Sacking of Lawrence
05/21/1856 AD attacked
Proslavery settlers, led by Douglas County Sheriff Samuel J. Jones, attacked and ransacked Lawrence, Kansas, a town which had been founded by antislavery settlers from Massachusetts who were hoping to make Kansas a free state. The incident fueled the irregular conflict in Kansas Territory that later became known as Bleeding Kansas.
Pate was part of the sacking of Lawrence and, either during or shortly before, was commissioned as a Deputy United States Marshal. On hearing news of John Brown's actions at the Pottawatomie Massacre, Pate set out with a band of thirty men to hunt Brown down The human cost of the attack was low: only one person—a member of the proslavery gang—was killed, and his death was accidental. However, Jones and his men halted production of the Free-State newspapers the Kansas Free State and the Herald of Freedom (with the former ceasing publication altogether and the latter taking months to once again start up). The proslavery men also destroyed the Free State Hotel and Charles L. Robinson's house.
Lattitude: 38.9716° N
Longitude: 95.2352° W
Region: North America
Modern Day United States
Subjects Who or What attacked?
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Samuel J. Jones Pro-slavery settler who ... -
Henry Clay Pate American writer, newspap...
Events in 1856 MORE
