downtown Kansas City. There are a lot of videos and interactive exhibits to look at, as well as some really heavy, though provoking stuff. I’m pretty interested in WWI as a whole, and since Truman served in that war, it was cool to see some of the military weapons and stories from his time in the service running an artillery group.
Being able to see the gravesites for the Trumans and their daughter was also a highlight for me, I think that may just be the only one I’ve seen unless I am forgetting something from Washington DC a few decades ago. Here’s hoping I can make it out to the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library at some point next year and see how it stacks up! If you are in Independence, there really is no reason to NOT visit this site and learn more about one of, perhaps, the most underrated and misunderstood presidents of all time.
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#HarrySTruman #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #KC #library #military #militaryHistory #museum #MuseumTrips #president #PresidentTruman #PresidentialLibrary #Truman #War #WWI #WWII
Renovation Timeline - Truman Library Institute
In recognition of the 75th anniversary of his presidency, the Truman Library and Truman Library Institute have developed a momentous plan to use Truman’s life and legacy to inform, inspire, educate, and engage a 21st-century audience at an increasing…Truman Library Institute
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 14) Auschwitz: Not Long Ago, Not Far Away at Union Station
Normally when I do these, I am visiting local historical sites and talking about historical events that happened in the Western Missouri, Eastern Kansas areas. This entry is a bit different because I was able to attend a traveling exhibit at Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri. Union Station usually does one or two big exhibits per year, and they are almost ALWAYS incredible. If you head over to my other blog, I have a similar review up for an exhibit on Stonehenge from a few years ago. I wanted to see this exhibit because I was able to visit an actual concentration camp in 2001 in Munich, Germany. That experience was sobering, as being able to see the actual buildings such as ovens or a gas chamber clearly labeled “brausebad” (lit “shower bath”) over the top made it that much more real rather than reading about it in a history book. At that time, there wasn’t much of a “museum” or sorts at Dachau (to my recollection, I could be mis-remembering from 20 years ago), so I was unable to see too many artifacts. When given the opportunity to see these items leave Poland and Germany for the US for the first time ever was an experience I had to have. Seeing that Auschwitz is notoriously “the worst” of all concentration camps, I knew this was going to be heavy.Auschwitz: Not Long Ago, Not Far Away at Union Station; Kansas City, Missouri
Advice time: If you are in the area and want to see this – good luck going on a weekend prior to January of 2022 (the last month it’s open). I was able to go on a Tuesday morning without too many issues, and I see that its open on certain government holidays as well in case work makes it impossible to see during the week. I have posted the official website below for ticketing information. Also, be sure to buy the hardcover book upon ticket purchase. It’s 45 dollars, but is huge and good value for the price. It basically sums up the entire exhibit in case you miss anything. I have no idea if this can be purchased in any way other than the museum, but I do see it on Amazon, so there is that as well.Background
According to Union Station’s official site for this exhibit:This groundbreaking exhibition brings together more than 700 original objects and 400 photographs from over 20 institutions and museums around the world. Auschwitz. Not long ago. Not far away. is the most comprehensive exhibition dedicated to the history of Auschwitz and its role in the Holocaust ever presented in North America, and an unparalleled opportunity to confront the singular face of human evil—one that arose not long ago and not far away.
And general info from Wikipedia:“Auschwitz concentration camp was a complex of over 40 concentration and extermination camps operated by Nazi Germany in occupied Poland (in a portion annexed into Germany in 1939) during World War II and the Holocaust. It consisted of Auschwitz I, the main camp (Stammlager) in Oświęcim; Auschwitz II-Birkenau, a concentration and extermination camp with gas chambers; Auschwitz III-Monowitz, a labor camp for the chemical conglomerate IG Farben; and dozens of subcamps. The camps became a major site of the Nazis’ Final Solution to the Jewish Question. […] In May 1940, German criminals brought to the camp as functionaries, established the camp’s reputation for sadism. Prisoners were beaten, tortured, and executed for the most trivial reasons. The first gassings—of Soviet and Polish prisoners—took place in block 11 of Auschwitz I around August 1941. Construction of Auschwitz II began the following month, and from 1942 until late 1944 freight trains delivered Jews from all over German-occupied Europe to its gas chambers. Of the 1.3 million people sent to Auschwitz, 1.1 million died. The death toll includes 960,000 Jews (865,000 of whom were gassed on arrival), 74,000 ethnic Poles, 21,000 Roma, 15,000 Soviet prisoners of war, and up to 15,000 other Europeans.[7] Those not gassed died of starvation, exhaustion, disease, individual executions, or beatings. Others were killed during medical experiments.”
Reading
Prior to this trip, I read The Commandant of Auschwitz – Rudolf Höss by Volker Koop. I wanted to look into the mindset of a man that was so ruthless that he could oversee the wholesale murder of over a million people, then claim he had no idea that was going on under his watch. It’s an infuriating and depressing read, as with anything involving The Holocaust, but I felt like it was important.
The Trip
Union Station was not too busy when I attended this exhibit – due to The Covid-19 Global Pandemic you have to arrange tickets online, and only a certain amount of people are allowed in each 30 minute increment. Masks were required, and at no time did I feel unsafe in attending. Patrons are provided with these devices that can be best described as an MP3 player of sorts and a headset, all cleaned after each use. These devices act as a guided tour for everyone during the exhibit. at various points, you will see a number on the wall or an object that coincides with an audio segment that gives more insight and background to everything. This blew me away and is easily the best guided tour thing I have ever seen in any museum. I honestly hope more adopt it as it really helps make the exhibit feel important.In total, the exhibit took me two hours and some change, but I can imagine it would be somewhere between 2-2.5 hours for most people. My only real issue were people standing in front of exhibit pieces listening to their device blocking the view. I adopted a system where I would go around an area, read all the signs the stand away from everyone and go through the videos. This seemed to help me stay away from people and ensured I wasn’t stuck in any sort of bottlenecks.
The most jarring items in the exhibit were the things about children. There is a simple child’s shoe at one point, where you can see balled up socks tucked inside as if the kid thought he was going to have a quick shower then go out an play or something. Sadly, it’s almost guaranteed that was the last thing the child did before his life was ripped from him by the monstrous regime of Adolf Hitler. I didn’t cry in this area, but I felt anxious and teared up a bit. It was very uncomfortable as it should be. I have included this in one of my pictures above.
Conclusion
This is both a VERY important exhibit and an extremely heavy one to experience. It’s well put together, and honestly has one of the best presentations I’ve ever seen. It’s on the expensive side ($25 per person) but its well worth the money considering the content and how long it takes to get through. I plan to go back with my girlfriend at some point to see what she thinks, as I feel like everyone that can see this, should. In a time when people go to YouTube to come up with all sorts of inane alternate versions of history that they can, something like this really could ground someone and show them why we do certain things like we do. Seeing people constantly equating things of slight annoyance to The Holocaust, or Nazis gets tiresome, and seeing something like this definitely shows why. Here’s hoping nothing like this EVER happens again, and if it does, hopefully we can stop it.This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#Allies #Auschwitz #Axis #ConcentrationCamp #Death #Germany #Historical #historicalPhoto #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Holocaust #jewish #Jews #kansasCity #missouri #museum #MuseumTrips #nazi #Nazis #Poland #UnionStation #WorldWarII #WWII
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 23) The Grave of “Bloody” Bill Anderson
Continuing my catch-up of this project, this is another quick edition of this series.
When it comes to the area I live in, it seems that most of the notable “famous” historical graves are that of notorious outlaws that died in and around The Civil War. I by no means want to either condone what these men did, or glorify them in any way by visiting these memorials, but I want to understand…..why? why did most of these guys, largely Missouri partisans, feel that they needed to go on gruesome murder sprees in their early 20s. Was it legitimate community activism, or were these men looking for an excuse to live as murderers above the law? As with my recent trip to the grave of Frank James, today was one such excursion – the gravesite of William “Bloody Bill” Anderson.
The Grave of “Bloody” Bill Anderson; Pioneer Cemetery in Richmond, MO
I have been reading a book about Anderson, and figured “why not” considering I live about 20 miles from his burial place – I loaded up my car, and headed out.
Background:
According to Wikipedia:
“William T. Anderson (1840 – October 26, 1864), known by the nickname “Bloody Bill” Anderson, was one of the deadliest and most notorious Confederate guerrilla leaders in the American Civil War. Anderson led a band of volunteer partisan raiders who targeted Union loyalists and federal soldiers in the states of Missouri and Kansas.Raised by a family of Southerners in Kansas, Anderson began to support himself by stealing and selling horses in 1862. After a Union loyalist judge killed his father, Anderson killed the judge and fled to Missouri. There he robbed travelers and killed several Union soldiers. In early 1863 he joined Quantrill’s Raiders, a group of Confederate guerrillas which operated along the Kansas–Missouri border. He became a skilled bushwhacker, earning the trust of the group’s leaders, William Quantrill and George M. Todd. Anderson’s bushwhacking marked him as a dangerous man and eventually led the Union to imprison his sisters. After a building collapse in the makeshift jail in Kansas City, MO left one of them dead in custody and the other permanently maimed, Anderson devoted himself to revenge. He took a leading role in the Lawrence Massacre and later took part in the Battle of Baxter Springs, both in 1863.
In late 1863, while Quantrill’s Raiders spent the winter in Sherman, Texas, animosity developed between Anderson and Quantrill. Anderson, perhaps falsely, implicated Quantrill in a murder, leading to the latter’s arrest by Confederate authorities. Anderson subsequently returned to Missouri as the leader of his own group of raiders and became the most feared guerrilla in the state, robbing and killing a large number of Union soldiers and civilian sympathizers. Although Union supporters viewed him as incorrigibly evil, Confederate supporters in Missouri saw his actions as justifiable. In September 1864, Anderson led a raid on the town of Centralia, Missouri. Unexpectedly, his men were able to capture a passenger train, the first time Confederate guerrillas had done so. In what became known as the Centralia Massacre, Anderson’s bushwhackers killed 24 unarmed Union soldiers on the train and set an ambush later that day which killed over a hundred Union militiamen. Anderson himself was killed a month later in battle. Historians have made disparate appraisals of Anderson; some see him as a sadistic, psychopathic killer, but for others his actions cannot be separated from the general desperation and lawlessness of the time.
Reading:
I am currently reading Bloody Bill Anderson: The Short, Savage Life of a Civil War Guerrilla by Albert Castel and Thomas Goodrich. I absolutely love another book by Goodrich called War to the Knife (about Bleeding Kansas), and was excited to see this book was “free” through Kindle Unlimited. Having two authors seems to have helped this book stay fairly unbiased, I know Goodrich appears to be on the side of “Lost Cause Mythology” in some of his other writings (I hear a book he did on reconstruction is very biased), but you don’t see much of that here. While not painted as a complete and utter demon, it’s hard to see what Anderson did as anything more than questionable at best.
The Trip:
Pioneer Cemetery is a small, incredibly old, Mormon cemetery in the middle of Richmond, MO. Most of the grave stones have been pulled down and set into concrete giving the site an appearance I haven’t really ever seen. In many ways, it helps preserve the stones, seeing that many are from around 1855 and earlier. It seems like it was abandoned at some point, but is now a memorial for Mormon settlers buried there. How a despicable Confederate partisan leader was buried there is a mystery to me, I’d like to get some information on why it happened unless they were trying to keep him away from the town’s main cemetery. Anderson’s grave is on the extreme edge of the property away from the earlier graves, almost in the road that runs next to the site. There is a historical marker site next to it, so it should be easy to spot.
Conclusion:
Nothing too crazy to see here, just the grave of a guy that almost brought parts of Kansas and Missouri too its knees, now given such a mundane burial near a busy roadway, almost forgotten by anyone other than historians and the wildest of Lost Cause fanatics. It has been so crazy to see the graves of some of these guys, you can tell that no matter the infamy of the individual we all rot in the ground the same way.
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #BillAnderson #cemetery #civilWar #Grave #guerillas #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #missouri #MuseumTrips #QuantrillSRaiders
American guerrilla fighter (1839–1864)
Contributors to Wikimedia projects (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.)2021: History Boy Summer (Part 15) Frank James Gravesite
Sometimes, these entries are pretty quick affairs, which is the case for today’s entry. Most of these involve day trips across state lines, and are usually strategically grouped together so I can maximize my time. This one was basically akin to a detour on my way home from and errand, which is cool for this series. Last week, I was attending a model building club meeting recently at a local anime store, and realized I was pretty close to a Cemetery with a fairly famous person buried inside. In a small plot in the corner of the lot, there is a old stone wall and fence surrounding a small row of graves. You can tell this goes largely unseen by most, but the plot is the home for the remains of none other than Frank James, legendary outlaw, and brother to Jesse James.Frank James Gravesite; Independence, Missouri
Frank James later in life
Background:
From Wikipedia:“During his years as a bandit, James was involved in at least four robberies between 1868 and 1876 that resulted in the deaths of bank employees or citizens. The most famous incident was the disastrous Northfield, Minnesota, raid on September 7, 1876, that ended with the death or capture of most of the gang.Five months after the killing of his brother Jesse in 1882, Frank James boarded a train to Jefferson City, Missouri, where he had an appointment with the governor in the state capitol. Placing his holster in Governor Crittenden’s hands, he explained:
‘I have been hunted for twenty-one years, have literally lived in the saddle, have never known a day of perfect peace. It was one long, anxious, inexorable, eternal vigil.’ He then ended his statement by saying, ‘Governor, I haven’t let another man touch my gun since 1861.’
Accounts say that James surrendered with the understanding that he would not be extradited to Northfield, Minnesota”
Reading:
I actually have a different book I am planning on reading soon, but as of this moment I am going to reference a book I recently read from Netgalley called Outlaws of the Wild West (2021) Click there for a link to my review. I’m sure there are better books out there, but it was an interesting look at some of the more notorious Outlaws of the Wild West. Another book that discusses Frank, is Lockdown: Outlaws, Lawmen & Frontier Justice in Jackson County Missouri, which discusses James’ short stay in The Jackson County Jail.
The Trip:
Not much to say other than, it’s real easy to fins, and right in the middle of Independence, MO. I don’t live too far from here, so I don’t have a big travel story for this one.Conclusion:
There’s not a lot to say about this other than it’s surprising that such a famous person, obviously overshadowed by his brother, is buried in such an innocuous place as a random cemetery in Independence, MO. Aside from the obvious sites in Kearney, Missouri related to the family farm, and final resting place for Jesse, This area is a hotbed for sites related to the James Gang. There is a section in the 1859 Jail in Independence, and a Bank Robbery Museum in Liberty I have yet to make an entry on. If you are a fan of Missouri Outlaws, this is definitely a good area to look around in. Stay tuned for more!This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#frankJames #Grave #Historical #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #JamesGang #jesseJames #kansasCity #KC #missouri #MuseumTrips #outlaw
REVIEW: The Mormon Wars: The History of the Mormons’ Conflicts across the Frontier in the 19th Century (2017)
A book by Charles River Editors
I’m not a Mormon, so I’m not super privy to LDS church history in any way. I’ve known for a long time that The Book of Mormon postulates that the Biblical Garden of Eden is supposed to be situated somewhere around Independence, MO, and that they have a temple there in preparation for the Second Advent. What I did not know much about was what exactly happened that forced the Mormons out of Missouri and eventually into Utah. I knew folks apparently got tarred and feathered, what I did not realize is that a full-on war between Joseph Smith and his growing flock and the various state militias from Missouri. Being interested in local history, I feel that not knowing some sort of background in this time period is a hole in my understanding. I might eventually use this information to visit a few sites related to this in the future.
