Kansas Chautauqua

Bleeding Kansas: Where the Civil War Began

A festival of learning commemorating the
150th Anniversary of the Kansas Territory held June 2004
in Junction City, Colby, Fort Scott, and Lawrence

From Bleeding Kansas to Brown v. Topeka, Kansas has played a central role in the struggle for human dignity and national identity. In 1854, the Kansas-Nebraska Act opened the territory for white settlement and gave settlers the right to vote on whether the Kansas Territory would enter the Union as a free or slave state. The eyes of the nation turned to Kansas, and the territory became the first battleground for the issues and ideas that eventually engulfed the nation. The state motto "Ad Astra Per Aspera" aptly describes the seven-year struggle that led to Kansas entering the Union as a free state in January 1861.

The 150th anniversary provided opportunity for deeper and broader interpretation of that turbulent and important period. Kansans—young and old—became more familiar with the events of the period, learning how the conflict affected the lives of ordinary settlers, politicians, slaves, and Native Americans. The story of the Kansas Territory is the story of our nation.

Visit the Kansas Chautauqua photo gallery to see images from June 2004.