Reprint of Richard Cordley's 1895 book on the founding of Lawrence, Kansas, and Quantrill's Raid of August 21, 1863. New edition includes an editor's introduction, photos added from the Library of Congress, recent photos taken in Lawrence and Lecompton, recent articles on the Eldridge Hotel and the House Building, and a comprehensive index (the original lacked an index).

With its skyline dominated by the campus of the University of Kansas, the history of Lawrence cannot be divorced from the history of the academy, its influence, and impact. The history of any town, however, is much more than the story of one institution or issue. Lawrence is also a river town, located in an agriculturally rich valley, and Massachusetts Street, its main commercial street, harkens back to its mid-19th century New England origins and influences. Lawrence is also a place of diversity and change, a community where space is contested and disparate opinions make for vital public discourse.