Looking around on Amazon, I found a ton of books created by the LDS Church, but I wanted to avoid those due to obvious propaganda. I don’t want to upset anyone I know that is a Mormon, but the early years of the faith are full of dark spots that I have found get glossed over entirely. The Mormon Wars: The History of the Mormons’ Conflicts across the Frontier in the 19th Century looked interesting, if not somewhat benign being a “free” book on Kindle Unlimited. I figured if it was bad, I could just send it back immediately and continue the search. I’m always weary of books like this (cheaply made, mass produced books) since some are basically re-written Wikipedia articles, some generated entirely by bots. Luckily, this one does not seem like that, and was competently written.
“Among all the various figures in 19th century America who left controversial legacies, it is hard to find one as influential as Joseph Smith (1805-1844), the founder of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Mormonism, and the Latter-Day Saint movement. Revered as a prophet on the level of Moses by some, reviled as a perpetrator of large-scale fraud by others, what everyone can agree on is that Joseph Smith founded a religious movement that played a crucial role in the settlement of the West, especially in Utah.”Publisher’s Description
The Mormons were the subject of years of persecution in various states during the early nineteenth century, most notably in Missouri. This can be chalked up to a few factors including revivalist movements finding their brand of Christianity as incompatible with a Southern lifestyle, and oh yeah there’s that whole slavery thing the Mormons were very much against. Granted, The LDS leadership did not make things better by creating a standing army, doing vigilante attacks using a militarized wing called the Danites, and even declaring war on Missouri itself at one point. This bloody time period resulted in multiple deaths, massacres, arrests and even the eventual death of Joseph Smith at the hands of an angry mob.
There are a few instances in this book where something is referenced that was never explained, or there is an assumption that the reader knows information that was left out. I’m not sure if this is due to the use of inline references, or the fact that sections were summarized from another source, but that was the only real blemish that this book had. You can’t beat the cost, and its a competent summarization of the conflict itself without going too much into the doctrine of Joseph Smith or something that I honestly would not care about. In a way, the narrative is somewhat against the Mormons, but that can be explained due to the use of contemporary sources, many of which would not be a fan of their side of the story at all. I plan to see a few museums in Independence about this time period, it will be interesting to see how insanely polar opposite their account will be (they are LDS run I believe), I think I’d be able to draw a conclusion from the middle at that point.
If you like what you just read, and would like a copy for yourself, please look at this LINK. This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #holyWar #Independence #IndependenceMo #JacksonCounty #Kansas #missouri #MuseumTrips #outlaws #Religion #vigilante #vigilantism
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 7) Historic Liberty Jail
Not being a Mormon or Latter Day Saint of any manner made me weary of visiting any of the Mormon landmarks in this area. While I think it’s a VERY important part of the history of Western Missouri, I didn’t want to have anything to do with missionary efforts or attempts at recruitment. When I was in Liberty Missouri earlier this week, I decided to suck it up and see what happened. Luckily, this was a good idea as Liberty Jail, located near downtown Liberty, Missouri was a quick and easy stop on my History Tour and was absolutely free!
Historic Liberty Jail; Liberty, MO
I mostly wanted to visit these sites to see the other side of the narrative on the Mormon persecution. Having read a book on the so-called “Mormon Wars”, I can see that this area has a dark background dealing with faiths different than the Southern Protestant backbone of this part of the country. While the historical documents paint the historical Mormons as evil would-be conquerors, they paint themselves as peaceful victims. I’m sure the truth lies somewhere in the middle, but I wanted to experience one of their Holy Sites firsthand.
Background
According to the website for the landmark:
“Liberty Jail, located in Liberty, Missouri, is a reconstruction of a jail where the Prophet Joseph Smith received divine revelations of comfort in March 1839. The reconstructed jail is housed within a Latter-day Saint visitors’ center that interprets these revelations about the persecutions and sufferings of the Saints and the peace promised to those who endure in faith.The reconstructed Liberty Jail is presented as a cutaway, giving visitors a view inside. A brief audio presentation tells the story of the jail. On December 1, 1838, the Prophet Joseph Smith and five other men were falsely accused of treason and imprisoned in the original Liberty Jail. One of those men, Sidney Rigdon, was released from the jail in early February 1839. The others—Joseph and Hyrum Smith, Lyman Wight, Caleb Baldwin, and Alexander McRae—remained there until early April 1839. For Joseph Smith and his imprisoned companions, Liberty Jail was a place of intense suffering and glorious revelation.
In Liberty Jail, Joseph Smith and his companions endured many trials, not the least of which was the knowledge that their family members and friends were enduring intense persecution throughout western Missouri. Toward the end of their confinement, Joseph prayed to God for understanding and deliverance. He received a revelation that he sent in a letter to the Saints. Portions of that letter are now recorded in Doctrine and Covenants 121, 122, and 123. President Joseph Fielding Smith dedicated the recreated jail and the surrounding visitors’ center on September 15, 1963.”
Reading
For this trip, and possibly another one, I read a book on the Mormon Wars called The Mormon Wars: The History of the Mormons’ Conflicts across the Frontier in the 19th Century (2017). When looking for a book like this you usually have two types of books, anti-LDS books that want to ridicule everything they stand for, a sort of book that I always see at Christian bookstores for whatever reason (ignoring those glass houses yet again), and books written by The Saints themselves. Neither of these are books I wanted because they are basically both entirely one-sided for opposite reasons. I saw that this book had polarizing scores on Amazon, but seemed to present the facts as-is, which is why I chose it. As stated above, I think the truth is somewhere in the middle due to the book’s use of primary sources (which were usually anti-Mormon at the time).
The Trip
This was really a no-brainer – after going to the Clay County Museum, and the Jesse James Bank Museum, it was literally a two block walk to Liberty Jail, so I couldn’t pass it up. One of my friends joked about the fact that I’ve been seeing tons of jails this summer, which is pretty funny. It seems like this area loves historic jails! Once arriving in the building, we were greeted by a tour guide who led us into the briefing room of the museum. This is where we were given a short presentation on the Mormon wars and why The Prophet Joseph Smith ended up in jail in the first place. Mormons were embroiled in constant tit-for-tat skirmishes with whatever local militia they happened to come across. Overblown rumors abound and both sides did not really help the situation by basically declaring war on each other. After a number of massacres against The Saints, Joseph Smith turned himself in and was imprisoned throughout the cold winter of 1838 for treason. This site is seen in a similar manner to sites of Jesus’s greatest trials to the Mormons, as their prophet endured rough conditions in the facility for an upcoming trial that never really happened. There is scholarly debate as to whether the imprisonment was just.
The prison has been faithfully re-created in a large atrium in the facility; designed in a cutaway manner, the building can be observed from the outside with an impression of the conditions, the wall-thickness, ventilation, and small size. This is accompanied by the verbal tour given by the guide interspliced with audio queues he controlled with a remote. The entire presentation is slick, and gives you an idea why this site is so important, and why people drive hundreds, if not, thousands of miles to see it. It’s a bit preachy for obvious reasons, but they take care to not go overboard. I never once felt that I was being judged or anything, even though I could tell the guide was fairly certain I was not a member. There was no effort to recruit, nor did they even ask if I was a Mormon. It was presented in a straight historical context I appreciated.
Conclusion
This won’t be for everyone, as I know many will avoid religious sites for the preachiness that usually comes hand-in-hand with it. Not being a Christian, and seeing Christian religious intolerance first-hand, means I have some sympathy for the Mormons, despite having issues with their message. Rather than go after different faiths for their differences, I try to understand where they are coming from if I can. Being that this chapter of local history is almost entirely ignored (or even suppressed) for obvious reasons (Jackson & Clay County folks aren’t really the good guys) it’s good to learn about so that similar things won’t happen in the future. I recommend this if you have never seen it, especially of you are in town. The entire presentation only takes around thirty minutes so its pretty quick as well.
This is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #HolySites #Independence #Jail #JosephSmith #KansasCityMissouri #LDS #Liberty #LibertyJail #LibertyMissouri #missouri #MormonWars #Mormons #MuseumTrips #ReligiousSite
REVIEW: The Mormon Wars: The History of the Mormons’ Conflicts across the Frontier in the 19th Century (2017)
A book by Charles River Editors
I’m not a Mormon, so I’m not super privy to LDS church history in any way. I’ve known for a long time that The Book of Mormon postulates that the Biblical Garden of Eden is supposed to be situated somewhere around Independence, MO, and that they have a temple there in preparation for the Second Advent. What I did not know much about was what exactly happened that forced the Mormons out of Missouri and eventually into Utah. I knew folks apparently got tarred and feathered, what I did not realize is that a full-on war between Joseph Smith and his growing flock and the various state militias from Missouri. Being interested in local history, I feel that not knowing some sort of background in this time period is a hole in my understanding. I might eventually use this information to visit a few sites related to this in the future.Looking around on Amazon, I found a ton of books created by the LDS Church, but I wanted to avoid those due to obvious propaganda. I don’t want to upset anyone I know that is a Mormon, but the early years of the faith are full of dark spots that I have found get glossed over entirely. The Mormon Wars: The History of the Mormons’ Conflicts across the Frontier in the 19th Century looked interesting, if not somewhat benign being a “free” book on Kindle Unlimited. I figured if it was bad, I could just send it back immediately and continue the search. I’m always weary of books like this (cheaply made, mass produced books) since some are basically re-written Wikipedia articles, some generated entirely by bots. Luckily, this one does not seem like that, and was competently written.
“Among all the various figures in 19th century America who left controversial legacies, it is hard to find one as influential as Joseph Smith (1805-1844), the founder of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Mormonism, and the Latter-Day Saint movement. Revered as a prophet on the level of Moses by some, reviled as a perpetrator of large-scale fraud by others, what everyone can agree on is that Joseph Smith founded a religious movement that played a crucial role in the settlement of the West, especially in Utah.”Publisher’s Description
The Mormons were the subject of years of persecution in various states during the early nineteenth century, most notably in Missouri. This can be chalked up to a few factors including revivalist movements finding their brand of Christianity as incompatible with a Southern lifestyle, and oh yeah there’s that whole slavery thing the Mormons were very much against. Granted, The LDS leadership did not make things better by creating a standing army, doing vigilante attacks using a militarized wing called the Danites, and even declaring war on Missouri itself at one point. This bloody time period resulted in multiple deaths, massacres, arrests and even the eventual death of Joseph Smith at the hands of an angry mob.There are a few instances in this book where something is referenced that was never explained, or there is an assumption that the reader knows information that was left out. I’m not sure if this is due to the use of inline references, or the fact that sections were summarized from another source, but that was the only real blemish that this book had. You can’t beat the cost, and its a competent summarization of the conflict itself without going too much into the doctrine of Joseph Smith or something that I honestly would not care about. In a way, the narrative is somewhat against the Mormons, but that can be explained due to the use of contemporary sources, many of which would not be a fan of their side of the story at all. I plan to see a few museums in Independence about this time period, it will be interesting to see how insanely polar opposite their account will be (they are LDS run I believe), I think I’d be able to draw a conclusion from the middle at that point.
If you like what you just read, and would like a copy for yourself, please look at this LINK. This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #holyWar #Independence #IndependenceMo #JacksonCounty #Kansas #missouri #MuseumTrips #outlaws #Religion #vigilante #vigilantism
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 8) Clay County Museum
After going to Lexington, Missouri earlier in the year, I discovered that a small battle had occurred at Liberty, Missouri directly leading into that more famous siege. I knew there wasn’t a big battle museum or anything, but wondered if it was recorded anywhere at all. Thankfully, the battle is honored to a degree at the Clay County Museum, a large three story historical building located on the Courthouse Square in that town.
Clay County Museum; Liberty, MO
This was part of a three museum day trip that my son and I made, including a Jesse James Bank Museum, and a historic Jail – both of which will also get entries in this series. my main draw for this was definitely the Civil War battle, but what I found was pretty cool!
Background
Information on the building itself can be found on the museum’s official webpage:
“A variety of exhibits and ever changing displays acquaints visitors with Clay County’s past history. The newly renovated lower level features early cottage industries, farming equipment, tools, a vintage kitchen, a “touch table” and 1900s Boy Scout equipment. The main floor is divided by a glass partition with vintage display cases filled with china, toys, railroad artifacts and apothecary paraphernalia. Behind the partition the visitor will find letters by the Jesse James family; Civil War, WWI and WWII items; antiques quilts; and Native American artifacts. The 2nd floor includes Dr. Goodson’s office, as set up by his son also Dr. Goodson; 3 rooms of antique furniture; and displays of the county courthouses, vintage sewing machines and other bits and pieces of the past. “
For information on the battle, let’s consult our old friend Wikipedia:Battle Map
“The action at Blue Mills Landing, also known as the Battle of Liberty, was a battle of the American Civil War that took place on September 17, 1861, in Clay County, Missouri. Union forces unsuccessfully attempted to prevent pro-Southern Missouri State Guards from northwestern Missouri from crossing the Missouri River near the confluence with the Blue River to reinforce Sterling Price at Lexington.Lieutenant-Colonel Scott broke camp at 2:00 A.M. on 17 September. He arrived in Liberty at 7:00 A.M. At that point Southern troops were already crossing the Missouri River at Blue Mills Landing. Lt. Colonel Scott sent 20 mounted scouts towards the landing to locate the enemy and determine the status of their crossing. At a location near the modern day intersection of Liberty Landing Road and Old Highway 210, the rear guard of Atchison’s troops waited in ambush. The Union scouts rode directly into the trap with four of their men killed and a fifth severely wounded. The surviving scouts retreated back towards Liberty. At noon, Scott began moving his entire force towards the river landing.
General Atchison, who had lived in Liberty, deployed his men in the brush on either side of the Missouri River bottom land road leading to the landing. At about 3:00 P.M., Scott’s troops encountered the State Guard pickets and were attacked from both sides.
Scott’s artillerymen fired two rounds of canister, inflicting some damage. However, a fresh volley from the State Guards scattered or killed most of the gunners. Scott ordered his outnumbered force to fall back towards Liberty, hauling off the gun by hand. Atchison attempted a flanking movement on the Federal right, which resulted in a sharp fight. The Union force continued to withdraw, firing as they retreated, taking with them nearly all their wounded, but abandoning their ammunition wagon and a caisson. The State Guard pursued for some distance, but Atchison did not press the attack.
Just before nightfall, Scott’s force retired to Liberty, entering the town about an hour after sunset. Atchison and the State Guards from northern Missouri crossed the river to reinforce Price in his successful attack on Lexington. After sunset the Union troops returned to retrieve their dead from the field. The battle, which lasted about an hour, was a decisive victory for the Pro-Southern Missouri State Guard.”
Reading
For information on The Battle of Liberty / The Battle of Blue Mills Landing, I’d recommend The Siege of Lexington, Missouri by Larry Wood. The Battle of Liberty is a somewhat minor battle, so there isn’t a ton of scholarship on it all by itself, but there is a decent amount of information in this book. The battle itself leads directly into the First Battle of Lexington. Truthfully, the Wikipedia blurb I posted above has more information on the battle itself than any book I’ve read.
The Trip
If you are going specifically for information on the Civil War battle, you may be a tad disappointed because the exhibit on the battle, while being thorough” is on a series of signs in the middle of the museum. There are also a number of artifacts of the battle including rifles, bullets, and a large canon. The majority of the museum honors other facets of the Clay County experience, such as a antiquated doctor’s office on the third floor, complete with an audio tour component accessed via a very inviting red button. There are tons of clothes including war uniforms for just about every war the US has participated in, and even a huge machinegun from WWI. A nice little surprise for me was a robust Native American artifact exhibit that has rivaled other exhibits I’ve seen.
We really enjoyed a video presentation on the Battle itself held in a side room of the museum, the 20 minute or so presentation summed up everything we’d need to know about the Battle itself, and featured re-enactors dramatizing the events.
Conclusion
This was a good county museum, and although something more centered on the battle would have been cool, it’s a small battle and they devoted quite a bot of space to it amongst the other artifacts that are literally filling the walls. If you are in Liberty, I’d recommend my three museum tour that I recommended above, admission to this one is free, but donations are suggested.
