Charles Rainsford Jennison also known as "Doc" Jennison (June 6, 1834 – June 21, 1884) was a member of the anti-slavery faction during

Bleeding Kansas Bleeding Kansas, Bloody Kansas, or the Border War was a series of violent civil confrontations in Kansas Territory, and to a lesser extent in western Missouri, between 1854 and 1859. It emerged from a political and ideological debate over the ...

, a famous

Jayhawker Jayhawkers and red legs are terms that came to prominence in Kansas Territory during the Bleeding Kansas period of the 1850s; they were adopted by militant bands affiliated with the free-state cause during the American Civil War. These gangs we ...

, and a member of the

Kansas State Senate The Kansas Senate is the upper house of the Kansas Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. State of Kansas. It is composed of 40 senators elected from single-member districts, each with a population of at least 60,000 inhabitants. Members o ...

in the 1870s. He later served as a

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

and as a leader of Jayhawker militias during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

Early life and Bleeding Kansas

Charles R. Jennison was born on June 6, 1834 in Antwerp, Jefferson County, New York. His family moved to

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

in 1846 where Jennison studied medicine. Marrying at the age of 20, Dr. Jennison moved to

Osawatomie, Kansas Osawatomie is a city in Miami County, Kansas, United States, southwest of Kansas City. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 4,255. It derives its name as a portmanteau of two nearby streams, the Marais des Cygnes River (form ...

in 1858 and to

Mound City, Kansas Mound City is a city in and the county seat of Linn County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 647. History Mound City was founded in 1855. It was named from Sugar Mound nearby, a hill covered with su ...

shortly thereafter. Jennison was considered the most brutal and unscrupulous of the

jayhawkers Jayhawkers and red legs are terms that came to prominence in Kansas Territory during the Bleeding Kansas period of the 1850s; they were adopted by militant bands affiliated with the free-state cause during the American Civil War. These gangs w ...

. Whereas some other prominent leaders of irregulars in the

border conflict shared these traits, Jennison was distinguished by his blatant plunder for personal gain. Jennison cooperated with James Montgomery in opposing pro-slavery settlers and irregulars believed to be in league with

Border Ruffians Border ruffians were proslavery raiders, crossing from the slave state of Missouri into the Kansas Territory, to help ensure Kansas entered the Union as a slave state. They were a key part of the violent period called Bleeding Kansas, that pea ...

. In command of nine men, Jennison "tried" and hanged Russell Hinds near the state line at Mine Creek for the offense of helping to return a fugitive slave to his master in Missouri. Returning a slave was not only legal, but required at the time under the

Fugitive Slave Act A fugitive (or runaway) is a person who is fleeing from custody, whether it be from jail, a government arrest, government or non-government questioning, vigilante violence, or outraged private individuals. A fugitive from justice, also kno ...

. Hinds had rejected the standard $25 reward ($515 in 2005 dollars), but did accept $5 reimbursement for his expenses in transporting the slave, who had agreed to return to his master while awaiting legal emancipation. The acceptance of the reimbursement was enough to convince Jennison to hand down a death sentence.

Civil War

Even before the start of hostilities Jennison became a captain of the Mound City Guards on February 19, 1861.Connelley, William E., ''A Standard History of Kansas and Kansans'', Lewis Publishing Company, 1918, "Charles R. Jennison" Although not with Senator James H. Lane's Kansas brigade during the

Sacking of Osceola A sack usually refers to a rectangular-shaped bag. Sack may also refer to: Bags * Flour sack * Gunny sack * Hacky sack, sport * Money sack * Paper sack * Sleeping bag * Stuff sack * Knapsack Other uses * Bed, a slang term * Sack (band), an Iris ...

, Jennison was associated with it and would soon join the fray after receiving a commission as colonel from

Kansas Governor The governor of Kansas is the head of state of KansasKS Const. art. I, § 3. and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Kan ...

