The Past in Pieces: Tales of the Missouri-Kansas Border War Transistor (https://transistor.fm) https://feeds.transistor.fm/the-past-in-pieces-tales-of-the-missouri-kansas-border-war The Past in Pieces: Tales from the Missouri-Kansas Border War is a new narrative history podcast series created by students at the Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy at the University of Missouri. Each fifteen-minute episode explores an aspect of the nineteenth-century struggle over slavery in the Kansas-Missouri borderlands, where the Civil War began. Listeners encounter Jayhawkers, Bushwhackers, and ordinary families; moments of political crisis and personal tragedy; and stories of the harrowing violence that fell most heavily on civilians. The series also traces the first African American troops in combat and how their experiences reshaped the meaning of freedom. The pieces of each episode form a larger picture, like a puzzle coming together to reveal the full story of an era of American history that is more relevant than ever as we drift toward political violence in our own era today. © 2026 The Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy bec0e99b-dd57-5e6a-b016-84184e25d357 yes en Tue, 02 Jun 2026 08:00:32 -0500 Tue, 02 Jun 2026 08:35:54 -0500 https://democracy.missouri.edu/ https://img.transistorcdn.com/0AAPb6G6KvHNCK32S4lJRLtZ-2W_ydeWpy850iNdSgo/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:1400/h:1400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9hNzZm/Mjk3ZTczZWQxZjJh/YTZkNGE5OTZmYTNh/NTk5OC5qcGc.jpg The Past in Pieces: Tales of the Missouri-Kansas Border War https://democracy.missouri.edu/ episodic The Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy The Past in Pieces: Tales from the Missouri-Kansas Border War is a new narrative history podcast series created by students at the Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy at the University of Missouri. Each fifteen-minute episode explores an aspect of the nineteenth-century struggle over slavery in the Kansas-Missouri borderlands, where the Civil War began. Listeners encounter Jayhawkers, Bushwhackers, and ordinary families; moments of political crisis and personal tragedy; and stories of the harrowing violence that fell most heavily on civilians. The series also traces the first African American troops in combat and how their experiences reshaped the meaning of freedom. The pieces of each episode form a larger picture, like a puzzle coming together to reveal the full story of an era of American history that is more relevant than ever as we drift toward political violence in our own era today. The Past in Pieces: Tales from the Missouri-Kansas Border War is a new narrative history podcast series created by students at the Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy at the University of Missouri. Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy No No August Bondi: The Individual, the Ideology, & the Imprint 4 4 August Bondi: The Individual, the Ideology, & the Imprint full c9298754-ee23-4efc-9bc7-ebad2acd56a7 https://share.transistor.fm/s/cae6d67e There has been significant scholarship and widespread attention devoted to John Brown. But what about those who fought alongside him? This episode focuses on August Bondi, a Jewish man who was born in Europe and ended up in Kansas just in time for the Border War. An influential but largely unknown figure, August Bondi wanted his story to be told.

 

Written and narrated by Iliana Farrell

Recording Engineer: Liam Arnzen

Postproduction: Kyle Jackson

Theme song and music: Derrick Doty

Additional music: Kaitlin, Casey, Kyle

]]> There has been significant scholarship and widespread attention devoted to John Brown. But what about those who fought alongside him? This episode focuses on August Bondi, a Jewish man who was born in Europe and ended up in Kansas just in time for the Border War. An influential but largely unknown figure, August Bondi wanted his story to be told.

 

Written and narrated by Iliana Farrell

Recording Engineer: Liam Arnzen

Postproduction: Kyle Jackson

Theme song and music: Derrick Doty

Additional music: Kaitlin, Casey, Kyle

]]> Tue, 02 Jun 2026 08:00:00 -0500 The Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy The Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy 595 There has been significant scholarship and widespread attention devoted to John Brown. But what about those who fought alongside him? This episode focuses on August Bondi, a Jewish man who was born in Europe and ended up in Kansas just in time for the Border War. An influential but largely unknown figure, August Bondi wanted his story to be told.

 

Written and narrated by Iliana Farrell

Recording Engineer: Liam Arnzen

Postproduction: Kyle Jackson

Theme song and music: Derrick Doty

Additional music: Kaitlin, Casey, Kyle

]]> No Counteract the Effect: The Shortcoming of Benjamin Franklin Stringfellow 3 3 Counteract the Effect: The Shortcoming of Benjamin Franklin Stringfellow full 1c00ae9f-af38-4515-a98f-234562bd3c19 https://share.transistor.fm/s/4fa61b8f The Missouri-Kansas border war is typically remembered through the figureheads of the conflict. The sacking of Lawrence, carried out by William Quantrill and his Confederate guerrillas, General Order No. 11, facilitated by the U.S. government, and those who have become legends posthumously, such as Jesse James or 'Bloody' Bill Anderson, are among its most iconic moments and individuals. However, many major players have been lost to the pages of history. Benjamin Franklin Stringfellow is one of them—and one of the greatest losers of the war. Stringfellow's story is crucial to demonstrating not only the push that pro-slavery advocates made into Kansas, but also the effort it took for those in Kansas to reject the institution of slavery.