This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #Liberty #LibertyMissouri #missouri #MuseumTrips
1861 battle of the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War
Contributors to Wikimedia projects (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.)2021: History Boy Summer (Part 2) Battle of Lexington State Historic Site / Oliver Anderson House
Here we are again, yet another entry into my project “History Boy Summer” which is just an excuse for me to blog about my recent attempt to visit a bunch of museums this year. Last time, we looked at a War of 1812 era military fort and trading post, this week we are shifting forward to a Civil War battlefield.One thing that has always bothered me about how many discuss the American Civil War is the complete and utter downplaying of anything that happened west of the Mississippi River. Being from Kansas originally, but spending near 30 years in Bushwhacker territory (That’s Missouri), it’s crazy how important this area was to the war in the beginning, an ultimately it’s end as well. One can argue that The Civil War STARTED in Kansas in the mid 1850s. One of my future incursions will hopefully be to the John Brown Museum in Osawatomie, Kansas where I will go into more detail about the period of time called “Bleeding Kansas“, and if you are unaware what that is, please look it up – the story is wild!
Battle of Lexington State Historic Site / Oliver Anderson House: Lexington, MO
Today I will be looking at one of my favorite historic sites, and Civil War battles for that matter – The Battle of Lexington a.k.a. “The Battle of the Hemp Bales“. lasting from September 13-20 1861, this siege always fascinated me because of the ingenuity of the Missouri State Guard (aligned with the secessionists). Instead of bum-rushing a Federal Fortress repurposed from an old College building owned by the Freemasons (and likely getting massacred), a call was made to create a moving bulwark of wet hemp bales to slowly get closer and closer to the fortress rendering any sort of defensive measure worthless. It was a tactic that impressed people so much, that random people often gushed about it. Many years later, in his book The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government, Southern president Jefferson Davis opined that “The expedient of the bales of hemp was a brilliant conception, not unlike that which made Tarik, the Saracen warrior, immortal, and gave his name to the northern pillar of Hercules.”I always loved visiting The Oliver Anderson house as a kid. It’s riddled with bullet holes and cannon shot, when most would have patched any damage up soon after the war. Being able to see things like the physical scarring of a battlefield makes it that much more real for me. When I was a kid, there wasn’t any sort of visitor’s Center like they have today. From what I understand, it was built in 1994 or so, and is a great addition to the grounds with the sole exception being that you can no longer see the house from the road. This was another nostalgic trip for me, I honestly don’t think I’ve been here for upwards of 20+ years or so.
Background:
According to our old buddy Wikipedia:“The siege of Lexington, also known as the Battle of First Lexington, was a minor conflict of the American Civil War. The siege took place from September 13 to 20, 1861 between the Union Army and the pro-Confederate Missouri State Guard in Lexington, county seat of Lafayette County, Missouri. The victory won by the Missouri Guard bolstered the considerable Southern sentiment in the area, and briefly consolidated Missouri State Guard control of the Missouri River Valley in the western part of the state.Prior to the American Civil War, Lexington was an agricultural town of over 4,000 residents that served as the county seat of Lafayette County and enjoyed a position of considerable local importance on the Missouri River in west-central Missouri. Hemp (used for rope production), tobacco, coal and cattle all contributed to the town’s wealth, as did the river trade. Though Missouri remained in the Union during the war, many of Lexington’s residents were slaveowners, and several openly sympathized with the Southern cause. Lafayette County had a high ratio of slaves to free persons, with slaves comprising 31.7% of its population.”
There was a “Second Battle of Lexington, MO in 1864 that kind of flies under the radar a bit due to how minor it is on it’s own. As part of Major-General Sterling Price’s ill-fated Missouri expedition, a brief skirmish happened in Lexington between Price and Federal Major General James Blunt. If anything, Blunt used the exercise more to size-up Price’s forces as he marched towards the state line, allowing time for people to prepare for battle in Jackson County and slow Price down. Price was ultimately forced to leave the state after back-to-back defeats in Westport and Mine Creek, ultimately taking Missouri off of the Confederate table.Reading:
For this trip, I read a book by Larry Wood entitled: The Siege of Lexington, Missouri: The Battle of the Hemp Bales Which is part of a series of books based on various Civil War Battles released during the 150th anniversary. I had mentioned in my previous article:” I want to know what’s going on, just in case they are either closed, the guided tours don’t happen, or its slanted in one direction or another for political reasons. I was really worried about the latter in regards to my next topic (Battle of Lexington), but I will get to that next time.”Me
I said this because I clearly remember visiting The Oliver Anderson House as a kid, and watching the obligatory video in the visitor’s center, to get a one-sided account of the events as told through the lens of “Lost Cause” mythology. It was very much “Here we were, all chivalrous and Southern, and these evil Yankees took the town over and did bad stuff”. As a kid, it seemed at odds with things I knew about the Civil War in Missouri, but I left it at that. As I got older, I realized what was going on and took it with a grain of salt. I wanted to read this book to get all the facts BEFORE I went in, and I think it helped me a lot. Even before I took one of my tours, I had a long discussion with one of the living history interpreters, and I feel like my knowledge from this book made it that much more special.While, I will suggest reading my full book review HERE, I will say briefly that this was a very well-done book (as are most in this series), and I want to read more by Mr. Wood. If you would like your own copy, check this link out.
The Trip:
Lexington is a short-ish drive from the majority of Kansas City, traffic isn’t an issue and I had no trouble finding it with my GPS. My only issue was that there is currently some sort of road construction going on that resulted in a detour, so if you plan to follow my lead, be prepared for that. As I stated before, the facility is comprised of three parts 1) The Battle of Lexington Battlefield, The Visitor’s Center, and the Oliver Anderson House. While you pass some of the battlefield markers on the way in, the site offers a tour for five dollars a head that will walk a patron through the Anderson House or the Battlefield itself. One ticket is good for both. On my particular trip, it looked likely for rain, so I decided to forgo the battlefield tour, with a hope that I will be back again at some point. I did however stop off on the road and look at some of it myself.The visitors center is a large building with a theater for the video presentation, a gift shop area, and a museum filled with battlefield artifacts and exhibits. It’s a smaller museum that would take anywhere from 10-30 minutes to get through depending on how much you stop to read. I mentioned my wariness of the video, and to my surprise, there was a new presentation that was not at all as slanted as the 1990’s version. One of the interpreters even mentioned that they took great care to make it a lot less one-sided. The gift shop actually has a decent selection of items specifically related to the site itself, sometimes you go to these things and you see a bunch of books about Gettysburg or something, while cool it doesn’t really reflect why you are where you are. I of course, went with a stack of facsimile steamboat tickets and fake Civil-War era money as I collect stuff like that from time-to-time.
Since I decided to forgo the main battlefield tour (sadly it never rained so I could have done it) I spent some time chatting with a few interpreters that were handling the gift shop at the time. The information was very interesting and I learned a lot about some planned upcoming events and general history of the area that you wouldn’t really get on either tour.My time came to finally go into the Oliver Anderson House, which is located behind the visitor’s center. When the Union army came into town and took over the Masonic College, the huge plantation field around the Anderson House ended up becoming the battlefield. The house itself sat smack-dab in the middle of this field, so it was seized by Union troops and converted into a field hospital. Oliver Anderson, and his family, were made to answer questions on their loyalty to the Federal Government, since he had not signed his card and held slaves, he was unwilling to say he denounced the Confederates. As a result, he was evicted.
The house itself became a focal point of the battle with claims that the Union troops were using it to shoot from, which is unfortunate because using a hospital to fire from is an offense on the supposed “rules of warfare” of the day. State Guard troops successfully took the house over, then planted sharpshooters on the rooftops and windows, basically doing the same questionable thing. Finally the Federals were able to re-capture the house, executing many of the soldiers inside. As you can see The house’s history is mired in controversy, and many aspects of the battle had to be deliberated on in court after the fact.
Due to this fighting, the house is riddled with scars of the battle. All of the windows on the second floor have bullet holes around all of the walls. It’s quite jarring to walk around seeing places where soldiers likely died in battle, such as the outsides of almost all of the windows. Surprisingly, this is all preserved because the owners of the house, at the turn of the century, made a deliberate call to not fix any of the war damage in any way. The rest of the house is filled with furnishings, most of which from that second family, of the time. Nothing is temperature controlled and nothing is behind glass – its as if you are going back in time to the exact way the house was being used in the past.
Probably one of my favorite areas to explore is the second floor. One of the main rooms became the “operating room” of the hospital. Doors were pulled from hinges and tossed on sawhorses as men were hacked to pieces in the name of primitive medicine. There was so much blood involved, holes were drilled into the floor and the grisly fluids were allowed to drain into a basin on the first story. I can’t imagine how morbid such a sight would be.
The tour was very informative, and gave lots of information on the day-to-day like of people during the mid 1800s. If you are there, you are truly missing out on not taking it.
Conclusion:
This is yet another great way to spend a summer day here in Missouri. If you are a lover of Civil War History, antebellum architecture, local history, or even macabre things, this is a cool place to visit. Granted, a lot of my love for visiting this comes from the nostalgia I get going back to places I loved as a kid, but this site seems to be a complete package and can fill out a full day with activities if one plans it right. My recommendation – take the tours, especially if you don’t know anything about the battles or the site itself. Its really cheap and well-worth it. Join me again very soon, as I visit a site that I’ve actually never been before, it’s another Civil war battlefield, this time much later in the war.This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #Battlefield #civilWar #dayTrip #Historical #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #KansasCityMissouri #Lexington #LexingtonMissouri #missouri #museum #MuseumTrips #War
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 20) Jesse James Bank Museum
I’m not sure why I didn’t post this one before, but my recent trip to Liberty, MO in July involved stops at three different museums: The Clay County Museum, Liberty jail, and The Jesse James Bank Museum. If you plan to stop there, all three are located on the Historic Square, and are within walking distance of each other on different sides of the courthouse. I’m not super huge into Jesse James stuff, to be completely honest – I stated before that I think the mythology around him overshadows the historical aspect he had, but considering how much he is tied into my local history scene, I feel like I need to at least try to experience some of his biggest moments. This small bank in Liberty, MO is noteworthy for being the very first daytime bank robbery in the entire United States – and perhaps one of the James Gang’s most notorious robberies.
Jesse James Bank Museum; Liberty, MO
One of these days I need to make the trip up to Kearney, MO and visit some of the “bigger” Jesse James stuff – perhaps an idea for next year!
Background:
According to the site’s homepage:
“The Jesse James Bank Museum, located on the historic square in Liberty, Missouri, was the site of the nation’s first successful daylight peacetime bank robbery. While the robbers were never caught, the crime was attributed to the infamous James Gang. Visitors will see the bank as it was in 1866.It was a cold and snowy February afternoon when a group of horsemen rode into Liberty, Missouri. After a short time, gunshots broke the winter silence as the men rode off with their loot, leaving one young college student dead and the town in shock.
Period furnishings fill the room and one becomes immersed in the story of the robbery as told by the bank teller. As you peer into the original green vault you can imagine the fear felt by the poor, distraught banker and his son, a consequence of the robbery. Among the furnishings, a rare Seth Thomas clock, one of only two known to exist, hangs on the wall set for the exact time and date of the robbery, February 13, 1866. Many photographs and other documents are on display. “
Reading:
I actually have a different book I am planning on reading soon, but as of this moment I am going to reference a book I recently read from Netgalley called Outlaws of the Wild West (2021) Click there for a link to my review. I’m sure there are better books out there, but it was an interesting look at some of the more notorious Outlaws of the Wild West. This book is mostly not about the James Gang, but a good bit of real estate definitely talks about he and his crew and their daring daylight robbery of this very bank.
The Trip:
I live barely ten miles from Liberty, MO – so this was not a bad trip at all. Liberty has a pretty nice downtown area – full of little shops and the obligatory courthouse square that just about every town around has – I was excited to find out all three of these museums were so close together, as it made for a fun-filled day without the stress of hunting around for things that I am unfamiliar with. The Jesse James Bank Museum costs a small fee to enter, and hosts a small collection of period and reproduction artifacts of how the bank may have looked during the robbery itself. There is a gift shop, and a special room that has rare items not allowed to be photographed. Honestly, it’s a fairly short trip and doesn’t have much to experience, but its cheap so I wasn’t too annoyed. Perhaps one of these days, they can add things like a video presentation or more information placards, maybe even a tour guide?
Conclusion:
This was a cool, albeit somewhat short experience – I wish there was more information and interactivity involved. In a way, it was sort of like “here you go – look in there” and that was that. That said, I liked seeing the artifacts, and the gift shop was definitely well-stocked. I’m not sure its a great place to take a kid, since there isn’t much to see, but there are toy guns and stuff at the gift shop, so there’s a trade off. Stay tuned for more, as I frantically try to finish this series up before summer officially ends! I can almost guarantee there will be spillover, but oh well!
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#bank #bankRobbery #frankJames #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #JamesGang #jesseJames #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #Liberty #LibertyMissouri #missouri #MuseumTrips #outlaw #outlaws #robbery #wildWest
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 8) Clay County Museum
After going to Lexington, Missouri earlier in the year, I discovered that a small battle had occurred at Liberty, Missouri directly leading into that more famous siege. I knew there wasn’t a big battle museum or anything, but wondered if it was recorded anywhere at all. Thankfully, the battle is honored to a degree at the Clay County Museum, a large three story historical building located on the Courthouse Square in that town.Clay County Museum; Liberty, MO
This was part of a three museum day trip that my son and I made, including a Jesse James Bank Museum, and a historic Jail – both of which will also get entries in this series. my main draw for this was definitely the Civil War battle, but what I found was pretty cool!Background
Information on the building itself can be found on the museum’s official webpage:“A variety of exhibits and ever changing displays acquaints visitors with Clay County’s past history. The newly renovated lower level features early cottage industries, farming equipment, tools, a vintage kitchen, a “touch table” and 1900s Boy Scout equipment. The main floor is divided by a glass partition with vintage display cases filled with china, toys, railroad artifacts and apothecary paraphernalia. Behind the partition the visitor will find letters by the Jesse James family; Civil War, WWI and WWII items; antiques quilts; and Native American artifacts. The 2nd floor includes Dr. Goodson’s office, as set up by his son also Dr. Goodson; 3 rooms of antique furniture; and displays of the county courthouses, vintage sewing machines and other bits and pieces of the past. “
For information on the battle, let’s consult our old friend Wikipedia:Battle Map
“The action at Blue Mills Landing, also known as the Battle of Liberty, was a battle of the American Civil War that took place on September 17, 1861, in Clay County, Missouri. Union forces unsuccessfully attempted to prevent pro-Southern Missouri State Guards from northwestern Missouri from crossing the Missouri River near the confluence with the Blue River to reinforce Sterling Price at Lexington.Lieutenant-Colonel Scott broke camp at 2:00 A.M. on 17 September. He arrived in Liberty at 7:00 A.M. At that point Southern troops were already crossing the Missouri River at Blue Mills Landing. Lt. Colonel Scott sent 20 mounted scouts towards the landing to locate the enemy and determine the status of their crossing. At a location near the modern day intersection of Liberty Landing Road and Old Highway 210, the rear guard of Atchison’s troops waited in ambush. The Union scouts rode directly into the trap with four of their men killed and a fifth severely wounded. The surviving scouts retreated back towards Liberty. At noon, Scott began moving his entire force towards the river landing.
General Atchison, who had lived in Liberty, deployed his men in the brush on either side of the Missouri River bottom land road leading to the landing. At about 3:00 P.M., Scott’s troops encountered the State Guard pickets and were attacked from both sides.
