Soldiers' Monument, Osawatomie

This stone shaft marks one of the bloodiest days of Bleeding Kansas. On August thirtieth, eighteen fifty six, a pro slavery force of several hundred border ruffians attacked the free state town of Osawatomie. The abolitionist John Brown learned they were coming when they shot and killed his son Frederick on the road. With only about forty men, Brown fought them at the edge of town, inflicting heavy losses before being driven back. The raiders then looted and burned Osawatomie.

Twenty one years later, on the anniversary of the battle, friends and relatives dedicated this monument. It stands over the graves of the free state men who died that day, Frederick Brown, George Partridge, David Garrison, Theron Powers, and Charles Kaiser, whose body was never found though his name is still carved here. John Brown's name appears on the north face, though he is buried far away in New York.