 

Written and narrated by Colin Kavanaugh

Recording Engineer: Liam Arnzen

Postproduction: Kyle Jackson

Theme song and music: Derrick Doty

Additional music: Kaitlin, Casey, Kyle

]]> The Missouri-Kansas border war is typically remembered through the figureheads of the conflict. The sacking of Lawrence, carried out by William Quantrill and his Confederate guerrillas, General Order No. 11, facilitated by the U.S. government, and those who have become legends posthumously, such as Jesse James or 'Bloody' Bill Anderson, are among its most iconic moments and individuals. However, many major players have been lost to the pages of history. Benjamin Franklin Stringfellow is one of them—and one of the greatest losers of the war. Stringfellow's story is crucial to demonstrating not only the push that pro-slavery advocates made into Kansas, but also the effort it took for those in Kansas to reject the institution of slavery.

 

Written and narrated by Colin Kavanaugh

Recording Engineer: Liam Arnzen

Postproduction: Kyle Jackson

Theme song and music: Derrick Doty

Additional music: Kaitlin, Casey, Kyle

]]> Tue, 02 Jun 2026 08:00:00 -0500 The Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy The Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy 744 The Missouri-Kansas border war is typically remembered through the figureheads of the conflict. The sacking of Lawrence, carried out by William Quantrill and his Confederate guerrillas, General Order No. 11, facilitated by the U.S. government, and those who have become legends posthumously, such as Jesse James or 'Bloody' Bill Anderson, are among its most iconic moments and individuals. However, many major players have been lost to the pages of history. Benjamin Franklin Stringfellow is one of them—and one of the greatest losers of the war. Stringfellow's story is crucial to demonstrating not only the push that pro-slavery advocates made into Kansas, but also the effort it took for those in Kansas to reject the institution of slavery.

 

Written and narrated by Colin Kavanaugh

Recording Engineer: Liam Arnzen

Postproduction: Kyle Jackson

Theme song and music: Derrick Doty

Additional music: Kaitlin, Casey, Kyle

]]> No Black Boots on the Ground: African American Experiences During the Border War 2 2 Black Boots on the Ground: African American Experiences During the Border War full 4a15697b-0700-4b1c-a303-298139c197c4 https://share.transistor.fm/s/718a1d78 In this episode, we follow the journey of a Black man named George Washington, who escaped slavery in Missouri. After crossing into the Kansas Territory, Washington became one of the first Black soldiers to fight in the Civil War. His story leads us to the First Kansas Colored Infantry, the first Black Union regiment to see combat in the conflict. 

 

Written and narrated by Asia Smith

Recording Engineer: Liam Arnzen

Postproduction: Kyle Jackson

Theme song and music: Derrick Doty

Additional music: Kaitlin, Casey, Kyle

]]> In this episode, we follow the journey of a Black man named George Washington, who escaped slavery in Missouri. After crossing into the Kansas Territory, Washington became one of the first Black soldiers to fight in the Civil War. His story leads us to the First Kansas Colored Infantry, the first Black Union regiment to see combat in the conflict. 

 

Written and narrated by Asia Smith

Recording Engineer: Liam Arnzen

Postproduction: Kyle Jackson

Theme song and music: Derrick Doty

Additional music: Kaitlin, Casey, Kyle

]]> Tue, 02 Jun 2026 08:00:00 -0500 The Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy The Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy 700 In this episode, we follow the journey of a Black man named George Washington, who escaped slavery in Missouri. After crossing into the Kansas Territory, Washington became one of the first Black soldiers to fight in the Civil War. His story leads us to the First Kansas Colored Infantry, the first Black Union regiment to see combat in the conflict. 

 

Written and narrated by Asia Smith

Recording Engineer: Liam Arnzen

Postproduction: Kyle Jackson

Theme song and music: Derrick Doty

Additional music: Kaitlin, Casey, Kyle

]]> No Teaser: The Past in Pieces 1 1 Teaser: The Past in Pieces full 6d7ddde2-1ec5-45a7-b53d-49a739e25e39 https://share.transistor.fm/s/f72e1d6d Wed, 15 Apr 2026 11:30:51 -0500 The Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy The Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy 67 No