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The Verdict is in,"Quantrill at Lawrence the Untold Story" is a Major Hit Which is Burning Up the Sales Charts. A-Book-Review.

Below are some of the numerous reviews of Paul R. Petersen's newest book, Quantrill at Lawrence. If these aren't enough to convince you to buy the book, then you must be a Yankee apologist. ENJOY!!

By D. M. Harrell: A powerful part three of the Quantrill trilogy

"Quantrill at Lawrence" is a powerful book. I like how Mr. Petersen used the words of the Kansans to make his case that Lawrence was not the unarmed and innocent city that most histories claim. He uses newspaper articles from Kansas papers of the day plus accounts from letters written by citizens of Lawrence to show them confessing to their guilt.

The book shows that the people of Lawrence were in the military whether with the Jayhawker units or in the local militia. Many thousands of dollars in stolen Missouri goods taken by Jayhawkers were sold in Lawrence with the full knowledge of the buyers of their origin. Frustrated and angry Missourians banded together to protect their property and right the wrongs done to them. The raid on Lawrence was the ultimate revenge. Mr. Petersen goes into great depth to show the raid was conducted as a military operation with specific targets in mind. 

As a person who has studied this subject for more than 30 years, I commend Mr. Petersen with writing a fresh and vivid account of the dark history of Kansas and Missouri. I saw no glaring historical errors. There are more than 20 pages of footnotes plus a long and varied bibliography. If I have any criticism of the book, it would be of not including the escape of Quantrill's men from Kansas. It was a long trek with thousands of Kansans following behind them plus the terrible aftermath of killings of innocent Missourians and the harsh response of Order #11.

I recommend all three of Mr. Petersen's books to anyone wanting to know about the Civil War of the Border states of Missouri and Kansas.

By Charlie: "War is Hell"

Why is it when facts contrary to popular history people with closed minds get rattled? Mr. Petersen provides 24 full pages of notes, citing his sources and 12 pages of books and articles in the book's selected bibliography. This is more than any other published author or historian has provided with a contrary perspective of Quantrill's raid on the hate filled hornets nest known as Lawrence.

Those that feel opinions such Mack, Marquis and Cantey (see other reviews) are "revisionist" are correct. They are in the sense revising a historical record of a perpetrated lie. What is wrong when little known facts are discovered, compiled, studied then published by honest people such Mr. Petersen? Through the well documented facts offered in Petersen's book, which violently collide with the inaccurate versions handed down for generations, only an intellectually honest individual will reconsider what they believe they know and engage the story Petersen has uncovered. It is my opinion Petersen revealed a story far closer to the truth of this incident and this period of American history than has been published before.

Union General William Tecumseh Sherman said, "War is Hell". He ought to know because he destroyed more homes, businesses, farms and lives across three states than William Quantrill and his men did in the town of Lawrence, Kansas. Quantrill's actions, as justifiable as any in the war, pale in comparison of the criminal actions of General Jim Lane, Jim Montgomery, Colonel Charles Jennison, Major Josiah Miller. What these men and others did against innocent families and businesses in Missouri created the atmosphere of fear, sorrow, hate and revenge. A point that goes unnoticed to most.

Petersen's books and those of other authors such as Thomas DiLorenzo should be required reading by every high school student and every college student majoring in U.S. history.                                              
 
By Texasruffian: Captain Quantrill

Excellent work, Mr. Petersen sets forth the truth, what we do not see in the public school system nor in general history books, Captain Quantrill was a man of honor not a deviate low life the other side would like us to believe, he loved his people he loved his men and he loved fighting for them, he was no coward and thief as many try to portray him, he never sent a man to do something he would not himself do and he always stood in front of the battle never behind any man. Lawrence was not just a shot in the night it was a reaction to what happened to his people and family members to some of his men, it was not useless or meaningless and just something out of sheer cruelty, humans do not hate for no reason humans do not act out such measures for no reason, these men behaved out of pure emotion, reasonable emotion and it is high time the true story be told, like it or not IT MUST BE TOLD!!!! R.I.P. Captain Quantrill & Men!

