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Marais des Cygnes massacre

The Marais des Cygnes massacre is considered the last significant act of violence in Bleeding Kansas prior to the outbreak of the American Civil War. On May 19, 1858, approximately 30 border ruffians led by Charles Hamilton, a Georgia native and proslavery leader, crossed into the Kansas Territory from Missouri. They arrived at Trading Post, Kansas, in the morning and then headed back to Missouri. Along the way, they captured 11 abolitionist Free-Staters, none of whom were armed and, it is said, none of whom had participated in the ongoing violence. Most of the men knew Hamilton and did not realize he meant them harm. These prisoners were led into a defile, where Hamilton ordered his men to shoot, firing the first and last bullet himself. Five men were killed and five severely wounded. Only one Free-Stater escaped injury.

History
Background When the United States Congress passed the Kansas–Nebraska Act in 1854, it did not directly state whether Kansas Territory and Nebraska Territory would allow slavery or not, but that the issue would be decided by popular sovereignty. While Nebraska did not see much controversy, Kansas became a hotly debated area. While the previous Missouri Compromise would have prevented slavery from being practiced in Kansas, the new law left the question open. In response to the new opening, pro-slavery advocates known as border ruffians, many of whom were from Missouri, entered Kansas to illegally vote in an attempt to sway local elections. The New England Emigrant Aid Company also sought to bring anti-slavery settlers into the territory. The elections, which were held on March 30, 1855, resulted in a pro-slavery majority in the Kansas territorial government, who in turn created laws protecting slavery and among other things, outlawing abolitionist literature. Abolitionist sentiment was strong near Lawrence, and several prominent Lawrence residents formed the Free State Party to organize resistance to the pro-slavery government in September. In October, the free-staters drafted the Topeka Constitution, which sought to create an abolitionist government in the state. There were now both pro- and anti-slavery governments vying for control of Kansas; President of the United States Franklin Pierce supported the pro-slavery government as the lawful one. Massacre On May 19, a border ruffian named Charles Hamilton led a group of about 30 men on a ride through the settlement of Trading Post. Hamilton was a slaveowner who had been driven from Linn County to Missouri by James Montgomery and sought revenge. After taking 11 local free-staters hostage from their homes and fields, the border ruffians forced them into a nearby ravine and began shooting at them. 10 of the men were hit by the fire, five of them fatally. The wife of one of the victims followed the border ruffians to the site, and attempted to give medical treatment to the wounded. Later that day, other locals gathered at the area, aiding the wounded and disposing of the bodies of the dead. Rumor spread that the massacre had been planned in a building known as the Western Hotel; Montgomery unsuccessfully attempted to burn it down on June 5. Land south of the ravine where the massacre occurred was owned by a local blacksmith, who later sold the site to Charles Hadsall, a friend of Brown. In late June, Brown built a two-story log fort south of the ravine; Hadsall allowed him to keep a military post at the site. Brown abandoned the fort later that summer. ==Commemoration==
Commemoration
The incident horrified the U.S. and inspired John Greenleaf Whittier to write a poem on the murders, "Le Marais du Cygne", which appeared in the September 1858 The Atlantic Monthly. Commemoration of the massacre began in late October 1864, when men of the 3rd Iowa Cavalry Regiment erected two stone markers at the site, after the Battle of Mine Creek during the American Civil War. In 1889, on the anniversary of the battle, a formal monument to the victims was dedicated in a cemetery at Trading Post. By 1895, souvenir hunters had largely destroyed the 1864 markers. Hadsall, probably in the 1870s, built a stone house next to the fort site. The area is still rural. Signs provide interpretation of the events of the massacre, and a hand-cranked device plays an audio recording. The NHL-designated area incorporates . As of October 2020, the site is open from dusk to dawn. No admission fee is charged, and visits are self-guided. The Hadsall house still stands and can be viewed from the exterior. Sites designed for picnicing are also present at the park. ==See also==
Source: Wikipedia ↗
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