The Origins of the MU-KU Rivalry - Concluding Thoughts

One man that rode with Quantrill in his youth wrote the following later in life, well after the war, “We are all now under one flag and have clasped hands with all true and honest men who opposed us in the unequal contest.  We are wiling to let bygones be bygones and remain as such.  I entertain a sacred respect for those that were honest in their convictions, but we still hold and will die with a death grip of hatred for the men who shed innocent blood and destroyed the home of my sainted father.”[1]

Just in case there was any doubt, this quote confirms that hate has been part of the Missouri-Kansas rivalry.  During the original Border War conflicts, innocents on both sides suffered unwarranted brutality and the death of loved ones, and viewed the perpetrators as evil.  While the series of articles I wrote focused on the jayhawkers (which seemed fair since they are the ones with a college team named after them), their Missouri bushwhacker counterparts committed their share of equally reprehensible acts. 

But, if there ever was a legitimate time for hate between Kansans and Missourians over the tragedies of the Border War era, it has passed.  The generations with first-hand experience of the suffering of that era have long ago passed away.  The animosity of Missourians toward Kansans should be tempered by the fact that the Civil War in Missouri would have been hell anyway, even had not a single Kansan crossed the state line.  Perhaps the bitterness of Kansans toward Missourians should be mollified by the fact that, over the course of the era and even considering the Lawrence Raid, the Kansans did unto the Missourians at least as much as the Missourians did unto them. 

Thankfully, the hate has largely subsided.  Today, Missourians and Kansas stand together as fellow citizens of America’s Heartland, blessed by the nation’s bounty, and living together in peace (for the most part).  We are much more alike than different.  I consider Kansans to be among America’s finest, and I count KU fans among my friends.  Yet, relatively subtle differences between at least some segments of the MU and KU fan bases persist, and those differences help to sustain a spirited edge to the rivalry.  Nowhere are those differences more evident than in the views of the opposing fans on the rivalry’s historical basis. 

Erik Ashel is the producer of the television documentary "Border War", which details the historic roots of the Kansas-Missouri rivalry.  Ashel writes, “This project has also opened my eyes to the viewpoints held by those east of the state line…Maybe it isn’t exactly the same history I learned at KU, but that doesn’t mean it’s not valid. Sometimes history is more about what you believe to have happened, and how it affects you, than it is about what actually did happen.”[2]

It is easy to understand why some KU fans would prefer “what you believe” over “what actually did happen”.  The myths (or at least select truths) behind the jayhawkers and redlegs are things Kansans and KU fans can feel good about.  The complete truth, well…not so much.  That is why, for as long as KU athletic teams are called the Jayhawks, there will likely always be some tension between MU and KU fans over the historical basis of the rivalry.  Some KU fans will continue to embrace the myth of the jayhawkers as noble freedom fighters.  MU fans will not forget the truth of the jayhawkers’ crimes against Missouri civilians. 

The rivalry lives on! 

Keith Piontek

November 2008

[1] Kimberlin, J.N.  The Kimberlins in the Sixties.  Confederate Veteran, Twentieth Year, Eleventh Number.  November, 1912.  Copy available at: http://www.bourlandcivilwar.com/Kimberlin.htm.

[2] Ashel, Erik.  Producer’s Comments on the documentary “Border War, The Rivalry Between Kansas & Missouri”.  http://www.kcondemand.com/IntouchNews-BorderWar.aspx