By Claiborne Scholl Nappier: The Secret of Gold

Paul Petersens book, "Quantrill at Lawrence: The Untold Story" is the most refreshing boldest and factual offerings on the subject of Quantrill at Lawrence I ever hoped someone would offer. I am a 6th generation Missourian and a direct decendant of George Thomas Scholl and his brother Daniel Boone Scholl, both whom rode with Quantrill. So..please know if anything from my personal review of Mr. Petersens book it has been extensively researched and honorably offering finally the truth..the good, the bad and the ugly. I can assure any doubters of the authentic research and offers of this book that this book right on target. In this readers opinion Paul has gone further than any previous authors on the subject of Quantrill..good or bad he has told the truth..which is refreshing to me as a son of Missouri. I have read some critics negitive reviews and find them completely without merit or fact. Which by the way is probably the reason a book of this significance has not been written until Paul Petersen. He researched the facts and truth and despite what he may have not liked about it....wrote it for all to share in. The truth is almost always a hard pill to swallow..but he has hit the nail on the head from front cover to back cover. Thanks Paul for ringing the bell of truth in your book and congratulations and thank you sincerely.

By Major Rick Lee Mack: Best Quantrill book ever written. Research is A+

Paul Peterson's book (this one, and others he has written about Quantrill), contain some of the best research I have seen. These high tone arm chair "historians" who put it down don't have a clue. Paul has travled thousands of miles to find the true facts of where Quantrill's men were, and what they did. I have spent over 55 years as a student of Quantrill and have been to many of the places mentioned in Paul's books. His facts are true. Matt Matthews did NOT write a review of Peterson's book. He wrote a personal attack on Paul Peterson. You know, I think it needs to be said again. Matthews did not write a review of "Quantrill at Lawrence." He wrote a personal attack about its author. Shame! This so-called "review" is trite and totally worthless. I don't give the Peterson book 5 stars, I give it 10. We now know the reasons for the raid on Lawrence, Kansas. It's a tough nut for Yankee's to chew on.

By Emory: A Fine Book

I am not a skilled writer or reviewist. I can only state what I appreciate from what I have read. I appreciate Paul Petersen' book, Quantrill at Lawrence!

This book is not a revisionist book as many Unionist critics want to call it. In fact, I would say that the old guard historians have been the ones guilty of revisionist history since the Union won the Civil War in 1865. The book is about an event in the Civil War. The Southern side of the war has been full of revisionist history and outright lies for 150 years. Those lies have been repeated and repeated by the so called "academics" ever since then. They have been repeated so long that they fill our history books with trash taught to our children or follow a twisted PC line that is as corrupt as anything else.

Paul Petersen finally gives us a factual balance about what actually happened in Lawrence, Kansas. It was a military inspired raid against a well fortified military town held by military officers. All the deaths were men, not women and children, as the "academics" have lied about ever since the raid in 1863. All the deaths were military and/or militia trained citizens. The so called "death lists" carried by Quantrill's men were lists of military or militia men and officers who had invaded Missouri, raped innocent women, murdered innocent men, women and children since 1858 and carried off everything they owned to be sold at illegal auctions in Lawrence to the benefit of such "sterling citizens" as Lane, Jennison, and their criminal ilk.

It will always been a red flag for the real, established, old guard revisionists to attack when the proven, documented (right out of the Lawrence newspapers of the time,Union military records and personal letters) records are revealed that go directly against their own misinformation. It is not to their benefit that the truth be revealed, is it?

Paul Petersen's book is the first book out with the truth about both sides in this event. It is very well documented and written. He establishes exactly who the participants were on each side. He then carries the reader step by step through the events of the day. I highly recommend it to any open minded person who wants to read honest history about the event. Thanks Paul Petersen for an excellent book!

By Patrick R. Marquis: "History, to be above evasion or dispute, must stand on documents, not on opinions. "Lord Acton" Despite the fact that he had previously published Quantrill of Missouri and Quantrill in Texas, I have no doubt Paul Petersen knew his newest work, Quantrill at Lawrence, would be controversial, also. But I sincerely doubt that he was prepared for the backlash that has followed. Perhaps he should have anticipated it because Mr. Petersen has succeeded in his quest to demonstrate that the Lawrence raid on August 21, 1863, was a brilliantly planned, flawlessly executed military action taken against the headquarters of his enemy, which targeted and eliminated Union soldiers and Militia members, instead of the brutal and unjustified massacre of innocent non-combatants that some have unjustly accused him of committing.