Scott’s artillerymen fired two rounds of canister, inflicting some damage. However, a fresh volley from the State Guards scattered or killed most of the gunners. Scott ordered his outnumbered force to fall back towards Liberty, hauling off the gun by hand. Atchison attempted a flanking movement on the Federal right, which resulted in a sharp fight. The Union force continued to withdraw, firing as they retreated, taking with them nearly all their wounded, but abandoning their ammunition wagon and a caisson. The State Guard pursued for some distance, but Atchison did not press the attack.
Just before nightfall, Scott’s force retired to Liberty, entering the town about an hour after sunset. Atchison and the State Guards from northern Missouri crossed the river to reinforce Price in his successful attack on Lexington. After sunset the Union troops returned to retrieve their dead from the field. The battle, which lasted about an hour, was a decisive victory for the Pro-Southern Missouri State Guard.”
Reading
For information on The Battle of Liberty / The Battle of Blue Mills Landing, I’d recommend The Siege of Lexington, Missouri by Larry Wood. The Battle of Liberty is a somewhat minor battle, so there isn’t a ton of scholarship on it all by itself, but there is a decent amount of information in this book. The battle itself leads directly into the First Battle of Lexington. Truthfully, the Wikipedia blurb I posted above has more information on the battle itself than any book I’ve read.
The Trip
If you are going specifically for information on the Civil War battle, you may be a tad disappointed because the exhibit on the battle, while being thorough” is on a series of signs in the middle of the museum. There are also a number of artifacts of the battle including rifles, bullets, and a large canon. The majority of the museum honors other facets of the Clay County experience, such as a antiquated doctor’s office on the third floor, complete with an audio tour component accessed via a very inviting red button. There are tons of clothes including war uniforms for just about every war the US has participated in, and even a huge machinegun from WWI. A nice little surprise for me was a robust Native American artifact exhibit that has rivaled other exhibits I’ve seen.We really enjoyed a video presentation on the Battle itself held in a side room of the museum, the 20 minute or so presentation summed up everything we’d need to know about the Battle itself, and featured re-enactors dramatizing the events.
Conclusion
This was a good county museum, and although something more centered on the battle would have been cool, it’s a small battle and they devoted quite a bot of space to it amongst the other artifacts that are literally filling the walls. If you are in Liberty, I’d recommend my three museum tour that I recommended above, admission to this one is free, but donations are suggested.This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #Liberty #LibertyMissouri #missouri #MuseumTrips
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 5) Second Battle of Independence Historic Markers Driving Tour
I was kind of sad that no local museum really goes over the majority of Price’s Raid of Missouri, I assume The Battle of Westport State Historic Site might concentrate on it, or even Mine Creek, but as of this chapter of my little summer project, I have yet to visit either. Digging through one of the tourism pages for Independence, MO and a site I found to catalogue historic markers called HMdb, I discovered that there were in fact markers for the Independence portion of this. I originally was going to do an old driving tour that they had up in brochure form, but it appeared to consist of stopping at residential houses, and I wasn’t a fan of that – historic markers are fine! I knew about one of these markers since I used to live about 100 feet from it (marker B), but the rest were a mystery. I have pieced together a list for you, if anyone would like to do this, so that you don’t have to research this like crazy like I did. You see also see some of my continuing frustration with how this area takes care of their historic markers, literally right off the bat.
Second Battle of Independence Historic Markers Driving Tour; Independence, MO
For this chapter, I plan to give you all some pictures of the markers, directions to them, and a transcription of what they say if they are unreadable. Sadly, it seems that this area has a bit of an issue with keeping these up, you will notice that markers A and B are especially in bad shape. Luckily a few of them have been overhauled considerably, like C – so there’s hope.
Background:
According to our buddy Wikipedia:
“The Second Battle of Independence was fought on October 22, 1864, as part of Price’s Raid during the American Civil War. In late 1864, Major General Sterling Price of the Confederate States Army led a cavalry force into the state of Missouri in the hopes of creating a popular uprising against Union control, drawing Union Army troops from more important areas, and influencing the 1864 United States Presidential Election. Price was opposed by a combination of Union Army and Kansas State Militia forces positioned near Kansas City and led by Major General Samuel R. Curtis. In addition, Union cavalry under Major General Alfred Pleasonton followed Price from the east. While moving westwards along the Missouri River, Price’s men made contact with Union troops at the Little Blue River on October 21. After forcing the Union soldiers to retreat in the Battle of Little Blue River, the Confederates occupied the city of Independence, Missouri.On October 22, part of Price’s force pushed Curtis’s men across the Big Blue River, while Pleasonton drove back Confederate defenders from the Little Blue. Confederate troops from the divisions of Major General James F. Fagan and Brigadier General John S. Marmaduke resisted Pleasonton’s advance. Two Union brigades forced the Confederates through Independence, capturing two cannons and 300 men in the process. While Pleasonton brought up two fresh brigades, the Confederates regrouped southwest of town. Further Union pressure drove the defenders back, and fighting continued until after dark. By the end of October 22, almost all of the Confederate forces had fallen back across the Big Blue. The next day, Price was defeated in the Battle of Westport, and his men fell back through Kansas, suffering further defeats on the way before reaching Texas. The Confederates suffered heavy losses during the campaign. The battlefield has since been covered over by the growth of Independence.”Reading:
My reading for this trip is confusingly Jeffrey Stalnaker’s The Battle of Mine Creek, a book I have already covered at this point. I will likely use this a few times, as the first third of the book (about 50 pages) summarizes the tensions in Missouri and Kansas as well as the entirety of the ill-fated raid that Major General Sterling Price attempted in Missouri. There is a separate book on The Battle of Westport, that I need to read before I eventually go to that site, for all I know it will add even more to my knowledge of the situation. For a link to purchase a copy of this book, click that review link for details.
Honestly the above linked Wikipedia page is also very detailed considering the status of either of these as “minor battles”.Price’s ill-fated raid, the attempt to take over Missouri ends in a crushing defeat in Westport, and later in Mine Creek in Kansas.
The Trip:
GPS Waypoints:
Marker A: N39 08.211 W94 18.756
Marker B: N39 08.044 W94 18.824
Marker C: N39 08.094 W94 20.495
Marker D: N39 05.529 W94 24.939
Marker E: N39 05.481 W94 25.636
Marker F: N39 05.239 W94 25.941
Or here’s a map I put together using Google Maps:
Marker A:
This was was terrible to get to. I never realized there was a historical marker here and I can see why. This marker is hidden on the side of the highway, with no way to stop at it, and around fifteen feet of thick Brush between the road and the marker itself. I had to pull up to a driveway for a tree farm near the bridge across the Little Blue River, walk along the side of the highway for about 100 yards, crossing the bridge (not something I like to do on foot), and the best shot I could get was a blurry unreadable one. I borrowed a clear picture from HMdb if you want to see what it actually looks like. The fact that there is literally no way to get to this without likely trespassing is somewhat annoying, I wish a small park could be made (Like Marker C) or at least make it accessible through a trail or something.
“Here on the morning of October 21, 1864 General Marmaduke’s Confederate forces attacked Union troops under Colonel Moonlight drawn up on the hill to the west. Federal resistance was fierce until 10 A.M. When General Shelby’s Confederate cavalry moving up on the main road caused Moonlight to fall back to Independence.”
I honestly don’t recommend trying to stop at this marker, I went on an observed holiday and the highway wasn’t very busy. I’m also pretty sure I pissed off the tree farm by using their driveway to park in. There was another pull-off before that I did not see until it was too late, but it would have resulted in a blind reverse situation that would also be not very safe. You can get an Idea of what the Little Blue River may have looked like at Marker B, so there’s that. Please be careful out there! If you do decide to stop, travel East on 24 towards the exit for 7 highway and Fort Osage High School, turn around at the exit, and travel a few miles back. The marker is on the right side just before the bridge over the Little Blue River.
Marker B:
Marker B sits in the parking lot in a small park on Old Lexington Road. The site consists of a covered picnic area, a bike/walking trail (although I saw a ton of bikers there) and two placards – one is marker B, and one is a sign for Price’s Raid. Pictures are both above, and I will post transcriptions.
The Marker:
“Approximately 15,000 troops of Confederate General Sterling Price’s Army of Missouri, including guerrilla leader George Todd, engaged 3,500 Union soldiers under the command of Major General James G. Blunt on the western bluffs of the Little Blue River. With Blunt was Senator James H. Lane and Kansas ‘Red Legs’ under Colonel Charles R. Jennison.The six hour engagement ended between four and five in the afternoon, with Union forces forced to retreat eight miles west to Independence where a final attempt was made by the Kansas Eleventh Cavalry to hold the town. Price’s Confederate Army of Missouri occupied Independence o the evening of October 21st.”
The Placard for Price’s Raid currently has the appearance of being intentionally broken by somebody – a better version of this same one stands at marker point C. If you walk along the railroad tracks for a bit, you can get a pretty good look at the Little Blue River, in a state pretty close to what I imagine it would have been like then. If you are heading East on 24 towards Buckner, Old Lexington road is a right turn just after you pass Little Blue Parkway. follow it to the end (across railroad tracks) and you will come to the park.
Marker C:
I used to live about two houses down from this marker, I remember when Pokémon Go became a big hit the traffic around this area became somewhat crazy, and it was vandalized or bumped by a car or something at one point. Luckily, since I’ve lived at my current house a chapter of the Missouri State Historical Society and the Daughters of the American Revolution have erected a new versions of everything and cleaned the site up well – currently it looks awesome! As an added bonus, the site is also where the Santa Fe Trail started and there are placards for that as well. To reach marker C, head west on 24 highway from Marker B, and turn right onto Blue Mills Rd then immediately left into the park. It’s right across from a church and cemetery.
Historic Site C
“Moonlight’s Union cavalry brigade, with five guns and 1000 men, was driven from the Little blue River by Marmaduke’s and Shelby’s 5000 Confederates of Price’s Army. Moonlight stopped here and was joined by Jennison’s and Ford’s brigades of Blunt’s division with 10 guns and 2000 men. A defensive line was formed running north and south for a mile. Charges and counter charges continued until 2 PM, when Blunt withdrew. Ford fought a series of delaying actions back into Independence, pursued by Shelby’s dismounted troops.”
Price’s Raid Placard:
“By 11 a.m. on Oct. 20, 1864, Col. Thomas Moonlight had made his first movement after the Little Blue crossing. Maj. Gen. James Blunt received permission from Maj. Gen. Samuel Curtis to engage the Confederate and made a rapid movement to this position, deploying the Federal line starting at the Independence-Lexington Road and stretching for about a mile to the south. Blue dismounted his troops, sending every fourth man to the rear to hold the horses. Maj. Gen. John S. Marmaduke and Brig. Gen. Joseph O. Shelby, also dismounted, were just 60 yards over the hill. A cannonade signaled the beginning of the last movement for the battle of the Little Blue. Almost simultaneously Confederate and Federal forces swept forward into the attack. On the Confederate left Marmaduke charged into Col. Charles R. Jennison’s 15th Kansas, the 3rd Wisconsin and 2nd Colorado and Shelby on the right charged the 16th and 11th Kansas. Back and forth along these slopes the fighting was fierce and often hand to hand. After an hour Blunt had pushed the Confederates about a half mile east, but recognizing that his flanks were about to be engulfed,Blunt ordered a withdrawal back to the heights. Gen. Curtis and staff now came upon the battle and immediately shifted forward Col. W. D. McClain’s artillery, U.S.A., and 2 cannons from the 11th Kansas to a recently ploughed field, leaving them exposed to Rebel sharpshooters. Maj. R. H. Hunt, chief of artillery, U.S.A., shifted 2 more 11th Kansas cannons in support. They opened fire on the Confederates and drove them back, but exposed their left flank. The Confederates increased pressure on the Federal line and further exposed the Federal left flank. Shelby sent Col. Sidney Jackman on the attack. May. Hunt, U.S.A., seeing the attack forming, searched for help and sent for the 11th Kansas Cavalry who were beginning to pull back to Independence.
At about 3 p.m. the fight here had been going on for 4 hours. Gen. Curtis understood that he could not hold Gen. Sterling Price until Federal help could arrive from the east and so he returned to Independence, taking the ammunition wagons with him. Blunt was glad to see him go. Sometime during this fight, Moonlight realized his troops were nearly out of ammunition, but still holding them in line began the troops singing “Rally ‘Round the Flag” in order to bolster their courage. Jennison, with the 15th Kansas, 3rd Wisconsin, and Barker’s Artillery, was holding back Marmaduke on the right in a series of charges and counter charges from rock wall to rack wall, ravine to ravine.
Blunt also realized he must begin his retreat to Independence or face surrender. Forming one line while a second took up a new position, they leap-frogged line this and made stands at the Saunders and Massey farms. Blunt took up his last line of defense on the eastern edge of Independence.
“The Battle continued in Independence on oct. 22, 1864, 6 miles west, and then on to the Battle of the Big Blue at 63rd and Manchester.”
(sidebar)
Lawson Moore House 20309 E. Blue Mills Rd. (private residence)
This home was built in 1856 by Lawson Moore, a prosperous slave owner. In August of 1863 following Order No. 11 Mrs. Moore fled with her children, the oldest 19, the youngest 18 months, to Clay County, never to return. The house had survived several fires and was empty at the time of the battle. On the day of the battle it would serve as the rallying point for Shelby’s command. It was here that he took time to care for this wounded, utilizing the Moore house as a hospital. Surviving accounts would indicate that buried on the property is a mass grave of 18 Confederate soldiers and in a separate location 6 to 8 officers. It is from the draw behind this property that Shelby launched his final attack of the day.(sidebar)
“About two and one half miles from where the first attack was made, we saw the Second Colorado battery of six fine Parrott guns crossing a field on out right as we were retreating. The rebel advance was within 400 to 500 yards of the battery. Quick work must be done to save the guns, worth a thousand men to us. Colonel Moonlight commanding our brigade came galloping down the line to my company. We were the rear guard. He ordered me to countermarch and charge the enemy with my eighty-eight men in column of eight front. We charged down the road, passing the Little Blue church, straight for the enemy. I saw ahead of me a brick house, just where the road turned from a northerly course straight east, a stone fence dead head of us, and a brick house and stone fence on the right. The rebel cavalry fell back, but a line of infantry occupied the house and were down behind the fence. About 150 yards south of the house between us and the enemy, was a hollow that for a moment or two kept us out of sight and range of their guns.“As we reached the brow on the hill, a thought flashed through my mind that the first line, in which I was riding, with seven soldiers to my left, would be shot as soon as we came in sight. I clutched the pommel of my saddle and threw myself almost flat on the horse. the volley of bullets came, as I expected. I felt my horse going down, swung my feet clear of the stirrups, and fell on my horse’s neck, unhurt. Geo. W. Edwards, who fired the first shot when we were charging through Lexington the day before, fell on my back, dead. My men saw me fall and thought I was killed. They retreated back into the hollow. I jumped up and ran after them, a perfect hailstorm of bullets buzzing past me. I ordered the men to dismount. every man left his horse in the road. We then jumped the fence into an orchard and charged the brick house, and took it, driving the enemy out; then charged the stone fence and took that. At this moment I heard the yells of 400 to 500 men. Maj. J. Nelson Smith with the first and third battalions of the Second Colorado cavalry, was charging the enemy to save us, and right before us this gallant officer fell dead at the head of his command. I had a chance now to fall back, and found my horses in the hollow where I had left them. The animals showed “horse sense” enough to remain where they were safe from the bullets. This little diversion, costly to my company, saved the Colorado battery.”
Captain Henry E. Palmer, Company A, 11th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry
Erected by Civil War Round Table of Western Missouri.”
Marker D:
Marker D is in downtown Independence on the Historic Square. It sits basically at the intersection of Main Street and Truman Road, on the left when traveling north on Main Street. I parked at the Courthouse and walked over. If you are there, there are numerous other historical markers in the general vicinity including one for the First Battle of Independence, Andrew Jackson, The Oregon Trail, and even Harry S Truman.
