Carnahan Places Papers of Civil War Governors Online March 30th 2011
From the SOS Office: Secretary of State Robin Carnahan today announced that the Missouri State Archives, a division of her office, has digitized and placed online the official papers of Missouri’s governors during the Civil War era, 1861-1865. The governors include Claiborne Fox Jackson, Hamilton Rowan Gamble, Willard Preble Hall and Thomas Clement Fletcher. The project is one of many that the Archives will complete to recognize the sesquicentennial of the Civil War.
“As we commemorate the Civil War, I am pleased that Missourians can access these historic records online,” said Carnahan. “The resources available on Missouri Digital Heritage can help us learn more about the turmoil of the Civil War, and how it impacted our state and its citizens.”
The effort to digitize the papers of Missouri’s Civil War governors has made over 1,000 original documents related to the state’s government during the war easily accessible. As a result, researchers can study the war-time actions of state government, and students and interested citizens can access the historical records of their state’s leaders. The papers shed light on a variety of topics, such as the state convention that decided to remain in the Union and vacate state offices, militia activities, guerrilla warfare, loyalty oaths, amnesty for Confederate soldiers and sympathizers, emancipation of Missouri slaves, railroad bond defaults, and immigration.
The papers of Missouri’s Civil War governors are just four of the many collections available through the Missouri Digital Heritage website, a collaborative effort to make millions of historical documents from repositories across the state available through a single searchable website. Members of the Archives staff are currently preparing the papers of Reconstruction-era governors for the Digital Heritage website.
To view the governors’ papers, please visit the links below:
Claiborne Fox Jackson: http://www.sos.mo.gov/archives/mdh_splash/default.asp?coll=cfjackson
Hamilton Rowan Gamble: http://www.sos.mo.gov/archives/mdh_splash/default.asp?coll=hrgamble
Willard Preble Hall: http://www.sos.mo.gov/archives/mdh_splash/default.asp?coll=msa
Thomas Clement Fletcher: http://www.sos.mo.gov/archives/mdh_splash/default.asp?coll=fletcher
Information about other commemorative activities, including an online exhibit and speaker series, may be found at http://www.missouridigitalheritage.com.