Mr. Petersen begins his book by relating the sad and bitter tale of "the straw that broke the camel's back," the murder of five female relatives of the guerrillas, which occurred after the jail where they were confined was deliberately undermined by guards who were members of the 9th Kansas Calvary. This isn't Mr. Petersen's theory; rather it is the reason that was documented in the numerous books and manuscripts written by the surviving guerrillas after the war. Next Petersen chronicles the illegalities and atrocities inflicted upon the Missourians from the theft of as much as $20,000 worth of goods that Lawrence shipped west and absorbed every week, to the sacking of Osceola Missouri on September 23, 1861. That town of 3,000 people was plundered and burned to the ground, and nine local citizens were executed, women were raped, and the slaves were "liberated" only to become the property of the Jayhawking horde led by the main target of the Lawrence raid, the "Grim Chieftain" James Lane. Mr. Petersen masterfully introduces the key players on both sides, while chronicling their actions leading up to the raid.

After building tension to a fever pitch, he masterfully places the readers in the saddle on the day of the raid, painting a vivid and complex painting of the sights and sounds of the raid, including accounts from both victims and the raiders. He shares with the reader that Quantrill supplied his followers with maps and a "Death List," and that the names on this list came as no surprise to anyone. It included members of the military companies associated with the New England Emigrant Aid Society. Others on the list were known abolitionists, operators of the Underground Railroad, who had stolen Missouri slaves, extremely expensive property in those days; newspapermen, who called for the invasion and rape of Missouri and the assassination of its citizens; and, of course, members of the Federal army or Kansas militia residing within Lawrence. Contrary to rumors that persist to this day no women or children were killed or molested.

Petersen also shares a tale of the aftermath of the raid, including the infamous General Orders Number 11, an atrocity that led to the dispossession of 20,000 civilians, who were forced to leave five Missouri counties, which became desolate and devoid of life. Displaying his unique, award-winning style, Mr. Petersen's book is meticulously researched, as demonstrated by thirty-five pages of references that include scores of newspaper accounts and military and governmental records.

Despite the fact that Mr. Petersen provided an extremely balanced and excellently documented account of the events that transpired--often utilizing documentation provided from the Yankees themselves that condemned the actions detailed--there has been a clique of individuals who have attempted to assassinate his character and credibility by making unsubstantiated and baseless accusations. This is a prime example of a tried and true method of trying to discredit the message by attacking the messenger. If you take the time to read carefully what these men/women write, you'll find that their allegations are weak and insubstantial and often verifiably false.

It has been over 150 years since this conflict began, yet to date, anyone who dares deviate in any way from the approved, slanted version of the Missouri-Kansas conflict will be labeled a "Confederate apologist" or worse. And liberal academia has not been innocent of this fault either. Some of those who mock the more balancing histories admit that history is written by the victors, who are seen by them in a more sanctified role than many of the true Yankee scoundrels we find in history. But these same people can never bring themselves to admit expressly just how the victors distort the histories, and their silence about these men, in essence, justifies their villainy. These Yankee apologists are unable to consider that the stories we have been taught for a century and a half about the "blessed boys in blue" just might not be 100 percent accurate. When they are confronted with the naked truth that Yankees soldiers committed huge numbers of atrocities in Missouri, destroyed the property and lives of innocent civilians, and violated and suspended their personal and constitutional rights, they suddenly and cynically subscribe to the worst Machiavellian logic to overturn these facts and interpretations.

Mr. Petersen has proven what the guerrillas and their relatives and supporters have known from the first: Colonel William Clarke Quantrill was an extremely successful and innovative military strategist, tactician, and a respected leader of men. But Quantrill, along with Stonewall Jackson, Nathan Bedford Forrest, and John Singleton Mosby, discovered that honorable wars could not be fought with dishonorable foes.

The book Quantrill at Lawrence is the best work on Quantrill and his involvement in the Missouri-Kansas border war, specifically focused on the Lawrence raid, because it is the best researched, most even- handed, utterly enjoyable presentation ever written on the subject. Moreover, it conforms to Abraham Lincoln's own injunction. He said: "History is not history unless it is the truth." Current, Northern-slanted histories on the raid on Lawrence, Kansas, are far from the final word on that subject. Books like Paul R. Petersen's are the catalyst that provides such an honest history and interpretation.

Patrick R Marquis ©  2011 Quantrillsguerrillas.com. "Permission should be requested and agreed to before using this copyrighted essay and or image."  

 

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