“War Upon Our Border‪”‬

During the American Civil War, guerrilla raids, military operations, economic hardships, political turmoil, and racial tensions upset the status quo of communities situated along the Ohio River border. This dissertation compares the wartime experiences of two border towns – Frankfort, Kentucky and Corydon, Indiana. These communities shared a legacy of white settlement and a distinct western identity, which fostered unity and emphasized cooperation during the first year of the war. However, the exigencies of war and the eventual demise of slavery in Kentucky divided citizens living on either side of the river border, including the people of Corydon and Frankfort. The Ohio River border was a cohesive economic and social unit at the beginning of the war, even though the river served as the legal boundary for slavery. Prominent Unionist citizens in both Corydon and Frankfort galvanized political support by strengthening connections with like-minded citizens throughout the river valley. The majority of white Unionists in the two towns believed that they could maintain peace by negating the radical notions of abolition and secession. Although white citizens in both places agreed on the importance of white supremacy to maintaining the stability of their respective communities, the Union government’s evolving policy on slavery, which culminated in the Emancipation Proclamation, ultimately strained the relationship between Unionists in southern Indiana and Kentucky. By the end of the war, Corydon’s residents had suffered devastation from raids and guerrilla violence, all emanating from Kentucky. Frankfort was engulfed in anti-government sentiment, guerrilla violence, and local resistance to the inevitable end of slavery in the state. The demise of slavery in Kentucky challenged white supremacy, while in southern Indiana most citizens welcomed the end of slavery if it meant an end to the war. Emancipation, violence, and material loss forged separate wartime experiences for the people of Corydon and Frankfort, causing them to, over the course of the war, come to view the Ohio River as a boundary between two societies, one northern and one southern.