LAWRENCE, Kan. — After years of Border Showdowns and debates on which Kansas City is the “better” Kansas City, historians say, the rivalry between Kansas and Missouri runs much deeper than sports and bragging rights.
House divided: Leawood family lays down rules ahead of Kansas and Mizzou game
The Kansas-Missouri rivalry dates all the way back to the 1850s during the Bleeding Kansas conflict.
The Kansas-Nebraska act allowed new territories the right of popular vote to decide if they wanted to allow slavery or not.
Lawrence became a town in Kansas territory in 1854 where it became a home for a lot of free state and abolitionist activity. It became home to part of the anti-slavery movement and home of the Jayhawkers. Over in Columbia, it was home to a militia called the Tigers…