{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"Ask A Kansan","title":"The Legacy of Bleeding Kansas with Dr. Kristen Epps | Kansas Shaping America","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":2832,"description":"There was a time when what happened in Kansas was front page news on the east coast. This week, Sydney and Gus sit down with historian Dr. Kristen Epps, professor at Kansas State University and editor of Kansas History: A Journal of the Central Plains, to dig into Bleeding Kansas, the people slavery's expansion actually affected, and why the messy, complicated version of our state's story matters more than the tidy one. Kristen shares how she stumbled into Kansas history research, what it's really like editing an academic journal, and the wildest things she's found in dusty courthouse archives (John Brown's actual handwriting included). She also gives us a first look at her upcoming narrative history of Kansas, co-written with Jim Leiker, and reflects on resilience, reform movements, and why she finds hope in the next generation as the country marks its 250th anniversary. Plus, Sydney closes it out with an America 250-themed round of obscure Kansas facts covering everything from the Exodusters to ancient camels.\n\nHighlights\n\nKristen Epps introduces herself as an \"adopted Kansan\" and explains her path from the Pacific Northwest and Colorado to becoming a Kansas historian.\nShe edits Kansas History: A Journal of the Central Plains, a peer-reviewed publication jointly run by the Kansas Historical Society and K-State.\nHer book, Slavery on the Periphery, centers enslaved people's experiences rather than treating slavery as purely a political debate.\nA breakdown of what Bleeding Kansas actually was, including the Kansas-Nebraska Act, popular sovereignty, and the violence that followed.\nConfirmation that enslaved people did live in Kansas, including at the Shawnee Methodist Mission, Fort Scott, and Fort Leavenworth.\nResearch stories from the archives, including finding Abraham Lincoln's signature and reading John Brown's surprisingly ordinary letters.\nA preview of Kristen's upcoming narrative history of Kansas with co-author Jim Leiker, out in early 2027 from the...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/31uDhQmE-73zaqpWjXtwnyYffNMsUnDPiL6GtjTddEQ/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9mNzBm/YzFkNDBkODVjNGM2/MzMwMGViYjhmZTY4/Nzc0Mi5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}