August 25, 1863---"The Burned District"

AUGUST 25, 1863:                     

The terrible aftermath of the raid on Lawrence, Kansas. Pro-Union Jayhawkers raided five counties in Missouri, now known collectively as “The Burned District,” leaving only fireplaces and chimneys (named “Jennison Monuments” after the chief of the Jayhawkers) standing to mark where there had been homes. 

Under orders of General Thomas Ewing U.S.A. (the expulsion Order was named “General Order Number 11” just like Grant’s earlier order to expel the Jews from Union areas), the Union military exiled every presumed pro-Confederate resident of these areas, leaving the area a No-Man’s Land for the remainder of the war. Most of the 20,000 Missouri exiles struggled to resettle elsewhere. They were often unwelcome wherever they settled. Southerners saw them as an extra burden in a time of want, while Northerners mistrusted them as Rebels. 

Although pro-Union families were allowed to remain in the Burned District, none did. The area became a free-fire zone of Jayhawkers hunting down Bushwhackers and Bushwhackers hunting down Jayhawkers. The violence continued even after the war ended, as old scores remained to be settled.