What Is the Beecher Bible and Rifle Church?
This is the still-standing headquarters of the anti-slavery Beecher Rifle Colony!
What Makes It Historical?
When the Kansas-Nebraska Act passed in 1854, a big question on everyone’s mind was whether the new territory would be pro- or anti-slavery! Far to the east, in New Haven, Connecticut, Charles B. Lines organized the Connecticut Kansas Colony, who planned from the get-go to keep Kansas free by any means necessary. A preacher from Plymouth named Henry Beecher (brother of Harriet Beecher Stowe) helped them raise funds for their Sharps carbine rifles, and the plan was set to fight for freedom in Kansas!
After a month of travel by train and wagon, around 70 colonists reached Kansas and set up the tent city of Wabaunsee in April of 1856. By May, the first challenge popped up: pro-slavery forces sacked Lawrence, Kansas, and colonists from Wabaunsee organized into “The Prairie Guards.” They were armed with rifles smuggled in crates with bibles, which earned them the nickname “Beecher’s Bibles!” As the “Bleeding Kansas” period transitioned into a full-blown Civil War, the colonists turned their resources to building a church out of local limestone. They opened their Congregation church, which kept its Beecher moniker, on May 24, 1862 and made use of it all the way until the town’s decline in 1917!
How Can I #HelpTheHelpers?
- Volunteer with the Kansas Historical Society!
- Become a member of the Mount Mitchell Heritage Prairie!
- Be a responsible visitor! Please respect the signs and pathways, and treat all structures and artifacts with respect. They’ve endured a lot to survive into the present. They’ll need our help to make it into the future!
How Do I Get There?
SE corner of Elm St and Chapel St
Wabaunsee, KS 66547
(Take Me There!)
When Should I Visit?
Visit the outside any time you like! To schedule a tour, call (785) 617-1300 or (785) 456-9591!