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In this letter, written from Burlingame, Kansas Territory, James R. Mead informs his father that he had come back to eastern Kansas to work for Mr. Titus, presumably pro-slavery Colonel Titus. Mead still maintains a ranch and trading post on the Saline River near Ft. Riley. Mead also writes to his father about a home that he was building in Salina. He calls his buffalo hunting "a wholesale butchering establishment," and writes he was going to cure the meat. Apparently he has developed quite a reputation in the area, and he had been made sheriff of Saline County. These typed copies of the James R. Mead's letters were donated to the Kansas State Historical Society by Mr. Mead's family in 1940 when the originals were still owned by the family. The originals are now held by Wichita State University. The buffalo hunting that Mead took part in played a significant role in destroying the traditional way of life for many Native Americans living on the Great Plains because they relied on the buffalo for meat, tools, clothing, and other items.
Creator: Mead, James R. (James Richard), b. 1836
Date: August 26, 1860
This source demonstrates the commercialization of hunting and works in tandem with Mead's other letter selected for this standard (dated November 7, 1859) and with images of buffalo and buffalo hunting.
KS:7th:3.1:Federal Government and Indian Lands (2005)
Item Number: 90620
Call Number: James Mead Coll. #438 Box 1, Volume 1
KSHS Identifier: DaRT ID: 90620
Agriculture - Livestock
Agriculture - Ranching
Collections - Manuscript - Mead, James R.
Community Life - Recreation and Sports - Leisure activities - Hunting
Community Life - Town development
Curriculum - 7th Grade Standards - Kansas History Standards - 1860s to 1870s (Benchmark 3) - Fed. Gov. and Indian lands (Indicator 1) - Depletion of buffalo and natural resources
Date - 1854-1860 - 1860
Environment - Wildlife - Mammals - Buffalo/Bison
Government and Politics - Crime and Punishment - Law enforcement officers
Home and Family - Daily life
Home and Family - Residences
Objects and Artifacts - Communication Artifacts - Documentary Artifact - Letter
People - American Indians
People - American Indians - Indian lands
People - American Indians - Indian removal
Places - Cities and towns - Burlingame
Places - Cities and towns - Salina
Places - Counties - Osage
Places - Counties - Saline
Thematic Time Period - Bleeding Kansas, 1854 - 1861
Thematic Time Period - Immigration and Settlement, 1854 - 1890
Type of Material - Unpublished documents - Letters
http://www.kansasmemory.org/item/90620