Kansas Territorial
Sesquicentennial Commission

Territorial Objects and Images

These images of objects and photographs relating the the Kansas territorial period are from the Kansas State Historical Society's collections.

Photo of howitzer

This Abbott Howitzer was captured during the sacking of Lawrence on May 21, 1856. read more

This desk was brought to Douglas County, Kansas Territory, in 1855 by George W. Clarke, a Pottawatomie Indian agent, slave owner, and ardent slavery supporter. read more

The border on the Kansas Territorial Seal is encircled by a two-inch brass die with the text, "SEAL OF THE TERRITORY OF KANSAS / ERECTED MAY 30, 1854." read more

Tragic Prelude by John Steuart Curry. read more

Select each of these images for a larger view.

Ruins of Free State Hotel, 1856, Lawrence, Kansas

The Governor's Mansion, Lecompton, Kansas Territory, 1856

View of Topeka, Kansas, 1856, showing Constitution Hall at the left

City of Lecompton, Territorial Capital of Kansas, 1858

Drawing of the Marais des Cygnes Massacre from Beyond the Mississippi by Albert D. Richardson, 1867

Drawing of Leavenworth when it was six years old, c. 1860

Drawing of the Free State Hotel, Lawrence, Kansas Territory

Back to Kansas Territorial Sesquicentennial Commission

This image of the Kansas-Nebraska Act, one of the 100 most important documents in our nation's history from the National Archives, was the centerpiece of the Special Exhibit, Willing to Die for Freedom: A Look Back at Kansas Territory, April 3 - July 4, 2004, the exhibit continued through October 31, 2004.