Marais des Cygnes Massacre State Hist Site

Location:  6 miles North of Pleasanton on Hwy. US 69, take the gravel road 4 miles East to the site.  Turn-off and route are well marked.

Nearest Town:  Pleasanton

Contact:  Ph. 316/352-6174 or visit the website: Marais des Cygnes Massacre Historic Site

Hours:  1-5pm Sun., Wed.-Sat. 10am-5pm, Closed Tuesdays and State Holidays

This Kansas Historical Site is just off the beaten path, but certainly worthy of a visit.  At this site in 1858, 11 Free-State men were herded into a ravine, lined up, and shot in cold blood by a group of 30 or so Pro-Slavery raiders. 5 were killed, 5 wounded, and 1 escaped injury by pretending to be dead.  To understand this atrocity, you must first know a little about Kansas History.  In the years leading up to the Civil War, the debate as to whether Kansas should enter the Union as a Free or Slave state raged.  Neighbors turned against neighbors because of their opinions on the issue of slavery; sometimes violence erupted.  The times became known as "Bleeding Kansas" to the rest of the nation and world.   Adding fuel to the fire was the fact that both Free-Staters and Pro-Slavery men swarmed into Kansas trying to influence how the issue would be settled.  The Maris des Cygnes Massacre was the bloodiest single incident in the period known as Bleeding Kansas.  Today the location is home to a small museum and several historical markers. A beautiful picnic grounds is adjacent to the museum in a quiet and out of the way setting, just a few miles from Hwy 69.  Also, from time to time re-enactments are staged here.

Flowers now grow in the ravine where once blood was shed.  The site was donated to the state of Kansas in 1941 by the Pleasanton Post, Veterans of Foreign Wars.  The museum was established in the upper floor of a stone house which stood on the property.  Even without an appreciation for the historical aspects of this site, it's a beautiful and peaceful place to visit on your travels through Kansas.

BACK TO INDEX