Press Release: June 15, 2009
National Archives at Kansas City
Five More Days to View the “Original” Kansas-Nebraska Act at National Archives in Kansas City
For More Information Contact:
Kimberlee Ried
(816) 268-8000
Kansas City, (MO)…The original Kansas-Nebraska Act, on loan from Washington DC, will be available for viewing until Saturday June 20. The public is invited to view the Act before it is returned, and a facsimile takes its place.
The Kansas-Nebraska Act examines the “Bleeding Kansas” era between 1854 and 1861 and the approach of the Civil War and will continue to be exhibited until January 23, 2010. It explores the period of violent confrontation between pro-slavery and free state settlers following the passage of the act which created the Kansas Territory. Officially titled “An Act to Organize the Territories of Nebraska and Kansas,” and termed one of the nation’s 100 milestone documents, the Act repealed the Missouri Compromise, which had outlawed slavery above the 36° 30’ latitude in the Louisiana territories and reopened the national struggle over the expansion of slavery. The Kansas-Nebraska Act sheds light on one of the many tests of America’s democratic system as the question of slavery in the future state was to be decided by popular vote.
The Kansas-Nebraska Act set the stage for battles, massacres, fraudulent elections, dueling territorial legislatures, and an assault in the United States Senate. The exhibit features docket books showing charges of treason and “assuming the office of the governor” by abolitionist leader and future Kansas governor Charles Robinson and the indictment of Daniel R. Anthony, brother of suffragette Susan B. Anthony, for assisting a fugitive slave. This turbulent period is illustrated through the use of handbills, cartoons, newspapers, and photographs.
Admission, hours and additional information
The Kansas-Nebraska Act is a free exhibit. The National Archives at Kansas City is open Tuesday-Saturday 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. for exhibits viewing and Tuesday-Saturday from 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m. for research. For additional information call 816-268-8000 or visit the National Archives at Kansas City web page.
The National Archives at Kansas City is one of 13 facilities nationwide where the public has access to Federal archival records. It is home to more than 50,000 cubic feet of historical records dating from the 1820s to the 1990s created or received by nearly 100 Federal agencies. Serving the Central Plains Region, the archives holds records from the states of Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The facility is located at 400 West Pershing Road, Kansas City, MO 64108. The National Archives at Kansas City is open Tuesday–Saturday 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. for exhibits viewing and Tuesday–Saturday from 8:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. for research.
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NREA 09–14
