Letter by John Henry Vansickle, a Bourbon County farmer and dry goods store owner, describing the political climate in Territorial Kansas. The letter includes a reference to a "Jayhawker" on the top of the second page.
Charles Jennison, a strong supporter of abolitionists John Brown and James Montgomery, came to Kansas in 1857. In 1861 he was commissioned as a lieutenant colonel of the 7th Kansas Cavalry Regiment, which became known as "Jennison's Jayhawkers."