“After heavy fighting at the Little Blue River on the 21st, Price’s Confederate Army forced Blunt’s cavalry to retreat to the Big Blue River, leaving a rear guard in town. Shelby’s Confederates reached town in the late afternoon. After a brisk fight Union troops were driven to the west end of town. Price’s army and wagon train then camped in and around Independence. On the 22nd Pleasonton’s Union Cavalry, pursuing Price from the east, made a mounted charge through town driving Fagan’s Confederates to the west.”
Marker E:
From Marker D, drive on Lexington towards all of the various LDS temples in that area. You can’t really miss it since the Community of Christ building is such an imposing figure in the Independence skyline. The marker sits right in from of that building along the series of flags near the intersection of Lexington and River blvd. I parked in the parking lot of the church across the street from it.
“On the 22nd Fagan’s Division of Price’s Army was defending against the advance of Union Gen. Pleasonton from the east. Two of Fagan’s Brigades were driven from the Little Blue River to the eastern edge of town. The Union attack was made first from the NE with Philips’ Brigade and the Second Arkansas (Union) both on foot. McNeil’s Brigade then charged through town mounted. Cabell’s Brigade came up to stop the Union advance. He was driven back and many of his men were surrounded. Near this spot two of his guns were captured and he barely escaped.”
Marker F:
Finally, we have Marker F, if you turn around and go back West on Lexington towards it’s intersection with Chrysler Ave. Its on the side of the road in the middle of this island that the two roads make, stay right and park in the abandoned restaurant parking lot across from the sign.
“During the Battle of Independence on October 21 ad 22, 1864, this was an unfinished railroad cut. As darkness approached on the 21st, the Confederates advancing from the east stopped here. Union troops withdrew to the Big Blue river during the night. The Confederate Divisions of Marmaduke and Shelby and Price’s wagon train advanced to Rock Creek and camped. On the 22nd Pleasonton’s Union cavalry pursued the Confederates through town and were confronted by Marmaduke’ Division. Fighting continued during the night as the Confederates withdrew to Byram’s Ford on the Big Blue River.”
Conclusion:
That’s it! I’ve never done one of these driving tours before, so this was an interesting excursion on a lazy holiday weekend. I will say that I was irritated with the state of Markers A and B, both in upkeep and travel ability, but the whole experience was cool. It’s hard sometimes to think about where a Civil War battle had taken place until you go around and actually look at the battlefields themselves. I may do another one of these for the first Battle of Independence, so stay tuned. I honestly would prefer a museum to see stuff like this, but having this as an option is better than nothing. The trip also gave me ideas for future installments and I pre-took some pictures for them. With time to stop and look around as well as fumbling with my GPS, the entire thing took about an hour. I picked an insanely hot day to do this, I’d recommend not doing that!
This is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #civilWar #DrivingTour #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #JacksonCounty #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #LocalHistory #militaryHistory #missouri #MuseumTrips
The Historical Marker Database
Public history cast in metal, carved on stone, permanently marked.www.hmdb.org
REVIEW: The Battle of Mine Creek: The Crushing End of the Missouri Campaign (2011)
A Book by Jeffrey D. Stalnaker
Continuing on with my quest to learn as much as I can about historical sites in the general vicinity of where I live, I decided that I will visit the Battle of Mine Creek State Historical Site sometime in the future, and figured that reading another one of these Civil War books from around a decade ago would help me out a lot. So far, I have really enjoyed these as they are well-written, well-researched, and are generally quick reads, a fact that is a BIG plus for me considering my work schedule. Sometimes Civil War books end up being huge monotonous tomes that, while good sources of information, are not meant for general consumption – so something like this series is greatly appreciated.“In 1864, Union troops controlled much of the South, Sherman’s men marched with impunity through Georgia and defeat at Gettysburg was a painful and distant memory. The Confederacy needed to stem the tide. Confederate major general Sterling Price led an army of twelve thousand troops on a desperate charge through Missouri to deliver the state to the Confederacy and dash President Lincoln’s hopes for reelection. This daring campaign culminated with the Battle of Mine Creek. A severely outnumbered Union army crushed the Confederate forces in one of the war’s largest and most audacious cavalry charges. Historian Jeff Stalnaker puts the reader in the saddle with the Union troopers as they destroy all hope for Rebel victory in the Trans-Mississippi.”Book description
In many ways, this book somewhat summarizes the ill-fated Missouri Campaign of Major-General Sterling Price, at least for the first 40 or so pages. Having this background information for battles such as Independence. Lexington II, Kansas City, Westport, Bryam’s Ford and more really gets you prepared for the detailed description of the battle that would ultimately shoot down any dreams of a Confederate Missouri for Price and his superiors alike. I actually though this introductory section was well-done and did not seem tacked on like some other books that deviate down a path that has no bearing on the topic at hand. In many ways, the Battle of Mine Creek was the last shot that Price had to hold onto his “Goldenboy” status gained much earlier in the war, and with that seeming to be more and more in jeopardy due to the string of defeats across the state, it was the only thing keeping him from obscurity as well.“St. Louis and Jefferson City had been abandoned. The Pro-Union government still reigned in Jefferson City, and Leavenworth became impossible as a target because of the crushing defeat at Westport. This wagon train represented, at this late stage of the campaign, the only tangible evidence that the march through Missouri had experienced any modicum of success. Despite please from many of his subordinates, Price was determined to keep moving with this wagon if for no other reason but to justify his existence. “Excerpt, page 55
Once we get to the battle itself, it’s a textbook case of allowing the weakest links in your leadership bring everything crashing down, as just about every mistake imaginable was made. Not only did the troops cross the river putting themselves in a spot where they could not escape easily, but they stood in place and just took a full-on cavalry assault until everyone freaked out and started running away. This battle was a decisive win for the Union to such a degree that Price had to leave most of his wagon train there and run away to rebel held territory. Missouri would quietly fade away as a hotspot for the war and everything moved East.Stalnaker does a great job of telling the tale of this battle in a narrative way that keeps the reader on the edge of their seat. There’s a fine line between “just the facts” and embellishing so much that it becomes historical fiction, and he has found a way to keep the story action-packed and exciting without losing site of the information he needs to convey. Out of all of these I’ve read so far, this is probably the best one both from a writing standpoint, and for the amount of information in the book.
I can’t wait to drive back to my homelands (I’m actually from Kansas originally) and visit the State Historical Site for this battle. I feel that this book has armed me with plenty of information that I will need to really be able to appreciate the various things I will see. As with many of these books, I plan to seek additional publications by this author, as he did an excellent job on this and I hope he has written more – whether Missouri/Kansas related or not. Definitely a recommendation from me.
If you would like a copy of this book, please check HERE. This review is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK. Stay tuned for a future installment where I visit the very sites that this book was talking about!
#AmericanCivilWar #BleedingKansas #civilWar #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #militaryHistory #missouri #MuseumTrips #War
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 17) First Battle of Independence Walking Tour
Sometimes, it’s good to get outside and take a walk around, I like to do it in conjunction with looking at Historic markers since it gives me a little goal to achieve when walking from point to point. As with my Second Battle of Independence Driving Tour, this was originally from a really old pamphlet that I assume was given out by the city at some point.
Background
According to ol’ Wikipedia:
“During the summer of 1862, many Confederate and Missouri State Guard recruiters were dispatched northward from Arkansas into Missouri to replenish the depleted ranks of Trans-Mississippi forces. Among these were Captain Jo Shelby, Colonel Vard Cockrell, Colonel John T. Coffee, Upton Hays, John Charles Tracy, John T. Hughes, Gideon W. Thompson and DeWitt C. Hunter.Various guerrillas and bushwhackers, most notably those under William Quantrill, had gathered in Missouri and assisted these recruiters as they worked in the region. For example, Upton Hays was aided by thirty men from Quantrill’s command under the brutal George Todd.[2] By August 1, Hays was camped near Lee’s Summit with 150 men. Additional Confederates continued to infiltrate the area throughout the days that followed.
[…]
Lt. Col. Buel for his part had sent one of his officers, a Captain Breckenridge, scouting for eleven days, but Breckenridge found nothing. Buel became aware of Hays’s camp, however, and prepared to attack it. On the evening of August 10, several citizens warned Buel of an impending assault on the city; many Union residents had already fled. Buel ignored these warnings, but another of his officers, a Captain Rodewald, did not.
[…]
Col. John T. Hughes’s Confederate force, including the partisan leader William Quantrill, attacked Independence before dawn, in two columns using different roads. They drove through the town to the Union Army camp, delivering a deadly volley to the sleeping men. Captain Breckenridge suggested surrender, but Captain Jacob Axline formed the Federal troops behind a rock wall and a nearby ditch while the Confederates rifled through their camp, looking for ammunition. The Rebels made several attacks against Axline’s wall, but never succeeded in taking it. Here Colonel Hughes was killed, while Thompson and Hays were wounded.
Lt. Col. Buel attempted to hold out with part of his force in the bank building he used as his headquarters. He was forced to surrender after an adjacent building was set afire. Through a flag of truce, Buel arranged a meeting with the new Confederate commander, Col. Gideon W. Thompson, who had replaced Colonel Hughes, killed earlier. Buel surrendered, and about 150 of his men were paroled; the remainder had escaped, hidden, or been killed.
Reading
The First Battle of Independence is basically the first half of the Battle of Lone Jack that I visited earlier in the summer. Both books used in that overview hold the same importance here. Lockdown by Paul Kirkman, and Blood on the Streets by Ralph Monaco II.
The trip
The easiest way to go about this, is to make it to the Independence Truman Courthouse, then find a good place to park, the entire thing is only a few blocks and should not take too long. Using the pamplet as a guide, I embarked on my quest – The descriptions are directly from the tour.
Stop 1
1859 Jail & Marshal’s Home 217 N. Main
Looking much like it did the morning of the battle, this building served as headquarters for the Union Provost Guard under the command of Lt. Charles Meryhew. As the rest of the Confederate command continued on to the Union Headquarters George Todd and his men stopped at the jail to attack the guard. Lt. Meryhew’s men fired one volley and abandoned the jail. As Todd was freeing the prisoners he discovered Sheriff Jim Knowles incarcerated in his own jail on a murder charge. Todd promptly killed Knowles as revenge for the earlier ambush killing of Ed Koger and John Little.
Stop 2
Headquarters Guard Building
Under the command of Captain W,H. Rodewald, this is the site of the Headquarters Guard. Here in the early morning hours of August 11, 1862 the Confederate attack was first discovered. The Confederates, tying their horses around the Courthouse Square, began their advance on Buel’s headquarters and the sleeping
Union camp. Firing first from the second story, Rodewald led his men into the street where they fired into the rebels killing Confederate Kit Chiles. Rodewald held this intersection for two hours repulsing three attacks. Buel ordered him into the headquarters building across the street. In the last attack Confederate Major John R. Hart of St. Joseph was mortally wounded.
Stop 3
The McCoy Bank Building
Inside the two story brick bank building LtC Buel made his stand. At approximately 6:30 a.m. when all of the Federals were inside the building Quantrill completed his encirclement. Firing was deadly to anyone showing himself to the enemy. At 7:30 a.m. Buel ordered that the headquarter’s flag be raised to signal the
camp. Discovering the flag was left in the guard room, 16 year old bugler William Bufoe volunteered to retrieve it and in a barrage of bullets he made a barefoot dash across the street returning with the flag. The fight continued for another hour and a half until Quantrill decided to smoke the Federals out. Setting fire to an adjacent wooden structure Quantrill waited. With his position untenable at 9 a.m. Buel surrendered and sent a messenger to the camp with orders to surrender.
Stop 4
The Union Encampment – Lexington & Pleasant
The Union camp — under the command of Captains Jacob Axline and Aaron Thomas — consisted of two companies of the 7th Missouri Cavalry and three companies of the 2nd Battalion Missouri Provisional
Militia. It was located where the Shrine building sets today. The Confederates approached the camp from two directions, Colonel Hughes on Walnut Street and Colonel Thompson on Lexington Street. Taking positions at a board fence behind the houses on Pleasant Street, the Confederates fired a volley into the sleeping Federals. Pandemonium erupted. Captain Axline yelled “Boys get your guns and rally behind the rock fence.”
Stop 5
Union Rallying Point –
Stretching for a mile the rock wall was located down the center of Walnut Street. At the Mormon Visitors Center a gully behind the wall became the Union rallying point. The Confederates charged from the west. Colonel Hughes was killed. Colonel Thompson took command ordering another charge. He fell wounded. Now in command, Colonel Hays ordered five charges against the wall. The Federal position held. Axline, forming his troops to go to the relief of Buel received the surrender order. The First Battle of Independence ended.
Aftermath
Union
26 dead; 74 wounded; 11 later
died; 150 surrendered
Confederate
23 dead; which included 3 Colonels, 2 Majors, 3 Captains, 2 Lieutenants; 9 mortally wounded; 20 wagonloads of much needed supplies were captured Colonels Hughes, Chiles and Boyd were all buried at Woodlawn Cemetery, Hughes and Boyd next to each other.
The Historic Marker
On my driving tour of the Second Battle of Independence sites, I came across the historical marker for the first battle. Unfortunately, it is sun-bleached, worn down, and somewhat hard to read. I did however find a better image of it on HMdb.org. Of all the memorials and such outside of the courthouse, this one sadly needs the most repair, here’s hoping it can get a “fresh coat of paint” before too long.
The Battle of Independence was fought at this and other locations on Aug. 11, 1862. On that day, a force of Confederate soldiers launched a dawn surprise attack on the Union garrison stationed at Independence and compelled it to surrender. It was the worst Federal defeat in Missouri since the Battle of Lexington in September of the preceding year. Assisting in the attack was the guerrilla leader, William Quantrill. The Confederate victory was a costly one. Any strategic gain was offset by the loss of several able officers including the commander, Col. John T. Hughes.The year of 1862 started well for the Northern cause in the Trans-Mississippi West. Victories at Pea Ridge, Ark. in March and at Island No. 10/New Madrid, Mo. the following month seemed to point to secure Federal control of this theater. Two developments, however, were to dispel any such hope for the Union high command. The first was the eruption on Missouri’s western border of a guerrilla warfare that was to grow in viciousness with each succeeding year of the war. The most notable of the guerrilla leaders, William C. Quantrill, was, in early 1862, already acquiring a fearsome reputation for ambushing and killing Yankees. The second development was rooted in the campaign being planned by the Confederate commander of the Trans-Mississippi theater, Gen. Thomas C. Hindman. By the middle of the summer, this energetic and resourceful officer was developing a strategy to create a third front in the war west of the Mississippi. He proposed to launch an invasion into Missouri from his Arkansas base of operations. A part of his plan called for sending officers, who had been notable Missourians before the war, back into the state to recruit and enroll men in their home neighborhoods and bring them back to Arkansas by fall. They were to cover their operations by fostering an escalation in the guerrilla war. This would keep the Unionists diverted while they went about recruiting.
By late June, the first of these officers, Col. Upton Hays, returned to his home county of Jackson to raise a regiment of cavalry. He sent word ahead to Quantrill to move his band out of the immediate area and keep the Federals occupied; on July 11, Quantrill got into a hot firefight with Union troops at the Battle of the Ravines in northern Cass County.
In the meantime, Hays had managed, by the beginning of August, to gather about 150 men. At their camp, near Lee’s Summit, a Confederate flag flying from a high pole could easily be spotted by potential
recruits but also by Federal lookouts in the cupola of the courthouse in Independence.On the first of August, Col. John T. Hughes, the ranking Confederate officer, arrived at Hays’ camp with 75 men. He intended to raise a brigade north of the Missouri River, but he feared that his return back across the river would be blocked by the large Federal garrision at Independence. He decided to attack the garrison at once.
