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Title | Creator | Date Made Visible | None
Cyrus Kurtz Holliday to Mary Dillon Holliday
Holliday, Cyrus Kurtz, 1826-1900
Cyrus K. Holliday wrote to his wife, Mary Holliday, in Meadville, Pennsylvania from Lawrence, Kansas Territory, where he had stopped on his way to visit Governor Andrew H. Reeder at the Shawnee Indian Mission. Holliday hoped to make the growing Topeka the capital of Kansas Territory. In Lawrence, a hotel keeper had died and George W. Brown, editor of the Herald of Freedom, was ill. Despite mail-delaying winter storms further east, the weather continued mildly. Holliday described his financial investments and requested money for his trip to Meadville, more urgent as the birth of their first child approached.
previewMary Dillon Holliday to Cyrus Kurtz Holliday
Holliday, Mary Dillon Jones, 1833-1908
Mary Holliday wrote from Meadville, Pennsylvania to her husband, Cyrus K. Holliday in Kansas Territory. Lonely and worried, she expressed her eagerness at joining him after the birth of their first child. She mentioned receiving a package of papers from her husband which spoke well of him. She also mentioned his mother's desire to go to Kansas Territory with them and described the well-being of friends and relatives.
previewCyrus Kurtz Holliday to Mary Dillon Holliday
Holliday, Cyrus Kurtz, 1826-1900
Cyrus K. Holliday wrote letters from several cities to his wife, Mary Holliday, after leaving their home at Meadville, Pennsylvania to return to business at Topeka, Kansas Territory. Once in Lawrence, K. T., he reported the political situation to his wife. Governor Andrew H. Reeder, who expected violence, and the fraudulently elected Territorial Legislature were at loggerheads. (Holliday had been elected to the Legislature in a reelection called by Governor Reeder during Holliday's absence, but the reelection results were rejected by the Legislature). Holliday also mentioned the good corn crop and warm weather and expressed his love for his wife and daughter, Lillie, born March 18.
previewJohn Brown to Mary Brown and family
Brown, John, 1800-1859
One week after arriving at his sons' settlement ("Brownville") near Osawatomie, Brown wrote the family back east that although most were sick when he first arrived, they "appear now to be mending." The trip across Missouri was without incident, except for problems with a sick horse and their "heavy load." Brown then wrote briefly of the Adairs, the "most uncomfortable situation" in which he found his children upon his arrival, and other things including prairie fires and finally the political situation in the territory. In fact, at this early date, John Brown "believe[d] Missouri is fast becoming discouraged about making Kansas a Slave State & think the prospect of its becoming Free is brightening every day."
previewJohn Brown to Mary Brown and family
Brown, John, 1800-1859
In this letter from "Brownsville, Kansas Territory," John Brown made some observations about the harshness of the weather, the health of his Kansas children, their general lack of preparedness for the winter, and the farm work that needed to be accomplished. His only comment about the political situation in the territory came in closing: "I feel more, & more confident that Slavery will soon die out here; & to God be the praise."
previewL. W. Halbe Collection
Halbe, L. W. (Leslie Winfield), 1893-1981
The L. W. (Leslie Winfield) Halbe photo collection consists of 1500 glass plate negatives produced by Halbe during his teenage years. Halbe lived in Dorrance, Russell County, Kansas, and began taking photographs of the region with an inexpensive Sears and Roebuck camera when he was fifteen years old.
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