Harry Custer wrote this letter to his mother upon his return to St. Louis from Kansas, describing the violence along the Missouri/Kansas border. Based on internal evidence, it is believed the letter was written on September 8, 1856. Custer reported, “On the 20th we had quite a skirmish with Pro-Slavery men in which the Pro-Slavery men was routed with 7 killed and 20 taken prisoner which we exchanged for Free Soil men.” This is consistent with details of the action at “Fort Titus,” near Lecompton, Kansas, on August 16, 1856, where 7 pro-slavery men were killed or captured and 20 taken prisoner.
While camped with “General” James Lane, Custer observed the “Border Ruffians,” a name coined in 1855 and applied to individuals along the border conducting acts of violence. The term quickly became synonymous with Missourians. Custer wrote, “The State of things in Leavenworth City is truly horrible. Every man goes armed, men parading the streets all day with guns and bayonets. Drunken Missourians lying around the taverns displaying their Bowie knives and shooting their pistols…”
Image Courtesy Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield; WICR 31040