Time was of the essence, for if he did not attack the Independence garrison immediately, they could turn the tables by attacking him. Indeed, at that very moment plans were being laid by the Federal commander at Independence, Col. James T. Buel, to clean out the Confederate’s encampment and scatter or capture their recruits.
To carry off his planned assault, Hughes enlisted the aid of Hays and Quantrill, who was back from his diversionary foray. On Aug. 10, this combined force rode to Blue Springs, the staging area for the next day’s assault. Hays’ 300 recruits, plus Quantrill’s 25 guerrillas and Hughes’ force of 75, added up to an attack force of 400 men.
Meanwhile, at Independence, Lt. Col. Buel had between 400 and 500 men to defend his position. This force consisted of three companies of the Seventh Missouri Cavalry, two companies of Col. Newgent’s Second Battalion, Missouri Provisional Militia commanded by Capts. Jacob Axline and Aaron Thomas, and Capt. W. H. Rodewald’s company of the Sixth Regiment of Missouri Militia attached to the Seventh Cavalry.Buel ignored warnings of imminent attack and left his command widely dispersed. He was headquartered in the three-story Southern Bank Building while Capt. Rodewald’s company was across the street in a two story brick building. Both buildings faced Lexington Street and were located approximately in the middle of the next block to the west from where you are presently standing. Lt. Maryhew, acting Provost-Marshal, was stationed a few blocks away at the jail. Located at 217 N. Main St., the jail building is currently a museum operated by the Jackson County Historical Society. One-half mile distant, out of view and earshot of headquarters, the rest of the command was encamped in tents south of Lexington St. on the western edge of the city. The dangerously exposed camp was in a depression; the only protection for the camp was a nearby half-mile long stone fence that ran east-west and came within 90 feet of the southwest corner of the camp. This area is presently occupied by the temple and grounds of the Community of Christ Church, formerly known as the Church of Reorganized Latter Day Saints.
At 4:30 a.m. on Aug. 11, the Confederates quietly rode into town and hitched their horses along the courthouse square (at approximately this location); the attackers then formed up and marched west along Lexington Street and past Buel’s headquarters. This unidentified force of soldiers was nearly past the headquarters before they were finally recognized as the enemy by Capt. Rodewald’s sentries, who opened fire. Capt. Rodewald managed to form his men in the street and fire a volley into the rear ranks of the Confederates. He held his position until about 6 a.m., at which time Buel ordered him into the headquarters building. Quantrill’s men immediately surrounded the building and began to pour a hail of fire into it. The commanding officer was now unable to communicate with his main force or direct a defense against his attackers.
Meanwhile, Hughes’ main force marched in two columns down Lexington and Walnut streets and arrived undetected at the Union camp where they formed behind a wooden fence and opened fire. A murderous volley poured into the tents of the sleeping federals, many of whom were killed or wounded. Capt. Jacob Axline managed to rally the soldiers erupting from their tents and form them behind the nearby stone fence. Behind this shelter, they were able to beat off repeated onslaughts by the enemy.
A Confederate charge at daybreak left the commander, Col. Hughes, dead with a shot through the forehead. Col. G. W. Thompson, next in command, led another unsuccessful charge and took a wound in the knee that put him out of the action. Col. Hays then assumed command. Wisely, he ordered no more charges, but instead exchanged rifle fire with the enemy for the remainder of the engagement. Hays received a wound in the foot. Meanwhile, Capt. Axline was preparing to move his force towards the square to try to reach Buel.
Before Axline could set his force in motion, he received orders from Buel to surrender. Quantrill threatened that he was going to set fire to a small building next to the headquarters building and roast Buel and his men alive in the spreading conflagration. In the sure knowledge that Quantrill could and would carry out this threat, Buel hauled up the white flag and surrendered his whole command.
The aftermath of the Battle of Independence found some 26 Federals dead and 74 wounded; 11 of these later died. A good part of the garrison managed to escape by slipping away before or during the fight, and Lt. Maryhew withdrew his force up Main St. at the beginning of the battle. About 150 troops surrendered. The Union commanders, Buel and Breckinridge, were later tried for conspiracy and cowardice but never convicted.
The price for Confederate victory was 23 killed, and nine mortally wounded. Ten of this number were officers. The dead included three colonels, two majors, three captains, and two lieutenants. Hughes was an especially sad loss as he was one of Missouri’s ablest officers. For this toll, the Confederates secured enough arms and ammunition to equip Hays’ slim regiment, and drove away with 20 wagonloads of plunder.
Five days after the Independence battle, Union and Confederate forces clashed again in Jackson County, this time at the fierce and bloody Battle of Lone Jack. Although the Confederates were again the victors, their triumph was gained at the cost of many casualties and few advantages. Shortly thereafter, in the face of a Union troop build-up in western Missouri, the Confederates, and what recruits they gathered, returned to Arkansas.
To Quantrill and his guerrillas could go much credit for the victory at Independence. Their scouting had revealed the enemy strength and positions and they ably guided Hughes’ force to the battle site. Finally, they forced Buel to surrender, when it appeared that the Confederates would be unable to capture Axline’s command. On Aug. 15, Quantrill’s band was mustered into the Confederate army as partisan rangers, and Quantrill, himself, received a captain’s commission. This mustering hardly meant that Quantrill and his band were now disciplined regulars in the Confederate Army, but they would continue to carry on their bloody style of guerrilla warfare against Federal forces in Missouri with deadly effectiveness.
Conclusion
This is a VERY easy walking tour, and takes just a few minutes to accomplish. While my driving tour of The Second Battle of Independence was sort of a pain, I would definitely recommend this one. If you are getting really frisky, mix this one with a trip to the Historic Truman Courthouse or the 1859 Jail to maximize your day. Hopefully, at some point the historic marker is replaced in front of the court house, that is perhaps the only part of this that was somewhat underwhelming.
This article is part of my summer series History Boy Summer, which you can keep up with by following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #Kansas #missouri #MuseumTrips #walkingTour #WilliamQuantrill
First Battle of Independence Historical Marker
The Battle of Independence was fought at this and other locations on Aug. 11, 1862. (A historical marker located in Independence in Jackson County, Missouri.)www.hmdb.org
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 5) Second Battle of Independence Historic Markers Driving Tour
I was kind of sad that no local museum really goes over the majority of Price’s Raid of Missouri, I assume The Battle of Westport State Historic Site might concentrate on it, or even Mine Creek, but as of this chapter of my little summer project, I have yet to visit either. Digging through one of the tourism pages for Independence, MO and a site I found to catalogue historic markers called HMdb, I discovered that there were in fact markers for the Independence portion of this. I originally was going to do an old driving tour that they had up in brochure form, but it appeared to consist of stopping at residential houses, and I wasn’t a fan of that – historic markers are fine! I knew about one of these markers since I used to live about 100 feet from it (marker B), but the rest were a mystery. I have pieced together a list for you, if anyone would like to do this, so that you don’t have to research this like crazy like I did. You see also see some of my continuing frustration with how this area takes care of their historic markers, literally right off the bat.Second Battle of Independence Historic Markers Driving Tour; Independence, MO
For this chapter, I plan to give you all some pictures of the markers, directions to them, and a transcription of what they say if they are unreadable. Sadly, it seems that this area has a bit of an issue with keeping these up, you will notice that markers A and B are especially in bad shape. Luckily a few of them have been overhauled considerably, like C – so there’s hope.Background:
According to our buddy Wikipedia:“The Second Battle of Independence was fought on October 22, 1864, as part of Price’s Raid during the American Civil War. In late 1864, Major General Sterling Price of the Confederate States Army led a cavalry force into the state of Missouri in the hopes of creating a popular uprising against Union control, drawing Union Army troops from more important areas, and influencing the 1864 United States Presidential Election. Price was opposed by a combination of Union Army and Kansas State Militia forces positioned near Kansas City and led by Major General Samuel R. Curtis. In addition, Union cavalry under Major General Alfred Pleasonton followed Price from the east. While moving westwards along the Missouri River, Price’s men made contact with Union troops at the Little Blue River on October 21. After forcing the Union soldiers to retreat in the Battle of Little Blue River, the Confederates occupied the city of Independence, Missouri.On October 22, part of Price’s force pushed Curtis’s men across the Big Blue River, while Pleasonton drove back Confederate defenders from the Little Blue. Confederate troops from the divisions of Major General James F. Fagan and Brigadier General John S. Marmaduke resisted Pleasonton’s advance. Two Union brigades forced the Confederates through Independence, capturing two cannons and 300 men in the process. While Pleasonton brought up two fresh brigades, the Confederates regrouped southwest of town. Further Union pressure drove the defenders back, and fighting continued until after dark. By the end of October 22, almost all of the Confederate forces had fallen back across the Big Blue. The next day, Price was defeated in the Battle of Westport, and his men fell back through Kansas, suffering further defeats on the way before reaching Texas. The Confederates suffered heavy losses during the campaign. The battlefield has since been covered over by the growth of Independence.”Reading:
My reading for this trip is confusingly Jeffrey Stalnaker’s The Battle of Mine Creek, a book I have already covered at this point. I will likely use this a few times, as the first third of the book (about 50 pages) summarizes the tensions in Missouri and Kansas as well as the entirety of the ill-fated raid that Major General Sterling Price attempted in Missouri. There is a separate book on The Battle of Westport, that I need to read before I eventually go to that site, for all I know it will add even more to my knowledge of the situation. For a link to purchase a copy of this book, click that review link for details.Honestly the above linked Wikipedia page is also very detailed considering the status of either of these as “minor battles”.
The Trip:
GPS Waypoints:Marker A: N39 08.211 W94 18.756
Marker B: N39 08.044 W94 18.824
Marker C: N39 08.094 W94 20.495
Marker D: N39 05.529 W94 24.939
Marker E: N39 05.481 W94 25.636
Marker F: N39 05.239 W94 25.941
Or here’s a map I put together using Google Maps:
Marker A:
This was was terrible to get to. I never realized there was a historical marker here and I can see why. This marker is hidden on the side of the highway, with no way to stop at it, and around fifteen feet of thick Brush between the road and the marker itself. I had to pull up to a driveway for a tree farm near the bridge across the Little Blue River, walk along the side of the highway for about 100 yards, crossing the bridge (not something I like to do on foot), and the best shot I could get was a blurry unreadable one. I borrowed a clear picture from HMdb if you want to see what it actually looks like. The fact that there is literally no way to get to this without likely trespassing is somewhat annoying, I wish a small park could be made (Like Marker C) or at least make it accessible through a trail or something.“Here on the morning of October 21, 1864 General Marmaduke’s Confederate forces attacked Union troops under Colonel Moonlight drawn up on the hill to the west. Federal resistance was fierce until 10 A.M. When General Shelby’s Confederate cavalry moving up on the main road caused Moonlight to fall back to Independence.”
I honestly don’t recommend trying to stop at this marker, I went on an observed holiday and the highway wasn’t very busy. I’m also pretty sure I pissed off the tree farm by using their driveway to park in. There was another pull-off before that I did not see until it was too late, but it would have resulted in a blind reverse situation that would also be not very safe. You can get an Idea of what the Little Blue River may have looked like at Marker B, so there’s that. Please be careful out there! If you do decide to stop, travel East on 24 towards the exit for 7 highway and Fort Osage High School, turn around at the exit, and travel a few miles back. The marker is on the right side just before the bridge over the Little Blue River.Marker B:
Marker B sits in the parking lot in a small park on Old Lexington Road. The site consists of a covered picnic area, a bike/walking trail (although I saw a ton of bikers there) and two placards – one is marker B, and one is a sign for Price’s Raid. Pictures are both above, and I will post transcriptions.The Marker:
“Approximately 15,000 troops of Confederate General Sterling Price’s Army of Missouri, including guerrilla leader George Todd, engaged 3,500 Union soldiers under the command of Major General James G. Blunt on the western bluffs of the Little Blue River. With Blunt was Senator James H. Lane and Kansas ‘Red Legs’ under Colonel Charles R. Jennison.The six hour engagement ended between four and five in the afternoon, with Union forces forced to retreat eight miles west to Independence where a final attempt was made by the Kansas Eleventh Cavalry to hold the town. Price’s Confederate Army of Missouri occupied Independence o the evening of October 21st.”
The Placard for Price’s Raid currently has the appearance of being intentionally broken by somebody – a better version of this same one stands at marker point C. If you walk along the railroad tracks for a bit, you can get a pretty good look at the Little Blue River, in a state pretty close to what I imagine it would have been like then. If you are heading East on 24 towards Buckner, Old Lexington road is a right turn just after you pass Little Blue Parkway. follow it to the end (across railroad tracks) and you will come to the park.Marker C:
I used to live about two houses down from this marker, I remember when Pokémon Go became a big hit the traffic around this area became somewhat crazy, and it was vandalized or bumped by a car or something at one point. Luckily, since I’ve lived at my current house a chapter of the Missouri State Historical Society and the Daughters of the American Revolution have erected a new versions of everything and cleaned the site up well – currently it looks awesome! As an added bonus, the site is also where the Santa Fe Trail started and there are placards for that as well. To reach marker C, head west on 24 highway from Marker B, and turn right onto Blue Mills Rd then immediately left into the park. It’s right across from a church and cemetery.
Historic Site C“Moonlight’s Union cavalry brigade, with five guns and 1000 men, was driven from the Little blue River by Marmaduke’s and Shelby’s 5000 Confederates of Price’s Army. Moonlight stopped here and was joined by Jennison’s and Ford’s brigades of Blunt’s division with 10 guns and 2000 men. A defensive line was formed running north and south for a mile. Charges and counter charges continued until 2 PM, when Blunt withdrew. Ford fought a series of delaying actions back into Independence, pursued by Shelby’s dismounted troops.”
Price’s Raid Placard:“By 11 a.m. on Oct. 20, 1864, Col. Thomas Moonlight had made his first movement after the Little Blue crossing. Maj. Gen. James Blunt received permission from Maj. Gen. Samuel Curtis to engage the Confederate and made a rapid movement to this position, deploying the Federal line starting at the Independence-Lexington Road and stretching for about a mile to the south. Blue dismounted his troops, sending every fourth man to the rear to hold the horses. Maj. Gen. John S. Marmaduke and Brig. Gen. Joseph O. Shelby, also dismounted, were just 60 yards over the hill. A cannonade signaled the beginning of the last movement for the battle of the Little Blue. Almost simultaneously Confederate and Federal forces swept forward into the attack. On the Confederate left Marmaduke charged into Col. Charles R. Jennison’s 15th Kansas, the 3rd Wisconsin and 2nd Colorado and Shelby on the right charged the 16th and 11th Kansas. Back and forth along these slopes the fighting was fierce and often hand to hand. After an hour Blunt had pushed the Confederates about a half mile east, but recognizing that his flanks were about to be engulfed,Blunt ordered a withdrawal back to the heights. Gen. Curtis and staff now came upon the battle and immediately shifted forward Col. W. D. McClain’s artillery, U.S.A., and 2 cannons from the 11th Kansas to a recently ploughed field, leaving them exposed to Rebel sharpshooters. Maj. R. H. Hunt, chief of artillery, U.S.A., shifted 2 more 11th Kansas cannons in support. They opened fire on the Confederates and drove them back, but exposed their left flank. The Confederates increased pressure on the Federal line and further exposed the Federal left flank. Shelby sent Col. Sidney Jackman on the attack. May. Hunt, U.S.A., seeing the attack forming, searched for help and sent for the 11th Kansas Cavalry who were beginning to pull back to Independence.