Charles L. Robinson Charles Lawrence Robinson (July 21, 1818 – August 17, 1894) was an American politician who served in the California State Assembly from 1851-52, and later as the first Governor of Kansas from 1861 until 1863. He was also the first governor o ...

on September 4. On October 28, 1861, Jennison completed the organization and mustering of his 7th Kansas Cavalry. The regiment would become known as "Jennison's Jayhawkers." It immediately took to the field patrolling the Kansas-Missouri border to prevent the secessionist under

Sterling Price Major-General Sterling "Old Pap" Price (September 14, 1809 – September 29, 1867) was a senior officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded infantry in the Western and Trans-Mississippi theaters of the American Civil War. Prior to ...

from crossing. Jennisons was a resolute

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

; his sentiments on the matter were the subject o
an article
in Horace Greeley's ''

New York Daily Tribune The ''New-York Tribune'' was an American newspaper founded in 1841 by editor Horace Greeley. It bore the moniker ''New-York Daily Tribune'' from 1842 to 1866 before returning to its original name. From the 1840s through the 1860s it was the dom ...

''. The article reported Jennison as refusing to allow non-abolitionist soldiers to serve under his command, and asserting that "the slaves of outhernerscan always find a protection in... ycamp, and they will be defended to the last man and bullet." While the regiment was at Leavenworth, Kansas in April 1862, Jennison, angered over James G. Blunt being named

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

in his stead, resigned from the army and turned to banditry as a

Redleg Redleg is a term used to refer to poor whites that live or at one time lived on Barbados, St. Vincent, Grenada and a few other Caribbean islands. Their forebears were sent from Ireland, Scotland and Continental Europe as indentured servants, ...

. Following the

Lawrence Massacre The Lawrence Massacre, also known as Quantrill's Raid, was an attack during the American Civil War (186165) by Quantrill's Raiders, a Confederate guerrilla group led by William Quantrill, on the Unionist town of Lawrence, Kansas, killing a ...

Jennison was once again commissioned a colonel and called into service by

Thomas Carney Thomas Carney (August 20, 1824 – July 28, 1888) was the second Governor of Kansas. Biography Carney was born in Delaware County, Ohio, to James and Jane (Ostrander) Carney. James died in 1828, leaving a widow and four young sons. Thomas re ...

. Jennison raised a regiment that would become the 15th Kansas Cavalry on October 17, 1863. In a particularly egregious incident late in the war, Jennison shot and killed 66 year old civilian David Gregg "on the public highway north of Parkerville , Platte Co. Mo." on September 15, 1864. Colonel Jennison commanded a mixed brigade of Kansas militia and volunteers resisting

Price's Raid Price's Missouri Expedition (August 29 – December 2, 1864), also known as Price's Raid or Price's Missouri Raid, was an unsuccessful Confederate cavalry raid through Arkansas, Missouri, and Kansas in the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the Am ...

in October 1864. However, in December he was arrested as the result of plundering while returning through Missouri after the pursuit of Price. Jennison was court-martialled and convicted on June 23, 1865, whereupon he was dishonorably dismissed from the service.''The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series I, Volume XLI/4, page 874''

Postwar

Jennison was elected to the

Kansas Legislature The Kansas Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Kansas. It is a bicameral assembly, composed of the lower Kansas House of Representatives, with 125 state representatives, and the upper Kansas Senate, with 40 state senators. ...

from Leavenworth County in 1865, re-elected in 1867, and elected to the

in 1872. He died at Leavenworth, Kansas June 21, 1884.

References

External links

Civil War St. Louis website, article about Jayhawking by Castel
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20021216230337/http://www.kancoll.org/books/cutler/sthist/milrec-p14.html#FIFTEENTH_REGIMENT_KANSAS_VOLUNTEER_CAVALRY 15th Regiment Kansas Cavalry from Cutler's ''History of the State of Kansas'']
"White Radicals for Racial Equality: An Intercultural Perspective on the Kansas Free State Struggle, 1854-1864" by, Charles Reitz
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jennison, Charles R. 1834 births 1884 deaths People from Antwerp, New York Union Army colonels Irregular forces of the American Civil War People from Mound City, Kansas