NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
[DATE]
[Insert your information here:
Local Project Director, Title and Organization
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Presentation Explores Civil War along Santa Fe Trail
[Community Name] – [Organization Name] in [Community Name] will host “The
Santa Fe Trail and the Civil War,” a presentation and discussion by Leo E. Oliva on
[Date] at [Time] at [Location and Address of Presentation]. Members of the
community are invited to attend the free program. Contact the [Host Organization
Name] at [Phone Number] for more information. The program is made possible by
the Kansas Humanities Council.
[List any details about local event here]
During the Civil War, events at both ends of the Santa Fe Trail contributed to the
war’s outcome while the Plains Indian Wars grew in intensity. This presentation will
introduce key conflicts along the Santa Fe Trail, including significant but largely
forgotten battles in New Mexico and the period of accelerated conflict that ended
with the destruction of Plains tribes as they had existed for over a century.
Leo Oliva is a historian with a research focus on 19th-century Kansas. He is the
author of Soldiers on the Santa Fe Trail, six books for the Kansas Fort Series, and a
founding member of the Santa Fe Trail Association and Fort Larned Old Guard.
“Few people know that important Civil War battles occurred west of the
Kansas/Missouri border. Kansas was a major cause of the war,” observed Oliva, “and
engagements on the Santa Fe Trail contributed to Union victory and destruction of
the Plains Indians.”
“The Santa Fe Trail and the Civil War” is part of the Kansas Humanities Council’s
Humanities Speakers Bureau, featuring presentations and discussions that examine
our shared human experience—our innovations, culture, heritage, and conflicts.
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The Kansas Humanities Council conducts and supports community-based programs,
serves as a financial resource through an active grant-making program, and
encourages Kansans to engage in the civic and cultural life of their communities. For
more information about KHC programs contact the Kansas Humanities Council at
785/357-0359 or visit online at www.kansashumanities.org.
For more information about “The Santa Fe Trail and the Civil War” in [Community]
contact the [Host Organization] at [Phone Number] or visit [Website].
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