At about 3 p.m. the fight here had been going on for 4 hours. Gen. Curtis understood that he could not hold Gen. Sterling Price until Federal help could arrive from the east and so he returned to Independence, taking the ammunition wagons with him. Blunt was glad to see him go. Sometime during this fight, Moonlight realized his troops were nearly out of ammunition, but still holding them in line began the troops singing “Rally ‘Round the Flag” in order to bolster their courage. Jennison, with the 15th Kansas, 3rd Wisconsin, and Barker’s Artillery, was holding back Marmaduke on the right in a series of charges and counter charges from rock wall to rack wall, ravine to ravine.
Blunt also realized he must begin his retreat to Independence or face surrender. Forming one line while a second took up a new position, they leap-frogged line this and made stands at the Saunders and Massey farms. Blunt took up his last line of defense on the eastern edge of Independence.
“The Battle continued in Independence on oct. 22, 1864, 6 miles west, and then on to the Battle of the Big Blue at 63rd and Manchester.”
(sidebar)
Lawson Moore House 20309 E. Blue Mills Rd. (private residence)
This home was built in 1856 by Lawson Moore, a prosperous slave owner. In August of 1863 following Order No. 11 Mrs. Moore fled with her children, the oldest 19, the youngest 18 months, to Clay County, never to return. The house had survived several fires and was empty at the time of the battle. On the day of the battle it would serve as the rallying point for Shelby’s command. It was here that he took time to care for this wounded, utilizing the Moore house as a hospital. Surviving accounts would indicate that buried on the property is a mass grave of 18 Confederate soldiers and in a separate location 6 to 8 officers. It is from the draw behind this property that Shelby launched his final attack of the day.(sidebar)
“About two and one half miles from where the first attack was made, we saw the Second Colorado battery of six fine Parrott guns crossing a field on out right as we were retreating. The rebel advance was within 400 to 500 yards of the battery. Quick work must be done to save the guns, worth a thousand men to us. Colonel Moonlight commanding our brigade came galloping down the line to my company. We were the rear guard. He ordered me to countermarch and charge the enemy with my eighty-eight men in column of eight front. We charged down the road, passing the Little Blue church, straight for the enemy. I saw ahead of me a brick house, just where the road turned from a northerly course straight east, a stone fence dead head of us, and a brick house and stone fence on the right. The rebel cavalry fell back, but a line of infantry occupied the house and were down behind the fence. About 150 yards south of the house between us and the enemy, was a hollow that for a moment or two kept us out of sight and range of their guns.“As we reached the brow on the hill, a thought flashed through my mind that the first line, in which I was riding, with seven soldiers to my left, would be shot as soon as we came in sight. I clutched the pommel of my saddle and threw myself almost flat on the horse. the volley of bullets came, as I expected. I felt my horse going down, swung my feet clear of the stirrups, and fell on my horse’s neck, unhurt. Geo. W. Edwards, who fired the first shot when we were charging through Lexington the day before, fell on my back, dead. My men saw me fall and thought I was killed. They retreated back into the hollow. I jumped up and ran after them, a perfect hailstorm of bullets buzzing past me. I ordered the men to dismount. every man left his horse in the road. We then jumped the fence into an orchard and charged the brick house, and took it, driving the enemy out; then charged the stone fence and took that. At this moment I heard the yells of 400 to 500 men. Maj. J. Nelson Smith with the first and third battalions of the Second Colorado cavalry, was charging the enemy to save us, and right before us this gallant officer fell dead at the head of his command. I had a chance now to fall back, and found my horses in the hollow where I had left them. The animals showed “horse sense” enough to remain where they were safe from the bullets. This little diversion, costly to my company, saved the Colorado battery.”
Captain Henry E. Palmer, Company A, 11th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry
Erected by Civil War Round Table of Western Missouri.”
Marker D:
Marker D is in downtown Independence on the Historic Square. It sits basically at the intersection of Main Street and Truman Road, on the left when traveling north on Main Street. I parked at the Courthouse and walked over. If you are there, there are numerous other historical markers in the general vicinity including one for the First Battle of Independence, Andrew Jackson, The Oregon Trail, and even Harry S Truman.
“After heavy fighting at the Little Blue River on the 21st, Price’s Confederate Army forced Blunt’s cavalry to retreat to the Big Blue River, leaving a rear guard in town. Shelby’s Confederates reached town in the late afternoon. After a brisk fight Union troops were driven to the west end of town. Price’s army and wagon train then camped in and around Independence. On the 22nd Pleasonton’s Union Cavalry, pursuing Price from the east, made a mounted charge through town driving Fagan’s Confederates to the west.”
Marker E:
From Marker D, drive on Lexington towards all of the various LDS temples in that area. You can’t really miss it since the Community of Christ building is such an imposing figure in the Independence skyline. The marker sits right in from of that building along the series of flags near the intersection of Lexington and River blvd. I parked in the parking lot of the church across the street from it.
“On the 22nd Fagan’s Division of Price’s Army was defending against the advance of Union Gen. Pleasonton from the east. Two of Fagan’s Brigades were driven from the Little Blue River to the eastern edge of town. The Union attack was made first from the NE with Philips’ Brigade and the Second Arkansas (Union) both on foot. McNeil’s Brigade then charged through town mounted. Cabell’s Brigade came up to stop the Union advance. He was driven back and many of his men were surrounded. Near this spot two of his guns were captured and he barely escaped.”
Marker F:
Finally, we have Marker F, if you turn around and go back West on Lexington towards it’s intersection with Chrysler Ave. Its on the side of the road in the middle of this island that the two roads make, stay right and park in the abandoned restaurant parking lot across from the sign.“During the Battle of Independence on October 21 ad 22, 1864, this was an unfinished railroad cut. As darkness approached on the 21st, the Confederates advancing from the east stopped here. Union troops withdrew to the Big Blue river during the night. The Confederate Divisions of Marmaduke and Shelby and Price’s wagon train advanced to Rock Creek and camped. On the 22nd Pleasonton’s Union cavalry pursued the Confederates through town and were confronted by Marmaduke’ Division. Fighting continued during the night as the Confederates withdrew to Byram’s Ford on the Big Blue River.”
Conclusion:
That’s it! I’ve never done one of these driving tours before, so this was an interesting excursion on a lazy holiday weekend. I will say that I was irritated with the state of Markers A and B, both in upkeep and travel ability, but the whole experience was cool. It’s hard sometimes to think about where a Civil War battle had taken place until you go around and actually look at the battlefields themselves. I may do another one of these for the first Battle of Independence, so stay tuned. I honestly would prefer a museum to see stuff like this, but having this as an option is better than nothing. The trip also gave me ideas for future installments and I pre-took some pictures for them. With time to stop and look around as well as fumbling with my GPS, the entire thing took about an hour. I picked an insanely hot day to do this, I’d recommend not doing that!This is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #civilWar #DrivingTour #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #JacksonCounty #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #LocalHistory #militaryHistory #missouri #MuseumTrips
The Historical Marker Database
Public history cast in metal, carved on stone, permanently marked.www.hmdb.org
REVIEW: Pioneer Trails Adventures [History Tour]
For More information Click HERE
I have seen this tour wagon on Independence Square in Independence, Missouri many times, but never had a chance to do it until now. Being able to take the tour happened purely by chance as the little dude and I visited the 1859 Jail and Marshall’s Home to get a museum passport book stamped (and to see a new section that was refurbished, maybe another article will be warrened) one more time, and stumbled on the mule-driven cart waiting for a 4:00 PM tour. He was more than happy to sit with us for a while and offer us a spot on the tour which we accepted. Prices are pretty good for an hour and a half tour – $30 for adults and $10 for children. He has stuff for sale in his wagon, and allows people to eat and drink while the tour goes on, which is pretty surprising.
Pioneer Trails Adventures, Independence, MO
Ralph Goldsmith is a great tour guide, and gives a pretty comprehensive tour of Independence’s Historic spots of interest in a somewhat short amount of time. Highlights include:
- The first Battle of Independence – which I discussed here
- The Second Battle of Independence – which I discussed here
- Frank and Jesse James – which I discussed here and here, and here
- William C. Quantrill and his raiders – which I discussed here and here
- Harry S. Truman’s Life – which I discussed here
- The Civil War in Missouri, including General Order No. 11 – which I discussed here
- Local industries including Waggoner-Gates Milling Co – which I discussed here and here
- Wild Bill’s run-ins with locals
- The Santa Fe Trail – which I discussed here and here
- War Veterans
- and finally….Mules in the “Old West”
As you can see, I’ve done a lot of the stuff covered on the tour myself, but for most folks this would be an AMAZING jumping on point for local history. You can get a good sense of what happened in a number of historic sites for a relatively small time commitment and price. This tour is amazing way to get started on local history with the added perk of riding on a mule-drawn wagon. It’s great for kids, and fun for all ages.
Background:
“At first, all Ralph dreamed of was a simple ride around the Independence Square; “carriage therapy,” a bit of relaxation in a hectic world. But it didn’t take him long to realize Independence visitors and residents had access to the site of Harry S Truman’s first job. Not to mention, the courthouse that the future president built. Just a block down was the jail that held “the most dangerous outlaw in the world,” Frank James. Nearby was a marker commemorating the tremendous 2nd Battle of Independence. Names like “William Clark Quantrill” and “George Caleb Bingham” kept popping up. Who were they? As he began researching, Ralph discovered a vein of historic gold as rich as anything struck in California. So Pioneer Trails Adventures was born. An educational wagon ride through history! “From the above website
Reading:
Ralph wrote a short autobiography about his dream of starting his own business and the unique opportunities and problems that come from being a historical tour guide. It’s a short book, and somewhat more religious than I enjoy, but nonetheless a cool look at a prominent fixture of this city. A review will be forthcoming.
The Trip:
Ralph usually parks outside of the Truman Visitor’s Center on the corner of Truman and Main Street. One can wait for him to be there on a weekend or arrange for a tour on his website. This location is right next to the 1859 Jail, so I would recommend doing both at the same time as he talks about the jail extensively. I live in Independence, so any reports on traffic and such are pretty insignificant. While you’re there check out the Scandinavian store a few businesses down, it’s pretty cool as well.
Conclusion:
I’ve been on paid tours before in the past, and there are very few as engaging and worthwhile as this tour. Even with my knowledge of local history, the fun anecdotes, character voices, and overall humor in the tour is great. Ralph engages with children and loves entertaining. If you live in the overall Kansas City area, I’d recommend this whole-heartedly.
#Historical #HistoricalHouse #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #Kansas #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #pioneer #tour
Independence | History Tours | Pioneer Trails Adventures
Pioneer Trails Adventures invites you to come experience historical Independence, Missouri by mule-drawn covered wagon! You'll learn about the 3 trails headed west, Frank and Jesse James, and Harry S.ptadv
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 4) 1859 Jail, Marshal’s Home and Museum
So far we’ve seen an old fort, the site of a two different Civil War battles, and read a bunch of books; now its time for something a little different!1859 Jail, Marshal’s Home and Museum: Independence, MO
For this edition of “History Boy Summer” I am once again visiting a site that I have yet to visit in the past. Nestled right in the middle of downtown Independence, MO this is a blink and you miss it sort of situation but a cool place to see. You can tell that, as time moved on, this jail was somewhat obscured with other buildings being set right next to it, almost making it hard to find. Good news is that my GPS took me right to it, and there was ample parking in the rear of the building. The museum has a VERY narrow timeframe of people to plan visits (just Thurs-Sat), so I had to do the trip before work on a Thursday afternoon, which isn’t my ideal timeframe for this. I had the little guy with me, and went through a quick self-guided tour of everything, although I’d like to go back myself at some point for an actual guided tour. I’ve mentioned before that some museums are more kid friendly than others, and this one is somewhat on the “not so kid friendly” side of things. That said, we made it work, and had a fun day!Background:
Via, the website sponsored by the Jackson County Historical Society. No Wikipedia this time!In 1958, a used building materials dealer nearly got permission to demolish the Marshal’s Home and Jail and the right to claim the salvaged stone, brick and timber as the price for his work. The abandoned buildings were given a new lease on life when a group of civic minded citizens realized that there was yet another historic role for the unassuming two-story house at the corner of Main Street and what is now Truman Road. […]The marshal or the jailer lived with his family in the Marshal’s residence, which was the front half of the structure. The wife often cooked meals for the prisoners, as well as her own family, in a small kitchen at the back of the house. The Marshal was paid about $50 per month, plus the use of the house, for his services. The marshal’s office formed part of the residence, where he would work with his deputies and the jailor. This office had a separate entryway from the house. […]During the American Civil War, the jail held both military and civilian prisoners, and served as the U.S. Provost Marshal’s office. William Clark Quantrill, the famous Confederate guerrilla leader, was briefly incarcerated there, as were those who refused to take a pro-Union loyalty oath. William Quantrill, met an angry mob upon his release from the facility. Scores of women and children were detained behind bars in the jail during Order Number 11. After the war, its most famous inmate was Frank James, the older brother to the famous outlaw Jesse James. Frank James spent 112 days in the jail. During his time at the jail, James’ cell was furnished with a Brussels carpet, fine furniture and paintings, and he was permitted free run of the jail and hosted card games in his cell at night. Frank James’ cell is preserved as it was when he occupied it, as part of the modern museum.
– JCHS
Reading(s):
My readings for this edition were: Lock Down: Outlaws, Lawmen & Frontier Justice in Jackson County, Missouri (2012) By David W. Jackson and Blood on the Streets: The Civil War comes to Jackson County, Missouri, August 1862 by Ralph A. Monaco II. The former is specifically about the jail, and the latter is a book I already used for my article on the Battle of Lone Jack State Historical Site, it’s useful because it has a section on how the jail came into play during the First Battle of Independence. Both books have purchase links in their respective review pages.
The Trip:
As I stated before, this site is located right in the middle of downtown Independence, not too far from the Court House. This site consists of the main jailhouse, two stories tall with one story available to peruse, the Marshal’s house, a courtyard, a museum wing, and an old school building that was relocated to the site in the 1960’s. I was unable to see the schoolhouse nor the courtyard during my visit due to the little guy being somewhat of a handful, but that gives me something to do next time.I was most interested to visit this site due to the fact that the jail served as one of the focal points of a minor Civil war battle – The First Battle of Independence on August 11, 1862. Since I have rekindled my love of learning about the Civil War, things like this are always awesome for me. George Todd, a prominent Missouri guerilla leader, made it a point to raid the jail during the fighting. Since the jail was being used to house people that refused to take a Union loyalty oath, and others that may have even been suspected guerilla fighters, it was seen as a fertile recruitment center for the cause. In a stroke of sheer luck, Todd discovered that City Marshal James Knowles was in a cell, being jailed for the killing of a rowdy citizen without due process. Todd also had a prisoner named Aaron Thomas that he blamed for a recent raid against the group. Both men were executed in the jail itself. Fun fact – George Todd was later killed at the Second Battle of Independence, in 1864. It seems the City would get it’s revenge at some point.
The museum itself does not dwell too much on this chapter in the jail’s history, however, Civil War era items come into play during the guided tour. One can learn things such as the jail’s use during the war, and how it helped house those who refused to show loyalty to the Union. There is also discussion on the brief period of time where the jail housed a young William C. Quantrill after he flipped allegiances during an abolitionist raid and was near being hanged by the townspeople for his act of treachery. One can only imagine how history might have changed, had that event come to pass.The jail itself is pretty spooky due to the antiquated cells, shackles and bleak living conditions of the time. If you are into the paranormal at all, consider this: Think of the emotion of being torn from your home and tossed in jail for not pledging allegiance to the Union, or the fear felt in the handful of murders that happened on the premises. Whether you believe in ghosts or perhaps residual energy (like the Stone Tape Theory), the jail feels like it has the heavy “must be haunted” sort of feeling. I know that in the autumn, they have special ghost tours of the property, so maybe I’m not too far off. I know that’s not for everyone, but I keep an open mid with that sort of thing.
