Sacking of Lawrence
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The sacking of Lawrence occurred on May 21, 1856, when pro-slavery settlers, led by Douglas County Sheriff Samuel J. Jones, attacked and ransacked Lawrence, Kansas, a town that had been founded by ant
Ruins of Free State Hotel after the attack
The "Old Sacramento" cannon was captured by the U.S. during the Mexican–American War in 1847 and taken to the Liberty Arsenal. The cannon was fired by pro-slavery forces during the Sack of Lawrence.
South Carolina flag flown over Free State Hotel
Lawrence Massacre
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The Lawrence Massacre was an attack during the American Civil War by Quantrill's Raiders, a Confederate guerrilla group led by William Quantrill, on the Unionist town of Lawrence, Kansas, killing arou
Sacking of Lawrence
…rebuilt it as the "Eldridge House". This building remained a fixture of Lawrence until 1863, when it was burned down by William Quantrill during the Lawrence Massacre, and then it was rebuilt twice in 1866 and in 1926. For months after the Sack of Lawrence, the city was without a free state newspaper. This was…
Lawrence in ruins as illustrated in Harper's Weekly. The charred remains of the Eldridge House are in the foreground.