Frank James
I was quite taken aback with how close the jail was to the Marshal’s house – the site where the Jail’s Marshal and his family would have stayed while administering the building. On the second floor, a door to a child’s room is basically directly across from the upper wing of the jail, with such a close proximity that I’m sure children could have easily heard inmates conversations. Since one always hear about jailbreaks and such, it’s crazy to me that a family would live that close to possible thieves and murderers, but it was the time back then. I’ve heard Alcatraz had a similar living situation for staff. The marshal’s house is decorated with period furnishings and other items to make it look similar to what it could have been like in that time period. The study has antique desks, the parlor has an old piano and other items, and bedrooms are filled with things such as children’s toys.The museum portion of the building is pretty interesting, showing off a number of artifacts including shackles and even shivs confiscated by jailers. There are a number of exhibits for the most noteworthy incarcerated individuals that were housed there. I mentioned Quantrill earlier, but perhaps the most notable of all inmates was Frank James of the infamous James gang. James was sent to Jail for 112 days for the murder of Captain John Sheets at a robbery in Gallatin, Missouri. During his stay, he was permitted to roam the halls, and lived in a comfortably furnished cell that has been recreated in one of the first floor jail cells. Other notable inmates include Reverend Abner Deane, who was imprisoned at the 1859 Jail after the Civil War because he refused to sign the “Ironclad Oath” to the Union and a woman named Rose Jenkins, who was likely not that noteworthy but is one of the few extant female mugshots on file, showing that female prisoners were also present.
Public workhouse at the former jail
Later portions of the museum talk about the turn of the century and the jail’s later use as a public workhouse. According to the JCHS website: “The Jail and Marshal’s Home was decommissioned in 1933. After the last jailer hung up his keys, Jackson County found a use for the jail and home when it housed several offices, work training programs, and government bureaus during the Great Depression. There were many public work programs that operated in the old jail. Sewing, canning, and ironing were just a few jobs that gave people viable work during the Depression.”The site includes a giftshop that boasts a large collection of local history books curated by the JCHS, I was able to find one specifically about the Civil War in this area that I will read eventually for this series. Items for children include things like cup and ball games and Jacob’s ladders.
Conclusion:
This was a fun little day trip idea if you are around Independence Square and have a hour or so to kill. It’s not a huge museum, but the quality of the artifacts and importance to the city itself are immeasurable. Like stated before, this isn’t the best place for VERY small children, but older kids should have fun. During the fall, The JCHS runs ghost tours and paranormal investigations of some nature, which may just be something I do this year assuming I can snag a ticket. I was unable to see everything during my visit and will likely go back at some point to see The small schoolhouse and the courtyard. Keep your eyes peeled for an addendum if that happens!This is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #incarceration #Independence #IndependenceMo #JacksonCounty #Jail #KansasCityMissouri #LocalHistory #militaryHistory #missouri #MuseumTrips #prison
REVIEW: 1859 Jail and Marshal’s Home in Independence, MO – Update [History Tour]
When my son and I first started this series of local history daytrips, I basically went onto Google, ran a search for “Museums near me” and started plugging away at the list. Due to the relative proximity to my house, and the fact that I had never gone there before, we went to the Jackson County 1859 Jail and Marshal’s House located in downtown Independence, Missouri fairly early on, and there were always a couple of reasons I wanted to go back. Later this month, I hope to eventually talk about my experiences with a children’s passport program we participated in through the Jackson County Historical Society, and since this site was on the list, we went back to get the stamp and see two things we missed before. First and foremost, we wanted to see the second floor cellblock, an area that had been off-limits for a while, but was recently fixed and deemed structurally sound enough to walk on. Secondly, we were not able to see a small schoolhouse located in the back area of the Jail’s grounds before. I don’t even remember exactly why we missed it before, but I think there was a group out there, and I didn’t want to intrude. Was the second trip worth it, keep reading to find out!
The 1859 Jail and Marshal’s Home; Independence, MO
To see the previous article regarding this location, click HERE
I would recommend doing this site in conjunction with a Pioneer Trails Adventure
Background:
From the official website:
“Jackson County constructed this residence and the hidden limestone jail from streetview at 217 Main St. in Independence in 1859. It was built to house the criminals of the early years of this county. This building is one of the oldest surviving structures in Jackson County. Unlock the history of the jailers and their families who lived at the residence and the criminals who occupied the cells. Today you can see the cell where Frank James lived for six months, the home where jailers and county deputy marshals lived, the office of the Jackson County marshal, and touch the mighty limestone and tremendous iron doors guarding each cell.”
Regarding this articles highlighted areas in particular:
The School:
” Located in the courtyard of the Jail site is a one-room schoolhouse. The school was built in the early 1870s by William and Mary Howard for the education of their children. Originally it stood behind the Howard family home in Lee’s Summit and was moved to its present site in 1959. The 12-by-16 foot frame building is completely restored and is a perfect example of an elementary school from that day. The school was given to the Jackson County Historical Society by William T. Howard, a grandson of the builder. During the Civil War, William Bullitt Howard was a prominent landholder in Jackson County, founder of Lee’s Summit, and was a known Southern sympathizer. He was arrested by a Union officer in command in Independence and with his brother-in-law, spent one month in the old jail. His release came after he paid a large sum of money and agreed to move his family to Kentucky for the duration of the war.”
The Refurbished Second Floor:
“The 1859 portion of the jail consisted of six upstairs and six downstairs cells, with two-foot thick walls of limestone blocks. A single kerosene lamp in the hallway provided the only light at night. Two doors, one of grated iron and one of solid iron, were provided for each cell. A window covered with grated iron permitted wind and natural light from the outside to enter the cell. The cells were not heated or cooled. Some prisoners incarcerated inside died of exposure during the jail’s history. Each cell was six by nine feet and designed to hold three prisoners, though, during the Civil War, as many as twenty prisoners were confined in each one.”
Reading(s):
Re-posted from my previous article:
Reading(s):
My readings for this edition were: Lock Down: Outlaws, Lawmen & Frontier Justice in Jackson County, Missouri (2012) By David W. Jackson and Blood on the Streets: The Civil War comes to Jackson County, Missouri, August 1862 by Ralph A. Monaco II. The former is specifically about the jail, and the latter is a book I already used for my article on the Battle of Lone Jack State Historical Site, it’s useful because it has a section on how the jail came into play during the First Battle of Independence. Both books have purchase links in their respective review pages.
The Trip:
The Refurbished Second Floor:
As stated before, this area was off-limits before and the best I could get was a picture of the closed-off area, This time we were able to walk in and look at the cells. They were literally the same as the lower-level cells, but since those are now packed full of interpretive signs, this is a good way to see one as it would have been a long time ago.
The Schoolhouse:
If you’ve seen one small one-room schoolhouse, you have basically seen them all, but this is still a cool thing to visit. It’s crazy to me that a community’s entire child population would pile into one of these and somehow not be unbearably cramped. This is a cool opportunity to show a younger kid what school life would have been like in the past, my sone was definitely surprised to find out that children of all ages would be together, and that they had to walk there in all sorts of bad weather!
Conclusion:
Despite the small size of the 1859 Jail and Marshal’s House located in downtown Independence, Missouri compared to other museums, there is a LOT to do and great information to learn. If you are a history buff, Civil war buff, a true crime buff, or even just somebody in the area looking for something to do, this is a great inexpensive way to spend your day. So, to answer my question – yes, it was a worthwhile trip to visit this a second time in a year, and maybe I’ll do it again next year! One thing I’d love to do is be part of one of their paranormal tours, so perhaps that will be awaiting me in the relative near future.
See More:
For more Missouri/Kansas Area historical daytrips and any accompanying material, click HERE
#1859 #AmericanCivilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #Independence #IndependenceMo #Jail #kansasCity #KansasCityMissouri #missouri #MO
2021: History Boy Summer (Part 4) 1859 Jail, Marshal’s Home and Museum
So far we’ve seen an old fort, the site of a two different Civil War battles, and read a bunch of books; now its time for something a little different!1859 Jail, Marshal’s Home and Museum: Independence, MO
For this edition of “History Boy Summer” I am once again visiting a site that I have yet to visit in the past. Nestled right in the middle of downtown Independence, MO this is a blink and you miss it sort of situation but a cool place to see. You can tell that, as time moved on, this jail was somewhat obscured with other buildings being set right next to it, almost making it hard to find. Good news is that my GPS took me right to it, and there was ample parking in the rear of the building. The museum has a VERY narrow timeframe of people to plan visits (just Thurs-Sat), so I had to do the trip before work on a Thursday afternoon, which isn’t my ideal timeframe for this. I had the little guy with me, and went through a quick self-guided tour of everything, although I’d like to go back myself at some point for an actual guided tour. I’ve mentioned before that some museums are more kid friendly than others, and this one is somewhat on the “not so kid friendly” side of things. That said, we made it work, and had a fun day!Background:
Via, the website sponsored by the Jackson County Historical Society. No Wikipedia this time!In 1958, a used building materials dealer nearly got permission to demolish the Marshal’s Home and Jail and the right to claim the salvaged stone, brick and timber as the price for his work. The abandoned buildings were given a new lease on life when a group of civic minded citizens realized that there was yet another historic role for the unassuming two-story house at the corner of Main Street and what is now Truman Road. […]The marshal or the jailer lived with his family in the Marshal’s residence, which was the front half of the structure. The wife often cooked meals for the prisoners, as well as her own family, in a small kitchen at the back of the house. The Marshal was paid about $50 per month, plus the use of the house, for his services. The marshal’s office formed part of the residence, where he would work with his deputies and the jailor. This office had a separate entryway from the house. […]During the American Civil War, the jail held both military and civilian prisoners, and served as the U.S. Provost Marshal’s office. William Clark Quantrill, the famous Confederate guerrilla leader, was briefly incarcerated there, as were those who refused to take a pro-Union loyalty oath. William Quantrill, met an angry mob upon his release from the facility. Scores of women and children were detained behind bars in the jail during Order Number 11. After the war, its most famous inmate was Frank James, the older brother to the famous outlaw Jesse James. Frank James spent 112 days in the jail. During his time at the jail, James’ cell was furnished with a Brussels carpet, fine furniture and paintings, and he was permitted free run of the jail and hosted card games in his cell at night. Frank James’ cell is preserved as it was when he occupied it, as part of the modern museum.
– JCHS
Reading(s):
My readings for this edition were: Lock Down: Outlaws, Lawmen & Frontier Justice in Jackson County, Missouri (2012) By David W. Jackson and Blood on the Streets: The Civil War comes to Jackson County, Missouri, August 1862 by Ralph A. Monaco II. The former is specifically about the jail, and the latter is a book I already used for my article on the Battle of Lone Jack State Historical Site, it’s useful because it has a section on how the jail came into play during the First Battle of Independence. Both books have purchase links in their respective review pages.
The Trip:
As I stated before, this site is located right in the middle of downtown Independence, not too far from the Court House. This site consists of the main jailhouse, two stories tall with one story available to peruse, the Marshal’s house, a courtyard, a museum wing, and an old school building that was relocated to the site in the 1960’s. I was unable to see the schoolhouse nor the courtyard during my visit due to the little guy being somewhat of a handful, but that gives me something to do next time.I was most interested to visit this site due to the fact that the jail served as one of the focal points of a minor Civil war battle – The First Battle of Independence on August 11, 1862. Since I have rekindled my love of learning about the Civil War, things like this are always awesome for me. George Todd, a prominent Missouri guerilla leader, made it a point to raid the jail during the fighting. Since the jail was being used to house people that refused to take a Union loyalty oath, and others that may have even been suspected guerilla fighters, it was seen as a fertile recruitment center for the cause. In a stroke of sheer luck, Todd discovered that City Marshal James Knowles was in a cell, being jailed for the killing of a rowdy citizen without due process. Todd also had a prisoner named Aaron Thomas that he blamed for a recent raid against the group. Both men were executed in the jail itself. Fun fact – George Todd was later killed at the Second Battle of Independence, in 1864. It seems the City would get it’s revenge at some point.
The museum itself does not dwell too much on this chapter in the jail’s history, however, Civil War era items come into play during the guided tour. One can learn things such as the jail’s use during the war, and how it helped house those who refused to show loyalty to the Union. There is also discussion on the brief period of time where the jail housed a young William C. Quantrill after he flipped allegiances during an abolitionist raid and was near being hanged by the townspeople for his act of treachery. One can only imagine how history might have changed, had that event come to pass.The jail itself is pretty spooky due to the antiquated cells, shackles and bleak living conditions of the time. If you are into the paranormal at all, consider this: Think of the emotion of being torn from your home and tossed in jail for not pledging allegiance to the Union, or the fear felt in the handful of murders that happened on the premises. Whether you believe in ghosts or perhaps residual energy (like the Stone Tape Theory), the jail feels like it has the heavy “must be haunted” sort of feeling. I know that in the autumn, they have special ghost tours of the property, so maybe I’m not too far off. I know that’s not for everyone, but I keep an open mid with that sort of thing.
I was quite taken aback with how close the jail was to the Marshal’s house – the site where the Jail’s Marshal and his family would have stayed while administering the building. On the second floor, a door to a child’s room is basically directly across from the upper wing of the jail, with such a close proximity that I’m sure children could have easily heard inmates conversations. Since one always hear about jailbreaks and such, it’s crazy to me that a family would live that close to possible thieves and murderers, but it was the time back then. I’ve heard Alcatraz had a similar living situation for staff. The marshal’s house is decorated with period furnishings and other items to make it look similar to what it could have been like in that time period. The study has antique desks, the parlor has an old piano and other items, and bedrooms are filled with things such as children’s toys.The museum portion of the building is pretty interesting, showing off a number of artifacts including shackles and even shivs confiscated by jailers. There are a number of exhibits for the most noteworthy incarcerated individuals that were housed there. I mentioned Quantrill earlier, but perhaps the most notable of all inmates was Frank James of the infamous James gang. James was sent to Jail for 112 days for the murder of Captain John Sheets at a robbery in Gallatin, Missouri. During his stay, he was permitted to roam the halls, and lived in a comfortably furnished cell that has been recreated in one of the first floor jail cells. Other notable inmates include Reverend Abner Deane, who was imprisoned at the 1859 Jail after the Civil War because he refused to sign the “Ironclad Oath” to the Union and a woman named Rose Jenkins, who was likely not that noteworthy but is one of the few extant female mugshots on file, showing that female prisoners were also present.
Later portions of the museum talk about the turn of the century and the jail’s later use as a public workhouse. According to the JCHS website: “The Jail and Marshal’s Home was decommissioned in 1933. After the last jailer hung up his keys, Jackson County found a use for the jail and home when it housed several offices, work training programs, and government bureaus during the Great Depression. There were many public work programs that operated in the old jail. Sewing, canning, and ironing were just a few jobs that gave people viable work during the Depression.”The site includes a giftshop that boasts a large collection of local history books curated by the JCHS, I was able to find one specifically about the Civil War in this area that I will read eventually for this series. Items for children include things like cup and ball games and Jacob’s ladders.
Conclusion:
This was a fun little day trip idea if you are around Independence Square and have a hour or so to kill. It’s not a huge museum, but the quality of the artifacts and importance to the city itself are immeasurable. Like stated before, this isn’t the best place for VERY small children, but older kids should have fun. During the fall, The JCHS runs ghost tours and paranormal investigations of some nature, which may just be something I do this year assuming I can snag a ticket. I was unable to see everything during my visit and will likely go back at some point to see The small schoolhouse and the courtyard. Keep your eyes peeled for an addendum if that happens!This is part of my 2021 series History Boy Summer, which you can read more of following this LINK.
#AmericanCivilWar #civilWar #Historical #HistoricalSite #History #HistoryBoySummer #HistoryTour #incarceration #Independence #IndependenceMo #JacksonCounty #Jail #KansasCityMissouri #LocalHistory #militaryHistory #missouri #MuseumTrips #prison